Recipes: Dessert Smoothies

While the temps were in the 100s here in Tucson, I probably only made smoothies a couple of times. Now, after my pomegranate brunch, I have been making them every day. I have actually made that same combo of pom, lime, apple, and banana several times. My ‘normal’ routine is to eat whole fruit for breakfast, then whatever strikes my fancy for the rest of the day. Most days, at least one banana is included in that routine. So, they have made up the base for many of my smoothies. I previously did not care for the flavor of banana in smoothies, but my tastes have changed. Sometimes, I use my homemade yogurt for a little pro-pro boost.

I usually freestyle my smoothies with what I have on hand, but I thought I would round up a few recipes to post. Even if you don’t use the exact ingredients, you can keep them in the back of your mind (for when you feel like whipping one up). Sometimes, I use smoothies to cover the flavor of supplements like meal replacements, etc. I did that for this one:

It was made with banana, coconut butter, apple, lime, carrots, pom, vanilla, mint, beet, and a vegan meal replacement powder. I could still taste the ‘powdery-ness’ of the powder, but the overall flavor was yummy.

If you are having a brunch, you can make up a few different flavors and put them in shot glasses kept on ice. I took a pic of this one in a shot glass:

I was craving peanut butter & banana, but I didn’t have any peanut butter. So, I subbed roasted tahini, and added flax, vanilla, raw agave, and a pinch of vitamin powder. I just added the agave because I have a sweet tooth, but I’m sure it would have been fine without it. It was delish! (I usually don’t garnish my smoothies for my everyday drinks. I just did for these because I decided to take pics 😉 ).

As I do indeed have that sweet tooth, I thought smoothie recipes based on popular desserts would be fun. Hope you enjoy these!

Carrot Cake Smoothie

One more Carrot Cake Smoothie

Eggnog Smoothie

Apple Pie Smoothie

Red Velvet Smoothie

Key Lime Pie Smoothie

Banana Cream Pie Smoothie

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Smoothie

Cinnamon Bun Smoothie

Strawberry Shortcake Smoothie

Another Strawberry Shortcake Smoothie

Caramel Apple Protein Smoothie

 

 

Pasta Sauces!

The 5 French Mother Sauces

I have been posting a lot about food recently, but I can’t help it — it’s one of my favorite things! I need to decide what type of pasta sauce to prepare for a special occasion. I am trying to step away from my ever-beloved&favored red sauce. So, I thought I would create a reference post with some of my other faves (and some I hope to try) for anyone interested. And, I am posting a few Tucson restaurant pics, in case you stop by our fair town. Really, I could eat spaghetti with red sauce every day and not get tired of it. Just look at how yummy it is (even without the cheese):

From Caffe Milano, Tucson, Arizona.

I have jarred up the season’s juicy reds in preparation for the Tucson “winter,” but I need to forge ahead!

I could always do a traditional pesto, which I love.

Caffe Milano, Tucson, Arizona

I also like switching up the herbs/greens, nuts, cheese, and oil for it, too. And, sometimes I leave out the cheese or oil.

Mac and cheese can be a bit too casual unless I really spruce it up. I like this presentation of oozing, gooey cheese.

Bacon Mac and Cheese from Union Pub House, Tucson, Arizona

I am also partial to bleus like gorgonzola for a different spin.

This one was new to me: Buffalo wing sauce. I haven’t tried to re-create this yet. Perhaps it doesn’t scream of formality, but it still might be a contender. Many of us born in NY try to create as many dishes as we can around Buffalo wings. Can’t be bad.

From Elliot’s on Congress, Tucson, Arizona

I have to admit when I started thinking about ‘special occasion’ sauces, cream and butter came to mind an awful lot. I think I need to realize you can have delicious, fresh-tasting sauces that are ‘special’ without them, lol. But, C&B are so, SO good. Also, anything with wine, mushrooms, or olives puts it over the top for me.

Lamb Ravioli from Wildflower, Tucson, Arizona

Pappardelle ai Funghi, Tavolino Ristorante, Tucson, AZ

My new favorite this past couple of years has been a cilantro-lime cream sauce:

I saw a recipe for this a while back, and I absolutely love it. This pic I made a little differently than normal. I used actual cream vs. my usual lower fat milk and added chile for spiciness. I always add garlic, but I can’t remember if the original recipe called for it or not. I just infused the cream, then strained it. Normally, I leave all the herbs and bits in there. I thought it would be super rich, but the lime kind of cuts the heaviness. It was also the first time I used my own homemade pasta. *As a sidenote: I’ve started making a double batch of dough for dual usage. I used a whole/heirloom wheat blend for this pasta with beetroot powder & juice. After mixing, I use half for pasta and save the other half for tortillas. I just add salt and oil to the tortilla dough.*

Other sauces I’ve been enjoying recently are the spicy tahini I’ve previously posted about, and a soy-balsamic. Less frequently, but still high on my list are meat, root veggie, green veggie, any veggie, buerre noisette, and tomatillo based sauces. And, though I do not care for egg noodles, I love to make a stroganoff-type sauce with various others pastas. Back in the day, warm pasta salad with Italian salad dressing-type sauce was common for me. I haven’t had that in quite a while now, though.

Finally, here are a few interesting-looking recipes I would like to try. See what you think:

Creamy Avocado Pasta Same type of flavor base as the cilantro-lime with less sat fat.
Pasta with Pumpkin Cream Sauce
Spicy Pumpkin Pasta I have made dishes similar to this one and the previous link, only with butternut squash (and without the meat). It looks interesting!
Kale Pasta Cream Sauce
Fusilli with Spinach Sauce (just added this site to my blogroll! Check it out for updates.)
Pasta with Kale in Lemon-Cashew Sauce
Herbal Pasta (very simple, but I think you could jazz it up)
Pasta with Purple Sprouting Broccoli (mmm…anchovies)

WhirlwinDISH 21

Corn salad inspired by my recent trip to Heirloom Farmer’s Market. I was in kind of a rush making this, though, so it’s not as cute as it could be. I was hungry!

This corn was some of the best I’ve had in a LONG time! Like I said, I was in a hurry, so I didn’t even bother to shuck it. I just plopped it in the oven on a very high heat setting, then quickly shucked after it finished cooking. It can be easier to remove the silk, though, this way. Some people put their corn in the micro for a minute or so, but I don’t have one. You just have to watch your fingers because it gets hot.

While the corn was cooking, I prepped the rest of the ingredients and a quick aioli. They had some beautiful yellow and purplish-black tomatoes, so I chose the yellow for this dish. I saw a label for lemongrass, but it was all gone…garlic chives were in its place. I tossed in the chives, a bit of shallots, and some fabulous pink pomegranate seeds.

I let the corn cool to room temp (which didn’t take very long) before combining it with the other ingredients. The dressing was just a light, creamy aioli (more garlicky-ness!) with lime juice. I gave the salad another quick hit of lime juice at the end.

This turned out pretty well! I think it would have been even better if I had let it sit for awhile to meld the flavors, but I wanted to eat already, lol! I’ve never used this combination before for a corn salad. I’m sure I would have never thought about the pom seeds if they were not at the market that day. You never know what creations the market might inspire!