May 2017- So far!

Ugh, what am I? The worst blogger in the world? Probably 😂

I admit, my posts have been more sporadic than even I intended. I'm just so in the zone working on my fiction piece. I keep thinking I've got it finished, and as I go to do my final read, I usually decide I want to add more and write furiously until I think I've finished again. At this point, the cycle repeats itself. It's quite the process, trying to write a book. I've been doing research online to see how many words adult novels are supposed to be and I've found quite the wide range of answers. I've read 55,000 words would be considered adult fiction while other sites state that's way too short. Some say 110,000 words is the maximum amount of words a novel should be, but then I discovered some of my most favorite novels are way longer than that so-called ceiling. 'Gone Girl'? 145,700 words. 'Big Little Lies'? 142,600 words. 'The Martian' hits 124,000 and 'The Da Vinci Code' comes in at 138,000. I think my new goal is 90,000. I vacillate daily from thinking I'm utterly crazy and destined to fail, to believing I can do this while pumping one fist in the air. So, to quote what has become my official party line, I apologize for the lack of recipes and posts. I've barely been cooking while in the zone, let alone working on any photography.

Blackberry Nectarine Lush

Happy Monday everyone!

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing Easter. I know we did! The hubby and I headed out to his sister's house to have dinner with the family. It also happened to be my mother-in-law's birthday, so we had quite the Easter celebration. We had it all. A turkey and a ham. Two pasta salads. A big chocolatey, butterfinger-y birthday cake. Kids hopped up on way too much sugar... You know, the normal Easter fare 😂

BLT Poached Eggs with Avocado Hollandaise

This is kind of a spur-of-the-moment post, as I actually just made this dish the day before yesterday. I say "spur-of-the-moment" because usually I spend weeks or months working on a post. Making and remaking a recipe so I can take and retake photos. Rearranging the pictures in the post. And then, I usually spend a couple of weeks looking at the photos daily, deciding if I want to share them.

Things sure have changed since I first started the blog 😂 

This dish is so tasty though, I couldn't wait to share it. It's pretty darn easy and fool-proof for how delicious it is. You won't believe how simple it is to make the Avocado Hollandaise, I think it's 100 times easier than real Hollandaise! I also like the flavor better than the real stuff, but I digress. Let's talk about this dish and my inspiration for it! 

Homemade Oreos

Today is my little brother's birthday (Happy Birthday Bro!), so I thought it fitting to post the cookie that he chose for his birthday treat this year. Technically, he chose "dipped Oreos" but one first needs Oreos in order to dip. He did mention that the Oreo's didn't have to be homemade, he just wanted different flavors of dipped cookies. The hubby said asking me to send commercial Oreo's was like asking Gordon Ramsey to send a Big Mac. I snorted in derision and told him I was probably more like Guy Fieri sending take-out from a diner, drive-in, or dive he visited. In the end, I opted to make the Oreo's before dipping them. 

Recipe Redux: Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Happy Monday friends! I promised in January that I was going to share this recipe soon, and then... I went on break. However, I'm back, it's spring, and it's time to talk about chocolate and banana. Only one of the best foodie combinations ever, if you ask me. Next to chocolate and peanut butter, and maybe peanut butter and banana, of course 😂  I enjoy a good banana bread on its own but when you add chocolate, it just takes it to another level! 🍌🍫

Top 16 Recipes of 2016

Ah, long time, no see everyone!

Yes, it's the 2nd to last day of our Oregon trip and I've finally found a few moments to write. It has been Busy with a capitol B! We've been going non-stop, but man, it has been fun. I'll save pictures for when I do my Oregon or December wrap-up but we've basically been on what I like to call a "Food and Drink Tour" of Oregon. Seriously! We've travelled to Southern Oregon to dine at a couple of places in Ashland. We've stopped at a restaurant in Eugene. We've traveled to Portland to visit family and wine-taste with friends. There was a boozy breakfast in Albany. We saw "Holiday Office Party" in Corvallis. Drove the backroads through Independence. Had a wine-and-hor-dourves night with some of my biggest blog fans (Hello Glaeser family!) I can safely say I've seen the entire I-5 corridor of Oregon on this visit 😁

Cinnamon Pumpkin Cookies

Sheesh, you guys. I knew last week was going to be crazy, with the holiday and all, but not nearly as hectic as it was. I feel like I've had 2 seconds to myself in the last 7 days or so. Besides hosting Thanksgiving at our house, I had the funky cold from Hades, we had a water leak the day before the holiday, I had more MRI's done, and finally, the hubby got the new iPhone he's been dreaming of after we drove 256 miles to get it. Needless to say, it's been cray-cray around here. 

Update:

Cold is gone. Yippee! 

Water leak was fixed and Thanksgiving prep was finished. Thank goodness.

MRI's were completed. They weren't fun, but they are done. I loathe whoever created those detestable machines.

The hubby loves his new phone 😁

Pumpkin Cognac Cheesecake

Exactly 1 month ago, I was-

• Awakened at 7 am by the hubby getting home from his night shift.

• Kissing the hubby hello and wishing him a Happy Birthday!

• Packing a bag to stay the weekend in Marion, IL.

• Picking up the house, and telling my mother-in-law the dogs' routine as we prepared to leave.

• Taking this mesmerizing cheesecake out of the fridge and putting it in a travel container.

• Beginning the 427 mile trek to Illinois. 

Wrapping Up October: 2016

Ok, I just really wanted to start the post off with a cute puppy picture. Mission accomplished 😁🐶❤️

Can you believe it's November already? In 6 short weeks, the hubby and I will be leaving for Oregon! I'm in shock. I feel like it was just yesterday that I was telling the hubby it was time for a Christmas in Oregon. And now it's almost here! Unbelievable. 

But for now, now it's time to wrap up October! In October...

Alpine Strawberry Mascarpone Tart

Ok, so I posted 3 casseroles/oven bakes in a row...

Easy Tortellini Bake

Pumpkin Spinach Lasagna Rolls

Untraditional Green Bean Casserole

It's time for dessert! 😋

Strawberry Cream Cheese Danish

All right. Here's the deal- 

Over the next couple of days, I'm going to be crafting a recipe with my alpine strawberries. I know I said last month that my strawberries were starting to peter out, but I was wrong. Wrong, wrong, WRONG. They are still going and I'm collecting about 20 berries every 2 days. Something needs to be made with these lovely little berries...

Over a year ago (geez) the hubby and I went to Oregon for our 2015 trip. Whilst on our fantastic trip, my brother's girlfriend whipped up a couple of desserts for us. Her parents own an upscale hotel and restaurant in Ashland, OR, and it's safe to say cooking skills and knowledge were passed from parent to child. She made a delectable homemade raspberry tart with the most amazing filling. One of the best parts of the tart, however, was the crust. Oh, that crust. I asked her for the recipe and I've had it in my back pocket for well over a year now. I'm guessing you know where this is going...

25 Cake & Cupcake Recipes

Oh, Saturday morning. How I love thee. I woke up rather lazily today, with one well-behaved chihuahua at my side and a not-so-well-behaved one deciding to sit on my chest and lick my face. Face Licker had decided it was time to get up. Face Licker being Mariota, that is 😂 

I shuffled my way to the Keurig and made a cup of coffee, admiring the view out the window whilst the coffee brewed. It rained last night, which makes me happy. That saves an hour of yard work. I also noted the bird feeders were quite full. It never fails that there is lull in bird activity every summer. The hawks have been staking out the yard fairly aggressively which every year has meant the birds leave for a little while. They'll be back. But that was another chore that didn't need to be done. 

It was a great morning. All I had to do was fill the bee waterers with fresh water and pick some strawberries. I honestly thought the strawberries would be spent by now, but they are really showing no signs of stopping. I'm thinking I'm going to be picking fresh berries every day until the first frost. Which, of course, is fine by me. 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

You know what I just realized this morning when I opened the blog?

I haven't posted a dessert recipe since June 20! Remember Copy-Cat Girl Scout Tagalongs? Yeah, that was my last recipe to satisfy sweet tooth's (teeth? I don't know about that one 😁). Let's remedy that!

Enchilada Stuffed Poblanos

So... funny story.

I'd always thought poblanos were mild peppers. I'd never cooked them before, I'd just read recipes using them, plus I've had them in Mexican cuisine. I'd just never prepared them myself. Well, a couple of weeks ago, with the hubby gone on a business trip, I decided to stuff a bunch of peppers for quick, easy dinners while he was gone. While I normally stuff regular bell peppers, this time I opted for poblanos. I've been trying to grow poblanos all season, but my plant never fruited. It blossomed plenty, but no luck. Darn it all. My father-in-law's did though, so we received peppers from him throughout the season. It was just a lousy season for any kind of pepper at my homestead. 

Since I've Been Gone: July

Hi friends! It's been soooooooooo long. I didn't even mean to take such a long break, it just kind of... happened. I've had a pretty full house since I've been gone, but sadly, it's now empty. My family came to visit for almost a month, and it was AWESOME. Awesome to see and have all my family here, but I did suffer a touch of writer's block. I meant to post the week before everyone got here, but each day was crammed with chores to get the house ready for family. It seemed like every night I went to bed before their visit with a to-do list for the next day pounding in my head. This left little thought for writing.

Copy-Cat Girl Scout Tagalongs

Holy moly. One post last week? I meant to do better you guys. I really did. Can I just say that I feel like I haven't had a moment to breathe since Friday? It's been hectic around these parts. Granted, Friday was spent hanging out with a girlfriend, so that hectic-ness was chosen. I was up at dawn baking cookies on Saturday to take to the hubby's family reunion. Dawn is my normal blogging time, so Saturday was out although I had intended to publish on that day. I figured there was always Sunday.

Lemony Lemon Cupcakes

Pen... and paper.

Cookies... and milk.

Socks... and shoes.

Peanut butter... and jelly.

Lighting... and thunder.

Spring... and LEMON!

I'm not sure why but when I think of spring foods, I think of lemons. I don't know what it is, March hits and all the sudden I want lemon bars stuffed with sweet homemade lemon curd. Ice-cold lemonades flavored with fragrant berries and aromatic mint. Moist, delicious lemon cakes slathered with a delectably tart and creamy frosting... 

Yes, yes, and YES!

Soft & Chewy Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

aka The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies ever!

I told you they were coming. Let's kick off May recipes with a bang! A little chew. Lots of chocolate. And just the tiniest, tastiest smattering of salt. These cookies will rock your world!

I'm not kidding. These are famous at the hubby's work. In fact, when their Spring project started at his office, people who'd been there before and had these cookies requested them. People had heard about them. This tickles me to no end!

Recipe Redux: Banana Cake with Vanilla Bean Frosting

Ugh, I have been the worst blogger this month. I'm at 6 (now 7) posts for the month. I feel like I'm still on vacation. I usually post 3 times a week, but I've been averaging about 2 this month. I'm trying not to get too worked up over this, it is what it is. I've been spending a lot of time outside since I returned from my break, getting the garden ready and planting flowers. We added another raised bed to our garden this year. Year by year, the garden gets a little bigger than the year before. Obviously, the bigger the garden gets, the more time it needs. I'm feeling that this year. 

3 Solid Recipes from 2015 That Never Made The Blog

Ok friends. Over my break, I cleaned up the innards of the blog. Mainly, I went through the posts I hadn't published yet to see what I had. There were a few recipes I knew I had (the 3 below) and a couple I'd forgotten about (the last 5). All the photos for these recipes were taken with my old lens. I've finally come to conclusion that I'm done with all those old photos. Some of the recipes were over a year old! I decided that if I hadn't posted them in the first 365 days that I'd finished the pictures, that I never was. A few of the recipes were solid, delicious and share-worthy. A few were what I finally deduced as "worthless". Recipe that would need to be completely reworked, therefore needing completely new pictures. So, to get rid of anything having to do with the old camera lens, I'm going to share the 3 recipes that were really quite tasty and deserving of a repeat. 

Here we go!

Blackberry-Swirled Peach Pops