Sweet Sundays: Granted, it is snowing outside my humble abode as I type this post, with blustering winds to rival the Patagonia. But, somewhere in the Northern hemisphere it really is spring. How do I know (beyond the obvious May date)? Because strawberries are popping up in every store. The displays are stacked high and the prices are low ... oh how I love in-season produce even if mother nature hasn't yet joined in on the seasonal party in this mountain town.

For myself, strawberries are more than just a food. I have very fond memories of picking strawberries at a local farm with my mom and sister when I was quite little. After hours of hard work, mom would fill several flats with those ripe berries, I would be proud of my brimming pail (I am a bit of a perfectionist with fruit, so the selection process didn't leave as many winners), and my older sister (every time) would return with one single berry in her bucket. The entire time she would just sit and eat - a u-pick farm's dream I am sure. They should have weighed my sister coming in and leaving to charge for her consumption!

So when I saw this Strawberry Tart recipe from C'est La Vegan, I just had to share it with you in time for Mother's Day. It showcases several cups of seasonal strawberries, but is a special dessert, perfect for showing someone how much you care. Thanks to Kim at C'est La Vegan for allowing us to feature this gorgeous dessert recipe ...

I have enjoyed Libby's (aka Elizabeth Ilson) blog, The Allergic Kid, for well over a year now. So it was delightful to see that she beat out 260+ entries to win the big FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest, sponsored by the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) and Divvies, an allergy-friendly sweets and snacks company.

Divvies will now add Libby's Double Chocolate Brownie Bites to their product line, with proceeds to benefit FAAN and their research. For her success, Libby (and family) will receive two nights' stay and waterpark passes for up to four individuals at a Great Wolf Lodge Resort and up to four round-trip airline tickets to travel to her chosen Great Wolf Lodge location if it is greater than 150 miles from her home.

I also want to give a hats off to the other great food allergy bloggers who were finalists in the FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest: Meg of Speedbump Kitchen with her awesome Chocolate Cherry Chunk Cookies.  It turns out that another finalist is also an allergy mama food blogger.  Kelly of Generation Allergy made some fine looking Chocoholic Cookies.

Frugal Foodie Fridays: Last week I was honored to be the BSI (blogger secret ingredient) hostess. The event allows the blog host to select an ingredient of their choice, and fellow bloggers and viewers send in recipes that feature the chosen food.

When I selected sunflower seeds as the secret ingredient, little did I know how much trouble I would have in creating my own submission. I admit to some selfish motives for this foodie choice, so perhaps it was karma. I have A TON of raw sunflower seeds on hand because they were so darn cheap, and I needed some healthy inspiration to use them up. I hoped the blogosphere would offer some wonderful recipe ideas, and fortunately, they did.

And, after several trials, I came up with two simple recipes that I am proud to share. First is a Sweet Asian Sunflower Slaw (no-mayo, no-soy, and no-dairy, yet the slaw dressing is thick and rich!) that I posted to my recipe blog, One Frugal Foodie. Second is a Slightly Sweet Sunflower-Pecan Butter with Dice Apples that explodes with nutrition, and is posted to my new blog, Dairy-Free & Fit. But wait, there is more ...

Usually I find large tombs of recipes a bit too overwhelming. But after falling in love with 1000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson, I felt that I could easily take on 500 Vegan Recipes, especially when the cookbook is written by two of my favorite bloggers, Celine Steen (of Have Cake, Will Travel) and Joni Marie Newman (of Just the Food).

I think what I found most fun about this cookbook, was trying to decipher who wrote which recipe. Joni and Celine each have their own distinct style, but at times I can tell they found some very common ground. The recipes merged and diverged throughout the cookbook creating a very fun assortment to choose from.

Seriously, I am so impressed with this cookbook. The intro is very brief, but helpful, as these ladies want to jump right into the recipes … all 500 of them. And I was right there with them. After oohing and awing at the many unique but simple-sounding recipes (I love that these ladies don't believe in long ingredient lists) I headed to the kitchen.

Thus far, I have tried the …