We had one of those jam-packed-scheduled-to-the-minute kind of weekends. You know how it goes – all kinds of cool things somehow wind up happening in the same 72 hour window of time. It was wonderful, but it left us feeling like we needed a weekend after the weekend. Can I get an Amen?

Friday night, rather than hosting our own Simple Supper, we joined our friends Anne and Patrick, who picked up the Simple Supper torch when we left Providence. We had a lovely, loud, laughter-filled evening with new friends and old and three different soups – a parsley chowder (potatoes, cod, fresh herbs, and creamy goodness), potato leek, and butternut squash. Yum! Heather and I brought a salad inspired by the large pile of clementines (or clems, as I like to call them) on our dining room table.

We whipped up a citrus dressing to accompany this simple salad and it was quite good (if I do say so myself!). Here’s the quick run-down:

Arugula-Clem Salad with Citrus Dressing

• big bunch of arugula (or spinach)
• three small seedless cukes
• four clems, peeled and sectioned
• freshly grated parm cheese (or other cheese of your liking)
• about 1/2 cup of toasted pine nuts (or other nuts)

For the Dressing:

• 1.5 clems, juiced
• 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon of lemon white balsamic vinegar (or other vinegar)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of agave (or honey or sugar)
• salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a jar with a tight lid and shake vigorously! Adjust flavors to taste.

What’s that? You’re waiting for the cookies? Alright already!

Saturday afternoon I co-hosted an event for GLBTQ Alumni over at my alma mater, Holy Cross. This was a great excuse for me to dust off my cookie cutters and food coloring.

Did I mention that I received a ridiculous amount of food coloring for Christmas…?

The last time I decorated cookies was in early February, for our nephew’s Spiderman-themed 3rd birthday party. These little buggers were no small feat, but it was totally worth it when Brody laid eyes on them. See my Cookie Idol, Sweet Sugarbelle’s post for the how-to!

Anyway, in a cheap attempt to bribe people to join us on Saturday, I posted tantalizing photos of these Holy Cross Cookies on our group’s Facebook page. I firmly believe that you cannot underestimate the power of cookies to lure people to an event!

Heather popped over to join us (and enjoy a few cookies) between a morning class and her Grandma’s 85th birthday party!

Finally, on Sunday evening, Heather and I hosted a group of folks at our house to help spread the word about the LGBT Asylum Support Task Force. The event was called “Dessert and Discussion,” so I spent a good deal of time with my KitchenAid mixer again on Sunday. I whipped up some of our rosemary chipotle mixed nuts, along with a batch of browned butter oatmeal cookies and my version of black and whites. Here are some teaser photos – recipes coming soon!

So, what did you do, make, eat, or enjoy this weekend?