Make-Ahead Recipes

Warm Broccoli Salad with Fried Garlic

    This bright green side dish is a recipe I made often in the early years of my marriage after stumbling upon Ina Garten’s very first cookbook.   While she used olive oil in a similar preparation, avocado oil works beautifully here because of its extremely high smoke point. It’s a simple yet delicious…

Chicken, Butternut Squash and White Bean Soup

After 12 fabulous years, I recently said farewell to the only car my almost 12-year-old son ever knew.  Even my 15-year-old son hardly remembered the car that preceded this one, but after sinking progressively more money into it, the time had come. I had no idea what sort of car I wanted next, and we…

Homemade French Vanilla Coffee Creamer

Make your own coffee creamer to rival any store-bought alternative. The taste is more pure, and it’s economical too!   When I first tried coffee my senior year in high school, I decided I would only drink it if I liked it black.  I “learned” to drink tea when I was younger, and from the…

2-Ingredient Breakfast Cookies…with options (and a fun kitchen experiment!)

  I never set out to be an oatmeal expert, but one baked oatmeal with an enormous following at a local cafe put the wheels into motion. For those who haven’t read the story in one of my umpteen other recipe posts for baked oatmeal, I initially started making baked oatmeal years ago to replicate…

Warm Yellow Lentil Salad with Double Mustard Soy Vinaigrette

Quick-cooking yellow lentils provide beautiful color and a lightly nutty flavor in this satisfying, plant-based meal, but brown or green lentils work well too.    When it comes to recipes, I try not to overuse the word “favorite.”  But the truth is, I have lots of favorites. Whether it is a favorite color, number, season,…

Cranberry Almond Baked Oatmeal Muffins

These hearty muffins may be baked in advance for a quick breakfast or healthy snack. They are also ideal for those needing a vegan, eggless, gluten-free, or dairy-free option and can be customized to taste. Those who follow my blog have probably observed my love of baked oatmeal. I have created a dozen or more…

Green Monster Smoothie

I have been off my smoothie kick for months. Maybe it was all the excesses of the holiday season, but I actually craved a green smoothie yesterday. Seriously. And this from a girl who used to cringe at the thought of blending her greens! So, in the spirit of getting back on track, perhaps at…

Overnight Oven-Baked French Toast

Amidst the last minute preparations for Christmas Day, there are a few non-negotiable activities on my calendar every December 24th. First and foremost, I must wrap the gifts my dad buys for my mom. To clarify, this annual ritual is not a hardship. In fact, I secretly love it. You see, while I am cutting…

Old Fashioned Gingerbread with Citrus Glaze

This is one of those recipes that I have made over and over again, tweaking many times until I arrived at an end result that my family loves.  It is moist and full of flavor, and I get requests for it often. The citrus glaze is a delightful addition.  When I first made a glaze…

Wild Rice and Sausage Casserole (or Stuffing/Dressing)

Initially created as a side to poultry, we enjoy this hearty recipe throughout the year as a main dish. It’s equally delightful paired with a green vegetable or salad.       It’s hard to believe that my year of delving into the Top 10 Food Trends as a Sargento Flavor Journey Correspondent is winding…

Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar

A popular hostess and holiday gift and a great project for kids to make for friends, Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar are fun to bake, give, and eat. Printable tags included! A delicious cookie-in-a-jar recipe was harder to devise than I expected.  Not only did the cookie have to taste great, the mix had…

Fried Garlic

Whole cloves of garlic become golden and buttery and create a flavor-infused oil that can be used in so many ways.    In recent months, I have posted several recipes that mention avocado oil as an option to olive oil. I have received many questions about where to buy and comments indicating an interest about…

Get recipes delivered straight to your inbox.