For lunch today I adapted this recipe from Smitten Kitchen giving mushrooms the ‘caviar’ treatment.   True confession– I’ve never had a crumb of caviar in my life.  But this recipe is exactly what I love to do in the kitchen– jazz up something simple to make it taste like much more than a few simple...
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You can also: See a video of my kids trying out Tom’s Toothpaste, and get a chance to win a $100 VISA gift card Win a copy of FAMILY FEASTS ————– Yesterday after spending most of the day running errands and visiting a friend, the kids and I got together for a short but productive goodie party.  In...
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I’ve declared this week to be Baking Week at the Owlhaven, so today my 19 year old daughter and I kicked off the week with a classic. Erika’s Chocolate-Butterscotch Chip Cookies Makes 5-6 dozen 5 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1-1/2 cups white sugar 1-1/2 cups brown sugar 4 sticks butter 2 teaspoons vanilla 1/2 cup water 2...
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Good news– although my sewing machine is truly broken, my serger is humming along nicely. Yeah!! I’m hoping to take pictures and share about it soon–it is fun and affordable. But this evening is family movie night and my daughter and her husband are coming for dinner. So for now I’ll...
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The other day I was planning on burgers for lunch, but I was out of hamburger buns and wanted to save a trip to the store.   I decided to give homemade buns a try.  The following recipe is loosely based on one from Recipezaar. These buns rose nice and fluffy, and gave our regular...
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OK, here’s an utterly ridiculous story for you. Since my husband insists on growing dozens of pumpkins in his huge garden, for years I’ve considered it my patriotic duty to make pumpkin pie from the actual pumpkin. A long process, but one I took pride in mastering. Last week my mom asked me...
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The other day I was doing my usual twice-monthly Costco trip, and decided to ever-so-casually toodle through the books.   I was told a few months ago that my book would be there soon. In 4 recent trips it hadn’t been there, so I was trying not to hope too much.   But the other day,...
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These wonderful sugared almonds take 5 minutes to mix up.  They are the perfect thing to tie in a small sack on top of another gift, or to give when you need just a small thank you gift for someone.  You might even want to keep some on hand in case someone drops by...
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I have a friend named Ree, and she has a brand new cookbook. I know that almost everyone already knows and loves her, but after meeting and hanging out with her husband Marlboro Man and two of their kids in the Dominican Republic, I feel a special fondness for her.  Ladd is the real...
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No one really wants to waste food, especially when you’re trying eat affordably. However, there are times when you just can’t face another meal of leftovers. I often avoid food burnout by sticking leftovers into the freezer the day the food is made. That way I can wait a week or...
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