Welcome to the weekend, my friends! There is sunshine in the forecast this week and I am so happy to see the snow beginning to melt. I’m looking forward to finally getting outside again for a walk or two this week.
ON THE BLOG this week: Chicken Tortilla Soup is a quick and easy weeknight dinner. Filled with beans and slightly spicy peppers, this simple meal is full of great flavors.
The classic Texas Sheet Cake is a fabulously moist and delicious chocolate cake covered in a rich chocolate frosting. This is a cake for the true chocolate lover. It never fails to bring out the happy moans when people taste it for the first time.
Nutty Raisin Oatmeal is filled with chewy raisins, crunchy nuts, brown sugar, and butter. It shows up on our breakfast table at least a couple of days each month – if not more often than that. My family’s love of oatmeal is a well-documented thing. (You can check out all of the oatmeal recipes on this website for proof of that.) This simple stove-top oatmeal is one of our favorites.
Pork Carnitas are bites of pork that are cooked until melt in your mouth tender; then the pork is roasted at a high temperature just until caramelized and crisp on the edges. Served with rice, in tacos, over mac ‘n cheese, or piled on a salad, carnitas are always a hit.
English Muffin Bread? Oh, yes. Everything you love about English muffins is waiting for you in this loaf of perfectly toastable English muffin bread. Those nooks and crannies? Those little crevices that hold melting pools of butter? It’s all here.
What I’m CRAVING: As you may already know, Carrot Cake is one of Sean and my favorite desserts. It’s just one of those must-have foods for us, anytime we spy a slice on a dessert menu. So, naturally, these Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls have been calling my name (loudly!) ever since my friend Rebecca told me about them.
What I’m READING: Prayer in the Night by Tish Harrison Warren. I absolutely loved this book. I’m reading it now for the second time. Not being familiar with the Anglican Church, the prayer of Compline was new to me, but it’s absolutely beautiful and has brought me so much peace. The practice of prayer corrects our vision over time. We learn to watch for what is all around us every minute—mercy, beauty, mystery, and a God who never ceases to wait and watch with us.
This book is beautiful, heart-wrenching, encouraging, and so much more. I wish I could gift it to everyone I know. “One reason we pray is so that the love of God might cease to be a spent and musty idea and instead become our light—the illumination by which we see everything.”
What I’m WATCHING: Twin Peaks. My oldest son is a gigantic fan of this series and he’s finally worn me down and convinced me to watch it with him. So far, it’s just confusing as heck, but I’m hoping it will come together into something that makes a bit more sense. Are any of you fans of the series?
What I’m LISTENING to: Peace Like A River: The Hymns Project by Chris Rice. This has been a favorite album for me for many years now. (And yes, I do find it amusing that I have an album of church hymns in my top 10 list, along with Def Leppard and Queen.)
I’ve been starting my workday mornings with these songs for weeks now. I don’t think there is anything better than a daily reminder that it truly IS well with my soul.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.” – Proverbs 3:5 NASB
Wishing you a beautiful week full of little things that make you smile!
Mary
