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Honey-Roasted Acorn Squash Salad with Hazelnuts + Balsamic Vinaigrette

December 7, 2015 • 20 Comments

If there’s one good thing about winter, other than the holidays of course, it’s winter squash.

Fun fact: Did you know the acorn squash is otherwise known as the “Des Moines squash?” I didn’t either, until I moved to Des Moines. Apparently the capital of Iowa was the first recorded place in the United States to have acorn squash back in the early 1900s. Pretty crazy, right?

After learning I was living in the place where one of my favorite squashes first appeared, I knew I had to make something with acorn squash in it. And so here we are today, staring at this beautiful Honey-Roasted Acorn Squash Salad with Hazelnuts and a Creamy Balsamic Vinaigrette. I’m not going to lie … this dish was almost to pretty to eat!

Coconut Flour Chocolate Cookie Bars

December 3, 2015 • 22 Comments

Warning: This recipe may cause you to eat an entire pan of cookie bars.

No joke. You’ve been warned. If you doubt me, just make a pan of these for yourself and let me know how long it lasts. I give you two days tops. Or at least that’s how long they lasted in our home between the Mr. and I.

One of the things I’ve missed since going gluten free has been the classic taste of my sweet mama and I’s chocolate chip cookies. Taking a bite into those cookies was like a time machine — they had the ability to take me back to some of my greatest memories as a little girl, baking in the kitchen with mama.

I lost that time machine when I had to go gluten free back in March, and though I tried to recreate it nothing came close. Until now.

A few months ago I stumbled on this recipe for Coconut Flour Cookie Bars by one of my favorite fellow food bloggers, Monique of Ambitious Kitchen. I bookmarked it with the intention of making it that weekend, but time ran away with itself and I never got around to it.

When the Mr. and I moved to Des Moines a few weeks ago, I had a bit of free time between settling in and starting my new job at The Integer Group. So what’s a girl to do with a little bit of free time? Bake, of course! I pulled up my Pinterest feed and randomly scrolled down to these paleo cookie bars, remembering just how eager I’d been to make them just a few months ago.

Clinging to Hope and Truth In the Waiting

December 1, 2015 • 12 Comments

I’ve never been Black Friday shopping.

Not traditionally at least, where you camp out overnight to get something you just can’t wait for (but clearly can because you’re standing outside in the freezing cold). I’m more of the head to the mall around 2 p.m. kind of gal. I don’t like waiting in lines or being surrounded by people when I shop. I like to go into a store, unhurriedly browse for a little bit, buy what I need and leave.

I wish I could say I was more patient in other areas of life, but the truth is I’m just not. It’s not that I can’t wait. I can wait; I just don’t like to wait.

Over time God has taught me how to wait patiently through the trials I’ve faced. He’s taught me to wait patiently for Him to move, rescue and restore my brokenness. He’s taught me to wait patiently for His direction and guidance. He’s taught me to trust and know that in the waiting, He is doing something great. But I still don’t like to wait.

Sometimes in the waiting, I forget how to be patient, remain hopeful and cling to truth in the everyday circumstances of life — especially the mundane, lackluster and troublesome days. Sometimes I don’t want to wait; I just want the trial to be over and done with already.

I recently read a good blog about waiting and Advent. The writer said, “If we got everything we wanted the moment we wanted it, we would lose out on the journey, and what happens on that journey.”

In the waiting, great things can happen.

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Smoked Salmon on Toast Points

November 30, 2015 • 17 Comments

You haven’t lived if you haven’t had smoked salmon.

OK, I’m slightly exaggerating here. I realize many of you reading this post probably have never tried smoked salmon, so I’ll dial it back and say: You haven’t experienced one of the best types of seafood out there if you’ve never tasted smoked salmon.

But before we talk about these AH-MAZ-ING, need-them-at-your-next-dinner-party Smoked Salmon on Toast Points, let’s wrap up Thanksgiving, shall we? I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and were able to take time to relax, unwind, and most importantly, share love and life with family and friends.

As some of you may have read in a previous post, this was my first year hosting Thanksgiving. All I can say is it was a dream come true! But today, it’s on to bigger and better things! Christmas and New Year’s are just around the corner and turkey is totally a thing of the past. It’s time to start thinking about Christmas dinners, decadent desserts and dinner party appetizers.Read More

Leftover Turkey + Stuffing Sandwiches

November 26, 2015 • 2 Comments

Happy Thanksgiving! For the sake of all the baking, cooking and decorating we all will be doing today, I’m going to keep this post short.

Today there will be much giving thanks and eating of delicious food. There will be plenty of turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie to go around. And if you’re like most American families, there will still be plenty of turkey and stuffing to go around even after Thanksgiving is over.

So what’s a family to do with leftover turkey and stuffing? Whatever you do don’t throw that healthy, delicious meat away! Put it to good use by making this quick and delicious Leftover Turkey Stuffing Sandwich with a cran-raspberry jam.

No one wants to spend a bunch of time making food the day after Thanksgiving, and you won’t have to with these sandwiches, which come together in less than 10 minutes. OK, now that you have tomorrow’s lunch (or dinner) figured out, go have yourself a fabulousThanksgiving! XOXO, Lauren.

Leftover Turkey + Stuffing Sandwiches

Serves: 4

Ingredients

8 slices Canyon Bakehouse Mountain White bread
1 1/2 -2 pounds leftover Thanksgiving turkey
1 cup leftover Thanksgiving stuffing
Romaine lettuce for garnish
[br]
[b]For the cran-raspberry jam:[/b]
¼ cup raspberry preserves
½ cup fresh cranberries
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions

[i]For the jam: [/i]Heat raspberry preserves in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in cranberries and cinnamon and reduce heat to medium-low, stirring frequently, until cranberries begin to pop, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice, and let cool and thicken before serving.
To assemble the sandwiches, place four of the slices of bread on a sheet or cutting board and top with equal amounts of lettuce, turkey, stuffing and cran-raspberry jam. Top with remaining slices of bread.

Giving Thanks + A Gratitude List

November 25, 2015 • 7 Comments

I walked into the church service with a weary, burdened heart.

On top of just moving to a new state with no friends or family nearby, I’d woken up with a full-blown cold and partially locked jaw. And as the morning progressed the pain only intensified.

Once we found a spot to sit in the sanctuary, I silently prayed the words of Luke 22:42 as the worship band began to sing. “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me.” But my heart was not in the right place. For when the worship leader said, “won’t you stand and give thanks to our great God with me this morning?” the only thought that entered my head was yeah, right, like I have anything to be thankful for with all the pain I’m going through.

Ouch.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet the selfish, ungrateful, ugly side of me. The side where my spirit gives way to my flesh. The side where I let lies overtake truth. Because of my faith, it’s a side that comes out rarely. Nevertheless it is a part of who I am and I cannot hide it. We all have a human side to us, a dark side that can be easily clouded by sin. Maybe your dark side is jealousy, maybe it’s materialism … or maybe, like me, it’s an ungrateful heart.

But God is so full of grace, and in my moment of ungratefulness I heard him whisper to me, “dear daughter, my grace is sufficient for you.” His words instantly reminded me of all I have to be thankful for. I prayed once again and asked the Lord for forgiveness for my ungrateful spirit.

Even if nothing in life is going as we want it to go, we always have a reason to be grateful because Jesus died for us and showed us grace! Maybe you can’t run as fast as you used to run, maybe your boyfriend broke up with you unexpectedly, maybe you can’t afford those shoes you want oh-so-badly, but Jesus died for you so that you may experience life to the fullest (John 10:10). And that is reason enough to give thanks.

We have breath. We have life. What a precious gift this is!

A few months back I stumbled upon a post on gratitude by author Jeff Goins where he encourages readers to create a gratitude list. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, I want to encourage you to do the same this week as we celebrate Thanksgiving. Make a list of 10 things you are thankful for in life. Then, tape it somewhere so you can be reminded of it often.

Hopefully after making the list you can see, like me, just how blessed we are. We are blessed to be a blessing and given much so that we can give back. Let us not forget just how blessed we are and let us share the grace our Father extends to us with everyone this holiday season.

P.S. Here’s my gratitude list to help get you started.

1. I am thankful my heavenly father lavishes me with His love and grace everyday, even when I am ungrateful.

2. I am thankful for my loving husband, who supports me in cultivating and following my passions. (And who also let me get a dog!)

3. I am thankful for a faith-filled family, who taught me the importance and power of prayer.

4. I am thankful for friends who have stood by my side through thick and thin.

5.. I am thankful for finding a new job in Des Moines even before we moved here.

6. I am thankful I have the opportunity to maintain this blog and write on a daily basis.

7. I am thankful for chocolate in all of its forms.

8. I am thankful for our puppy Reese, who makes me laugh uncontrollably — even when he’s misbehaving.

9. I am thankful for all of you readers, and the online community of writers and food bloggers who inspire me and the world on a daily basis.

10. I am thankful for the wonderful gift of love — like chocolate, in all of its forms.