Happy New Year, delicious world!
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With the holidays dinners and parties tucked under the belt, now is the time that lots of people swear that this year they’ll lose those extra ____ pounds that they’ve gained over the past few holidays… And to do this, they go on a “[insert silly name] diet”.

I’m not a doctor, but in my line of work I get to come in contact with a lot of cool nutritionists, athletic trainers, and other credible folks. After lots of brain-picking questions and research on a healthier food lifestyle, I’ve boiled down my learnings to three philosophies that have worked for me and, I think, can work for anyone – even the passionate foodie.

With the new year approaching, I've been contemplating goals for 2016. As I was wandering around the garden with my morning coffee, I couldn't help but admire the Clementines draping off the trees and the Meyer Lemons just asking to be picked, made into something tasty. They look like little orbs of edible sunshine, and my brain went straight to Limoncello as a way to do citrus-y justice for them.

Limoncello is traditionally an Italian liqueur made by infusing lemon zest with a high-proof alcohol for a while, then mixing the infused alcohol with a simple sugar syrup. After a hefty dinner, there is nothing like a little glass of chilled limoncello to help with digestion and give you the zest to overcome a potential food coma.

 With homegrown lemons, I started my very first goal of 2016 - make limoncello! Pretty sweet goal, eh? I enjoy making it. Friends enjoy drinking it. Everyone wins with this goal.

Except instead of regular limoncello (because I can never make anything just regular), I also add a delicious twist into my mix with the garden Clementines. So what shall this hybrid creation be called, you ask?  CLEMONCELLO!

This Clemoncello can take anywhere from 4 days to 1 month to make, depending on how robust of a citrus flavor you want. Most of the flavor infusion happens the first 4 days, but the longer the lemon and clementine zests sit in the alcohol, the bolder the citrus flavor will be.

So technically, you could make this right now and have it ready for New Year's Day dinner, or you could host a New Year's Day Clemoncello-making party with your buddies, and have this tasty digestif ready in time for Valentine's Day to share with your special someone...OR YOU COULD DO BOTH! (Just sayin'.)

Either way, as you get the ingredients and stuff for this fun recipe, here are some important tips:

• Use vodka that is made from grapes. This type of vodka is considered one of the cleaner, more neutral tasting vodkas.
• Meyer Lemons are the best, but regular lemons are good too. Meyer lemons cost a little more than regular ones, but they'll give the Clemoncello a "sweeter" lemon taste and make the liqueur more fragrant. Using regular lemons are good too, and will still give you a great flavor.
• Pick lemons and clementines that have thick skins, if possible. The thicker the skin, the more zest you'll have for the infusion. Thin skins will run the risk of accidentally getting the white pith into your infusion, and the smallest trace of white pith from the fruit will yield a bitter taste in your Clemoncello.
• Make sure to really scrub those citrus fruits clean before using. It's super important to scrub off any pesticides or wax that is on the outside of the fruit - the alcohol will pull every flavor out of the zest, and you don't want any of that nasty stuff in your infusion. Better yet, buy organic if you can, but still scrub to the fruit to get the wax off.

Since I just decided to start this delicious adventure today, you could call this a "Clemoncello-along". We can embark on this journey together. :)

Holiday mornings with the family - all clad in PJ, bedhead, and quiet smiles - are just some examples of life's wonderful simplicity. What better way to add to these holiday memories like the classic all-American diner breakfast of eggs, griddled meats, and the fluffiest pancakes ever? 

I've been tinkering with the notion of what it takes to make buttermilk pancakes so fluffy that a billowy stack of them could be used as a potential headrest. After a bunch of delicious research, I found a guy who knows a guy who wrote a book that talked about this tasty subject.

With the advice of culinary super-nerd,  J. Kenji Lopez-Alt and his smart book "The Food Lab", I share with you the secret to making THE BEST BUTTERMILK PANCAKES OF YOUR LIFE: Whipped egg white merginues.

Just a small dallop of stiffly whipped egg whites puts so much air into the pancake batter, it's freaking incredible!

If you want to turn up your morning pancake game to 11 (that was for you AC/DC fans), grab some of these goodies and create a pancake mix-in buffet! Let everyone pick what tasty morsels they want to add into the pancake as it's sizzling on the griddle (during step 11 in the recipe).

• Fresh blueberries and raspberries
• Chocolate chips and peanut butter chips
• Sliced bananas
• Chopped up crispy bacon
• Sprinkles (save some for yourself because sprinkles are for winners, and you, my friend...)

Grab your spatula and whisk, and be prepared for bear hugs of happiness from your PJ onesie-d relatives over the delicious buttermilk pancakes you've made ever.

With the falling of the leaves and the first hints of snow, my favorite foodie season rolls around. There are holiday potlucks, classy cocktail parties, white elephant exchanges, ugly sweater parties...all the amazing reasons that are great for gathering friends and family.

At these shindigs, everyone usually brings a dish to share, and now comes the big question I ask myself every time: "What dish do I bring that is sure to win over the crowd?" I want my dish to do that magical disappearing act, leaving party-goers asking for recipes left and right, without leaving the kitchen in such a disastrous state that FEMA needs to step in to help.

Well, my foodie friends,  I have, tucked under my belt, many delicious holiday staples, and while I can't share all my secrets, I can give out a few that even the pickiest eaters will enjoy. 

So for the next few posts, I'll share my "Delicious Holiday" series, starting with the infamous Goat Cheese Spread with Pomegranate, Cucumber, and Dill. Silly simple, pairs great on any carb-like carrier (i.e crackers, bread, pita, etc), and  disappears faster than coworkers on a Friday afternoon.