I am a self professed pasta lover. If I had to choose between giving up sweets and desserts or pasta, I would give up desserts. I have made my own raviolis but this week was the first time I had made noodles on my own. I am not sure why but there was this image in my head of a huge mess and lots of hours invested. I was so wrong. Making your own pasta is super easy. I played around with a recipe and found that adding a vegetable into the dough was super easy. My 6 year old daughter Maggie has inherited the love for carbs from me, however her love for vegetables changes daily. One day she is snacking on carrots and asking for kale for dinner. The next day she dislikes any and all produce. There is never a day that she says no to noodles though. We made pasta with roasted kabocha squash and it was a huge success. The squash taste is very mild but it adds such a beautiful fresh flavor.I don't think I will ever by store bought again.
Winter Squash Pasta
Ingredients;

• 1 cup roasted winter squash (butternut, pumpkin, acorn or kabocha)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups flour

Instructions;

• Add the squash, egg yolk, egg and salt to a KitchenAid or food processor. Mix until smooth and blended scraping down edges as needed.
• Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time. Scrape down edges as needed. The dough will come to a ball. 
• Move the ball of dough to a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes. The dough should become soft and not sticky. Add a little flour at a time if it is still sticky. 
• Wrap the dough in saran wrap at room temperature for 30 minutes. You can keep the dough in the fridge for a couple days after this if you want to wait to use it.
• Divide the dough into 4 sections and cover the ones you are not using with a damp cloth so they do not dry out. If not cooking pasta immediately use a drying rack or place on baking sheets dusted with flour.
• Flatten out your first piece and dust with flour. If you have a pasta maker you can use it. If you do not then use a rolling pin and roll it thin. Make sure the dough does not stick to the surface you are rolling on. 
• If the dough is very long you can cut it in half. Slice long strips through the rolled out dough. I found that a pizza cutter works perfect. 
• Bring a big pot of water to a boil and add the pasta in a little bit at a time. Fresh pasta will only take a few minutes to cook, when all of the pasta floats to the top it will be done. Remove with slotted spoon and serve with your choice of sauce.

When you were a kid did you eat the mini pot pies from the freezer section? I loved those as a kid. It was not until a few years ago I even considered making chicken pot pie myself. For some reason I thought it would be a lot of work, turns out I was wrong. This is a great way to use left over turkey from Thanksgiving or produce that needs to be used before it goes bad. To make it even easier I suggest using store bought pie crust or next time you make pie make a double batch of crust and store in the freezer until you are ready.
Ingredients;

• Cooked chicken chopped up.
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 tbs butter
• 2 tbs flour 
• Pie crust
• Minced garlic
• Small chopped onion
• Variety of vegetables (I like corn, peas,carrots. You can also add in potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower)

Instructions;

• Preheat oven to 425
• Add butter, garlic and onions into a stockpot on low. After butter is melted stir in the flour until a roux is made. 
• Add the vegetables of your choice, the chicken and the broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat. After a little bit the soup will thicken.
• Place one pie crust on the bottom of a pie tin. Fill with the soup after it has thickened up. Place the other sheet of pie crust over the top. Pinch the edges together and make 4 slits in the top. Bake in the oven until the crust is golden brown, about 2 minutes. 

Sometimes I crave something fresh and crisp. Salads check all of the boxes but lets face it, regular green salads can be boring. Salads can be so exciting and not just that mix in a bag with ranch dressing on top. This is the perfect winter salad that can fix that craving.
Ingredients;

• 2 large roasted beets
• orange zest
• 1 tbs honey (we recommend Jefferson Bee Co from our specialty items)
• goat cheese
• chopped pistachios

Instructions;

• Slice beets and lay onto platter
• Sprinkle the orange zest, goat cheese and pistachios then drizzle the honey over the top. Add more honey if you would like it sweeter.

I have a love for all food cheesy and gooey. Potatoes au gratin is definitely on the top of the list. Sometimes it is fun to mix things up though and put a twist on our favorites. Butternut squash is so diverse and is in abundance this time of year. Try this recipe in place of your potato dish for Thanksgiving this year.

Ingredients;

• 1 butternut squash
• 1/4 c butter
• 2 garlic cloves
• Diced onion
• 1/4 c bread crumbs (I like to use panko breadcrumbs)
• 1/3 c grated parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper
• chopped fresh parsley

Directions;

• Preheat oven to 375. Peel the butternut squash and cut in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds from the middle. Cut in slices.
• Arrange slices slightly overlapping in a glass baking dish. 
• In a saucepan melt butter. Reduce heat to low and add garlic and onions until it is fragrant and soft.
• In a bowl mix together the bread crumbs, cheese and a tablespoon of the butter.
• Speed the remaining butter over the squash getting every piece. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Spread the bread crumb mixture over the top of the squash.
• Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the squash is cooked through and can be pierced with a fork. 
• Increase the oven temperature to 425 and bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes until dish is highly browned on top. Remove from oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley.

What is Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce. Perfect side and a must for leftover turkey sandwiches the next day. This year lets ditch the can (which has 105 grams of sugar) and go with fresh delicious homemade pomegranate cranberry sauce. This is a super simple recipe that will impress everyone and take some of the stress off of you.
Ingredients;
12 oz fresh cranberries
1/2 c fresh pomegranate juice
1/2 c water
1/2 c brown sugar
orange zest
​
Directions;
Bring all of the ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to a simmer for 20 minutes
Mash all ingredients together and allow to cool for one hour.
This can be made the day of or the day before. 

Both of my parents were self employed when I was growing up. I am pretty sure every child labor law was broke because I started working for them as soon as I started asking for new toys. When I was in high school and finally old enough  to start working my first job was at a pizza place. I have been a little picky about how pizza should taste since then. One thing I have learned over the years is almost every pizza dough recipe is basically the same. It is also super easy to make. A few tips, make sure you knead the dough long enough. If when you roll it out and it wants to shrink back then it was not kneaded long enough. Once it is rolled out use a fork to puncture holes throughout it. This will eliminate those big air bubbles. And even though it is really easy to make, it can be very messy, especially if kids are helping. This recipe makes enough dough for several pizzas. If you are only having one the rest can be put in the freezer for another night.
Ingredients;
2 cups warm water
1 package of yeast (this equals about 1 tablespoon)
1/2 tbs salt
5 cups flour (I like to use half all purpose and 1/2 Llano Seco spelt flour)

Directions;
1. In a large bowl mix the water with the yeast and let it sit for about 5 minutes.
2. Add in 2 1/2 cups of the flour to the water and yeast mixture. Mix together for several minutes. If you have a Kitchen Aid you can use a dough hook to make it easier.
3. Now add the remaining flour and salt. Sprinkle a little flour onto a surface place the dough on it and start kneading until it is smooth.
4. Form the dough into a ball and place back into a bowl. Cover the top with a damp kitchen towel and let sit for 20 minutes or until it rises.
5. Splt dough into 2 - 3 balls, depending on the size of the pizza you are making. Roll out on a floured surface and use whichever toppings you desire. Brush olive oil around the edges and bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

I do not go to coffee shops very often. I drink my coffee black and other than a chai tea as a treat once in awhile I am not a big fan of lattes or mochas. When my mom came to visit over the summer she walked in the door with this pink Starbucks drink. I took a sip and it was not love at first taste. To be honest, I really did not know if I liked it or not. So I took another sip and then I was hooked. It was not over the top sweet and had such a refreshing crisp flavor. I turned to the first place I could think of, Pinterest, and started to look for copycat recipes. To my surprise they were all different. Extremely different. I decided to try on my own and see what I came up with. I have not tried side by side but I think what I came up with is pretty darn close.
Ingredients
4 hibiscus tea bags
4 green tea bags
7 cups water
1 cup sugar
2 cups very cold water
1 cup berries (I used fresh blackberries but any combo fresh or frozen will work)

Directions
1.) In a pot on the stove boil 6 cups of water and add the tea bags. Remove from heat. Let the tea steep for about 30 minutes. I like to add some of the berries to the tea as it steeps.
2.) In another pot boil 1 cup of water and then add the 1 cup of sugar. Stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat.
3.) Remove the tea bags and pour into pitcher. Add the sugar water and mix together. Add the rest of the berries into the tea. Add the ice cold water and mix together then store in the fridge.

I cannot think of a single person that does not love mac and cheese. I don't mean the yellow powder in a packet type of macaroni and cheese either. Real mac and cheese is very easy to make and it does not take much more effort to take it up a level. My step son thinks that butternut squash mac and cheese is the best dinner ever and I usually need to make a larger batch when he is here. The best thing about this dish is that everyone can have it. Jake has to have meat with every dinner so I add in bacon. If you are a vegetarian you can leave out the bacon. If you are vegan, guess what, you do not even need to add the cheese and it still has that mac and cheese taste.
Ingredients;
Pasta (Your choice, we like penne but you can go traditional macaroni)
1 medium butternut squash
bacon cut into pieces (we LOVE Llano Seco bacon)
2 tbs butter
1/2 tbs flour
diced onion
chopped garlic
2 cups of milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
parmesan cheese
panic bread crumbs (you can use regular as well)

Directions;
1.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice squash in half, drizzle olive oil on it and roast in oven. One helpful tip is to place whole squash in microwave first for about 5 minutes to make it softer and roast quicker. 
2.) while squash is in the oven cook your bacon and pasta.When completed place bacon on paper towels to drain grease.
3.) Remove squash from oven. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add garlic and onion and sauté for several minutes. Add the 1/2 tbs of flour and mix with butter. Traditionally you would use equal parts butter and flour but the squash is so thick it will help thicken the sauce as well. Add the milk and whisk into the rue. Make sure the milk does not come to a hard boil and burn it. Keep it at a low boil for a couple minutes to thicken up.
4.) Scoop out the squash and place into a blender. Add the milk mixture. Blend together and return to saucepan. Heat it up again and then add both cheeses stirring until it is melted.
5.) Mix the pasta, cheese sauce and bacon together. Save a little bacon to sprinkle over the top. Pour into the casserole dish. Sprinkle bread crumbs over the top and the remaining bacon and place in the oven for 15 minutes just to get it nice and crispy on the top.

When I was a kid we had green beans one way, out of a can baked in the oven with cheese melted over them. Fresh green beans far exceed canned beans and healthier since canned veggies tend to have a lot of sodium in them. We have been receiving beautiful multi colored beans the last few weeks and I wanted to experiment with different recipes. All three are delicious. My sweet 5 year old who is a self proclaimed green bean hater had not one, but two large helpings and now loves them.
For all three recipes start with washing your green beans, trimming the ends then blanching them. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add green beans for 3 minutes then place into a bowl of ice water.

Lemon Butter Garlic Green Beans
Ingredients
2 tbs butter
Garlic
1/2 a lemon
Grated parmesan cheese
Green Beans
Directions
Melt the butter in a sauté pan. Add the garlic for 30 seconds then juice the lemon into the butter with garlic. Add the green beans and cook for about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and zest lemon over the top and add parmesan cheese.

Bacon Green Beans
Ingredients
Bacon cut into pieces
Garlic
Balsamic Vinegar
Green beans
Directions;
Cook bacon then drain almost all of the grease. Add garlic and green beans to the bacon and cook about 4 minutes. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar, mix together then remove from heat.

Spicy Green Beans
Ingredients
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tbs chili sauce
1/2 tsp honey (can use sugar)
crushed red pepper
garlic
Directions
Mix together soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili sauce and honey in a small bowl.
Add green beans, garlic and crushed red pepper to a pan and cook for about 4 minutes. Stir in sauce and and mix together with green beans. When sauce is heated all the way through remove from heat.