How-to

Where I grew up, we didn’t have ‘food trends.’ Everything we ate was simple, basic, and comfortable – from roast beef and mashed potatoes to chili and mashed potatoes. If we were going to spice things up, maybe we’d have spaghetti or pizza.   So imagine my surprise when the person who did all of the cooking during my formative years, the woman who actually served me lasagna and mashed potatoes (I’m not joking), called me up and started talking to me about quinoa. And she wasn’t just calling for a definition of what quinoa is either – she was talking about her long list of personal quinoa salad recipes. I almost dropped the phone in shock. After all, quinoa doesn’t include ground beef or mashed potatoes in the ingredient list, so this was quite a detour.

I love to eat in restaurants, and I seem to love to eat in them more in the winter months when the weather is gloomy. There is always tons of cozy, comfort food choices on the menu, and spending a few hours out of the house can really brighten up a chilly day.   But what do you do when you’ve got a craving for something you’ve only had off a menu but don’t have the option of going out?  That’s where copykat recipes come in.

The words ‘Back To School’ can bring about mixed emotions for a lot of parents. On one hand, it’s nice to spend time with the kids in the summer – on the other? It will be absolutely amazing to get them back into a regular routine. But a regular routine means packing lunches, so here’s some creative lunch bag inspiration they’re sure to ‘eat up.’