Red, White, and Blueberry Tart

The Fourth of July weekend is finally here...

I don't know about you, but I am definitely looking forward to a little time away from work for some fun in the sun and the chance to get to eat my favorite All-American summer foods.  Plus, my sister is coming to visit, the weather will be in the mid-to-high eighties (which means lots of pool and beach time) and I capped off this week with an appearance on Channel 6, San Diego Living.  It was my first time on live TV and I had so much fun doing a live cooking demo of a Red, White, and Blueberry Tart for the Fourth of July.  Since it was right before the holiday weekend, it was the perfect time to share a classic red, white, and blue dessert recipe like this tart.  I know some people that are local to San Diego already tuned in live yesterday morning, but you can watch the clip here!  

I want to send a big thank you to the great people at San Diego Living for inviting me on the show, and if you haven't watched before, definitely visit their website.  When I was there on Friday, they also had fantastic segments from SD Bargain Mama about how to save money on summer family fun, as well as a cool makeup artist and beauty consultant with great summer looks.  All the videos are right on their homepage so you can easily scroll through and view them all!

Ok, now let me quickly tell you a little more about this fantastic Red, White, and Blueberry Tart - the crust is made from homemade sweet tart dough, which is also known by the fancy french name of 'pate sucree,' although there is really nothing fancy or complicated about making this.  I have made this dough at least 4-5 times now, and it is fool-proof - it turns out perfectly every time.  Plus it is quick to make.  With a food processor, you can have it ready and chilling in the fridge in under five minutes.  I promise.  

Once the sweet tart crust is baked, the "Red" layer comes from sliced fresh strawberries topped with sweet summer strawberry preserves.  As I mentioned in my last post, I think you get the most authentic strawberry taste when you make the preserves at home, but store-bought preserves also work great for this recipe.  The fresh berries with the preserves provide a great textural element as well as sweet taste. 

Easy Herbed Yogurt Dip, and another Chobani Greek Yogurt Giveaway

Lately I have been craving healthy food.  

I don't know if I overdid it with birthday celebrations last month, or if I indulged in one too many brownies, but overall I need to lighten my load.  In case you don't catch my drift, what I am really saying is I think I need to shed a few pounds.  I used to be an avid runner, working out at least 4 times a week, and I felt fit and full of energy.  When I worked out regularly, I could eat whatever I wanted - cakes, chocolate, ice cream - and not really feel any guilt because I knew I would easily burn off those indulgent calories.  But with workouts on the decline and sweet treats on the rise, I don't feel fit, I don't have as much energy, and I don't like it one bit.  

Time to whip myself into shape and get back the healthy balance that I loved.     

I don't know how you do it, but when I really want to overhaul my eating, I turn to a plant-based diet.  I generally love all vegetables, but they take center stage when I want something healthy.  Unfortunately, I wasn't born with a cute pink nose and two floppy ears so I don't really enjoy munching on raw, unadorned veggies.  Instead, I make delicious salads dressed up with avocados, kalamata olives or figs, I roast sweet potatoes and beets, and I munch on crispy kale chips.  I am also a sucker for any sort of veggie dip especially since it is great to eat for a snack and I can take it to work.

Sometimes veggie dips can be deceivingly unhealthy, so I wanted to make an Herbed Yogurt Dip that would be low-cal and low-fat, delicious, and quick and easy to make.  Naturally, I turned to plain non-fat Chobani Greek Yogurt for the base, since it has an amazing tang that pairs well with vegetables, and is high in protein.  

I flavored the dip with some of my favorite herbs, a little lemon juice and garlic, as well as a small amount of goat cheese and extra virgin olive oil for richness.  The cheese also contributes some extra protein, while the extra virgin olive oil is a good source of monounsaturated fats.      

The amount of parsley that equals a 'handful.'

Berry Frozen Yogurt with Lemon Sugar and Lavender Cream, and Chobani Greek Yogurt Giveaway

If you were to ask me - what food turns a bad day into a good day? - I would immediately respond with two answers: either Starbucks or frozen yogurt.  It seems my days are turned around by extremes of either hot or cold.  Now, I fully realize that neither a latte nor a frozen treat is really considered a 'food,' but that doesn't stop me from soothing myself with either after a particularly long and trying day.  Actually, there is not much that will deter me from getting a latte or a frozen yogurt any day.  In case you haven't realized it, I like to treat myself to my favorite things as often as I possibly can.  Does this make me spoiled?

Spoiled or not, I love frozen yogurt, but actually I just love yogurt... period.  Especially Greek yogurt, I literally cannot get enough; in fact, my co-workers used to make fun of me because they seemed to think all I ate was yogurt!  (No, this was not some sort of strange diet, I just love taking yogurt to work for lunch.)  Well, the joke is on them, because Greek yogurt is healthy and tastes incredible so they are really the ones missing out.  I love to eat plain yogurt topped with sliced almonds and fruit, drizzled with a little honey, or I swirl in a little jam or lemon curd to jazz it up. 

I think I got addicted to frozen yogurt (and Starbucks for that matter...) after moving out to California and trying frozen yogurt from Golden Spoon, and then I fed my habit by visiting every other fro-yo spot within a 10-mile radius of my apartment.  Most places had every flavor imaginable, from coconut to rootbeer to taro, but my go-to choices were always the fresh fruit flavors.  I tend to love more tropical fruits like mangoes or papayas, but a good strawberry, blackberry, or raspberry is simply incomparable.