Productive and Relaxing Weekend

I swore a vow to take a walk Friday night no matter what. When I got home from work I did some quick calculations and figured I could walk and get dinner made before my husband came home from work...if I hurried. I quickly changed into my walking shoes, grabbed some dogs and headed out the door.

It had been awhile since I took the dogs for a walk. They were super excited and maybe a little annoyed that I wanted a pre-walk photo. Millie is so much better at sit/stay than Zommie.

 And off we go. Zommie started out strong.

 Then she began to lag behind.

 So I carried her for a little bit.

 So hard to take pictures carrying a dog and walking another.

 This perspective of gigantasaurus Zommie looking down on mini Millie makes me laugh.

We ended up walking just a little over a mile. It was at a dachshund's pace, but we were all happy to be out there doing our thing. Except for the part when Zommie decided to stop for a potty break in front of the only house with people outside. And to make it even better it was a big mess of funky corn that she had stolen from the trash that morning...I was not amused.

My husband had to work on Saturday so I decided to make myself a lunch I knew he would hate - on several levels. I chose One Pan Broccoli-Bacon Mac 'n Cheese as recommended by Mary at Runs to Get Waisted (read her recipe review here). My husband only likes the orange powdered from a box version of mac 'n cheese and he definitely would never allow squash to be added.

Yes, the secret ingredient of this recipe is butternut squash, which I love. The recipe called for a frozen puree, but I couldn't find it in the store. Cooking and pureeing the squash was an extra step, but it could easily be done the night before to streamline after work dinner prep.

Speaking of preparation, I would highly recommend checking all your ingredients before you start cooking. I ended up having to run out in the middle of a torrential downpour to get the milk. By the time I took this picture I had already cooked and sampled the bacon - I had to hide it from myself while I worked on the other components..

 The sauce is made up of chicken broth, milk and the pureed butternut squash.

Surprisingly, my least favorite part of the dish was the broccoli. I don't think I cared for it in combination with the butternut squash. I don't make pasta very often and I was concerned that it the pasta would not cook enough as it was added uncooked to the sauce. However, it turned out perfectly.

I had to run a quick errand as soon as the cooking was finished, so I actually ended up eating it at room temperature. I liked how the squash clung to the noodles. I am looking forward to eating the leftovers this week for lunches.

My niece (who is soon to be an aunt) and I made cupcakes my oldest niece's "gender reveal" party this afternoon. She did a great job on the little bee decorations. What will it "bee"?

While we wait for the party my husband and I are sharing a big bowl of homemade pico de gallo and watching a little pre-season football. Well, at least we were until my husband got sidetracked by Captain America and I by my blog.

I love weekends when I have time to be creative in the kitchen. Speaking of creativity my "studio" is almost back together after the trim was finished. I am excited to get serious about sewing blocks for quilts. I hope you all had a productive, yet relaxing weekend.