I’ve been eating this nonstop for a few weeks now, and it occurred to me that many of you may like it as much as I do. ‘Tis the season to dive headlong into as many avocados as you can find, because they are buttery and scrumptious, and oh so good for you. Even their fat is good for you. Avocados are fabulous, but let’s be honest; the have quite a few calories, and sometimes you just don’t want to care about that. Continue reading →
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Pre-bathing suit dieters: avert your eyes and avert them now. Go quickly to a health food blog, do an emergency keyword search for things like “quinoa” and “fennel,” and do your best to completely avoid what I have going on here. This is not the post for you. I’m swimming in the sea of early summer fruits as much as the rest of you, but I couldn’t get this out of my head, so here it is. Page one of the newest Baked offering, Baked Elements: The Good Morning Sunshine Bars, finagled by yours truly. And I did do a good amount of finagling here. Continue reading →
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I’ve been secretly making this granola for far too long not to tell you about it. It started a few months ago, when Faygie at Life Tastes Good posted it. I love her anyway, but I was hooked instantly: a plain vanilla granola? From someone who I know loves vanilla and treats it like a flavor and not just an ingredient? Yes, please. Growing up, vanilla ice cream is all I would eat. Seems weird now, considering I’d try almost any flavor you’d put in front of me, but I just didn’t see any need to venture out when vanilla ice cream was my jam. I didn’t like to muddy the waters. I wasn’t the kid who wanted chocolate chips, marshmallows, or chunks of bubble gum in it (gross; do they even still make that?); just hand over the plain vanilla and I was (and still am) happy. Continue reading →
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It’s the inaugural Monday Bites post! Farmers’ Market Mondays will return when the farmers’ markets do (in the spring), so until then, I plan to keep your eyes and mouths busy (on Mondays, at least) with finger foods, appetizers, and small plates – and who couldn’t use more of those during the winter months, right? Right.
Too often, we think if we see a boxed something – frozen dinner, cake mix, macaroni and cheese – we automatically assume that the ‘from-scratch’ counterpart to said boxed thing must be very difficult to make. After all, why would someone go to all the trouble to create an instant version of something if it were easy to begin with? Is from-scratch really that much better than something pre-made? In some cases, no; pre-made can be very useful, and taste great, depending on the product. Was I going to make red velvet cookies from scratch for those cookie pops the other day? Nope, and that’s an excellent example of how smart use of boxed things can produce great, time-saving results. But there’s something about making things from scratch that can really change how you think about what you eat. Like these crackers I made you this week. Why would anyone want to make crackers from scratch? Because they’re incredible. Also; they’re easy. Continue reading →
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It’s true; I enjoy turning things into other things. This compulsion is why I made the cornflake chocolate chip marshmallow cookie into an ice cream. Or a favorite fall salad into a pizza. In my hands, beloved snickerdoodle cookies transform into ice cream vessels. Other times, I shove classic chocolate chip cookies into a muffin tin. Whatever. But it’s about time I take on something much more serious: turning the mythical seven-layer bar into a snack mix.
Fair warning: many of the photos in the links above, as well as some of these original seven-layer bars, are gross. I was just learning about light and food photography back then, and it basically looks like I took my pictures in a cave during a massive thunderstorm. Forgive my early blog photo attempts; the food is good, but the pictures don’t, in all cases, do it justice. Continue reading →
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Quickie post! I wanted to share this little snack with you, because I make it all the time, and it gets us through what seems to be a pretty nibble-filled time of year. If Everyone seems to be in various stages of party-planning, from Halloween to Christmas; according to Pinterest, you winter holiday pinners are way ahead of the game this year. Slow down! You must to pace yourselves; there’s like, at least 2 major holidays before the Big Event in December, and I can’t think about strawberry santa-hat brownies and DIY sheet music christmas trees until I get through October. Cool out.
I know you’ve seen the santa hat brownies before if you are on Pinterest; has anyone thought those through? I have, and buying fresh strawberries around here that don’t taste like my sofa during December would cost me about $30 a pound. But they’re so cute it almost makes it worth it.
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Well. You are going to need to get several bags of pretzels. In fact, if I were you, I’d just carefully set the device you are reading this on down, just close it on up, and go get at least 2 bags of mini-twists. Maybe 3, because it’s better to be safe than sorry. And you’ll be sorry if you run out of either one of these pretzel treats. I’m being so totally serious when I say that once you have tasted this, you may begin shaking at the mere thought of not having it readily available to you at all times. You think I’m overreacting? You haven’t had this ice cream. You think maybe pretzel ice cream sounds weird/frightening/not delicious? Think again. Continue reading →
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My contribution to the Skewer-verse. It’s fitting, right? Superbowl coming up, parties all over the place, people gearing up for loads of finger food, the whole bit. Everyone’s been asking what I’ll be making for that Blessed Last Sunday of American Football, and I’m sad to say, not a whole lot this year. If you saw my party spread any other year, it would be a sight to behold. You would think I was having fifty people over, when in actuality it would be more like ten. But I use it as an excuse to make every cute appetizer I found in magazines/books/Pinterest throughout the year. Like it’s the last ever day to legally make adorable, tiny food. Continue reading →
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Wow: New Year’s Eve already. I know everyone says that, but really…September was what, maybe three days ago? I don’t know how everyone’s fall/winter goes, but between lots of birthdays in October, my annual trip to Nashville to visit my sister, and the fall/winter holidays, it’s been one rush after another. In a good way, really, but busy. I look forward to the January slowdown. By now, I’ve completely blown any good eating habits I’ve developed over the past year and am aching for a normal, nothing-too-exciting routine. Continue reading →
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This recipe made my holiday food gift-giving ten times easier last year. It was completely by accident; I went looking for a chocolate bark recipe to make simply because I wanted something different to add to the mix. I had just had a baby a few months prior, so I didn’t need anything that involved hand-wringing, forty-six different steps, or undivided attention. I needed one of those “I’m so lying to you right now” food gifts that look difficult but that I could do in my sleep. I may have actually been asleep most of last holiday season, I’m still not sure. Continue reading →
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Katherine {eggton}: I can't stop looking at the picture of the dough where the olive oil h...
shannon: oh yay! it's great to hear you liked them, Sarah. It's hard to say wit...
shannon: hey: no judgement! i love childrens' books; some of them are super cre...
shannon: tiny strudels FORCE smiles out of people: it's impossible not to be ha...
shannon: honestly, i have wracked my brain; i just don't get it either. i'm not...
seems like lately my kitchen smells like…
stalking = so much fun.