Um, hi. This is breakfast level: ridiculous. And I’m going to try to sell it to you anyways, because what kind of person would I be if I pretended I wasn’t totally digging a waffle stack layered with Nutella, melty marshmallows, toasted coconut, and just a tiny drizzle of organic pancake syrup? A lying person, that’s what. And I am not about to lie to you. No, friends: I truthfully proclaim that I am totally into this ultra-decadent, over-the-top, Pinterest-circa-2013-esque type situation....

These easy oatmeal carrot cookies are supremely moist, soft, and chewy without being cakey. I like my cake to be cakey, but never cookies. They’re loaded with texture from the carrots, oats, raisins, and butterscotch chips. The carrot cake cookies are pleasantly spiced, and just robust enough, but not overdone. Bland carrot cake is so unappetizing, and carrots desserts like this can stand up to a lot of spices without becoming overpowered....

comment icon 105 more comments Before I really get into the chicken, I just have to say that this morning I am totally coming down from a girls’ weekend high. This weekend a group of four of us girlfraaands from college decided to vacay out to Aspen for some girl-talking and hiking and fly fishing (<–?!?!?) and laughing and constant snacking and ultimate relaxing. On a awesomeness scale of one to ten, it was a twelve....

Here’s the Spiralizer And then I was having a blonde moment, I wasn’t quite sure which was to attach the zuke, but I guessed right. I thought to make long noodles, I may need to attach it the “long way” rather than horizontal. How many blondes does it take to change a spiralizer blade? Just one today, thankfully. My bowl runneth over. Does anyone want a flacid, limpy, & skinny zuke schlong?...

This is the best broccoli cheese soup. Not only that, it’s some of the best soup I’ve ever tasted, period. If you like Panera’s broccoli cheddar soup, this blows the pants off it. It’s an easy soup to make and is ready in 1 hour. It’s absolutely perfect comfort food and I couldn’t stop eating it. I ate it for lunch and dinner for a couple straight days until it was gone....

Easy Recipe for Shrimp Ceviche I spend a lot of time in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and I eat ceviche at least once a week. It’s the perfect lazy person’s meal, you don’t have to cook anything, no oven or stove to turn on, it’s ready in 30 minutes with almost no active work, and the flavors will keep you coming back for more, bite after bite. Shrimp ceviche is great for lunch, as an appetizer or side dish to accompany a main course, or serve it on it’s on as a light but satisfying dinner....

Things are still weird and stuff is still closed and life is still taking place within the confines of these four walls… so it’s time for the next Quarantine Report! Also, though. The grass is growing, and the sun is… kinda, depends on the moment… shining, and love from family and friends is still traveling the distance to meet each of us in our own little at-home worlds. I still appear to be strapped into a rollercoaster that takes me all over the emotional landscape from day to day, but maybe that is normal because nothing is normal....

comment icon 1177 more comments Especially thick, soft-centered, crispy-edged, dark, rich, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cookies. Laced with espresso powder and with a snowy sprinkle of cardamom sugar on top (optional, but such a wintery treat). They are truly remarkable. So put some in your pockets before they’re gone. The larger size of the cookie also helps achieve that perfectly thick sunken soft middle. The kind you just want to curl up in, the kind that pull apart at each craggy little crack....

Mini Non-Contact Laser Candy Thermometer I am the worst when it comes to candy thermometers. Just give me one, and I can assure you that I will get sugar and butter on it that becomes so permanently hardened that you need a jackhammer to remove it. We’re talking a glue-like substance so hard that Nasa was wondering if they could use it to affix rocket tiles to the next shuttle....

Not exactly the place where you’d expect to find fresh, authentic Mexican food. But if you want to get as close as Minnesotan-ly possible to fresh, authentic Mexican food, you need to go to St. Louis Park and find this place. It’s called Rojo Mexican Grill, and it’s a gem. And this dish is especially especial. It’s called Tortilla Chicken, and while I was inspired by Rojo’s entree, they would not give me the recipe (only hints) so I made a version all on my own: Panko-and-tortilla-chip-crusted chicken, sitting atop a few spoonfuls of salsa verde, topped with white cheese, creamy cilantro sauce, and pico de gallo....

I hop on to Pinch of Yum once every month to write a post that we call an income and traffic report. What is an income and traffic report? Well, believe it or not, it’s a report on income and traffic, specifically the income and traffic as it pertains to this blog – Pinch of Yum. It’s a bit strange to openly publish things that are usually so private, but we’ve found it to be valuable, both for us and (we hope) for others as well....

Easy Chocolate Cake with Cherries This chocolate cherry cake is the easiest cake ever. Oh, how I love baking shortcuts and timesavers! It’s perfect for potlucks, picnics, or parties, because who can say no to chocolate cake, chocolate chips in the cake, and homemade chocolate frosting? You make the cake by combining a box of devil’s food cake mix with eggs and cherry pie filling. You don’t need to add the water or oil that the mix calls for, just the eggs, pie filling, and almond extract to enhance the flavor....

Crispy Hash Brown Waffles There’s no greater let down than mushy hashy browns. Restaurants have a knack for serving pale yet greasy hash browns. Not my jam. I like my hash browns crispy, golden browned, and not greasy. There’s no easier way to achieve hash brown perfection than this easy kitchen hack. Dust off your waffle iron and enjoy hash browns that are the perfect balance of crispy yet tender....

My weekend bests have included: Some mess making in the name of baking. Plenty of dishes have been dirtied. The bowls are these. Someone usually asks about them. Donut making has ensued. They’re a tweak on the Baked Cinnamon Bun Donuts with Cream Cheese Glaze Recipe coming soon for the new donuts. After all that donut taste-testing I was able to enjoy a nice run. The dreary and rainy weather we had Friday lifted and it was much nicer on Saturday....

Things ’round have been awesome in the kitch. Lemme recap some of what went down. Our hatchets, that is. Aside from the Raw Vegan Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Cookies I made yesterday, here’s some of the other eats I whipped up. Quick sidebar on those too for all you who wrote me privately wanting to make the choco cookies in a regular oven…Because the batter was very dry before I even put ’em in the dehydrator, I think if you did a very low oven like 300F (or less) for 5 mins and then let ’em sit in the oven with it off for another 5 mins or so, but please play around with this, that’s a strategy that I could totally seeing working if you don’t have your hands on a Magic Box…....

Target was closed on Easter Sunday as I mentioned, and many of you noticed that this year, too, and that it seemed to be a new thing. Who knows. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to make a Target run today but I stopped by Rite-Aid and grabbed a few items when I was out today. Intended to buy one, but they were on sale for $1.99 each. I love sales....

comment icon 17 more comments This time, we’re piling golden crisp, olive oil-griddled sourdough toasts with a tangy, smoky, deeply-flavored roasted eggplant & tomato mixture called zaalouk. Then you’ll top that with some creamy fresh burrata, olive oil drizzles, fresh black pepper cracks, and herb sprinkles, and wowowowow, what a fun treat. Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read? What Is Zaalouk? Zaalouk is a traditional Moroccan stewed salad made up of cooked eggplant and tomatoes, and then garlic, olive oil, and a combination of spices that can vary by region....

Salsa Verde Chicken, Rice, and Beans There’s nothing better than an authentic-tasting Mexican meal made in one skillet that’s ready in 15 minutes. Hello busy weeknights, here’s looking at you! This green salsa chicken skillet also a healthy recipe you can feel good about enjoying and serving. The salsa verde is so fresh tasting while the rice and beans add a comfort food touch. The truth is that I made this recipe ages ago, and I’ve made many more iterations that I’ll be sharing, but I keep coming back to this one as my favorite!...

Easy Homemade Pizza Dough (Without Yeast!) This is going to be your new favorite pizza dough recipe because it’s so easy! If you’ve ever wanted to make homemade pizza dough but are short on time, or on ingredients, or on patience which is usually the case with me, two-ingredient pizza dough is going to be your new best friend. As stated, there’s no yeast, no kneading, and you don’t need to wait for this dough to rise!...

Easy Lemon and Rosemary Chicken Thighs Baked lemon rosemary chicken is so simple to prepare, with an extremely short ingredients list of just 5 essential ingredients, AND it gets rave reviews every time! That’s a triple win for me 🙌🏻 And no, I don’t count olive oil and S&P as ‘unique’ enough ingredients to be worth mentioning, but if you do, we’re only talking 8 ingredients. For maximum flavor, chicken thighs are seared just until browned on both sides, then topped with a mixture of lemon juice and zest, garlic, and fresh rosemary before being finished in the oven....