Whole-grain Waffles with Berry Syrup

Saturday mornings is a time our family looks forward to every week, because we wake up and make breakfast together. The kids help mix, stir, pour, and beat some kind of concoction (pancakes, waffles, scrambled eggs, omelets, etc.). My husband brews the coffee (that's about all he is good for since he's not quite awake yet!), and I help with the cooking and clean-up. 

Roasted Garlic-Sweet Potato Soup with Parmesan-Kale Chips

One of my favorite meals during the Autumn season is a thick, robust Sweet Potato Soup. It's gotta be super thick though, so thick that you almost want to chew it. :)  I wanted to try something new this season, and got the idea to pair it with a crunchy kale topping. I usually stick with the cinnamon spiced version that has a lot of sweetness to it but knew the parmesan-kale chips would not go well with it. 

How to Roast Garlic

Are you a garlic lover? I can't get enough of it. I cook with it on a regular basis, and go through about a bulb a week. Yes, my hands smell like garlic most of the time, but I don't mind. :)

Breakfast of Champions

Besides being a "foodie" another passion of mine is running. I love getting up in the whee hours of the morning and get a good 3-6 miles in, before my day of chaos starts. It is so peaceful and there is something extraordinary about watching the sun come up and see the world awake. Plus, I feel like I've accomplished at least ONE thing that day. :)

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

 Flu Season has already started in our house and one of the best remedies for that is good old-fashioned, Chicken Noodle Soup. It warms the insides and tastes so good, especially if you are feeling under the weather. 

Dutch Oven Chicken--Revisited

I don't know about you, but when I find a recipe the whole family enjoys, I'm still never quite satisfied with it. I always want to tweak it, change it up, try a little this and that until I have created many different versions.  Kind of like writing an essay, when I cook a new recipe, it's only the first draft. I'm constantly thinking of ways to improve on it and make it better.

"Change in all things is sweet." --Aristotle

I am excited to announce that "Meal Planning Made Simple" has a new look...of course by now you probably already figured that out. :) I've been wanting to make changes for a while, but have been reluctant. Why? Dunno.  Fear of failure maybe and that it would look worse than it already was, fear that I would mess something up and wouldn't be able to undo it, and a little laziness I'm sure was part of it. 

Roasted Fruit and Nut Bars

Having meals together as a family is really important to us, and one of the things we like to do is go around the table and each person comes up with a question they want to ask everybody...kind of round robin style. One of the questions my daughter asked the other night was "What is everybody's favorite snack?"  I had to really think about this one, because there are SO many options; rice cakes with sunflower seed butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top, dark chocolate trail mix, oatmeal and apple muffins, yogurt with granola, sliced veggies with hummus...just to name a few. :-) 

How to roast nuts

Roasting...that one word brings to mind wonderful memories of sitting under the Eifel Tower eating Roasted Chestnuts with my husband, watching people gaze at the magnificent structure in front of us, and just being in perfect bliss and contentment. It also reminds me of the Autumn season and that I can turn my oven on after a long summer hiatus. Whoohoo! 

Black and Tan Clusters

I just LOVE the combination of chocolate and dried cherries and truly believe they are the perfect match. Just a little warning, if you are on a diet or have a chocolate addiction...don't make too many of these! It is SO hard to just eat one!!! :-)

Seared Polenta with a Zesty-Tomato and Shrimp Sauce

 

Ever tried polenta before? If you haven't, you are missing out. It's a great alternative to rice or pasta and it's very simple to make. You can pan fry it, bake it, or BBQ it. Make sure you spray your BBQ or pan really well with cooking spray, because each polenta circle is super-duper sticky.