Dinner Diva: Shopping Cart Envy

Shopping cart in front of cold cases

What you’re about to read is based on a true story… About 2004 or 2005, I was shopping at my neighborhood grocery store (the new Harris Teeter in Wesley Chapel, NC) for the week. List in hand (well duh–I’m the Dinner Diva!), I had conquered the store and my cart was filled with all I […]

Tip, Trick & a Recipe: Keen on vanilla bean!

vanilla beans standing in a glass jar with a twine bow around in with a wooden background

How often do you twist open the cover on a bottle of vanilla extract? Oh, it smells so good! If you’re a fan of the flavor and/or scent of vanilla, I highly recommend you get your hands on some vanilla beans and see how much more intense your love can be. You may be surprised […]

Tip, Trick & a Recipe: Kale Chips

There is a topic that keeps coming across my radar, both on Facebook, my email inbox, and even at the market when my fellow shoppers wonder what I’m doing with all of that kale (when my own crop has been harvested for the season, of course!): kale chips. And, today, we’re going to talk kale […]

Dinner Diva: Easing into a cleaner lifestyle

During the holidays, it’s perfectly fine to savor one of your favorite desserts or to have an extra glass of egg nog or two, but you shouldn’t use the whole season as an excuse to overindulge. Tens of thousands of Americans will resolve to lose weight and to get healthier in 2020. I have weight […]

Tip, Trick & a Recipe: It’s always time for winter squash!

Butternut squash, acorn squash, and buttercup squash grouped on a wooden surface.

Today’s focus is on: WINTER SQUASH There are two kinds of squash: winter squash and summer squash. The difference is that the winter varieties are normally better suited to survive the winter in storage (think hardy squashes like butternut squash and acorn squash), while summer squash tends to have edible seeds and peels, and a […]

How to Eat to Beat the Blues

Woman with hand to head sadly over a mug

The holidays are bearing down on us, and while this is a wonderful time of year for a good segment of the population, there are a lot of folks who find it difficult to cope with the hustle and bustle. During the month of December, many people run around trying to do too much, spending […]

Tip, Trick & a Recipe: Cranberries for Thanksgiving

Cranberries on a wooden table next to a steel bowl full of cranberries

‘Tis the season for cranberries! Around the holidays you can find fresh cranberries just about anywhere, so there’s no excuse for buying those nasty cans of jellied cranberry sauce! Cranberries aren’t only beautiful, they’re also full of nutrition. Cranberries are full of Vitamin C, Vitamin E, potassium, iron, magnesium, and folate. Cranberries contain antioxidants and […]

How to Freeze Thanksgiving Ahead

Here is a question I received that I believed warranted answering for everyone— Hi- I LOVE “Saving Dinner”! My husband loves the food even more. Here is my question: how feasible is it to freeze any Thanksgiving side-dishes in advance (ie cranberry sauce, casseroles, even stuffing)? Thanks! I am busy with a new baby AND […]

Treat Yourself with Tangerines

It’s citrus season in the United States—that time of year when you can find those little citrus sweeties all over the grocery store. Tangerines are in season from November through April. There are three major types of tangerines that we tend to find here in the western hemisphere: tangerines, mandarins, and tangelos. These cute little […]