“Thai” Pea Coconut Curry Soup

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Pea Coconut Curry Soup Owen and I are on spring break. See, a few weeks ago, I found round trip tickets to Chicago (which isn’t too far from my family) for only $70…so I jumped on those tickets, because driving eight hours, by myself, with a sometimes-screechy baby in the back seat? Ain’t nobody got time for that. Plus, Eric’s up to his neck with a freelance deadline, and getting out of the house for a few days will allow him to work without my constant wheedling to just stop for the day and come outside for a while. #weneedasoundproofhomeoffice

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Herbed Chicken Mediterranean Pizza (Papa Murphy’s Herb Chicken Mediterranean Copycat Recipe)

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Herbed Chicken Mediterranean Pizza Everyone’s got their rituals to celebrate the arrival of spring.

For some, it’s the first time they slip on a pair of sandals. For others, it’s the first tulip to pop up in their front yard, or maybe it’s the first time you have to take an umbrella with you as you walk out the door.

Herbed Chicken Mediterranean Pizza Or, if you’re from my family, it’s the first sunny, 40* degree day that has you wrapped up in a blanket, tucked into a windless corner of the yard, Vitamin-D starved face turned towards the sun. (I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that four out of the six members of my family texted everyone else about their first time out in the sun this season. #itmustbegenetic).

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Happy Mother’s Day

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This is my mom…with a much tinier, much darker-haired Owen. Isn’t she pretty?

Simply put, my mom is a gift. I find a reason to call her most days, and there is not a day that goes by that I’m not thankful for the fact that we get along so well. In fact, there are only a handful of people in my life who are almost guaranteed to make me pee a little each time I see them because they get me laughing so hard. My mom’s one of them, and usually it happens when we’re trying to move a large piece of furniture together.

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Spring 2013 Playlist

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Cooking Music - Spring Playlist I’m not sure if 2013 really understands the meaning of the word spring. So far, we’ve had unseasonable snow and unseasonable summer – as we’ve gone from late April blizzards to grilling out in tank tops – all in the same week. To top it off, all three of us have pretty stubborn colds this week.

So let’s look at this playlist as a summons to spring. A call to cool mornings and warm days filled with crisp blue skies…or even to those warmish rainy days. A beckoning of tulips and spring-green leaflets on trees.

This playlist is a pretty good sampling of what’s been on repeat at our house lately….a little Bon Iver because we will have them played at our funerals, a little local flavor with Jeremy Messersmith, a little throwback with Landslide, and of course, because you’ve come to expect it…a few songs with a little bit of banjo…plus a whole lot more.
Head on over for a listen.

To Spring! Enjoy!

Easy Maple Sugar Shortbread

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Easy Maple Sugar Shortbread I don’t really consider myself much of a food snob for as much as I think, talk, and write about food. I’m not above a DiGiorno’s frozen pizza or a (family-sized) bag of Doritos now and then. But there are two items I’m totally and obnoxiously particular about: coffee and maple syrup.

The coffee one’s a no brainer. Bad coffee just isn’t worth drinking. Don’t get me wrong…I’m not going out and spending $4 a cup at the local cafe…but I make my own coffee, grind up my own relatively fresh beans, and (politely and secretly) turn my nose up at coffee that’s been around too long.

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Cinco de Mayo Recipe Roundup

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We’ve made no bones about the fact that we’re Mexican food lovers over here! But this year, I’m having kind of a hard time getting into Cinco de Mayo because…well, it’s snowing. It’s literally snowing right now, on May 2. And there’s more rain, sleet, and snow predicted over this festive weekend…which means a few more days of scarves and sweaters instead of the colorful skirts and sandals I usually associate with outdoor picnics on this, the 5th of May.

So, despite my snow-induced grumpiness, I bought the $.77 avocados at my grocery store and will for sure be making this guacamole salad this weekend, if nothing else.

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Crockpot Italian Beef (Sandwiches)

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Italian-Beef-Sandwich

I’ve talked a little bit about my sisters in the past, but today it’s time to tell you about Ben, my younger brother. Ben and I are only three years apart, so we spent a lot of time together, doing normal sibling stuff like spending a high percentage of our Saturday mornings painstakingly splitting up our chore list so as to ensure the fairest distribution possible.

Liz-&-Ben

One of us in this picture went on to become a semi-professional bass tournament fisherman.

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Frugal Friday: Let’s get Saucy

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It’s a well-established fact that after months of winter, some Minnesotans will don shorts and t-shirts on the first 40* day that’s even a little sunny. It’s a little embarrassing, I know. But this past winter, especially, has felt endless, with two late-April snow storms. So like the Minnesotan I am, I am typing this outside today, shoeless, jacketless, hatless, as the temperature climbs towards 70*. Did you hear me? Seventy. It always makes me laugh that a 70*-day will bring out white winter legs in Minnesota while it causes Floridians to put on another jacket.

Anyway, in honor of what feels like spring actually coming to stay, we’re totally grilling out tonight. I’ve got bacon and ground beef thawing, because I’ve been totally jonesing for some bbq-bacon cheeseburgers. And because today is a day dedicated to celebrating the return of the sun, I started looking around for some homemade barbecue sauce…I thought I’d share the recipe I’m using with you, as well as a few summer’s-coming sauces that you can make at home on the cheap!

#1. Farmgirl Susan’s Homemade Barbecue Sauce from Farmgirl Fare

image from farmgirlfare.com


 

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