The Little Things Newsletter #444 – Life, laughter, and lots of great food!

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s a chilly day here in Ohio and I’m looking forward to spending most of it working a bit around the house and then watching movies this afternoon and evening with the kids. I’m grateful for a fridge filled with leftovers and no reason at all to cook today.

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK:   Roasted ’til crispy with a signature accordion appearance, Hasselback Potatoes are a favorite in our house. They’re deceptively easy to make using a couple of simple tips, and they add a little flair to your side dish game.

Tender buttery Garlic Butter Steak Bites are crisp on the edges and juicy inside with just a few minutes of cooking time. I’ve been hooked on cooking steak bites for a few years now. I can never resist sneaking a bite (or three) straight from the pan once they’re ready!

I’ve been craving this Sweet and Spicy Broccoli for a while now and am looking forward to making it this weekend! Honey, Sriracha, soy sauce, and sesame oil are all you need to make this irresistible broccoli.

Want an awesome new snack? Light, crispy, and flaky air fryer Brussels Sprouts Chips are delightfully snackable and surprisingly satisfying. This is the snack you never knew you were missing! (And I’m telling you, they really ARE that good!)

Roasted butternut squash with pasta is tossed with plenty of butter, garlic, sage, and red pepper for a flavorful take on this classic pasta dish. Butternut squash pasta is a vegetarian delight, enjoyed by everyone.

Skip the traditional fried donuts and make a batch of Apple Cider Donut Muffins at home! With a sugary coating reminiscent of their namesake, these muffins offer a fun new way to enjoy these flavors.

Full of chocolate chips, chewy oats, crunchy peanut butter, and M&M candies, Monster Cookie Bars are a fun, convenient twist on the classic Monster Cookies – they have been my family’s favorite cookie ever since I was a child.

Creamy Coconut Milk Ice Cream is richly loaded with vanilla bean flavor and just happens to be dairy free and fully vegan. It’s super easy to make, too!

What I’m CRAVING: You know those recipes that you stumble upon and they always look delicious and yet you never get around to making them? I’ve had a sushi bake on my radar for a couple of years now and I finally put the ingredients on the grocery list. I’m hoping to pull one together this week or next. 

My FAVORITE THING this week is this magnetic calendar. Ours is on the refrigerator and it is the handiest thing ever for seeing the month at a glance. It’s a great size and easy to tear off each month as you move through the months. 

What I’m WATCHING: My boys and I watched The Prince of Egypt last night and I was reminded all over again how fantastic this musical is. And the cast? So many fantastic actors and actresses gave voices for the characters.

What I’m READING: Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande. This book has been on my hold list for months and months and it finally was available this week. It has already given me so much to think about and reconsider. I have little doubt that I’ll buy a copy of this book when I finish reading it on my Kindle. 

While not a light read, it’s a fairly easy one, discussing how little most of us understand how to prepare, mentally, emotionally, and physically, for the experience of dying – not just the end of life but all that is part of the process. The focus here is more on the quality of our last days or weeks, vs the often more common narrative of extending life at almost any cost.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:8–9

Wishing you a beautiful week full of little things that make you smile!

Mary