I'm a sucker for packaging. Give me an artsy, creative receptacle… doesn't really matter whether I need what's inside… just make it catch my eye and you've got my money. Take this retro look Chinese takeout-style cardboard box with a handle no less… Did I need the dishcloths so neatly folded inside the box? I do love the colors but,…

This morning, I arose early to make fragrant warm-from-the-oven sweet potato scones for my bed and breakfast guests. The local maple syrup used for sweetener, alongside the other autumn-colored ingredients (whole wheat flour, oat bran, ground flaxseed, wheat germ, cinnamon, nutmeg, shredded sweet potato, and deep orange yolk from free-roaming hens) was my inspiration for choosing to make…

My friend, Sheila, is an avid… oh, that word doesn't begin to accurately describe her voracious appetite for books. Voracious… grrrrrr… that's better. Her passion for books led to her starting a book club that she has been hosting for eight years which was naturally destined to develop into her most recent adventure. She has a book…

Snatching a small enamel pan to gather today's garden bounty, I headed to my garden to dig enough potatoes for today's lunch. The beef bourguignon that I prepared yesterday was so tasty that I thought, to change it up a bit for a second meal, I would serve it over mashed potatoes. (It turned out to be a great idea! I would, without…

Well, we saw it tonight… the Julie and Julia movie. I don't know that I will emmulate real-life Julie Powell's year-long challenge of cooking her way through all 524 recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking and blogging about it, but the story was so down-to-earth… so current… so easy to immerse oneself into Julie's…

My father died 5 1/2 years ago at age 94. My mother, who turned 92 on August 6, has been living alone since then in a retirement center on the outskirts of Brainerd. She hasn't found much incentive to prepare meals on her own and the one meal she receives in the dining room each day doesn't thrill her much.…

I am counting down the days to this movie's premier on Friday, August 7, 2009… one week from today! I watched a short sneak preview online video and found that Meryl Streep lives up to my expectations as the perfect Julia Child. I had not the slightest reservation that she would pull it off in grand style. You absolutely must…

I know I promised to share my niece Kaprina's scone recipe today but, as I was googling a healthy scone recipe to discover a way to reduce or substitute the 1/2 cup olive oil in her recipe, I came across this sweet potato scone recipe on deliciouswisdom.com. It was adapted from a recipe in Superfoods Rx by…

Dick and I are leaving today for Walnut Grove Minnesota, one of the locations where Laura Ingalls lived as a child. We are going to camp at Plum Creek Campground for 3 days so we can visit historic sites, bike, and attend an outdoor pageant on Friday evening. I made some basil turkey burgers yesterday to bring along…

Today was especially busy, so I needed to get lunch on the table pronto. This turkey hummus and cucumber wrap from Clean Eating came through timewise and tastewise… really nice mix of flavors. I used Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Tortillas that have 5 grams fiber and 6 grams protein. Many brands have only 1 gram fiber. Add…