Monthly Archives: February 2013

My Favorite Meal of the Week – Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Posted in Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy, Soup, Vegetarian, Winter by

There’s something so satisfying about hearty, flavorful soups in the winter. Butternut squash is a classic, but sometimes it can lack enough flavor for me. I recently tried a curried butternut squash soup that had more than enough flavor. It was delicious and pretty easy!

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Sour Cream Sugar Cookies

Posted in Cookies, Dessert, Holiday by

When it comes to sugar cookies, there are good ones and bad ones. My favorite happen to be the ones you find in a grocery store that are light and fluffy, and a little bit thicker.

For Valentine’s Day, I decided to make cookies for everyone I know here in DC and had looked at tons of recipes trying to find one that would give me this perfect end product. I ended up settling on the “Olinger family recipe” with a few small tweaks. My coworker had brought her family cookies in at the holidays, and I had fond memories. And I wasn’t let down! They were a big hit!

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Pulled Pork and Slaw

Posted in Dinner, Salads by

I don’t generally cook lots of meat, especially on week days, but this pulled pork is amazing. We first had it at a friend’s birthday party, and have now made it several times ourselves. It’s a long process, and one that involves being in the house for a while, but it’s totally worth it if you like pulled pork! We always serve it with corn bread (just the box from Trader Joe’s, it’s seriously amazing) and an Asian inspired coleslaw. This coleslaw is delicious, especially if you’re like me and don’t like mayonnaise  I also think the slaw gets better overnight, so I recommend making it a day in advance. It’s perfect for summer picnics or BBQs!

Buttermilk Pancakes

Posted in Breakfast, Brunch by

My hands down favorite breakfast is pancakes. They are easy, fast, and seriously delicious. But here’s the thing, not all pancakes are alike. The ones you see all the time are the monster IHOP style ones that take up an entire plate and weigh a pound each.

Well, I’m here to say mine are far superior to those! When I say mine, I really mean the ones that have been made by generations of women in my mom’s family (and maybe a few men too in the more recent generations).

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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Broccoli Pesto Pasta

Posted in Dinner, Pasta, Vegetarian by

For some reason, I’ve been in a pasta mood lately (perhaps it has to do with the fact that it’s winter and I’ve accepted that I won’t see a bathing suit for months). One of my favorite pasta dishes is my mom’s pesto pasta, but this requires homegrown basil, not something I currently have. So to make up for this, I made this dish, which uses broccoli to make a pesto like sauce that is delicious. I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a pasta dish on the healthier side.

Ginger Cookie Sandwiches with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

Posted in Cookies, Dessert by
After spending all of January baking, and then planning to do a lot of Valentine’s baking this week, I decided to take this past weekend off. I wanted a break from having desserts in the apartment. But an early morning Sunday Pinterest session put an end to this plan. I saw a picture of these cookies and just had to have them (it didn’t help that I happened to have all of the necessary ingredients in my kitchen already). I was also planning to go to a Super Bowl party that evening. And here’s the thing about these parties, everyone always focuses on the wings, the dips, and all of the other salty delicious treats. But you also need a dessert. After all that salt, you’re going to want something sweet. And I’d like to say, I was the only person to bring a dessert this year and last year (and my cookies were gone REAL fast!).

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The original recipe used buttercream, but I actually detest buttercream. It seems like a cheap substitute for the more flavorful cream cheese frosting. And since I happened to have some cream cheese and lemon leftover from a previous baking adventure, I made a change. I also added a couple of decorative additions, which made these cookies seem much more festive. They’d be great for a birthday party or Valentines Day! If you’re the type who doesn’t like frosting (although I have to say, I don’t understand you people), the cookies were delicious by themselves. They’re soft and chewy with a ton of flavor.
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My Favorite Meal of the Week – Crock Pot Chili

Posted in Dinner, Gluten Free, Healthy, Soup, Winter by

So here’s the deal. I am really trying to be better about cooking new things for dinner, but sometimes you have to just fall back on your easy standbys when things are busy. One of my favorites is chili. And when it’s made in the crock pot, it’s even better! So here’s one of the best and easiest crock pot chili recipes.


I used this recipe. My only recommended changes are:

  • Use frozen chicken, otherwise it’s a little too mushy at the end. Also,  wait to shred the chicken until you’re ready to serve. And I shred mine in my mixer with the paddle attachment (much easier than forks).

The best part about this recipe is it lasts well. So I tend to make a big batch on Sundays and then enjoy it all week!

French Bread

Posted in Bread by

So as you may have guessed based on the title of my blog, I enjoy French food. All it took was a trip to Paris, and I am now forever in love with French baked goods. Croissants, baguettes, and many many more items.

And yet, it has taken me until now to make my own French baguette. But now that I have done it, I plan to keep trying different recipes and learning all of the different variations.

This one, has to be one of the easiest versions. And I definitely recommend it if you want some fresh bread to go along with dinner (we ended up turning some of it into garlic bread).

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