One Dish Meal: Classic Greek Moussaka

Here’s a recipe that combines my some of favorite vegetables — eggplant, potatoes and onions — with other ingredients to make a one-dish meal. I ate a wonderful version of this dish, Beef Moussaka, at Lebanese restaurant in Niagara Falls, Canada, of all places. It has been five years since we took the trip to Canada and I’ve made many attempts at duplicating the recipe. With eggplant in season in the summer, I’m trying again and here’s my final recipe.

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Sunny Surprise Breakfast Muffins

Bonnie brought the most delicious breakfast muffins to our April weekend girls getaway at the beach. As she gave me the recipe, she said “whatever you do, don’t leave out the parsnips.” What? Parsnips in muffins? Yes, these muffins contained plenty of healthy ingredients — and you wouldn’t guess it. The spices blended with the all the “surprise” ingredients and the muffins were moist and irresistible. This is spicy muffin recipe is perfect for cool autumn days.

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Classic Deep Purple Plum Pie with a Rich Flaky Crust

I went to Whole Foods Market to purchase parsnips and noticed the beautiful purple plums. So I purchased several of these too. Guess I’m an impulsive buyer. Anyway, I’ve always wanted to make a plum pie. If you never thought you’d like plums, then try “Deep Purple Plum Pie.” This pie is very easy to make and is perhaps one of the best fruit pies you will ever taste. Not to brag, but it really is great. And I made a rich, flaky crust to go along with the plums. Continue reading

Aunt Gaye’s Yellow Squash Pickles

Aunt Gaye has done it again. She provided me with another great recipe idea. This one is for yellow squash pickles. I was tempted to say, “yuck.” But Aunt Gaye’s recipes somehow always work out even when it doesn’t seem plausible. And, as luck would have it, our local produce market was selling four yellow squash for one dollar. I couldn’t pass up the bargain and came home with a large bag full of squash. Then I spent several hours making Aunt Gaye’s yellow squash pickle recipe. And they turned out great!

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The Secret to Southern Fried Okra

Let’s cook fresh okra. It’s time to take advantage of this vegetable which is plentiful the summertime in the South and is easily grown in a garden here. I’ve discovered several delicious ways to fix okra since moving to Louisiana. “Southern Fried Okra” is one of those iconic recipes. My recipe is easy — using common household ingredients. It is crunchy and perfectly seasoned. The breading actually sticks to the okra for the most part. You may not want to purchase commercially breaded okra after eating this recipe. Give it a try!

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