I Never Imagined my Happy Place Would be...

This picture is from around Halloween, hence the pumpkins, and our kitchen has changed a bit since then, but this is the jist of where I spend a lot of time :)

I truly never imagined that I'd be sitting here today telling you that I have found my happy place...in my kitchen! Let me begin by saying that my mom cooked dinner every night growing up but it wasn't something that she particularly loved and enjoyed. However, both of my Granny's like to cook, more so when they were younger and maneuvering around the kitchen was a bit easier but nevertheless, they enjoy cooking and I think they've passed it on to me! One of my Granny's LOVES that I love to cook and she is always giving me new recipes, magazines, cook books, and things to use in my kitchen. I love that!

 

I could spend hours in my kitchen slicing, chopping, marinating, baking, cooking, whisking, mixing, the whole nine yards. I love it. I am giddy when I find a new recipe to try and I must admit that each night that I've attempted something new, I say quite a few prayers before I sit it down on the table for us to eat, hoping it is as delicious as I'm expecting it to be. And although I know the day will come when I'm not so fond of something I've made, or the recipe just didn't turn out the right way, so far everything I've tried has been to my expectations or beyond and that makes me so happy!

 

I've been doing my best to buy fresh ingredients lately and make what I can from scratch. I want to fill my body and my husbands with good, quality food and even though it takes me a little longer in the kitchen each night, I enjoy every extra minute that I'm in there.

 

Recently I have made four things that I definitely think you should try out in your kitchen, if these are dishes that you like! I've made a homemade chicken alfredo dish, homemade salsa, a pretty exact replica of Chipotle's chicken burrito bowl and baked red potatoes in rosemary and olive oil. Personally, I enjoy pursuing Pinterest for my recipes. I have a few cookbooks but haven't taken the time yet to dig through those and see what I like. I have to tell you that the alfredo dish blew me away. When I was mixing everything together I was thinking there was no way Josh and I were going to enjoy this dish and it's one of Josh's favorite meals and I really didn't want to ruin it for him but I have to tell you, he took the first bite and said "This is great!" and that says a lot coming from a man who loves his chicken alfredo and is quite picky over it! Definitely a winning recipe in our household. Josh also loves Chipotle's bowls and just like the chicken alfredo dish, he really enjoyed the chicken buritto bowl I made. I'll even go as far as to say I think they were as good as, if not better than Chipotle's! The salsa recipe is from Pinoeer Woman and is spectacular, better than the mexican restaurants and so easy to whip up! We also liked the above recipe for baked red potatoes and paired them with chicken, crescent rolls, and green beans one night.

I have some cute, and possibly tricky, creations up my sleeve for Easter. My parents are hosting dinner and we're bringing the deviled eggs, chocolate covered strawberries and the dessert. Saturday afternoon and evening will be spent in my kitchen...I don't hate it! I'll be sure to report back on how everything turns out!