-
Out and About: Wine and Sunflowers
I am fortunate to live with a quick drive of two local gems: Holy-Field Winery & Vineyard and Grinter’s Sunflower Farm. Since we have the first week of school behind us now, and since the sunflowers are in their prime this week, a visit to our local winery and sunflower field were definitely in order. Holy-Field Winery & Vineyard is an award-winning Kansas winery. They grow about ten different varieties of grapes, and offer about 18 different wines – from semi-sweet to dry. It’s a…
-
Chocolate Toffee Cupcakes
I’m back! I know, I haven’t really been gone all that long, but it sure feels like ages since I’ve blogged. November and December are just super busy months for me. I know most of it is self-induced – if I could somehow just let things be less than perfectly planned for once, if I could just go with the flow and ignore my messy kitchen or the piling laundry for an evening…if I could just go to bed before midnight – I’m sure I would…
-
Cranberry Walnut Cream Cheese Muffins
Even though I have about fifteen billion pumpkin recipes that I’m dying to try out, I thought it best to pace myself and take a break from traditional fall flavors for a few days. Ok, honestly, I had some cranberries in my freezer that have been calling to me for weeks. Then, I found this recipe. Shortly after I found the recipe, they appeared in my kitchen. And while I’m being honest, I actually had really good intentions to deliver some of these to…
-
Superbowl Recipe Roundup
Can you believe we’re already gearing up for Super Bowl Sunday? My team is nowhere near Super Bowl status (ever), but it’s really about the parties and the commercials anyway, isn’t it?
-
Apple Pie
I’ve mentioned before that I was practically raised on pie. Every holiday (and sometimes just Sunday Dinner) during my childhood involved at least two pies, but more like five or six, of every variety you could possibly dream of. My favorite summertime pie is apple…mmm…warm apple pie with cold vanilla ice cream. Heaven on a plate! My mom makes the best apple pie I’ve ever had, but when I ask her how she makes it she says, “Oh, you know, a little of this, a little of that.” …
-
Peanut Butter Monster Cookies
Pssst. I have a secret to tell you. You have to pinky-promise that you won’t tell anyone. Promise? I don’t really like Halloween. I actually kind of dislike it. It’s my least favorite holiday. Don’t get me wrong; I love fall, I love Thanksgiving, I love leaves, scarecrows, dried corn stalks, pumpkins, hay bales…but that’s where I draw the line. I don’t love costumes, costume parties, normal food disguised as disgusting food…(have you seen the spaghetti-hot dog worm thing on Pinterest? Gross.) I’m not…
-
Creamy Baked Pasta
I love pasta. I really, really love pasta. I seriously think I could eat it every day and never tire of it. Since my husband doesn’t really share my obsession, we don’t eat it as often as I would like, so I tend to save it for the nights he’s working and I’m just cooking for myself and the girls. However, I made this earlier in the week and JR really liked it too, so I guess that says something! The best thing about it…
-
Um…about those cupcakes…
Those (Lemon Drop Cupcakes)? Apparently, they work. Less than 12 hours after eating two of them, my sister was in labor! Welcome to the world, Baby Evan! And many, many congratulations to my sister and brother-in-law. I’m a proud sister and a proud aunt today!
-
Southwestern Eggrolls
These look like they would be complicated and mess up your kitchen, but they’re EASY and you bake them! No frying, no splattering grease, and they use one bowl and a cookie sheet. Doesn’t get much easier than that! This is also one of those recipes that you can play around with the fillings and add whatever you want to meet your needs. The only thing you have to watch is the liquid content – try to keep the ingredients drained and dry so you…
-
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…
-
Chocolate Cupcake with Peanut Butter Cookie Frosting
So, close your eyes for a minute, and imagine with me. Wait, don’t close your eyes yet. You have to read this first. Ok, in a minute, you’re going to close your eyes and imagine a soft, perfectly-chocolate cupcake. It peels away from the wrapper in one piece, and is just strong enough to hold the weight of the frosting without being too dense or heavy. You bite through a soft, sweet layer of peanut butter “cookie” nestled atop a generous layer of dark, slightly-sweet…
-
Cookies & Cream Popcorn
So, I made this popcorn today, mostly to use up a half-empty package of Oreo cookies from some cupcakes I made last week. I brought a little bag of them for my daughter to snack on during the drive to gymnastics practice after school. Do you know what she said to me? And. I . Quote: “Momma, ohmygosh, this popcorn is the BOMB DOT COM.” I just stared at her. Ok you guys, she’s seven years old. SEVEN. She just used a phrase on me…
