To figure out how to make my own Pimento Cheese, I did some research and quickly realized that I would probably never have made it if I had just seen a recipe and not tasted it. The basic version has loads of cheese and mayo, which just sounds heavy and unappealing to my palate. But somehow it all works!

This Smoky Cheese and Pepper Spread is made, not with pimentos, but roasted red bell peppers. I used three different kinds of cheese: Provolone, Smoked Gouda, and Sharp Cheddar. Try varying the proportions of cheese or even changing them up altogether if you like. A pickled serrano chile adds some heat, and a touch of beer adds some extra oomph. And since you need only a little bit of beer, there’s nothing left to do with the rest of the bottle except drink it!

My bundt pan used to live in the garage because we didn’t have enough storage in our old kitchen. We moved in March and our new kitchen has lots of storage, so my bundt pan now has a home in the kitchen, where it belongs. Now that I see it all the time, I’ve made more bundt cakes than ever and have become a little obsessed with them. I love them because there’s crust in every slice of cake.

This Almond Poppy Seed Bundt Cake recipe is super easy to throw together. It has a strong almond flavor, so if you don’t like that flavor, you could omit the almond extract and add some lemon zest instead. If you’re worried about transporting the cake with the glaze on it, you can use less glaze or just leave it off entirely. Even Emily, the self-proclaimed cake-hater loves this cake.

We’ll be cooking Wes’ famous, made-from-scratch, perfected-over-years-of-practice sausages. These will be paired with some sort of delicious potatoes, and this Apple Fennel Mustard Slaw. It is simple, hearty, bright, crunchy, tangy, and a little fancy. We can make it ahead of time with no worries that it will go limp before the party. It will play the role of both a salad and a topping for the sausages.

I’m still looking for one more side dish to complete the meal, if you’ve got any ideas. Safe enough that everyone will like it, probably a vegetable, and bright-colored though seasonal. It’s not an easy task!

We’ll keep you posted on more recipes and outdoor party ideas that we gather throughout the process.

Adapted from Beer Braised Brats with Apple Mustard Slaw on Honestlyyum.com.

Wes took me on my first mountain bike ride in years last week at our local park. He taught me some techniques and let me have a little taste of different types of terrain, from semi-steep uphills to a few rocks and ruts in the road. I felt ok about my abilities, but was worried about going on a slightly harder ride with a friend the next day. Luckily, that friend cancelled on me, but somehow I was signed up to participate in the SoCal 12 Hrs of Temecula Race instead!

The boys kept telling me that I only had to do one lap, our team wasn’t competitive at all, and I’d be fine. I got on my bike and took off on my own, straight up a mountain, and immediately fell over in front of a speedster who was definitely being competitive, almost getting my head run over. I just carved up my knee instead. The mountain kept growing in front of me, for endless miles. I had to pull over twice on the verge of heat stroke, but never fell again. By the end of the 8.6 mile loop, I’d started feeling awesome about my skills, no longer afraid of steeps or ruts or boulders, and even making it up some hills (my weakness) without having to hike. Its too bad nobody I knew was there to see me, because I totally looked like a pro by the end. Although I can’t imagine having done so well if a friend was there to listen to me whine. Funny what you can do when you are all alone and stuck with no option other than to toughen up and deal with yourself. If you haven’t been in that situation in a while, I encourage it.

This recipe is a great one to add to your fitness-filled winter camping trip. Its really just a hearty delicious grilled barbecue sandwich that everyone will love, but its more focused on health than any other you’ve had. Its made from tempeh, which many of us have a hard time loving, but trust us on this one. You’ll get everyone on board. The spicy slaw brightens the sandwich up and is hearty enough to withstand a good day of hiking (in cool weather). Thanks again to one of our current favorite cooks, Bryant Terry for another fabulous recipe to inspire us. Keep playing!

I’ve not had an easy time satisfying my need for good ol’ southern cookin out here in the west. You know my frustration with locating favorites like grits, and now that I have a vegan boyfriend, I gave up and thought it was just impossible. The Vegan Soul Kitchen cookbook has changed my attitude. The nicest thing about it is that it doesn’t rely on all the overprocessed fake foods. He uses things like coconut oil and homemade almond milk (which doesn’t sound that difficult to make).

Along with grits, I love lima beans. They were one of those things you were told to hate as a kid, so I avoided them for a while. When I found out what I was missing, I cooked them all the time, spreading their deliciousness throughout college. Lima beans aren’t any easier to find out here than grits. Not even frozen. I found some dried the other day, and asked Aimee to help me ready them for dinner. She lives in a household of about 15, so she soaked and cooked the entire package, and I was stuck with a pile that seemed to grow every time I ate some. I found this Garlicky Lima Bean Spread recipe in my new cookbook, and the rest of the lima beans disappeared into bellies instantly.

The spread is like a hummus, and very good on sandwiches or with crackers or hunks of bread. It calls for a lot of garlic, and didn’t taste like enough when the spread was still warm, so I added more. It got a lot garlickier after chilling, though, so go with the amount listed. This is a great make-at-home food to take on your next camping trip, or you could definitely try making the whole thing in a dutch oven over a fire if you’re out for a long trip with a lot of people.

Yesterday, we drove down the coast of California from San Francisco to L.A. – yep, the whole way. It took 9 hours, but we stopped and just ran around in a bunch of places, noticing the redwoods, the wildflowers, the elephant seals, and the beach rocks. It was so much more fun than taking a speedy 7 hour trip down I-5. I think its important to utilize these chunks of time in life to experience the “real” world around you. Eat dinner out on your back porch, or take a sandwich out to the park at lunchtime. Food is always a good excuse to go outside- especially in the summertime.

Everything that’s available in the summer is sweet, and corn is at the top of that list. The summer sweet corn is dwindling now, but if you’re like me, you’re hoarding the last of it to hide in your freezer for fall pot pies and chowder. I eat corn almost every day during the summer, and this is one of the easiest quickest ways to prepare it anywhere. I made this for myself at home the other night when I realized it was 10p.m. and I had forgotten to eat dinner. By the time I realize I’m hungry, I’m usually starving, and immediately have a panic attack about what I can make and eat NOW.

You can do all the prep work at home, and dump it in a pot when you get to your destination, which would be especially helpful on a backpacking trip. It is plenty easy to do the chopping at the campsite otherwise. This is also a perfect side dish to tacos or freshly caught grilled fish. Its a dish that has been complimented many times, and I’m always surprised since its totally easy. I think the sweet corn really does the work.

I had decided that I wanted to make a ginger peach cocktail for a 4th of July picnic. I didn’t know what kind of alcohol to use, but I suspected it would be something frou-frou like rum – the kind of alcohol you normally find in a girly spritzer. Instead, I found this recipe for Ginger Peach Juleps. It is a hilarious recipe requiring morning dew on the mint, and ice the size of “April corn snow in Northern Vermont.” Plus, I loved the idea of bourbon. It took some of the girliness out of the drink, and a lot of men ended up happily drinking the cocktail at the party (even demanding that I post the drink on my blog immediately!). I substituted ginger ale for ginger syrup, hoping its sparkling nature would be able to replace the “morning dew” on the mint for freshness. The mint in my yard won’t have much dew left on it past about 6 am, which is when I won’t be drinking this. I also think that ginger ale is easily carried separate to a picnic, making it easy to make a virgin version.

The recipe would be great camping too, of course. Whiskey is always a popular lightweight choice for an overnight, and it won’t be a problem if you bruise up the peaches in your backpack, since you have to do just that eventually anyway.

Luckily, it’s late afternoon by now. I have some leftover ratatouille that came from the tomatoes and squash in my garden, and I have the ingredients for this cocktail. I’m gonna head over to my big shady tree.

My mother has recently moved to Las Vegas, where they never heard of grits. She brought a few bags with her on her move out, and has gotten shipments from her mother and her best friend pretty regularly ever since. Last time I was in Vegas, I discovered eight bags of grits in her pantry, one of which said “To Emily, Love Uncle Steve” on it! “She’s become a hoarder,” I thought. But then I came home with my Uncle Steve grits to find that I already had 5 bags myself.

Anyway, I had a good time in the Carolinas. My boyfriend’s parents came down from Jersey, and got introduced to their first helpings of shrimp n’ grits in Charleston. Then in Raleigh, I picked me up a bag of $7 grits from the fancy Fresh Market, and that’s a lot of money to pay for such a thing. They were worth it. I don’t believe they can take the place of my still favorite grits from Kinston, NC at King’s BBQ, though. But you gotta be good to get ‘em.

We’ll do a basic grits recipe here first, because it matters. Especially if you’ve never had them, you definitely won’t learn to like them if they’re lumpy and gritty. You want ‘em creamy. And I like to attempt extreme creaminess without the use of actual cream. That way, they are still healthy and can be taken on any camping trip (although I can’t avoid a pat of butter on top no matter what). This process may seem easy, but it probably differs from the package or anyone else’s. The cold water start is important.