Blog | With Two Spoons

Lemony White Bean Salad-in-a-Jar

March 28, 2016 By Lane Leave a Comment

After a long weekend of holiday eating, I have decided to go with something lighter today, Lemony White Bean Salad-in-a-Jar. Yes, another salad. After all it’s spring, and all of the sudden the greens are plentiful and I actually crave them. And this particular salad, Lemony White Bean Salad-in-a-Jar, has some bonus features. This salad is portable AND is able to be made ahead of time. That means it is great for work, great for bringing to a dinner party, great to bring on a picnic (yep -I hold out great hope that picnic weather is coming soon!)….

An Epic Dinner Party

March 25, 2016 By Lane 6 Comments

Some dear friends of ours decided to start a supper club and invited 6 women to join them, including Holly and I. The first Epic dinner party for our little group. It was a no kids, no spouses, affair held at the beautiful home of our friend. We ate, we drank, we laughed-until almost 1 am. We all agreed it was a truly fabulous time. And our dear friends-chefs extraodinaire! We were served an 8 course dinner, complete with wine pairings. It was a foodie dream. And by the end of the night, all 8 of us agreed to pair up and keep the tradition going, at least quarterly….

Good (Food) Reads: It’s Finally Spring!

March 23, 2016 By Holly Leave a Comment

One week later and I’m even more excited about spring! It’s officially here (well, at least according to the calendar, if not the actual weather) and this week’s Good (Food) Reads is going to celebrate that with recipes and articles for the new season. We are forecast for some snow here in the good ole midwest, so I’m going to freshen up my kitchen with salads, bright desserts, and a few Easter goodies. Here. We. Go.

I have a longstanding obsession with Yotam Ottolenghi. His recipes can be a little involved and sometimes call for some less-than-standard pantry ingredients, but they are absolutely worth it. His Turkey Zucchini Burgers with Spring Onion and Cumin are one of my spring and summer staples and a great way to use the garden abundance of zucchini each year. The NY Times is featuring a recipe for Baby Spinach with Dates and Almonds that sounds amazing. It does call for sumac, which can be hard to find, but you can order it at Penzey’s, or I’ve also found some at Cost Plus World Market….

Greek Chicken and Barley Salad

March 21, 2016 By Holly 1 Comment

Greek Chicken and Barley Salad is an absolute staple in our house from spring until the early fall. An easy, crowd pleasing recipe, it is filled with fresh, colorful veggies and topped with tangy feta and salty kalamata olives. Shredded chicken rounds out the salad and really makes it a perfect one dish meal. The best part? It can be put together in about 40 minutes when using one or two quick short cuts and is perfect for toting along to work or school or even bringing to a neighborhood gathering. In the summer, all of the ingredients (with the exception of the barley, which I buy in bulk and keep on hand in the pantry) can be found at my local farmer’s market or in my herb garden, which makes it even more fun to make. Even my somewhat vegetable averse husband loves it and usually requests I make it at least once a week in the summer. I consider that a major win….

Key Lime Cheesecake

March 18, 2016 By Lane Leave a Comment

Are you looking for a decadent dessert? Maybe for a dinner party, or maybe for Easter? Search no more. I have come to bring you what you are looking for. I was headed to a dinner at our friends’ house not too long ago, and my task was dessert. I am not much of a baker and I often struggle with desserts (although I sure do love to eat them!). My daughter, the baker in the house, was gone for the day, so no help there. I couldn’t decide what to make, but actually had a whole day to create, so I decided to make two desserts (it is just in my nature). I chose this Key Lime Cheesecake from Crazy for Crust as well as Churro Cupcakes (don’t worry- that will be a post for another day…)….

Good (Food) Reads

March 16, 2016 By Holly Leave a Comment

I’ve spent the better part of the last week in the beautiful Arizona desert (seriously, the desert is gorgeous – especially in spring when everything is blooming!) and it has definitely colored my picks for this week’s installment of Good (Food) Reads. I know St. Patrick’s day is just a few days away and I should probably be posting green cocktails, Guinness cupcakes, and corned beef recipes, but it is to think about other things when you’re surrounded by great tamales, prickly pear lemonade, and (just being honest) In-and-Out Burger. With that in mind, here are this week’s Good (Food) Reads. Enjoy!

Let’s get the shame out of the way first, shall we? I’m not much of a fast food gal, but when I’m in AZ, I always stop at In-and-Out Burger for a cheeseburger animal-style with extra crispy fries. Yum. If you’re not familiar with the not-so-secret-secret menu at In-and-Out, here’s a little cheat sheet to help you on your next visit….

Spring Orzo Salad

March 14, 2016 By Lane Leave a Comment

Over 70 degrees here in Minneapolis yesterday, which as most of you know, is unheard of early in March here in the frozen tundra! For all of us here in the Midwest, shedding our layers, basking in the sunshine, out reconnecting with our neighbors as everyone comes into the great outdoors, we are needing to shift our menus. We find ourselves moving away from the heavy of the winter and towards the bright colors and textures of the spring. For me, one of those “welcome to spring” foods is orzo….

Rhubarb Muffins

March 11, 2016 By Holly Leave a Comment

My Grandma Dotty, whom I call Bestemor (the Norwegian word for Grandma), is the most amazing cook. I consider many of her recipes to be the tastes of my childhood. Her brown bread with raisins is one of my favorite things in the world. This recipe for Rhubarb Muffins comes from her as well, adapted from the muffins served for years at the drugstore cafe (yes, that was a thing!) in the sweet little town where she lives….

Good (Food) Reads

March 9, 2016 By Holly Leave a Comment

March, to me, is somewhat of a culinary gray zone. It’s not quite spring, but the cozy comfort foods of winter are starting to feel a little old. I’m craving fresh fruits and vegetables, bright greens, and crisp outdoor dining. Thanks to el nino, we’ve had an incredibly mild winter here in the great midwest and yesterday was an absolute treasure – 70 degrees and sunny! Now we just need the produce to catch up. Bring on the asparagus, pea greens, and early strawberries! And on that (heavily optimistic) note, here are our Good (Food) Reads for your Wednesday:

Are you a radish fan? I feel like they can be a divisive vegetable. I love them – especially raw, with fresh butter and sea salt on top. My dad eats them on buttered bread. Epicurious takes on That Time a Facebook Fan Changed Our Minds About Radishes. …

Salmon with Lemon and Dill

March 7, 2016 By Lane 2 Comments

I was once afraid of making fish. Very, very afraid of making fish. I was even afraid of buying fish (unless at a restaurant of course)! It seemed like such a mystery! But then my daughter, who was a super picky eater, starting ordering salmon in restaurants (She was about 6, and shunned most kid foods) I cannot count the number of strange looks we got from waitstaff. As you can imagine, this got expensive fast. At about the same time I bought a cookbook (sense a recurring theme here?) that had a salmon orzo salad in it that looked amazing. This was all happening around the time that I was just learning to cook and I have to admit, I was initially at a loss. But all roads pointed to learning to cook salmon at home, so that is what I did….