When you mention distilleries, Iowa is not the first state that springs to mind as a craft spirits destination. However, the state has a burgeoning craft distilling scene with a local focus. After all, what does Iowa have in abundance? Corn, which can be distilled into a variety of spirits.
This month, I'm collaborating with Barlean's to celebrate their 30th anniversary by highlighting their very product: flax! As someone who follows a mostly-vegetarian diet, I'm a big fan of flax because it's a vegetarian source of Omega-3 fatty acids, the healthy fats that are also found in fish. You can use flax oil in salad dressings and dips, add it to smoothies, and drizzle it over cooked meats and vegetables.
Phoenix, Arizona has never been on my must-see list. I've always associated it with retirement and blazing hot temperatures, which probably says more about my Minnesota roots than Phoenix itself. But as I've mentioned before, I struggle with seasonal affective disorder, and the trip Mike and I took to Disney World a couple years ago in early February really helped me get through the rest of the winter.
In Minnesota, bars are part of the social glue that holds people together. I don't mean drinking establishments, although those have their place too. What I'm talking about are desserts made in metal...
We wound up in Sedona for a few days in February because of Mike. He grew up in Maine, so much of his childhood travel was focused on the East Coast: Acadia National Park, Boston, New York City. He is familiar with some parts of the West—his extended family lives in Colorado, within sight of what they call foothills but what look like mountains to a lifelong Minnesotan. But he's never experienced anything like the red rock...
For the past several years, I've been working towards eating healthier, and my CSA share from Untiedt's Vegetable Farm is one of the things that's helped me. What's a CSA? It stands for Community Supported Agriculture. At the beginning of the growing season, you can purchase a CSA share from a local farmer. Throughout the growing season (typically weekly) the...
It's been a while since I've written about life as a full-time freelance writer—since quitting my paralegal position last February, I've touched on some of the initial challenges and the ups and downs. Now that I've passed the one year mark, I wanted to look back and reflect on how my life has changed since making the leap.
Risotto is one of my favorite dinners—it makes me feel like I have it all together, no matter how stressful my day has been. If I have the time, I make traditional risotto. But if it's a hectic weeknight and I need an easy dinner before a workout, I throw together a hands-off version.
As I mentioned in my post about my trip to Mason City, the city has a notable collection of Prairie School and Frank Lloyd architecture. Prior to my visit, I didn't know much about this distinctively American style and architect, other than many drives past the Frank Lloyd Wright gas station near my hometown and reading Loving Frank, a novel based on Wright's relationship with Mamah Cheney.
When Mike got home from work last Wednesday, he stumbled across a miniature photo studio in our entryway: lights, cords, a camera, a baking sheet I was using as a backdrop. "What have you been up to...
One of my favorite streets that I've come across in my travels is the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado. It's lined with local shops and restaurants, several blocks are pedestrian-only, and it has street performers and excellent people-watching. Most importantly for someone like me who grew up in relatively flat state, you can see the Rocky Mountains.
This is the time of year for best-of lists: the best songs, the most talked about news stories, the most important books. 2018 has been a banner year for me personally—in February, I quit my job as a paralegal to make my side gig as a freelance writer into a full-time career. While there have been plenty of ups and downs, one thing has been constant: so much delicious food. When it came time to sum up 2018, really the only way to do it was...
Christmas is a hard time of year for me. I struggle with seasonal affective disorder, which brings out a very specific sort of sadness. The best way I can describe it is that it's like having your emotional range shifted a few notches downwards: the highs aren't as high as you know they could be, and the lows are worse than usual.
A street lined with small shops, each decorated with fresh pine boughs and Christmas wreaths. Dozens of Christmas trees. Twinkling luminaries along the sidewalks. It sounds like an illustration from the front of a Christmas card, or maybe the opening scene of a Hallmark Channel holiday movie. But actually, I'm in Iowa's Amana Colonies.
The running joke about Minnesota is that we have two seasons: winter and road construction. Likewise, when it comes to what I'm cooking for dinner, there's CSA season and soup season. From June...
As I mentioned in a previous post, I'm working with Barlean's this month to promote their Seriously Delicious Omega-3s. Omega-3s are the healthy fats found in fish and flaxseeds, and Barlean's Seriously Delicious Omega-3s are a sweet and creamy way to add them to your diet.
Culinary truths my mom taught me: 1) The best part of a loaf of bread is the crusty end. My mom refers to it as the "gunta", a term she picked up from her Finnish-American grandmother—I think it's a...
This month, I'm working with Barlean's to promote their Seriously Delicious Omega-3s. What are Omega-3s? They're the healthy fats found in fish and flaxseeds. Barlean's Seriously Delicious Omega-3s are emulsified for three times better absorption than traditional liquid or soft gel fish or flax oils, so you get more Omega-3s without an aftertaste.
There are certain foods that are often associated with fall, like apples, pumpkin pie, and butternut squash. But there's something missing from that list—pears from the Northwest!
As I mentioned in my post about 5 reasons pears are the perfect fruit for fall, pears are a tasty pairing for fall flavors like roasted squash and maple. As part of that post, I developed a recipe for a Roasted Squash and Pear Salad with Maple Vinaigrette.
