Happy 2014! I don’t know about you, but I certainly had fun indulging in some (or several) sweet treats this holiday season! In an effort to get back to my healthier routine, I wanted to sample something a bit lighter this time around.

It’s no secret that Los Angeles is a huge sprawling city, and I typically only head to the Westside for my frequent dentist appointments (thanks, Invisalign!). Following my appointment yesterday morning, I decided to pop over to Westwood/UCLA for a tasty beverage at Espresso Profeta.

The ambiance at Espresso Profeta is so lovely! There are lots of little nooks where you can sit outside with your treat and bask in the beauty of a Southern California “winter” morning. After spending the last two weeks in New England for the holidays, I welcomed the warm sun!

I’d read a lot about Profeta’s lovely espresso art and was so tempted to order a caramel latte. Ultimately, I decided to remain true to my vow of eating/drinking a little cleaner this month (note: I make none of these promises for February’s entry) and went with a Moroccan Mint tea latte made with soy milk.

I lovvvve anything with mint, and this tea latte was no exception! It was light, airy, and had just the right hint of flavor.

Have you ever tried a tea latte? What’s your favorite flavor?

We hope that you are settled nicely on this side of 2014 and that you’re as excited as we are for a new year! To get you started right, we came up with a smoothie that is the color of the year (Radiant Orchid, in case you didn’t know) and is chocked full of fruits and veggies to keep your energy up and your mood exuberant!

Recipe:

1 cup milk
1 cup kale
1 cup frozen strawberries (or mixed berries)
1 pear
2 Cara Cara oranges (or blood oranges!)
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 tsp dried ginger

Directions: Blend all until smooth. Makes 2 servings (or one giant one!)

This works for a breakfast, or for an afternoon snack – it definitely is filling, and it holds up for the next day if you want to make a batch to start your mornings off with something more exciting than cereal!

We hope your New Year has started off with your highest hopes. Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2014, everyone! We hope you had a lovely & safe New Year’s Eve, and that you’re relaxing today, maybe cooking for you or loved ones, and generally enjoying ringing in another year.

This year, we’d like to introduce monthly desktop calendars into the GMS mix. Our lovely and talented friend, Megan Roy, makes amazing illustrations, and when we approached (read: bullied) her about joining the GMS team, she thought that illustrations would be a great addition to GMS – and we agree!

We’ve included a recipe for a delicious smoothie to start your new year off right! Click on the photo below and it’ll automatically start downloading – then make it your desktop background.

 Happy New Year, Everyone!

Hello all! We hope that you’re having a good holiday! We at GMS are scattered throughout the country, but we wanted you to see a glimpse of what we’ve been doing. First, here at the Palluzzi’s we checked out Eataly, in downtown Chicago, followed by a trip to Christkindlmarket to see the beautiful Christmas tree (and shops!) Then, we worked on all sorts of Christmas cookies, from gingerbread men to anginettes to Italian spice! For Christmas breakfast, we made cinnamon rolls from the Pioneer Woman, and we made our tradition feast of the seven fishes for Christmas Eve dinner, spanning eight fish instead of seven – this year’s addition of fried oysters and calamari were a hit!

We hope that you’re having a lovely holiday where ever you are, and that you are enjoying this day of good cheer! Merry Christmas!

Personally, I have never cooked with pumpkin before, so when I got one in my CSA, I knew I had to rise to the challenge.  I’m not much for pumpkin flavored baked goods, so I knew I wanted to find a savory recipe for my first pumpkin.

Martha Stewart’s recipe for pasta with roasted pumpkin and goat cheese caught my eye.   As always when I am cooking with a new ingredient, I was slightly intimidated, but it turned out there was no need to be.  The pumpkin peeled easily and the flesh was so thin that it was easy to cut.  I frequently cook with spaghetti squash which has thicker flesh making it much more difficult to cut and work with, so the thin flesh of the pumpkin was a welcome surprise.

I ended up roasting the pumpkin, shallots, and sage the night before and then I heated them up in a skillet while the pasta was cooking.  I added crumbled bacon for some added punch (and protein).

I would recommend cutting the pumpkin into 1” chunks instead of the 2” chunks that the recipe calls for.  The larger chunks may make it easier for roasting, but more difficult for eating.  This recipe could also be easily made with a butternut squash if you don’t happen to have a pumpkin on hand.

This is definitely a new favorite that combines complementary flavors for a hearty meal.

What are some of your favorite fall meals?