Salmon Black Bean Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

But R, it's winter. Why are you blogging a summer dish in winter? Several reasons:

1. This is what I was craving for lunch
2. It was in the 70's in SC
3. Lastly, most of the ingredients were canned or put up in summer!

Easy Homemade Focaccia Bread

Focaccia bread is a flat, oven-baked Italian bread that’s topped with herbs, cheese and other ingredients. It’s kind of like pizza crust on steroids and about 100 times better. I’ve posted many-a-bread recipes here on Williams Kitchen but none compare to this one.

Many don’t make their own bread because its time consuming. This bread is a quickie though (in bread-making terms) and most of it is waiting around for the dough to rise. It is also little to no kneading. The Other Williams just loved this bread and could not stay out of it.

This is amazing served hot from the oven with pasta but it can also be frozen, which is what we did. If frozen, take it out of the freezer and let it thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake at a low temp to re-heat it.

You can add just about anything to this bread. We topped ours with tomatoes and olives but you’re only limited by your imagination!

Butternut Squash Caprese

Fall is right around the corner and the weather here in SC has just been so amazing this week! What I love most about this salad is that it's kind of a "farewell to summer, hello fall" salad. The avocados and tomatoes from the summer garden and the sweet-warmness of the butternut squash is just the perfect expression of this time of year.
 

For such a simple salad, it sure does not disappoint on taste. Everything goes so well together and small mozzarella balls are just the perfect size. There isn't a fancy dressing for this because, simply, it doesn't need one. Just some good olive oil, salt and pepper allows the veggies to shine bright.

As we say goodbye to another summer, I'm looking forward to welcoming my favorite season. This salad was a perfect way to celebrate this in between time of the year!

Kale Chickpea Pesto on Soba with Asparagus and Peas

We've been trying to incorporate a lot more vegetarian dishes into our diet and this one caught my eye while perusing the TasteSpotting website. At first I was like, "eww, kale..." Then as I looked at the recipe I realized the kale is in a pesto. So then I was all like, "Hmmm, maybe.."

Soba noodles are a staple in our house now. They are buckwheat noodles which means they are also Gluten-Free! Without even trying we scarfed down a vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free dinner!

 
And you know what?

It was awesome!! The textures and flavor were so awesome! We bulked up the veg a little and used a little of the pasta water to get the right consistency in the pesto.

The pesto is so creamy you might think there is cheese in it, but nope, it's the chickpeas and oil! We cut the recipe in half and still had leftover pesto. We're planning to use it in a sandwich for a picnic but it could be used in a variety of ways.

If you're looking for a superfood recipe that tastes amazing, this is it!

Tortellini Skewers with Pesto Dipping Sauce

Here is a really delicious and fast appetizer that you can make way before your guests arrive! I found this idea online and put my own spin on it but you can throw whatever you have on hand on these skewers.

If you're using them for an appetizer before a main course I would stick to 2 skewers per person. You can also use these on a buffet table, in which case I would allow more than 2 per person. These would be great for a kid's birthday, holiday party, or pot luck.

The skewers were so good and the combination of the tortellini, tomato, and pesto made it like a fun pasta salad on a stick. The only thing I would add is a spoon to the dip. That way people can spoon the pesto over the skewers instead of double dipping.

Creamy Garlic Pasta Salad

After spending the afternoon baking the Hummingbird cake with my good friend, RC. I then had to make dinner because The Other Williams was out of town for the weekend. I'm not normally the cook but this recipe was really so easy that even I could pull it off.

This pasta salad would be great for a picnic or camping trip also. It's good warm, room temp, or cold. I added what I had on hand so the veggies are totally interchangeable with whatever you prefer. We use the Creamy Garlic Dressing that I posted about previously and it gives the pasta great flavor and a light creamy sauce.

Salad Nicoise & Rainy Day Cooking

We had planned a bike ride but woke up to a cool southern rainy morning. So instead of hitting the road on our bikes we decided to go ahead and pre-prep some of our meals for the week. This saves us time during the week and makes getting dinner on the table a little faster.

So PJ’s and cooking it was. Whenever both of us are in the kitchen together I like to think that it’s like a well-directed and blocked play. We move as one, gracefully through our kitchen from one activity to the next. However, it’s not quite so graceful and it’s messy, very messy. We’re normally preparing 3-6 dishes or some aspect of those dishes. Cleaning up is my job and there is always a lot of clean up.

Had to share my hydrangeas! Aren't they gorgeous? These are in my dinning room and I love walking in and seeing them. Such a beautiful shade of blue.

For lunch we stopped the madness for a delicious salad that was supposed to be a picnic salad on the bike ride. Even without the ride this salad was amazing!

Last month I talked about Nice, France and it's close proximity to Italy in our Pan Bagnat Post. If you haven't read that one you should! I also talked about exploring this region a little more and this recipe happened to fit the bill very nicely!

Basically this is the French version of the chopped salad. Salad Nicoise (pronounced niˈswaz) has lots of yummy ingredients and is a lot of fun to eat because each bite is a little different. It's also very forgiving, we substituted and added things we had on hand. It was really delicious and worked even on the back porch while listening to rain.

After the cooking and cleaning madness, which really isn’t so bad, we relaxed on the back porch for the rest of the day. The Other Williams playing guitar and me editing photos and surfing pinterest. It never got above 70 degrees, which in the south in June, is pretty much unheard of. Even though a little work was involved overall it was a really relaxing day.

Pastrami Pesto Picnic Sammich

As I mentioned in the previous post, we tried to keep our costs down during our recent Colorado trip by fixing our own food. But we couldn't just fix cereal and ham and cheese, it needed to be something yummy! Our Egg & Avocado on Toast was perfect for breakfast and this delicious sammie was perfect for our on-the-go picnics.

On Sat, we explored Bear Creek Lake Park in Lakewood, CO. It was breath-taking to say the least. Bear Creek Lake Park has so much to offer any outdoors person. They have several lakes for kayaking and boating, a campground, tons of hiking trails, and a huge bike path. We saw more cyclist here than we've ever seen before. Literally, like, a hundred cyclist, probably.

The park also offer some pretty awesome picnic locations all throughout the park. Each picnic table was covered, which I was very happy to see. A little known fact about Colorado to those of us who don't live there is that the sun is fierce! So covered picnic tables were an awesome sight for this lily-white girl! 

We even spotted a coyote on our way out!

Above is what our lunch looked like. We grabbed a fruit platter from the store and ate on that for breakfast, lunch, and some snacking. We also grabbed some Boulder Canyon Chips. OMG! We LOVE Boulder Canyon Chips! We grabbed some of these two years ago when we were visiting Boulder, CO and have been craving them ever since.

The view from where we sat at one of the picnic shelters was beautiful. While we were eating lunch in roughly 75 degree weather, there were these light fluffy seeds that were seemingly floating around everywhere we went. It made it look like it was snowing! Very beautiful, but unfortunately I wasn't able to really capture it with my camera.

This sandwich was partially inspired by the Italian Compressed Sandwich we did a couple of months ago. This one however is a simpler version that is quick to make and just as delicious to eat! Give it a shot for lunch tomorrow or on your next picnic!

Pan Bagnat

Here in G-Vegas, our downtown offers a free outdoor movie once a week throughout the month of May & Sept. It's a great excuse for a picnic in my opinion. We loaded up this amazing little sammie and a bottle of wine and met a friend out there for a moonlight movie.

This sandwich was a huge hit and one we'll definitely be repeating soon. The flavors are so good! We added some yummy sardines to ours but you could also add good quality can tuna. The dressing seeps into the bread and the affect is pretty delicious!

Pan Bagnat is a classic french tuna sandwich that means "wet bread". Very popular lunch time sandwich that is sold in Nice, France in the markets and cafe's. What's interesting about the town of Nice is that it is around 18 miles from Italy's border, which means there is some Italian mingling going on in their cuisine!

I'm hoping to try a few more recipes from Nice very soon. I really like the Italian/French fusion that this town is known for!

Greek Tortellini Picnic Salad

Picnic season is finally in full swing so you'll be seeing a lot of our picnic menu's and recipes.This one is a twist on an old classic. Ever since our cleanse we've been adding more veg to everything. So we took our classic Tortellini Salad and put it over a bed of lovely crunchy spring lettuce mix.

We love a good picnic. Again, it combines our two favorite things: food and the great outdoors. Most of the time we prefer to picnic on the ground with our trusty picnic blanket. Eating on the ground, for me, helps make a picnic feel more special, however we're no strangers to camp chairs when the situation calls for it, such as a wet ground. A blanket invites you to lean back and relax while you eat. It also invites you to take a nap or read a book afterward!

Here in Greenville, SC we're very fortunate to have so many excuses to picnic. We have the beautiful Fall's Park right in downtown but we also have several events that encourage you to bring a blanket or chair and picnic. There is Moonlight Movies, Outdoor Concerts, and Shakespeare in the park!

We enjoy and participate in these event's regularly but we're also a little more creative than that. We picnic on the sides of roads, off the Blue Ridge Parkway, trail-side while hiking, lakeside while kayaking, even in the back of our hatchback. There is no where that a picnic can not be pulled off, well...except for private property (although certain times of the year they will invite you out!)

This is our go-to picnic salad and we love the addition of the greens. Always bring a long a little extra dressing because the pasta will absorb a lot of it. We hope you'll be inspired by our picnic recipes and experiences this year to get out into the great outdoors and still eat good!

Chili-Lime Shrimp Cups

We love entertaining guests here at the William's home. Just cooking something wonderful and making it special is right up our alley. We love our friends dearly and we get so much pleasure from making them feel welcomed and special in our home.

We also love entertaining because The Other Williams gets to cook for someone other than me for a change! It also gives me the opportunity to light candles, bring out the good napkins and fold them in special ways, and play with the visual appeal of whatever marvelous thing The Other Williams cooks up!

However, yours truly made these little darlings all by herself! That's right, it's that easy!

Recently we had friends over and served these cute cups for an appetizer. I love a good appetizer recipe! It gives our guests a moment to come in, sit down, and hang out before we move into the dining room. They are so casual and fun.

These would be great for a Cinco de Mayo party, tailgating, or picnicking. You could use them as appetizers or as a side dish to a main course. Regardless of how you plan to use them they will be a hit! Just two bites and your guests will be hooked!

Picnic Menu - Italian Compressed Sandwich

For The Other Williams' birthday she requested a trip to Atlanta to visit the High Museum of Art's current exhibit "Picaso to Warhol". The weather couldn't have been more lovely for a picnic so I decided to surprise her with one. We were traveling a bit to get there so I needed something pretty sturdy and this menu did the trick!

I love fun food on picnic's and anything on a stick is fun! I skewered organic grapes onto a bamboo skewer. I also did a caprese salad on a stick by layering small mozzarella balls, grape tomatoes, and basil leaves onto a skewer. I brought along a small container of balsamic vinegar for our dipping pleasure.

The Italian compressed sandwich was amazing and burst with flavor from the pesto, meats, and smoky cheese! This sandwich should be made a day a head but 6-8 hours ahead would be fine also.

The picnic was a hit and the weather was gorgeous as we relaxed in Centennial Park while people watching. We hit the art museum will tummies filled with love! The exhibit was awesome and we made plans to return before summer's heat turned Atlanta into Hotlanta!

Picnic in a Jar - Spring Veggie Orzo Salad

Recently The Other Williams and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. We got all dressed up for a lovely dinner at our favorite restaurant but we spend the actual day of our anniversary picnicking.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you'll know how much we love combining our two favorite things (outdoors and food). Not to ruin the surprise for newbies but it's a lot! We tried out this new recipe and absolutely love it! We tinkered with the original recipe to make it more our own. We added lots more veggies and lowered the amount of orzo.

Orzo is such a fun little food. It looks like rice but it's really pasta. It's great in hot or cold salads. The Other Williams is a huge orzo fan so when I found this recipe for our picnic there was no doubt it was going to be made.

The lemon-y dressing on this salad is just outstanding. We might even keep this around just to throw on regular salads or other pasta salads. This salad is packed with veggies! You can also play around with what veggies you have on hand or change it up depending on what's in season at your market.

Fall Picnic - BBLT

 For our fall trip recently I packed a delicious Italian Sausage Soup and this fabulous BBLT panini! What's BBLT?

Brie, Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato!

I used a ciabatta roll for the bread and my trusty grill pan to press the sandwich before we left. I wrapped it in some wax paper and it was good to go by the time we had our picnic!

The combination of this panini is just delicious. All my favorites are in play! Really smooth-earthy brie cheese, smoky bacon, peppery arugula, spicy Dijon, and sweet tomato. Yea, it's going to blow your socks off!

Fall Pinic - Italian Sausage Soup

 We recently took a picnic to a local apple farm/pumpkin patch. It was a gorgeous day and just perfect for this delicious soup. We also brought a BBLT panini, but you'll have to wait for that recipe in a few days.

The soup was so simple to make that I, as in, the non-cook, made it the day before. The morning of our picnic I just took it out of the fridge and reheated it.

The farm was packed but we managed to find a shade tree off by ourselves. We brought out the blankets, pillows, and wine. We breathed in the fresh air, shared a delicious lunch, and just enjoyed each others company. I don't think it could have been more awesome. We watched families hunting for that perfect pumpkin and listened to Ole McDonald way too many times as the hayride passed us.

We made a full batch of this soup and ate it for lunches the following week. It's really so good. I can't wait to make it again! Try it, it's amazing!

Chilled Cucumber Soup with Shrimp & Mini BLT

It's been getting just ridiculously hot recently and we found the perfect recipe to cool down with! Normally I'm not a big chilled soup person but this chilled cucumber soup  really hit the spot for me.

I love a good fresh summer cucumber. There is just something so clean and fresh about the favor in this little vegetable. Pair that with lemon and dill and wow!

We added a little agave to the recipe to balance out the tartness of the greek yogurt. And you want to use a good Greek yogurt. The shrimp on top was like icing on the cake and went beautifully with the soup.

We paired this lunchtime soup with a mini BLT. We used a potato roll (any dinner roll would be fine), thick cut bacon, fresh garden tomatoes, and arugula. I also prepared some dill mayo by using some of the dill and lemon juice leftover from the soup and mixing it into store bought mayo. It made the sammie a little extra special.

 

 I hope you'll try this one with your garden cucumbers. It's a delicious light, healthy, and filling lunch.