A hub for food happiness.
This post is written in partnership with Riceland Foods, the world’s largest miller and marketer of rice. Proudly grown by farmers in Arkansas and Missouri. #ProntoPerfectRice I’ve been running around the past few weeks and my pantry is getting quite lean. Leaner than usual, that is. As you know, I purposely create a lean pantry so I can easily see what I have and what I need. And since the contents are curated, keeping it lean makes it simple to use what I have and food doesn’t go to ...
You know those internal conversations you have with yourself? They often go like this, “I need to eat more vegetables. I should exercise more. Why do I stay up so late? I need, I should, why do I…?” The good news is that a good intention is indeed good for our minds and bodies. The bad news is that good intentions often fall flat when we don’t follow through. Expert after expert tell us that to turn good intentions into actuality we have to have self-discipline. That, my friends, is where the ...
Hello friends! It’s December 31st… follow these local foodie instagrammers right now before the clock strikes twelve. Drum roll…….. Here are the top 10 Northwest Arkansas food instagrammers that I think you should be reading. Not listed is @nwafoodie because I hope you and I already following each other. Please list your IG handle in the comments below so I can be sure to follow you. Am I missing someone on this list that is your IG-go-to-for-foodie-inspiration? Let me know in the ...
Disclosure: For the next year, I am serving as an ambassador for the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board by highlighting stories surrounding Arkansas’s largest row crop – soybeans! #themiraclebean #ARSoyStory #ARSoySupper As I sit here writing on this post, crazy old-screamer rock music blasts behind me. It is lunchtime and I have found a moment during the midday to locate a restaurant with a quiet spot to write. Quiet-ish. They’ve made some changes to the restaurant, I notice. They have added a ...
Hello friends! If you haven’t discovered these local NWA food bloggers yet, you still have time to get to know them before the year is over. Get a jump-start on 2018 and spend some time following, subscribing, and supporting these fine folks as they dedicate precious time and effort to fully ensure we are “foodie” informed. This list is my seventh annual list of my favorite NWA food bloggers. I am proud to be a part of this fun group! While I do miss many previous bloggers who have hung up ...
This post contains a link to sponsored content written in partnership with Riceland Foods, the world’s largest miller and marketer of rice - grown by famers in Arkansas and Missouri. Hey, how was your weekend? Was it a wee bit hard to get the motor revved up this morning? Perhaps all it needed was a little breakfast push. If you are like me, I prefer starting the morning with a hearty breakfast. I believe that a breakfast without eggs is like removing Richard Dreyfess’s character from the ...
Disclosure: For the next year, I am serving as an ambassador for the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board by highlighting stories surrounding Arkansas’s largest row crop – soybeans! #themiraclebean #ARSoyStory #ARSoySupper Hello friends. I hope your Thanksgiving was filled with happiness and joy. Most of us are back in the swing of things with our daily routines, school schedules and perhaps adding a few extra pushups to counteract the past few days of consuming dessert leftovers. Worth it! Isn’t ...
This post contains affiliate links. Guess what? Today we’re going to embrace one of life’s pick-me-ups! We’re going to make our own tea using dried herbs. Yep, I know. We all probably have perfectly good and ready-to-brew tea bags already in the pantry. But today is different. Today we celebrate a moment of pause. What is a moment of pause, you ask? A moment of pause is picking one thing that you are doing on rote and decide right here and now to elevate the experience surrounding it. ...
Hello friends! It so great to see you again! I’ve been out of town the past few weeks with family and loved ones… and I also have a new baby nephew! That means there is one more little munchkin to love on. Isn’t it THE BEST thing being an auntie (or an uncle)? Another BEST thing about vacations are coming home to a load of mail. No, I promise I am not being sarcastic… I really DO look forward to going through the pile. Every once in a while a handwritten note even makes their way in (like ...
Hello Monday. Monday brings promise of what lies ahead. Sometimes I like to sit and think, “I wonder what will life be like a week from now?” Happily, one week from now I will have a new baby nephew! Talk about a promise of what lies ahead. By now you know I am a lover of all things to-do-lists. Yep, I am one of those people who will add something to the list that is already done just for the satisfaction of crossing it off. Are you like that? If so, we are kindred souls. One of the ...
This post contains a sponsored link to a Sloppy Joe recipe I developed for De Nigris Italian Vinegars. #ItalianVinegar #DrizzleFlavor Four o’clock in the afternoon rolls around and your daily conversation with yourself begins. “Hey, it’s 4:00 already.” “How am I ever going to finish this project/laundry/deadline in the next hour?” “Maybe I should get a cup of coffee?” “Did I check Instagram in the last five/ten/fifteen minutes?” “What am I going to make for dinner?” The last ...
Meatballs come in all shapes, sizes, and ingredients such as beef, pork, turkey, chicken, vegetarian, and vegan. My personal favorite meatball base is ground chicken breast. The consistency is extremely fine and therefore you avoid any mystery bites of fat, grizzle, or well, mystery bites. Another great reason for choosing ground chicken for meatballs is that ground chicken breast is somewhat bland all by itself. This means that whatever ingredients you add will stay pure and deliciously ...
Happy Friday! I hope you are having a happy and hope-filled day, looking forward to this holiday weekend with giddy anticipation. I am pretty pumped because this weekend I finally get to meet a (second) cousin for the first time in my life! Plus I will be having a reunion with friends I used to go to church with over thirty years ago. Fun, right? Speaking of church youth groups… today’s five foodie finds is a plug for my church’s teen and young adult group. They are planning a trip to New ...
Oh, hey. How’s it going? It is a peaceful day over here at Happy Ours Cottage. I’ve been thinking a lot about food happiness lately. This blog is often a reflection of what is going on in my life. What started back in 2009 as a means to explore all the touch points of food hasn’t really strayed off track. Sometimes I’ve taken the scenic route while other times I’ve taken the time off to visit a town or two. Deep, I know. I believe in food happiness. Food is a necessity of life, right? We ...
You thought their last name was going to be Pozza, didn’t you? In the summer of 2005, Lucius and Alison Mhoon purchased Pozza’s Pasta from Mr. Felix Pozza of Tonitown. Mr. Pozza was a businessman and grocer in Tontitown, Arkansas, who started selling Pozza’s Pasta in 1971. The handmade Italian pasta actually has over 100 years of tradition and whether you realize it or not, it is an icon in Northwest Arkansas. The Mhoon’s background in Italian pasta is solid. The great aunt of Lucius owned ...
This post contains a sponsored link to a mocktail/cocktail recipe I developed for De Nigris Italian Vinegars. #ItalianVinegar #DrizzleFlavor Sorry, I’m not telling you what to do. This post is more like a nudge in the right direction. I mean, I have practically guaranteed that you’ll feel happy sipping merrily along with this shrub. What is a shrub? A shrub is a vinegar-based syrup or sweetener, infused with fruits or herbs. Or both. A shrub by itself with a splash of ginger ale or club ...
