Spinach Pesto

Y'all, I fixed my computer.  And I made pesto.  More on that later.  I took my Macbook apart and replaced a tiny cable that was so very important.  My inverter cable had a short in it that kept the backlight from staying on.  How did I figure this out?  Like every important question in my life, I googled it.  Then I found a guide that led me through the whole process.  I ordered the part from Amazon and sat down for a few hours to replace the cable.  I won't lie, a couple of times I wanted to throw my computer across the room, but when I booted it up and the problem was gone...I felt incredibly accomplished.  Plus I saved a bunch of money doing it myself.

Houston

I have what is kind of a...problem.  See, my dear, darling Macbook is having some issues.  I'm going to try to resolve them this week, Lord willing and the creek don't rise.  In the meantime, I'll get back on the horse and start cooking some great spring dishes and maybe figure out a new little feature for this here blog!

Isn't that just the sweetest baby you ever did see?  He's about 16 pounds now, almost 17.  I tell you, who needs a gym when you have a baby who wants to jump all the time?  My arms were sore after a day of it.  I totally don't mind.  With that smile in mind, I'm going to take advantage of this gorgeous spring day!  

Deep Dish Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Y'all, this is my 100th post!  I figured I should make something a little special, and it should probably be a cake.  Let's also factor in that Will's birthday was Saturday, and he wanted a cookie cake.  So we've got us a deep dish chocolate chip cookie cake.  Holy.  Moly.

Oh and can we talk about how today is the first day of spring, and we've already had days in the upper 80's?!  Y'all, that's hot.  And it's only gonna get hotter.  So if you need a slice of cookie cake and a cold glass of milk on a screened-in porch with a fan, I totally understand.

Collard & Benne Seed Salad

I'm way overdue with this.  I totally made this salad Monday with the intention of sharing it yesterday.  It's totally good for a Thursday, though!  In fact, it's super duper healthy.  I mean, if this doesn't have fiber, I don't know what does.  Plus you've got some collards for a bit of color and a tangy mustard dressing.  I've called this a salad, but don't let that make you think it's dainty.  No, this is a heavy lifter.  Oh, and benne seeds are just a Southern way of saying sesame seeds.  So get to it!

I Look Like An Alien

I went to the eye doctor for a check-up, and they dilated my eyes like always.  So now I look crazy, and I'm wearing my stunna shades in the house.  It never fails that my eye doctor brings up the book Freakonomics.  Also, I think his aftershave permeated my clothing because I can still smell it.

When I got home there was a lemon on the floor.  I don't remember it being there when I left.  Maybe Puddin wanted a little refreshment.

I hope y'all had a good weekend.  The time change always ruins me for a couple of days before I get used to it.  I also happened to catch Weekend Update on SNL, which happened to feature my favorite, favorite character.  Stefon.  Part of what makes me love it is that Bill Hader doesn't quite make it through it without cracking up.  And apparently he based this character on a barista he encountered.



For your viewing pleasure.

Deviled Egg Salad

Lucky Charms are my Saturday cereal.  As in, I have a healthy-ish Kashi cereal that I eat during the week (and love, don't get me wrong), and then I have a special sugar-laden cereal for Saturdays.  I mean, something that turns your milk a weird blue-green color probably isn't something you should eat more than once a week amiright?  But I poured almond milk over it, so it's kind of a little healthy-ish (Yeah right).  Truthfully, when I get to the end of the bowl I start to eat only the cereal bits so that the last few bites are just marshmallows.  Because those are totally the best part!

I love me some deviled eggs too now, y'all.  I've had some lovely deviled eggs, and I've had some, um, less-than delightful versions.  So the other day I thought I'd like some deviled eggs but not a whole bunch.  And really I'd like it to be egg salad.  So let's make it deviled egg salad.  It's the best of both worlds!

So we've got: hard-boiled eggs, green onion, mustard, mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, sweet pickle relish, sweet paprika, hot paprika, and salt.  My new favorite way to get a perfectly boiled egg is actually by not boiling it at all.  I've been seeing this method for cooking the eggs in the oven of all things, and they come out perfect!  Here's the instructions, in case you don't have a favorite method of making hard-boiled eggs yourself.

Pop out the yolks into a bowl.  They should come out pretty easily.  I had one shoot out at me, so you might want to be careful of wayward yolks.

Now it's equal parts mayonnaise and Greek yogurt.  The yogurt cuts down on some of the fat in this, so if you wanted to be super-healthy you could use all yogurt.  Or if you want to be crazy indulgent, use all mayo.  Either way, Miracle Whip should never enter the equation.

Next up are the mustard and pickle relish.  I used this wonderful caramelized onion mustard I've had lying around, but you can use the mustard of your choice.  Yellow mustard would create a more classic flavor profile, and Dijon would bring a bit of depth.  My pickle relish I think was Food Lion brand so no need to get the fanciest pickle relish you can find unless you really want to.

Finally, the two paprikas and the salt spice up our dressing.

Slice up the egg whites into about 8 evenly sized pieces.  Just cut once down the center and make three cuts horizontally.  Boom.  Easy peasy.

The two eggs meet again.

 Thinly slice the green part of the onion.

Toss in a few of the slices and mix it up!

I think this egg salad is perfect on a toasted piece of crusty bread.  It's a chunky egg salad, so a bread with some substance to it really holds up well.  Top with a few more green onions and a sprinkling of paprika, and it's perfect.  It really makes me think of spring because we always have deviled eggs at Easter.

I had this for lunch.  And dinner.  And maybe a snack later today.  It's got all the flavors of deviled eggs and would be perfect for a picnic.  Fix your egg salad, toast up some bread, and put the two together when you get there.  No soggy egg salad sandwiches for you!

Deviled Egg Salad (makes about 1 1/2 cups)

4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced in half
1 tbs Greek yogurt
1 tbs mayonnaise (Recommended: Duke's)
1 tsp mustard of your choice
1 tsp sweet pickle relish
1/4 tsp hot paprika
1/4 tsp sweet paprika, plus more for topping
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tbs thinly sliced green onion, plus more for topping (Green part only)

• In a small bowl, combine the egg yolks with the Greek yogurt and mayonnaise.  Add the mustard, relish, paprikas, and salt.  Stir together until smooth.   
• Slice the egg whites into eighths and add to the bowl with the dressing.  Toss to coat the whites completely.  Add the green onions and gently stir to combine.  Serve egg salad on toasted crusty bread and top with additional green onion and sweet paprika.

Vanilla Shortbread Sandwich Cookies

Mantyhose.  Have you heard of them?  They're becoming a thing.  "What are mantyhose?" you ask.  Pantyhose for men, silly!  Oh my goodness, Will and I could have matching tights!  Except that there's no way on God's green earth that Will would ever wear mantyhose.  If you want to see mantyhose in all their epicene glory, I direct you here.

Buttermilk Dinner Biscuits

Y'all, a bird scared the bejeesus out of me the other day.  See, we've had such a mild winter and beautiful, warm weather lately, so the wildlife has started to return to my backyard.  The little lizards are figuring out the porch, and the birds are darting back and forth between the bushes.  Except I think two of them were fighting.  Or heaven forbid, mating.  It looked like a fight, so we'll go with that.  Anyway, these two birds were flying at each other and then they were flying at the porch and BAM!  One of them hit the screen, and I almost spit coffee everywhere.

Grady (And A Recipe Fail)

These...were supposed to be biscuits.  Candied bacon biscuits.  As you can see, they're more like candied bacon scones.  But without the scone texture.  Truthfully, I have no idea what to call them.  I wouldn't call them a fail exactly because I'm still gonna eat the bejeesus out of them.  With Nutella.  They're just not everything I was hoping and dreaming for.

But since I don't have a sweet recipe to share with you, I'm going to try to make up for it by showing you the cutest baby I know.

He's grabbing lots of things now and putting them in his mouth.  Those paws you see are Buddy's because he wants to play too.  Or at least lick Grady's head.

 We had some pretty productive tummy time.  He tried to move and groove, but that giraffe was a little slippery.

Faceplant!  He's been trying to roll over but gets stuck.  Oh and I just realized it looks like he's right next to the edge of the bed, but he's totally not.  I'm not dumb.  He's under my watchful eye and the middle of the bed.

Aaaand this is the view you get a lot these days.  He's all about putting his hands and especially his feet in his mouth.

I hope this sorta kinda makes up for my failed biscuits.  But isn't he so cute?!