Red Wine Braised Shortribs and Orange-Sage Roasted Sweet Potatoes

After reading a recipe in Bon Apetit on red-wine braised short ribs, I decided to make my own personal touches and pair them with some delicious roasted sweet potatoes.  The result was a very hearty meal that was full of robust savory flavors.  Mmmmm...

Easy Italian Wedding (Inspired) Soup

I wanted to make an easy, delicious soup for dinner last night because soup season is upon us.  This is similar to Italian wedding soup but with a few minor differences.  I didn't make the stock myself because this was all about making something fast.  A lesson on homemade stocks will be part of a later post.  Until then, enjoy the shortcut and try out this yummy meal.  This makes a large batch so you can have leftovers.

Granola

Granola can be a sneaky little bastard.  It's delicious, highly addictive and "healthy"....but half a box later you find yourself begging your friends and family to take the bag away from you as you lick your oat-crusted fingers.  Everything in moderation right?
This is a recipe I developed for the bakery where I work.  It's addictive, and not overly sweet.  You can play around with the add-ins to make it your own.

Pesto alla genovese

Our basil plants grew to ridiculous proportions and so my Dad and I decided to turn it into lots of pesto.  I used the recipe from our family friend, Florencia, whose mother is from the region of Italy where basil pesto originated.  Pretty authentic stuff.  You will never want to buy bottled pesto ever again.