Preparing for Hurricane Irene - What I learned {Greek Salad with Tomato, Cucumber, Peppers and Feta Cheese}

Greek Tomato Cucumber Pepper Feta Salad - Horiatiki Salata

This past week after the earthquake on the East Coast, and in anticipation of Hurricane Irene, everyone was busy stocking up on food, gas and supplies, before hunkering down for the impending storm. As the countdown began before Irene would hit, things got a little crazy. People started getting antsy as supplies ran low. A policeman was stationed outside Costco's, people started honking impatiently, and doing all sorts of crazy driving maneuvers (like backing out full speed onto a major road without looking!). Shelves ran bare - there were no flashlights, D batteries or water to be found, and gas stations started running out of fuel as the realization that people might be housebound for days set in. 

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50 Women Game-Changers In Food - Lidia Bastianich - Sweet and Sour Marinated Vegetables (Caponata)

Sweet and Sour Marinated Vegetables - Caponata

I think our local area is at the peak of summer season produce, with my CSA Box filled with eggplant, bell peppers, tomatoes and zucchini. At the beginning of the season when my share was fairly light, I treated each vegetable that came in my CSA Box as a treasure, featuring them in recipes on their own or combined perhaps with one other vegetable. However, as the summer bounty has increased, I have found myself with loads of vegetables at their peak, and have found the best way to enjoy them is to combine them in dishes so my family can enjoy them farm-fresh.

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A Healthy Banana Split

This Healthy Banana Split is made with 100% Fruit.

Did you know that today is National Banana Split Day? Created by a 23-year old pharmacist in 1904, the banana split is a popular American dessert, traditionally served with a banana split in half, three scoops of ice cream (chocolate, strawberry and vanilla), and topped with chocolate syrup, crushed pineapple, walnut ice cream topping, whipped cream and a cherry. This dessert comes in at over 1000 calories!

Dole Bananas has partnered with Tastespotting today to rally the food-blogging community to invent a healthier banana split with less than 350 calories.

I entered the challenge on the late side today (I've been driving my kids around all day and just got home!), but didn't want you to miss out on the fun. The Healthy Banana Split I came up with is made with 100% fruit.

The three scoops of "ice cream" I made were entirely fruit based, blackberry, strawberry and banana. For the blackberry and strawberry "ice cream", I blended half a banana with 1/3 cup frozen fruit in my Vitamix blender (note: you need a heavy duty blender to make this; otherwise, you will need to add some almond or coconut milk to the fruit and freeze until firm). For the banana "ice cream," I simply blended frozen banana chunks until creamy and smooth.

For my version of the Healthy Banana Split, I used half a banana, one scoop each of the blackberry, strawberry and banana ice cram, and topped it off with fresh strawberries, pineapple and blueberries. That's it! 

The approximate calorie count for my Healthy Banana Split is 280 calories (2 bananas, 1/2 cup strawberries, 1/3 cup blackberries, 1/2 slice pineapple, 1 tablespoon blueberries).

My little guy was the taste tester and he gave it a thumbs up (he thought it was real ice cream). Enjoy!

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College Bound and An Easy Tomato Paste Pasta Sauce Recipe

"Tomato Paste Pasta"

This past weekend we dropped our oldest son off at college where he will be a freshman. I never thought it would be as hard as it was. A few days before we left, a friend called and asked if I was sad, and I replied, "not really." Well, I was dead wrong. I think between the jet-lag from our recent vacation, unpacking everything from that trip, and then packing up my son for college, I just didn't have time to really think about what was to come. 

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Warm Roasted Corn Salsa Recipe

Warm Roasted Corn Salsa

I just got back from our summer family vacation and have missed all the fresh produce from the weekly CSA Boxes (fortunately, I was able to find some vegetable loving friends who were more than happy to pick up my shares while I was gone). Although my family enjoyed some amazing tropical fruits while we were away, I missed my East Coast vegetables. Before we left for vacation, I was wondering how I would get through all the zucchini, corn and cucumber that had been showing up in my weekly CSA Boxes, but having been away for several weeks, it was a welcome sight.

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