Category Archives: belle-icious

put to the test…a belle-ringin’ salad

05 Friday Aug 2016

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We included this Halloumi, Peach and Cherry salad in our belle-ringers…round 63 a couple of weeks ago and decided it was worthy of an immediate taste-test.  We gathered our cherries, peaches, cheese and arugula and got to work…


we did our choppin’ of the cherries and peaches


we did our slicin’ of the Halloumi 

BTW…if you have never tossed this delectable cheese in a skillet before, you MUST give it a try!!  Our dear friend (and enviable gastronome), Cathy, introduced us to Halloumi years ago…and we haven’t forgotten it!  We get it at our local middle-eastern grocery, Pita House.  Traditionally made from sheep or goat’s milk (check the label for those who can’t have cow’s milk just to be sure), it has a high melting point…meaning it can be grilled or fried with belle-ringin’ results!

the cherries and peaches then get tossed in a skillet with a touch of butter


and the cheese slices go in a skillet to brown


Toss it all with the pre-dressed (with olive oil and lemon juice) arugula and you have the finished product.  Belleicious!!

Impressive yet surprisingly quick and easy, this one will be making a repeat appearance!

a&a

a salad to beat the heat…simple, cool belleiciousness

29 Friday Jul 2016

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Needing something cool and yummy…and healthy to boot?  We gotcha covered!  Check out this bit of belleiciousness…

Sriracha-Lime Corn Salad from Food 52

Here’s what you will need:


3 ears of summer corn, sliced off the cobs

1 red bell pepper, chopped, and 1/4 cup chopped parsley

Lime for squeezing

You will also need olive oil, sriracha, and Cotija cheese


This corn salad can be used as way more than a salad. Try it as a salsa, a condiment for meat, chicken or seafood, over pasta or as a side.  It’s a multi-tasking no-brainer favorite. It only requires a few ingredients and yet the pay-off is huge.

Be forewarned , the first time we made it we, maxed out the siracha and it was a tad hot for the general public. So go easy at first as you can always add more. 

Find the full printable recipe here

Keep cool, belles!
a&a

simple summer supper…belleicious

22 Friday Jul 2016

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With lots of travel and a complete lack of schedule in the summer…we struggle to find the time to prepare an entire meal!  Sound familiar?  Thought so.

But with all that travel, sometimes we just crave home-cooked, simple comfort food.  After one belle returned from a recent adventure, she pulled out a couple of old, easy standbys.  Thought we would share for a bit of inspiration…

BBQ Chicken Sliders and Summer Succotash (with a little kick)


The chicken, prepared in the slow-cooker, is just about the easiest thing imaginable:


Belleicious Crockpot Chicken Barbecue 

(similar to this version from Family Fresh Meals)

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 cups of your favorite barbecue sauce (or try our homemade sauce)

2 T worcestershire 

Place chicken in crockpot and season well with salt and pepper.  Pour bbq sauce and worcestershire over chicken and toss to coat.  Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.  Remove chicken from pot and shred with two forks.  Return chicken to sauce, stir to coat, and allow to warm in the crockpot until ready to serve.

Done!!

Serve alone or as a slider or full sandwich with extra sauce…and if you want to do it up right, add some coleslaw.  Belleicious!!

Summer Succotash with a kick

(Loosely adapted from this FoodNetwork recipe and inspired by our friend, Cathy, ages ago!!)

2 cups corn kernels

2 cups baby lima beans

2 cups cut okra

2-3 tomatoes, chopped

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T butter

1 T olive oil

1 T kosher salt

1 t sugar

Fresh ground black pepper

Heat oil and butter in heavy saucepan or large skillet.  Add jalapeño, onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt, and sauté until soft.  Add corn, stir and cover.  Allow to simmer/steam 5-10 minutes until slightly tender.  Add lima beans, okra, sugar and a couple tablespoons water.  Stir well and cover again.  Allow to simmer another 20-30 minutes until all veggies are tender. Adjust salt if needed and add tomato.  Grind pepper on top.  Stir.  Serve!

Easy, peasy belleiciousness!

a&a

a super-Tuscan dinner…belle-icious inspiration

15 Friday Jul 2016

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While traveling in Italy this week, we realized that it was much more fun to gather ingredients (fresh pastas, tomatoes, bread…) and wine (LOTS of wine) throughout the day for our evening meals at our villa than to sit in restaurants at the mercy of the server, chef, and fellow patrons. (Twelve southerners can get a bit rowdy…just sayin’). We had our own “chef” among us…and plenty of “help”- (a person in charge of music, someone watching the wine, a salad tosser…you get the picture).

Our “event-planner in residenza” (from The Party Girl Events…with us by coincidence)  would set the scene…


And each evening, we would start with an antipasto platter, filled with local fare…

…then our gastronome would work his magic in the kitchen!

This particular evening, “Chef John” decided a bit of veal scallopini with pasta al pomodoro and ensalada verde would hit the spot. And did it ever!!

Check out the finished product:

the entire spread…pasta, veal, salad, bread

if only this were “scratch-n-sniff” so you could get a whiff of the garlic!  (Check out this pomodoro sauce from Bon Appetit)

the veal…lightly breaded, pan sautéed and oh-so- tender…loaded with capers, mushrooms and lemon (very similar to this recipe from Epicurious)

the salad with arugula and maché, dressed with a garlic vinaigrette (try this one from Martha Stewart if you aren’t comfortable “wingin’ it”)

a very happy belle’s plate!

But just remember…this fun can be had any old Saturday night after a visit to your local farmers market and a quick phone call to ten of your closest friends. When guests show up, give them a job, pour the wine, and see where the evening takes you!

Buona apetite!!

a&a

belleicious bruschetta…savoring summer

08 Friday Jul 2016

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We mentioned this Half Baked Harvest belleiciousness…

a few days ago…but thought we would share our success in the “test kitchen” with our “test audience” (as in family and friends who are happy to be brutally honest) over the holiday weekend. 
We chose three varieties (with slight tweaks, ’cause that’s how we roll) of the six incredibly creative crostini options…(and we chose to use larger, tasty bruschette to make things less tedious)…

Bruschetta no. 1:


Crusty sourdough topped with goat cheese, sliced cherries, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, and salt & pepper
Bruschetta no. 2:


Crusty sourdough topped with fig preserves, buffalo mozzarella, sliced figs, basil, and salt & pepper 
Bruschetta no. 3:


A slightly more traditional bruschetta of crusty sourdough topped with smashed avocado, feta, grape tomatoes, basil, and salt & pepper
All together now…


Almost impossible to choose a favorite!  Give ’em a try and let us know what you think!!

a&a

a cool salad for the sizzling summer…

01 Friday Jul 2016

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We love it when we run across something a little different in the salad “arena”.  While we wing it with green salads and our old stand-by’s, it’s exciting to change it up a bit!  Here’s one we found and tried last week…to RAVE reviews!!  

The perfect addition to the July 4th picnic (and a great way to use those little tomatoes popping up in gardens everywhere!!), try now & thank us later!

from cooking classy on pinterest


Asparagus, Tomato and Feta Salad

the ingredients:

2 lbs fresh asparagus, chopped into 1″ pieces and blanched

1 lb grape or cherry tomatoes, quartered

6 T champagne vinegar

2 t lemon juice

1/4 c olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt, pepper

2/3 c chopped walnuts, toasted

4 oz feta cheese

the assembly:

Once asparagus is blanched & cooled and tomatoes are chopped, prepare your dressing using the vinegar, lemon juice, oil, garlic, and salt & pepper to taste.  Toss tomatoes and asparagus with dressing and allow to sit in fridge until ready to serve (can be done up to a couple of hours in advance).  When ready to serve, add the toasted walnuts and feta.  Toss to coat, and serve away!!

Belleicious!!

a&a

belles are jammin! 

03 Friday Jun 2016

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Belles are foodies and love to cook, but we also love food finds that make our lives easier and tastier. We discovered this delectable concoction. 
  

Via Amazon 

We served it over cream cheese alongside a variety of crackers.  Celery would be a great low-carb option. Let us tell you…it was inhaled. 

It is the perfect item to have for impromptu gatherings. 

We also like the idea of jazzing up our grilled chicken with it or as a condiment with shrimp. The options are endless!

Belle-icious!
a&a

a shout-out to one of our favorite food blogs…your Friday friend-1-1

27 Friday May 2016

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 Cookingwithawallflower is an absolutely beautiful food blog. The photography is gorgeous, the recipes are always fresh and tantalizing, and her writing intrigues you to dig deeper and get lost in her food adventures. 

Here are three of our favorite recipes…

  
Via Cookingwithawallflower

Gnocchi in sriracha tomato sauce
  
Via Cookingwithawallflower

Crispy truffle fries with fresh herbs

  
Via Cookingwithawallflower

Meyer lemon citrus bars
Belles love a good food blog…just sayin’

a&a

what’s ringin’ our belle…round 54

17 Tuesday May 2016

Posted by in belle of the ball, belle-icious, what's ringin' our belle

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Ringin’ belles this week…

  

Via Theminimalistbaker

Refreshing, and thirst quenching.. A new twist on the Margarita…
  
Via Thekitchn

As y’all may have noticed from our belle-ringin’ cheeseboard post we have embraced the honeycomb. It’s time y’all did too.  Here are some delectable ways to have fun and add flavor . 

  
Via Pinterest 

Mind over matter. Meditate belles.

  
Via Pinterest 

  
Via Pinterest 

Maybe we will meditate about this Thai noodle bowl

  
Via Pinterest 

When coffee isn’t enough.. Try these Six things that will give you energy…

  
Via Amazon

A Fun read

Ring-a-ling!!
a&a

gettin’ salty…a belle-icious discovery

12 Thursday May 2016

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We were recently introduced by a dear sister-belle to a belle-ringin’ line of culinary products that we just HAD to share (again…’cause sharin’s what we are all about).

Meet Beautiful Briny Sea and their amazing line of “artisan dry goods”…

  

Based in Atlanta, Beautiful Briny Sea makes their products as “close to the earth” as possible…focusing on local, sustainable ingredients. To quote them, “From start to finish our products are 100% handmade.”  Now that’s impressive!!

 

from Beautiful Briny Sea

 
And the Beautiful Briny Sea folks have a sense of humor…which is a major bonus in our book!  With flavor names like “Magic Unicorn” and “Hot Steve“, we get to giggle while we cook. (gigglin’ makes a belle happy!)

from Beautiful Briny Sea

Speaking of giggles, they even have a hibiscus-flavored sugar called “Mr. Gigglepants“! 

  

 Just imagine sugar cookies, cupcakes, or ice cream sprinkled with this happy deliciousness!

Just brings a smile to our faces. We suspect it will work the same for you!!

a&a