And here it is – Thanksgiving week. How are you feeling?

This month’s Cake Slice Bakers recipe was a perfect choice for November. Rich with Fall flavors like pumpkin, ginger, cinnamon and pecans, this is a creamy and very rich dessert, perfect for a Thanksgiving (or any other) celebration.

These were a huge hit at my office. One person thought they were too sweet, but pretty much everyone else raved. Not a single one came back home with me at the end of the day.

Thanks, Mel! You made me look like a star.

You may notice a couple of dishes that have been appearing week after week. That isn’t because we love it so much we eat it every seven days. No, it’s because I still haven’t managed to get them made! Schedules change, things come up, and next thing I know, it’s end of the week. Hopefully, this will be the week for enchiladas and mini-meatloaves!
At the Farmer’s Market this past Saturday, I picked up a whole bunch of mushrooms – oysters and cremini. Yum! So I have to use …

It’s Menu Plan Monday again! This week is Staff Meeting at my office, and I always bring “Monthly Munchies” to keep the mood sweet.

Getting back on the menu planning horse!  I’ve menu planned semi-regularly for the last few years.  Whenever I start getting lazy and stop planning, my cooking activity also starts to drop.  I find that planning is essential to actually getting fresh, from scratch meals on the table.
Thank goodness for Menu Plan Mondays to keep me honest.  I’ve only listed the dinners here, as that’s currently the most challenging meal. But I have a goal to improve our breakfasts and lunches, so you may see some of those on my plans …

Apple Cake with Maple Frosting is a rustic, homestyle cake filled with chunks of apple, lovely fall spices and bits of crunchy walnuts.

An easy way to spice up simple shortbread cookies

My poor co-workers, so spoiled after 4 years of getting home baked goodies every month for staff meeting – last month, they got donuts from the local bakery with a “too hot to bake!” note stuck to the box. There were some sad faces around the office (I notice they still ate the donuts, though). But this month, I showed up with these Black Bottom Coconut Macaroons and suddenly everyone was happy again.

Let’s just say that cooking has been minimal of late.

So for today, all I’ve got to offer you is whimsy.