Cold winter days really leave me craving comfort food. Now I know that it is the beginning of the year and I should be thinking of salads and raw vegetables to help balance out the extra food I ate over the holidays, but I am really in the mood for a sandwich!
Not only is today my first post of 2012, but it is also my husband, Jamie’s birthday! So, I thought that I should make a special breakfast to mark this special occasion.
Earlier this fall I was at Starbucks, eagerly anticipating a Pumpkin Spice Latte. However, when I got to the counter to make my order, they were all out of the pumpkin spice syrup. I panicked, I didn’t know what to do and the line up was growing exponentially behind me. I looked up at their specialty drink board and a new drink caught my eye – Salted Caramel Mocha. Hmmmm, I like all of these flavours, but how would they taste together? The answer, delicious!
I mentioned before that soup is great because it can be made with basically anything from your pantry. Well, this soup was supposed to be Minestrone but as I started gathering up all the ingredients, I realized that I was missing some key ingredients. I had no spinach, no pasta and no navy beans. So, as I rummaged around in the cupboard and freezer I grabbed some items and thought to myself, that I would make a mystery soup!
I love this time of year, as you get to sample a lot of baked goods in the office kitchen 🙂 There is nothing better than your co-workers coming in with a tray of goodies that they have prepared on the weekend, it really brings a nice holiday vibe to the office.
Well here is a surprise for everyone, this entry doesn’t include any bacon!
Now that the cooler weather is here, I find myself using my slow cooker more often. There is something so satisfying about coming home after a long day of work and smelling your dinner when you walk through the door. I also like to use it on the weekends as it frees up the oven for important things like baking cookies 🙂
Vegetables. I love them. OK, I know I say I love a lot of things, bacon, chocolate, peanut butter, etc, but I do love vegetables. There isn’t anything they can’t do. Soups, salads, entrées and, of course, side dishes.
I was browsing around on Strawberry Ginger’s blog and stumbled across her recipe for Root Vegetable & Apple Soup. My first reaction was Yummy! Then I got thinking about making my own version of a Butternut Squash Soup.
I have to admit, I don’t always bake from scratch. It’s not because I don’t want to but we don’t always have the time or all the ingredients needed on hand. There are those times when you have to cook for a pot luck at work or for your child’s school bake sale, and weeknight baking takes up a lot of time after getting dinner to the table and lunches ready for the next day.
Bacon. I love bacon. It is one simple food that is absolutely delicious on its own or enhances any other dish. I would eat it every day if I could, and there are some weeks when we do! Jamie and I have even baked with bacon (putting it in cookies and muffins) and the results are always outstanding.
Ruby Reduction 