1/2 tsp basil 1/2 tsp savory 1/2 tsp fennel seed 1/2 tsp rosemary 1 tsp thyme 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 1 tsp pepper 1 tsp marjoram 1 tsp red pepper flakes 11/2 tsp oregano 2 tsp salt 2T parsley flakes

Yeah, I opened myself up for that one. I bake a lot. I do not like the taste of baking powder you buy at the grocery store. It has a weird after taste to me--maybe minerally? Tinny? Weird? Whatever it is- I don't like it. So I make my own baking powder. It is super easy and doesn't taste funny. It is proportional--this way you can mix it in as big of batches as you need. Use tsp, T or cup, whatever, as long as you keep the proportions. Baking Powder 2 parts cream of tartar

We have salad EVERY night. I mean EVERY night. It doesn't matter what we have as a main course, there is some sort of salad. I could make a vegetarian meal and plate it... next to salad. And yes, I make everyone's plates for them. That's a discussion for another time... To add variety, flavor and extra nutrition to the salads, I make a jar full of these sprinkles. I don't use them every night, but enough to keep a jar full of them handy. And remember--- these are approximatio

We went to the beach today! Did I mention it was in Michigan?? In February?? We are weird. It was 4 degrees with the wind chill- although after being out there, I think the thermometer was lying and actually froze before it could give the actual temperature. We usually go to the beach at least once in the winter to see the ice over Lake Michigan. It looks so awesome. Looking at out, it looks like waves coming into the beach and plays tricks on your mind because that is all i

A rich, chocolatey, naturally gluten free cookie? Yes please! This cookie became a thing because of one of my students. I used to bake at least once a trimester for my students. Usually it was cupcakes, sometimes cookies. This was before we discovered my husband and daughter were gf, so I never thought about that. My student and I were talking and he mentioned that he could never have the treats others brought in because he was gluten free. SO that made me sad and I started m

These are my daughter's favorite and I make them for her whenever I see her. I don't see her as often as I like. She travels the world and has a home base in LA. If she is on tour, we go see her if she is within a 5-6 hour drive. Some years we see her a few times, for a few hours, some years we don't see her at all. We text or talk almost every day. She is gluten free and this bar is easily adaptable. I have made them "regular", gluten free, and gluten free and vegan. I

I never had anything Greek as a kid. I barely had Italian or Mexican. We had 1940's and 50s Americana. I cook very little of what I had growing up. It was plain, nourishing, and very meat and potatoes. Literally, meat and potatoes. We didn't have a lot of money, we grew most of the vegetables and fruits we ate, we canned all summer long and had a root cellar. And I don't mean a Michigan basement. We had a separate root cellar that my family hand dug for canned goods and potat

I figured since I was all sugared up, I should write about it! I have always loved candy and being raised by grandparents, I was allowed to have it whenever I wanted it---not a good parenting choice. I know sugar is addictive. I am living proof. I always have candy around the house, but the funny thing is, as an adult I don't eat a ton of it any more. But if I DON'T have it in the house I crave it. Once it is here, I may eat a couple of pieces and then it will sit. Today t

On a Friday.... Well the temps have started dropping, all around the country, not just here. The thermometer says it's -2. In the morning it is supposed to be -12. that is actual temp, wind chill not included. What we have to realize is that it is January in Michigan. If it were -12 in Miami, I too would freak out. We have about 11/2 feet of snow on the ground. It is a little hard to tell with the wind blowing it sideways.... It was a good day for Pot Roast. Pot roast is kin

We are calling this "deconstructed panini". Every so often I make a chicken apple bacon panini. Since the husband was diagnosed celiac, those are few and far between, even though there are gluten free breads out there. Sometimes it is just easier to not have sandwiches. So the deconstructed part comes in to play as I am making cheddar bacon biscuits and salad to go along with the skillet. When I make something like this I tend to double the amount of meat and take out half fo

This will be a new category of what I made for dinner. I have a few reasons for making this category. First and foremost so I can keep track of what I make for dinners. I really do not like repeating dinners more than once a month minimum. There are millions of things to make, minimal repeats necessary! I also want to keep a record of recipes. I have over 1100 cookbooks and thousands of recipe cards in my card catalog, sometimes I forget what I make or want to. This will k

I am not a fan of soup. It is literally wet food. I don't have a big bowl of chicken water, why would I eat a bowl of chicken soup?? Now I know that will ruffle some feathers (especially the chicken's) but that's fine. We all like what we like. Or don't. Now, I will eat it if that's what I made for dinner. HOWEVER, I do tend to take out most of the broth and all of the meat that may be in it and just eat the noodles and vegetables. I haven't even mentioned, or ranted, about

Do you ever think about how something acquired its name? I constantly try and figure out the origins of names. Maybe it's the linguist in me, maybe I am just curious, or maybe I watched The Little Mermaid with my daughter too many times (a thingamajigger anyone?). Back to Snickerdoodles. It makes me smile every time I say it... when I looked up an origin story, I found that they are likely German or Dutch and from the late 1800's. Makes sense with the large number of German

This is my very first post. Ever. I am excited and nervous. Like a first date. You never forget. I wanted it to be something memorable. I started remembering all of my firsts. My first day of school, my first car, my first husband (I can't be the only one). And I thought about a first recipe and I can't remember the first thing I ever made. Unusual for me because my husband says I remember my own birth. He is just a hater. I do remember the first recipe I was given howe