“Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Arizona anymore.”

By the time you read this, I’ll be boarding the second flight of the morning on my way to Wichita, Kansas.

My dad is an Arizona Native, but his parents are originally from Germany. They came to America by way of Kansas. There is a family reunion that he wants to attend this weekend. Sloane and I are accompanying him.

It is being held in New Almelo, Kansas – population of 622.

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I received an email yesterday from a woman who lives in Alpharetta, GA.

Caroline was thanking me for my “Glossary of Cooking Terms” which can be found under The Basic Kitchen tab, over there on the left side of the page.

She waxed poetic about how educational and informative she found it and that she loved my daily posts as well and how her morning hasn’t truly begun until she has seen my most recent post. It was very sweet and it is the sort of thing that motivates me to keep doing what I do. The fun part is how she came to find my site. It was sent to her by the management office of her apartment complex.

I’ve noticed, for the last 4 months or so, that several different apartment management companies have been linking to my “Glossary” page in their communications to residents. The links have been posted on resident community online newsletters in more than a dozen states, including AL, AR, CA, CO, FL, GA, KY, KS, MD, MO, NC, OK, PA, SC, NC, TN, TX and VA.

The best part of getting the links is reading how the various newsletters from around the country entice their residents to check out my glossary:

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This light summer salad is so delicious and refreshing. An added bonus – no cooking or heating up the kitchen is involved!

One more thing … it’s pretty as a picture.

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After visiting The Simple Farm last week, I was inspired to make a meatless meal.

This meal is “Connor Approved!”

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Two years ago today, I read an article in The Arizona Republic about a suburban farm. The Simple Farm is a mere four miles from my house, on Cactus Road. Perfect, I live off Cactus Road! I cut the article out with the intention of checking out the farm later that summer. The Simple Farm is only open to the public on Thursday mornings and at the time I was in the middle of my summer session of kid’s cooking classes.

Classes ended that year in mid-July. I never made it to the farm, not after classes ended, not for the rest of 2012 or all of 2013. I’d drive by, although never on a Thursday morning, and think, “I need to plan a visit!”

What is it that keeps a person from doing something they have every intention of doing? Is it just me, or do you do that too? Is everyone like this or do I have a problem? I am a procrastinator, I know this. But two years?!?

Anyhow, Sheila called me last Thursday and asked if I wanted to meet her at The Simple Farm. I honestly could not go that morning, but I asked her to ask me again next week. Next week was yesterday, and I finally made it to The Simple Farm. It will not be the last time! It is a charming slice of the country in the middle of the city – Simply Wonderful!

Part of the wonderfulness is that they raise goats. Big goats.

Sweet little baby goats!

Of course they have chickens.

They love their chickens.

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On May 29, 2011, I posted a recipe for Jalapeño Poppers.

Poppers are jalapeño peppers, cleaned out, filled with cheese, wrapped in bacon, and baked. And in this case, brushed with apricot preserves. The spicy morsels make for one delicious and addictive appetizer.

A little more than three years later, I have another delicious and addictive recipe for you … not little poppers, but instead, great big firecrackers!

I’m calling them firecrackers because they have an extra flavor explosion – chicken and BBQ sauce. The firecrackers can be sliced and served as appetizers or cut in half, on a diagonal, and served as the main course.

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Sending out big birthday wishes to my cohort in crime – Sheila!

We shop for vintage and salvage together.

We go on road trips to find the best stuff.

We break into houses when necessary … don’t worry, it was Sheila’s own Coronado Island cottage!

We host craft-parties together.

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When you live in the restaurant world, you work late at night and all too often eat fast food, late at night, after a long shift. After years of working with chefs and seeing the burger wrappers and French fry containers in their cars, I know this all too well. My son, Connor, is now in that very position. He gets off sometime between 10 and 11 PM and picks up the drive-thru on his way home.

Even though there was often a plate ready for him in the fridge, for whatever reason, he would eat the fast food at night and save the plate for lunch the next day. Eventually, he got sick of it and finally asked for a healthy, vegetable and protein-heavy, but still light “something” for dinner. Sometimes, it takes time to realize what the body really wants.

These colorful stuffed peppers fit the bill.

Since I saw no reason to use half a package of turkey, half a can of beans, half a can of chiles, and so on – the filling makes enough to fill at least 6 peppers, or 12 servings, which is a lot of servings. Instead, this is a wonderful “cook once, eat for two days” recipe. With some lettuce or taco shells, the filling is perfect for a main dish salad, lettuce wraps, or tasty tacos for lunch or dinner the next day.

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Peggy’s ex-husband, Kevin along with his girlfriend, Sushil, hosted a graduation party on Sunday for the kids and for Sushil’s son, Neeraj, who is also a proud high school graduate.

The food was mostly Mexican with a little Indian and vegetarian thrown in. There were chips and Kevin’s famous (and fabulous) salsa, guacamole, queso dip, and samosas for appetizers. Freshly made margaritas, beer, wine, and Samme’s Bloody Mary bar for drinks. And the main meal – I know, that already sounded like enough, but there was much more – including Peggy’s beans and rice, Kevin’s beef brisket tacos, Sushil’s butternut squash tacos, vegetarian and chicken enchiladas, and finally – this salad that Sushil made.

I requested the recipe from Sushil and she told me she found it on foodnetwork.com but made it her own by adding a bunch of cilantro. Good call – it’s another great refreshing summer salad to add to your repertoire.

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