Archives for June 2013

Classic Roast Chicken

Jun112013

There are a few dishes that every girl should have in her back pocket. Roast chicken is most decidedly one of them. The ingredients are few, the recipe is simple, and the presentation is so stunning your family/guests/future husband (remember the craze over engagement chicken?) will be all too convinced of your culinary awesomeness. Everyone has their own spin on what qualifies as the perfect roast chicken, but I tend to keep it classic and unadorned. Making sure the skin is brown and crisp is key, as is getting the meat to stay tender and flavorful.

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· Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes · Tagged With: chicken, dinner, potatoes, roast, thyme

Oakley NY Mini 10K Race Recap and Thoughts on Goal Setting

Jun82013

I am not a goal setter. Well, at least not a very aggressive one. I like to set attainable goals that I know are within reach, then pleasantly surprise myself with better results. I know this flies in the face of every motivating philosophy out there, but it’s worked for me, especially when it comes to running. Running is supposed to be fun and beneficial in a zillion different ways that have nothing to do with a particular time. Running keeps me healthy and sane, and it would do exactly the same thing whether I ran 7:30 paced miles or 7:20. Don’t get me wrong, I’m competitive (sometimes to a fault), but I don’t like to add fuel to that fire by giving voice to my big goals. I like keeping running in a stress free bubble most of the time.

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· Filed Under: Race Recap, Running · Tagged With: 10k, goal setting, mother runner, race, race recap, running

Homemade Ice Cream Cake

Jun62013

Ice cream cakes are now officially my favorite desserts to make. Nearly zero effort or time involved, endless flavor and mix-in possibilities (think frozen yogurt toppings endless), and ridiculous deliciousness. And you don’t have to turn on the oven, which is a major plus in the summer. I actually made this particular cake a few weeks ago for my brother-in-law’s birthday. He doesn’t like traditional cake (I know, I know) so I was racking my brain to come up with something different that we could still stick a candle in. Et Voila. Make this. Then, when you’ve eaten it all a day later, make another one with whatever ingredients your mind can dream up. You won’t think of buying one from DQ ever again. Make whatever alterations to the ice cream and fillings you want – there is no going wrong here!

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· Filed Under: Recipes, Sweets · Tagged With: birthday, cake, chocolate, dessert, homemade, ice cream, recipe, vanilla

Cheese and Bean Enchiladas

Jun32013

Mexican is my default “I’ve had a rough day” cuisine choice. Cheesy, hot goodness without any fuss is exactly what I need on days when things just aren’t going right. A good margarita (with extra salt!) or michelada doesn’t hurt either. Sometimes we do tacos, but what I really love are these been and cheese enchiladas. They’re originally adapted from something I saw in Cooking Light (don’t get too excited, they lost their “light” status as soon as I got my hands on them), and you can tell how often they frequent our table my the many markings and splattered blots all over the now very altered recipe. What makes this recipe extra grand is that the ingredients are basic pantry staples, so these could easily be dinner tonight. Just the thing to cure the Monday blues. Tequila is also strongly encouraged.

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