Chocolate peanut butter "ice cream"

Say what? Hello! Long time, no bloggy blog over here. I felt inspired to whip up a little something in the kitchen this evening, found via Pinterest. This faux ice cream is made with a just a few ingredients: frozen bananas, peanut butter, cocoa powder, and almond milk. Also, I've become obsessed with Instagram and Pictureshow, photo editing apps for my phone. Here's to the start of summer and may all your ice cream dreams come true. :)

3-4 sliced frozen bananas

Blend those babies!

1/4 cup or so for flavor

1-2 tbsp, depending on your preference

A good dollop. I bet almond butter would also be yummy!

Peanut, peanut butter... and jelly!

1 pint of the softest, dreamiest, blended confection ever known this side of 2012!

Alton Brown's Squash Soup

A few weeks ago, Andy and I trekked over to Corvallis for a muchly needed date night. We dined at Block 15 as we'd heard rave reviews of their beer selection. My sandwich came with a cup of pumpkin soup which was to die for! Upon arriving home, I looked around the internets for a good soup recipe, hoping to create something similar with butternut squash. Lo and behold, Alton Brown's Squash Soup! I created this gem last week and it didn't disappoint. I'm sure you can make a large batch and freeze this soup easily for many more enjoyable servings. Enjoy!

De-seed and rough chop two squash; I used one large and one small.

Although Alton's recipe requests leaving the rind intact, I found this to be quite messy after roasting. Next time, I'll be removing said rind and I recommend you do the same.

Brush the cubes with unsalted butter and sprinkle with kosher salt and white pepper.

Roast at 400 degrees F for about 30 minutes.

If you left the rind on while roasting, let the squash cool. Then use whatever creative flatware you have (and fetch your husband) to remove the rind.

Toss the squash into a large stock pot with veggie base.

Gather your fresh ginger, honey, heavy cream and freshly ground nutmeg.

Simmer... Using my fancy immersion blender, I blended this to a nice, smooth consistency. If you don't own said blender, use a regular blender, potato masher (the squash will be soft), or a food processor.

It smelled so GOOD! Grate and stir in the nutmeg.

Add a little garnish of green pepper and another grind of nutmeg.Serve with crusty bread for instant smiles and happy tummies!

Sesame Chicken Salad

Here's the recipe for the main dish we had the bridal shower - Sesame Chicken Salad. I think I'll be making this quite soon!

Sesame Chicken Salad
1 16oz. pkg of spaghetti
3T soy sauce
3T sesame oil
1T rice vinegar
1T sugar
1t hot chili oil
2T vegetable oil
3 baked and cubed chicken breasts
1c cashews
1/2 c green onions
1/2 c red pepper
1/4c sesame seeds, roasted
Cook spaghetti, drain and chill. Mix dressing ingredients; pour over pasta and chill for 3 hours. Add the chicken, cashews, onions, peppers and sesame seeds. Gets better with age!