Dear friends,
Fall is just around the corner, and to celebrate the changing seasons I’m giving away one signed copy of my pumpkin cookbook, Pumpkin It Up! (that’s an affiliate link).
This 128 page, four-color book (published by Gibbs Smith) has 75 recipes and retails for $16.99.
Dear son,
You’ve been trying hard to find a part-time job, and I’m sorry it hasn’t happened yet. You’re still at the beginning stage when you have to leave the ‘Experience’ section blank on applications, but it won’t be long before someone smart takes a chance on you and you’re launched.
I was 15 when I landed my first job at McDonald’s restaurant in Boulder. The uniforms at that time were blue polyester with matching pointed hats. Unfortunately, the only pants they had on hand were a size XXL. I had to secure the elastic with a large safety pin, which gave the pants a nice bunchy, balloony effect.
Dear friends,
We lost our sweet dog Boo this month.
In today’s post, I share some details and emotions about our journey and the things we learned along the way. I know many of you have let go of beloved pets, too, and you have my deepest empathy and compassion. Our pets really do become members of our families, and saying goodbye is one of the hardest experiences.
If you ever have to face a difficult decision about your furriest friend—and all of the accompanying emotions—perhaps our story will let you know that you’re not alone.
Dear friends,
“The obstacle is the path.”
Was it Ben Franklin, Confucius or Will Rogers who said it? I’m not sure, but the garden can be a pretty great place to experience this somber truth.
Perhaps like me, you’ve had a lovely vision of some pretty flowers blooming in a bare patch of ground. You can imagine the beautiful landscape in your mind, and all you have to do is engage in a little cultivating and planting.
You decide to do a simple little project and sow some flower seeds in a modest swath of dirt.
People successfully plant seeds every day! you tell yourself. What could possibly go wrong?
Dear friends,
It’s Father’s Day this Sunday, and I can’t think of a better way to make your dad happy than with a rack of delectable, meat-falling-off-the-bones, sticky, messy baby back ribs.
Dear friends,
Here are 7 Good Things I’ve recently discovered that you might enjoy, too:
1. Just in time for Father’s Day on June 16th: Check out this sweet, sticky barbeque sauce recipe from The Kitchen Whisperer – perfect for grilling ribs, brisket, chicken or chops for Dad. The Fresh Cooky’s Cowboy Baked Beans are the perfect accompaniment!
Dear friends,
In the name of research, I felt it was my duty to investigate an outrageous cookie claim made by Bon Appetit magazine. The editors described their Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies as “insane” and even said the recipe “ruins every other chocolate chip cookie recipe.”
For real? If Bon Appetit was to be believed, their ruinous recipe would kick Mrs. Fields to the street, along with Toll House and the $250 Neiman Marcus urban legend chocolate chip cookie. Could one recipe live up to such bold cookie swagger? There was only one way to find out.
UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all of you for your wonderful comments, and congratulations to the winner Heather.
Dear friends,
This month I’m excited to give away a brand new copy of Rosalind Creasy’s terrific book, Edible Landscaping: Now You Can Have Your Gorgeous Garden and Eat It Too! ( Counterpoint Press, $44.95). Rosalind is a landscape designer, garden writer and photographer, and she is considered by many to be the leading authority on landscaping with food plants.
All those telephone poles.
I notice them now as I drive around Denver, pole after pole after pole—soldier straight timbers strung with wires and pigeons, some topped with cell phone towers, and others festooned with garage sale signs and lost pet flyers.
Dear friends,
Here are 7 Good Things I’ve recently discovered:
1. Are you cooking for Easter? My daughter and I are making this Copycat Recipe of Cracker Barrel’s Hash Brown Casserole from Spend With Penny’s. Two other favorite brunch casseroles are Southern Living’s Sausage Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole and The Fresh Cooky’s Mock Eggs Benedict Bake. Yum!