The last few weeks I have been attempting to incorporate some lighter and healthy meals into our weekly menus to balance out our indulgences (like chocolate chip cookies, blue cheese burgers, onion strings, Dr. Pepper pulled pork, au gratin potatoes….oy vey). I seem to go through this “semi-healthy-meals-at-least-once-a-week” phase pretty often but it never seems to stick. Maybe this timeRead more

The holidays are over and it’s time for everyone’s inevitable I-ate-way-too-much-so-I’m-going-to-make-up-for-it diet. Although I’m not really one to jump on that bandwagon, I do crave something at least a little lighter the days after Christmas. I think my body feels like it needs a detox from the 20 lbs of butter and sugar I consumed since Thanksgiving. So, at leastRead more

Most of October we were either traveling or had visitors in town (hence the lack of posting) so we ate out A LOT. Naturally, when we finally finished our whirlwind of vacations, I was craving lighter fare. Several soups and salads made it on the menu for this week. Now, I’m not an idiot. I know that broccoli cheddar soupRead more

Any meatless meal that James finds edible, I call a success. This recipe is from the amazing people at Cook’s Illustrated, who have yet to let me down. Ok, that’s not entirely true. I didn’t love their Snickerdoodles, but I’ll forgive them on that one. The recipe explains that diced tomatoes, pureed slightly in a blender makes the best chiliRead more

I love all things potato, and this soup is no exception. A lot of baked potato soups just taste like watered down mashed potatoes, but this version has a lot more depth of flavor than most other recipes. I’m sure this is partially because of the 12 ounces of bacon that is in it! It reheats extremely well and actuallyRead more

I think I’ve found my ideal pasta dish. I’m not the biggest fan of cream or tomato sauces with my pasta, so this was a refreshing change of pace from our standard pasta recipes. In case you didn’t already know, I love cheese. I think cheese makes just about everything better, except maybe chocolate. James accuses me of “cheesing everythingRead more

Surprise! Another salad recipe! Next week I’m going to try to break up this salad streak, but for now enjoy another chicken-based salad! This one even has a little bacon to liven things up a bit This recipe is adapted from a recipe in my 30-minute cookbook, but the original recipe seemed a bit dull for James and I. IRead more

…and sun dried tomato vinaigrette. Long recipe title, isn’t it? I’m clearly working from the “salad” section of my 30-minute cookbook this week, however I feel that this is more of a pasta dish than a salad because the majority of the bulk is pasta and not lettuce. Salad = lettuce, right? I couldn’t find fusilli (as the original recipeRead more

I was hoping to try at least 2 new recipes this week that I deemed good enough for our normal rotation. This one has DEFINITELY made the cut. The dressing alone is enough to carry the whole dish – it’s so delicious! The recipe combines meat and potatoes with a leafy green salad, all in one easy 30-minute dish. WarmRead more