Did you all have a nice holiday weekend? I hope so. We had a lot of fun, a lot of food, and I even got a bunch of Christmas shopping done. Hooray! Read the rest of this entry »

This weekend we had our friends and their three children over (along with my family). I made a punchbowl full of sangria, some apple cupcakes, and we pigged out on the best pizza in New Jersey. I also let the kids make sugar cookies and decorate them from this little kit I found. They had a ball. I think the best compliment you can get is when a kid tells you, “Your house is so cool.”

Last night we dove into Season 1 of Dexter (we’re four episodes in). And don’t forget about the contest. How was your weekend?

Why I love Anthony Bourdain. He doesn’t give a shit who he insults. I just started on the “Celebrity Chef” chapter in his book The Nasty Bits, and he is crucifying Rocco DiSpirito. It’s awesome.

Oh, HELL YES.

I just took the geekboy’s carrot cake out of the oven. It smells good. As I flipped the first layer onto the cooling rack, it fell out of the pan faster than I expected, and broke into several pieces. After I just stood there, staring at the mess, in shock, I pulled myself together and shoved it all back into one piece. I’m really hoping it will be okay. Once I put frosting on it, it should hold together, right? RIGHT? The other layer came out fine. I really don’t know why I suck so badly at making cakes. My cakes fill the two pans, but when I take them out, they seem so thin. My cakes always seem so short. They look pathetic and flat. Hate.

Apparently it’s Girl Scout Cookie time. Last night a little girl knocked on our door, and we were so gobsmacked by the fact that kids still do that, we bought two boxes. Including this kind, which I’ve never seen before. Is it new? Either way, can’t wait until they come in!

Proof that America probably deserves its bad rap. Read the rest of this entry »

Homemade vegan candy corn. Wow!

Right now, I am obsessed with Cholula hot sauce. I eat it on macaroni and cheese, and I just now doused my entire fake chicken patty with it. I want more! The past few months, I cannot get enough spicy food. Do you think it has anything to do with quitting smoking or am I just going through a phase?

Chuck just sent me this little tidbit with a note reading simply, “AWESOME.” I agree.

Love.

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The muffins came out lovely. Very moist, as I used four ripe and bruised bananas. Not too sweet, but just sweet enough, due to the honey in the recipe. A keeper.

Top 10 Foods for a Good Night’s Sleep. I want to make those muffins - yum!

Wow, the past few days have gone by in a blur. I’m wiped out. Our holiday was lovely. Read the rest of this entry »

Ah, it’s the Monday after a long, long weekend. So tough to get back on track. I have much to do this week! Work to finish, dinner with Beth tomorrow, Canadian arrival on Wednesday, party on Saturday! My liver is already trembling in anticipation. As for the past few days, our Thanksgiving Day was lovely and filling. We spent the rest of the weekend doing various household chores and, as you can see in the photos above, I made some treats. Drool-worthy! I also started knitting a bag to give as a Christmas gift. Oh, and on Friday, Lisa and I went to see For Your Consideration. Hilarious, but not the best of his films. But still - Catherine O’Hara is amazing. Later that night we watched Totally Awesome. Totally worth it. How about you all? Good weekend?

A LITTLE VINO WOULD BE KEEN-O! Chuck was asking if I could do a post about wine. Of course I can! More specifically, your favorite bottles that are $10 and under. Tell us your old standbys, your new favorites, wine you’ve heard about and have been wanting to try. As long as it’s in that $10 range, anything goes.

Last night we quietly celebrated the geekboy’s birthday. I gave him a few PSP-related gifts, which seemed to go over quite well. We had cake, some beer for him, some wine for me, and just hung out on the new couches and watched Thursday night tv. We’re going to the city on Monday for shopping and a show, so we decided to be low-key last night. Anyway, for dinner I made the best linguine and clams I’ve ever made. I don’t know why they came out so much better this time, but I’m going to post the ingredients/recipe just in case: Read the rest of this entry »

People, FREE PANCAKES.

Coffee-infused Coca-Cola. I am part intrigued, part repulsed. The geekboy thinks their slogan should be “Once you go Blak, you’ll never go back.”

So much for my quest to eat healthier.

Here is the hot punch recipe I was talking about. Use a crockpot or in a pot on the stove on “simmer.” Just toss in: one can pineapple juice, one bottle apple juice, one cup applejack brandy, some cinnamon sticks, and a handful or so of red-hot cinammon candies. Let it all melt together, and that’s it. Obviously you can add more or less brandy, depending on your taste for alcohol. Mmmm, alcohol. Serve warm and steaming. Warning: it’s very sweet and will give you a nice sugar high.

A site all about one of my favorite drinks - sangria. Yum.