W is for Watercress: Watercress and Avocado Salad (Jennifer)

Hello dear readers!

This week's recipe is one for a humble salad. A salad with some curious ingredients. When I first read the title of this recipe, I was most excited about the avocado. I love avocado! My grandparents used to have several avocado trees on their property, and one of my fondest summer memories is splitting one open, sprinkling on a little salt, and enjoying every creamy bite. But, avocado is not the star of the show in this recipe. It's really the watercress, which might be a little harder to find at your grocery store, but is worth tracking down. If you can't find it, you could also likely use spinach or another type of green, but the watercress really makes it great. Give it a try!

W is for White Chocolate: Chocolate Muffins with White Chocolate Chips (Jessica)

 

Hi there,
Sorry for the delay in this post, there were so many other things going on, I hadn't gotten any time in my kitchen!
As you might remember from this post, I really like white chocolate (even though it's not real chocolate), so when I found this chocolate muffin with white chocolate drizzled on top, I decided to try it! I added white chocolate chips to the batter as well (instead of the dark chocolate the original recipe called for), mmmmhhhmmmm. Sometimes a person just craves chocolate, am I right?!

W is for White Chocolate Oreo Truffles (Jennifer)

Hello!

Hope everyone has been enjoying the fall season thus far! I love fall. Love, love, love it. Wish the temperatures would hover around the high 60's, low 70's forever. It's just perfect. Perfect for baking, cooking and just being in the kitchen. I love the feel of the air, the sweaters being stocked in stores and the fall-inspired beverages offered at Starbucks. I always feel more inspired, more energized and more productive with the fall season. I should have been a fall baby. : )

Ok, where were we again? Oh, yes, this week's recipe. Earlier this week I told Jessica I didn't care much for white chocolate. And then I thought twice and remembered that I do enjoy white chocolate in certain contexts, including Jessica's Oatmeal Cherry White Chocolate Chip Cookies and White Chocolate Macademia Nut Cookies--yum. I also enjoy it when contrasted with strong and rich flavors like dark chocolate ganache, mocha and oh-yes-please, oreo!

W is for Watermelon Granita (Jessica)

Well hello there!

This week, I'm writing about watermelon. I've always been a fan of watermelon-flavored candy. Something about the fake fruity and sweet taste was disgustingly delicious. Do you know what I mean? Watermelon jolly ranchers, any sort of pink starburst, watermelon jellybeans, etc.

The best was watermelon-flavored Italian Ice. We used to walk down the street from our house to Candy Castle (yes, that was the name of the store...and no, it wasn't really a castle) and get "slush". If they had watermelon, it was a good day! The other most delicious flavor was blue vanilla. When I think back on it, I have no clue what that was. Why was it blue??! Oh well, it remains a mystery.
Getting the watermelon and blue vanilla together was the ideal combination, both for taste and for having a multicolored tongue afterward!

Today's recipe is a take on watermelon slush...but with actual watermelon in it! It is great for the summertime and is so easy, I can't believe I had never made it before.