I strongly believe that one of the very best things about being an adult is that I can drink chocolate milk whenever I want, and no one can say a single word about it.  It is a perk I enjoy frequently.  However, as an adult I am increasingly aware of both the ingredients we consume as well as the environmental impact of our habits.  We have eliminated the majority of processed foods from our diets and I am generally pretty careful not to buy items containing high fructose corn syrup.  Because of this, each glass of chocolate milk I drank was less and less enjoyable – I felt very guilty about my reliance on Hershey’s chocolate syrup.

So, what else to do but make my own chocolate syrup?  Thankfully this recipe is so simple it can be made in less time than it would take to run to the store for the bottled stuff, and it uses just a few pantry staples.  Of course I use it for so much more than just chocolate milk – making homemade mochas, drizzling on ice cream sundaes, etc.  And as with just about everything homemade, this puts Hershey’s to shame.  It is so much more rich and chocolatey – a little bit goes a long way.

Note: The bottle pictured is from Sur La Table.  The straws are from Bake It Pretty.

Without a doubt, one of the most common questions I receive day after day is, “How do you do it?”  Most of the time I suppose this question is in reference to how I balance being a mom, wife, working full time, cooking for our family, and writing this blog.  It’s a very difficult question to answer because the first thing that comes to mind is always, “I just do.”  I want to do all of these things and maintain this balance in my life, so I make it happen.  Of course it helps that we have to eat every day and it just so happens that my favorite hobby aside from spending time with my kids is making something delicious in the kitchen, taking pictures of it, and eventually sharing it with all of you.  But really, I have no secret strategies.  I’m just motivated and very organized.  I plan, plan, plan and then I stick to my plan.  In the same way that I’m sure my Thanksgiving planning strategies appear neurotic to some, it actually keeps all of this manageable.

I’ve already discussed my meal planning strategies but I know some of you are interested in where I gain recipe inspiration and how I keep straight all of the things I want to try from cookbooks, magazines, blogs, etc.  Well, here – let me show you!

I don’t subscribe to a lot of food magazines but even the few I do subscribe to can quickly accumulate and take up space on our shelves.  Not to mention that it never fails, when the time comes that I actually need a recipe I had dog-earred some time ago, it is nowhere to be found.  I flip through page after page without success.  Well, no more.  I have since created this handy-dandy spreadsheet and it has made a world of difference.  Each time I read a food magazine, I go ahead and dog-ear the pages with recipes I want to try.  Then when I have a moment, I enter the recipes into the spreadsheet as you see above to include the recipe name, the year and month of the issue, and the page number.  This has made it SO much easier to find what I am looking for.  Every few months I try to go through and do a quick recycling purge of any issues I have saved that no longer contain recipes I want to try.  You might also like to add a column to include the category of dish (appetizer, entree, dessert, etc.) but I haven’t felt the need for that yet.

As you can see from the tabs at the bottom of the spreadsheet, I have expanded this list to include not only magazine recipes but also to catalog recipes of interest in within my ever-growing cookbook collection.  When I am planning a weekly menu or a menu for entertaining, it makes it so much easier to have this quick reference at my fingertips and not need to page through every cookbook I own for inspiration.

So, that covers cookbooks and magazines, but what about the huge number of blogs I follow?   Oh, Google Reader, how I love thee.  Google Reader is one of many available feed readers that allows you to subscribe to blogs you are interested in following.  When a blog you follow has a new post, you can tell by the bolding of that blog’s name in the list with the number of new entries listed alongside.  I have a habit of sort of saving up entries and then have a big blog reading session with my dessert after the kids are in bed.  It makes me happy.

But wait, it gets better!  Not only does Google Reader make it incredibly easy to keep tabs on multiple blogs, you can star the posts you are interested in.  In my case, I star recipes I either want to try or sometimes just as inspiration for my own creations.  The search function is great.  You can easily search all the blogs you follow, only starred posts, or even just the content of a specific blog.  I do still try to visit most of the blogs I read and leave them comments as often as I can to show fellow bloggers some love.

And finally, one last little tip in how I keep my life in general organized.  Another fabulous creation from the Google peeps, Google Calendar.  Reasons I love it:

1. You can create multiple (color-coded) calendars and display them one at a time or all together.
2. You can add tasks with little check boxes (seen here).  I love checking things off my lists, and this definitely helps me get everything accomplished.
3. You can access it wherever you have internet (so basically anywhere).
4. You can share the calendars with others so they can stay in the loop, and allow them editing privileges if you like.

The example seen here is my actual to-do list for this week, including lots of prep for our holiday party this weekend.  I also like to include any advance prep for our dinners later in the week so that there is less to do when I get home from work and need to get dinner on the table.  Little things done ahead of time can really make a big difference in the long run.

I hope this post has been helpful to those of you who were interested.

I had originally planned to share this lovely meal with you as a post-Thanksgiving suggestion, some lighter fare after days of holiday excess and leftovers.  I may be a week behind schedule but I have been chomping at the bit to share this recipe (always the sign of a really good one).  If you are not familiar with quinoa (pronounced keen-WA), I highly recommend giving it a try soon.  Most quinoa recipes I’ve encountered so far are similar to a stir fry, using the quinoa as a base with whatever you like mixed in.  The idea of forming it into patties is genius and a fresh take on this protein-rich grain.  As with fried rice, the quinoa should be made in advance and cooled before making this dish.  And speaking of fried rice, the flavors of this meal were very reminiscent of fried rice to me…a very good thing in my book.  As you might imagine, the patties are fairly delicate but just use a light hand when flipping them and you should be okay.

As a side note, can you believe I’ve never made poached eggs before now?  I have always loved over easy eggs and these taste similar, but healthier.  I know there are lots of special kitchen gadgets you can find to make a perfect poached egg at home but I’ve already got enough stuff in my kitchen.  Thankfully a few seconds of Googling led me to this wonderful explanatory post from Smitten Kitchen.  I really have nothing to add to her instructions so I’ll let you refer there for the basic technique.  It took me an egg or two to get the hang of it, but even the ugly first tries were very tasty.  This meal has already been put into heavy rotation in our home, and I hope you give it a try in yours.

The last week and a half has been a roller coaster, to put it lightly.  I feel like I’ve been to hell and back a few times.  Rather than focusing on the shocking and sudden loss of Dad, I’m trying to focus on some of the more positive aspects of the way things occurred, such as the fact that we had just recently enjoyed a nice family weekend including some extended family from out of town, complete with grilling (because if it didn’t come off of a grill, it almost wasn’t food to Dad) and birthday cake.  The fact that he had recently picked up Andrew to spend the night so he could have Gagoo’s undivided attention and those best buddies could play, play, play.  And the fact that my brother who moved to Atlanta earlier this year came in to town in the early hours of Thanksgiving day did get to see Dad and talk with him for a few minutes before they went to sleep.  The sudden and untimely nature of his death makes the entire situation much, much worse for those surviving him, but I take comfort in knowing that he was in such a happy place in his life when he left this world.  After years of sadness over Mom’s death, it was so nice to see him whole and happy again.

This weekend we held a celebration of life in honor of Dad at the elementary school where he was principal for close to 30 years, and then enjoyed an after-party/wake at his favorite local bar.  The outpouring of love and support we witnessed was truly amazing, but not at all surprising when I think about the kind of person my father was.  Person after person spoke of his friendly personality, gregarious nature, reliability, and emotional strength in trying times.  I already thought Dad was the best man I’d ever known, but hearing familiar stories as well as new ones brought my love and admiration for him to a whole new level.  I know that the healing process is only just beginning but that was certainly a good place to start.

I also must take a moment to thank all of you, my loyal, caring, and wonderful readers for your words of sympathy, encouragement and support in this tough time.  I have read every single comment, email, and Facebook message.  Many of you commented that nothing you could say would matter or help but believe me, it really does help.  Those of you who said that even though we’ve never met, I have been your friend in the kitchen for a long time – you have no idea what that means to me.  That is why I keep doing what I’m doing here in this space of mine.  So thank you, thank you, thank you for your uplifting words in a very trying time.

I’ve been back in the kitchen this weekend and will be back to blogging as usual this week.  I know that this new chapter of time is only just beginning but right now I’m hoping time spent in the kitchen will provide both distraction and therapy while I learn this new normal.

Our Thanksgiving did not go as planned.  I woke up early in the morning and began prepping the final dishes for our meal, worried because I was running behind.  My phone rang and it was my brother.  I knew immediately from the tone of his voice that our whole world had changed.  Our father, my amazing, wonderful dad, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly today at the age of 59.  Our day has been spent in mourning and disbelief as we try to get a grasp of this new reality.

The shock and devastation we are feeling at the loss of this incredible person is truly indescribable.  I will be taking a short break from the blog as we deal with the aftermath, but I’m sure I won’t be gone too long.  I know myself well enough to know that keeping a routine and doing things I loved will help me cope.  I only ask that tomorrow, rather than spending time pushing through hoards of people to find the best deal, you instead spend time giving thanks for the blessings in your life and stick close to the people you love.  At the end of everything else, they are all that really matters.

No matter how long I had with him, it could never have been enough.  My dad was truly the most amazing and inspiring person I have ever known.  And as wonderful of a father as he was, he was an even better grandfather (or Gagoo, as Andrew called him).  There is really nothing else to say but Dad, you were the best.