Food is such an important part of my life! Cooking meals, in my family of origin, has been celebratory and nourishing at the same time. To be in the kitchen with mom or grandma was a momentous time of cooking, bonding, and sharing stories. Today, I cook for fun and as a means to provide tasty dishes for my daughter. Several of my family members have owned food businesses and I dabble entrepreneurially in candy making myself…

This salad was a tasty lunch choice. I made a simple salad (spinach, tomatoes, chopped onion) with a dressing of lemon juice, olive oil, a little mustard (Dijon is best), chopped garlic clove, dried parm cheese, salt/pepper, Italian seasoning. The fresh croutons are were made from a day-old French bread loaf (cubed) – toasted in the oven (with a little olive oil, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning). This salad provided that “salt” craving without it being too salty— if you know what I mean! My 12-year old gobbled it up as well…❤️