In my family, the Fourth of July is a thing. Each year, we gather at my grandmother’s cottage on a lake in northern Minnesota for some of the best days of the summer. We fill our time with family, boating, swimming, and of course, good food. On the day of the actual holiday, the whole family pitches in to make a huge spread of amazing, classic summer time food.
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Are you ready for some Egg-citing Chicken Recipes? Yeah, I went there. And I don’t care. After a long day at work, I’ve been trying to come up with a fun title for this week’s Good Food Reads, which is all about great new recipes for that kitchen staple: chicken. As it turns out, when you are tired and start playing around with chicken puns, it rapidly degenerates into fits of laughter about bad, kid-style chicken jokes. Good times, friends, good times.
Chicken puns aside, I really do have some great new recipes for you all this week. I always keep a variety of chicken in my freezer, ready for last minute dinners or recipe experimentation. It’s inexpensive, relatively healthy, and generally quick to prepare. What’s not to love? My biggest complaint with chicken is that it can easily get a little boring so I’m always on the lookout for recipes to spice it up (both literally and figuratively)….
The gorgeous weather is heating up! Minneapolis hit 100 degrees on Memorial Day Weekend and it has been beautiful ever since! Since so much of what we decide to eat is tied to the weather, that must mean it’s time for some cool treats! Welcome to Good Food Reads: Popsicle and Sorbet (Part 1) featuring some delicious recipes for homemade popsicles and homemade sorbet. This is part 1, only because I found so much great stuff out there, that I’m positive that before we move into August, I’ll have to bring you a Part 2!
Pomegranate Lime Sorbet from With Two Spoons
And since I know so many of you make so many of your own homemade popsicles and sorbets, leave us a comment below and tell us your favorites! (we may decide to feature your recipe in Part 2!)
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I don’t know if it’s the warm weather or the abundance of fresh veggies, but in the summer I have a serious need to eat salads just about every day. More often than not, I just chop up whatever I have in my fridge at the time and toss it into a giant bowl with a handful of lettuce or spinach and call it a day. Recently, I’ve been inspired to up my salad game and have been slowly collecting new recipes for salads of all kinds. This week’s Good Food Reads: Summer Salads is my new salad to do list!
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It is a bit hard to believe that the unofficial kickoff to summer is almost here! Since we had nearly two feet of fresh snow here just over a month ago, it still feels a little strange to be sitting in the 90 degree heat on my porch today. Don’t get me wrong, I am loving every minute of this heat wave, but it was definitely odd to go from snow boots to sandals so quickly!
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The weather has turned in Minneapolis! Finally we have nice temperatures and sunshine. That can only mean one thing…summer grilling! We’ve cleaned off our grills and our patio tables. We’ve taken out the deck cushions and are getting the planters ready for flowers. Finally, we’ve gone in search of some fabulous summer grilling recipes from our blogger friends and we can’t wait to share them with you! Good Food Reads: Summer Grilling is your guide to the best of this summer’s grilling recipes!
Disclaimer: all photos and recipes are credited to the blog from which they came. A million thanks to all of our blogger friends for allowing us to use their amazing work to put together this collection of summer grilling recipes for you!
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I don’t know about you, but I frequently feel like I’m in a bit of a lunch rut. Either I’m busy and forget about lunch altogether or I jam in a quick sandwich or protein bar and call it a day. One of my “grown up resolutions” this year was to make lunch feel a little more special. To make things that are tasty, beautiful, and (mostly) nutritious. While I haven’t always kept to that plan, I’ve definitely noticed that on the days I make a little more effort for lunch, I’m always glad I did. We recently reached out to some blogger friends (hi, friends!) and asked for their recommendations for new lunch ideas. Boy, oh boy, did we get some great new recipes. This week on Good Food Reads, we are Thinking Outside the (Lunch) Box. 
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Spring is here and it’s time to throw a Cinco de Mayo fiesta! And every great fiesta needs a fabulous Cinco de Mayo cocktail! Below is a round up of our favorite Cinco de Mayo cocktails from our favorite bloggers, complete with their beautiful photos. Don’t want alcohol at your fiesta? No worries, we have you covered-we’ve even included some delicious mocktails! Keep on reading for your guide to the most fun Cinco de Mayo Cocktails & Mocktails. Stay tuned to up your cocktail game.
Disclaimer: all photos in this episode of Good Food Reads: Cinco de Mayo Cocktails & Mocktails are courtesy of the blogger whose recipe we are featuring. They have given their permission for us to share their beautiful work and we thank them from the bottom of our hearts!
(If you choose to drink alcohol, please drink responsibly!)
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Ahhh…the berries are back, friends. They are BACK!
If you read my post on Tuesday, you know that I LOVE berry season. After a winter of apples, bananas, and citrus fruits, I just want to eat all the berries, all the time. My kids join me in this love affair and suffice it to say, we spend a lot of our fruit and veggie budget on strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries this time of year. With that in mind, I’ve gathered up a few recipes this week all featuring my favorite fruits! I’m planning to try the Chicken and Berry Pesto Pasta Salad for lunch tomorrow and am really excited about making a batch of Joy the Baker’s Strawberry Shortcake Donuts this weekend! What are your favorite berry recipes?…
Growing up, I wasn’t much of a morning person. Truth be told, I’m still not much of one now. When I was little, my parents knew to give me some space in the morning. Quiet time to ease into the day. In addition to some quiet time, I usually didn’t want to eat breakfast right away. I’m not sure why, since now breakfast (and coffee!) is one of my favorite meals of the day. I love the wide range of breakfast treats, from sweets and baked goods, to savory omelets and – of course – bacon. My one regret from my vegetarian days really is that I missed out on many years of bacon! As we approach the Easter weekend, I’ve been planning our Easter breakfast menu and it got me thinking about and searching for some new and fun breakfast recipes to try. I thought you might like to try some, too. It’s Breakfast Time on Good Food Reads and I think you’re going to love it.
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