Ultimate Carrot Cake

Today is my husband's birthday.

{Happy Birthday love!}

It's been a week long celebration with family, friends, and cake.

Good cake.

No, I mean really good cake.

What I like to call the Ultimate (at least Semi-Healthy) Carrot Cake.

Apple Crisp: Quintessential Autumn

What could possibly be better than a warm apple crisp, fragrant and steaming, fresh out of the oven?

I would vote a raw apple crisp pulled straight out of the fridge!

Ok, so maybe we are comparing apples and oranges here (or at least hot apples to cold ones...). You really can't compare much to a warm apple crisp right out of the oven, but there is plenty to love about this twist on a classic.

Local Restaurant Review: Burger Up

This was one of those restaurants I kept hearing people rave about.

And it sounded great! Grass-fed burgers in a trendy neighborhood south of Nashville. A restaurant owned and operated by the owners of the Frothy Monkey coffee house down the street. (Popular with the college crowd. Food from local farms on their menu. Good stuff.)

An upscale burger joint seemed the perfect place to meet up with my cousin and his fiance when they stopped into town.

Sunny Side Up Brunch Salad

As much as I love muffins (and boy do I love muffins), I find that a breakfast without some greens just isn't complete.

Green veggies (whether it's spinach blended into my smoothie or my Sunny Side Up Salad below) give me a boost of energy for the day, alkalize my body, boost my nutrient intake, and help protect my skin.

I brought this dish to a brunch with our 'dinner and a doc' friends, Thomas & Jeanette. This time it was brunch and a doc (not quite the same effect when lacking the alliteration, but you get the idea). I brought Sunny Side Up Salad and Thomas made Venison & Shitake meatballs served with a trio of mashes (carrot ginger, sweet potato garlic, and radish turnip). He is insanely creative in the kitchen. I love it.

We ate while we bemoaned the current state of our national debt by watching I.O.U.S.A.

The Sunny Side Up Salad is a warm spinach and potato salad with a red wine & mustard vinaigrette, topped with a fried egg. Sunny side up of course.

Cooking Dried Beans in 3 Easy Steps

This information has changed my life. 

Not even kidding. 

I had always shied away from buying dried beans in the past. All the soaking and hours of cooking on the stove just wasn't something I had the time or patience for. 

But then I came across a wonderful blog post by the Cheapskate Cook on the Convenience of Canned Beans--Without the Can or Additives.

And there it was. My life would never be the same again. 

I'll share with you the simplified version...

Cooking Dried Beans in 3 Easy Steps: