My New Favorite Cookbook!

I have actually had a few things to blog about lately, but it's been a bit difficult for me to get around to it.  Unfortunately, I have this annoying bad back problem that just won't go away.  I have had ongoing back problems since I was pregnant with Evan, so... like seven years now.  I had a bad setback a couple of years ago, when I could not get out of bed for about a week, and ever since, my back has just never fully recovered.  I am like a 90 year old women, and the gray hairs don't help either.  I had a flair up a little over a week ago, when I had this "brilliant" idea that it would be ok to play some basketball with the women in our ward for a big multi-stake tournament.  Really,...not so brilliant.  I haven't played, like a "real" game, in over 10 years.  Yes, I feel like I am in good enough shape to play.  I have been training for a half-marathon, and have faithfully kept up my strength training program (for my back) for weeks now, but that just isn't the same as jerking around on the basketball court.  My back did not appreciate it, and I have been paying for it now for the last 9 days.  I had to take a week off of training, and I have had to do a lot of laying around.  Sitting is about the worst thing I can do, so, yeah, to make a very long and boring story short (and probably way more than you wanted or cared to know), that is why I have not blogged in a while.

Anyway...

I have been a fan of this food blog for about a year now.  It's called "Our Best Bites".  I'm sure a lot of you have already heard of it.  I love their blog and almost every recipe I have made from them has been wonderful.  So, I was super excited when they came out with a cookbook.  I ordered it immediately, and have been cooking from it left and right since I got it in the mail.  I YUV it!!!!  Great pics, explanations, tips, recipes,...etc.  I highly recommend it. 

So, I guess I am going to brag,... just a little.  Mostly because I am pretty dang proud of myself.  I made some homemade bread sticks from their cookbook last night.  I mean totally from scratch with yeast, and letting the dough rise twice and everything.  I have wanted to learn to make good made-from-scratch rolls and breads for a while, and I have attempted, with some ok results, but usually I am still left a little disappointed.  But, after last night, I feel pretty dang awesome.  My bread sticks were "off-the-hook"!

Really, they were oh so tasty! I served them with an Italian meatball soup recipe, that, yes, I also got from the "Our Best Bites" cookbook.  Yes, there was a lot of chaos going on around me while I was trying to make these, (Ben and Evan were about to cause me to jump off a bridge), but it was worth it.  It was... really. :]

Oh, and I have not forgotten.  April is "Autism Awareness" month.  I will be blogging about that soon.