Butterscotch Meringue Pie

Pie is supposed to be easy.  That's how the saying goes, so that's how it should be.  This pie isn't necessarily easy.  Not undoable by any means, but it does take a little time and there are quite a few steps.

Usually I stay away from things that take steps and time, but since both of my parents couldn't stop talking about this pie, I figured it was probably worth it.

My parents must have been pretty excited about it because not only did they eat their whole pie in just 2 days (split between the 2 of them), they also both texted me the afternoon I made it to ask me how much I loved it.  May not seem that crazy to you, but my parents practically had to learn how to text just so they could ask me about this pie.

Well, the answer?  Yes, I loved it!  Yes, it was totally worth the time spent stirring!  Yes, it was gone in 2 days!

Vegetable Lasagna

This morning, my alarm went off at 3:15 a.m.  It wasn't broken.  I intentionally set it to that ungodly hour.  Those wheels were set in motion yesterday early in the afternoon when Denver International Airport decided to preemptively cancel all flights for the rest of the day.  Our friend, Jason, had to reschedule and get the first flight out this morning...so we woke up before 4 o'clock to get to the airport in time.

It's not really a big deal, but it does mean that now, after working all day, I'm not really feeling in the mood to cook, stand, or even keep my eyes open.

We all have days when we don't feel like cooking.  So it always helps to have something prepared ahead of time in the fridge or freezer.  Lasagna is a really easy thing to heat up the day you want to eat it.  The other nice thing about it is that it doesn't taste like leftovers.  And it's definitely going to be better than whatever fast food you'd be tempted to eat otherwise.

Project 365: Week 8

February 18 | Test driving the cars was the fun part - paying wasn't as much fun.  Austin is super excited that he doesn't have to ride his bike in the snow anymore! 

February 19 |  Dingo wasn't making it easy to take pictures - that sheet acts as my diffuser when it's not piled up on the ground.

February 20 | It was my dad's birthday - we learned how to facetime!

February 21 | I spent lots of hours this week watching high school students perform mock trials.

February 22 | Picked up our friend, Jason, from the airport!

February 23 | Dinner at Taco on Pearl St.  

February 24 | Went to the Buff for breakfast with Austin's parents (in town for a trade show) and Jason.

Then, we spent the rest of the day wandering around the American Handmade Bike Show.  Austin and Jason made me a scavenger hunt so I wouldn't get bored :)  I found the bike with the face on it!

Lemon Drop

I already told you that on Monday, we bought a new car.  Everything went pretty smoothly with that until it came down to actually paying for it.  I'm guessing I'm not the only one who's experienced this.  First of all, that's when the bargaining begins.  Bargaining is about the most uncomfortable thing to do.  Ever.  Even when you feel like you might be getting a good deal, you still know you're being swindled.  It's really just awful.

Next comes the always fun experience of dealing with the financial person.  He/She is also known as the-person-who-doesn't-have-to-be-nice-to-you-because-they-already-sold-you-the-car.  She's the one who insults you and makes you walk out the door with a pit in your stomach.

On top of both of those things, we had the added bonus of leaving the lights on in our car for the whole day that we were at the dealership.

The rest of this "short week," has been equally hectic.  All I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry for the delay and I hope you have some time to sit back, relax, and have a cocktail!  Cheers!

Mini Frittata Muffins

Yesterday, Austin and I bought a second car.  Austin was tired of falling down on his way to and from work in the snow and a little worried he was going to get hit by a car, so we decided we needed to change something.  And since I wasn't about to start riding my bike to work, this was the best idea we could come up with.

That was pretty random but my point is: sometimes Austin does have good ideas.  A lot of the time actually.  However, his good ideas usually don't come to him in the kitchen.  We have had some pretty tasteless stuffed peppers from some Men's Health cookbook, his breakfasts usually consist of eggs and sloppy joe meat rolled up into a tortilla, and he thinks that anything with Frank's hot sauce smothered over the top is a culinary masterpiece.

And then every once in a while, he will pick out a recipe that surprises me.  These prosciutto wrapped mini frittata muffins were one of those recipes.  They are from a paleo website, which right off the bat scared me away.  No dairy or carbs?  I don't get it and I don't want to.

But they were good.  They were actually really good.  The new car is good too (there's more to that story - to come later).

Project 365: Week 7

Feb. 11 - On Monday, I started and failed a fruit cleanse.  At least it started really well with these smoothies.

Feb. 12 - My flowers started to wilt, but thanks to a very nice boyfriend and a very nice boss I got new ones to replace them on Valentine's Day!

Feb. 13 - Those Girl Scouts are back!  This tray is already gone.

Feb. 14 - Valentine's Day!  Dingo got all dressed up for the special day.

Feb. 15 - Heart-shaped ice courtesy of Ikea.

Feb. 16 - Took the Dingo on her first camping trip!  When it got down to 25˚ last night, she didn't hate her jacket as much as she normally does.

And we got to use our new 4-season tent (only the second time so far).

Feb. 17 - Spent most of the day hiking through Garden of the Gods outside of Colorado Springs.

Then, before heading back to Boulder, we drove up Pikes Peak Highway (to mile 14 of 19, where the road was closed).  We'll have to go back this summer to get all the way to the summit, or maybe climb it.

Lemon Buttermilk Pancakes

I hope you all had an amazing Valentine's Day, an amazing week, and I hope you're gearing up for an amazing long weekend!

We're going to try to head out of town over the weekend and since it's been unseasonably warm, we're planning on taking Dingo on her first camping adventure!  Normally she sleeps by herself downstairs, so we'll see how that transition goes...

We haven't really prepared for a camping trip at all which tends to be how it goes with us, but it feels harder with a puppy.  Especially a puppy that gets carsick.

So what will happen tomorrow is: we'll wake up, go to yoga, come home make some pancakes.  Pack the car up and get to where we're going around dusk.  We'll have to set up our tent in the dark.  Eat fast food along the way and won't see just where our perfect campsite is until morning.

At least the pancakes will be good!