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This recipe is adapted from a new favorite cookbook. I was given a copy of Serena, Food & Stories by a family friend and immediately fell in love with her writing and cooking style. Serena Bass was a high-profile caterer in New York and ran a bar in the basement of the Chelsea Hotel. Her book’s…

Rob and I bought a new car last weekend! A black 2014 Subaru Impreza with manual transmission that we’ve named “Simone.” It’s not that much bigger than our beloved 2007 Honda Fit, but the 4WD transmission and heated seats are awesome. It is so exciting to take home a car with only 13 miles on…

Almost every woman I know owns (or has considered buying) one of Martha Stewart’s 24-piece glitter sets.  Tiny glittery vials packed in rainbow order with elegant names? That’s essentially irresistible to anyone passing through Michael’s or Pinterest. But once you have all that glitter…what do you do with it? My sister and I tackled this…

Looking for an hearty and healthy winter stew that brings the spice and can serve a crowd? A big pot of green chile made with pork shoulder is the answer. It takes a few hours to simmer, but the end result is so worth the effort. I used this recipe from Martha Stewart as an…

Now that our 20-day vacation in Maui is over, let’s recap the best beaches, food and other activities of the trip for future reference! Beaches Nipili Bay – My favorite beach of the trip! A small gem with deep water for swimming and virtually no waves, ideal for the baby to splash around. Plus, a nice…

On Sunday afternoon, after we had spent the morning cleaning and preparing for Haley’s return home, Rob and I decided to check out the other end of the Road to Hana.  You can technically drive all the way around the east side of Maui, but the road after Hana is unpaved and quite dangerous. At…

We arrived in Hana just in time for lunch. A tasty kalua pork sandwich with pineapple slaw from the snack stand facing Hana Bay. A black sand beach was easily seen from across the water. A very pretty whitewashed Buddhist temple sits on the road out of Hana. With the sun now out, we stopped…

Still raining on the Road to Hana, we turned off the road on a whim to follow signs for the National Tropical Botanical Garden. At $10 each, entrance to Kahanu Gardens wasn’t cheap but it was interesting to explore the grounds and see the largest ancient temple on the Hawaiian Islands. 300 by 400 feet,…

I was just getting ready to post the recap of our Maui vacation, when I realized that two days were missing! First, our Saturday drive on the Road to Hana. It was a stormy day. Between the rain and it being a week after New Year’s Eve, we had Hana Highway largely to ourselves. Rob…

Busy with a lot of cooking today. Back soon with new posts full of details and recipes. In the meantime, I had forgotten how good regular carrots taste. Why do I keep buying tasteless baby carrot nubs?