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Summer is such a great time to try out new recipes because everything's in season! We've been talking a lot about the recipes we come back to time and again and the ones we're planning to test in the coming weeks. Cook along with us!  

Bourbon-and-Brown-Sugar Cake with Berries from Martha Stewart
I just made it for the first time (pictured above!) and it's yummy and not too difficult to make. Plus, it was an easy thing to bring to a summer cookout! I also want to try making this one!      -Erin

Charred Corn Salad from Williams Sonoma
This is a recipe my mom has made and I tried it myself last summer when we finally had a grill of our own!  It’s hard to be polite and take a “normal” serving. I usually want two or three. :)     -Megan

Heirloom Tomato Caprese from Bon Appétit
When tomatoes are in season they are soooo good! It's so easy salad to throw together and it's so refreshing.       -April

[Photo of Bourbon-and-Brown Sugar Cake with Berries courtesy of Erin.]  

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A day devoted to lunch? That's my kind of day! You might have already picked up on my love of lunch from my earlier post on kid lunchbox ideas. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that I've got lots of packed lunch ideas for adults too! 

I started making my own lunches regularly when I got my first full-time job. I couldn't afford to go out to eat every day and resorted to making sandwiches for myself. Honestly, my lunch was pretty boring. That is, until I got a lunch box with compartments! The compartments inspired me to go beyond PB&J. 

I rely pretty heavily on leftovers, and I fill in with fun salads when there aren't any leftovers in sight. For a little inspiration, see below for some of the lunches I've packed this month. 

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #1. Butternut squash soup with a hunk of baguette, baby carrots, and orange slices.

I use this butternut squash soup recipe from Dinner A Love Story. It's a family favorite and I usually double the recipe so I can bring leftovers for a few days.

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #2. Greens topped with lettuce, blanched green beans, hard boiled eggs, and ranch dressing with pretzels and mashed sweet potatoes.

I often buy a rotisserie chicken, chop it up on Sunday night, and use the cubes in lunches and dinners during the week, which makes it really easy to throw a simple salad together.  

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #3. Chicken tikka masala with naan, avocado, and orange segments.

I get the Maya Kaimal tikka masala simmer sauce at our local grocery store when I'm in the mood for fast, inexpensive Indian food. I added rotisserie chicken, potatoes, and frozen spinach to the sauce.

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #4. Greens topped with chunk tuna, hardboiled egg, avocado, shaved parmesan, and creamy vinaigrette with orange segments and a mix of almonds and raisins.

When we're out of food or I'm running late, I open a can of tuna. This is just a quick salad I threw together before rushing out the door.

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #5. Lasagna, fruit salad, and a mix of almonds and raisins.

I was really happy to find a few pieces of lasagna (and some fruit salad!) leftover after a small party. The easiest lunch ever.

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #6. Spaghetti carbonara, orange segments, and a mix of almonds and raisins.

Spaghetti carbonara is pretty easy and this recipe makes a lot. An excellent double-duty meal that's easy to reheat in the microwave.

PACKED LUNCH IDEA #7. Tuna fish sandwich, pink grapefruit, and Wheat Thins.

Last but not least, a classic sandwich. These days I don't make myself many sandwiches, but when there's a loaf of brioche in the house I can't help myself!  

What's your favorite thing to pack for lunch? I'd love to try something new! 

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If you ask me, January is the height of soup season. It starts in the fall with pumpkin soup or butternut squash soup. But by January we need chicken soup pretty much weekly either to fend off colds or to help us recover from the ailment de jour. There are many variations, but this Greek version is my personal favorite. I found the recipe on the always wonderful Dinner: A Love Story. 

Listen, gang. I love this soup. Soooooo much. And it only takes 15 minutes to make! The recipe below is for a double batch because you're going to want leftovers. 

INGREDIENTS
(halve for a single batch)

• 8 cups chicken broth (2 boxes)
• 1/2 cup uncooked orzo
• 6 eggs
• 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)
• 2 handfuls of chopped fresh dill
• shredded or cubed rotisserie chicken (optional) 

DIRECTIONS

In a large pot, bring the broth to a boil.
Add the orzo and cook until tender but still al dente, about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to low; let simmer.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and lemon juice until smooth.
Ladle about 2 cups of the hot broth into the egg-and-lemon mixture, whisking to combine. (This step is important!)
Pour the mixture back into the simmering pot. Stir just until the soup becomes opaque and thickens as the eggs cook, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add dill, salt and pepper (to taste), and chicken if you have it, and serve.

It's a really quick dinner. Grab a French baguette and toss together a small green salad and you'll be set. Enjoy! 

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I love tea. And not just in an occasional cup kind of way; I drink anywhere from 2-5 cups on weekdays. And on the weekend? Too many to count! My love of tea has resulted in a kitchen shelf overflowing with staples such as English Breakfast and Chai and I go through more honey than your average bear. To celebrate Hot Tea Month here's a roundup of some of my favorites which I hope will inspire you to try something new!

Let's start this off with a nod to Smudge Ink's hometown: Boston. Harney & Sons flavored black tea blend is a soft, aromatic surprise for anyone used to drinking a traditional, stiff cup of black tea. I favor it with just a dash of honey but you might find that it's subtle flavor is best enjoyed without any additions. I received a pound of Boston for Christmas—have you ever seen a pound of tea? It's a glorious sight. And it takes up most of my cupboard.

Another Christmas gift was Jasmine Pearl Tea's Red Hot Hibiscus, a spicy herbal blend that brews an inviting bright pink. I love tea with a nice kick and this doesn't disappoint! The tang from the hibiscus is also refreshing. For those of you looking for a caffeinated option, do yourself a favor and try Hot Cinnamon Spice. It's one of most flavorful teas I've ever encountered and is sweet enough that you don't need to add a thing.

Cold and flu season is upon us again and this past week when I came down with a cold I went through a lot of lemon, ginger and honey tea. For the best tasting concoction I chop up some ginger and half a lemon and let it simmer in water for several minutes before straining and adding lots of honey. But another favorite is Yogi Throat Comfort. The licorice taste is quite strong so it's certainly not for everyone! Tip for winter survival: adding a dash of brandy to a cup of Throat Comfort is just the thing—the sweetness of the brandy compliments the warmth of the licorice perfectly.

So of course we just got through the holiday season, but to be honest I stock up on holiday blends in November and December and enjoy them year round. My favorites are Celestial Seasonings Nutcracker Sweet and Harney & Sons Holiday Tea. The Nutcracker Sweet aroma is enough to please any nose and with a spoonful of honey tea bliss is complete. I prefer the Holiday Tea with a dash of milk and honey and love adding more orange pieces from the mix to the tea infuser when I'm feeling the need for more citrus. Looking for a great tea infuser? Check out these fun ones from the Fred!

I'm obviously a Harney & Sons fan and as a result I have quite the tea tin collection. For any of you who have tins that you'd like to reuse, here are some suggestions: they make handy tins for smaller treats (truffles! small cookies!), work well as small herb or succulent planters or you can spruce up your outdoor space with lanterns!

I hope you enjoyed these suggestions and that you find some time to savor a cup of tea today. Cheers!

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Seems it's the time of year to bake. Every holiday season, I usually make 5 to 6 different kinds of cookies and put together boxes for neighbors, friends and co-workers. It's one of my favorite things to do and is usually accompanied by a good mix of holiday music. It turns out that I'm not the only one at Smudge Ink who enjoys this ritual. Both Sarah and Erin also love to bake, and we discovered our shared weakness for collecting cookie cutters. 

Perhaps this doesn't appeal to all, but to the three of us, a morning of baking every cookie in our combined cutter collections sounded like fun. And it was! I personally have cookie cutters that I've never actually used, so it was especially gratifying to break in some previously unused ones. (We all have our things.)

It took two large batches of dough, but we succeeded in baking and decorating around 100 cookies, if not more (I did not count). We had the regular suspects: stars, hearts, flowers, snowflakes. We had some "randoms": a strong man, a tooth, a chili pepper. We had a full array of Star Wars cutters thanks to Erin (Yoda is my favorite!).

But our fullest collection came in the form of animals including a lion and a bear (reminder: must find tiger cookie cutter!). There were also cats, dogs, a hedgehog, a whale, an alligator, a buffalo, a pony, a lobster, an owl, a cardinal, a mouse, a rooster, a moose, a loon, a chicken, a fox, and an elephant. Sarah even found MORE cookie cutters back home that she had forgotten about after our bake off.

We had a great time kicking off the holiday cookie season together. Plus, it provided about a week's worth of baked treats at the studio. May the sweet and buttery force be with you this holiday season!

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