Have you met Melissa? She is my Secret Recipe Club assignment for August. She is just up the block from me in Michigan. Well, maybe not JUST up the block since I am in Louisiana. But after reading through her blog posts and looking at ALL her recipes I feel like we have been visiting each other. She has a beautiful little girl named Summer and she loves to be in the kitchen where she cooks for her family and friends but she LOVES to bake. And I could tell from the list of cookies, cakes, etc on her blog. I did so wish I needed a sweet treat in the house…..I could have filled my freezer and my friend’s freezers with enough treats for a year!!!
You know I cannot just do ONE recipe. I like to get a better feel for my ‘assignment’ so I usually end up with at least two and usually three of their recipes. No different this time. I hope it is a good variety.
I started with her Quinoa Pilaf.
Like Melissa I was late to the Quinoa party but I am making up for lost time. I love subbing it in rice dishes and sometimes pasta so when I ran across this recipe I knew I had to make it.

Her original recipe called for celery but there was none in the house so I threw in some fresh corn and red bell pepper instead. Love all the colors. All you need to do is saute your veggies (she also has chopped carrots in hers) in some butter. Throw in about a cup of rinsed quinoa. Add enough chicken or veggie broth to cook it along with some salt, pepper, and fresh thyme. It came together very quickly and was the perfect side with our burgers the other night.
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Melissa’s Aunt-in-Law used to make small Strombolis for her Grandmother to freeze, reheat, and eat. This made me crave, like Melissa, some Strombolis for supper. I used Melissa’s dough recipe but subbed out 1/2 of the white for whole wheat flour. I filled one with typical pizza toppings – pepperoni, cheese, red sauce,

and one with ham chunks and lots of Mozzarella cheese. Both were delicious and didn’t last past one meal. I made them rather large hoping for leftovers, but it was not to be. Guess I will just have to make them again!!!
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This morning for breakfast, well, brunch, I couldn’t decide between Melissa’s Blueberry Scones, Blueberry Pancakes, or the Egg Muffins. I finally decided on the…

How can anyone turn down pancakes? These were crunchy on the outside, due to being ‘fried’ in butter, and creamy on the outside. And did I tell you they were chock full of BLUEBERRIES?? They were! Smothered in butter and Maple syrup they were the perfect plate. This doesn’t mean I won’t try the scones or muffins, just not THIS Sunday!
So these are just three of Melissa’s recipes. All three were just right and I will go back for more. I still want to make her Whole Wheat noodles, Kung Pao Chicken, Biscoff Shakes, Chocolate PB Mug Cake, and anyone of her trillion sweet treats.
I love Secret Recipe Club . Meeting new cooks/bakers every month. Trying new recipes. Some inside the box, some not. You should join us!
And check out this month’s other member’s dishes.
