I know that it’s already December and that I should really get my butt in gear for Christmas baking, but I couldn’t deny making a good peanut butter cookie recipe before I get lost in the usual gingerbread, shortbread and egg-nog type recipes.
Trevor also enjoys a good peanut butter cookie, dare I say, more-so than a typical Christmas cookie recipe. I think we just both needed to get this out of our systems before the holidays fully takes it’s hold on us.
Being from Canada and when we were planning our all-girls Las Vegas vacation, it never really occurred to us how significant the week was that we would be down there. It wasn’t until we were booking our shows and trip to the Grand Canyon that it suddenly dawned on us……oh no, it’s Thanksgiving weekend!
This holiday didn’t alter our plans too much, we just had to switch around the dates that we planned our tours, since only some were open on Thanksgiving while others weren’t. Although the trip didn’t seem long enough (vacations never do), we were still able to see everything we planned on doing. There was also one added bonus to being in the US during Thanksgiving and I’m not talking about having turkey and mashed potatoes options for brunch everyday, which I took advantage of.
BLACK FRIDAY!
Compared to some people though, we didn’t take as much of an advantage to the great deals around us as we could have. Friday was our all-day Grand Canyon trip and since our pick-up time was 6am, we skipped waiting in the lines in favour of a good night’s sleep.
We did, however, make use of the outlets that surround Las Vegas. We got a great 2-for-1 deal for the shuttle buses to the Fashion Outlets which was great because there was one store there in particular that I had my eye on.
I’m going to be honest and admit that until I moved to Toronto, I had never really heard of or been inside of a William Sonoma before. The first time I had ever set foot in one was to see Bakerella during her book signing tour last year. I’ll also have to admit that I was mostly Christmas shopping on this trip, had limited baggage room and the knowledge of limited at-home cupboard space, so nothing really, really caught my eye in an I-need-to-have-that kind of way. So I left with a few Christmas presents, but nothing for myself this time. That’s okay though, I enjoyed the browsing/drooling more than anything else.
By the time you read this, I’ll already be in Las Vegas, soaking up the….er….hopefully not hot weather. Before we moved to Ontario last year, Trevor and I took a trip down to Vegas in August. Yes, August. It was cheap for a reason and we almost didn’t survive the humidity. There were guys stationed around various parts of the strip with coolers filled with ice and water bottles for $1. I think it’s safe to say that they made a small fortune off of us. Even though we bought a case of water to stash in our hotel room and carried around the bottles when we walked, it would never last long between the two of us.
Quinoa is one of those strange food names I’ve never been able to pronounce properly. Off of the odd chance that I magically get it right, my brain never decides to remember it and then I always go back to mispronouncing it again. The bad part is that Trevor has decided that we’re at the point of our relationship where he knows what I’m talking about and doesn’t bother correcting me, even when I use the wrong words or say something wrong all together.
Trevor: What’s for supper?
Me: Oh, we’re having….uh, quinn-noh-ah.
Trevor: (pause) Great, sounds delicious!
This does wonders for my social development outside of the apartment. “Yes, Mr Waiter, I would like my side dish to be some of that delicious looking……quinn-noh-ahh….yes, I said quinn-noh-ahh. In my spare time? I like to bake and post my creations on the internet.”
One of our typical quinoa suppers, with roasted carrots, sweet potato and zucchini
For future reference, according to Google, quinoa is pronounced keen-wah. Yeah, I don’t get it either, I must have completely zoned out during that significant part of grade 2 when this kind of alphabetical pronunciation was taught to us. Grade 2 wasn’t a complete blur though, I can tell you about the time that my best friend at the time pushed me as I dangled on the highest monkey bar as though it were a swing (we thought we were so clever) and thanks to the force of that push, I flew off backwards and landed flat on my face in the playground sand. That was the year I rocked a wicked scar on my lip and a new-found knowledge of momentum.
Matcha (green tea) powder is delicious in baking. You heard it here first, folks!
Matcha powder is especially delicious when paired up with the delicate art of shortbread. Savoury, buttery and oh-so-sinful. I just love the way it melts into goodness on my tongue and crumbles away in my hands when I eat it.
Show of hands, I can’t be the only one, right? That must be why those large tins of chocolate shortbread at Costco are so darn popular, especially around the holiday season.
Canadian food blogger, baking and eating her way through life. Musical theatre fanatic. Personal finance nerd. Sometimes runner/yogi. Green smoothies are pretty amazing.
