It was my mom’s birthday last week! Who doesn’t love celebrating birthdays?
The best part about birthdays, no matter how old you get, is that it’s the one day a year you can be selfish and expect everything to be about you. Between demanding workdays, short weekends, busy families (especially those with kids), it’s the day you can put everyone else on the back-burner and say “Today, it’s all about me for a change.” That does not go away with age. (more…)
Lasagna, comfort food at its finest. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time or patience to boil noodles, and then layer and wait for baking time. This week seems to be dragging. Midweek can feel either closer or further away from the weekend, depending on how Monday and Tuesday panned out. This week, Wednesday felt a long way away from Friday. The thought that Friday wouldn’t get here any sooner only made me lazier, not wanting to run errands or tidy around the house. Instead, I started dinner, and curled up with my new favorite app – iBooks. (more…)
It’s been upwards of 90 degrees for the last few days. We’ve been enduring a not-so-nice heat wave – which I’m hoping will subside by next week. When I saw “101” flashing at me from the thermometer in my car, I knew that light-colored clothing and water wasn’t going to be enough. I needed an icy treat that could keep me cool … that is, if it didn’t melt before I could enjoy it in its entirety. Enter fruit popsicles. The great thing about making your own popsicles, is that you can mix up the fruits and flavors however you like. (more…)
After spending some time with my mother this weekend, I decided to take some of her advice. Mom suggested I find a hobby to keep me busy since I’ve been getting bored lately. That would have been easy, if I could think of one activity that could keep me interested and entertained for a long period of time. Cooking can’t keep me busy all the time. That’s when I realized, it’s time to get cracking on my “Before I’m 30 List.” Yes. Such a list does exist. It started when I was 15 on a piece of college-ruled paper. When I got my first laptop, I digitized my list and have been crossing things off ever since. Some have heard about this list … not many have actually seen it, or know what’s on it. That’s probably because, I’ll admit, there are some things on there that I should have accomplished by now. (more…)
I have been drooling over this recipe for weeks. The day I found it, I thought to myself “I’m going to add this to my list of delicious but easy dishes to make.” That is, my ongoing list of recipes to make on days when I’m low on time. Recipe ideas are welcome. I think this one will be a winner. It’s light and yet while low on calories and carbs, the chicken and lettuce are bursting with flavor. (more…)
Making delicious food doesn’t always mean you have to make it from scratch. It needs to be balanced, though. You can’t buy store-prepared food and try to take credit for the entire meal. It’s a balancing act. Full disclosure – I think the smart ones are the ones who can pull off a multiple-course dinner combining their own cooking, with some boxed help. It doesn’t make you a bad person … it makes you a smart entertainer. Spending all day in the kitchen prepping for a dinner doesn’t leave you much energy to do the actual entertaining. (more…)
