After yesterday’s heavy but heavenly Cheesy Baked Mashed Potatoes, I thought I’d lighten things up a bit with this flavorful Thanksgiving salad. It has all kinds of goodies like spinach, peppery arugula, crunchy walnuts, sweet cranberries and tangy goat cheese. Then all of these goodies are tossed in a quick cranberry vinaigrette. It is the perfect way to get your Thanksgiving cranberries in “non-log” form.

Its been pretty dark and dreary here in Seattle the past couple of days. On days like this I just want to say in the house, curl up with a good book and eat a childhood favorite, grilled cheese and tomato soup. There is just something about that gooey cheesy sandwich being dunked into hot, steamy homemade tomato soup. To be more precise, I mean homemade tomato soup that is loaded with fire roasted tomatoes, fresh basil, white wine, garlic and a little half and half for good measure. You’ll be surprised at how easy it actually is.

While Ryan and I were in Italy we had plenty of steaks. And trust me when I tell you they make a mean steak there. Each and every steak we had was perfectly cooked and seasoned. Why am I talking about steak on a recipe titled roasted rosemary potatoes? Well because each time we ordered one of those slice with a butter knife, melt in your mouth steaks, we would also order a side dish of roasted potatoes. Each dish of potatoes we were served was perfectly roasted and simply seasoned with fresh rosemary, salt and cracked pepper. I enjoyed these potatoes so much that even though I ate more than my fair share on our trip, they were the first thing I tried to recreate when I got home.

I am not going to be shy about it, this pasta is certainly a splurge. A deliciously scrumptious, I just might want to eat this every day for the rest of my life splurge. Not only is there heavenly heavy cream, but I also throw in some cream cheese and butter for good measure. Mixed with fresh oregano, sage and parsley, this creamy pasta has a wonderful fresh earthy flavor.

When Ryan and I left for Italy, we pretty much kissed our tomato plant goodbye. It had been struggling a bit in the recent weeks and we just knew that it would not survive while we were gone. That is what we thought anyway. Imagine my surprise when, after we got home, Ryan went outside to check his plants and came back in with a handful of perfectly plump, red tomatoes. I was super excited and knew just what to do.

I will admit that at this time of year I miss school. I don’t miss homework but I miss buying Lisa Frank folders, pink pet erasers, finding out who was in my class and praying I didn’t get the “mean” teacher. And of course I miss lunch time, where you got to see who had what for lunch and if you were convincing enough, swap what you didn’t want for someone elses cookies. One thing that I would never want to swap however, was my egg salad sandwich. I loved the creaminess and the chunks of eggs with the soft white bread. It just reminds me of being a kid. As a result, every year around this time I make myself one.

Ryan and I don’t eat fast food very often , but offer me Burgerville and I suddenly forget that a burger and fry combo is not number one on my list of things I should eat in any given day. But today I’m not talking about burgers and fries, I’m talking onion rings, crispy delicious, Walla Walla sweet onion rings to be exact. About this time every year Burgerville starts selling these little devils and every one goes a little nutty over them, OK maybe not everyone, but I certainly do.  Just the thought of their crispy, salty, sweet goodness makes me giddy and sad at the same time. Sad because there are people lining up to get their hands on these treasures but the closest Burgerville to me is eighty-five miles away. Tragic. So what is a girl to do? Make a version at home of course.  And as a bonus I don’t have to worry about looking silly as I scarf them down a little faster than I probably should.

When looking back on my childhood, I fondly remember many end of the summer Sunday dinners. I remember playing outside all day, climbing trees and hanging out with friends. Just as the sun would begin to set, I’d head back home, walk through the front door and breath in the wonderful aroma of whatever dinner my mom was making. She made a variety of things but my favorite, even to this day, was fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. So naturally, when I made Buttermilk Fried Chicken with Pan Gravy last week, I knew I just had to make green beans too.