Author: Sunshine and Savory

I love when my house is filled with people, having friends and family over for a meal feeds my soul. There is nothing I enjoy more than preparing for a dinner party, a holiday dinner, or a book club meeting when it's my turn to host ... If I could, I would own a Bed and Breakfast! This would ensure I'd always have someone to prepare a meal for. Being with others and sharing my table is what I look forward to most. I was born in Wisconsin and after I got married in 1987, my husband and I moved west for his job. He had just graduated college and we were married a couple months later. An interesting tidbit about me is that I never cooked a meal before I got married. I taught myself how to cook and found that I really enjoyed it. One of the first meals I made after we were married was a shrimp pasta dish. I made this for myself when my husband was on business travel and I had so much fun inventing this meal - this was the start of my love of cooking. My favorite celebrity chefs are Ina Garten and The Pioneer Woman. I hope you enjoy my blog!

Chicken Tenders with a Fig and Olive Cracker Breading

For a grown-up chicken tender meal, I decided to bread my tenders in crushed fig and olive crackers mixed with grated parmesan cheese.  I love these crackers and I buy them at Trader Joe’s.  When I was there last, I picked up a box intending to include them in a dinner recipe.  This is what I…

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Getting Ready for the Blogging Week Ahead

It so peaceful sitting in my kitchen and thinking/taking notes about what I’m going to make for the coming week for my blog.  I used to sit down and try to make a menu for the week ahead and then life got busier and busier so I began to just wing it while I was…

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Capicola Pepperoni Salad

Last night was so much fun!  I headed to our local beach in Del Mar for a wonderful Friday night picnic with friends and family.  It’s so much fun to enjoy a picnic as you watch the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean.  It’s a lovely sight and one I refuse to take for granted….

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S’mores Brownies

For a quick and easy dessert to take on a picnic to our local beach, I made S’Mores brownies.  I started with a simple basic brownie mix and added crushed graham crackers and mini marshmallows to the top before baking.  These were so tasty.  I love anything with a graham cracker flavor.  When I head…

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Ground Turkey and Shredded Sweet Potato Tacos

It’s Tuesday …. so, why not.  I made tacos for dinner.  I decided to take a little nap late this afternoon.  It was a very relaxing day, so it seemed appropriate.  When I was waking up, I had a vision of taking a sweet potato and peeling it and then shredding it on my box…

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Grilled Honey Peach Salad with Chili Lime Chicken

I’m dedicating tonight’s blog to our good friend, Ted.  He’s been requesting to see a salad on Sunshine and Savory’s blog.  Tonight, I made a main dish salad for dinner.  I hope you like this one, Ted! It seems every cooking magazine I’ve picked up in the last month shows grilled nectarines or peaches.  I…

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Cabernet Marinated Flank Steak

Oh my goodness, when this flank steak hit the hot grill pan, you could really smell the Cabernet wine that I had marinated it in.  The flavor of the wine really stood out in this dish, it was so good.  I decided to make a marinade with cabernet wine, olive oil, course ground mustard, fresh rosemary,…

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Salmon Bacon Bagel Sandwich

Lox and cream cheese on a bagel is my all-time favorite breakfast.  I get it every year on my birthday.  While grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s on Sunday, I was going to get a package of lox when I saw they had a new item, Smoked Salmon Bacon. I thought I’d give it a try…

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Linguine in Vodka Sauce

I was in the mood for a meatless Monday. My neighbors were kind enough to give me some of the basil from their garden over the weekend.  Oh my goodness, it smelled so good!  I wanted to use it in a recipe, so for dinner tonight I made linguine in vodka sauce. I’ve wanted to…

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