Simple Snickerdoodles

Sometime since becoming a mom, I was introduced to the joy of Snickerdoodles. They’re a sugar cookie, but with cinnamon, too. The best versions are light and buttery, the perfect after-school snack or end to a lovely meal. Over the summer, I sampled oh-so-many recipes, in search of my absolute favorite. In the end, IContinue reading “Simple Snickerdoodles”

Ginger Crinkles

Looking back through my mother’s cookbooks, I can find at least three dog-eared Ginger Cookie recipes plus one for Gingerbread Cake, oh and there’s a Spice Cake recipe as well. I distinctly recall each of these desserts and I remember loving them all. So this year, as winter set in and I began craving the homey, holiday tastes ofContinue reading “Ginger Crinkles”

Not Your Mother’s Green Bean Casserole

  Our garden gives us green beans. We blanch and freeze them. Then, come Thanksgiving, we’ve got what we need for that holiday staple, Green Bean Casserole. But it seems a shame to slather our garden bounty with a can of condensed mushroom soup. So here’s what I make instead. It’s so flavorful, you’ll beContinue reading “Not Your Mother’s Green Bean Casserole”

Carrot-Chip Sheet Cake

Some of my kids’ favorite muffins are chock full of carrots, pineapple and coconut. So it stands to reason that they’d like carrots in their desserts, too. This recipe is one part sheet cake, one part quick bread. It’s carrot cake without the cream cheese icing. Any way you slice it, though, it’s all around delicious. MakesContinue reading “Carrot-Chip Sheet Cake”

Sweet Potato Hash

A little sweet, a little heat, with an egg on top. Oh yeah. This recipe is flavorful and filling. Serve it as a side to some pan fried pork chops or heap it on your plate with a slice of toast and a dish of homemade applesauce. In the fall of the year, after theContinue reading “Sweet Potato Hash”

Roasted Sweet Potato Fries

  I’ve heard raves of my Paprika Potatoes recipe ever since I posted it. So now here’s an equally easy, equally tasty, nutritionally even better recipe using sweet potatoes. You know what makes this recipe stand out? You get to leave the potato skins on, saving minutes and increasing goodness. Time to fire up that oven.Continue reading “Roasted Sweet Potato Fries”

Warm You Up Chili

I once won a neighborhood Chili Cook-Off with my vegetarian chili recipe, which mixes bulgar wheat with the typical kidney beans and tomatoes to give a chewy, filling feel. These days I’m cooking with meat and chili is a great one-pot meal that can feed a crowd, but I’ve struggled to find a recipe I was happy with. SoContinue reading “Warm You Up Chili”

Lemon Zucchini Bread

As the weather’s been turning cooler, I’ve found myself craving something sweet. Sweet, but not ice cream and not chocolate, something light and, say, lemony. So I dug through my recipe files and found this. It calls for zucchini, which is long gone from our garden but plenty present in our deep freeze. When I madeContinue reading “Lemon Zucchini Bread”

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

I have tried dozens of ways to make roasted pumpkin seeds, some to better effect than others. My favorite method of the moment is detailed below. Spicy and sweet variations follow the basic recipe. Ingredients One medium-sized pumpkin fine sea salt olive or coconut oil Instructions Cut open the pumpkin by carving a circle around theContinue reading “Roasted Pumpkin Seeds”

Roast Your Own Sunflower Seeds

  With three kids (and their friends) always on the prowl for something to keep them going between meals, I’m always on the hunt for healthy, protein-filled, easy-to-nibble foods. Sunflower seeds are the perfect intersection of these two searches — delicious AND nutritious. Plus, they’re safe even for those with nut allergies. Here’s the cloud to my silverContinue reading “Roast Your Own Sunflower Seeds”