Apple-Brown Sugar Coffee Cake

I love Saturday mornings. I usually get up and head straight to the kitchen make a pot of coffee and start making something for breakfast that will put a huge smile on my kiddos faces. So this past Saturday I got up ready to make a coffee cake.

This was the best coffee cake EVER!! Just look at the ingredients, how could you go wrong?!?!

Penny's Apple-Brown Sugar Coffee Cake by Silvana Nardone

serves 8 prep time 10 minutes cook time 45 minutes

1 cup plus 2 tsp Silvana's All-Purpose Flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2 eggs

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large apples-peeled, cored

and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Roasted Mushroom-Stuffed Chicken Marsala

I came across this meal in my cookbook and was hesitant to make it...why? Because every time I eat it in a restaurant I regret it. But one of the things that I liked about this recipe was that you stuff the chicken with sauteed mushrooms. And I'm a sucker for sauteed mushrooms, so I gave it a whirl. It turned out really good.

Roasted Mushroom-Stuffed Chicken Marsala by Silvana Nardone

serves 4 prep time 25 minutes cook time 30 minutes

2 Tbsp EVOO

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 pound button mushrooms, thinly sliced

1/2 cup Marsala or white wine

2 Tbsp chopped parsley

Salt and Pepper

1 cup chicken broth

4 boneless chicken breast, butterflied

and pounded 1/2inch thick

Suggestions Wanted

Day dreaming and formulating ideas.

That's what I have been trying to do as we make plans to move back to TN. We hope and pray we will be able to buy a house that we can live in for at least the next 10 years if not forever. As we move toward this goal, I get the fun and overwhelming opportunity to think...decorating!!

However, blank slates terrify me!! AND I am indecisive and I get bored quickly /:

All that being said, I have been looking through years of Southern Living and Better Home & Gardens magazines for ideas on paint and style. I have found that I like, shabby chic mixed with a little contemporary. For example, a wood table with plastic or metal chairs in a breakfast nook. However I will not have the money to buy any new furniture.

Here are pieces I already have and will need to use. Hoping a little paint and creativity and I'll be able to pull the look off.

Also, I have to think through a good wall color for a kitchen and nook to go with table...just keep that in mind.

Thoughts/Suggestions/Ideas

Rosemary-Garlic Roast Chicken

I have to admit, I dont recall if I have ever made a whole roast chicken before. I normally think, thats a lot of food, no need to go through the hassle. But believe it or not...it wasn't a hassle, it was actually quite easy.

Rosemary-Garlic Roast Chicken with Root Vegetables by Silvana Nardone

serves 6 prep time 15 minutes cook time 1 hour 30 minutes

5 carrots cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

2 onions, 1 cut into 1/2-inch pieces and 1 halved

4 cloves garlic, smashed

6 sprigs rosemary

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 5lb roasting chicken, rinsed and patted dry

Salt and pepper

EVOO. for brushing

I used leeks instead of parsnips. You could use potatoes instead of either if you prefer. Don't feel pigeon holed into only using what is suggested.

Spaghetti & Meatballs

This is one of my favorite go to dishes. It just screams comfort food. I was making it long before the days of GF. I made some slight changes and now its safe for the whole family.

Spaghetti & Meatballs

serves 6 prep time 30 min cook time 25 min

2 Tbsp EVOO

1 lb ground beef 85/15

1 small onion dices very small

3 cloves garlic dices

1 cup rice cereal crumbs

1 egg beaten

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp rosemary

1 tsp parsley

1/2 cup rice milk

salt & pepper

1 box of quinoa pasta

1 jar marinara spaghetti sauce

1. Add all ingredients into a bowl and combine well with your hands.

2. On the stove, pour EVOO into a heavy sauce pan, do not heat at this time. Begin to roll your ground beef mix into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place them into the oil. Once all of your meatballs are in the pan,

turn heat onto med-high.

Brown meatballs on all sides, getting them nice and crisp.

3. Once they are brown add the marinara sauce to the meatballs and let cook on medium heat for about 20 minutes or until your desire of doneness.

Butter Nut Squash Rice Bake & Gluten-Free Fad

I had the chance to go to dinner last night with a sweet friend. We talked about budgets, eating better and food fads. It was such a great conversation. I love that we were like minded in desiring to feed our family well and stay on a budget. We talked about that once were the days of organic and now are the days of gluten-free and that "c" word (Lara could not remember the new word that she keeps seeing everywhere...casein).

I used to be the person who would not go to the "dark side," I would feed my kids healthy but not give in to, "the man." HAHA! However, as Trevor likes to say, "we are those people," now. But as we, Lara and I, continued to talk about why we do it, its not because its a fad (btw, no she is not GF, like us), its because as we continue to learn more about food, we learn how destructive some foods can be for our bodies and our little ones bodies. So, why if you know better would you keep feeding yourself and your kids crap? I know this is a touchy subject for some and I will probably get more comments than I desire, but I do think it is worth investigating, doing your own research. Don't just listen to me and jump on the band wagon. You will jump off after two weeks.

The other thing that came up was, this cannot become our gospel, our truth, what we preach. I love food and I love good food, but I love God more and His gospel more. I will not allow gluten-free, organic, farm grown food to become my idol. But I must be careful, because it so easily can. That's why until now I haven't talked much about why we do it or why other should on this blog. Because as good as it is, I do not want it to become central to who I am.

So as I write about food and blog about new GF recipes, cookbooks, resources, etc, that's all it is resources, its not who we are.

Okay, jumping off my soap box now...haha! Now would anyone like to see the YUMMMY Butternut Squash Bake I made the other night???

Butternut Squash Rice Bake With Toasted Hazelnut-Sage Crunch

by Silvana Nardone

Serves 4 Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 55 minutes

1 butternut squash peeled and cut into

1/2 inch pieces

4 Tbsp EVOO

Salt and Pepper

1/2 cup rice cereal crumbs

1/2 hazelnuts, chopped

1 1/2 tsp sage

2 cloves garlic chopped

2 cups Arborio rice

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1 1/4 cups water

I really liked this side dish. It was creamy, but with this great crunch from the

hazelnuts and cereal crumb mix. Tasty! We ate balsamic marinated chicken

with it, also quite yummm.

Potato-Crusted Bacon Bits and Egg Pie

This breakfast pie was made for dinner this week and it was delicious. Next time I will make it a bit bigger { I used a pie pan } and serve it with savory waffles. The topping is egg whites beat till peaks form, then yolks folded in and spread on top. It was fluffy and kinda bread like.

Picture courtesy of Cooking For Isaiah

Potato-Crusted Bacon Bits and Egg Pie by Silvana Nardone

Serves 4 Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 36 minutes

6 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Half bag of frozen hashbrowns, thawed {this is my addition}

1 tsp paprika

Salt and Pepper

3 large eggs, separated

1/2 cup rice milk

1 tsp yellow mustard