My mom used to make homemade chicken noodle soup often when I was growing up. She always made it from scratch starting with homemade chicken stock. And on extra special occasions, she’d even make homemade noodles and roll them out by hand for the soup. (And yes… I grew up just a wee bit spoiled with good old-fashioned home cooking!) The only thing I’ve changed from my mom’s original method is the noodles, I’ve replaced the old version with zucchini noodles, or zoodles if you will....

This Honey Massage Facial Mask has been a go-to beauty treatment for me for years. It’s just one simple ingredient, but there are so many benefits. It’s a case of the sum being more than the parts. Honey is a humectant, which means that it draws water to itself, helping to keep your skin moisturized. It’s anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral making it an ideal face treatment. In addition, it’s anti-inflammatory so it can be used as a spot treatment as well as a mask....

When you have a bounty of apples, they start appearing in all sorts of things! I’ve been overrun this fall with McIntosh and Sweet Sixteens from my mom’s apple trees. And I have to say, it’s been a great problem to have. First up I redid my Crockpot Applesauce. Then I developed this super easy skillet dinner, and still to come is a Slow Cooker Apple Pie Filling. I’m a huge fan of all sorts of one pot/pan/skillet kinds of dinners because they’re quick and easy to make....

Is there anything better than the summer grilling season? Since our summer is so short, we grill year round, but obviously it’s always better when you don’t have to put on a down coat first before stepping outside! Add to that the gorgeous fresh produce just bursting out of every stand at the Farmer’s Market, and what usually happens is I rarely turn my stove on from May right through September....

This recipe is based on the flavors of my husband’s favorite meal – Lemon Chicken Penne Pasta. He loves this dish so much in fact it was on the menu for our wedding. The only ‘problem’ with that recipe is the several cups of heavy cream. As a bonus, this recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free making it suitable for lots of different dietary restrictions. Yet no one is going to feel like they’re eating diet food here, it’s just a simple recipe with lots of flavor to go around....

Bryce Canyon might be one of the smaller National Parks, but it packs a punch and it’s not to be missed! I was surprised to hear that many people skip right over it in favor of some of the larger parks in the area. I can definitely say after hiking most of the trails that you’ll rarely find hikes like these where you see so much scenery with every step of the way!...

Perhaps my favorite way of all to serve them is alongside a roast chicken with a simple salad. Start by cubing the butternut squash into fairly even pieces. Cut the onion in half, then make a slice down the middle almost to the core but not cutting through Make three cuts across the top, once again leaving the end intact. Then slice crosswise into big cubes, similar in size to the butternut squash....

The classic Italian Sausage Pepper Pasta is one of my husband’s favorite dinners – you know, the kind of meal you can eat every single week and not get tired of it! This version you see in front of you today has been a long time in the making, I started out making it the classic way with sausage, peppers, and onions – but in an effort to add more veggies, I started sneaking zucchini in there as well!...

I wait all year long for fresh ripe strawberries, and then I eat as many as humanly possible. And today we’re combining two of my favorite desserts – cheesecake and strawberries. I like nothing better than to sit down with a big bowl and eat until I can’t eat anymore. (Then repeat this day after day until strawberry season is over)! But once you’ve had your fill, you’ll most definitely want to make this homemade ice cream....

I’ve been mixing up my smoothies quite a bit lately, and it’s been lots of fun! The idea for this one is based on some rather unhealthy morning glory muffins I used to make. (You can find my healthy remake with these Paleo Morning Glory Muffins recipe.) They had the best warm cinnamony flavor, sort of reminiscent of carrot cake. And I thought those flavors would make for an awesome smoothie, especially when I’m craving something sweet in the morning....

Tofino will take your breath away and steal your heart! Really… it’s inevitable that you will fall in love with this beautiful place, and want to stay way longer than your vacation days allow. There is a certain indefinable quality about life in a coastal town that’s perfect for slowing down, and enjoying the simple things in life again. We most certainly loved our time there, and we’re already scheming ways to work Tofino into our future travel plans....

We drink smoothies almost everyday of the week, it’s our secret to staying as healthy as possible year round! It’s the most convenient way I’ve found to amp up our daily serving of fruits and veggies because it’s quick to make and portable! Whenever we’re travelling, I pretty much fall right off the healthy wagon, and I start to notice I’m not feeling well within just a couple of days....

Day 1 of our trip hiking in the Canadian Rockies, I took you along on our adventure to the aptly named, Lake of Hanging Glaciers. And now today we’re heading into Bugaboo Provincial Park to hike Cobalt Ridge and Cobalt Lake. It was definitely an eventful day, and the whole story is below. But first let’s talk about the pertinent details. First up, the Bugaboo’s fondly referred to by the locals as the ‘Bugs’ are primarily a climber’s destination....

I like making coconut rice to accompany my Indian curries, but just recently I tried it with quinoa instead for a protein packed whole foods option, and you know what? it was really good! I added in pomegranate arils and chopped fresh cilantro because it was the perfect flavor pairing for the dishes I was making, but you could always leave it plain. Part of the beauty of fall is slow cooking: picture veggies roasting in the oven redolent with spices while a pot of coconut quinoa simmers away with a nutty aroma on the stove....

I’ve always liked using ground meat because it’s more cost effective. But I really got into the convenience of it as well on our trip to Iceland. When you’re camping in the middle of nowhere, without a sink or running water, the last thing you want to do is cut up raw meat! So whatever we made on that trip, we made with their locally raised ground beef. And from then on, I’ve been keeping my freezer extra stocked with ground beef because it’s just so handy....

This fall centerpiece came about by accident really. I bought all these cute mini pumpkins for my Pumpkin Thai Curry recipe photos. Next, they made an appearance in my DIY Pumpkin Spice Whipped Body Butter and several other recipes. After that, I had a bunch of mini pumpkins sitting around! So I decided to put them together into a centerpiece, and I thought I’d share it with you today. And if you’re looking for something to add some pumpkin festivity, this is about as easy as it gets!...

Case in point: I was talking to my mom about her upcoming trip to Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon, and she was saying she wanted a good solid day after she came back from vacation to get life in order before going back to work. And I said, ‘well in that case I wouldn’t take my previous advice about last minute hikes to do because I always come back from a vacation mere hours before I have to be to work’, (usually around 2 am with a wake up time of 5:30 am… like I said always living in the extremes)!...

Scones are one thing I’ve always avoided ordering when I’m out because they’re usually just not worth it. I have yet to have a truly delicious scone in a restaurant. But who knows that could change someday. For now, I just make them at home. Then I know they’re not going to be crumbly and dry, with the texture of sawdust! The key to a good scone is good butter – plain and simple- and there’s no skimping on the butter around here....

True story… I have gone through 30 pounds of grapefruit making this smoothie every day for a few weeks. It’s really that good! And just like most of my green smoothies, this one came around by chance. I was getting low on groceries, but I still really wanted to make a green smoothie. I’ve been craving all things super fresh lately. So I used what I had on hand, even though I thought it might be a strange combo....

It all started with a package of halloumi cheese, there it was sitting on the shelf at the grocery store just begging to be taken home. So of course I bought it and started mulling over what on earth I was going to do with it. I often end up with all sorts of impulse buys in my fridge. I’ve heard people struggle with impulse buys while shopping for clothing, but for me it’s always been food....