Mustard Crusted Rack of Lamb with Mint Sauce
Mustard Crusted Rack of Lamb with Fresh Mint Sauce is an easy, elegant main dish that’s perfect for a spring or summer dinner. As a Colorado native, I grew up eating lots of grass-fed meat – including lamb. After all, Colorado is known as having the best, most flavorful lamb around! Nowadays, I love… Read more »
Banana Raspberry Cake with Lemon Frosting
Another scrumptious and impressive Clayton family recipe, our Banana Raspberry Cake with Lemon Frosting is the perfect ending to a spring or summer dinner. This beautiful, delicious Banana Raspberry Cake with Lemon Frosting recipe comes from my cousin Barb’s daughter Mindy Newlin. Surprisingly easy to prepare, the buttermilk and bananas in the batter keep… Read more »
Sausage, Cheese and Hash Brown Strata
Easy enough for a casual weekend breakfast and elegant enough for an Easter brunch, this Sausage, Cheese and Hash Brown Strata will be your new go-to dish – and it’s gluten free! For the past few years, my husband Robert and I have invited a few friends to join us after church for an… Read more »
Layered Shrimp Cocktail Dip
Layered Shrimp Cocktail Dip takes the iconic hors d’oeuvre and amps it up with spicy cream cheese, olives, peppers, onions and Mozzarella cheese. There are lots of theories as to the origin of the infamous hors d’oeuvre Shrimp Cocktail. Some say it was invented in Boston in the 1940s; others say it dates back… Read more »
Cannellini Bean Dip with Truffle Oil
Woodsy, earthy truffle oil is the perfect complement to nutty and mild cannellini beans in this elegant, easy and impressive Cannellini Bean Dip with Truffle Oil. Years ago, my first trip to Italy took me to Rome and Umbria, together with my childhood best friend (and travel agent extraordinaire) Katey Hartwell. It just so… Read more »
Braised Chicken with Olives and Artichokes
Tender braised chicken is accented with Mediterranean flavors in this mouth-watering Braised Chicken with Olives and Artichokes recipe. I love braised chicken – a traditional cooking method in which chicken pieces are browned and then simmered, covered, in liquid (usually wine and/or stock). The result is super moist, flavorful and colorful chicken. Browning the… Read more »
Italian Popovers
Popovers are a light, flavorful and impressive side dish, but require using a special pan. Not these popovers! Mom’s delicious Italian Popovers can be baked in muffin tins. Another scrumptious recipe from mom’s files! Prosciutto, Fontina cheese and green onion are baked into puffy popovers — yum! Popovers can be a bit intimidating and… Read more »
Mini Meatloaves Wrapped in Prosciutto
Mini Meatloaves Wrapped in Prosciutto are impressive little bundles of warmth and deliciousness – tender and moist on the inside, golden on the outside. What says “cozy family dinner” better than meatloaf and mashed potatoes? It warms us up from the inside out. I have several favorite meatloaf recipes – like my Cajun Meatloaf –… Read more »
Pears with Cranberries, Nuts and Cinnamon Whipped Cream
Pears with Cranberries, Walnuts and Cinnamon Whipped Cream is a quick and easy, impressive and scrumptious way to end any special meal! One summer, I was invited to Vail, Colorado to teach a private cooking class for a woman who wanted to be able to prepare a few easy, elegant dinners for friends. She… Read more »
Lemon Ginger Bourbon Cocktail
Lemon Ginger Bourbon Cocktail is an elegant, flavorful drink to serve as the “featured cocktail” at your next gathering. My mom loved bourbon – it was her alcohol of choice in the fall and winter (she drank vodka during the other seasons). I’m more of a vodka girl, but I do like bourbon when it’s… Read more »
