If you don’t know, the kitchen is what I call my happy place.

Not that I’m not happy elsewhere, but the kitchen is just where I love to be…making food for those around me. I always think it sounds a little odd when I say it, but it’s just how I feel: I love to love people through food. I love cooking for our little family, and actually look forward to having a larger family one day that will keep me even busier in the kitchen. Cozy breakfasts, packed lunches, after school snacks, and a hearty dinner to round out the day for my husband and kids is my idea of a perfectly great day.

As much as I love to cook, it’s sometimes so challenging to actually decide what to make. I can get lost in the cook books and Pinterest feeds and food blogs for hours trying to decide our menus…and still more often than not, I revert back to our good ‘ole classic favorites several times a week. Burrito bowls, soups, and large dinner salads are some of the meals we have on repeat around here!

But here are four recipes that I’m gearing up to try:
Cranberry Pot Roast
Brussels Sprout Hash
Blistered Green Beans with Tomato-Almond Pesto
Spiced Apple Chutney

What about you: do you find it easy to decide on a food menu and what do you use for ideas/inspiration?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

It feels odd to be blogging such a summery recipe…but I can’t help it! This green smoothie is too good to not share.

When we were on our little family vacation to Hilton Head last month, we discovered that a Whole Foods Market had been put in since we had last been there. I’m a foodie, so it could probably go without saying that I love Whole Foods Market. We get the majority of our groceries from other stores because #wholepaycheck, but I do love a chance to hit up Whole Foods for browsing and getting some things that are hard to find other places. The spicy chicken sausage from the fresh meat case and the original house-made hummus are two of my favorite items, if you were wondering, hehe.

This new Whole Foods had a juice/smoothie/coffee bar right inside the door, and we frequented it for coffee and drinks more times than we probably should have, but hey! Vacation. One day, Ben came back to the condo after a drink run with this delicious green smoothie in hand and it was one of the yummiest smoothies I’ve ever had!. He didn’t remember what all was in the mix, so the next time we stopped in, I checked the menu listing and realized the ingredients were so simple: mango, pineapple, banana, kale, coconut water. On my first grocery run once we got back to Nashville, I couldn’t help but grab all the ingredients needed to try to recreate this smoothie. Even though it’s prime fall weather and I’m still all about those cozy flavors and spices, I can’t help but mix up this summery smoothie almost every day.

Favorite Green Smoothie

1/2 cup frozen mango
1/2 cup frozen pineapple
1 frozen banana
handful of fresh kale, optional
1 cup coconut water
pinch of salt

Place all the ingredients in a blender and mix until completely blended.

Enjoy!

Notes::
– You can substitute milk or even plain water for the coconut water. Coconut water has a lot of nutritional benefits, but doesn’t add a lot of flavor so you can certainly sub this ingredient.
– If you like a sweeter smoothie, add in a few dates or some maple syrup.

What about you: do you have a favorite go-to smoothie recipe?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!