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Cooking up Natural Skin Care
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Cooking up Natural Skin Care

You are likely wondering what I have been cooking lately. Well in the last year or so I promise I have been cooking! When I got pregnant with my daughter life started getting very busy, very fast, and my blogging took a hit. I am looking forward to finding the time again to share what I eat and encourage others to live healthfully.

During my pregnancy I felt very strongly about taking the best care of my body, both inside and out. I started to develop my own skin care products so I could benefit from all natural ingredients without any unwanted chemicals. I started with what I like to call the Original Oil, a simple blend of coconut oil, jajoba oil, and vitamin E.  Perfect ingredients for healthy and glowing skin in perfect proportions.  Since then I discovered the magical benefit of sweet almond oil and developed my all time favorite product, Almond Original Oil.  This can be used anywhere and everywhere; absorbs deep into your skin to fight wrinkles, aging, and dryness.

I started sharing my products and ideas with friends and got wonderful encouragement to branch out and start selling. I recently took the plunge and opened an etsy shop where I have all of my favorite items available for sale. Check out my shop and enjoy softer, brighter, healthier skin!

 

Maddy Grace Skin Care on ETSY

 

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Smoker Cooking the Summer Away.

I have had a lot of remarks lately about my drop in posts this summer.  I do apologize, I have been doing some very simple cooking that I either haven’t found the time for, or just haven’t found “post worthy”.  Another major factor is that my husband and I bought an electric smoker this summer.  We have been smoking a lot of meat and fish on Sunday that we then eat in various meals during the following week.  Most people are not smoking meats at home and I felt this would have really limited my readers ability to recreate these meals.  We went the electric route with our smoker given the limited space on our balcony.  Going electric with the Masterbuilt Smoker was also a great call for us personally as the temperature remains consistent and the smoke output is limited…great for condo living.

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We have fallen in love with this method of cooking for the summer.  I love how easy it is to make a protein that can last all week but still has the ability to make a new meal every night.  As the fall approaches I will be reverting to more traditional methods of cooking and will be increasing my posts.  The recipes I made with smoked protein this summer I am sure to be making and posting with traditionally cooked proteins through the Fall and Winter, so don’t feel like you missed out on much!

Here are just a few of the meals I did capture on camera this summer with smoked proteins:

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Smoked salmon on a bagel with cream cheese, tomato, and chives.

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Homemade Ramen with smoked pork (I will definitely be making this again to post).

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Fresh salad with smoked salmon filet and tangy herb vinaigrette.

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Smoked brisket with a side of red coleslaw.

If you are in fact interested in the marinades, rubs, or woods we utilized for smoking meats this summer please leave a comment and I can provide this for you.  Otherwise, get ready for Fall and all the delicious soups, roasts, and hearty sides that come with the season!

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Pumpkin Spice Latte

SeasonsForCooking

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On the weekends we like to make the most of our Breville Barista Express, making what we consider a latte.  We bought it as a Christmas present for ourselves last year and have not been disappointed with the purchase.  It has even turned us into bean snobs, right now we only order in beans from Brooklyn.  You can taste the difference and the grind is so much better than any bean from Starbucks.

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With a little crisp of Fall in the air I wanted to make the ever famous Pumpkin Spice Latte.  I browsed a lot of recipes online before settling with these proportions below.  I tried to make it both healthy and light in flavor as I don’t enjoy feeling like I’m drinking the uncooked filling of a pumpkin pie.

Ingredients: 

– 1 cup almond milk, unsweetened

-1 cup of coconut milk (from a can, I like Trader Joe’s…

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Welcome

Over the past few years I have developed a passion for cooking and entertaining.  I love trying new foods and challenging myself to cook outside the box.  I am fairly certain my friends and family are tired of seeing me just post every meal I make on instagram or facebook, so I have finally taken the hint and started a blog.  

I have no formal training in cooking, but I come from a family that celebrates good eating and drinking in the home.  Growing up, I loved helping my mother cook feasts for our family of seven using herbs, fruits, and vegetables that were growing in the garden (a garden that is about the size of our entire condo) with meat raised on my grandfather’s farm.  Adding to this base, I was then lucky enough to marry into a family with a strong passion for good food as well.  

I rarely follow a recipe; rather, I tend to incorporate several recipes loosely together or start from scratch with what I have available to make a dish my own.  I can’t say that I never follow a recipe, I find it to be the best way to learn about new flavors, preparations, and styles of cooking to evolve my skills as an at-home cook.  

My blog is intended to be a chronicle of my daily cooking adventures, entertaining ideas, and likely flops along the way.  I hope to inspire others to make more flavorful and adventurous foods at home too.  

Cheers!