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Ranch Dressing
Those of you who know my husband and I know that we are borderline, wanna-be hippies when it comes to food and sustainability. We would eat all natural, all fresh food all the time if we could, and for the most part we try to avoid preservatives, chemical additives and processed food. That’s not to say that we don’t eat plenty of bad stuff, but we’ve definitely made a conscious decision to do the best we can for ourselves and our girls. Our beehives, chickens and expanding…
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Nutella Cupcakes
I’ve had one of those weeks. Well, actually, I’ve had one of those months. You know, when you can’t get ahead, everything is a crazy mess, your to-do list is twice as long as usual, your kids are sick and on fall break, AND your husband has to travel for work? Yes, I’ve had that kind of month. I haven’t had a lot of time for baking this month, I haven’t really even had much time to go to the grocery store. As a result,…
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Spicy Chicken Hoagie
I am a huge sandwich fan – a HUGE sandwich fan. So much so that I could totally relate to Joey and his sandwich obsession on “Friends.” Speaking of Friends, do you remember the episode where Ross freaked out because someone ate his sandwich? The Moistmaker?? I do. And come Thanksgiving, there will totally be a Moistmaker recipe on this blog. You think I’m joking…I’m not. So yes, I love sandwiches. I think it’s probably just that I love bread, and you can’t really have a…
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Orange-Yogurt Muffins with Marmalade Glaze & Brunch
Recently, I was chosen by Foodbuzz and Dannon to review and blog about a new product: Dannon Activia Harvest Picks Yogurt. I hosted a small, light brunch for my sisters and we really enjoyed ourselves, and the food! Since spring has made an early arrival this year, I put together a little table outside so we could soak in the fabulous weather. The great thing about yogurt is that it is extremely versatile. You can eat it alone, of course, or add a topping, use it as…
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A Princess Party
Two of my favorite little princesses just turned three years old. My niece, Ruby Jane and my youngest daughter, Mia Kate, were born just 17 hours apart and have grown to be best buds. Well, usually. They get along when sharing isn’t involved. But that’s just a phase, right? When my sister and I asked the girls what kind of party they wanted, they barely skipped a beat before they decided it should be a princess party. And who are we to argue? This meant…
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Mini Apple Crumb Sundaes
I’m not sure that ANYTHING screams summertime dessert more than apple pie. But even more, apple pie with ice cream? Not much better than that. And while I love a good pie, they can really be a major undertaking – from the crust to the filling to crossing your fingers that they set up like they’re supposed to – that’s a lot of dessert-stress that sometimes I just don’t want to deal with. I hosted my extended family gathering for the 4th of July this…
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Perfect Sweet Tea
Today was a good day. I was kind of expecting a quiet, boring day because it’s cold and dreary outside and I had tons of work to do. But as the day went along, it just kept getting better and better. A message out of the blue from an old friend. A super-cuddly three-year-old. Maddie brought home a kindness award from school. A late dinner with my family, at the table, talking about our day. Easy bedtimes. A clean house. A cute…
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Apple Pie
I’ve mentioned before that I was practically raised on pie. Every holiday (and sometimes just Sunday Dinner) during my childhood involved at least two pies, but more like five or six, of every variety you could possibly dream of. My favorite summertime pie is apple…mmm…warm apple pie with cold vanilla ice cream. Heaven on a plate! My mom makes the best apple pie I’ve ever had, but when I ask her how she makes it she says, “Oh, you know, a little of this, a little of that.” …
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Fall Roundup
My head is literally swimming with pumpkin and apple recipes. I actually made a list of all of the fall baking I wanted to get up on Lemon Sugar before autumn slips away, and it’s kind of ridiculous. There are 42 items. How in the world will I ever narrow that down? I won’t. You all are going to gain 75 pounds before Thanksgiving. I apologize. Really. It’s funny, because I keep rationalizing to myself that pumpkin is a healthy baking alternative, so these recipes aren’t…
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Chocolate Chip Graham Cracker Bars
You can actually SEE how delicious these are. You can see the powdery sugar stuck to the gooey, chocolaty graham cracker cookie. You can SEE it, can’t you? And yup – they taste just as good as they look. Maybe better. I broke all of the July-in-Kansas rules today and turned my oven on. Yes, I turned my oven on even though it was exactly 900 degrees outside today. And with the heat-index, it felt like 950 degrees. But I just had to make these…
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#DoubleDigits: A 10th Birthday Party
So, Maddie turned 10 earlier this month. I only cried once. Okay, maybe twice. But even at that, I feel pretty good about myself. That feels like an accomplishment. 10 years, you guys. How do I have a kid that is 1o YEARS OLD?? She’s asking for iPhones and laptops and wants to redecorate her bedroom because it’s too babyish. HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN? Oh, and the theme for her birthday party? Hashtag Double Digits. As in, #doubledigits. As in, my 10 YEAR OLD knows…
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Make-Ahead Game Day Recipes
March Madness is here! It’s my favorite holiday. Yes. Basketball tournament time is a holiday around here. Everyone fills out brackets, skips work (or takes reaaallly long lunch-breaks) on Thursday and Friday during the first two weeks, and you can’t go far without spotting someone sporting their team colors. There’s nothing worse than the disappointment when your team gets bumped, and there isn’t much better than rooting for your team as they make it deeper into the tourney. My team won a few years ago,…
