Category Archives: Cooking

peanut butter and banana smoothie

If you’re in the mood for something rich and creamy, like I happen to be almost all of the time, have I got a treat for you. Instead of eating the peanut butter right out of the jar, for a change I decided to make a nutritious and somewhat healthy snack loaded with banana and peanut butter goodness. And “oh mama!” was I pleasantly surprised with the rich flavor. It could easily satisfy a sweet craving for something decadent and delicious. […]

a Spring pasta dish with ham and spinach, yum!

Could I really still be carrying on about my spinach from the garden? Yes, I’m afraid it’s looking that way. An odd obsession with spinach from the garden — check!! I’ve been trying to come up with a dish to use up some of my garden spinach. Pasta is what came to mind, although pasta twirls around in my mind on a daily basis. This easy dish is filled with fresh Spring flavors. The sauce is rich and creamy, and […]

berry smoothie for two

We’ve been on a bit of a health kick these days. What that means to me is more fruit, vegetables, fresh air, and exercise, although I’m not sure if that counts as an official full blown health kick. But hey, it’s one step closer to fitting into a pair of skinny jeans! A bikini beach babe is just around the corner! Grin! At first I decided to cut way back on sugar — I inherited a major sweet tooth from […]

hot chocolate

On a chilly winter day what is better than snuggling up by the fire with a cup of hot chocolate? This recipe is rich, if not completely decadent, and whats even better is that it only takes three ingredients! It’s almost as easy as opening up the packet of hot coco powder mix, which I also enjoy. We’ve been on a bit of a hot chocolate kick lately. It’s not every year that winter in Virginia gets so bitterly cold […]

raisin bread

My dad dropped by a warm, fresh loaf of cinnamon raisin bread he baked using one of his bread mixes from Petley Grain. Topped with a pat of melted butter it made the perfect afternoon snack on a cold winter day. And because he uses only all natural whole grains I don’t have to feel guilty about going back for seconds!

orange buttermilk cake

What’s up cottage fix friends? We are eating orange buttermilk bundt cake around here. It reminds me of my pound cake recipe and has just as much butter, eggs, and sugar, if not more. The fresh orange makes this cake taste extra flavorful and unique. I had some leftover buttermilk from the holidays and wanted to bake a buttermilk cake with it instead of just dumping it down the drain like I usually do – so wasteful. I found this […]

summer berries

I am one happy lady! I have been waiting weeks for these blackberries to ripen. Now that they are dark and juicy it’s blackberry cobbler time. Blackberries are fairly easy to grow and it seems you can just ignore them until picking time. I wish I could say I have a green thumb, but I am incapable of growing anything that requires a lot of fuss. We make all kinds of cobblers all summer long and this recipe is at […]