new dish

i made this recipe last night and it was delicious. i'm always on the lookout for an easy pasta dish.

i didn't even have the pesto on hand that it calls for (didn't quite make it to trader joes this weekend) and it was still delicious. since i'm in love with pesto, i can only imagine how good it will be when i made the recipe correctly.

aaron hates tomatoes and hates pasta that isn't smothered in sauce, so i was unsure how he'd react, but he gobbled it up and wanted more.

hooray for new recipes.

oh, and i roasted my broccoli first instead of blanching it. way more flavor. also, i did most of the prep the night before and just re-heated while boiling the noodles. an option in case you need a super quick dish and can do prep ahead of time.

try it!

it's that time of year

the UP house, how cute.

the gingerbread is being rolled out.

literally.

this week marks the 2nd annual gingerbread house making party.

i have decided to try for a cape cod style home with details such as faux wooden siding in a cheery color, white picket fence, green turf and a host of other details.

i'm baking the gingerbread tonight so it will be nice and firm for wednesday. tonight is also time to dye the coconut for the grass and dip the pretzel sticks for the picket fence.

i've been working on this since last week, gathering supplies and cutting out my pattern.

who knew this was such a beast?

but, the finished product is so worth it. so is rocking out to Christmas music while assembling.

and, maybe in many, many years, my house will actually reflect the amount of time it took to put it together.

and, maybe, one year, i will admit that everyone knows it is a whimsical house and decorate it so, instead of acting like i can fool everyone into thinking it is a real, miniature house.

a candy land theme could be fun...

welcome Christmas traditions!