How to Roast Pumpkin Seeds The other night, a friend casually asked me where I had bought pumpkins this year. Um... pumpkins? I don't have any pumpkins. I saw some outside the grocery store last week and seriously considered piling my four children on them and taking pictures, like some weird pumpkin patch outing gone wrong. The thought of being blocked from Instagram was the only thing that kept my grocery cart on the straight and narrow. What is wrong with me?! I love everything about fall. But other than eating a piece of pumpkin pie, October has completely slipped past me. Is it having toddlers? El Nino? Do I just need to buy a new pair of Keep Reading
Soft Pumpkin Cookies with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe)
I had never even heard of pumpkin cookies until a few years ago. I was at a friend's house, when she casually asked if I wanted to try some cookies she had just made. Wait, pumpkin cookies? That's seriously a thing? Where have I been? After eating a socially unacceptable amount, I was in love. The following week another friend brought a big platter of frosted pumpkin cookies to our mom's group. They were equally delicious. Suddenly, I was feeling like everyone was in on this great secret but me. Good thing she brought me the recipe the following week. Now I'm in the club! If you haven't joined yet, this is your chance. Trust me, these cookies are Keep Reading
Pumpkin Streusel Bread (a low fat, low sugar recipe)
Pumpkin Streusel Bread (recipe) You know something is not right when you are considering buying things online just so the mailman has to deliver packages to your door. Human interaction! Tell me about the outside world! And that's really saying something because my mailman is grumpy and grunty. But desperate times call for desperate measures. With some exciting exceptions (the bank! grocery store!), I have been trapped inside my home with four young children + one large stomach flu + two small colds for longer than recommended by the Board of Mental Health and Well Being. It hasn't been pretty, folks. This is coming from a total homebody, but there Keep Reading
Double chocolate zucchini muffins
Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins After visiting my sister last week, she handed each of my kids one of these chocolate muffins as we headed out the door. Walking down the sidewalk, with two silent, chocolate-faced kids, I was waiting to hear their opinion. When we got to the car and the last crumbs disappeared, my son shouted at the top of his lungs, "Deee-licious cupcakes!" And the six-going-on-sixteen-year-old voice said, "Mom, these are the best ever." The zucchini continue to stack up around our house so I didn't waste any time whipping up a batch of these Double Chocolate Muffins, using the same recipe from King Arthur flour. The mini food Keep Reading
How to Make Roasted Marinara Sauce
Roasted Marinara Sauce Sitting in a restaurant at the beginning of September, I overheard a waitress ask another customer, "How was your summer?" He replied, "So far, so good." It made me smile. So far? Doesn't he realize that school buses loaded with backpack-clad children are rumbling down the street as he speaks? The more I thought about it, though, the more I had to agree with his present-tense assessment of summer. Despite the fact that school has started, early September really is prime summer time here in the Northwest. The days are comfortable and hazy. We start thinking less about travel and more about home. And our gardens and Keep Reading
Middle Eastern Vegetable Salad
Middle Eastern Vegetable Salad I have been making this Ina Garten recipe on a weekly basis. My husband is a big fan, and it receives rave reviews anytime it hits the road, potluck style. This Middle Eastern Vegetable Salad is a great end-of-summer recipe because it highlights vegetables that are coming out of the garden at the end of the summer: tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, parsley, and basil. However, I'll often mix and match vegetables based on what I have on hand; zucchini, green beans, olives, artichoke hearts, or avocado all complement or substitute for the tomatoes and cucumbers. Or whatever you can find at the store. I've only made slight Keep Reading
Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs — everything cooks in one dish!
Baked Spaghetti & Meatballs (recipe) My mom casually mentioned this recipe she'd made a few months ago. Oh you know, you just throw everything in one dish. Meatballs, spaghetti sauce, cheese, noodles. You don't even have to cook the noodles first. It'd be a great use for all that marinara sauce you have in the freezer. She just rattled off these details like she was talking about the weather. The weather! Come on, this is serious stuff, Mom. So, naturally, I did not rest until I had tracked this recipe down (I do that a lot) in Real Simple magazine (October 2015). And I'm glad I did because this is one of those fast, frugal, filling Keep Reading