It’s Friday and tomorrow is Halloween! Woohoo!

I have several things to share today. On your marks, get set, GO!

Image source: Fork and Beans

First, a few fun food links!

• I’ve started writing for Cool Mom Eats, the food site for Cool Mom Picks. It’s a great team and a great site and I’m excited! My first post is up, just in time for tomorrow! 5 Freakishly Easy Halloween Dinners that are super cute and simple, too!
• And on Parade’s Community Table: 12 Layered Recipes That Are Filled with Flavorful Surprises

Image source: American Street Kid

I also wanted to share a documentary with you today. My friend Stacia Fiore has been working with homeless kids for years. She has been an outreach counselor in Oceanside, CA for a very long time and is now a mentor/consultant/board member/all around awesome person for the new documentary American Street Kid. As the team was working on the film, they also started a non-profit called Spare Some Change, an organization that aims to use arts and media to raise awareness about homeless youth as well as create a one-on-one mentoring program and new kind of housing facility. They’re doing great work and I can’t wait to see the doc. I am so happy to help Stacia spread the word. Be sure to check it out! And you can click here to see a trailer for the movie.

I just realized after uploading this photo that you can see “My List” and our “Recently Watched” shows. Thankfully there is nothing embarrassing in there!

Last thing. I’m joining the Netflix Stream Team for another year because, as you know, I’m obsessed with Netflix and television so it JUST MAKES SENSE. This year Netflix generously gave us a Roku TV, which arrived last week! We have had a Roku box and an Apple TV for years and we never use the Apple TV. Combine the Roku with the TV and we are in love! Our living room TV is a Samsung Smart TV and it works pretty well for Netflix and whatnot, but not great. The Roku TV is seamless, fast and perfect for streaming all kinds of content. Also, I started watching Jane the Virgin. It is super cute. For some strange reason I couldn’t get Nate to watch it with me…

And, since you can tell that my new Roku TV is sitting on a dresser…yes, we have a TV in our bedroom. I was always morally against televisions in the bedroom, then about 2 years ago we decided to give it a try. All the dire things that everyone warns you against with having a TV in your room didn’t happen. Our TV watching didn’t increase, we still use the bedroom as a bedroom, we don’t fall asleep with the TV on every night, yadayadayada…all the stuff I was worried about is no big deal. So, just sayin’, YEAH, I have a TV in my room and I love it! 😉

That’s it for this week! As usual, show and tell is for the whole class! Pop on into the conversation! Share your own blog posts, things you’ve recently discovered, or tell us what you think about TVs in the bedroom. It’s all fair game!

I am a member of the Netflix Stream Team, which means they send me cool stuff from time to time. For the record, I would be addicted to Netflix in spite of said cool stuff.

I love vintage cookbooks. Like cutting boards, vintage cookbooks are fast becoming an obsession of mine. For example, when I visited Portland, OR last year, I ended up spending oodles of time (and an undisclosed amount of money!) in the cookbook section at Powell’s Books with my friend Deseree, pouring over the many old and out-of-print cookbooks that lined the shelves. Those books are so delightful for so many reasons, from fun inscriptions to interesting ingredients to vintage illustrations and photographs…I love it all!

Today I am channeling that love for older cookbooks with a really fun giveaway. Dover Publications has re-released a cookbook that has been out of print for quite some time. Of course I had to check it out…that kind of thing is right up my alley!

Coincidentally, during the spookiest time of year, the cookbook in question is written by the Master of Menace himself, Vincent Price, along with his wife Mary, a costume designer. Mary and Vincent Price published A Treasury of Great Recipes 50 years ago and Dover just released the anniversary edition. I have had so much fun reading through this book!

The 50th anniversary edition still has the same feel as the original publication, with all the original illustrations and photography, and includes a lovely retrospective written by their daughter Victoria Price, where you learn that Vincent Price’s grandfather invented cream of tartar baking powder, was the first person to patent extracts of vanilla, lemon and other flavorings, and also wrote many cookbooks. Food runs in the family! The cookbook follows the Price’s travels through Europe, Mexico and the United States and features the menus of restaurants they visited and loved, along with recipes from those menus. As both a food lover and a graphic designer, I especially love that the actual menus are reproduced in the book. The Prices also include many of their family’s recipes and, in true vintage cookbook fashion, there is a section dedicated to (can you guess?)…napkin folding! I just love this stuff! I told you I’m a vintage cookbook junkie!

While Vincent may have been a master at horror, he was also a master at sharing wonderful food with people. So, this Halloween week, we are giving away a copy of Vincent and Mary’s beautiful, classic book. Here is how to enter!

• Simply leave a comment, any comment, on this post! If you would like to share your favorite restaurant with us in your comment, that would be very fun and in the spirit of the book!
• Bonus entry: Like Dover Publications on Facebook. Leave a separate comment indicating you have done so.
• Bonus entry: Follow Dover Publications on Pinterest. Leave a separate comment indicating you have done so.
• Bonus entry: Tweet this post and giveaway using the hashtag #CookingwithVincent. Leave a separate comment with a link to your tweet.

One comment will be randomly selected to choose the winner. Comments must be posted by Midnight PT on Thursday 11/5/2015 and prize must be shipped to an address in the continental United States.

The winner of the giveaway was Comment #18 Heather B, who said, “I had no idea this edition existed, I’ve been meaning to find a copy of the original for my cookbook collection forever.” I love that she knows the book and has been keeping an eye out for it! Congratulations, Heather! I know it’s not an original edition, but I know you’ll still love it!

To buy the book, visit Dover Publications and be sure to use the code WRAQ to get 25% of your purchase before 12/07/2015.  If you have any cookbook lovers in your life (or you are one yourself!), this is a very fun book, I definitely recommend it!

Thank you to Dover Publications for sponsoring this post and giveaway!

It’s been about 6 months since I’ve given an update on my 2015 New Year’s resolution, so I thought it was time to check in! For those of you who don’t know, each year I choose a New Year’s resolution that is related to food or the kitchen that impacts the environment in a positive way. This year my goal was to stop using paper towels. So, how are we doing? I have had several friends and family members ask with a skeptical voice if we are really doing it and if it’s actually going well.

It’s going great! Honestly, it hasn’t been hard at all. The big stack of Ikea towels I bought have worked wonderfully, and my system of having the bin of towels accessible in the kitchen and then hooks close by (for hanging after use) works like a charm! (Click here to read more of the details.) Everyone in the family is participating and following the plan. The key to success has been accessibility. The towels are at everyone’s level and in the center of things. The hooks are nearby for the dirty towels. I don’t have any extra laundry, the towels just go in with everything else. I am really happy with how well it has worked out!

As for cleaning, I have mostly moved away from paper towels. I still use them to clean the toilet, along with bleach cleaner. I haven’t been able to switch over to a towel for that task, despite my aunt telling me it will be fine. She has a designated towel for the toilets, with a T in permanent marker in the corner and she says it works great with her environmentally-friendly soap. One day maybe I’ll take the plunge. (Not into the toilet, just into cleaning it differently.) Toilets aside, I no longer use paper towels for any of our cleaning. I purchased high quality microfiber towels and, not only am I not using paper towels, I use less soap. And it’s faster and easier! (I’ll share the towels I bought in a separate post down the road.)

There is one more thing that I still use paper towels for – draining bacon. I should be able to come up with another way to do this, but I really like patting the bacon dry with a paper towel. If anyone has suggestions for this, let me know!

So, have we completely given up paper towels? Not quite, but almost. We hardly ever use them, just for toilets and bacon. And my life is not any harder. In fact, cleaning is easier. I am so glad I finally pulled the trigger to make this goal a reality in our home!

If you’ve been trying to cut back on paper towels, let us know how it’s going and please share any tips that have been helpful with your implementation!

Hi everyone! Before we get to today’s menu, I want to share some news. Drumroll…dundundundundundundun….I am launching This Week for Dinner: The Podcast the first week of November! I can’t WAIT to share it with you! Each episode will feature an interview with someone awesome sharing favorite recipes and kitchen tips…and often much more than that! I keep saying the word “excited” in reference to the podcast, but it really is the perfect word. I am, quite simply, excited! Whenever I walk away from working on the podcast (which is a lot lately!), I feel happy and uplifted and PUMPED about it all. The podcast is just so much fun and pretty soon I’ll be able to share all of the fun with you, too! So, stay tuned. Launch date is coming SOON!

Okay, let’s get to the matter at hand…the weekly menu!

MONDAY:
– Rotisserie Chicken (from store)
– Veggies

TUESDAY:
– Chili
– Tortilla chips

WEDNESDAY:
– Easiest Ever Chicken Pot Pie

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Take out night

SATURDAY:
– Happy Halloween!
– Pesto Tortellini Soup (super easy recipe!)

SUNDAY:
– Breakfast for Dinner: Eggs, toast and fruit

Click here for the free printable of this week’s menu plus the shopping list!

Okey dokey, let’s see what you’ve got! Share your menus, no matter what shape or size it may take!

I have a confession to make. I have been in a real “I don’t want to plan my weekly menu” funk for the last month or so (hence me posting at 8 pm tonight!). Each week I’ve been moaning and complaining to Nate about it, but I do it anyway, 100% because of the blog. And, I have to tell you, I am SO grateful that the blog keeps me on track. I am always so glad that there is a meal plan and shopping list in place. After all, we’ve gotta eat no matter how much I don’t want to plan it out! Anyway, just thought I’d confess, in case anyone else feels the same way…I do, too! And I wanted to thank you all for keeping me coming back each week to plan because it really does make life better! And, as always, thank you for posting your menus each week. They are tremendously helpful when I sit down to plan every Sunday!

Okay, so let’s just get down to business. Here’s this week’s plan!

MONDAY:
– Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo
– Salad

TUESDAY:
– Chicken Piccata
– Mashed potatoes + veggie

WEDNESDAY:
– Boozy Beef Stew
– Crusty bread

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Bean and cheese burritos

SATURDAY:
– Take out night

SUNDAY:
– Breakfast for Dinner: Omelettes and Smoothies

Click here for the free printable of this week’s menu plus the shopping list!

Okey dokey! Your turn! Tell us what you’re having for dinner this week!

It’s FRIDAY! WOOHOO!

I have just one food link for you today. If you’re looking for a good cocktail for fall, well, I’ve got you covered. Be sure to check out this recipe for an Autumn Stone Wall on Babble! The origin of this cocktail dates back to Colonial times, so, you know, you should totally drink it in the name of history.

Okay, so Nate and I went a little crazy this week. We went to three concerts, all on school nights. And I am feeling it today. Actually, I was feeling it yesterday when we still had one more concert to go, which I think makes me officially an old lady. But it was TOTALLY WORTH IT. All three concerts rocked (pun intended) so I have to tell you about them!

• alt-j: I wasn’t so sure how the band alt-j would sound live since their music has a very electronic feel, but they were amazing! Really, so impressive. Their music is layered and complicated and different in a very good way. Such a great show, I highly recommend catching them live if you are a fan of the band.
• Florence and the Machine: We knew Florence’s voice would blow pretty much everything out of the water and we were right. Her voice is unreal. And she is BANANAS, running and jumping and spinning like a crazy person the entire concert. She must work out a LOT because WOW. Also, she is unbelievably endearing and sweet. At one point she got choked up and confessed that she hadn’t wanted to do the show that night as her beloved uncle had passed away less than 24 hours prior, but that she was glad she had done the show anyway. I don’t know how she pulled herself together after that. Anyway, she rocks. Go see her show if you ever get the chance.
• Hozier: This guy. I mean, we all know he has a great voice (and it’s even better live), but he is also a phenomenal guitarist who can JAM. And his songs are all great. Oh, and he is SO nice, with just a really positive vibe. He not only introduced the band members but the entire crew, including the bus drivers. At the close of the show he linked arms with his bandmates for a big bow, which was adorable, and he kept plugging the other musicians in the nicest most un-annoying way, including the opening band Little Green Cars (who were really good, btw). Basically, we love him. I also highly recommend going to one of his shows if you ever can.

If you visit my Instagram feed, you can watch little video snippets from each show. They’re pretty sweet.

That’s it for me today. As usual, please share your own stuff in the comments! That’s what Show and Tell is for!

Two years ago I wrote a sponsored post for Campbell’s when they launched their new line of dinner sauces. The flavor I featured was the Sweet Korean BBQ. We LOVED it and I have used that Campbell’s product many times since I wrote that sponsored post. I have also gotten other people hooked on it. It’s really easy and delicious!

Well, I had Korean BBQ tacos on the menu a few weeks ago but could not for the life of me find the Campbell’s sauce at the store. But by that point I was totally craving the tacos and needed to figure out how to make them happen, even without help from Campbell’s.

So, I created a homemade version of Campbell’s Sweet Korean BBQ dinner sauce. I’m pretty sure when they paid me to write about their delicious sauce they weren’t anticipating this move, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? AND I still love their version of the sauce and highly recommend it. That said, if you want to make the sweet Korean BBQ sauce from scratch, now you can!

This Korean BBQ meat is tasty served simply over rice with a veggie on the side, but our favorite way to enjoy it is in tacos. Whenever we have the Korean BBQ tacos, every single person in the family eats all of their dinner. It’s miraculous and wonderful.

Here’s the best part about the homemade version of the sweet Korean BBQ: it is seriously EASY to make. It takes like 1 minute longer than the store bought version, bringing you to about 2 minutes of prep time total. Also, I’m 90% sure you already have most, if not all, of the ingredients in your kitchen, making this a great go-to dinner recipe.

Enjoy!

Homemade Slow Cooker Sweet Korean BBQ Beef

 

Print

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

8 hours

Total time

8 hours 5 mins

 

This slow cooker beef is perfect served over rice or as tacos/burritos!

Author: Jane Maynard

Serves: 6-12

Ingredients

• 1½ - 3 pounds beef roast (chuck roast/chuck shoulder/round roast/rump roast/bottom round all work well!)
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup apple juice
• ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pushed through a garlic press
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• When Served as an Entree, also cook jasmine rice
• For tacos: Flour tortillas, Quick Asian Slaw (see recipe below), Sour Cream, Hot Sauce (optional), Fresh Chopped Cilantro (optional)
• For burritos: Taco ingredients + cooked jasmine rice

Instructions

1. In your slow cooker pot, whisk together all of the ingredients except the roast.
2. Place roast in the slow cooker, flip over, then cook on low for 7-8 hours, turning roast 2-4 times during cooktime.
3. Serve on flour tortillas topped with sour cream and slaw, plus hot sauce and cilantro if using, to make tacos. Add rice to make burritos. WARNING: These tacos are very drippy, but it's worth the mess! As my 4-year-old Owen tells everyone, "Make sure you lean over your plate!" Wonder where he got that from...

Notes

Each 1 pound of beef cooked will make about 6 generous tacos and would serve around 4 as an entree on rice.

3.3.3070

Quick Asian Slaw

 

Print

Prep time

5 mins

Total time

5 mins

 

I make this to top our Korean BBQ tacos!

Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

• 1 16-ounce package cabbage-based coleslaw from the produce section at the store (plain cabbage or cabbage with carrots both work great!)
• ¼ cup white or rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 clove fresh garlic, minced or pushed through a garlic press
• ½ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes optional)

Instructions

1. Whisk together all ingredients, except the coleslaw, in a large bowl. Add coleslaw, stir well.

3.3.3070

Hey everybody! I can’t believe it’s already time to play the weekly menu! I have a few carry-over items from last week, but I actually cooked every night last week, which is a miracle! It was a busy week and I ended up having to move things around. I actually like having carry-overs…makes for easier planning, and I totally stole ideas from your menus from last week for the rest!

MONDAY:
– Grammy’s Orange Chicken
– Rice and veggie

TUESDAY:
– Malibu Melt Wraps
– Fruit and chips

WEDNESDAY:
– Korean BBQ Tacos (I’ve always used the Campbell’s sauce mix, but I created a homemade version…recipe to come!)

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Penne in vodka sauce
– Salad and garlic bread

SATURDAY:
– Take out night

SUNDAY:
– Breakfast for dinner: Bacon, Eggs and Milk Toast

Click here for the free printable of this week’s menu plus the shopping list!

That’s all she wrote. Your turn! Share your menus!

Happy Friday!

Before I get to today’s show and tell links, I am so excited to give you an update on one of the farmers I met in Malawi last May when traveling with ONE and Heifer International. Rhoda invited us to her home on the last day of our visit. She was in the process of preparing a pen to receive a cow distributed by Heifer under the Malawian government’s FDIP program. When we met the delightful and beautiful Rhoda, her pen was in the middle of being built. Here is a picture of Rhoda back in May, getting ready to receive her livestock.

We learned this week from our friend Mwai, a Heifer employee in Malawi who traveled with us, that Rhoda along with 43 other families in the southern district of Thoylo received their animals! Rhoda’s cow is from South Africa and she has named it Favor. Rhoda said that she feels it is by God’s favor that she received this animal from Heifer International. I’m certain I wasn’t the only one to tear up upon reading the great news. I can’t tell you how awesome it is to see her with her long-awaited cow!

Today I have two recipes to share with you that I created for Babble. I am really happy with how they both came out!

• Tandoori Tacos: I couldn’t help myself, Indian Burritos were too fun…so now, Tandoori Tacos! They taste awesome and they are beautiful, too.

• Brown Butter Gnocchi with Butternut Squash: This perfect-for-Fall dish would make for a good vegetarian dinner or even a fancy side dish. And you only need 1 skillet to make it!

Before we go, if you are looking ways to send help and support to the people of South Carolina as they deal with disastrous flooding, my friend Shani Gilchrist, a writer from South Carolina, shared the following links. In addition to donations, let’s send lots of love/happy vibes/prayers their way!

• United Way Association of South Carolina
• Water Missions International: Current Disasters Response: This organization is in Charleston helping to provide water purification systems. Citizens in Columbia are still without clean water. Citizens and volunteers are at risk of becoming ill by drinking or coming in contact with contaminated water due to contaminants picked up during the flood and backed up sewer lines.
• The Heart Knot
• American Red Cross of the Palmetto SC Region

As you all know, Show and Tell is for everyone, so please feel free to share links to your own discoveries/finds/recipes/blog posts/anything! 

Last week I went to New Orleans with my mom, sister-in-law Cora and sister Anne with one goal: to eat tons of food. We not only achieved our goal, we did so with flying colors. Actually, too many flying colors. By the third night I felt strange. Physically strange. I think it was a food hangover. Listen, I’ve been known to put down a lot of food in my day, but New Orleans just about did me in. And it was totally worth it. Man, the food is awesome. And beyond food, the city is beautiful, the people are friendly and the music is the BEST. New Orleans has captured my heart. (As well as my stomach!)

Cabildo Alley. Photo credit: Cora Wallin

As we prepared for the trip, Anne made us all do research and put it in a Google doc so that when we were on the ground we’d be ready to go! Of course we didn’t get to half of what was in the doc, but we did a TON in our 3 1/2 days in NOLA and I honestly can’t believe how much food we ate.

Jackson Square

If you follow my very enthusiastic advice and visit New Orleans (you better!!!), here are all the delicious/wonderful/interesting/fun places you should visit!

BREAKFAST

Ruby Slipper Cafe (Days 1 & 4…we started and ended our time in New Orleans here!)
My friend Kalli visited NOLA just one week ahead of us and recommended the Ruby Slipper Cafe, stating that the biscuits were the BEST THING EVER and that she wished she had just ordered biscuits and bacon as her meal. I do agree that those items were delectable, but I am SO glad we ordered other items, too. Honestly, Ruby Slipper really stands out for all four of us as a favorite from the weekend. Here are some of our Ruby Slipper top picks! (Click here for full menu and descriptions.)

• Chicken St. Charles: I could eat this for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s UNREAL. The fried chicken is divine, the egg was poached to perfection, and the tasso sauce finished it all off beautifully. (Side note: Tasso ham is a southern Louisiana specialty.)
• Eggs Blackstone: This was my first meal in New Orleans and, let’s just say, it set a very high bar.
• One word: BISCUITS. Best biscuits we had all weekend.
• Bananas Foster Pain Perdu: This French toast was one of my mom’s favorite foods from the whole weekend. Delish!
• We didn’t imbibe at Ruby Slipper, BUT their alcoholic breakfast drink menu was extensive and delicious sounding. It’s always 5:00 somewhere, right?

(>> Find out more…)