Banana Chip Oat Muffins

Like many schools nowadays, Dude’s school has a fruit or vegetables for snack rule (that makes me feel super old, btw, remember when we could bring chips and cookies for school snack?), except for Fridays when they can bring a different healthy snack, like sting cheese or yogurt (uh, no chips or cookies).

Thankfully, homemade muffins also work for Friday snack.  Which is actually quite fun, because now we get to have muffin Friday (nope, doesn’t flow like muffin Monday, but I’ll take what I can get).

Angel Wings Wednesday #3

 “We are grieving, We are not contagious, We are not sad all the time, We laugh, We smile, We cry, We weep for being happy, We live, We talk, We feel, We come from every background, We are sad, we lost a baby, We are…” -Jennifer Davis

“How are you?”

It’s such a simple question, but there’s rarely a simple answer.

I always give the same answer, “I’m doing alright, there are good days and bad days, but I’m ok”

And then there’s expectant silence.  No one knows how to respond.  Some people are relieved by this answer, and awkwardly change the subject.  Others stare at me, seeping pity, as if trying to x-ray my brain to see how I’m really feeling.  Still others begin to ask leading questions in hopes of tripping me up to reveal my true feelings.

Jack & Coke Chili

Last summer, I made Jack & Coke Steaks, so when I came across Jack & Coke Chili, I knew it would be a winner.

This chili was fantastic!  It was super super spicy (so if you’re sensitive, beware!)  The toppings (avocado & Greek yogurt/sour cream) absolutely made the chili, balancing out all that spice!

Ground Beef Stroganoff

So remember my bucket list?

Yeah, I had almost forgotten too, especially since it’s been almost a year since I crossed anything off of it…oops.

Well, that changes today, because I make Beef Stronganoff and ohmygosh it was so good!  I had to force myself to stop stuffing my face.

Angel Wings Wednesday #2

“I held you every second of your life”

-Stephanie Paige Cole

Grief is a funny thing.  It seems like everything can be going fine and then there’s something (big or little) that slams you back into it.

Sarah’s due date was March 9, so I should be in my last month of pregnancy.

A lot of my friends and acquaintances were due right around the same time as me.  It was going to be so fun having friends with babies the same age as mine.

Instead, every time I log onto Facebook, I see pictures of healthy pink babies and their proud happy parents.  I’m happy for my friends but it makes me so sad.  They’re enjoying their babies and I’m waiting for the ground to thaw, so I can bury mine.

SRC: Rosemary Sweet Potato Chips

It’s Secret Recipe Club time again! Again?!?

Yep, we get a twofer this month, as I step in to help group C (another blogger had a family emergency).

So, for double SRC month, I was assigned Kristy’s blog, She Eats.  Kristy loves using local, seasonally grown foods…and also bourbon.

Speaking of bourbon, I have had the first recipe, Bourbon Soaked Cherries, bookmarked for ages!  So I finally took the chance to make them, but I had to take quite a few liberties – frozen cherries (because February), vanilla simple syrup (because I had it in the fridge).  So I basically tossed those frozen cherries in a jar with about a shot of bourbon and 2 shots of vanilla syrup (the kind I used for iced coffee!) They’re fantastic, by the way, but since they were super simple and I switched things up, I decided to make another fantastic recipe!

Cue Rosemary Sweet Potato Chips!  Drool.  Seriously drooling!  They were AMAZING.  Oh, and a side note, yes those are sweet potatoes.  They’re apparently white sweet potatoes which A) I had to google and B) I had no idea that the rinky dink grocery store in my town would even have them.  Turns out white sweet potatoes are not quite as sweet as the orange variety, but equally delicious.

Spiked! Oreo Truffles

It’s time again for the Spiked! Challenge!  I always love this one because seriously, who doesn’t love cooking with booze?

For this challenge, participants were asked to cook with chocolate liqueur.  I chose Trader Vic’s, which is a chocolate liqueur with a slight coffee undertone. 

What I really wanted to do was make some sort of savory dish with the chocolate liqueur, but the creative juices just weren’t flowing, so I decided to fall back on a favorite…truffles!

Angel Wings Wednesday #1

Even though this is primarily a cooking blog, I’ve been feeling strongly that I want to share my thoughts and feelings about the loss of our daughter.  So I decided to start Angel Wings Wednesdays.

On Angel Wings Wednesdays I want to write about my loss and things that are helping me heal.  I may not post every Wednesday, but it’s a start.

For today, a little background and Sarah’s Story (which I wrote the day after she was born).

As many of you know, we found out we were expecting baby #3 in July 2013, and announced it in September.

After my usual 16 weeks of morning sickness, the pregnancy went smoothly until the 28 week appointment.

SRC: Homemade Spaghetti with Spicy Cauliflower Sauce

After a {much needed} break in January, SRC is back!  With the craziness of December, I definitely needed the break!  But once everything slowed down again, I was so happy for a reason to get back to cooking yummy meals!

This month, I was assigned Melissa’s blog, Smells Like Brownies.  Now, you’d think that I’d pick one of her amazing desserts with a name like Smells Like Brownies, but after the glut of the holidays, I decided to make a yummy vegetarian pasta dish (oh and it would be so so easy to make this vegan – just omit that little bit of parm!)

I actually ended up making two of Melissa’s recipes, since homemade whole wheat pasta and the pasta sauce go hand in hand.  Plus it had been about a year {maybe more?} since I went to war with used my pasta machine {the machine works great, it’s just the clamp – it’s terrible!)

Chicken Parmesan Meatballs

We’re big meatball fans in my house.

Usually I stick to my same old beef meatball recipe with white or brown gravy and serve it with baked potatoes.  And don’t get me wrong – it’s delicious, plus Dude and Spud will eat them!  But sometime I need a little change of pace.

Chicken parmesan meatballs are perfect for two reasons.  One, it’s a very different take on my usual beef meatballs and two, I’m far too lazy to make actual chicken parmesan – so this is a great cheater recipe!

These meatballs are easy, delicious, and a crowd pleaser! 

White Chicken Chili

This is a great toss together recipe when you have some leftover chicken (either from a baked chicken or a grocery store rotisserie) and a few cans of beans in the pantry.

This chili is a refreshing change of pace from a traditional chili.