Queso blanco dip

I first ate queso blanco dip at a local Mexican restaurant and loved it. Ever since then I've wanted to make it at home, but I wasn't sure what cheese to use to make it melt and have the proper consistency. Plus I figured it was full of a lot of ingredients that I probably didn't want to use anyways. Then I saw this recipe and was excited to give it a try. I changed the recipe a bit and found a nice organic white American cheese at our grocery store's deli that only had a few ingredients in it. You need to use American cheese so that it melts properly and becomes smooth. Once the dip comes together, it is hot, smooth, creamy, and flavorful. It's a cinch to make, too!

I made this dip to go along with the tacos my husband requested for his birthday dinner recently. It was a special treat, but it makes a lot of dip, so we'll be eating it again. This recipe will make enough for 4-6 people to eat as a side, snack, or appetizer. It's perfect to go along with your next taco night or as a party, movie night, or game day snack. Serve with corn chips.

Skillet zucchini biscuit pie

Zucchini, zucchini, zucchini..... It's here in full force and ready to be made into all sorts of dishes! 

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I decided to make it in a skillet because I love to use my cast iron skillet whenever possible, really. The biscuit is filled with Parmesan cheese, sliced fresh zucchini, and fresh basil. It's really flavorful and delicious and makes a nice light dinner or lunch with a side salad.

While it's called a pie, it reminds me more of a quiche or cake as there's no crust and it contains a few eggs. This recipe will make enough to serve about 4 people as a main dish. 

Feel free to experiment with this recipe - you can change up the veggies, herbs, and cheese to make all sorts of different flavor combinations. If you have some yellow squash, it would be lovely to replace some of the zucchini with it to vary the colors.

Pepper jack and zucchini cornbread

Oh, zucchini season... Once the zucchinis start to arrive, it's like we try to add them to everything. Grated zucchini in this and grated zucchini in that. But, in all honestly, that is OK by me. I love zucchini and enjoy finding different ways to use it. I was inspired to make this cornbread by this recipe which I modified a bit as seen below. The weather has become more bearable for using the oven, so it was the perfect time to give this cornbread a try. We just happened to have some leftover chili to eat up over the weekend and needed a side to go with it. I really love cornbread -- especially ones with cheese in them and/or a little kick from chiles. This cornbread is very savory and not sweet like many recipes that contain a lot of sugar. This was also the first time I tried sprouted wheat flour, but feel free to use all-purpose and/or some whole wheat flour.

Chocolate mint chocolate chip ice cream

It's really been heating up around here and that means ice cream and, um, more ice cream. When it's hot out, I really don't like to cook as much as I usually do, but churning up some fresh ice cream is another story. 

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After using fresh basil and lavender in previous ice creams I've made, I was inspired to incorporate another herb -- this time choosing mint -- which I have in my herb garden. Mint is perfect for ice cream because it's so refreshing, especially when it's cold. 

Rather than making mint chocolate chip ice cream (which I love), I decided to make the ice cream chocolate and mint. It was a great choice! We loved this ice cream and I'll definitely be making more of it as the summer continues.

Broccoli salad with cheddar, cranberries, and sunflower seeds

Broccoli salad is a summer picnic favorite. I especially love one full of crunch and flavors like this broccoli salad with cheddar, cranberries, and sunflower seeds.