It is a very special time here at the cottage and making meal plans right now may be a little different as some things here at the cottage are changing.17 years ago my husband retired, we traveled, moved to the country, remodeled our little cottage, developed a fantastic organic garden and had a lot of fun. Then 11 years ago he went back to work, this week he retired again (for the last time I hope). We have some great plans to sit on the screen porch, enjoy the bird sanctuary, work in our garden, continue to preserve the garden harvest and when it is safe to do so again, we look forward to traveling. The meal plans that I have made here for our dinner meals won't change, but we won't be getting up at 4:00 a.m., packing lunches along with 2 snacks on work days. It really is time for us to begin this part of our life and we are very excited about the journey. I shall keep all of you posted as we move along.

Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, I am so excited to see you today. It is very cold here and we still a couple of patches of snow left in our yard. We don't get snow that often and when we do it is a really big deal. Of course when we have snow our thoughts will turn to warm comfort food and what better place to find those recipes than right here at our weekly party. We have some awesome features from last weeks party, be sure and stop by those bloggers sites to say hello. Thanks so much for coming to the party today, we would miss you if you were not here!

  I have made this Mexican Chicken Soup recipe for years, it is one of those favorite go to recipes that we all have in our recipe box. I keep cooked Chicken in the freezer for just this kind of recipe. I cook a whole chicken, debone and chop, then I bag it up in 3 to 4 cups a bag. Most recipes call for 3 to 4 cups of chicken for soups and casseroles. This is a very simple but very flavorful bowl of soup and  one that will have you coming back for seconds.

  We have had extended COVID restrictions here in Germany and the whole family has been getting a little stir crazy. Today the sun finally made an appearance, which is a rare occurrence this time of year, and I was lucky enough to have already planned a nice hike with a friend! It was lovely to get some fresh air, sunshine, and little venting in. I am always hungry after a hike and this refreshing and easy bruschetta hits the spot! 

Meal Planning is going to be real easy this week, we are expecting snow, truly a rare thing here, but great for cozy comfort food. I am thinking of parking my Slow Cooker on the counter for the week, the recipes abound. We are busy at the planning board here at the cottage, planning our spring gardens, ordering seeds and even starting to plant some starter seeds. Someone contacted me the other day and ask about upcoming food trends in 2021, my answer is always the same, I am a seasonal cook and recipes are developed from whatever product is in season. How many of you are seasonal cooks and what will be your food trend for 2021?

  Welcome to Full Plate Thursday, as we get rolling here in 2021! The holidays are behind us and we had some fantastic food this year, maybe it is because we were staying closer to home than usual. We have some great features from last weeks party that you will want to stop by and visit, pick up a couple of new recipes to try. We have put away all our holiday decor and things are beginning to get back to whatever we consider to be normal. My husband has been on vacation for 10 days and he went back to work today, we sure had a good time together and made some great holiday memories. I am very excited to see what you will be sharing with us today, so come on in and find a spot at the table, so glad you are here!

This Caramel Pecan Bundt Cake is a very rich, flavorful cake for any occasion. The thick caramel drizzle with pecans will turn this Bundt cake into something very special. This is a perfect cake to have on hand to serve  friends who will drop by on the weekends for a cup of coffee. Its fun to surprise them with a nice slice of a delicious dessert, not one single person has turned it down yet, and I have been known to send a couple of slices home with friends.

  We are soup and stew lovers here at the cottage and really enjoy a hot bowl of soup for lunch or dinner. This is a great slow cooker recipe with lots of veggies that I just love. The butternut squash and white beans are a great combination and I have added some greens along with special herbs to create this amazing bowl of soup. This is a rich and comforting vegetarian soup that simmers away in the slow cooker and is ready for you to enjoy at the end of the day.

Welcome to 2021 and starting a whole new year of meal plans. We have spent the last few days looking at some of the goals we have set for the cottage this year. We have been working on our garden plan plot, and some projects that we want to complete here at the cottage. We are hoping to increase the size of the garden for 2021 which will give us even more fresh vegetables to put on our table. I am excited to make our first meal plan for the year and use some of my favorite recipes for the season!