Sweet & Salty Frito Snack Mix

Posted on 2 May, 2013 by Christine

I’m a sucker for snack mix. I’m also a sucker for a good sweet and salty combo. Throw all of that together, and I’m a very happy girl.

Throw some chocolate in as well, and it bumps the happiness up another notch.

This is good stuff.

I will be forever grateful to Shelly over at Cookies & Cups for coming up with this magical combination. Sugar coated Fritos? It’s genius!

I started by mixing together those salty little Fritos, some Rice Chex, a bunch of pretzel twists and some peanuts. I used peanuts because I already had them on hand. Throw in whatever kind of nut you like, though. Next time, I’m going with mixed nuts or pecans. Read more... (545 words, 7 images, estimated 2:11 mins reading time)

Rhubarb and Raspberry Crostata

Posted on 23 April, 2013 by Christine

Ah, Aaron’s birthday. It’s that one day a year, when I can look into my dear, sweet husband’s eyes and say, “You’re officially older than I am again. HA!”

And in turn, eight months from now, he’ll enjoy looking at his dear, sweet wife, and saying, “HA! You’re old like me!”

For Aaron’s birthday this year, I decided to throw the birthday cake idea out the window and make something more his speed. I’m a cake kind of person. I love chocolate, rich, cakey kind of desserts. Aaron? He’d much prefer a pie. Ultimately, he loves a good berry pie, so I knew that he’d probably really enjoy this free form raspberry and rhubarb crostata recipe that I’d been eyeing for a while. Read more... (958 words, 7 images, estimated 3:50 mins reading time)

Tomato-Basil Tart

Posted on 16 April, 2013 by Christine

Spring has sprung (finally), and believe it or not, summer is right around the corner! I’ll fully admit that this time of year, every year, I get a case of the “Ohmigosh, I have to be in a swim suit, in public, in just a few short weeks.” heebie jeebies. Thankfully, as the weather warms up, I feel like eating lighter anyway. Hopefully, shedding the heavier, comfort food that winter brings will help me shed a few pounds as well.

That said, nobody wants to starve. Read more... (1077 words, 9 images, estimated 4:18 mins reading time)

Chocolate-Irish Cream Cheesecake

Posted on 15 March, 2013 by Christine

You can’t have a holiday without dessert, right?

This year, when I thought of St. Patrick’s Day desserts, visions of chocolate and Irish Cream danced in my head. I quickly hit the Internet, to see if I could find something, and was greeted with an abundance of Irish Cream desserts. Some of them were pretty intense. I chose this one because, well, it just sounded really good. I don’t mind booze in a dessert, but I don’t like “boozy desserts”. Does that make sense? This cheesecake seemed like the perfect combination of all things Irish Creamy and chocolatey. I knew I had to give it a try. Read more... (867 words, 9 images, estimated 3:28 mins reading time)

Italian Sweet and Sour Chicken

Posted on 18 February, 2013 by Christine

Have you ever had a meal that has impressed you so much, its deliciousness pops into your head for days and you find yourself talking about it? This is one of those meals. We had this for dinner a little over a week ago and ever since, my husband will still look at me, at the most random times, and say, “That chicken was really, really good.” In fact, I don’t even think he realizes how much he’s said it to me. This, my friends, is the power of a great meal. Read more... (746 words, 8 images, estimated 2:59 mins reading time)

Super Bowl Recipe Roundup

Posted on 1 February, 2013 by Christine

Photo by: http://www.flickr.com/photos/aukirk/8426109718/

I’ve screwed up.

Despite the TV specials, newspaper articles, ad leakings, endless Brothers Harbaugh interviews and all of the Super Bowl stories that have taken over sports media this week, up until yesterday, I thought that the Super Bowl was NEXT weekend. Oops. It’s not. It’s this Sunday.

I’d meant to devote an entire week on the blog to Game Day Food. Obviously, that’s not going to happen now. I’ll make my brain lapse up to you in upcoming weeks. I promise! Read more... (389 words, 13 images, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Posted on 30 January, 2013 by Christine

I love, love, love short ribs. If we’re out to dinner and short ribs are on the menu, you can pretty much guarantee that I’m going to order them. I like to make them, at least once, during the colder months. They’re a perfect hearty meal for a chilly winter night.

This year, however, every time I looked for short ribs in the grocery store, they seemed outrageously expensive. I was at Costco, and noticed that they had beautiful, boneless short ribs at a fraction of the bone-in-grocery-store price.

Read more... (1200 words, 11 images, estimated 4:48 mins reading time)

Individual Chocolate & Orange Bread Puddings

Posted on 24 January, 2013 by Christine

I’ve already confessed to you all in the past that my cookbook collection is out of control. Well, it’s time for another confession. If the thought of finding cookbooks in four rooms of my house gives you the heebie jeebies and makes you think that calling the producers of “Hoarders” might be the next step, then whatever you do, DON’T think about my collection of cooking magazine back issues.

It’s worse.

I’ve kept every back issue of (almost) every cooking magazine I’ve subscribed to over the past eight years. That’s a lot of magazines, and a lot of closet space taken up. Read more... (1071 words, 6 images, estimated 4:17 mins reading time)

Poblanos Stuffed with Cheddar and Chicken

Posted on 22 January, 2013 by Christine

There’s something about stuffed peppers that makes me happy. I’m not sure what it is, whether it’s the comfort food aspect or the fact that digging into one is like breaking into a pretty little package. Whatever it is, I like ‘em. A lot.

I was really excited when I ran across this recipe from Fine Cooking magazine. The peppers are easy enough to throw together on a weeknight, but also fun, and different enough, to serve when friends are heading over for dinner. Sounds just about perfect, to me. Read more... (933 words, 10 images, estimated 3:44 mins reading time)

Rigatoni Bolognese

Posted on 14 January, 2013 by Christine

OK, are you ready? You are about to meet my all time favorite pasta sauce. This sauce blew my mind the first time I made it, and has continued to, every time I’ve made it since. In fact, I usually write notes next to the recipes I try in my cookbooks, so that when I look back on them later on, I know what I need to tweak or whether or not I need to even make it again. What did I write next to this one? ”The Best”. I am in love with this sauce, and I hope you’ll enjoy it too. Read more... (794 words, 10 images, estimated 3:11 mins reading time)

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