The Balanced Kitchen

Time for food. Time for Life.

My Favorite Summer Picnic Recipes

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This morning, as I was driving home after dropping my kids off at school, I heard an interview with Samin Nosrat who just wrote a book called Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat*, which I am SUPER excited to read (just got it for my birthday, woo hoo!). In the interview she was recounting a memory from her childhood in San Diego of coming out of the ocean after hours of swimming, ravenous and then greeted by her mother’s perfect beach snack—cucumbers and feta wrapped in lavash bread with frozen grapes or watermelon slices on the side. As I listened to her recount this wonderful, summer memory, I was myself taken back to my own favorite beach meal memories from childhood. How amazing those sandwiches my parents made tasted, even with the sand mixed in, how sweet and juicy the fruit seemed to be, and also how those meals shared over a towel on the sand always felt so special.

So in honor of Memorial Day Weekend and the official start of summer, I thought I would share some of my favorite summer picnic foods:

Flexible Granola Bar

Simple Grain Salad

Savory Zucchini-Corn Muffins

Simple Roasted Chicken and Vegetable Medley Sandwiches

Smoke Salmon Frittata

Roasted Summer Vegetable Dip

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Mexican Street Corn-Style Popcorn

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Popcorn is a go-to snack in our house. In part because it is a healthier snack option, in part because it is a cost-effective and simple snack solution when you’ve got increasingly hungry kids to feed, but if I am being honest, it is really mostly because I looooove popcorn and so I make it for me just as much as I make it for the kids.

Over the years I have experimented with lots of different toppings: garam masala, za’atar, chili powder, cinnamon, parmesan, and nutritional yeast are some of my favorites. But in honor of Cinco de Mayo this year I wanted to push the envelope and try something different: Mexican Street Corn-Style Popcorn….

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Potato Skin Crisps and 4 Easy Ways to Reduce Food Waste

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This month’s The Recipe Redux challenge is one that is near and dear to my heart (and actually a topic that you may have heard me talk about before):

In honor of Earth Day on April 22, we’re challenging ReDux members to show how they reduce food waste. Whatever you would normally toss, use it up. Share tips for reducing food waste in meal planning, prep or using up scraps.

There are so many reasons, from environmental to financial, why reducing food waste is a great goal and if I am being totally honest, it is an area that is still a work in progress for me. While I almost never let cooked food go to waste, I struggle with what to do with all of my vegetable scraps since I don’t have a yard big enough for a compost bin. Some of them I store in gallon-sized freezer bags to use when I make vegetable or chicken broth, but often times those bags (yes, there is more than one) reach capacity and so then I end up tossing peels, ends, and cores—and feeling guilty about it every time. Not very productive, I know.

So, if you are like me and throwing food away makes you crazy, here are some ways to at least start reducing food waste that have worked for me. And, please, please, please share your tips and tricks in the comments so we all can benefit!…

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Beet Rosemary Muffins

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We’re not big Valentine’s Day people in our household. One of the first times my husband and I ever really hung out was at an anti-Valentine’s gathering. But I’m a sucker for special meals on special days… so since I am on a big beet kick right now I couldn’t let the holiday go by without a red-themed recipe and this one is a keeper!…

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The Best Nut Free Snack Mix and A Dietitian’s Tips to Help You Navigate Food Allergies

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I am so excited, you guys! Today I am bringing you something new on my blog: my first ever guest post! And it is a great one! Today I am introducing you to my friend, Chelsey Amer at C it Nutritionally. She is here sharing important and super-manageable information on navigating food allergies. This is essential information for all of us, even if we don’t have food allergies ourselves, as we are guaranteed to have friends or family members who do….

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Cheesy Broccoli Tots

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“By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Kikkoman and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.”

I have a confession to make: I hate tater tots. Maybe it is because I never tasted one until I was in my late 20s and so I don’t have any sentimental attachment, but to me they just taste like clumps of sad, soggy, kind of greasy, overly salted French fries. I just don’t get the appeal. And yet, when I started seeing recipes for vegetable tots floating around I was curiously intrigued. I loved the idea of small nuggets of vegetables that could be made to go along with a meal, could be a new spin on vegetables in the lunch box, or could be a fun new snack option, so I started experimenting to see what would work well, because more than anything I didn’t want to end up with a tater tot equivalent that would leave me feeling bummed out and disappointed.

And I have to say, I think that the idea resonated with some of you as well! As I have started posting my weekly meal plans (new in 2017! If you don’t follow me on Facebook yet, I’d love to have you join in the fun!) people have noticed the veggie tots listed and have asked about them more than any other dish. I guess it is a sign!…

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4 Ways to Make Trying Something New a Success (with Kids or Yourself)

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Each Monday I teach a cooking class to a group of first through fourth graders at a local school. The focus of the class is on cooking healthy snacks and goodies, but it is also a way for me to start to teach them some fundamental cooking skills and concepts. This week I wanted to work with them on the idea of building flavor. So we started with a common ingredient, yogurt, and then made two sauces from it, one that was savory (tzatziki) and one that was sweet (honey, cinnamon, and vanilla).

Many (most) of the students were very skeptical about either one or both of the sauces and a few declared that it was going to be disgusting and that they wouldn’t eat them. I calmly reminded the students to please choose their words carefully (we have a rule in the class, “don’t yuck someone else’s yum”) and I asked that everyone try at least a tiny bit of each, even if it was just a lick. Some were nervous, but everyone agreed. So when it came time to try the two sauces I went around and put a tiny bit on each kid’s plate (less than 1/8 of a teaspoon). They had apples, carrots, and pretzels to dip in the sauces. And this is where some really cool things happened….

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