Herb Roasted Potatoes

Corey loves meat and potatoes, but for some reason I don't make them very much. However, I started making roasted potatoes a few months ago and Corey has been in heaven. It doesn't matter what I serve them with (in fact, a couple of nights ago I just made the potatoes and veggies and he was still happy. If you know Corey, you know it's all sorts of incredible for him to enjoy a meal without meat!) I finally perfected the recipe and Corey made sure that I wrote it down so that these ("best potatoes you've ever made") make it on to our dinner table more frequently.

Herb Roasted Potatoes
Serves 3-4

2 lbs. baby red or yellow potatoes, washed and quartered
2 Tb. olive oil
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp. fresh rosemary, finely minced (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. dried parsley (or 2 tsp. fresh)
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
2 Tb. Parmesan cheese, grated

Combine all ingredients in a gallon-size Ziploc bag and shake until well coated and combined. Spread potatoes evenly on baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until crispy, stirring halfway through. Enjoy!

Birthday Cake Pancakes

I have a serious weakness for funfetti cake. You know, the kind from a box that you can buy at the grocery store for less than $2. They are my absolute favorite. I kid you not when I say that I could eat an entire box by myself in less than 48 hours. I know it's not high-class to crave boxed cake mix, but who am I kidding? I'm not exactly high class. I love food, and in my own personal opinion this is some of the best.

When I saw a recipe online for cake batter pancakes, using cake mix from a box...I couldn't resist. In fact, I didn't even make it three days without making these. And I didn't last a week after that without making them again. They are clearly not the healthiest breakfast...but for an occasional indulgence they are awesome (I'm thinking birthdays, because I want to eat birthday cake for breakfast on my birthday anyway, so why not birthday cake pancakes instead?) As a bonus, the leftovers are awesome as a mid-day snack. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

Birthday Cake Pancakes
adapted from How Sweet It Is

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow or white cake mix
2 Tb. granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 Tb. oil
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1 -2 cups milk (you may need more or less depending on the brand of cake mix that you use, I used 1 1/4 cups)
1/4 - 1/3 cups multi-colored sprinkles (the big fat ones, they're called "jimmies." If you use little ones they will dissolve too quickly and you won't be able to see the pretty streaks of color)

1. Whisk together dry ingredients in medium mixing bowl. Add eggs, oil, vanilla, almond extract and milk (start with about 1 cup and add more as needed to get desired consistency). Stir in sprinkles.
2. Preheat skillet to medium and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Drop batter by 1/4 cup-fuls onto hot skillet. Cook until bubbles form and stick on top and bottom is golden brown. Flip and cook for about 1 more minute or until golden brown on other side. Serve warm with butter and vanilla glaze (below) or maple syrup.

Vanilla Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. almond extract
3-4 Tb. multi-colored sprinkles
1-2 Tb. milk

Stir all ingredients together until smooth. Drizzle over pancakes.