Tempura Night

By Andrew Hunter
For The Family Table, a blog for busy families

One of the boys’ favorite dinners in Tokyo was an all-you-can-fry-and-eat tempura house … with a chocolate fountain for dessert, no less. Ben and Nick were more excited about the do-it-yourself dining than the menu.

After choosing skewers of chicken, beef, salmon, scallops, mushrooms, onions, potatoes and other deep fry-able treats, we dipped our fancy into bowls of ice cold tempura batter then into little cauldrons of hot fat nestled in the table tops. It’s the kind of place one should only ever go on vacation because otherwise it would form a calorie-heavy addiction.

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Mother’s Day Breakfast

By Marilyn Hunter
For The Family Table, a blog for busy families

I remember the first time I delivered a breakfast tray to my mom on Mother’s Day morning. I couldn’t have been more than eight years old. I don’t recall what I made, though I’m sure it was something simple. It certainly wasn’t a fancy tray of food, nor a gourmet one, but what I lacked in skill, I made up for in effort. I couldn’t remember ever seeing mom so happy.

Many years later, now a mom myself, I must admit I’m overjoyed to see my boys go out of their way to do the same.

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Fruit Fools

By Lori Powell
For One or Two Bites, a blog for singles and couples

Fruit, in all of their glorious colors and flavors, are showing up in the market right now, including the first of the season’s strawberries and blueberries.

One of the easiest and quickest desserts that I know of is a fool, an English dessert that is usually made by pureeing fruit and folding it into freshly whipped cream. A fool is simple and quick enough to make for one, or if company is coming, it can be made at the last minute with just three ingredients on hand.

I happened to have an overripe mango, which is perfect for pureeing, so I was inspired to make the recipe below. Instead of the whipped cream I decided to healthy it up and use Greek yogurt which will give you a rich, thick mouthfeel as cream would have, plus the added nutritional benefits of yogurt.

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Breakfast? Make Mine Sweet!

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

Throughout my life, I’ve noticed there are two types of people: those who like a savory breakfast and those who like a sweet one. And while I’ve met far more that prefer savory, I’m proud to say I’m in the sweet minority.

That hit of sugary richness is a boost to my morning, and the way I see it, if I eat sweets in the morning, I have all day to burn off all that sugar by the end of the day; it keeps me from binging on a giant slice of cake in the afternoon.

In actuality, most times my breakfast is a slice of cake. But these muffins are as close to cake as one can get while still feeling less indulgent than consuming traditional cake. And they’re mini so you can have a two or eight and it’s still better than cake.

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Shortbread – the Best Cookie in the World

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

I’ve been on a cookie tear recently, and it’s reminded me just how much I love shortbread. It’s arguably the best cookie in the world, especially when made with the very best ingredients. Butter, sugar and flour, that’s it, and each has to be of the highest quality to shine.

The way I like to jazz up shortbread is by simply adding spices to it and treating it like an eating utensil for ice cream. Cardamom Shortbread Cookies is inspired by ginger crunch cookies from New Zealand, one my favorites. I add cardamom and ginger to the basic shortbread dough and then add a touch of sea salt on top. This headily spiced cookie is the perfect foil for vanilla ice cream, but would also pair well with chocolate, strawberry or any classic, mellow ice cream flavor.

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