Sometimes it’s best not to mess with a good thing. A square of dark chocolate. A bubble bath. A handwritten letter. A sweet, crisp apple — especially when it’s being gobbled up by a shirtless baby in blue jeans. And other times you can’t help but enhance the simplicity of those good things. Strawberries covered [...]
This is Nick. (Since my wonderful wife writes 99% of our blog posts, I felt the need to state that up front.) This recipe is a special request from my classmate, Vanessa, who is looking for a non-traditional cornbread to make with her boyfriend for Thanksgiving this year. I made this cornbread last week to [...]
Every mom needs the occasional night out. Whether it’s a solo trip to Starbucks and Target, an appointment at the hair salon, cocktails with girlfriends, or … Cupcake Wars! Last night one of the ladies in our local moms group hosted the first annual Cupcake Wars — a friendly competition among moms who like to [...]
Fall weather is here. And we enjoyed every moment of its arrival last weekend. Crunchy leaves, clear skies, crisp air. Market stands selling squash and pumpkin whoopie pies and hot apple cider. Football. Blue jeans and hoodies. And soup. This soup was inspired by the lentil and sausage soup I make every fall. I didn’t [...]
What’s better than a warm chocolate chip cookie? One topped with homemade vanilla bean ice cream, of course. Make this cookie cake if you’re serving a crowd. Mix it up and spread it into a foil pizza pan before your guests arrive. Then pop it into the oven to bake, and let it cool only [...]
We love when Auntie visits! She snuggles Sam and chases him around the house. They swim and swing and stack blocks. And did I mention she’s a talented artist? You may recall the canvases she painted for Sam’s nursery. Well, her most recent project is hanging in his bathroom. As if that weren’t enough, she [...]
Sam loves fruits and veggies. Apples, pears, plums, bananas, cherries, grapes, blueberries, mango, watermelon. Broccoli, squash, sweet potatoes, corn, tomatoes, spinach, eggplant. (Though he recently developed a dislike for cucumbers. I don’t know what that is all about.) We’ve never had to “hide” nutritious ingredients in his meals. But if your kiddo pushes the green [...]
When I was nine years old, I spent an afternoon with my Aunt Jane learning to bake pies. I was rewarded with bites of warm apples and buttery crust, as well as a badge for my Girl Scouts sash. I haven’t baked a pie since. Until last week. I had a bag of ripe white [...]
Saturday mornings are for multiple cups of coffee and leisurely breakfasts: fluffy pancakes or a frittata, or — most often — a batch of waffles. During the fall, we prefer our waffles with pumpkin puree, pecans, and a variety of aromatic spices. And during the summer, they’re topped simply with local berries, maple syrup, and [...]
This salad combines some of our favorite things about summer: crisp mixed greens, sweet corn, juicy tomatoes from the garden, and homemade BBQ sauce. The sauce includes mangoes, apples, brown sugar, paprika, a chipotle pepper, ketchup, lemon juice, and a few other likely suspects. After it simmers on the stovetop and takes a spin in [...]