This month for Eat Well, Spend Less we’re looking at saving time in the kitchen. See how I tackle the family dinner debacle and win a copy of Jessica’s new book: Not Your Mother’s Make-Ahead and Freeze Cookbook. The time is four o’clock. Children have arrived from school. Lunches need to be unpacked, backpacks checked for homework. There are things on the calendar for the evening, and sometime tonight you’d actually like to place your head on the pillow that resides... more

Going through the Eat Well, Spend Less basics of back-to-school ideas for staying sane as we head into the school year, and I’m giving away a Magimix 14-Cup Food Processor with the Juice Extractor and Smoothie Attachment to make it that much easier! Stuff. Stuff gets in the way of the things I want to accomplish. It sits there towering, a giant pile of misshapen boxes precariously perched on top of each other and forcing me to deal with it by gingerly removing and dealing with one box at a... more

Looking for inspiration on what to pack in your kids’ lunchboxes as they head back to school? Here are a few fun lunchbox ideas to get you through the year (or at least the first half of it) in this month’s Eat Well, Spend Less series. I pull the white cotton sheet over my head and pretend the world does not exist. Being woken up to the sound of my husband’s alarm blaring at 5:45 a.m. after having just crawled into bed at 2:17 a.m. is a painful reality. If I can just keep my eyes... more

A brioche cinnamon roll enhanced with the tartness of early season apples happened in our kitchen today, and Shaina wasn’t even home. Shaina is off today. Not by choice, but by force. Currently she is traveling around the West Coast promoting her book and talking to people and attending the International Food Bloggers Conference. Traveling though, doesn’t normally keep her from working. Shaina is known for being just as productive on the road as she is at home. Unfortunately, this time a... more

The Desserts in Jars book tour officially kicked off today. Check to see if I’m coming anywhere near you. I’ll be in New York City and Philadelphia the next few days (with Amanda!!!), and then I’m headed to the West Coast next month. I’ll be adding events as they come up, so watch the Desserts in Jars tour dates page if you want to see if I’m coming closer to you. I would so like to meet you all and say hello. As soon as I sign off here, I’m headed into the city... more

My debut cookbook, Desserts in Jars: 50 Sweet Treats that Shine, published this week!! Finally. I’ve started this post more times than I care to admit. I’m not exactly sure what to say. I could tell you how I used to write stories in journals, or how I would catalog my family’s bookshelves as if they were a library, and then I would add my journals to the shelves, a crude version of self-publishing. A few years ago I made a faux life list with my friend, Mandi. Faux only because... more

This month in the Eat Well, Spend Less series we’re focusing on summer fun, or, in my case, a crazy and insane summer schedule. Can you still eat well when your days are crammed full of activities and work and plenty of swimming? Of course! I’m not going to lie. This summer is going to be a difficult one. Between book promotion, the kids’ activities, summer camps, and Kiera’s schedule (OH MY GOODNESS, managing her schedule is a full-time job now that she’s headed to... more