Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s a drizzly warm weekend here in Ohio, and I am happily here for it. My weekend plan is to be on the couch with a stack of books or out for a walk, as long as the weather cooperates.

If you are on TikTok, (full disclosure, I am just not that cool) my brother (Hi, Miles!) has an account that I love. (And yes, I can see it using my computer – again, I’m just not TikTok cool.) 

Anyways, if you’re into homesteading, DIY projects, schoolie life, or just enjoy watching someone else getting things done (yes, that’s me!), it’s a lot of fun to watch. You can check it out here: https://www.tiktok.com/@miles_3m 

IN THE KITCHEN THIS WEEK: Calling all shrimp lovers! These flavorful and satisfying Shrimp Quesadillas with bright bell peppers are fast enough for busy schedules and special enough for company. As a matter of fact, I liked them so much, I made them two days in a row for my lunches last week.

I just put this Noodle Stir Fry with Chicken and Cabbage back on my meal plan. I would be thrilled to eat this weekly. I seriously love it.

Need a super easy brunch that will impress a crowd? Elegant and easy to make, Puff Pastry Danishes are flaky, crispy-edged breakfast pastries that you can customize for everyone at your table. This easy danish recipe comes together almost too quickly to be believed.

This Steak and Mushroom Skillet delivers all the flavors I crave in a great restaurant steak. Lucky for all of us, that steak has been transformed into a quick stir fry that can be made even on the busiest of nights.

Quick and easy Chicken Fajitas are simple to make with just five ingredients! These fajitas are filled with great flavors from peppers, onions, chicken strips, and spices.

Lemon Posset is creamy, velvety 3-ingredient lemon pudding that is impossibly simple and satisfying. It’s impressive as can be and proof that old-school techniques can yield very happy modern results!

Almond-flavored ice cream swirled with buttery toasted almonds? Yes, please! Each bite of Almond Ice Cream is an irresistible combination of creamy smooth ice cream and those crunchy buttered almonds. 

My FAVORITE THING this week is this ice cream scoop. Several years ago, I ordered and tested every unique ice cream scoop I could find online or in stores. With over 150 ice cream recipes, I

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! My youngest son and I spent the past few days in Arizona and New Mexico visiting family and it was a great time for all of us. As much as we love Ohio, it’s a lot of fun to be back in the Southwest for these visits. (Especially before the sun reaches earth-boiling temperatures each summer.)

IN THE KITCHEN THIS WEEK: With traveling this past week and heading home today, I’ve planned some very simple meals to get us through the rest of spring break and into the last of the school year. BBQ chicken stuffed potatoes are always a hit with everyone and they’re literally the easiest meal you can make. 

All the ingredients we love in classic Chinese Egg Rolls come together in this egg roll stir fry recipe. This is an irresistible bowl of deconstructed egg rolls and you’re going to love it.

Tender peas, sweet carrots, and savory bits of celery and onions in a creamy, rich beef gravy baked inside a buttery crust make for a fantastic (and EASY) ground beef pot pie.

Some foods are so basic, so incredibly simple, that it can be difficult to describe their awesomeness. That’s how I feel about cottage cheese with fruit. Two ingredients. Just TWO. I’ll be making these bowls with strawberries all week long. 

With an abundance of sweet ripe berries, fresh green spinach, chewy pasta, and a bright and flavorful light balsamic dressing, this strawberry spinach salad is an unexpected and delicious pasta salad that is certain to become one of your family’s new favorites.

California spaghetti salad is a guaranteed hit for the vegetable lovers in your life! This amped up pasta salad is exploding with fresh vegetables and an irresistible Parmesan dressing.

And with all the berries coming into season, Strawberries Romanoff definitely needs to be on the meal plan. The last berries I bought were so flavorful, I immediately knew this dessert needed to happen asap.

My FAVORITE THING this week is my hand cream. Each time I visit family back in AZ and NM, my skin dries out like mad. Fortunately, this is never far from hand, (ha, pun unintended) I love it so much. 

What I’m LISTENING to: Psalms by Sandra McCracken. This album has a unique sound, reminiscent of Americana and folk. I love her variations on some of the traditional songs she’s included. We initially discovered he

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! Oh, what a GLORIOUS week of weather we have had in Ohio. Temps have been in the 70s for several days now! I’ve done my best to soak up as much of it as possible with long walks every afternoon.

I’ve been told this is a false spring and the temps are about to fall again. So, it’s unlikely to be this warm again for a while. But as long the sun continues to shine, I’ll be grinning up at it and hoping the plants all survive the coming cold days.

IN THE KITCHEN THIS WEEK: Loaded with our favorite Mexican flavors; this Southwest Chicken Soup is slightly spicy with chunks of tomatoes, corn, black beans, and tender chicken. I like to top my bowl with a handful of shredded cheese and some tortilla strips.

Last night’s dinner was this fully loaded Chicken Potato Broccoli Casserole. It starts with fluffy mashed potatoes that are mixed with tender bites of broccoli and chicken, then generously sprinkled with bacon and cheese. The result is an absolutely irresistible dinner.

Oven-roasted Cabbage with Balsamic Glaze is nothing short of a crazy obsession. Try it and you will understand. I’ll be making it again next week. 

This Spinach Orzo Salad is filled with cranberries, creamy goat cheese, tender pasta, and plenty of fresh spinach tossed in a tangy sweet dressing. The salad can be served immediately or kept in the refrigerator for 2-3 days – making this an awesome make-ahead meal for lunch or dinner.

My son requested chili (again), so I’ll be making a big batch of the easiest and tastiest chili for easy dinners this coming week as the weather cools off again. 

Skip the traditional fried donuts and make these Apple Cider Donut Muffins! With a sugary coating reminiscent of their namesake, these muffins offer a delightful twist on a beloved classic.

Andes Mint Cookies are a soft-baked chocolate cookie loaded with Andes Mint pieces and spread with an extra layer of mint goodness. They’re amazing straight from the oven.

My FAVORITE THINGS this week are these bath salts. The eucalyptus and spearmint fragrance is lovely and the salts are the perfect way to relax at the end of the day. The muscle and tension relief is like nothing else I’ve tried. In combination with this foaming bath, it feels like a spa experience every night.

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! Today has gotten away from me and I’m just now sitting down to write this as I eat a giant taco salad for dinner. My family is all off doing their own things and it’s a peaceful night at home for me. 

The sun has been shining all day long here, giving the illusion that it’s much warmer outdoors than it actually is. Like most of the country this week, our temps have been all over the place, near 70 one day followed by the teens and snow flurries the next. I absolutely love it. Changes in weather can be so much fun! ← said no one that lived in Phoenix ever. 

IN THE KITCHEN THIS WEEK: It’s corned beef season over here and I am so very ready for it. First up is Slow Cooker Corned Beef (the biggest roast I can find in the store, please) we have many uses for it!

Do you like Reuben sandwiches? If so, you just might go crazy over these Corned Beef Sliders – my family sure did!

Creamy Reuben Soup takes all of the Reuben flavors you love and combines them in a steaming hot bowl of soup, perfect for these chilly nights.

And if you’re lucky enough to have a bit of corned beef still remaining, crispy hot potatoes and cabbage are combined with bites of tender, salty, corned beef to create the Corned Beef and Cabbage Hash of your dreams.

I’ve been craving this Crispy Cajun Cauliflower ever since I made it for the first time. The blend of spices brings a kiss of heat to this tasty, slightly crunchy side dish.

The rave reviews of these Cosmic Brownies have been nonstop, my friends. I’ve made them more times than I can count now and it turns out that these brownies are my kryptonite. I have to force myself to give away half the brownies every time I make them because I can not stay away from them.

Oh, my friends, these Blueberry Lemon Bars turned out even more amazing than I hoped! With sweet bursting blueberries in every bite of the tangy lemon bars, I find myself craving them every time I have both lemons and blueberries in the house.

My FAVORITE THING this week is my new pill organizer. (Go ahead and picture me doing a face smack over here.) It’s just not a cool or fancy thing to share, but seriously, this thing is SO handy! I’ve hit the stage of life where taking my vitamins makes an actual difference in how I feel, but I am also not a big fan of the hassle of opening different bottles each day. 

So, enter this nifty little weekly organizer.

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! I did a double take as I wrote today’s date – March 1st. I’m not entirely sure how that’s possible and yet, here we are. Time is certainly flying this year. 

March usually has me craving salads and lighter meals for spring, but I’m still very much in the hearty, comfort food zone over here. I’m thinking that a big pot of chili sounds just about right for this weekend, along with some oven burritos, and some meat lover’s pasta for this week. Admittedly, there will be salads too, but for the most part, just give me all the warm, cozy meals.

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK:  Flaky buttery pastry tops a luscious medley of tender chicken, hearty vegetables, and a creamy, savory sauce in this Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie.

Forget heating up the oven, use the air fryer for baked sweet potatoes. The first time I baked sweet potatoes in the air fryer it was a game-changer for me. Over the past few months, this has been my lunch at least once a week.

Rich and garlicky, you’ll have trouble believing this Creamy Cauliflower Potato Soup is made without a drop of cream or milk! I loved this soup from the very first bite.

Melting chocolate, chewy coconut, and crunchy nuts are layered over a buttery graham cracker crust to make these Hello Dolly Bars. My kids and husband devoured these lightning fast! Luckily, they’re very easy to make as I suspect they’re going to be popular in our home for a lot of years to come.

This three ingredient Hot Cocoa Mix is a tasty, simple, convenient, and economical way to get your hot chocolate fix. Whip up a batch to keep on hand for after school, cold weather, and cravings.

This chocolate ice cream is swirled with bite-size wafer cookies and also loaded with chocolate-covered chunks of Kit Kat candy bars. Kit Kat Ice Cream has everything you love about Kit Kat candy bars swirled into each scoop of this homemade ice cream.

What I’m CRAVING: A bowl of my friend Shawn’s Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup along with some crusty warm bread for dipping? That sounds pretty much perfect right now. 

My FAVORITE THING this week is this journal. I almost always lean toward spiral bound journa