Despite current events, the pandemic, hurricanes still churning past the official "season", fires and other tragedies this year, believe it or not, I have quite a bit to be grateful for.

You know how, when you ask an employee at the grocery store where a specific item is and they respond “aisle 9 on the right 3rd shelf halfway down the aisle”. That’s my kitchen. My extreme level of organization stems from downright laziness. I’m too lazy to be disorganized. I once heard a chef say “I don’t know if I’m lazy, or smarter.”

When we lived in the suburbs of the east side of Cleveland, Ohio, our kids were just the right ages for Halloween, and it was a holiday we all looked forward to celebrating.

I can’t believe it’s nearly 3 years since I lost this incredible woman. Yes many people lost her, not just me. Her amazing husband Ben. Her gorgeous and brilliant daughters. Her beautiful grandkids. So many friends, too many to count.

Every summer when the kids were small, we would venture out to Cape Cod for a two-week vacation. Their pre-school would close for 2 weeks in August which was the perfect time to get away.

Since I've had more time on my hands, I decided to take this culinary journey in a slightly different direction. By now most of you have seen my weekly Paleo Cooking Live! videos on Facebook almost every Wednesday since April. It's been fun to re-imagine my old recipes in more healthful ways, I enjoy sharing what I know about cooking, and so far I haven't run out of idea

It's certainly no surprise that I'm astounded at how fast the summer is slipping by, despite the pandemic, travel restrictions and continuing to shelter in place. Since we’ve mostly stayed put, we’ve been enjoying and appreciating our home a lot more. We relax on the lanai and swim in the pool almost daily. We garden and work on home improvements.

I guess this is proof that I've always been a girly-girl. I was more artistic than athletic, and fashion is fun.

Leaveners have been around since the late 1700’s. Using sour milk, for example, in baked goods, would cause a chemical reaction, creating carbon dioxide, or air bubbles, which create “lift” in baked items, yielding a tender crumb and porous texture. Chemical leaveners such as baking soda and baking powder came about in the 1930’s.

My parents would invite the whole family for a cook-out on summer holidays. Aunts, uncles, cousins. The kids would play games in the backyard while the men drank beer around the grill, and the women were in the kitchen exchanging salad recipes.

Typically on Mother’s day, we get fancy and take mom to a nice brunch. On Father’s Day it’s usually hot, in the middle of June, so the celebration moves outdoors; boating, fishing, the beach, cookouts, casual, as most dads don’t do fancy, but they deserve a special moment.

Have you managed to clean every closet, garage shelf and other various nook and cranny around your home during these past months while sheltering in place? Maybe it’s my OCD, and maybe it’s my kitchen background, but if my refrigerator isn’t clean and organized to my standards, I may hyperventilate a little.

These recent events are a shock to the system. A blow. I come from The Kitchen. A place where the color of one's skin, their economic status, or their education was never a consideration. In the kitchen, everyone is either capable of their skill set and the tasks immediately at hand, or they're not. End of story. Can you hang?

Before we relocated to Florida, we spent time each summer in Sandwich, on Cape Cod. There was a little ice cream shop that we visited each evening, and the kids loved sharing! Almost as much as I love sharing all of my fun recipes and healthful information with you! Enjoy your holiday weekend!

Before I became a chef, I was a graphic designer. From the time I could pick up a crayon and write on the walls (which did not make my mother happy) I was creative. I tick different. (I was typing “think” and it auto-corrected to “tick” so I’m leaving it.)

Traditional Greek cuisine was a big part of growing up in a big fat Greek family. I learned how to cook from my mom and relatives, and worked in commercial kitchens as a pastry chef. After being diagnosed with an auto-immune condition, I changed everything to a paleo lifestyle and thought about other aspects of my life that needed a little "cleaning up".