Gluten-free is definitely trending--and for good reason.
Of course there are some people who simply can’t have gluten, but there are also many who are realizing that eating less gluten and carbs helps them feel and look their best.
When I’m not making lunch at home, I try to find simple, well-crafted, veggie-focused foods to pick up that almost make me feel like I've made them myself.
One of my favorite go-to sandwiches is a delicious tomato and cheddar number from a local sandwich place.
Besides the main ingredients, it includes a little mayo, some crunchy greens, and great bread.
Some people think that because I grew up in Buffalo that I am used to the snow and cold, and that it shouldn’t bother me.
When in actuality my patience for such things ran out by the time I was 8, and by 18 I knew that though I had the most wonderful family Buffalo just wasn’t for me.
When I was younger I used to go out of my way to eat at a place called Mighty Taco, famous in the Buffalo area.
At that point I didn’t eat meat or beans, so I thought of myself as innovative for putting iceberg lettuce in my taco.
I ended up with a taco containing lettuce and cheese--and only lettuce and cheese.
I didn't just get the nickname “Picky Nikki” for no reason at all, no, I gave my mother so many reasons to call me “Picky” that I'm almost surprised that she ever called me anything else.
When I talk about my childhood I sometimes generalize and say that I ate no vegetables.
At 10 years old my mom had had enough of my shenanigans.
I was the pickiest of picky eaters and this picky eater never went down without a fight.
So she gave up, and I was allowed to make my own dinners, whatever my little heart desired.
Well, both my heart and stomach were ramen noodle addicts.
Soon enough summer will be here and we can start talking about salads and fresh veggies.
But for now, while there is still a chill in the air, I consider a scarf as important an article of clothing as pants.
And although spring has officially sprung, that chilly air means it's still the perfect season for grilled cheese.
I'm pretty obsessed with spaghetti squash, not as obsessed as I am with cheese, or positioning the fan in my bedroom just right so it cools just my feet while I sleep, but pretty darn close.
It's so sweet, the texture is awesome and it can be morphed into so many things.
I love anything with Buffalo sauce on it. One time Buffalo sauce landed on my phone and I seriously considered eating it.
Since I am from Buffalo you would think that this love affair started back when I was growing up, eating some of the best wings in the world. However, in actuality I didn’t even eat a chicken wing until many years later after I left those Buffalo winters behind.
I recently found myself in Kentucky with my good friend Damaris Phillips. To go along with the bourbon that you know is always on her table, she made me a sandwich with her signature tomato aioli.
Back home in NYC I found myself seriously craving her aioli, I needed more (but not more bourbon, I’m done with bourbon for a while). It was so rich, so meaty and so deep in flavor that I would not be forgetting it anytime soon.
A Horror Story:
Written by: Nikki Dinki
Sue and her date go to a local restaurant for a nice meal out. Sue orders the salmon, her date the steak and each meal comes with a side of vegetables. They chatter, flirt and then...the meal comes...all they can do is stare in horror at their plates.
It’s not the salmon or the steak that get their attention but that sad, mushy, flavorless, over-steamed broccoli thrown haphazardly on the plate. It’s blatantly obvious that no one at this restaurant cares about broccoli. And being advocates for Broccoli’s rights (ABRs they call themselves) they get up and march out of the restaurant.
For they know, as I do, that broccoli should NEVER be treated this way...
The end.
You see, I didn’t always love broccoli, I’ll admit it. The green tree-like vegetable and me had a bumpy relationship at first. But how can anyone fall in love with this green goddess when she is so often treated and dressed, so poorly?!
A couple times a week this happens in my house...
It's 8:30 and my husband comes home only to find me on the computer, blogging, producing, editing, writing (maybe online shopping ;) and he meekly says “What's for dinner?”
You see, at this point in our marriage he is well aware that if he doesn’t walk in to find me rocking to 90's pop with the kitchen in full-on disaster mode than I'm probably not making dinner.
I love a good salad, the crunch from the lettuce, the tang from the dressing, and the hidden surprises of things like chewy cranberries and juicy oranges.
The only real problem that I have with salads is that they don't contain carbs.
I know, you're asking yourself why that is so important... Well, guys...
I'm a carboholic...
I've been on a kick lately--changing up classic dishes by adding more veggies to them.
You know, making them much more "Meat On the Side"-esque.
But when I started messing with one of the most classic lunch foods ever--peanut butter and jelly (PB + J), no one liked it...at ALL!
I posted a pic of my PB + J + P + C a little while back on social media and let's just say you guys had something (not too pretty) to say about it.