Ellie@Home by Nicole Kapise-Perkins

     As promised, having taken a stack of cookbooks from the library (the lovely library ladies and the lone library guy are no doubt wondering what kind of shindig I'm planning and where their invitations are) I have some results from playing around with Week in a Day. While there are some recipes I won't do (veal, lamb, mussels) they are easily tweaked for picky people like me.      My only real issue is that this book isn't very vegetarian friendly. I am the only (mostly) vegetarian person in my household, and I still eat poultry and fish on occasion (case in point, my mango shrimp curry); however, my husband and the minions are perfectly happy with eating meat only two or three times a week. Better for them, better for the environment, everyone is happy, especially the innocent piggy lives saved by us not scarfing down cider- and honey-glazed pork roast with pears, parsnips and potatoes every couple of days. (Josh would if I let him. Serio...

Tonight in the Perkins house it's: Thyme-Scented Honey-Glazed Pork Roast with Cider-Stewed Parsnips, Potatoes and Pears This is one of mine...but I'm sure others have made this, or a version of it. 1 5lb boneless pork roast 3 Anjou pears, quartered, cores removed, and cut into 1inch chunks 3 medium parsnips, quartered and cut into 1 inch chunks 3 medium red potatoes, cut into 1 inch chunks olive oil salt, pepper, and dried thyme 1/4 to 1/2 cup apple cider honey * Preheat oven to 350 degrees. * In a 9x13 casserole dish, place your piggy roast, fat side up. Arrange parsnips, potatoes and pears around, but don't cover the roast. * Drizzle veggies with olive oil; sprinkle meat and veggies with salt, pepper and dried thyme. (I'm of the opinion that when it comes to thyme, more is always better, but that's just me.) * Use a spoon to gently toss veggies to coat with the oil and seasonings. * Pour cider into bottom of casserole dish. * Drizzle honey over v...

Cinnamon Ginger BAKED APPLE CHIPS Ingredients needed Makes 4 to 5 servings 4 apples 1 lemon, juiced 2 cups cold water sprinkle of cinnamon sprinkle of ground ginger Set your oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit while preparing your apples. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Add lemon juice to a bowl of cold water and set to the side. Wash and slice your apples as thin as you can, core and all. Add apple slices in the cold water and lemon juice mixture for a few seconds as this will prevent browning. Remove apple slices from the water, and place in a single layer on your lined baking sheet. Sprinkle the chips with cinnamon and ginger powder. Bake the apple slices for 1 hour, then flip to the other side. Bake for another hour. If the slices are not dry enough, you can bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Once the apple slices are done to your liking, remove from heat and set to the side to cool. Once the apple slices are cool, place them in a air-tight container for sto...

from the genius Lindsey at Hello Natural !! http://hellonatural.co/ The lentil-butternut squash curry sounds AMAZING!!! 12 easy slow cooker meals to make ahead and freeze 1. Meatballs + Tomato Sauce One bag frozen meatballs (homemade are great too!), one 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning Cook time: 3-4 hours on HIGH Serve with: cooked pasta, green salad, garlic bread 2. Ginger Peach Chicken 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, 12-ounce bag of frozen peach slices, 1 sliced red onion, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 2 tablespoons Tamari or soy sauce, 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, 2 teaspoons ground coriander Cook time: 4-5 hours on HIGH Serve with: cooked white or brown rice, steamed veggies 3. Vegetable Beef Stew 2 pounds stew meat, 1 diced onion, 2 sliced carrots, 1 sliced parsnip, 1 large rutabaga (peeled and cut into cubes), 1/2 cup red wine, 2 tablespoons beef stock base or 3 bouillon cubes Extra instructions: ...

I am sad to say Susie Middleton's Fresh From the Farm was a surprising disappointment. I didn't find any new recipes; many were from The Fresh and Green Table , and more surprisingly, the format was just bizarre: the pages were too busy, as the stories she included in the cookbook were printed in the margins. It was hard to focus on the reading when there was so much happening on the page: photos, recipes, back story... If you're a Middleton fan it's worth buying, I suppose, but I'm not adding it to my collection. Giada De Laurentiis' Weeknights With Giada is a bigger success; I've got my eye on a few of the recipes for dinner next week. Updates will follow!