Lunchtime Links for April 22nd, 2016

• Oh, Sweet Basil: Baked Spaghetti tacos.
• The Kitchn: Flourless chocolate cake.
• Damn Delicious: Grilled cheese roll ups.
• Crazy for Crust: No bake chocolate chip cookie pudding pie.
• Gimme Some Oven: Pad see ew.

Lunchtime Links for April 21st, 2016

• How Sweet It Is: Almond butter roasted banana bread.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Creamy Cajun pasta.
• Crazy for Crust: Chocolate chip snickerdoodles.
• The Pioneer Woman: One-pot broccoli Alfredo pasta.
• Cookies and Cups: Skinny Bang Bang shrimp pasta.

Lunchtime Links for April 20th, 2016

• Handle the Heat: Rocky Road brownies.
• Averie Cooks: Peter Pan Neverland chocolate chip cookies.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Microwave snickerdoodle cookie.
• A Beautiful Mess: Cinnamon Toast Tiramisu.
• My Baking Addiction: M&M cookies.

Sip by S'well at Target

In addition to mugs, I also have a strong affinity towards water bottles - there are always so many fun designs coming out all the time!  So of course I was super excited to hear that S'well was coming out with a special collection at Target called Sip by S'well.  And, to make things even better my local store had them out before the official release date so I could check them out in person.

 

As you can see there's a wide range of solid colors and patterned bottles in the collection, and they're all super cute.  I tried to limit myself but of course wound up buying a few, including a solid green (cut off on the top left of the first photo), the watermelon, and lemon bottles.  They hold both cold and hot water and keep things at the right temperature for a long time which is really nice.  I have used them both at work and while out running errands for the day, and it's easy to slip in to my purse so I don't have to buy something to drink while I'm out.  All Targets should have this collection out by now, and they are also available online! 

Lunchtime Links for April 19th, 2016

• Averie Cooks: Buffalo chicken burrito bowls.
• Crazy for Crust: Chocolate chip snickerdoodles.
• Handle the Heat: Baked Nutella doughnuts.
• The Comfort of Cooking: Italian pasta salad.
• My Baking Addiction: S'mores cake.

Lunchtime Links for April 18th, 2016

• The Comfort of Cooking: 4-ingredient salted caramel chocolate cups.
• A Spicy Perspective: Avocado Pesto stuffed shells.
• Averie Cooks: Peanut butter s'mores cookie pie.
• A Kitchen Addiction: Peanut butter crumb coffee cake.
• Cookies and Cups: Birthday cake chocolate chip cookies.

Lunchtime Links for April 15th, 2016

• Smitten Kitchen: Sheet pan chicken Tikka.
• Picky Palate: Caramel cupcakes with homemade yellow butter cake.
• Creme de la Crumb: Thai peanut chicken lettuce wraps.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Fluffy golden Oreo funfetti rice krispie treats.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Donut mug cake.

Lunchtime Links for April 14th, 2016

• The First Year Blog: Funfetti sheet cake.
• A Spicy Perspective: Chocolate caramel ice cream sandwich cake.
• Lunchpails and Lipstick: Sriracha lime chicken chopped salad.
• Averie Cooks: Banana bread donuts with browned butter caramel glaze.
• Kevin and Amanda: Bacon avocado grilled cheese.

Lunchtime Links for April 13th, 2016

• Brown Eyed Baker: Pretzel bark candy.
• Good Life Eats: 4 ingredient cookie butter blondies.
• Oh, Sweet Basil: Garlic lemon butter chicken pasta.
• Dessert for Two: Greek yogurt cheesecake.
• Handle the Heat: Peanut butter cheesecake stuffed chocolate cupcakes.

Paper Source - Rosé Mug

I need a new mug like a hole in the head, but it was VERY difficult to not immediately purchase this Rosé mug at Paper Source!  Surprisingly, I actually have not purchased it yet but I still have my eye on it every time I go to my local store, haha.  

I love that it has also recently been displayed alongside a lot of other Rosé themed gifts which are all super cute, including a mini pouch.  I think this mug would be perfect for the office or weekend brunch at home! 

Lunchtime Links for April 6th, 2016

• Warm Vanilla Sugar: Sweet chili Vermicelli tofu bowl.
• Cookies and Cups: Sprinkle donut marshmallow bars.
• Kirbie's Cravings: Kung Pao cauliflower.
• Dessert for Two: Mini Funfetti cake.
• The Comfort of Cooking: Homemade chocolate-dipped ice cream cones.

Lunchtime Links for April 4th, 2016

• Oh, Sweet Basil: Banana cake with cream cheese frosting.
• Creme de la Crumb: Roasted garlic Parmesan Brussels sprouts.
• Crazy for Crust: Peanut butter cup cupcakes.
• Damn Delicious: Quick Asian noodle recipes.
• Handle the Heat: Ding Dong cupcakes.

Duck Donuts - Rockville, MD

I've driven past the storefront for the new Duck Donuts by me a few times in the last couple of weeks, and even pulled up to park and then find out they weren't open yet... until now!  I was running some errands in the area and saw a few people standing by the door and people inside the store, so of course I had to make a detour on my way home to stop in and check them out.  

I've never been to a Duck Donuts before but I had heard about how good they are, so I was looking forward to seeing what their doughnuts were like.  The smell hits you first - fried dough and sweet toppings - mmm, so good.  There's a stack of order forms and pencils so you can figure out what combinations of coatings and toppings you want, and once you pay you can work your way down the line to see the doughnut making in action.  It's clearly a much smaller operation than say a Krispy Kreme doughnut manufacturing line, but still fun to watch each doughnut get fried and topped before heading out the door.  

From the top we have the Glazed, Peanut Butter Icing with Peanuts, and this day's special flavor Cinnamon Bun doughnuts.  They are made fresh and hot when you get the box, so it's really difficult to not dive right in!  A fresh doughnut really is so, so good - I can see why a lot of people just eat them in the store and can't wait until they get home! The reheated doughnuts weren't quite the same as fresh, but you still got the warm, delicious flavor.  

On another visit, we have a Chocolate Icing with Rainbow Sprinkles and this day's special flavor Reese's - these were really awesome too! Especially the Reese's for me, as it had a thick coating of the chocolate and peanut butter icing all over the doughnut that you couldn't even see the doughnut hole haha.  I've been raving about these doughnuts since my first visit and I definitely anticipate many more with friends! 

Lunchtime Links for April 1st, 2016

• Creme de la Crumb: One pan Rosemary chicken and potatoes.
• Damn Delicious: Cauliflower rice.
• How Sweet It Is: Double chocolate peanut butter smoothie bowls.
• Averie Cooks: Herb-roasted tri-colored carrots.
• I Heart Naptime: Rice Krispie treats.

National Letterwriting Month + Write On Campaign

Happy April everyone! I didn't find this out until recently, but April is national letter writing month which is perfect for someone like me that loves to send cards!

A few months ago I also heard about this great "Write On" campaign from Hello Lucky to send 30 cards in 30 days, and of course I thought it was a fun idea :o)  There's nothing to officially sign up for, and the main intention is just to get people to send more real mail out.  Whether you participate in the full 30 days or not, it's a great incentive to send mail to friends and family to brighten up their day!