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Saturday, January 19, 2013

Odds & Ends

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 1. It's no secret that I LOVE Cooking Light. I've been subscribing for probably four or five years now and I always read every issue cover to cover. It's the source of inspiration behind MANY of my recipes (pumpkin cinnamon rolls, one of my favorite asparagus dishes, and baked black beans with chorizo, to name a few). When they reached out to me and asked me to be one of their featured bloggers, it took me all of two seconds to reply with a resounding yes! It really means nothing new, since I was already cooking loads of their recipes and sharing them here and will continue to do so. You can find my blogger profile on their website here and you now have the opportunity to subscribe to Cooking Light at a discount. Just click the graphic below, or the Cooking Light button on the right side of the page. (In full disclosure, I am not being paid to promote Cooking Light. I do, however, receive a [tiny] cut of any subscriptions that are purchased. Even if not, I'd still be suggesting you sign up for this great mag!)


2. Remember how I was in L.A. for work, and excited about the warm temperatures? My excitement was pointless--I literally went outdoors in daylight twice: when I arrived and when I left. SAD. Despite insanely long and tiring days, we did have the chance to leave the basement of the hotel in the evenings to be wined and dined. I have to give high marks to Boa (favorite: the beets, the marinated mushrooms, and the mashed potatoes!!!), C&O Trattoria (favorite: garlic knots!), and Cafe del Rey (favorite: ahi tuna and truffle pizza!). 

image courtesy of Tyler Scott Photography
3. I've mentioned my (soon-to-be) rockstar cousin Ben before and he deserves a special mention today. The guy set out to raise $5,500 via Kickstarter in the month of January to record an album. Basically Ben had 30 days on the Kickstarter funding platform to get enough "backers" to support him....the guy SMASHED his goal, raising the money in four days. FOUR. That's a lot of money and a short amount of time...and he still has a few days left to reach his new stretch goal of $7,500 (info on that here). I'm proud to back Ben, proud to call him my cousin, and SO excited to be a part of his new album. My desire to be artistic and musical is well-documented here and if the best I can do is pay for others to do it, I'm happy to help! 

4. While I was gone, Ryan made this slow cooker sweet potato black bean chili, except this time he added chicken to it. There were still some leftovers by the time I got home and I was once again reminded that this is one of my favorite slow cooker meals! It's awesome with or without the chicken, but either way, make it soon!

One Year Ago: Cranberry Poppyseed Bundt Cake
Two Years Ago: Southwestern Potato Nachos (one of my favorites!)
Three Years Ago: Chocolate Chip Bailey's Torte
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