Roasted Carrot and Parsnip Soup with Pumpkin Bread Croutons

I have a love-hate relationship with carrots. Carrot cake is my very favorite (although I'm not sure that really counts!), and I tend to enjoy hearty carrot chunks in vegetable and chicken noodle soup, but raw carrots just don't do it for me. I always pick around them...

Crispy Pecan Chicken and Sweet Potato Biscuit Sandwiches

I have a thing for biscuits. The love affair started when I was growing up and always used to gobble them up at KFC and McDonald’s (actually, McDonald’s breakfast biscuit sandwiches are still one of my guilty pleasures when we’re travelling!). I also have fond...

Peanut Butter and Banana Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

So after a few nights in Vilnius, we headed out on a road trip to see the rest of the country. The Lithuanian countryside is just gorgeous. Rolling cow pastures and farmland are interspersed with forests full of pine trees. We couldn’t resist stopping a few times to...

Individual Breakfast Pot Pies

I’ve been waking up a couple hours earlier than Apolinaras on the weekends lately. My grumbling tummy and earlier bed time (pregnancy can be exhausting!) are to blame. I’ve been putting the time to good use though. First, I devour a bowl of cereal or some yogurt and...

BBQ Chicken Tacos

I tune everything out when I’m reading, which can be a good or bad habit depending on the situation. Good because I can read in any environment and not get distracted, but bad for the same reason because I keep missing my bus stops! I have a 45 minute commute, and...

Peanut Butter Protein Bars

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve always been pretty athletic. I swam competitively from the second grade all the way through college and really excelled in the freestyle endurance races, although I was always trying to convince my coaches to let me...

Pumpkin Beer Bread

We’ve been all about beer lately. Apolinaras has recently gotten into home brewing and just proudly sealed 40 bottles of Oak-Aged Baltic Porter last night. It's supposed to age for at least a month before it’s really ready, but I snuck a couple sips of the green stuff...

Orange Cardamom Chocolate Bars

I fell in love with cardamom a few years ago when I started drinking chai and have found it’s also lovely in baked goods. While perusing the fridge this weekend for something to satisfy my sweet tooth, I noticed the low-sugar orange marmalade my hubby enjoys and was...
Southwestern Mini Meatball Salad

Southwestern Mini Meatball Salad

For a couple of years, I was in the habit of buying pre-washed salad mixes. You know, the kind that come in a bag or plastic box. This lead to the donation of our OXO salad spinner to the Good Will, because it was just sitting there collecting dust and taking up...

read more
S’more Snacks

S’more Snacks

Today’s “recipe” is a bit of a pregnancy cliché. It all started when we were discussing the annual Boston area Fluff Fest at lunch one day. Marshmallow Fluff, also known as marshmallow crème, was invented in my town and is still made in Massachusetts. It’s probably...

read more
French Onion Phyllo Squares

French Onion Phyllo Squares

Sometimes you have to milk an idea for all it's worth. My French Onion Mac & Cheese is by far the most popular recipe on my blog, so I was recently thinking about what other way I could highlight the same flavors. How about layers of flaky crispy phyllo dough...

read more
Caprese Bulgur with Chicken Sausage

Caprese Bulgur with Chicken Sausage

Apolinaras is like a kid in a candy store at any establishment that sells tools or hardware stuff. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful he’s so handy and likes to do all the maintenance on our cars and tackle home improvement projects. But, the other weekend I was so...

read more
Mango Coconut Muffins

Mango Coconut Muffins

Today is Apolinaras’ birthday! He actually doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth and is one of those weirdos who will take all the frosting off his cupcake before eating it. He also prefers fruity ice creams instead of the over-the-top decadent versions I enjoy (Chubby...

read more
Video: Sugar Cookie Dough Decorations

Video: Sugar Cookie Dough Decorations

Who else looooves the Olympics?! I’ve been doing my best to avoid the web and twitter during the day so I don’t accidently read any spoilers before the broadcasts at night. I just love tuning in and watching all the events, and I want to cheer along and be surprised...

read more
Cherry Lemonade

Cherry Lemonade

During the winter months, I love to curl up on the couch with a big mug of hot chocolate. I always crave a little something sweet after dinner, but try not to have any heavy desserts on weekdays since I have a hard time resisting snacking on treats at work like those...

read more
Banana Mascarpone Mousse Trifles

Banana Mascarpone Mousse Trifles

I’ve been on quite the popsicle kick lately. This unbearable heat wave means our oven hasn’t been turned on in weeks, so I haven't baked any desserts. My sweet tooth still needs to be satisfied though, and popsicles are just the perfect low calorie refreshing treat! I...

read more
Blackened Chicken Breasts with Gorgonzola Sauce

Blackened Chicken Breasts with Gorgonzola Sauce

My recipe for Blackened Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Blue Cheese and Bacon is one of my favorite main dishes on my blog, but pounding out chicken breasts and stuffing them takes more time than I want to put into a meal during the week. So, I recently decided to...

read more
Individual Breakfast Pot Pies

Individual Breakfast Pot Pies

I’ve been waking up a couple hours earlier than Apolinaras on the weekends lately. My grumbling tummy and earlier bed time (pregnancy can be exhausting!) are to blame. I’ve been putting the time to good use though. First, I devour a bowl of cereal or some yogurt and...

read more