Family Tradition: Green Potatoes

So as some of you may be aware Erik and I bough a house. We moved in to it on Monday and hosted Thanksgiving dinner on Friday. (Yes, yes we know Thanksgiving is on Thursday, but since most people only get Thursday and Friday off and many had to travel from far away it made sense to celebrate on Friday.  Also we needed that extra day.)  We had many of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans,  pies my mother made, and green potatoes. Wait, green potatoes?  People have heard about green eggs and ham, but when I mention green potatoes it usually doesn't ring a bell.  For the uninitiated, green potatoes are a Dutch tradition from Erik's mother's family.  And as the new bride I really wanted my Mother-in-law to be impressed with my ability to feed her son, so green potatoes were definitely on the menu (even though it meant we would have two potato dishes on the table).

Homemade Yogurt

Confession: around the time Brittany created this brilliant blog, I developed some serious stomach/nausea issues. Thus, I have been unable to cook for the past few months (unless you consider cooking to be combining a can of condensed soup with water in the microwave, then hey! I've become a pro at that!). This recipe is for creating homemade yogurt, something I had been doing on a monthly basis.

So although I didn't make something specifically for this first blog post, I’m still excited to share this with you because it’s been a part of my repertoire for a very long time. Sadly, I only have a few photos of the yogurt-making process to share (and apologies in advance to Facebook/Instagram friends…you've probably seen these photos before!) My fingers are crossed that by my next post, things will have resolved and I will have something new (with way more awesome pictures) to share.

So why make your own yogurt? Because it’s insanely easy and tastes about a million times better than the store bought stuff. And (ok, here’s my real reason) making it yourself is cheaper than buying it pre-made. Even when I use organic, grass-fed, local milk it is still cheaper, per quart, than the generic brand stuff available at Wal-Mart. For a family like mine, that loves its yogurt, that money saved can make a difference in the grocery bill.

Fancy Foodie Friday: Roasted Cauliflower, Sirloin Tip Roast, and Caramelized Onion Pasta

Feel like a treat after a long week? Splurge on a special ingredient? In the mood to spend a little longer in the kitchen? Got a hot date to impress with your culinary prowess? Check out the recipes in our ongoing Fancy Foodie Fridays series. These recipes might be a little too complex, time-consuming, or expensive for the every day, but are a nice challenge or treat for a fancy evening in. This is the first post in the series.


I’m a big fan of cooler weather. Many of the things I like best in life (soup, hot tea, fuzzy blankets, fuzzy socks, a lit fireplace, etc.) are best-suited to cooler weather. It’s also the perfect time of year for roasting. I live in Buffalo, NY, and this week is the first week it’s gotten nice and cold, so I’m celebrating by turning on the oven!

Roasting is my favorite way to prepare vegetables. It’s well-suited to my favorite veggies, which tend be the roots—cauliflower, potatoes, carrots, parsnips—but I’ve also found it works well for things like broccoli and asparagus. Asparagus especially gets these delicious crispy tips and turns very nutty in taste. Denser veggies like carrots or rutabagas take longer.