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Hostess, Thanks for the Memories

I’ve never thought of myself as a real junk food junkie.  Yeah, I can give you an opinion on Cool Ranch versus Nacho-flavored Doritos. I can rank-order candy bars. We eat our fair share of sweets and treats around here, it’s just not usually of the Hostess variety. So when news broke on Friday that Hostess was shutting down, why did I go out before work in search of Twinkies, Hostess cupcakes and Donette Gems? For better or worse, that junk is part of my childhood, and likely yours, too.

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In Season: Pomegranates…and Cosmos

Do you remember the first time you had fresh squeezed orange juice?  That first pulpy sip that made you say, wow, if this is orange juice, what the heck we been drinking at breakfast? That was me on Saturday, with pomegranate juice.  Yeah, I’ve had pomegranate juice from that bulbous-shaped bottle and it’s plenty tasty…

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Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pinwheels

Thanksgiving is just two (and a half) weeks away.  I’m sure you’re already working on your plan – turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, salad, green beans, pie.  But have you figured out snacks?  While everyone mills around or watches football before the big meal, don’t you need a little something to nosh on? Well, of course there'll be Chex Mix.  What about something a little more special, but still quick to make? These Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pinwheels fit the bill.  Pizza dough cinnamon roll people, this one’s for you.

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Chipotle-Scented Sweet Potato Corn Muffins…in a Jiffy

  I just can't seem to get on the pumpkin bandwagon this year.  Everywhere you look, things have been pumpkin-ized. It's not new, Starbucks has done a pumpkin spice latte for years, I can remember 31 Flavors doing a pumpkin pie ice cream when I was a kid,  but I must be spending too much time in the aisles at Trader Joe's, because I already have pumpkin fatigue.   Pumpkin spice chai, pumpkin bread, pumpkin pancake and waffle mix, pumpkin macarons, pumpkin yogurt, pumpkin cream cheese. Pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin (Marsha, Marsha, Marsha)! And I know when you saw these muffins, you thought pumpkin, right? Nope.  Sweet potato.  Chipotle and cinnamon-scented sweet potato corn muffins.

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Fall Salad/Side Dish: Butternut Quinoa with Cranberries & Pepitas

  If you need any proof that it's possible to eat fabulously as a vegan, you only need to visit Denver. We just spent the weekend with our friends Jed and Lara there and ate at Justin Cucci's restaurants, Linger and Root Down. Not only is Linger's menu focused on global street food, which would be a potential disaster in less capable hands, these restaurants serve both carnivores and vegans, satisfying all parties.  And Root Down makes a mean blood orange mimosa at brunch.  I came back from Denver thinking about vegetarian dishes, and while I made a beefy, warms-your-soul pot of chili earlier in the week, I also roasted up a butternut squash and made a little butternut and quinoa salad with the flavors of fall.

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Cookie Time: German Chocolate Cookies aka Chocowalnos

german chocolate cookies Every Christmas, I find myself making the same cookies. For every other holiday, it's ok to add new dishes, but at Christmas, there’s something comforting about tradition, about knowing that there will be snickerdoodles and chocolate crinkles and that my mom will probably send me a batch of candy cane cookies. But if tradition is just something you’ve done more than once, these chocolaty, coconutty, walnut-studded "brownie meets German chocolate cake" cookies are going to be a new holiday tradition.

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