Recipes

We don’t always eat out; sometimes we stay at home and cook. The results range from insanely edible to incendiary. Um, maybe we’ll come over to your place to cook next time.

By Michael • December 30th, 2011

Did you spend Christmas with Grandma learning how to make those irresistible shortbread cookies that you’ve loved since you were a kid? Or maybe you shared your all-American apple pie with friends during Thanksgiving. Whatever you were cooking, that recipe could give you a shot at a cut of $15,000 in cash and prizes from the Challenge Butter ‘Real Heritage Recipe Contest’.

As a participant in the Foodbuzz Tastemakers Program, I was parterned with Newman’s Own to whip up a meal in 30 minutes or less using Neman’s pizza, salad dressings, and pasta sauces.  To make the experience even more immersive, the folks at Newman’s threw in a Flip video camera so I could record everything from start to finish.  Read on to see how the video turned out!

Vegan diets are beginning to hit the mainstream, and Donna Diegel is right on time with her new book The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Vegan Baking. You don’t have to be vegan to enjoy these recipes, but you may quickly change your mind after tasting only a few of them.

This spring, I’m excited to turn a new leaf — for lack of a better term — with some help from Graham Kerr, author of Growing at the Speed of Life. Read on to learn more about this book that’s a novel, gardeners handbook, and cookbook all rolled into one.  Plus, we’re giving away a free copy!

Who knew baking could be so easy!  Read on to find out how I got by with a little help from my friends and ended up with a wonderful loaf of home made bread.

When I think of the perfect side dish for burgers, sandwiches, and meaty foods, sweet potato fries come to mind.  I enjoy having them at home as often as I can.  Which really isn’t that often because, honestly, cooking them is kind of a chore.

Fortunately, Alexia Foods has provided a fail safe solution for cooking sweet potato fries at home.

Here we are in round 5 of Project Food Blog!  This week, the challenge was to put a new spin on pizza.  Of course, pizza is all about the crust, sauce, and toppings.  Read on to learn how a Southern California tradition inspired my pizza creation.

Grilling on a plank is so easy and the results are out of this world.  Here’s the step-by-step approach I used for my first attempt at grilling on a plank.

I have to give a big thanks to Foodbuzz and Buitoni for selecting me and the South Bay Foodies to host a pasta party featuring Buitoni Frozen Meals for Two.  It was fun paring their entrees with my own fresh veggies.  Read on to see my pairings and how everything turned out!

I’m happy to announce that South Bay Foodies is being featured on Foodbuzz Family Bites this week!

With sunny days and long lazy evenings, now seemed like the perfect time to make some peach salad.

I could easily write this review in three words: BEST SOUP EVER!

Specifically, I’m talking about the Spicy Pumpkin Butternut Squash Soup featured at The Terrace Restaurant located inside the amazingly posh Langham Hotel in Pasadena.

Tonight Nicole asked me to slice a watermelon for her and, thinking of the mysterious peeled watermelon on the street carts, I decided to have some fun.  Should be easy to peel a watermelon, right?  Right! Well, mostly right.

When winter comes around I start to crave beverages that will warm me up; coffee, hot chocolate, cider.  All this time, I never considered tequila!