I'm back!

We had a great time in Seattle, and have been recovering and trying to get back into the groove (if there is a groove to summer!)  I can't believe its been a week and a half since I've posted anything.  I'm probably going to do 2 posts today.  I've done some great cooking, and my son has really been into wanting to cook and make meals.  So, I'll post some of my stuff, then I'll do his science and cooking activities for the week.

On July 4th, we went to a friend's house and enjoyed BBQ, beer, wine and fireworks.  I brought a salad and blueberry pie.  My salad was going before my husband got any, and the blueberry pie was gone pretty quickly too.  I have to say, the pie crust was a difficult one to roll out, but it was delicious.  I want to try the recipe again to see if I learned anything the first time!  Before I do that though, I am going to try a different recipe for the crust.  I love The Pioneer Woman, as you know if you read this blog with any frequency.  The crust from her blog was hard to roll and shape.  I froze it over night and it took a long time to thaw.  In my experience with apple pie, I like the crusts like the one from Cook's Illustrated (they have my all-time favorite apple pie crust too) where they use shortening and butter.  I'll have to make the Cook's Illustrated recipe soon and let you know my thoughts.

Here's the salad:

Strawberry Spinach Salad:

Spinach, washed and drained

1 pint strawberries, washed and drained and quartered (stems removed)

2 tbsp. goat cheese, crumbled 

1/3 cup toasted almonds

for dressing:

1 cup olive oil

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

1-2 tbsp. honey

Wash and drain salad ingredients.  Combine in large bowl

Mix together olive oil and vinegar, then add 1 tbsp. honey.  Shake in dressing shaker or wisk in small bowl.  If you want a little more sweetness, add more honey. 

Enjoy!

Have you tried any new summer recipes?