Moxy Thoughts

As we barrel into the holiday season there are a lot of opportunities to eat, drink and be merry!  We have a crazy schedule over these few weeks of festivities and I’m feeling both excited and overwhelmed at the same time.  I’m trying not to take on too much or create too many events that require serious planning, but as with most years, I get excited about the opportunity to welcome people into our home to cook and nosh.  Last weekend, we invited new friends over for dinner and old friends for the following day for lunch – this was squeezed in between our normal schedule with the boys – kids’ parties, school obligations, etc.  As such, I was really focused on making food that was simple, delicious and nutritious but that did not require a whole lot of prep or hands on time because I was so excited to spend time with everyone outside of the kitchen. here

Dinner was a really great opportunity to get to know a whole new family, who has a focus similar to ours on tasty nutrition.  The wife is a chef and the husband is a scientist; along with their digital savvy son they made a really great group of people to spend an evening with.  Unfortunately, I can’t say as much about the meal that I prepared that night!  It was great in concept – a simple one pot roast loaded with flavor and packed with multi-colored heirloom potatoes, organic carrots and onions.  However, I left the roast in just a bit too long.  So while the veggies were really flavorful, the roast was dry.  I’ll definitely try the recipe again and when I get it right, I’ll post it.  It’s really very simple if I can get the cook time right!

Lunch the following day was a different story (I’m talking about the food!  The company was of course wonderful!).   I tend to fall back on cheese and charcuterie along with a simple salad when it’s a casual lunch, Sunday was no exception.  However, when I do that sort of easy spread, I like to add at least one interesting side or dish to take up the interest a bit.  That morning, I spotted some of my favorite spicy peppadews in the olive section of the grocery store and was instantly inspired to create one of my favorite easy apps – stuffed goat cheese peppadews!  I discovered the peppadews a few years ago, but only just recently learned that they are a discovery from South Africa and is named peppadew to reflect the fact that they look like cherry tomatoes and peppers combined!  If you’re into them, you can find them in the fresh olive section or buy them online at www.peppadew-usa.com.  Now you could literally put any sort of creamy cheese and nut into these and I’m sure they’d be delicious, but I love goat cheese and pine nuts smashed with sun-dried tomatoes and basil.  That has become a filling that I usually do and I’ve learned to double the recipe to use later on top of rice cakes or cucumbers.  It’s such an easy fill to make and most people love the combination.  I’ve been making this recipe for over a decade, virtually unchanged and I can honestly say I never have any peppadews leftover to send home!  I hope you enjoy the recipe and if you’re inspired, please snap a picture of your easy holiday spreads and tag us on either Facebook or Instagram @moxykitchen.   Looking forward to getting inspired by your dishes!