Those were the days….

I took a little blog trip back in time to see what I was cooking last fall. Wow. We ate well back then. Wow.

Apple Pie

Vegetable Soup

Pumpkin Bread

Halloween Bark

Now, it’s a struggle to get dinner on the table. I must admit we’re eating pretty simple these days. Think roasted chicken, steamed broccoli and rice. Pork tenderloin, quinoa and a salad. It’s not bad food, it’s just not that interesting. Not blog worthy. I’m going to have to get organized if I want to spice things up. I need to make weekly meal plans, shop once (okay, twice), and use the weekends to make something that I can freeze. I recently made a batch of My Dad’s Turkey Chili, and it’s been lunch all week. It’s so nice to be able to pull something out of the freezer. I really need to do more of that.

I’ve also been busy cooking for the baby. She is eating pureed fruits and vegetables now, and I’ve been making some of her food.

This is butternut squash. You halve the squash, scoop out the seeds, and roast it in a pan of shallow water until it's soft.

Then you puree it and freeze it in these little trays. It's kind of fun and really easy to make her food.

Apples. They are her favorite.

Enough baby food…I do believe that butternut squash is too often overlooked. It’s such a nice side dish. I can’t remember what I had with this, but I remember loving the squash.

Peel the squash and then cut it into cubes. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Then roast it in the oven for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Stir occasionally. It will be tender (you can easily pierce it with a fork) when it's done.

My next post is going to be about the world’s largest veal chop and then I’ll be bringing you a super chocolate chip cookie and pumpkin swirl brownies!

Asian Rice with Shrimp and Snow Peas

The babe and I have been on a world tour. Four days after we came home from California, we went to Alabama. It was wonderful to see family and friends. And it was fantastic to see Auburn beat Florida! However, all the traveling has meant not much cooking.

But I did manage to bust this dish out for dinner recently.

You can find the recipe here. It’s simple and tasty. Not the most exciting dish, but if you like Asian flavors it’s worth a try. It makes great leftovers too. Have a great weekend everyone!

Healdsburg, California

We had a wonderful time in California. Yes, the flights were long, and at times challenging. But we arrived safely and had a great time with our friends in Sonoma. We rented a house in Healdsburg and thoroughly enjoyed the town and nearby wineries.

The fam enjoying the beautiful gardens at Ferrari Carano.

The babe sporting her new Healdsburg tee.

We had some lovely wine at Bella. This winery is a perfect spot for a bottle of wine and a picnic.

We also visited Preston, Lambert Bridge and Copain while we were in town. Copain had my favorite wines, but Lambert Bridge was probably my favorite winery. They had really nice wines and a nice garden/picnic area. Plus they had two wine dogs – a yellow lab and a giant St. Bernard. I am a sucker for a winery with dogs.

Our food experiences were also really great. Nice dinners out were tough with all the kids (6 under 4 years old), but the ladies had a wonderful night at the Dry Creek Kitchen. We all ordered the tasting menu, and there was a sweet white corn soup that I just loved. Everything else was delicious too. Oh, and I just love it when a restaurant gives you a little gift at the end of the meal. Our parting gift was a little jar of pinot noir jam. So cute!

My favorite lunch was from the Dry Creek General Store. I had a BLTA. The “A” is for avocado.

I love a good general store.

I learned a few things about traveling with kids during this trip:

1. It’s worth it.

2. Be flexible.

3. 4 nights is plenty.

I’m off to Alabama tomorrow to visit family and to go to the Auburn game. The babe is racking up frequent flyer miles!