Don’t rub your eyes when you look at the dish pictured above. That is in fact calamari you see and yes, it’s here on weelicious. Now you’re probably thinking:

a. What IS calamari? (Answer: squid.)
b. How the heck do I cook it? (Answer: it’s one of the easier types of fish to prepare.)
c. There’s NO way my kid will ever eat it. (Answer: Don’t be too sure about that.)

Trust me, the recipes that show up on weelicious are never some type of challenge that I offer parents to try and get kids to eat a host of foods they’re never going to enjoy. Quite the opposite, in fact. I have a 2 year old who constantly surprises me with her love of the most unexpected dishes to prove it. The first time Chloe tried calamari we were at one of our favorite Italian restaurants. I had ordered the grilled calamari and she scarfed every last piece of it off of my plate. Minutes after it was all gone she was screaming at the top of her lungs, “MORE CALAMARI!!! “The people at the table next to us looked over as if we were C-R-A-Z-Y! We now hear this familiar refrain from Chloe almost every time we are at a restaurant (whether they serve calamari or not!). Her demands for it became so frequent, I started making it at home and you’d be amazed by how quickly this child can put it away.

To remind you again, we’re talking here about calamari, not chocolate cake or vanilla ice cream, but they way my whole family enjoys it now, you’d think I was offering dessert.

If you’ve never tried calamari before, it’s time to give it a try because this unbelievably easy-to-make recipe is packed with protein and flavor, is inexpensive and unbelievably scrumptious no matter how old you are!

Calamari Rings (Serves 2-3)

1 Lb Calamari
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/4 Cup Sherry Wine
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1. Rinse, drain and pat calamari dry.
2. Cut calamari into rings and pat dry again with a paper towel to remove as much excess liquid as possible.
3. Heat a large skillet over high heat, add 2 tbsp of oil and immediately add the calamari rings sautéing for 2 minutes.
4. Remove calamari to a bowl.
5. Add the minced garlic, sherry wine, salt and lemon juice to the same skillet over high heat and allow to boil for 1 minute.
5. Add the calamari back into the sherry lemon sauce to heat through for 20 seconds.
6. Serve.

It’s still summer and the weather seems warmer then ever, but once the Back to School buzz is in the ether it sends my brain a message that it’s time to cover up the grill and head back into the kitchen to do my cooking.

But I don’t listen to that message! The grill should always be your best buddy — at least for as long as it continues to be nice outside and your goal remains getting an easy dinner on your table in a jiff.

Among all the fruits and vegetables, our garden is literally overflowing at the moment with peppers and zucchini. I gotta use what’s growing and that’s where the inspiration for these hearty kabobs came from. My kids are really into the how our peppers have ripened into rainbow of different colors and they’ve also discovered a fun new cooking job helping me to string the vegetable chunks onto the skewers. After just a few minutes on the grill and a brush of sweet glaze right at the end, these Grilled Veggie Kabobs will become welcome part of your meal no matter what time of year it is!

Grilled Veggie Kabobs (Makes 6-8 Skewers)

1 Onion, cubed
1 Red Bell Pepper, cubed
1 Green Bell Pepper, cubed
1 Orange Bell Pepper, cubed
8 Mushrooms
1 Green Zucchini, sliced into 1-inch rounds
1 Yellow Zucchini, sliced into 1-inch rounds
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Teriyaki Sauce

1. Preheat grill.
2. Place vegetable onto skewers*, brush with olive oil and grill for 3-4 minutes on each side.
3. Brush with the teriyaki sauce and serve.

* If using wooden skewers, soak in water for 30 minutes prior to placing the vegetables on the skewers so they don’t burn

DO YOU WANT TO SAY YOU CAN USE TOMATOES AND WHATEVER VEGGES ARE IN SEASON?

Why do so many people turn up their noses when they hear the word okra? Growing up in the south, I ate okra as often as say someone in Georgia might eat a peach. Being someone who can at times gravitate to the extreme, I was also the kid who, when enjoying a bowl of Burgoo (am I getting too country for you now), used to pick out all of the okra to devour first. However, I find people from other parts of the country either have never heard of okra or have an unexplained aversion to it.

I introduced Kenya and Chloe to this exquisite green vegetable, a very good source of Vitamins A, C, and K, right when they started eating solid foods and now I’ve got two okra lovin’ kids. We usually enjoy it prepared simply, steamed as a side dish, but when I made these okra fries and served them up with a little marinara sauce on the side for dipping, the kids looked at me like I truly had reinvented the wheel (and improved on it)! My 2 year old, Chloe, likes to pull the okra out of the crust and eat both parts separately (it is hilarious to watch) while the rest of us like to just dip and leave our “fries” intact. Crunchy on the outside, tender and sweet on the inside, these Okra “Fries” are delicious, a healthier alternative to real fries because there is no actual frying involved and a great way to get your family to eat one of my favorite veggies — with no upturned noses!

Okra Fries (Serves 4)

1 Lb Whole Okra
1/3 Cup Flour
2 Large Eggs, whisked
1 Tsp Kosher Salt
1 Cup Italian Breadcrumbs or Panko

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. Make an “assembly line” by placing the flour in one bowl, the eggs in a second bowl, and the salt and breadcrumbs in a third.
3. Roll the okra in the flour and pat to remove excess flour.
4. Dip the flour-coated okra in the egg and then roll in the breadcrumbs. Dip in the egg again and roll into the breadcrumbs once more to double coat the okra.
5. Place okra on a cookie sheet sprayed or greased with olive oil. When all the coated okra is on the sheet, spray again to lightly coat.
6. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden.
7. Serve.

There is the sweetest, homemade sno-cone stand at our farmers’ market called Sno-con AMOR where the owner (and Kenya’s newest love), Lauda, serves up the most incredible traditional Raspados (Mexican Snow Cones). With homemade syrups in flavors like walnut, coconut and mojito (I almost want to drop to the ground with embarrassment every time Chloe screams, “MORE MOJITO” in a crowd full of parents), these are nothing like the artificially sweetened and colored sno-cones you may be used to seeing. Lauda uses only the freshest, all natural ingredients to produce her frozen works of art.

Recently Lauda has been featuring watermelon-cinnamon as a flavor and it is heavenly. The first time she offered me a taste I was skeptical. Cinnamon and watermelon sounded like quite an unusual combo, but it took just one bite and I was knocked out. So knocked out in fact, that I had to replicate it at home. Given that the kids only see Lauda on Sunday, having granita (very similar to sno-cones) for them at home the remaining six days of the week made me very popular with them indeed.

And no, your eyes aren’t fooling you. That’s yellow watermelon pictured above. The kids can’t get enough of it when it is in season, so I used it to make this cinnamon spiked watermelon granita that tastes almost as good as Lauda’s sno-cones.

Whether you decide to make this with red or yellow watermelon, it’s a super sweet summer time treat that’s filled with AMOR!

Watermelon Granita (Serves 6-8)

5 Cups Watermelon Chunks
1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
1/3 Cup Sugar

1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and puree.
2. Place the puree in an 8×8 inch Pyrex dish and put in the freezer for 1 hour.
3. Remove from the freezer and scrape with a fork to break up pieces.
4. Place back into freezer for 1 hour.
5. Remove from the freezer and scrape with a fork to break up pieces.
6. Repeat this process one or two more times over several hours until the
granita is similar in consistency to shaved ice.
7. Serve (cover the dish with tin foil to keep the rest in the freezer).

I have a confession to make. I’m confiding in you before I even tell my husband.

I’ve got a new boyfriend at the farmers’ market. I know, I’m terrible, but I can’t help myself. He’s incredible. It’s not because of his dashing looks or that he’s a total charmer (though that certainly doesn’t hurt). Rather it’s because he has the most beautiful, creamy avocados I have ever tasted. How I walked by his stand every Sunday for years without noticing him is a mystery to me, but one day, shortly after my previous longtime avocado boyfriend stopped selling at our market, my new beau’s goods caught my eye. We’ve been together ever since and my kids love that he always gives them a free lime or ripe and ready-to-eat avocado.

Sometimes I get a little too carried away and buy more avocados than I can possibly use in a week, so I have to come up with different ways to prepare them beyond just guacamole or avocado shakes. This Cucumber Avocado Salsa can be served as a dip with sliced vegetables, like a traditional salsa with chips, as a sauce on grilled chicken or shrimp or simply eaten with a spoon on it’s own. It’s a refreshing summer recipe no matter how you serve it.

It feels so good to come clean to you. My husband is not going to be thrilled when he reads this, but considering the fact that he adores avocados as much as the kids do, I may be more accepting of my new boyfriend than I originally thought.

Cucumber Avocado Salsa (serves 4)

1 Large Cucumber, seeded and chopped
2 Avocados, peeled, pitted, & cubed
2 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp Fresh Mint, chopped
Juice of 1 Lime
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt

1. Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and combine.
2. Serve.

Every Sunday, our first order of business at the farmers’ market is to go see Marilyn and Eileen, known to us (and pretty much everyone else who loves them) as the “fish ladies”. The fish ladies seem to sell every variety of the freshest seafood under the sun, and while we always try to sample a wide array of the fish they bring, from jumbo shrimp to calamari to red snapper, our most frequent pick is their exquisite wild salmon.

I vary the preparation of my salmon from time to time, but this one is by far the most popular with my kids. It features tons of olives (Chloe’s favorite) and a yogurt dip on the side which Kenya has been known to drink straight from the bowl.

This recipe may look like a very adult way to prepare this omega-3 packed fish, but it’s actually quite simple and packed with flavors that will appeal to everyone in your house.

Roast Mediterranean Salmon (Serves 4)

1 1/2 lb. Salmon Fillets
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 Tsp Kosher Salt
1/4 Cup Kalamata Olives, sliced
1/2 Cup Fennel Bulb, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp Fresh Dill, chopped
1 Small Onion, thinly sliced
1 Lemon, thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. Place salmon skin-side down on a greased, foil lined baking sheet.
3. Brush each salmon fillet with olive oil and evenly top with the salt, olives, fennel, dill, onion and lemon slices.
4. Roast for 15 minutes.
5. Serve with sauce.

Lemon & Dill Dipping Sauce (makes 1/2 cup)

1/2 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
Juice of 1/2 a Lemon
2 Tsp Fresh Dill or 1 Tsp Dried Dill
Pinch of Salt

1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.
2. Serve.

My husband is an incredible storyteller. He comes up with the most elaborate, entertaining tales that would keep even the most fidgety kid engaged. Every night, we take turns telling the kids bedtime stories. While hubby comes up with these super creative tales that have a lesson or moral woven in to boot, my stories are generally straightforward travelogues along the lines of “Mommy and Kenya Go to Paris” (you think I’ve been reading too much Madeline?). In my stories, Kenya and I roam around far flung locations like Paris, looking at the Eiffel Tour, touring Notre Dame and eating everything from croissants to crepes. Of course food gets more detail than anything else in my stories, and so Kenya usually asks if we can make the things I talk about so fondly.

Last week we had a crepe making extravaganza, preparing them three mornings in a row. Crepes are so easy to make and the kids love being surprised by the different fillings I offer them. In my Paris story, I talk about eating banana filled crepes with Nutella, but instead of buying a jar of the famous hazelnut-chocolate spread they use in France, we decided to make our own homemade version.

Whether you decide to spread this insanely delicious and addictive treat on Graham crackers, strawberries, crepes or even, I dare say, eat it right off the spoon, this version of homemade nutella will make you feel like you are on vacation in France. And chocolate for breakfast? That’ll keep your kids more engaged than the best story!

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread (makes 1 1/4 cups)

1 Cup Hazelnuts
1/4 Cup Agave or Honey
2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder
3 Tbsp Hot Water

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
2. Place hazelnuts on a baking sheet and toast for 15 minutes.
3. Remove hazelnuts to a kitchen towel, cover and rub to remove the hazelnut skins.
4. Place hazelnuts in a food processor and chop for 30 seconds.
5. Add the remaining ingredients and puree.
6. Serve with crepes or as a dip for fruit.

There’s something about tapioca pudding that seems so kid-like to me. Not that adults don’t also love this creamy, coconut flavored pudding, but the act of plunging your spoon deep down into the bottom of the cup and pulling up some sweet, juicy strawberries to accompany the tapioca on top — all in the same bite — carries with it an anticipation that I associate almost completely with how excited I used to get as a kid to savor my desserts. This dish irresistable to me. In fact, typing this is making me so hungry I think I need to stop and have some! I guess I’m still just a kid at heart.

Fruit on the Bottom Tapioca (Serves 4)

1 Cup Strawberries, stemmed and chopped fine
1 13 oz Can Unsweetened Coconut Milk, about 1 3/4 cups
3/4 Cups Water
1/3 Cup Tapioca (not quick cooking)
3 Tbsp Sugar

1. Bring the coconut milk, water and tapioca to a boil.
2. Reduce to a low simmer and cook uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the sugar and cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Divide the chopped strawberries between 4 glass cups and pour tapioca over the strawberries.
5. Chill for one hour and serve.

For me, one of the great sites and smells of summer is a big basket of fresh peaches. We love eating them so much in my house that I tend to go a bit overboard at the farmers’ market every Sunday and buy way more than we could possibly eat in a week. As the days go by, some get bruises while others become uber soft and juicy. Unless you want to eat peaches for every meal there’s nothing you can really do with them except….make fruit leather! If you think my kids like eating peaches, you should just see how excited they get for this homemade fruit leather. They go through it so quickly I tend to make about three batches a week, but one of the great things about this recipe is that it stays good for weeks, if not longer.

Got a little over zealous like me at the market and now you’re sitting with several pounds of super ripe stone fruit — and no where near enough time to eat them before they spoil? Peach fruit leather is your answer!

Peach Fruit Leather

4 Ripe Peaches (skin on)
1 Tbsp Honey

1. Preheat oven to 225 F degrees.*
2. Rinse and remove seeds from peaches.
3. Place the peaches and honey in a blender and puree until smooth.
4. Pour the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet and spread with the back of a spoon or spatula in a large rectangle (my rectangle was 11 x 15 inches) making sure that the thickness is completely even.
5. Bake for 3-4 hours or until dry and not sticky to the touch. Remember, cooking times will vary depending on how thick you spread your mixture and how much water (juice) is naturally in the fruit.**
6. Set aside and cool at room temperature; it takes several hours for the fruit to soften up. Note that when you first take the fruit leather out of the oven, the edges will be a bit dry and crispy, but if you allow it to sit out for several hours it softens up nicely.
7. Cut with a knife, pizza cutter or scissors into strips, keeping the paper on if desired, then roll the leather into “roll ups”.
8. Serve.

* If you choose to use a dehydrator, cook the fruit leather at 135 degrees for 5 hours.
** Every oven is different, so the cooking time maybe less than 2 hours if your oven tends to run hot.

Have you ever tried a tomatillo? Until I moved to California over a decade ago I had never seen, let alone tried, one before (unless you count a taste of jarred tomatillo salsa). Sometimes referred to as green tomatoes and most frequently found in Mexican cuisine, not only are tomatillos beautiful, but they’re also delicious and now growing in My Own Edible Garden!

One of our favorite Mexican restaurants makes the most incredible fresh tomatillo salsa that hubby, the kids and I all adore, so I figured why not make my own version to serve alongside chips or over grilled fish or chicken. There’s just something about this salsa’s fresh taste that makes it the perfect accompaniment to almost any summertime meal.

Once you start making this simple recipe, I bet you’ll be like me and wonder why you’ve been buying your salsa in a can or jar all these years!

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa (Makes 1 1/2 Cups)

10 Tomatillos, husked & rinsed (about 1 lb)
2 Small Garlic Cloves
1 Small Onion, cut into chunks
1/2 Cup Fresh Cilantro, packed
Juice of 1 Lime
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt

1. Preheat oven broiler.
2. Place tomatillos, garlic cloves and onion chunks on a foil-lined baking sheet and place on the middle rack of the oven. Broil for 10 minutes, remove and set aside to cool.
3. Once cooled, place all of the ingredients into a food processor and puree.
4. Serve with tortilla chips or over grilled fish or chicken.