Weekend Things

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Time for an installment of Weekend Things:

1. I’m spending the weekend in the Duncan Hines Test Kitchens in New Jersey with a dozen or so other blogging friends.

I am so excited to meet some ladies whom I’ve never met but feel like I have, after reading their blogs for years. And of course, eating my way through epic amounts of cake and frosting won’t be too shabby.

Pink cupcakes on a tiered stand

I’ve been instagramming pictures and sent them to my Twitter and Facebook.  Hashtags for the event are #DuncanHinesTK and #WinnerWeekeend

2. I was named as one of the 35 Awesome Sugar-Slinging Blogs You Should Be Following on Twitter – I really admire everyone on this list and many are good friends.

I am honored to be named in such fabulous company, including David Lebovitz and Deb of Smitten Kitchen as well as Angie of Bakerella and food photographers that I will look up to forever, Matt Armendariz of Matt Bites and Aran Goyoga of Cannelle et Vanille. Thanks A Candy Store!

Other blogs to follow screenshote

3. Nordstrom pinned my Vegan Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins – You’ll never miss the eggs or butter in these super soft, no-mixer, fast, easy little muffins. Definitely would never guess they’re vegan.

I’m grateful they pinned them and with their 4.5 Million followers, it’s nice to know vegan goodies are becoming more accepted by the mainstream.

Screenshot of Nordstrom's re pinning of pumpkin muffins

Pinterest dialogue between Nordstrom and Averie

4. I gave an interview to Best Friends for Frosting months ago and the post went up last weekend.

It was fun to go re-read my answers because after a vacation to Aruba, a move, and tons of recipes and emails spanning months later, the details were a little fuzzy. Sort of a surprise to myself, and I agree with everything I said.

Averie's interview

5. I want this cardigan, $198 from Anthro. The nubbiness on the front and back, the embroidered floral sleeves, the colors. Love it.

Cardigan from Anthropologie

6. Imagine my surprise when Ree started following me on Twitter. My iphone flashed and 99% of the time, I don’t even look at it one-by-one and go into my accounts at the end of the day and see who’s said hi or liked something. But I randomly saw her name and thought it was a typo.

I checked her twitter page and sure enough, she is.

I get excited about things like this because I really admire her. She’s a shrewd business woman, she raises her 5 kids, she homeschools 5 kids, while running all her companies, her blog, has a TV show, and is sweet, kind, and warm. I really don’t know how she does it all, and seems to be so happy and laidback.

Twitter logo for Ree Drummond

I actually met her but I put her in the same category of Oprah. Everyone meets her, and she’s super nice to everyone, but there’s no way the woman could possibly remember everyone. But it’s nice to be followed by someone I really admire and she also pinned my dinner rolls.

I get more starstruck about food stars than when I’ve done yoga mat-to-mat next to Hollywood stars like Gwyneth Paltrow or Katie Holmes.

7. Bon Appetit did a story on Building a Snackadium. Even junk food and salty snacks can get classed up from a Bon Appetit mention.

A snackadium

8. I built one last year with with crispy Pepperoni Pizza and the mini pepperoni were my yard lines.

A pepperoni pizza snackadium

And Chipotle Avocado Cucumber Flatbreads for the turf of my field.

I’m not a footfall fan and don’t eat pepperoni, but I’ll take that turf any day.

Chipotle Avocado Cucumber Flatbreads

9. These Sweet with Heat Cinnamon Sugar Candied Nuts are the perfect snacky food for football parties or to put the most amazing fragrance in your house while they bake. Easy and ready in 30 minutes.

Sweet with Heat Cinnamon Sugar Candied Nuts - Recipe at averiecooks.com

10. I have a Pumpkin Board on Pinterest with over 200 Pumpkin Recipes for anyone who needs to feed their beta-carotene addiction.

Pumpkin Board on Pinterest

Thanks for the entries in the Kindle Fire HD (16 GB) and $20 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway!

What are your Weekend Things

If you’ve made anything, done, seen, or bought anything fabulous recently, feel free to link it up in the comments.

Have you been enjoying pumpkin this season? Any awesome recipes? Cute fall clothes? Snacky football food you’re loving?

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Comments

  1. Averie, congrats on the well-earned recognition!! So happy for you. :) This should definitely help take the kinks out of a big move. xo

  2. Congrats on the respond and follows and whatnot! Maybe I should just say congrats on your life, in general, haha:) kinda agree with you about the being starstuck around some food people. Being an actor in LA other celebs don’t tend to phase me, but when I met Joy the Baker I got so nervous!
    As for my latest thing I’ve made, I got all old school and used an old Betty Crocker cookbook: https://scrumptiousgruel.wordpress.com/2013/09/19/molded-greens/

  3. I agree with you Averie, how exciting it is, everything you are doing, and all the people you are meeting. I would actually prefer meeting Ree over Oprah ! I guess we all have different ideas of ranking status of those whom we admire. Love Love Love the cardigan, you obviously have awsome taste in clothes as well as your taste for unique and wonderful creations! I only follow three blogs, yours, sallysbakingaddiction , and pioneer woman. I have never left a comment until today. I think because, like you said, even people you have never met, you think of them as friend just from reading their blogs ( or watching Ree’s cooking show), and you get defensive if you feel anyone is being a tad mean. Anyway, off to the kitchen I go to make Marlboro man’s fave sandwhich for my husbands lunch! Congrats to you Averie! I’m proud for you!

    1. Thanks for the great comment and only following 3 blogs and mine included in those 3 is awesome. Sally and I are great friends so that’s sweet to hear you’re a fan of hers, and Ree’s too!

  4. Congrats on the Nordstrom pin, so cool! Love that pumpkin board – I’m ready to crack open my first can!

  5. Congratulations on everything – you certainly deserve it! Hope you have the BEST, most delicious time this weekend! xo

  6. Congrats on everything! Love the sweater–but it’s outta my price range. Way outta my price range. And thanks for the pumpkin-mania …

  7. Congrats on the pin by Nordstrom! I am starting to get into squash/pumpkin mode. We ‘re having a warm weekend and technically it is still summer until tomorrow. I’m thinking about coming up with a little pumpkin-coconut ice cream today. Have fun in the test kitchen…cake and frosting sounds like a delicious way to spend a weekend with fellow bloggers!

  8. I need to spend some time on your pinterest lady, you have such great baking recipes and let’s face it- it’s pure eye candy ;)

  9. Have fun thus weekend! It sounds really cool. Loved reading the interview too. I think we all want a little more storage space. I have quite a bit but always have trouble finding room for new purchases.

  10. Congratulations on all the shout-outs! You deserve it and I LOVE your blog to pieces. It’s the first I read every morning. :)

    I just got back from a trip to Chicago–so I am hoping to relaaaaax this weekend.

  11. Do bloggers schedule in workouts on working weekends? It must be difficult when all the food being made is for YOU!
    Too funny that you “agree with everything” you said in the Best Friends interview. On occasion I go back and read super old posts from Facebook and it’s funny to see how I’ve evolved.
    I’ve decided the reason I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin is due to allspice and ginger. I just can’t get over the flavor of those spices in recipes, so maybe I should try leaving it out in my next pumpkin go-around and see if that helps…
    Your blog is definitely one of my go-to resources and I love your book as well. Thank you for all the hard work you put in to make people’s lives a little yummier!

    1. I personally just got back from a run and am about to start my day…I could never sit in meetings all day, so to speak, without going for a run. It’s just my daily habit :)