Baked Hummus with Mushroom, Pear, & Pumpkin Seeds

Thinking back to my childhood, one of my mother's favorite snacks during the Winter was pear or apple with balsamic vinegar.  Forget peanut butter or caramel - nothing made her happier than a bowl of fresh sliced fruit generously doused with the beautifully rich sweet tartness of balsamic vinegar.  And while I did not have the palate for it when I was younger [cue image of portly youngster with a bowl cut holding his nose], I have most definitely developed it now.

Roasted Grapefruit with Chipotle & Sage

When I was a child, Winter was associated with a number of things.  Living in Michigan, snow and ice for sure, but also hot chocolate with marshmallows from packets, puffy snowsuits that made us look like Michelin men as we made snow angels and constructed ice palaces (long before Elsa), swans and geese drifting in the little spots of water amidst the lake of ice by our house, and boxes of citrus fruits that lived in our chilly downstairs pantry.