Today we have extra tasty treat for you. My dear friend Maia is stopping by to take Tasty Tuesday to the next level. Maia is a bit of a renaissance woman. That’s a fancy way of saying she’s really good a lot of stuff. She’s a graphic designer, photographer, art director (of Rue Magazine no less), mother, founder of the fab online children’s shop Bitte (who is having a major sale this weekend FYI!), and also a great cook. Now that she bought her first house with an enviable yard, Maia has also become something of a amateur gardener too. Color me impressed.

I’m just thankful Maia is willing to share some of the fruits of her labor  – literally – in the form of amazing end-of-summer recipes inspired by what’s coming out of her garden right now. Even if you have to get your produce from the farmer’s market (like I do), fMaia is going to help us make the most of this seasonal bounty. Continue to scroll for three mouth-watering recipes.

First up is a recipe for Savory Zucchini Muffins. It’s a twist on the usual sweet zucchini bread, that as anyone who grows zucchini knows, you get sick of pretty quick. The best part is that these can easily be frozen in a ziplock freezer bag and brought out months from now when you’ve recovered from your zucchini overdose. You could also easily sub out half the flour with whole wheat flour to make them a little heartier. These little babies are great for breakfasts on the go or packed into school lunches.

RECIPE: SAVORY ZUCCHINI MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS
Makes 12 Muffins
2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp dried oregano
½ cup greek yogurt
½ cup milk
1 egg
1/4 cup melted butter
½ + 2 tbsp cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp chopped fresh basil
2-3 minced garlic cloves
1 cup shredded zucchini (drained of excess liquid)

Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt and oregano.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt and egg.
4. Stir the garlic into the melted butter.
5. Whisk the melted butter mixture into the other wet ingredients.
6. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mix, and gently combine. Don’t over mix the batter.
7. Stir in the shredded cheese (leaving out 2 tbsp for topping) shredded zucchini and chopped basil.
8. Spoon even amounts of mixture into a greased muffin tin and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the bread comes out clean.

 

I’ve already established how much I love peaches. As the season comes to a close (boohoo!), my friend Maia is back with the perfect to make good use of the final crop. This recipe for homemade peach granola is going on my must-make list this week. It’s as yummy for dessert as it is for breakfast. You better get your cook on before all the peaches are gone!

RECIPE: DRIED PEACH GRANOLA PARFAIT 

INGREDIENTS
3 cups Rolled Oats
1/2 cup ground flaxseeds
2 cups Mixed Nuts – combo Almonds, Pecans, & Walnuts
3/4 cup Maple Syrup
1/2 cup Coconut Oil
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla
1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
Vanilla greek yogurt
Dried peaches – You can buy them or if you want to make your own, follow the directions below.

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 300
2. Mix dry ingredients.
3. Mix wet ingredients.
4. Combine & thoroughly mix so all grains and nuts are coated.
5. Spread out on a cookie sheet
6. Bake for 1 hour, stirring and turning with a spatula halfway through.
7. Let cool completely
8. Spoon the vanilla yogurt into a small bowl, top with granola and dried peaches. Drizzle with a little maple syrup for an extra treat.

Oven Dried Peaches
Preheat oven to 200 degrees (if your oven goes lower you can do 170 degrees)
Slice peaches
Soak the peaches in lemon juice for a few minutes to keep from turning brown
Place on cookie sheet
Bake with the oven door ajar for 6-8hrs

While I’m a little sad to see summer go, there’s something about so comforting about fall. After the summer’s calling to constantly wander, spending an afternoon cozied up on the couch feels refreshing. And we all know couch-hanging must be accompanied by appropriate snacks! Thankfully, tomatoes and jalapeños are overflowing at the farmer’s market. This salsa is perfect for said couch hangs or better yet, late summer get togethers. And it’s so simple to make, you can whip up a batch with all the fresh and delicious produce available right now. I plan to make some big batches and freeze the extra for a little taste of summer in the middle of winter. That is if I can keep myself from just eating it all up right away! PS, this would go SO well with our homemade chilaquiles recipe.

RECIPE: SIMPLE ROASTED SALSA

INGREDIENTS
5-6 medium tomatoes
1 large onion
1-2 Jalapenos
2-3 Cloves of garlic (unpeeled)
Juice of 1 lime
Small bunch of cilantro
Salt
agave (optional)

Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash and dry the tomatoes & jalapenos
3. Cut the tomatoes and onions in quarters
4. Place tomatoes, onions, jalapenos and garlic on a cookie sheet and bake in oven for 45-55 minutes. Until tomatoes are splitting and juicy and all veggies are a little dark and blistered on top.
5. Let cool
6. Add all veggies to a blender and blend together. Add lime juice, cilantro and salt to taste.
7. If you’re tomatoes weren’t very sweet you can add a smidgen of agave.

For the entire Tasty Tuesday archive CLICK HERE.

original photography for apartment 34 by maia m. smith