Sweet

Sweetness comes in many forms.

Like sugar and spice and all things nice.

.

 Like puppies and kittens and little bunnies.

Like ice cream and cupcakes.

Like love and friendship...

...and potatoes.

 

 Rosemary Sweet Potatoes

Cut some sweet potatoes into quarters. Spread them out onto a baking sheet and toss with some olive oil and rosemary. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until tender.

Banana & Blueberry Buttermilk Muffins

Ah, Saturday morning. I love acting like I have nothing to do except curl up with some coffee and homemade muffins. Ignoring my to-do list is one of my most favorite activities.  Banana & Blueberry Buttermilk muffins with a crunchy sweet topping are the perfect fodder for a lazy Saturday morning.

I found myself with a lot of buttermilk on hand after making something else (more on that later) that only called for a small amount. I was going the way of buttermilk pancakes until I came across this recipe from Eating Well. I followed it closely with the exception of using whole wheat flour and low-fat buttermilk (I used all-purpose flour and full fat buttermilk). Oh, and I added a topping from a recipe I found here that's just sugar, flour, butter and cinnamon all mix up together. Another note: for some reason the muffin recipe produced batter for more than a dozen regular sized muffins, so it made about a batch and a half in the end. Which is okay because they're pretty good and you will want to eat more than just one. Especially if you do the sweet topping part.

Happy Saturday.

Taco Day

Every once in a while I get a hankerin' for old school tacos. When I say "old school" I mean tacos in the style of school lunches -- crunchy shell, shredded cheese, beef and beans. The kind of tacos that had me first in line to purchase a lunch ticket. I know, I know... it's sounds really weird, but there was something about taco day that made me all happy when I was a kid. Looking back I don't really get it because the version my school made was not that great. Maybe it's because all my classmates loved taco day, too. Maybe it's because I grew up in Wyoming and tacos were super exotic. Whatever the reason, I still hold a special place in my heart for these kinds of tacos. My version is a million times better than what I remember being served in school, but still captures the spirit of those old lunch favorites. 

Look familiar?

It's funny that I crave these given that fact that A) I am no longer in school B) I am a grown-up and should only crave fancy-pants tacos and C) I don't even have kids to justify making these for dinner. They are so not grown-up. There's no logical reason why these continue to be a go-to comfort food for me all these years later. Nostalgia is a funny thing.

There's really no recipe for these and it's pretty darn easy to pull together. Just brown some ground beef in a large pan drain off the fat and add in some pinto beans. I usually do a pound of beef and a can of beans (drained). If I'm feeling really motivated I'll use some homemade chili sauce, but if I'm not I just use premade taco sauce in the jar. Add just enough to coat the beef and beans. You don't want it too soupy. Cook it all together for a few minutes. Serve in taco shells with shredded cheese and a dollop of sour cream.

So tonight it's just me, my old school tacos and the newest episode of Mad Men. 

No lunch ticket required.

Yay.

Breakfast Winner

Granola is a magical thing.

It has turned this fruit-averse and yogurt-avoiding gal into a believer.

A believer in the power of breakfast and all the good things that happen when the first meal of the day is hearty, healthy and tasty.

The greek yogurt is full of protein, which keeps me filled up. The fruit is full of all kinds of good stuff to make me feel good. The granola is crunchy, sweet and hearty.

All together it sings.

All together it makes me feel really good about myself.

The granola is ridiculously easy to make and takes all of about 40 minutes to make, start to finish. I used a recipe from The Amateur Gourmet that was taken from the cookbook Baked. I followed the directions as is, but I omitted the dried fruit because I don't like dried fruit.

I'm just warming up to the idea of fresh fruit, so I didn't want to push the envelope.

I'm still marveling that I gobbled it all up. I'm so impressed with myself.

It's that good.

My New Obsession

I have been MIA for the last couple of months and I blame...

Have you heard of it?

When I was an impressionable young teen I used to make posters collages with magazine clippings of my favorite celebrities, clothing brands, cool quotes and other miscellaneous items that represented me. I put a lot of work (and elmer's glue) into these creations and proudly displayed them in my bedroom.

Pinterest is like that.

Except, instead of poster board, I "pin" stuff to virtual boards. No glue, magazines or teenage angst necessary. Think of it as a virtual collection of things you can share with other pinterest users. 

Of course I have recipe boards, but I also have a bunch of other boards of stuff I like, stuff I want to make, stuff I want to do, and so on and so on.

It's super fun and inspiring.

It's kind of hard to explain, but it's a more grown-up version of those poster board collages I used to make. 

I like to think I'm grown-up now.

Check out some of these yummy ideas I've found on Pinterest (click on the photos to visit the sites where the recipes live) and, if you haven't already, sign up and join the fun!

www.pinterest.com

Fruity Vodka Slushies

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

Broccoli & Gruyere Gratin

Lasagna Cups