G is for Garlic: White Bean Dip with Roasted Garlic (Jennifer)

Hello!

I don't know about you, but around this time of year, I'm definitely getting more than my fill of sweets and treats. There is rarely a lunch or dinner that goes by where I don't have at least a little something sweet at the end, even if it's as simple as a dinner mint. I blame it on my grandfather, and maybe my dad, and my sister, and...well, maybe it's just my family's thing. : )

But, even with all those sweets around, I still crave something a little healthier to balance it all out. Enter this week's recipe for White Bean Dip with Roasted Garlic. The perfect appetizer to offset all those sweet treats at holiday gatherings. Served with pita or crackers, and an assortment of vegetables (try carrots, celery, and maybe yellow, green and red or orange bell peppers), this dip can take on a variety of different flavors for a crowd-pleasing change from the usual "sweet stuff."

G is for Ginger: Gingersnaps (Jessica)

Oh my!

Have you all been blown away in the last 24 hours?

If you don't live in the LA area, you may not know, but on Wednesday night there were crazy-strong winds gusting through these parts.
Now, sometimes I really like the wind. It feels fresh and clean and you just know it can blow away problems and bring new hope. But other times, like Wednesday, it just blows over trees, causes power outages, and brings debris to your streets.  Luckily, no one was hurt!

I moved here for the better weather, and while I can't dispute that, it does seem that Southern California has dramatic problems of its own! Luckily, tonight it's quiet and calm, perfect for eating some gingersnaps!

G is for Granola Bars! (Jennifer)

Happy Sunday evening, friends!

Today I bring you a recipe for granola bars. Perhaps it's my pending 10-year reunion (oh-my-dear, did I just write that?!), or perhaps it's the recently installed "Couch to 5K" app on my i-Pod, the "I'm going to eat healthier and exercise more" bug has bitten...hard. It could also be that it's June, and as the weather heats up, this winter coat has got to go. Either way, I'm glad I made this recipe for granola bars this weekend.

A note on granola bar recipes: they can be as healthy or as unhealthy as you'd like them to be. Granola bars are very easy to customize! Don't care for dried cherries? Throw in raisins. Don't care for chocolate? Substitute peanut butter chips. The possibilities are endless, so have fun!

G is for Ginger Squash Cake (Jessica)

Dear Ginger Gurus,

This week, I grated a lot of ginger. In picking a recipe to bake for the letter G, I knew what I wanted. I chose ginger as my key ingredient and scoured the internet for ginger recipes. My kitchen was yearning for something sweet after being dessert-less for a few weeks; it was time for cake. The folks at my office helped by voting on the best sounding recipe and I settled on one for Ginger Squash Cake!

It turns out this recipe required 2 days. Day 1 was shopping (two grocery stores) and prepping. Day 2 was baking. After day 1, I felt a little deflated. I prepped the squash, ginger, and hazelnuts for (what felt like) a whole evening and had nothing to show for it! Grating the ginger honestly felt too much like cooking and not enough like baking for my taste. :)  Regardless, eventually I made it through!

I'm including in this recipe the directions I used for removing the skins from the hazelnuts and toasting them. Hazelnuts are featured prominently in this recipe, but don't worry, I'm not double counting it as a G and an H recipe, I've got something else in mind for H. ;)