I make these muffins all the time. They are super simple and a fan favorite. They are literally the perfect muffin. We often have a big crowd at the beach over the summer and a dozen muffins fills a hole at breakfast. They are also great for menu planning for the week!

I started making these with berries that I had around. Then it turned to fall and I tried it with apples and cinnamon - totally worked great. So I kept trying all of the other fruits that I had on hand. It totally works every time. You cannot go wrong with these muffins! I gave some ideas for mix ins at the bottom so you can see what all of your options are!

Options:

• Apples + 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• Blueberries + 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• Strawberries

• Clear out the fridge of all different berries

• Raspberries

• Blackberries + 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Any Fruit Muffin

makes one dozen

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup canola oil

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup chopped fruit

1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt

2 tablespoons big chunky sugar of your choice

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease the muffin tins. Combine together the flour, sugar and baking powder.

STEP 2

Whisk together the egg, oil, milk and vanilla. Combine the flour mixture with the egg mixture. Then fold in the yogurt.

STEP 3

Add the fruit and carefully stir in. Scoop evenly into the muffin tins.

STEP 4

Sprinkle the top with the crusty sugar of your choice and bake 15-20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

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I buy loads of food on vacation. I love finding things that I might not usually cook with - and sometimes things I do - and pick them up somewhere unique. Artichoke hearts in Rome, tomato paste in Venice, salt in Hawaii, and preserved lemons from Palm Springs - but sometimes I’m at a loss for what to do with them once I get home.

Preserved lemons are surprisingly simple to cook with - they go with almost anything but can feel intimidating. This risotto is the perfect introduction to using preserved lemons. And then you can graduate to more complicated recipes later - or not.

Preserved Lemon Risotto

With asparagus and zucchini

Serves 4

1 bunch asparagus, chopped

½ preserved lemon, drained and chopped

1 zucchini, chopped

1 onion, chopped

¼ cup butter, divided

¼ cup olive oil, divided

2 cup Arborio rice

6 cups room temperature vegetable stock

1 cup parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

STEP 1

Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onions zucchini, and asparagus.  Cook 5 minutes until slightly browned and tender.  Remove from the pan and set aside.

STEP 2

Add two tablespoons olive oil and rice to the pan - stir until coated with oil.  Pour in one cup of chicken stock and stir until completely incorporated.  When most of the stock has dissolved, add another cup of stock.  Continue until all of the stock has been added.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

STEP 3

Remove from heat and stir in remaining butter, Parmesan cheese, and reserved asparagus and preserved lemons.

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Cucumber Mint Cocktail

The perfect spring cocktail! There’s literally nothing better for your spring cocktail hour.

My girlfriends all play tennis. And before you think I’m exaggerating, I’m not. They ALL PLAY TENNIS. I don’t. I’m the black sheep. I’m the one coming from Crossfit to meet them for drinks after they’ve played tennis. And they all look darling and have cute clothes, and tennis bags, and clever sayings. I’m just sweaty and have red cheeks.

But I love them anyway. I partnered with my friend Jamie to create a cocktail for post tennis gatherings as we kick off the outdoor tennis season in Seattle! This week marks the beginning of playing outside again and hopefully means we can have a few gatherings with friends post match.

Jamie is also making the cutest tennis clothes for you tennis ladies and fellas. She’s just launching now, so if you’re in Seattle you can pick up at RainGlow. If you aren’t in Seattle, follow her site here and get updated when it launches nationally! I’m holding out for a shirt that just says “rally.”

Back to the cocktail; we wanted something light and spring-y but with just a little punch. Since our friend sent us a case of Deep Eddy to test out - including the new lime flavor! - we had to use those when mixing! We came up with an extremely refreshing cocktail that’s almost a spiked lime-ade, but better!

Apres Tennis

makes one drink

1 ounce Deep Eddy Lime

1/2 ounce cointreau

2 lemon wedges

2 lime wedges

Topo Chico

Honeydew melon balls (frozen optional, but delicious!)

In a cocktail shaker, muddle together one lemon wedge and one lime wedge. Add ice, Deep Eddy Lime and cointreau. Shake well. Strain into a highball glass filled with ice and top with Topo Chico. Garnish with remaining lime and lemon wedges and a skewer filled with honeydew melon balls.

Hot tip: if you are going to freeze the balls, skewer them first then freeze!

Cin Cin!

This is the perfect cocktail for any spring/summer activities and cocktail hosting. I love how refreshing and light it is and do not skip the honeydew. Clearly we did it because it was a funny tennis ball allusion, but it is also SO DELICIOUS! It is perfect with the lemon/lime cocktail.

Enjoy!