Hummus made with roasted chick peas, leeks, rosemary and garlic is a healthy, super flavorful snack that can be ready in less than 30 minutes. New Year's Eve we hosted a party with friends; which was out of the norm since we usually don't ring in the new year this way. Since there were going to be over 25 people here; including kids, I didn't want to make a full meal. So I opted for appetizer-type foods like pigs in a blanket, bruschetta and dips like this Roasted Chick Pea and ... Read More about Roasted Chick Pea and Leek Hummus
Vegetable Pasta Salad in a Pomegranate Balsamic Vinaigrette
Farfalle pasta tossed with fresh sun dried tomatoes, garden zucchini and red onions in a tangy pomegranate balsamic vinaigrette. This recipe for Vegetable Pasta Salad in a Pomegranate Balsamic Vinaigrette was one of the first ones I posted back when I first started blogging using a flavored vinegar. I love to find new vinegars and spices to use in my recipes and when our cheerleading booster club held a vendor event with many at-home party representatives, I found the Pampered ... Read More about Vegetable Pasta Salad in a Pomegranate Balsamic Vinaigrette
Coq Au Vin
Coq Au Vin made with chicken thighs braised on top of the stove in a Dutch oven with vegetables in a combination of red wine, brandy and chicken broth. This is one of those meals when I didn't really know what I was going to make for dinner one night and found yet another package of chicken thighs in my freezer (I think they're all gone now!). I had an open bottle of red wine that I really needed to use up before it went bad also. So as I started to google chicken with red wine, Coq Au ... Read More about Coq Au Vin
Candy Cane Iced Tea
Not sure what to do with those leftover Christmas candy canes? Turn them into a candy cane simple syrup and add to your favorite iced tea. I don't know about you, but every year the kids make me buy a box of peppermint candy canes for our Christmas tree. However, they NEVER eat them and I always wind up throwing them away. So this year, I decided I was going to try to make something with them. Since candy canes are simply sugar and peppermint, I decided to make this Candy ... Read More about Candy Cane Iced Tea
Cinnabon Copycat Cinnamon Rolls
These Cinnabon Copycat Cinnamon Rolls taste just like the restaurant version; especially when topped with my homemade cream cheese icing. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! We certainly did and I ate entirely too much food and cookies over this past week. I usually don't have many sweets in the house and I found myself picking on them more than I normally would, but today is the day to get back on track. And thank goodness the kids FINALLY go back to school today ... Read More about Cinnabon Copycat Cinnamon Rolls
Creamy Mushroom and Thyme Soup
Mushroom and Thyme Soup made with white button mushrooms, onions, fresh thyme, heavy cream and milk is deliciously creamy. I've been so busy running around preparing for Christmas that I haven't had much time to breathe, let alone eat. In between baking and shopping, I've managed to put food on the table, but my kitchen certainly looked like a war zone in the middle of it. So when I found myself actually home for a few hours the other day, I decided that I was going to make myself some lunch. ... Read More about Creamy Mushroom and Thyme Soup