• Garden,  Main Courses,  Summer Favorites,  Weeknight

    Summer Corn & Bacon Chowder

    I’m a soup person.  I love it, and I can eat it year ’round – yes, even when it’s 103 degrees outside.  (Which is good because it was PRECISELY 103 degrees outside when I made this yesterday!) There’s something about this particular recipe thought that really doesn’t feel like a soup – or a chowder – but feels lighter and screams summertime.  The combo of the fresh sweet corn with potatoes and bacon is a marriage made in heaven, so I was particularly excited to team…

  • Bars,  Cake,  Cookies,  Dessert,  Weeknight

    Samoa Sheet Cake

    So, first – let me tell you about my weekend.  Then we’ll get to this DELICIOUS Samoa Cake recipe. I took a couple of extra days off before the long Memorial Day weekend, mostly to prepare for my daughter’s birthday party and get the girls to and from dance recital and rehearsal, which this year fell on Thursday and Friday evening.  NBD.  Right? Yeah. So Thursday brought some (SCARY) severe weather to my part of the world, and of course that only happens when my…

  • Appetizers,  Garden,  Pastry,  Side Dishes,  Weeknight

    Loaded Baked Potato Quiche

    So, we probably need to address my love for potatoes. I’m kind of obsessed.  Mashed Potatoes are probably my favorite food.  A baked potato topped with cottage cheese and pepper is my favorite go-to lunch.  I always have a ten pound bag of them in my pantry.  When I’ve had a bad day, my husband will cheer me up with his amazing smashed, buttered potatoes.  (Holy cow, delish.) So, when I saw a mini baked potato quiche at my local grocery store deli, I knew,…

  • Appetizers,  Party Food,  Summer Favorites,  Vegetarian,  Weeknight

    Cream Cheese and Pepper Jelly Fillo Shells

    So, how many social events have YOU been to this month?  Weddings, showers, graduations, anniversary parties, end of school year parties – holy cow, it’s a busy time of year!  We’ve hosted a few events at our home lately, and since we’ve been pulled a million different directions, it’s nice to have some quick and easy appetizer options at my fingertips. These little Fillo cups from my friends at Athens are amazing, and have saved me in an entertaining-pinch many, many times.  Fillo (or Phyllo…

  • Appetizers,  Main Courses,  Quick,  Summer Favorites,  Vegetarian,  Weeknight

    Hearts of Palm Street Tacos

    So, guys.  Gals.  Friends.  We need to talk. This taco is LIFE.  CHANGING. I’m not one to be overly dramatic (haha…no, seriously) about food, but holy-fried-middle-of-a-palm-tree-leaf, this is a tasty, tasty taco. Uh, yeah.  The guts of this taco are totally fried palm tree leaves.  Wikipedia says so.  Well, if we’re being technical, they’re actually the inner core of certain types of palm tree leaves, but either way, I had no idea that they were even a thing.  Especially an edible thing. PS, they’re also called…

  • Breakfast,  Quick,  Weeknight

    Sausage & Egg Breakfast Casserole

    The list of things I’ve heard approximately nine billion times today includes:  “I’m bored.  I’m hungry.  Can we have hot chocolate now?  Can we go outside yet?  Where’s Daddy? Can we put our princess stickers on our wall yet?  Can I go to Jordan’s house tomorrow? Can I have a treat?  Will you paint my fingernails? Where are my tap shoes?” Welcome to my snow day. We got about ten inches of snow today, which means my boss was kind enough to allow us to…

  • Guilt Free,  Main Courses,  Sandwiches,  Summer Favorites,  Weeknight

    Healthy Chicken Salad

    As I’m sure is the case with many of you, January always brings a renewed focus on health and fitness in our household.  The gluttony of November and December is long-gone, and the reality of dusty treadmills and suddenly snug pants starts to sink in. So, we happily dig out our favorite healthy recipes, and wonder why we ever stopped eating them in the first place.  I don’t know what it is about November and December – I know there’s a lot of food around…

  • Guilt Free,  Main Courses,  Soups and Stews,  Weeknight

    Charred Poblano White Chicken Chili

    I had a heck of a time naming this recipe for you, because – I don’t know.  This feels like a soup to me, but “White Chicken Chili Soup” sounds funny to me.  It’s one teeny-tiny step away from a Rachael Ray made up word, like “stoup” or “sammie” or something equally annoying. Disclaimer:  I love Rachael Ray, but I CAN’T DEAL with the made up words.  All of the time.   WHY, RACHAEL, WHY ALL OF THE PRETEND WORDS?  I know it’s a combo…

  • Main Courses,  Pasta,  Vegetarian,  Weeknight

    Spinach Ravioli Lasagna

    Figuring out the new normal around here has been a challenge. Over the last few years, I’ve become really good at cooking elaborate, time-consuming dinners for my family. Fresh bread at dinner was not uncommon, nor were comforting, simmer-all-day kind of meals. But then, I started working away from home again, and now I get home after 6pm, and even then I’m at the mercy of my girls’ schedules. Dinner has become somewhat of an afterthought, and as a food blogger, that’s a really, really…

  • Bars,  Dessert,  Guilt Free,  No Bake,  Other Desserts,  Quick,  Summer Favorites,  Weeknight

    Healthy(er) Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Bars

    My girls have been begging me for no-bake cookies for a couple of months.  Since we always have a million other desserts on the agenda, I just haven’t gotten around to it. But then, I saw this “heathier” version floating around Pinterest and I was intrigued.  I’ve always thought no-bake cookies were just kind of too-sweet and too-messy to get excited about, but the girls love them.   And I have to admit, I really like this version too.  Especially right out of the freezer. Now,…

  • Breakfast,  chocolate,  Weeknight

    Cherry Chocolate Coconut Granola

    Much to my kids’ dismay, we haven’t been down the cereal aisle at our grocery store for a long time.  Last week, when I had to buy some cereal to make S’mores Rice Krispies Treats, their little eyes lit up and they got so excited at the thought that maybe I was going to cave and let them buy something. Nope. We do buy the occasional organic cereal at our local co-op, but it’s a rare treat.  Mostly, the girls eat granola in lieu of…

  • Appetizers,  Guilt Free,  Side Dishes,  Soups and Stews,  Vegetarian,  Weeknight

    Easy Roasted Tomato Soup

    One of the best things about the end of summer is that while most of our vegetable garden has come and gone, our tomatoes are still going strong.  And while I have pretty much exhausted my cravings for tomato and cheese sandwiches, I’m definitely not ready to say goodbye to my favorite garden fruit.  Er, veggie.  Whatever. Today, I picked up a beautiful loaf of jalapeno cheese bread at one of my favorite bakeries, and it was just begging to be turned into a grilled…