Healthy Hestia: Avocado Baked Egg

Hey everyone!  I’m back, just like I said I would be!  I can’t believe it myself!  Haha, but it is good to get back into blogging.  I really want to establish a routine, and not neglect this thing so much.

So today I am going to chronicle my attempt (successful) at preparing an avocado baked egg.  This is a simple and HEALTHY recipe.  I put ‘healthy’ in all caps because there are some recipes on this blog that I would not label as healthy.  This doesn’t mean they aren’t good, but like I stated in my previous entry, I would like to explore more healthy recipes.

I want to make it easy for visitors to my blog to find these healthy recipes, so from here on out I will label healthy recipe entries with “Healthy Hestia” tag.  This will be my nutritionally sound blog alter-ego!

Avocado baked egg sprinkled with garlic salt and black and cayenne pepper

Blueberry Cobbler

INTRO

When I heard my mom had invited company over for dinner, I immediately offered to help out and make the dessert.  And given the fact that there were 3 containers of fresh blueberries in the fridge, I knew they would have to be utilized in whatever I made.

My mom suggested that I do a cold custard blueberry tart.  This sounded good to me, but I was in the mood for something more basic, simple, and less time-consuming to make (I had plans to spend the afternoon at the pool).

Cobbler quickly came to mind as not 24 hours before I’d seen a great blueberry cobbler recipe on Pinterest.  It was from a blog called “No. 2 Pencil” for Grandma Bea’s Blueberry Cobbler.  It looked fantastic.  I loved the simplicity of the ingredients, and there is something so quintessentially “American Summer” about a blueberry cobbler.

Broiled Grapefruit

INTRO

Lately I’ve seen a lot of posts on Pinterest and other websites for recipes for broiled grapefruit. Apparently broiling grapefruit is not a new thing, but I had never thought of doing it. I love grapefruit, and eat it often. I usually peel it like an orange and eat it that way. But I was curious to see how I’d like it broiled.

And it is a super easy recipe!

Bread Pakoras with Cilantro Chutney

Intro

Hey guys!  (Or whoever reads this blog)

I am so tired.  Between work, training for a half-marathon I’m doing at the end of the month, various side-projects, and wasting hours on Pinterest, I find myself pressed for time.  I am sorry to say that I put updating this blog on the back-burner, so if ever it seems like I might have disappeared for a bit, rest assured I’ll be back.

Anyway, enough of that nonsense!  Let’s talk bread pakoras.

Apfelkuchen

INTRO

Over the summer I read a book called “Confections of a Closet Master Baker” by Gesine Bullock Prado–the sister of the acclaimed actress Sandra Bullock.

The book (which is memoir) focuses on Gesine’s transition from a career as a producer in Hollywood to leaving it all behind in order to open a bakery in a small town in Vermont.  Each chapter in the book starts with a recipe of a baked good that either is a personal favorite of Gesine’s, or something that is a popular item at her bakery.

One of the recipes that jumped out to me was the recipe for her German grandmother’s apfelkuchen (apple cake).  Gesine’s mother was a German opera singer (her dad is American), and as her mother was from Germany, she naturally had ties to the country and spent a lot of time their as a small child, and then later as a young adult.

Valentine’s Day Dessert: Heart-Shapped Nutella Tarts with Rosewater Icing

Happy Valentine’s Day!

And happy Unhappy Valentine’s Day for all of you who are feeling kinda screwed by love, or those of you who just can’t stand yet another commercialized holiday being shoved down your throat by corporate America!

In any event, get over it!  Lol.  Though I find Valentine’s Day rather annoying most of the time, I am very fond of pink and I love cartoon heart-shaped things (not things in the shape of an actual heart).  So I thought I’d make something special for a day dedicated to:

Valentine’s Day Dinner: Heart-Shaped Pizzas

INTRO
It is popular to go out for dinner on Valentine’s Day, but it can be just as fun/romantic to stay home and make your date dinner!  Don’t have a date?  Who cares!  I think it’s sad that Valentine’s Day is so focused on romantic love (eros), when there are so many other manifestations of love.

There is the love between friends (phileo), the affection of family (storage), and my favorite type of love: the unconditional, selfless kind of love that is devoid of greed (agape).  But enough of this review of Greek words for love!  Onto the food…

Heart-Shaped Pizzas

Heart shaped pizzas: 4 cheese Italian blend w/ricotta and olives, 1 with no olives