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Cold-Brewed Maple Almond Iced Coffee

August 7, 2013 by Erica

Cold-Brewed Maple Almond Iced Coffee from Coffee & Quinoa

For having coffee as one of its namesakes, this little blog sure lacks anything coffee-related.

It’s with good reason: I love coffee (love love love), but my coffee consumption is very boring.

Here’s the routine: Nate and I split a pot of French press in the morning before work – Starbucks Caffe Verona or Italian Roast. And then…

Cold-Brewed Maple Almond Iced Coffee from Coffee & Quinoa

That’s just about it.

Well, I put milk in it (usually almond). But that’s really it.

If I have more than my one cup, my caffeine-to-food ratio is thrown off and I find myself desperate to eat something in order to stop shaking. Very unpleasant when you’re stuck behind a desk! I also have trouble sleeping deeply if I over-caffeinated the morning before. I reserve that second cup for special occasions/emergencies: weekend brunches where my caffeine-to-food intake is skewed in the opposite direction (special occasion), nights when I’d rather sleep than go out but find myself getting ready for the bar anyway (emergency), and workdays – usually Fridays or Mondays – when I’m feeling especially unenthusiastic about leaving the house (another emergency).

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Roasted Summer Squash Pasta with Feta and Thyme

August 5, 2013 by Erica

Roasted Summer Squash Pasta with Feta and Thyme

I am happy to report that I’m not yet sick of summer squash.

That might have something to do with being in a squash-free zone (a.k.a. beach vacation) all of last week. Or it might be because my CSA kindly rations the squash, giving me only 2 or 3 each week, which is quite manageable. All you people with green thumbs who harvest tons and tons of summer squash at once… I don’t know how you do it. It’s no wonder my grandma talks of leaving bags of zucchini on unsuspecting neighbors’ porches during the summer time. Hah!

Roasted Summer Squash Pasta with Feta and Thyme

But me, I’m still quite enthusiastic about summer squash, especially roasted up with some other tasty veggies and tossed with pasta, cheese and herbs. Mmmmmm. If I were a zucchini, this is how I’d want to go.

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Salted Chocolate Ice Cream

August 2, 2013 by Erica

Salted Chocolate Ice Cream

It’s Friday… and Friday calls for ice cream.

When I served some salted chocolate with ice cream a few Fridays ago, my taste testers all agreed: the sea salt totally made the dish. And so I got to thinking… why not combine all of those things into one, a salted chocolate ice cream?

Salted Chocolate Ice Cream

I couldn’t think of a single reason not to.

I love salted chocolate anything, and I’m not surprised that ice cream is no exception. This chocolate ice cream is exceptionally rich and velvety smooth, and the sea salt makes it over-the-top delicious. It’s like eating your favorite salted chocolate bar (ummm Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Caramel with Sea Salt, anyone?) in frozen form. It’s preferably done while watching The Bachelorette. And if you want the textural contrast of sea salt that you get with a chocolate bar, I recommend adding a few flakes of salt on top. Possibly with more chocolate.

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Lemon Cornmeal Pancakes with Blueberry Sauce

July 31, 2013 by Erica

Lemon Cornmeal Pancakes with Blueberry Sauce

When was the last time you went berry picking?

Lemon Cornmeal Pancakes with Blueberry Sauce

Mine was years ago, when my family came to visit me in Germany at the end of my semester abroad. It was late summer, and we were set on berry picking. We drove about an hour just to pick some raspberries. I probably have vivid memories of it mostly because it is well-documented – my dad likes to take lots of pictures when the family is all together.

Aaand this is reminding me of many funny things that happened during that visit – my sister falling off a folding bike (she didn’t think it was too funny at the time), my dad whipping the cream to go on top of those berries by hand because he couldn’t find an electric mixer, our crazy German relatives… good thing I am with my sisters this week, because we have some reminiscing to do.

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Fresh Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Dipping Sauce

July 29, 2013 by Erica

Fresh Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Good morning!

Just like last week, I am drowning in lettuce.

Fresh Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Well actually, I am on the beach, freed of my usual self-imposed responsibility to use up fresh produce as quickly as possible. So when I say I am drowning in lettuce, I really mean that my fridge at home is… probably very wilted lettuce at this point, because I’m sure no cooking is being done while I’m gone.

Fresh Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Good thing I used up some lettuce last week by making these wraps! I am planning on wrapping everything in lettuce in the near future. You want pasta? Gotta wrap it in lettuce. Ice cream? I bet it will taste good with crunchy green exterior. Use that stuff up!

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