New Orleans

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We went to New Orleans over the weekend so that my crazy husband could run his seventh (eighth?) marathon. I haven’t been to New Orleans in over ten years and obviously it’s changed. I took the photo above in the Lower 9th Ward. The devastation from Katrina was vast and although my aunt lost her home in Slidell, I could not have fathomed the scope of this disaster in its present day state until I saw it — miles and miles of homes still damaged or destroyed (satellite images). Yet the history of the city remains with the French Quarter, St. Charles Avenue, and Audubon Park relatively unscathed. The spirit and energy of this cultural intersection are still there in its eclectic mix of people and in the outstanding food, drink and music. If you’d like to see some more of my photos, you can view them here.

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Trying to stay on-topic here on the blog (and desperately trying to avoid the obvious question about why New Orleans still looks like this), here is a link to a café au lait recipe! The beignets were yummy too, but who wants to do all that frying in their kitchen? The café au lait recipe is from Emeril and since he’s from New Orleans I suppose it’s a good recipe, though there seems to be something about chicory in the coffee which is not included.

Flower Lollipops

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I attempted to make lollipops for the first and last time. I do not recommend cooking sugar to 320 degrees with two small children under foot. It was stressful and messy! I will, however, try this project again with some melted chocolates, since it is far easier. We used this idea from Martha Stewart to make heart-shaped “petals” for our flowers, which my five-year-old cut. I used the lollipop recipe from Martha Stewart as well, which can be found here.

Mix-In Muffins

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My mother made these delicious muffins and brought them over for Christmas. You can find the recipe on the Food Network. She made the pineapple/coconut muffins and the cranberry muffins. They were both delicious and very cake-like. Yum. You can try this recipe when you feel like cooking or eating sweets again!

Peppermint Bark

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I have been craving this!  Here‘s a good recipe from Martha Stewart.  Planning a birthday party for both girls tomorrow, but hope to make some after that.  Stay tuned for photos from the Alice in Wonderland Celebration.

What’s for Dinner?

What to do with all this beautiful squash around the house?  I’m going to try a variation of this recipe from Whole Foods Market’s site.  I love butternut squash and it’s much easier to prepare than I had imagined.  Any squash can be baked in an oven at 375 for 1 to 1 1/2 hours (depending on the size).  Just be sure to poke some vent holes and place on a baking sheet.