Never in a million years did I think I would be so excited about last night’s leftover salad for lunch. But then again, never did I think I would be quarantined in an apartment with a pair of very energetic 6 and 3 year-olds and not allowed to see any of our family or friends or do anything else outside the confines of these walls for that matter. I guess this is a time for lots of first’s. But back to the latter. This Broccoli and Chickpea Salad had me really looking forward to lunch this week, because it is that good. It’s crunchy, a little sweet, a little tangy, and just the right amount of spicy. It really is so different than many a salad I’ve tried before, especially those with broccoli. (It even had me secretly hoping my husband didn’t finish it off so I could repeat for lunch on day 3… Shhh)

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To say I love my Instant Pot is an understatement. It really does come in so handy for me living here in Istanbul to make anything from a few “cans” worth of beans for easy burritos, chickpeas for hummus, or almost-instant succulent, pull-apartable (that’s a word right?) chicken like this BBQ chicken. Considering I have to pull out a 15 pound converter each time I want to use my Instant Pot that I schlepped from the states with American voltage is a small price to pay for convenience. While this post may be the first Instant Pot one yet, I assure you more are coming as it has been busy at work. It takes a few times to figure out the kinks with each recipe, but so far no unsalvageable disasters. Just keeping my fingers crossed it continues working as well as it has been with the converter!

Now for these Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Cilantro Slaw. They truly made for a perfect almost-end-of-summer dinner. In fact, when my 6-year-old, who happens to have an incredible nose for foods, walked in the door from school after I had just opened the lid to the Instant Pot, his exact words were “what is that smell that smells like something amazing?” And when I told him it was BBQ chicken (the same I’ve made before,) he hugged me and said “Oh thank you, mom!” I can’t make these moment’s up, but I can sure savor every last one of them and document it right here for safe-keeping. You know, those moments when it feels like we’ve actually got something right, the ones that maybe don’t happen all that often some days?

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Not sure if I’ve mentioned before.  But besides being nuts for this time of year, I might be even more nuts for anything with pumpkin in it.  Even the pumpkin spice latte or as some like to call it, the PSL, you might ask?  Yep, send it my way please.  In fact send it my way soon please.  Not sure why the Starbucks here in Istanbul waits so long to bring this drink to their autumn menu.  The PSL made it’s debut in LA back in September and it’s still not here.  Sheesh.  Ok, sorry, this isn’t a post about coffee.

This is a post about the shining star of fall, the great pumpkin.  No, not the Charlie Brown version.  Though that’s definitely in the top ten best things of the season.  I sure hope I can find a way to play it for my littles this year.  It’s a Halloween tradition.  Sorry, I’ve drifted again.   Read more