Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I won't talk too much as there is so much to do this morning! But I wish everyone a safe and wonderful day full of good company, good food and lots of joy! I leave you with this quick muffin recipe perfect with a hot cup of coffee while watching the Thanksgiving Day Parade and waiting on that delicious turkey! Lots of Love from my home to yours!   What You Will Need 1 and 3/4 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1/3 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla 3/4 cup pumpkin (puree, not the pie filling) 1/2 cup milk 3 tablespoons butter, melted Cinnamon sugar Preheat oven to 350* Combine all dry ingredients (except the cinnamon sugar) and stir in the oil, egg, vanilla, milk and pumpkin until smooth and combined. Bake for 20 minutes until cooked through. Let cool and remove from muffin tins to let cool

Happy Thanksgiving week to everyone out there! We are so excited for the upcoming holiday. I have already pulled out my old maternity jeans to wear for dinner...ssshhh...don't tell anybody okay? So although we will be stuffing out faces come Thursday, currently our fridge is completely bare! Yes there is a giant bird and all the trimmings but we can't break into those goodies before the big day, so we are living off of the scraps from the back of the pantry! I'm sure you've been there right? Repeatedly opening the refrigerator hoping something delicious will just magically appear! But sadly...nada! This soup came out of pure necessity! I literally had 3 leeks, 1 sweet potato and some frozen bacon so I hoped that I could pull a Houdini cooking trick and Pouff....Dinner! And guess what?! It worked!     What You Will Need 1 sweet potato peeled and cubed 2-3 leeks sliced 2 cloves of garlic minced 2

Here we are...a week away from Thanksgiving and it's almost time to say good bye to pumpkins and hello to holly. The Christmas commercials have already started and the store santas are out in force but I'm not quite ready to give up my favorite orange gourd just yet! Over the weekend I made Eric and myself some simple french toast with a special twist. Instead of using our usual everyday bread, I cut a few thick slices of the pumpkin bread I had made earlier that week and transformed a good breakfast treat into a great one! For this dish, you could use your favorite pumpkin bread recipe but I used the pumpkin oat bread recipe from my favorite bread book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. If making homemade bread scares you a bit then no fear...this book makes it super simple to have fresh baked bread

  This last weekend we took a family field trip to our local farmers market. It was such a beautiful day here in the Bay Area and I thought I would share with you all some quick snap shots of the mouth watering produce that was available!     Gorgeous organic eggs...nothing beats a fresh veggie scramble in the morning!     Everly had a blast taking in all the colors and people. I can't wait to make homemade baby food with local organic produce! And of course Eric's favorite part of the market...the spring roll tent! He chows down on crab and shrimp rolls every single Saturday!     And what did I do with all my produce you might ask? Well, I roasted them in a mix of maple syrup, olive oil and spices! So simple but so tasty. Sometimes with fresh organic fruits and veggies less is more! Chop veggies of your choice into small bite size pieces. Here

  Today on foodies it's all about the crunch. You know what I'm talking about...that craving for something to sink your teeth into that only a whole bag of chips will satisfy! Unfortunately, once you open the bag you are bound to end up eating more than just your fair share and to top it off, you can't even pronounce 99% of the ingredients on the package! Here at the Petruno house, we are trying to avoid as much fake processed food as possible and that means ditching the chips. Yes, we have tried the wholesome, "all natural", organic, whole wheat, non GMO versions from our local health food store but those pieces of cardboard get a big fat thumbs down from Eric and usually end up in the chicken coop! But today my friends, you are in luck. I say make your own chips! And it takes mere minutes and a

Every year Eric and I have a list of Halloween traditions that MUST be accomplished in order to properly celebrate the coming holiday. Decorating, movies, pumpkin flavored everything, costumes and of course pumpkin carving! Usually I love to carve an artsy intricate pattern into my pumpkin while Eric gashes at his and seems to repeat the same goofy face in his every time! We have complete opposite ways of going about our annual carving but the one thing we always agree on is the roasting of the pumpkin seeds afterward! These crunchy treats will haunt you for days to come since you'll wish you had more to nosh on long after they are devoured. Now, there are many ways to roast a pumpkin seed but for this recipe I chose to combine a boil, soak and then roast technique that I think turned out awesome! They are still crunchy, but the

What is it about Target? I have such a love/hate relationship with this store...or should I be more specific and say that my WALLET has a love/hate relationship with it! I mean you swing in to purchase a bag of kitty litter, only to leave with a cart full of randoms that of course you needed! Yes, I'll admit it...I have a problem! Especially with the dollar bin at the front entrance! I mean it's only a dollar right? And queue these Halloween sprinkle inspired Frosted Sugar Cookies! After loading my cart with packages of Halloween colored sprinkles from the dollar bin, I decided I must make cookies! And not just any cookies but those big, soft, frosted supermarket cookies that you stuff your face with and then feel really guilty about later! Or is that just me?? The best part about these cookies is that you can customize them for any occasion

It's been awhile since we last chatted...okay...it's been embarrassing long since we last chatted! But I am officially back on track with a menagerie of tasty recipes coming at you soon! But before we jump into the recipe for today, let me explain why I have been away for so long. Well I can sum her up in two words... Everly Ann Born August 4, 2014 Yes we have been cooking up more than just food here at the homestead, we have added a most delicious treat to the family. And she has already spent more than her fair share of time with me in the kitchen! But we haven't just been baking up a baby, Eric has also switched careers from high-tech to real estate, I have stopped working to focus on Everly, we have added 5 laying hens to the garden, and have remodeled most of the interior of our

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend and are all rested and revved up for week. This weekend was unusually relaxing here at home. Normally, we have all kinds of plans and projects lined up for us that by Monday morning we are exhausted! But to both of our surprise, this last weekend...NADA! So what did we do with our empty calendars you ask? Well anything we darned well pleased! And for us that includes caramels and cocktails!! What do you get when you cross a stack of meyer lemons, a little butter and cream, and me at home with nothing to do? Well, you get Meyer Lemon Salted Caramels thats what!  I kind of like to think of these as my own personal science experiment...deciding to just throw things in a pot to see what happens can be the best idea...isn't that how most world renowned chefs do

I hear a rumor that most of this beautiful country is under a blanket of sleet, snow and rain?  Every morning this week while sipping coffee from my favorite purple Disney mug, I watch as Sam Champion from Good Morning America displays maps with strange symbols and pictures of places like Michigan covered knee deep in slush. I then look out our large living room window only to see sunshine and spring in full bloom. Now I'm not trying to rub it in or anything, but growing up in the Bay Area has given me a false sense of what spring is to most people. I can't even imagine April not being full of 70 degree days, 50 degree nights, and flowers popping up everywhere you look. I guess I should thank my lucky stars that I get to enjoy this season while sporting my capris and sandals! One of my