I'm not that big of a produce eater. Fruit and veggies - not my thing on a daily basis. So of course I didn't notice or care when we got back from a week in Chelan and several of my dad's bananas were brown. And because we try to waste as little as possible, Dad asked me to make banana bread with them (as opposed to throwing them in the trash or food waste). I started searching before my mom told me about the recipe that she uses from the cookbook that her godmother's church put together with recipes from members and their friends, including my mom's godmother and her banana bread recipe.
A couple years ago my family and I went to Boston for a week. On our first night, we were walking around when I came across Red Velvet White Chocolate Chip cookies. I took a picture as a reminder to look up the recipe and make them. Flash forward to a couple weeks ago: I hadn't yet made them but when I came across them at Safeway, I grabbed a container. Holy deliciousness! (which didn't really surprise me - in my opinion their chocolate chip cookies are better than any Nestle Toll House recipe that I make.) When my mom asked me to make the dessert for our night to make dinner during our extended family's annual vacation to Chelan, I tried to find a cookie or bar recipe that would be great for 20+ people. I started looking at the dozens of recipes that I've bookmarked (no cookbook/magazine = one less thing to bring) and came across one for Cake Mix Cookies from Sweet & Simple. This sounded perfect since it would mean fewer ingredients to bring from home and less time in the kitchen mixing it up. I decided to turn them into bars because it would mean even less time in the kitchen (no having to wait for a dozen cookies to bake at a time) and they could be cut into any number of bars.
About a week ago my parents randomly decided to have a post-4th of July party with friends. My mom asked me to make Pepperoni Pinwheels for an appetizer. I got the recipe 4 years ago at my cousin's high school grad party (her mom and sister had made them and I asked for the recipe). A week later, I made them for Kevin's high school grad party. I've also made them every Christmas Eve since as well as for other events. They're very addicting so it's probably best to multiply the recipe to make more than the 2 dozen you get in one batch. I always use pizza sauce for dipping.
