Wouldn’t you like to be that Mom that bakes fresh cookies for her kids all the time? Serves them up with a big glass of milk and a hug? We all want to be her but frankly our lives are so busy it’s hard to add cookie baking to our already never ending to -do lists.

Here’s a tip: When you do get that moment to bake, make extra batches of dough. Shape the cookies but don’t bake them. Freeze them, well wrapped and labeled with the name of the cookie and the bake time. That way, when you want to be that cookie baking Mom it’ll be that much easier. Just pull them from the freezer, pop them in the oven and -voila! Fresh baked cookies.

You’ll be glad you’ve stashed the cookie dough for the inevitable time your child let’s you know -at bedtime- that cookies are needed at school the next day. I find making and freezing cookie dough helps keep cookies a special treat instead of an over-indulgence. You can package them into just the right number to bake and enjoy- no need to bake off several dozen when all you really want is 6 or 8 cookies.

This week I’ve got recipes for cookie jar favorites like classic molasses cookies, brown sugar snickerdoodles, oatmeal honey cookies and chewy fudge cookies. You can find these recipes plus all kinds of baking tips at Crisco.com

Classic Molasses Cookies

Oatmeal Honey Cookies

Chewy Fudge Cookies

Brown Sugar Snickerdoodles

In a twist kind of like Julie and Julia, Stephanie O’Dea created the popular cooking blog crockpot365 as part of a New Year’s resolution to cook dinner in her crockpot each night for a year. She’s the author of Make It Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking and she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, two children, and six slow cookers.

Of course, Stephanie said she cooks a lot of the expected things in crock pots like soup and stews, but here’s a link to some dip recipes that would be perfect for your Super Bowl party. She does a lot of gluten free recipes in her crock pot, too. But here’s the one that rocked my world…..crock pot creme brulee! I haven’t tried it yet, but you can bet I will!

I’m going to get serious about using mine more this year. What are your favorite crockpot recipes- and tips?

Listen to the interview.

You’ve heard of astrology? Well, today we chatted  about Sex-trology with the authors of Cosmic Coupling. Stella Starsky and Quinn Cox are a real-life married couple that also happen to be relationship experts, astrological advisors and cultural commentators with a cosmic twist. Their book has been featured everywhere from Vanity Fair to Vogue, the New York Times to the Washington Post and O, the Oprah magazine calls it “Extensively researched and wonderfully dirty”

Starsky + Cox have an “eerily accurate” ability to profile the romantic and sexual nature of each star-sign on the zodiac wheel as it combines with every other star-sign, male and female. From the specific rules of attraction inherent in each bond to the perks and pitfalls particular to each partnership, Starsky + Cox aren’t shy about getting to the nitty-gritty of all astrological combinations, whether they are enduring alliances or fleeting dalliances.

Listen to the interview.

Jane Butel is an expert on chili- inf fact she’s credited with starting the whole Tex-Mex mania in this country. Jane’s a cooking teacher and owner of The Pecos Spice Company. She published her first cookbook on New Mexican and American Mexican food in the 1960’s and now nearly 20 cookbooks later, she’s published Chili Madness, a Passionate Cookbook.

Try this variation of Jane’s recipe from her book for a quick and easy Super Bowl Party snack. Make it even easier by using a can of chopped green chiles.

Green Chile Pinwheels [Read more →]

If you’re planning a Super Bowl Party, remember this: the beefy dishes are the first to go! People love hearty, meaty dishes so give ‘em what they want and serve up these Sirloin Empanadas. They start with frozen pizza dough and are filled with Certified Angus Beef Brand Sirloin. Yum! You can find this recipe plus lots more tips on CertifiedAngusBeef.com

Listen to the interview.

Julie Bauke is a Career Strategist and President of Congruity Career Consulting. She’s a dynamic speaker, trainer and coach with a passion for educating and inspiring people to take charge of their careers. She founded Congruity to live her vision of truly owning her career. Her past clients include individuals from CEO’s to professional athletes and a variety of diverse organizations ranging size from the Fortune 100 to small, family owned businesses. Julie’s new book Stop Peeing on Your Shoes: Avoiding The 7 Mistakes that Screw up Your Job Search could not come at a better time. Whether you’re searching for a job or trying to be supportive to someone who is, make sure to check out Julie’s book, her site, and her speaking engagements to learn more.

Are you eating plenty of cruciferous vegetables every day? I hope so because research shows that the antioxidants in cruciferous vegetables may provide protection against certain cancers. Cruciferous vegetables are high in fiber, vitamins and minerals, too. What is a cruciferous vegetable, you may ask? They’re Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, chard, kale, mustard greens, rutabagas, turnips and cabbage. Cabbage is an easy one to eat regularly. Dole has a Classic Cole Slaw Mix with shredded cabbage and carrots. When I find a convenience food that good for me too, I get pretty excited about it. The Pairs well with guide on the package suggests tossing it with Coleslaw Dressing, bacon pieces and salted, roasted sunflower seeds. Yum! Now I’ve found a convenience product that’s good for me and a delicious way to serve it. You can also toss the slaw mix into any of your favorite salads and add it to vegetable soup, too. Each day, try to eat plenty cruciferous vegetables. You can find all kinds of healthy tips and salad inspiration at Dole.com

Here’s a recipe that’s packed with veggies- and cruciferous vegetables! Click here for Pineapple Dijon Shrimp over Warm Angel Hair Slaw.

I had so much fun with Nancy James on Northern Kentucky Magazine yesterday! And I even got to hear her sing…but only because she wanted a Klondike bar!

Here’s a link to the chili and the spinach con queso recipes I made for Nancy. And here’s a link for information on where to buy my new favorite slider buns.

Pictured above are the little veggie and dip cups I showed how to make. You can use shot glasses or get the little plastic cups I used. The Party Source sells them- and lots of other variations. I like to use a pastry bag (or a ziploc with the corner snipped) to fill the cups with dip so that the sides of the little cups stay clean. Cut your veggies into small enough pieces that they look right  in the little cup, but tall enough for some “drama”.

I used veggies and dip, but you could just as easily use pretzel rods and dip, shrimp and cocktails sauce, ice cream and hot fudge, chocolate mousse and whipped cream. What makes them charming visually is repetition (line them up on a tray). Your guests will love them because everybody loves “their own” of anything!

Nancy and I talked about how to plan to make sure you have enough food- and drink- to last through overtime. Here’ a link to the Drink Planner I mentioned.

Heading off to Northern Kentucky Magazine to chat about Super Bowl parties with Nancy James…..I’m bringing so much food she and her crew won’t need to eat for a week!

Here’s what our guests had to say about our  French Grapes, Italian Style” wine tasting at EQ on Saturday. Robert said “The greatest wine tasting gig in town! Thanks!”  Kristina said she loves ” your classes and the educational info.” and Shauna told us we were”  Excellent as always” Anna let us know that our “Program is very well run – smooth service-staff very professional & polite – thank you” And Dale mentioned EQ team member Carroll  Carter as an “excellent host-We came late they didn’t miss a beat-Great instructor. Loved the wine” On behalf of all of us at EQ, thank you! We appreciate your kind words- and your business!