Happy Friday everyone! I hope you had a nice week and have a few fun plans for the weekend!
Ben took a couple days off work for marathon March Madness watching and will be smoking ALL the meats today, including pork shoulder, ribs, chicken, salmon, and any other protein he can get his hand on. I wouldn’t be surprised to see my purse smoking away in there! If you ever feel the urge to get into smoking, Ben recommends picking up a starter smoker for $20 at Walmart (or wherever,) to see how you like it. For him it’s become more than a hobby over the past five or six years – it’s an addiction! Me? I’ll tolerate the smokehouse smell that inevitably wafts into the house as long as I get to eat all the aforementioned meats. Especially the salmon. Holy moly is it delicious!
Other than that we’ll just be hanging around doing sun dances in hopes to bring back the warm temperatures we enjoyed over the past two weeks. Lincoln is furious that post-nap activities are back to Sesame Street and indoor golf. Give him walks and parks or give him nothing! We’ll also be curating a small wine collection to fill the new wine fridge Ben finally picked out after I “gave” him one for his birthday this past October. This…could be trouble. And by trouble I mean terribly fun – muwahaha!
Tell me your favorite red and whites to fill our fridge with!
Anyway, wherever you are and whatever you do have a wonderful weekend and in the meantime please enjoy my favorite finds from the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites!
Click on the light blue links to be taken directly to the source.
Favorite breakfast: Bangin Breakfast Potatoes. Bangin INDEED! These are the crispiest home fries I’ve seen outside of a restaurant. Can’t wait to replicate ASAP, aka tomorrow morning for brunch. :)
Favorite dress: Trinette Shirtdress. So adorable, right? I’ve had the same sundresses for years now so I think I’m going to pull the trigger. I like how versatile it is – could be dressed up or worn as is for a casual summer event, plus it comes in petite. Hollar my fellow shorties!
Favorite splurge: Baked Sweet Potato Chips with Blue Cheese Sauce, Bacon and Green Onions. If this doesn’t scream March Madness face stuffage than I don’t know what does. Drool, drool, drool – especially to those crispy sweet potato chips.
Favorite DIY: Ping Pong Ball Cafe Lights. So, this is THE YEAR I string lights under my pergola for majestic summer nights. I found this DIY ping pong ball cafe lights project, which I’d do with just plain white lights, but do you think water from rain would get into the balls and mold? Maybe if I sealed each ball with hot glue or something, but that’s a lot of ping pong balls!
Favorite spring: The Crispiest Spring Chicken. Ben made us a roast chicken the other day with just three ingredients and it was honest to goodness the best roast chicken we’ve ever had (think I’ll post the recipe soon.) I love the addition of herbs to this recipe though, which helps to make a yummy sauce to drizzle on top.
Favorite groove: Uptown Funk Treadmill Dance. If this doesn’t make you want to get up and dance and/or run, I don’t know what will. You go, Glen Coco!
Favorite snack: Mini Cuban Sandwiches. I am LOVING the latest snack I created for The Laughing Cow, whom I’ve been creating snack pairings for over the past couple of years. I slathered gluten-free crackers with their Creamy Swiss cheese then layered on deli ham, mustard, and a pickle. Instant, fuss-free Cuban sandwich!
Favorite summer: High Low Cover Up. Ben got me this coverup in black for Valentine’s Day, in anticipation of our Puerto Vallarta vacation, and I LOVE it. For some reason black isn’t available anymore, but these beachy colors are gorgeous anyway. I wore it alone at the pool, and with shorts while walking to the beach and through town. (Black has a bit more coverage than the coral shown here.)
Favorite splurge: Authentic Canadian Poutine. Ben and I had poutine for the first time in San Diego several years ago and have been obsessed with it ever since. Fries, gravy, and cheese. What’s not to love? Locals, if you’re craving poutine head to Louie’s Wine Dive where they toss gluten-free fried cheese curds and lobster into the mix. TO DIE FOR!!
Favorite find: DIY Ant Poison. Ant season is coming and with constant crumbs under Lincoln’s high chair, we’re bound to get a colony coming through at one point or another this summer. I can’t wait to try this three ingredient ant killer solution vs the highly toxic gels and traps we’ve previously used, which would be a nightmare to have around now that Lincoln’s on the move.
Favorite wakeup: Cubano Breakfast Sandwich. Speaking of Cubans…I could go for one of these breakfast sandwiches right about now. As they say – never hurts to put an egg on it.
Favorite truth: When Toddlers Interrupt. Just…yes. Except I don’t even try to work on the computer while my toddler is up. This is so fantastic!
Favorite mess: Quick and Easy Philly Style Sloppy Joes. Ummm, I’ll have 18. Gosh these look good.
Favorite project: DIY Raised Garden Beds. I’ve been thinking a lot about my gardening plans for this spring/summer (I skipped out the last two summers because we were moving, then had an infant and it was just too much,) but I think I’m going to take a crack at these raised beds to place against our fence line this year. Our backyard is mostly all shade except for one area on the west side, so I’m thinking that’s where it will go. Will definitely write a post when it goes up!
Favorite stuffed: Baked Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Artichokes with Blue Cheese. So clever, and March is a great month to enjoy artichokes. Awesome recipe!
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Have a great weekend, everyone!
Megan 03.21.2015
I also would love to hear some of the smoking recipes. My husband got a smoker for Christmas,and we have tried a few things, but I am always looking for more. Plus, I love smoked salmon.
Eve P 03.21.2015
Haraszthy Zinfindal (I never remember the name so I call it “purple bear” when I am looking for it in my local wine shop.) I also like Asylum Zin.
Kristina 03.21.2015
I would fall flat on my face trying to dance on my treadmill like that. Honestly, it’s a wonder I haven’t knocked myself unconscious just running on it.
As for a wines, a few of my faves – Cupcake Red Velvet and Sauvignon Blanc (Target and Hyvee), Joel Gott Sauvignon Blanc (Costco), and Josefina Rose (Trader Joes).
Kristina 03.21.2015
Cupcake wines are often $.10 off a gallon at Hyvee btw! :)
Lovely Sharice 03.21.2015
The food in these posts look so delicious especially the sweet potato fries and home fries…yum!
Alexandra Aimee 03.21.2015
I don’t want to be negative, but those ant poison balls look like they could be a real hazard to people’s dogs and kids. A child or a dog is very unlikely to be able to bit into or swallow an ant trap, or lick up a significant amount of powder borax off the ground if well supervised. But picking up and swallowing a sugar filled cotton ball? You bet. My dogs do that sort of stuff when I turn my head to sneeze, and toddlers do too. I’m all for DIY, but these don’t seem safe to me and I hope people will think twice before making them. Just one getting kicked out of your front door could kill someone’s best friend or seriously harm their child… Not worth the money you save on ant traps.
Gabby Deitsch 03.20.2015
That ping pong ball project seems like a hassle. You can find good string lights for a great price at places like Target. Here’s what we did:
Nicole ~ Cooking for Keeps 03.20.2015
Thanks so much for shout out! LOVING all the other links. And I’m in love with Puerto Vallarta, it’s our go-to vacation spot. So beautiful and the food!! My goodness. I need to try the lobster poutine at Louie’s here in KC!
Jesse Cooper 03.20.2015
Love the sundress. Where did you buy it? I want to get one.
Suzanne 03.20.2015
Meiomi Pinot Noir is absolutely the best! Around $20 per bottle at Spec’s and worth every penny!
Lisa @ TechChick Adventures 03.20.2015
Those potatoes look soooo good! This is my year to start a veggie garden too. Good luck to both of us :)
Caitlin 03.20.2015
I highly recommend King Estate’s pinot noir, it’s so good and light!
I’m also really into brut rose. I had one by Chandon that my husband and I both really enjoyed. But any type of French rose, sparkling or non, is a good choice both on its own and with seafood or lighter flavored foods.
Cindy 03.20.2015
Awesome post! :)
I always looking forward to reading your Friday Favourites. That poutine looks delish – have you ever visited Canada?
Tanah 03.20.2015
Apothic Red is delish and it’s light enough for summer!
Alexis 03.20.2015
I tend to stick with local Iowa wines and I’m partial to Tassel Ridge since I worked for them for a while. If you like sweet, and I mean SWEET, check out Red, White & Blue if you haven’t already. It tastes like grape juice & I will sometimes use it as a dessert wine. They have a couple sparkling wines that are good for summer, Oskyfizzante Red (sweet) & Oskyfizzante White (semi-sweet). I also really like their Blackberry wine for something different. We also really like Ardon Creek Chancellor and Commission Man Red, great dry reds. You should check out Wines of Iowa in Valley Junction if you haven’t been there!
Chelsea S. 03.20.2015
Snus Hill’s Spinna is a great white, and I love Stella Rosa Black (sold at Hy-Vee) for a sweet red. :) Enjoy the wine fridge!
Jonanne 03.20.2015
I just have to comment – I am in total agreement, the Lobster Poutine at Louie’s Wine Dive is OUT of this world! I’ve been meaning to recreate it for months!
Jamie 03.20.2015
I’ve been really into cabs lately and love love love the Louis Martini Napa valley (usually $30/ bottle which is a lot but you can get it at Costco for $22!!!) the Kendall Jackson is a great one too – usually around $14-$17/bottle. I don’t like oaky cabs and these are both very buttery!!
Anywho – Panther alum/lifelong Hawkeye fan here – go Cats & Hawks today!!!! I live in Ames so I can’t help but extra hope the Hawkeyes win so I have a little something to celebrate :).
JennP 03.20.2015
My favorite go-to wines are Black Mountain Chardonnay (from TJ’s), Apothic Red and J. Lohr Cabernet.
Rachel E 03.20.2015
A wine fridge is definitely on my wish list!
I’m from the Quad Cities and I love local-ish wines. My favorite is Wide River Winery’s Felony Red, but closer to DM (in Indianola) I love Annelise Winery.
Darlene 03.20.2015
I’m REALLY looking forward to trying out the philly style sloppy joes!! It’ll be nice to eat a sloppy joe, but with a TWIST :)
Also, can Ben do a small post regarding smoking meats? We live in CA and it’s terribly difficult to find good BBQ here – when we travel to Texas we try to fill our bellies with the good stuff
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