The husband of one of my friends recently experienced a traumatic health scare. I asked her how she was handling things, and she said she was exhausted, and, that while she’s beyond grateful he’s going to make a full recovery, it’s been incredibly trying on her and their marriage. After admitting this she burst into tears, apologizing for feeling that way. She said I must think she was the worst person in the world… but that never crossed my mind. To me, it was nothing more than a human reaction – it’s okay to admit you’re exhausted and stressed and need a break. Why are we afraid to say it out loud?
We’re taught we can only be one or the other, but you can be simultaneously grateful and overwhelmed. I think women especially are afraid to admit overwhelm. We’re afraid to admit that we need help. We take on an inordinate amount of information: did I pay the credit card bill? Do we have something for dinner? And what should I cook? Are we out of paper towels? When’s the last time I changed my contacts? Did I respond to that email or text? What day does the trash run this week? Did I forget their birthday? Did I sign that permission slip? Do I have time to run to the store today? Exercise?
In the past month alone, I have forgotten two birthdays. I have unintentionally not replied to important emails. I wore my contacts for two months (they’re supposed to be changed every two weeks). I made a big pot of coffee and then realized that I forgot to actually ADD the coffee – meaning I made a pot of hot water. We ran out of bottled water and dishwasher detergent. We had no breakfast food. I forgot to RSVP to events, sent birthday presents late, missed an eye doctor appointment. I pride myself on being a person who has their shit together, but, you can only juggle so many balls. Something is going to drop.
In a separate discussion with a fellow blogger, she said she was embarrassed that she struggled with technology and needed help. No one is good at everything. I am terrible at math. Terrible. I overcook meat. I over-water plants. I eat my weekly work snacks by Tuesday. I don’t have an eye for photo-editing. And that is okay. We forget that we don’t have to know all and excel in every aspect of our lives. We forget that we don’t have to cook a healthy vegan meal every night, and that we don’t have to throw Pinterest-worthy parties, and always have our eyebrows done, that our house doesn’t have to look like a Pottery Barn showroom, that you can leave dishes in the sink, that it’s okay to fart and burp and snore, that the majority of our clothes come from Target or Walmart, that it’s okay to be single and not settle, that it’s okay to not have it figured out at 25, or 35, or 55, or 75.
And sometimes when you allow yourself to be vulnerable and admit that you struggle and that you think of smothering your significant other when his snoring keeps you up all night, or that you’d just like a break from your kids or your friends or you life, that your job sucks and you’ve considered driving by your office and ghosting your career on more than one occasion, or that you had wine for dinner three nights in a row, you just might see another person’s walls come down. They might breathe a sigh of relief and say “Oh, thank God. I thought it was just me.” Honesty and vulnerability are refreshing virtues in this highlight-reel world.
This tirade is my way of reminding you (and me!) that you cannot do all and be all. You’re allowed to be human. You’re allowed to forget, to feel overwhelmed, and to feel pissed off. You’re allowed to say no and ask for a helping hand. You’re allowed to take a break and you’re allowed to let your guard down. The world will keep doing what the world does.
When you think of chowder, your mind probably lands on the clam variety. But now that summer is officially here, with fresh corn soon to be in abundance, it's time to welcome a new chowder into your life. This chicken-corn chowder is just the ticket — and you don't even have to go near the stove to make it.
I'm lucky enough to live in an area where even modest neighborhood cafes get their produce from local farms and change their menus often to reflect whatever their farmers are harvesting that week. I recently had my first taste of sweet summer corn at one such cafe, in a dish that combined chunks of shaved corn with tangy little cherry tomatoes and a creamy cilantro dressing. Sweet, crunchy, and bursting with pure summer flavor, it was so good I knew I had to recreate it.
In my kitchen somewhere along the way, the combination transformed into a crispy, black bean-speckled tostada — no complaints here.
Insane right? I believe that checking your email in the morning is the best way to time-travel to after lunch.
Why DO we check email first thing in the morning? Well, because something crucial might have happened overnight.
There's a few things wrong with that sentence, in my opinion. Words like "something" and "might" stick out. We check our email because of fear, a sense of disconnectedness, and (in some cases) a feeling of urgency addiction.
We often go to bed with our current project or work on our minds. It's THAT project that we should probably wake up and start working on. It's that project that we kind of left unfinished when we went to bed in the first place.
We SHOULD get up and start working on our project first thing. Instead we check our email, get sucked into it, answer a few, get stressed, answer a few more, threaten to delete the whole inbox, and then it's lunch time.
When I'm not really focused, sometimes the day just slips past me. I find my feet around 5pm when the day is winding down, not at 9am when it should be winding up.
If something really really important happened it won't be in your inbox. Your phone will be blowing up. Someone will be sitting in your seat when you show up at work. They will find you.
When they DO find you, you should be working. Go to work and resist the urge to check your email. Start working immediately, head down, sprinting. There's HOURS of time before lunch to be discovered.
Here's your homework. Go to work tomorrow and don't open email until afternoon. You might be staring at first, wondering what the heck you're supposed to do. Do that project. Write that code. Work on that book. Update that blog. Do literally ANYTHING except email.
When you open email for the first time after lunch, you'll have hours of amazing work already behind you and you'll feel amazing.
Try it.
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Behold! This cold treat is summer incarnate: Watermelon rinds provide a base for layers of blueberry, lemon, and raspberry sorbet. I've been seeing a lot of watermelon Jell-o shots, but this is the first watermelon rind with sorbet I've seen. Besides being incredibly creative, this dessert is also quite easy to make!
Dog: WAT DOING
Me: Nothing. I just stood up.
Dog: WHERE GO
Me: I'm literally walking 3 feet away. I'm not even leaving the room.
Dog: CAN I COME
Me: I mean sure but I'm literally just-
Dog: I COME TOO
Dog: WAT DOING
Me: I need to open this door.
Dog: I HALP
Me: No but you're in front of the door. Move please.
Dog: I HALP
Me: Sigh.
Dog: WHERE GOING
Me: I am going right back to the exact place I was sitting a second ago.
Dog: CAN I COME
Me: Sure.
Dog: I SIT IN LAP
Me: No please don't you are-
Dog: I SIT IN LAP
Me: No there's no room and-
Dog: LAP
Me: No, sit on the floor and I'll pet you.
Dog: RIGHT HERE
Me: That's literally on top of my leg.
Dog: IT'S PERFECT PET ME
Me: I am petting you. One second, let me just grab my glass-
Dog: PET ME PET ME PET ME PET ME
Me: I literally am petting you, I just needed a drink-
Dog: PET ME PET ME PET ME PET ME
Me: I AM
Dog: I SIT IN LAP
Dog: PET ME PET ME PET ME
Dog: HOLD SLOBBER TOY
Dog: SNEEZE IN UR FACE
Me: .......
Ever notice how you go through phases with certain dishes — practically living off of them for months and then one day you just...stop? Back when my husband and I first moved in together, polenta featured big in our weekly meal routine. It was easy, it was cheap, and it was darn good, especially with a handful of shredded cheese stirred into the pot.
But time flies and tastes change, and I recently realized that it had been years since I last made polenta for a simple weeknight meal. Today's one-bowl meal is a reminder of how good warm polenta and a handful of fresh ingredients can truly be.
The point of an aperitif it is to wake up your taste buds, readying them for the meal to come. For me, bubbly aperitifs are always a win. This week's 10-Minute Happy Hour is a mash up of Spanish pours and a ripe Bosc pear, perfect for a refreshing, fall-inspired aperitif.
One of my favorite little Halloween snacks are classic Mummy Dogs (which you can see in this post, full of easy Halloween Party food ideas). I wanted to think of a way to make a sweet version with that same concept. I immediately thought of my Easy Breakfast Braid (warning: one of our very very first posts, ever, with super ancient photos- but hey, it’s yummy. Enjoy the blast from the past.) and decided with the addition of a couple spooky eyeballs, those little mini braids would look like mummies. These are one of the rare homemade pastries that actually taste better when they’ve cooled down to about room temperature, so feel free to make them ahead of time.
And when you get to the bottom of this post- you can get tons more ideas for awesome monster-ish snacks and treats. We decided to get together with some of our blogging buddies and have a virtual Halloween party today! Everyone came up with such cute stuff, so be sure to click on over to their blogs and check them out.
So now, mummies. I was so happy when Pillsbury came out with their sheets of crescent dough; it’s perfect for projects like this. (If you don’t like to use refrigerated pastry and want to use homemade bread dough or something, be my guest.)
Lightly roll out the crescent sheet to stretch it out a bit and then slice it into 6 parts like my photo below. No need to be exact here (which is good, because I wrote down my actual measurement on some random napkin in my kitchen when I made these and of course I have no idea where that is now…) I think each of my squares below is about 3 1/2 x 4 or so.
Then I use the back of a knife to lightly score my pieces just so I can keep things straight. so make 3 light lines in each square, then take a knife and actually cut the outside sections into strips like this:
Leaving a little space on both the top and bottom, spread a generous spoonful of Nutella down the middle section, and then add a piece of banana that’s been sliced lengthwise in half.
Now there’s no exact science to this next part, but I’ll show you what I do. First fold both the top and bottom sections over the top of the banana and fold those little “arm” pieces right down the side.
Then on the very top, cross one piece over across the “head”
and then the one from the other side. This makes his little head-piece.
When you cross over the next 2 pieces, cross them downwards so you’re leaving a little space where the eyes will go. Just smash those in to make the dough stick together to hold them down.
Now the rest is simple. Just cross one from the right across, and then one from the left, then one from the right, and so on and so on until he’s all wrapped up.
They’ll all look a little different, and that’s ok!
Bake them according to the package instructions, until they’re golden brown.
When they’ve cooled to just about room temperature, drizzle them with a little glaze and let them sit until it’s dry to the touch.
That’s it! You can pop candy eyeballs in there like I did, or use mini M&M’s or chocolate chips. Cute and yummy; perfect combination. And if you’re wondering (because I did, before I actually tried these and was just thinking about it in my brain…) what happens to the banana in there- it doesn’t turn to goo. It cooks, but not enough to make it lose it’s shape, and then when it’s all cooled it mixes with the Nutella and just makes a yummy banana-flavored filling. It’s yummy, trust me.
And I know, I know…”Crypt Keepers” aren’t really mummies, or at least I don’t think they are. But it sounded good, ok? Just go with it.
Print This!
Nutella Banana Mummy Rolls Recipe from Our Best Bites
Ingredients
1 package Pillsbury Crescent sheets
1 small container Nutella
2-3 bananas
heaping 1/2 cup powdered sugar
milk or water for glaze
Candy eyes
Instructions
Roll out crescent sheet to about 10-11 x 6-8 inches. Slice into 6 equal squares. Lightly score each square in 3 equal sections, vertically (without cutting through the dough). Using a knife, cut horizontal strips about 1/4 inch wide down each side section. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of nutella down the middles section, leaving about 1/2 inch on both the top and bottom and place a slice of banana on top. Fold the right two cut sections over the head and then then alternate right and then left, leaving a small space for the eye section.
Bake at 375 until golden brown, probably about 12-15 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool to room temperature. Mix powdered sugar with enough milk or water to form a glaze and then lightly drizzle it over the mummies. Let it dry to the touch and then serve. Makes 6.
Now check out more monster-y treats from some of our favorite blogging friends!
Spaghetti squash is winter squash unlike any other. When you cook it and scrape it with a fork, the flesh peels away like ribbons of pasta, hence the name. The taste is light and texture almost a little crunchy. Spaghetti squash’s best friend? Sausage. They just like each other, like pasta and meatballs.
So when I saw this recipe in my friends Todd Porter and Diane Cu‘s stunning new cookbook Bountiful, with recipes inspired by their garden, I couldn’t wait to dive in. I changed it ever so slightly, adding a cup of sliced kale for some green, and using minced red onions instead of shallots. Score! Thank you Diane and Todd, this recipe is fabulous.
One of my all-time favorite recipes is the one for our corn chowder; it’s inexpensive, it’s quick, it’s insanely delicious, I almost always have all the ingredients available, it’s healthy, no one complains too loudly if we have leftovers the next night.
I’ve been making that corn chowder since the summer my husband and I got married so…12 years (side note: how???) and I’ve never really veered too far off course because I love it so much. But then…one day…it happened. I decided to mix it up. I didn’t have any bacon (gasp!) and I had a can of chipotles left over from this chicken (plus about half the chicken, which, spoiler alert, comes into play as well). It ended up being fabulous; my kids thought it was a little on the spicy side, but my husband and I loved it.
You’re going to need chicken broth, a small can of corn, a can of black beans, 2 colored bell peppers, a whole bunch of garlic, an onion, chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, butter, flour, and some leftover chicken. Oh, and a couple of small red potatoes that didn’t make it into the picture.
Chop the onion and peppers and mince the garlic and the chipotle (I seed mine because the seeds are burn-your-mouth off spicy).
Melt butter in a large skillet. Saute the onion, garlic, bell peppers, and chipotle chili until the veggies are tender. Add a heaping 1/2 cup of flour
and cook 2-3 minutes. Add the broth and cook until the flour is smooth and the broth is starting to thicken. Add the milk and bring to a low simmer. Add the chopped potatoes (these help thicken the chowder). Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the milk isn’t burning. Add the chicken, corn, black beans and a small amount of adobo sauce at a time, and any additional salt to taste.
Serve with chipotle Tabasco sauce and shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
Print This!
Chicken Chipotle Chowder Recipe from Our Best Bites
Ingredients:
1 large onion, minced
6-7 cloves garlic, minced
2 colored bell peppers, chopped
1 chipotle chili, chopped (seeded if you’re worried about heat; I seed mine)
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 heaping cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth (1 can)
5 cups low-fat milk
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2-3 small red potatoes, chopped
1 small can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken (I used leftover chicken from this recipe)
Adobo sauce from chipotle chilies to taste (we used 2-3 teaspoons)
Chipotle Tabasco sauce
Shredded sharp cheddar or pepper jack cheese
Instructions:
Melt butter in a large skillet. Saute the onion, garlic, bell peppers, and chipotle chili until the veggies are tender. Add the flour and cook 2-3 minutes. Add the broth and cook until the flour is smooth and the broth is starting to thicken. Add the milk and bring to a low simmer. Add the potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the milk isn’t burning. Add the chicken, corn, black beans and a small amount of adobo sauce at a time, and any additional salt to taste. Serve with chipotle Tabasco sauce and shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Serves 8-10.
Mwah hah hah hah! (Insert your favorite evil laugh here.) Do you like cinnamon toast? These jack-o-lantern snacks are the sweet potato Halloween version of cinnamon toast. They start out like baked sweet potato fries, and then they are dunked in melted butter, and take a tumble in cinnamon sugar. That’s it! Sweet potatoes, butter, cinnamon, sugar.
Here are the things I jotted down on my cooking wish-list whilst (!) I was in the UK: baked cauliflower cheese, a “proper” English Sunday roast (with mash fried potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, creamy horseradish sauce), the “full English” breakfast (authentic = every item must be fried, apparently!), cider vinegar + Maldon sea salt crisps with champagne, please, chunky olive oil and mushroom risotto, clotted cream and marmalade scones, Welsh cakes, chocolate-dipped digestives and fall apple-plum crisps thickly drizzled with fresh cream.
And then I came home and made this instead. I am sure you understand. Before one swan dives into a vat of thick cream and baked cheddar and passes out on a Yorkshire pudding pillow only to revive oneself with a deep inhale of horseradish-triple cream sauce, one must reset their system, so to speak. One must prepare. At the very least, one must dust off their gym ID. And so I put all of those notes in the “dead of winter, need comfort” files and returned to the land of fall, where the leaves are beginning to turn, fragrant unblemished apples hang from acres of trees, and Gwyneth Paltrow gently suggests that if you coat the sweet potatoes and broccoli that are on every market stand with a heavenly miso dressing, you will find some gorgeous dinnertime nirvana in a bowl.
Remember this post back in February, when I showed you photos of my house being turned into a filming studio? And photos of these amazing Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake Bars?
Well I’m still getting asked about this recipe, and now 5 months later, I’m finally delivering! First, grab some popcorn and press play on this little video below, then we’ll talk dessert. (Or breakfast, or midnight snack. This is a no-judge zone.)
If you’ve never had an Italian style ricotta cheesecake, it’s different than a traditional cream cheese style one. Ricotta has a natural texture to it; a little bit of graininess, and pureeing it with sugar until it’s glossy and smooth really helps with the overall texture of these bars, but know that it’s supposed to be different than a normal cheesecake. Look at the difference though, comparing what ricotta looks like straight out of the container:
and then after pureeing in in the food processor with some sugar:
gorgeous, isn’t it?
I love this because it’s a little bit different, and is still creamy and rich without feeling really heavy. Here’s a couple of tips though, if you’ve never baked ricotta cheesecake:
1. Do not over-bake. If anything, under-bake just a little bit. Over-baking will instantly dry out the cheesecake and cause it to be grainy and crumbly.
2. Don’t cheat on the chilling. Chill overnight for the best possible texture. Since it should be baked super soft, it needs a thorough chilling to not only hold everything together, but to give all of the flavors a chance to marry together. And boy do they marry.
I made this recipe using products from the Simple Truth brand available at Kroger stores (and all stores within the Kroger family; where I live, that’s Fred Meyer.) I really love Simple Truth products and have been using them long before I partnered up for a few videos, so this was really fun for me. You can keep up with Simple Truth on Facebook, and check out the great product line at a Kroger store near you!
Print This!
Blueberry-Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake Bars Recipe by Our Best Bites
Crust and Topping Layers
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, very cold
1 large egg, separated
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
Cheesecake Layer 15 ounce container ricotta
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs, plus one egg white
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¾ cup frozen blueberries
Quick Blueberry Sauce
1 ¼ cups frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
3 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8×8 baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside.
To prepare crust and topping, combine sugar, flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium sized mixing bowl and stir to combine. Use a large-hole cheese grater to grate butter into flour mixture, or alternately cut butter into small chunks and add to flour mixture. Use clean hands to break up butter and flour mixture until it resembles large crumbs. Add egg yolk from separated egg (reserve egg white for the next step) and add to crumb mixture. Quickly toss to incorporate egg yolk into crumbs. Remove half of crumb mixture (about 1 ½ cups) and lightly press into the bottom of prepared baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes and then remove from oven. Add lemon zest to the remaining crumb mixture, stir to combine, and set aside.
To prepare filling, place ricotta and sugar in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy (about 1-2 minutes), scraping down sides as necessary. Place mixture in a mixing bowl and stir in flour, vanilla, eggs, plus the reserved egg white from the first step, and lemon juice. Whisk to combine and pour mixture over crust in pan. Sprinkle ¾ cup blueberries over the top of filling and then top with the reserved crumb mixture. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Bars should be just golden on top and slightly jiggly in center when shaken. Remove and let cool completely. Cover, and Place in fridge overnight to chill. When ready to serve, slice into bars.
For Sauce: Combine all ingredients. Bring to a simmer and cook for 3-5 minutes, smashing berries with a fork. Cool. Sauce will thicken once cooled and chilled, adjust consistency by adding water until desired consistency is reached.
If you think about it, isn’t it strange that we’ve nominated pie as our iconic summer dessert? Do understand, I say this as someone who frequently daydreams about going around the country and teaching people to make pie with a bare minimum of fuss, because I think the only thing standing between you and someone who effortlessly throws pies together because you heard someone was coming over is someone talking you through it once or twice… But I will also fully admit: pie is a pest. It requires very cold fat to be carefully worked into a floury mix until the pieces are exactly the right size. Too small, your crust is flat and crunchy. Too big, butter pools out and burns, leaving sad, tough flakes for crust. Too warm, the bits go small and absorb into the flour. Too cold, good luck rolling it out! And before you even know if the trouble will be worth it, you’ve got to roll out your crust with no holes or tears or your fruit filling will leak through and permanently glue pie-to-pan. And the fruit! Too thick, your pie cuts freakishly like Jell-O; too thin, it spills out everywhere, leaving a hollow crust in its wake. And don’t even get me started on lattice-tops. They’re for really sick people.
Given all of these high stakes, it’s a wonder we don’t all spend our summers, exclusively extolling the virtues of fruit crisps and crumbles, because they’re pie’s laid-back, easy-breezy sibling, the one whose arrival always brings applause. They give you nothing to carefully roll out; you just messily sprinkle the so-called “crust” over the top of the fruit, which can be thickened or not at all because if you’re not slicing it, who cares if it slumps? (And if the thought of fruit that sighs and puddles out onto a plate isn’t more appealing to you than fruit that stands up straight when you slice it, well, I beg to differ.) And the fat! Instead of asking butter to do the thing it would very least like to do on a hot day — that is, to try to stay cold — you begin by melting it.
I am here to tell you about a recipe for pasta that you cook in one pan. One pan, people! Dried noodles, sauce ingredients, water—they all get thrown into a big pan and boiled for less than 10 minutes. You end up with a totally delicious dinner, and a party trick.
I know this recipe is making the rounds. I would even bet that it is blowing up in Pinterest (is it?). I imagine that anyone who saw this in Martha Stewart Living this month knew they needed to try it. It is such a simple idea that I am surprised we haven’t all been doing this the whole time.
I like the recipe because it allows you to get dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes. It is also fun for the cook. That first time you make it you wonder if it will all come together. Is this even possible? Then, the noodles begin to soften, the liquid reduces into a creamy sauce, and you know you’ve got a winner. The real brilliance of the recipe is that by cooking the noodles with the sauce, they absorb so much more flavor than a pot of salted water could ever provide.
Salt is your friend in this dish, don’t skimp! You need a big skillet, big enough for the linguine to lie flat across the bottom.
12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
1 onion, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2- 3/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
2 sprigs basil, plus torn leaves for garnish
2-3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4 1/2 cups water
Lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
Combine pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, basil, oil, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and water in a large straight-sided skillet. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs, until pasta is al dente and water has nearly evaporated, about 9 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper, divide among 4 bowls, and garnish with basil. Serve with oil and Parmesan.
Earlier this week we shared an easy yet elegant Mother’s Day tablescape, and today we have put together a brunch menu with mom in mind. These dishes don’t take too long to prepare, so you can enjoy the morning with your mom. We love to set out light snacks for everyone to nibble on as we finish up in the kitchen — and of course we have plenty of mimosas on hand! If you have meat lovers in your family you can also pop a tray of bacon in the oven to crisp up while you prep. Read on for the recipes!
Calling all sloth lovers, including but not limited to Kristen Bell.
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In my productivity talk "How to Scale Yourself and Get More Done Than You Thought Possible" I include a challenge to the listener. It's kind of insane, but it's actually proven very useful to me when I really need to get important work done.
Mini Mummy Pizzas from The Recipe Critic
Cookie Monsters from Sweet Basil
Monster Eye Cinnamon Rolls from Sweet Treats and More
Monster Brains from Taste and Tell
Sugar Cookie Surprise Stacks from Wanna Be a Country Cleaver
One of my favorite little Halloween snacks are classic Mummy Dogs (which you can see in this post, full of easy Halloween Party food ideas). I wanted to think of a way to make a sweet version with that same concept. I immediately thought of my Easy Breakfast Braid (warning: one of our very very first posts, ever, with super ancient photos- but hey, it’s yummy. Enjoy the blast from the past.) and decided with the addition of a couple spooky eyeballs, those little mini braids would look like mummies. These are one of the rare homemade pastries that actually taste better when they’ve cooled down to about room temperature, so feel free to make them ahead of time.
One of my all-time favorite recipes is the one for our corn chowder; it’s inexpensive, it’s quick, it’s insanely delicious, I almost always have all the ingredients available, it’s healthy, no one complains too loudly if we have leftovers the next night.
and then after pureeing in in the food processor with some sugar:
