A Side of Sweet

Best Homemade Lemonade

If you’ve been around here long, you’ll know that I pretty much spent all winter talking about lemons and how much I love lemon desserts. It’s funny though, no matter how wintry citrus desserts are, nothing says summer like fresh-squeezed lemonade! What’s up with that!?

Secrets to the perfect lemonade – stop frantically stirring your drink trying to dissolve that sugar! Make a simple syrup instead to ensure perfectly sweetened lemonade every time. Also, make sure you taste test frequently as you add the water – it’s a hard job, but someone has to do it! I love using Meyer lemons if you have access to them as they are naturally sweeter than traditional lemons…. Read More »

Wine Country Style to the Max(i)

I just wanted to write a quick post to share the details of my wine country style from our recent trip. You can read all about what we did in my last post.

For me, quintessential wine country style includes a maxi dress. It’s the perfect thing for sitting and sipping a glass of wine while looking over the gorgeous seemingly-never ending rows of grape vines. It’s chic, but unfussy, and doesn’t require much thought. Perfect for a casual weekend of relaxing…. Read More »

A Perfect Day in Sonoma :: Sonoma-Cutrer Winery

This post brought to you by Sonoma-Cutrer Vineyards. The content and opinions are my own.

Pat and I had day free last weekend and we took the opportunity to sneak away to wine country for the day. We’re not much for hopping from winery to winery. We much prefer to pick one place, explore it and relax. This time, we chose Sonoma-Cutrer to explore. We’ve actually been one time before in the past, but it was for an event to benefit the Bay Area Make-A-Wish Foundation. (Side note: This year’s event raised almost $100,000!)… Read More »

Whole Grain Rice Bowls with Massaged Kale & Veggies

Vegetarian

I love hearing from everyone who reads A Side of Sweet. That’s why I respond to every comment (seriously!) and read every email. If someone who leaves a comment have a blog, I always click through and see what they’ve been up to.

It’s that sense of community and reciprocity that has helped me find my place in this crazy internet reality. I recently read that there are over 227 million blogs. Can you believe that!?

There are 227 million blogs and somehow you ended up here. Reading the silly things that I share…. Read More »

Gorgonzola Cheese, Peach and Bacon Flatbread Pizzas

Summer is upon us, which is also know as the season where I gush about stone fruit. Peaches are a clear favorite in my book, and I use them in everything, from savory to sweet. This recipe has a lot to gush about – bacon (yum), gorgonzola cheese (yum) and it’s a great single serving size recipe. I scaled this as a recipe for two, but I’m confident that you can do the simple math to scale the recipe in half. Plus you get to eat half of a peach as a snack that way. You’re welcome. You should also go ahead and make yourself some peach buttermilk ice cream for dessert…. Read More »

French Macarons with Strawberry & Blackberry Fillings

The fillings are what determines most of the flavor of french macarons. Strawberry buttercream made with freeze-dried strawberries makes a pretty pink filling without being watery. Blackberry filling is tart and is a gorgeous deep purple.

Macaron making adventure: part II

Today I’m sharing the second part of my macaron making adventure! In the first part, I made plain macaron shells and played with edible food paint.

When I told one of my Parisian friends that we were attempting to make macarons, his first response was to raise his eyebrows. “So, you call them French macarons? Just like French fries? You know, in France, we just call them fries,” he kidded me.

Seriously though, there’s a big difference between “French” macarons and American macaroons. These little beauties are temperamental shells made with meringue and filled with whatever your heart desires. They have just a bit of a hard shell and the insides have a chewy softness. American macaroons are also delicious, but are more of a cookie and are covered with coconut. Big difference.… Read More »