Chicken and Pasta Casserole

Chicken and Pasta on a Tuesday.

You could say I was raised on farm fresh milk, country air, mama's homemade honey bread and Amish noodles.  Noodles were a staple of my diet, as much a part of my life as my Father's solemn grace at the beginning of every meal. Since moving to North Carolina, I don't always have access to the Amish noodles I love to cook with, so occasionally I substitute spaghetti noodles.  Here is a recipe my kids loved when they were little.  It's delicious and easy to make. Perfect for a Tuesday.  Pair it with a bright green vegetable, and dinner is served!

Tacos Along the Thames

Susana Villasuso and daughter, Lily.

Former culinary chef, Susana Villasuso, knows the importance of going after a dream.  Spending years in culinary school to master a degree before joining the love of her life in marriage, she learned that doing what one loves sometimes requires a sacrifice.  And later, when their first child was born, she realized that sacrifice again as she set aside her career, choosing to become a stay-at-home mommy to their daughter, Lily.

Wood and Spoon

In Lilac.

I met Kate Wood's cakes before I met her, and it was this violet beauty that stole my heart and my breath when it flashed across Instagram last year, drawing me like a bee to honey. Right on the heels of that, the chubby-faced baby appearing from time to time in Kate's photographs convinced me I had to do a story on this amazing baker whose profile declares, "I make cakes and cute babies." No lie there.

Wild Rituals Soap

Megan Thompson, owner of Wild Rituals Soap Company.

If there’s one thing Megan Thompson has learned in recent years, it’s to say yes when opportunity knocks. Thompson, the owner of Wild Rituals Soap Co., started the business in 2013 after a conversation with her father during a time of confusion in her life. With his encouragement, she decided to follow a longtime dream of making soap and skin-care products, and she began poring over books and concocting experimental batches of lye and natural ingredients in her family garage.

Three years later,