Rachael Ray

Last week I gave you the recipe for my new morning obsession: Almond, Chocolate Chip Oatmeal. This week, I want to share my newest breakfast love with you: Almond, Cocoa, Banana Blast. Are you seeing a pattern here? It’s no secret I love sweets and, well, I will sneak chocolate and almonds into anything I can so it should be no surprise that this recipe has a little cocoa powder in it. Anyway…a few months ago I became fascinated with the concept of smoothies you can “chew”. Sounds funny, I know! But I was never all that satisfied using a smoothie as a meal or snack because, well, I like to chew! I find the process of chewing very satisfying and the thought [...]...

Want to know the fastest and easiest way to get more creative with the lunches you pack? Stop thinking of them as lunches. Seriously. The reason so many of us falter for lunch box inspiration is because we get trapped by our own preconceived notions of what lunch foods — particularly packed lunch foods — are supposed to be. So after we’ve exhausted our handful of go-to sandwiches and salads, we find ourselves in a lunch rut. But once you abandon ideas of what lunch is “supposed” to be, you open up all sort of possibilities. Suddenly, pulled pork sliders (made from leftover roasted pork and a bottle of barbecue sauce) is an easy option. So is fried chicken and waffles (frozen whole-grain waffles [...]...

As I was multi-tasking this morning drinking my second cup of coffee with my right hand and chucking the used filter ‘n its grinds with my left, I realized that I should share some unusual uses for both these items particularly being in the spirit of Earth Day.  So here are some fab uses for coffee filters and what gives us that oh-so-important jolt in the morning.  BTW:  Use recycled filters they’re just as good and good for Mother Earth! DEGREASER:  Next time you order that greasy egg roll or bring home those fries put them in a filter to absorb the grease. DE-SERVER:  Keep those nails in tact and forget those serving dishes at your next home soiree.  Use those flat [...]...

When mom declares Sunday lunch as Rajma-Chawal – you know the mood she is creating for her home. Shawl is rice and sloshed over it is rajma, a kidney bean stew, that starts with a sauté and flows on to a lazy simmer. It is North India’s ultimate comfort dish and almost always eaten at Sunday lunch. Why? You might ask. Because rajma for dinner is a work out for the system to digest and to have stew for lunch any day  other than Sunday is indulgent. I have yet to meet a person (young and old alike) who dislikes rajma. But why would it meet resistance when the beans become buttery and soft surrendering themselves to the gravy they are [...]...

It may be spring but as I see it, oatmeal is an any-time-of-the-year food. It’s super nutritious, filling and delicious. Over the years I’ve made many versions and I never seem to run out of new ways to jazz it up. I like to keep my breakfasts relatively healthy, but I also want to feel that what I’m eating is special so I’m always working on ways to keep the first meal of the day exciting and healthy at the same time. It’s important to have a good balance of carbs and protein in the morning to help sustain you until your next meal. With that in mind, I try to add things to the oatmeal that will help keep me [...]...

As far as Mondays go, this one is not so bad. It’s finally sunny. It’s not snowing - or hailing - both of which it did this weekend, at the end of April. I am not panicked about any specific issues relating to any of my children (at the moment - this could change at any time). Today is also a bit of a monumental day as we are getting new counters in our kitchen. We have lived in our 100+ year-old Victorian for 12 years and we are not a family that moves into a house and immediately re-does it top to bottom. Quite the contrary. We had originally budgeted for one house project per year which afforded, among [...]...

I had never been to South America before last week yet had always wanted to go - I had visions of partying all night in Buenos Aires, skiing in Patagonia, dancing on the beach in Rio and exploring the wonders of Machu Picchu, the lost city.  When I was invited to have a culinary tour of Chile, I jumped at the chance, realizing I knew so little about this beautiful country.  I asked if I could bring fellow blogger, Evette Rios and luckily they agreed!  Here are my favorite memories. Chile is a crazy place geographically speaking, as it extends over 2,000 miles down the western coast of South America, yet is only a couple hundred miles wide. The top of [...]...

This week has been nuts. Whilst ‘nuts’ brings with it an adrenalin rush, it also brings a lot of dodgy eating. Last week, my snacks were divided between hidden Halloween candy (wrong on more levels than one) and flavor-enhanced potato chips. Today enough is enough and I have decided to spend some time making snacks that will satisfy me without suspicious ingredients. One of the treats I am making is “Two-bite Falafels” - though some would argue that it takes but one. Yes, they are fried, but they are pretty much in and out of the oil and since I am making them, I know my oil is fresh. Falafel On The Go As for the falafels, time is of essence and [...]...

I have never liked Mondays - back to school, back to work, the weekend is over. You would think I would feel differently now that I work from home, but oh no, I still suffer from the Monday blues. My older daughter has inherited this attitude - or more like she has observed her mother who is not setting a very positive example - shouldn’t we be taking the week by storm? seizing the day? Oh well. Is it Tuesday yet? Instead I decided we should embrace our least favorite day of the week and try to do something fun. I told my daughter we would bake something special on Monday nights so at least one good thing could come out [...]...