When my husband is traveling on business (which seems to be way too much lately), I usually keep the cooking to a minimum.  I hate having a big mess to clean up when I am the only one to clean it.  And combined with homework, baths, and bedtime routines, sometimes it just seems like more than I can...

Making soup is one of my greatest pleasures.  After you know the basic models and processes, you can do just about anything and use up just about anything.  It is a tremendous stress reliever for me too — before every presidential debate (I get a little worked up over politics), I have to make...

Does anyone remember that show “Ready, Set, Cook?”  Basically it was a game show where you got a box of random ingredients and had to make dinner out of it.  Some of the cooking reality shows use a similar premise now, but I liked this show because the professionals had to work with regular...

At the beginning of last summer, we decided to abandon our patio as a dining room.  We had the obligatory table and chairs outside and never ever sat there.  Because the patio is right spanking next to our eat-in kitchen, it just always seemed so pointless to lug all of our food outside.  And then...

Our spring this year has been very dreary.  And cold.  And cloudy.  Actually that is pretty typical, I think.  We get one sunny day and I am nearly manic — excited to exercise and clean and parent with limitless energy.  But then we have to endure at least three cloudy and cold days because...

So I should start this post by saying it was supposed to be Grilled Chicken and Roasted Potatoes.  But you see, my husband came home very late last night and our grilling was done in the dark — so I couldn’t take any pictures of the work in progress because my photography skills are definitely...

Some of my favorite meals are the leftover creations I enjoy at lunchtime.  In fact, leftovers are a staple and become the basis of almost every lunch that the kids and I eat.  That’s the beauty of cooking real food at dinner time — it generally always provides you with another meal. ...