Summer Pasta Salad

Summer Pasta Salad-4

:: Summer Pasta Salad ::

Do you find, in the summer, that you cook less or look for easier recipes? I certainly do! Our days have been filled with outings, lots of outside time playing, and for us… packing up our mountain home in preparation for our upcoming move {not so fun!}.

During the school year, I’m fairly good at sticking to a routine of eating dinner at a reasonable time so that I can get the kids in bed around 8 p.m. In the summertime, that’s not the case! Usually, I’m throwing dinner together on a whim… with little time to spare! This recipe for a chilled Summer Pasta Salad is perfect for nights like that! [Read more…]

Almond Poppy Seed Muffins

  

:: ALMOND POPPY SEED MUFFINS ::

Isn’t it funny how certain sights, sounds, tastes, and smells evoke emotions and bring back memories? Well… the smell and taste of these muffins do just that for me. It brings me back to my early high school years spent in San Diego…. Happy memories surfaced of the carefree days spent with one of my best high school friends. We used to make these muffins after school or on the weekends. Back then, we made them from a boxed mix… and they really were delicious! I think we’d practically devour the whole dozen! I haven’t seen them since those years, long ago. I have found lemon poppyseed muffin mix… but that just isn’t the same in my opinion! There is just something magical about the combination of almonds with poppy seeds!

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Egg-in-a-Hole

My kids and I have a secret obsession….. it’s watching the Food Network’s cooking shows! We don’t turn the television on during the week {because we’ve learned we never get homework done otherwise}, but when the weekend strikes… the kids and I do love a little downtime watching a few of our favorites together…. especially the Pioneer Woman, the Barefoot Contessa, and Trisha’s Southern Kitchen {or Ree, Ina & Trisha… as we call them around here}! This recipe is one that I recently tried out from Ree {the Pioneer Woman}. I decided to be a loving wife and make Husby a little breakfast upon coming home from a 48-hour shift at the fire station. I am actually allergic to eggs… so I was not able to sample the dish, but I will say that it smelled heavenly… and Husby did devour two pieces and said he thinks it’s even better than FRENCH TOAST!!

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Strawberry Muffins

Fresh strawberries are now in season and are in abundance in our local markets.

Husby recently picked up a ton of the sweet, red fruit,

so I had some extras on hand to get creative with.

We happen to LOVE muffins in our house.

Of course, we love all other baked goods, too…

but I tend to make muffins nearly every week

for a good after school treat or to throw into the kids packed lunches

{they just seem healthier, so I don’t feel as guilty}!

[Read more…]