Habits of a Modern Hippie, Denver, CO (2026)

12/23/2025

Goat cheese stuffed pears! Comment ‘Stuffed Pears’ to have the recipe along with tips, tricks, and the melon baller I love to be sent to your DMs!

Ingredients
3-4 Pears Slightly Underripe
4 Oz Goat Cheese
2 Tbsp Honey Divided
1 Tbsp Rosemary Minced
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
Water

Method
Preheat oven to 400º. 
In a small bowl combine the goat cheese, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon of honey. Mix well to combine and set aside. 
Prep a bowl of water and lemon juice to prevent the pears browning. 
Slice each pear down the center lengthwise. Then using a melon baller core each pear half. Then drop into the lemon water until ready to use. 
Let each pear drip dry as you transfer them to a shallow baking dish (I’m using ). Then fill each scooped out pear with the cheese filling. Drizzle a bit of the remaining tablespoon of honey over each pear. 
Bake for 20-25 minutes (depending on the size of the pears) until the pears start to curl in on the edges and the goat cheese creates a film and starts to brown. 
Top with crushed walnuts and serve warm! 
Cover Photo: .creative

12/22/2025

Cranberry Curd ASMR style!

Ingredients:
12oz Fresh Cranberries
1/2 C Sugar
1 C Cranberry Juice
3 Egg Yolks
1/4 C Butter

Combine cranberries, sugar, and juice in a small saucepan on medium heat (I love. My for its ability to hold heat!) Mix well and occasionally stir for 10-15 minutes. You’ll know the mixture is ready when all of the sugar is dissolved, the cranberries have made ‘popping’ noises and are split, and the mixture is becoming more mush than singular berries.

Transfer to a high powered blender (I’m using a ) and remember to vent the top the blender while working with hot substances. I use a towel to prevent cranberry spray! (This also works with a stick blender, but if you use a stick blender you’ll have to strain later!) Blend until smooth.

Pour the mixture back into the still-warm pot and add egg yolks. Start whisking immediately and pop back on the stove on medium low. Continue to whisk until the curd starts to thicken and set.

Remove from heat and whisk in the butter, a few chunks at a time until the curd starts to glisten. It should be thick but pourable!

Transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Cover photo: .creative

12/20/2025

Fresh Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:
2 Cups Flour
3/4 Cups Butter (1.5 Sticks)
1/2 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Molasses
2 Tbs Grated Fresh Ginger Root(about 2”)
1 Egg
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Cloves
Pinch of Nutmeg (about 1/4 tsp)
Pinch of Salt

Method:
Preheat oven to 350º

Add sugar and butter to a mixer and cream for 6-7 minutes (I start with a whisk attachment.)

In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to combine.

Once the sugar and butter is creamed add in the molasses, egg, and grated ginger. Combine well.

Slowly incorporate the flour mixture, the dough will start to become thick, so you might need to swap out a whisk attachment for the dough hook, and mix until all of the ingredients are combined well.

Roll into 1.5” balls, add them to a lined baking sheet spaced about 3 inches apart, and chill for 20-30 minutes (It is chilly here, so I popped them outside, but in the fridge works too!)

Bake for 12-15 minutes. You’ll see the balls puff up and then deflate leaving the beautiful cracks! Closer to 12 minutes will leave a softer cookie and closer to 15 will give the bottoms a bit of a crunch!

If your cookies spread too far, you can easily round these cookies out by using a mug/cup/small bowl that is slightly wider in diameter than your cookie and swirl the cookie around inside while they’re still warm!

Cover Photo: .creative

12/18/2025

Chocolate Dipped Candied Orange Slices

For Four Pounds of Oranges:
Simple Syrup:
2 Cups Water
2 Cups Sugar
2 Cinnamon Sticks
4 Cardamom Pods, crushed

Slice each orange to about 1/4” thick, only use slices that have pulp showing on both sides.

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan (I am using a ) combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil to dissolve sugar, then lower to a simmer. Add the cinnamon sticks and cardamom pods.

Drop in the orange slices, stirring every once in a while to make sure that all oranges get submerged, and simmer for one hour or until the slices start to look slightly translucent- almost gem-like!

Use a slotted spoon or spatula to let the oranges drain and transfer to a cooling rack with a towel or parchment paper underneath. Let dry 30-45 minutes or until tacky (not sticky.)

In the meantime melt your favorite chocolate chips (I’m using ) using the double-boiler method (a heat safe bowl perched on top of a saucepan full of boiling water.)

Dip each chocolate slice into the chocolate half-way and then set to dry on the cooling rack. Sprinkle with sea salt (I’m using flaky salt!) and then leave until they are completely cooled and the chocolate is hardened.

NOTE: If you choose to cool the orange slices on a wire rack, you lose quite a bit of chocolate. I prefer the thin coating, BUT if you want a thicker chocolate coating, place each orange slice on waxed paper instead.

12/17/2025

Brown Butter Sweet Potato Stacks! Tons of flavor for your holiday side!

Ingredients:
3-4 Sweet Potatoes*
1/2 C Butter (1 Stick)
1/2 C Grated Parmesan
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
2 Tbs Thyme Leaves
1 Tbs Minced Sage
Salt and Pepper, to taste

*To make filling each tray easy, choose sweet potatoes that have a diameter that is smaller than each muffin cup!

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400º.

Brown the butter. The biggest trick to browning butter is to never walk away! Butter can go from brown to burnt very quickly. So in a sauce pan (I’m using a pan that is easy to swirl because it’s light but still holds heat well) over medium heat melt the butter by swirling. Once melted turn the heat down to medium low, stirring or swirling occasionally. I prefer the ‘swirl’ method because it lets you see if there are any bits at the bottom of the pan! And then LISTEN! The butter will start to sizzle and foam up after it melts. Listen to the butter sizzle and as soon as the sizzling stops remove the pan from heat. Continue to swirl as the pan cools down and you’ll notice that the butter is a beautiful golden color with some darker bits (caramelized milk solids) in the bottom and smells wonderfully nutty.

Transfer the browned butter to a heat-safe bowl and add in the herbs, spices, garlic, and parmesan.

Use a mandolin or a very sharp knife to slice the sweet potatoes (skin-on) very thin. Poor the brown butter mixture over the sweet potato rounds and mix well to coat.

Stack the sweet potato rounds in each cup of a muffin tin. These will shrink as they bake, so you can stack up to about a half an inch above the tins, just make sure the stacks are stable and won’t slide!

Bake for 45-60 minutes until the tops of the stacks start to brown and you can see the stacks shrink and the edges get crispy! These are delicious served hot and at room temperature!

Cover photo: .creative

12/15/2025

Let’s gift some festive body butter! 🎁

Ingredients:
2 Ounces Shea Butter
2 Ounces Coconut Oil
2 Ounces Sweet Almond Oil
30 Drops Essential Oils*

*You can split scents or if you’re using all of one essential oil 30 drops is about 1/3 of a teaspoon! Also note: because this is going on your skin, remember to use skin-safe essential oils. I’m using rosemary essential oil but my first batch of the season was peppermint!

** This recipe dilution’s percentage (1%) is well under the standard safe dilution rate- 12 drops of essential oils per ounce of carrier oil is recommended (about 2%.) So, if you decide that your body butter isn’t smelling strong enough you can actually double the amount of essential oil in the recipe and still be safe for use on skin!

If you have allergies or sensitivities, you can swap these oils for ones that work with your body. Just made sure you keep the 2:1 ratio for solid oils to liquid oils. One of my favorites to swap for coconut is mango butter, and I love avocado oil for the sweet almond!

Instructions:

In a heat-safe bowl over a sturdy pot of boiling water (I’m using a pan) combine all of the oils and melt. Turn off the heat and then add the essential oil

Store in airtight jars in a cool space- I love the fridge! This will last about 3 months.

Cover photo: .creative

12/14/2025

Mandarin-Ginger Syrup! 🍊

Ingredients: (Makes about 8oz)

1 Cup Fresh Mandarin Juice
1/2 Cup Sugar
1-2 Thumbs Ginger (a thumb is about and inch long and 1/2 inch wide)

Combine juice, sugar, and skinned/sliced ginger into a sauce pan on high. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer until thickened, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely. Store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

To create the mocktail mix 1oz syrup with 6oz sparkling water!

12/12/2025

Spiced Persimmon Bread! Comment ‘persimmon bread’ for the downloadable recipe and tips (like how to choose persimmons!) to be sent to your DMs!

Ingredients:
1.5 Cups Flour
1 Cup Persimmon Purée
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Oil*
2 Eggs
1.5 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Ginger Powder
1/2 Cup Candied Ginger Chopped
1/2 Cup Walnuts Chopped
*Walnut is preferred! But olive, vegetable, or avocado work well. My favorite walnut oil is the roasted walnut oil from

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
In a medium bowl combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and powdered ginger. Sift to combine then add sugar and whisk to combine. 
Add the chopped nuts and candied ginger to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. 
In a separate bowl, combine eggs, oil, and persimmon purée. Whisk well to combine. 
Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing well. Combine well using a spatula scraping the sides until all the flour has been incorporated. 
Line a 9×5 loaf pan with parchment paper. (I’m using unbleached, compostable parchment!) 
Pour the batter into the lined loaf pan (mine is a cast iron from ) and pop into the oven for 60-75 minutes. 
I start checking at 60 minutes, using a toothpick to check if the loaf is done. The top should be golden brown and slightly cracked, and when the loaf is completely done the toothpick will pull out clean! 
Let cool for 15 minutes and then lift out the loaf. Let cool completely on a wire rack and then slice!

Cover Photo: .creative  

12/10/2025

Pickled cranberries are the perfect palate cleanser for your rich and sweet holiday foods! I made this batch for a grazing table I created for (this post is NotSpon!)

Ingredients (Makes 4 pints)
36oz Fresh Cranberries (about 8 cups)
3 C Apple Cider Vinegar
2 C Sugar
1 C Water
2” Ginger, Sliced
2 Cinnamon Sticks*
1 Tsp Allspice Berries
1 Tsp Cloves
1 Tsp Black Peppercorns
1/2 Tsp Nutmeg

*Optional: If canning you can add a cinnamon stick to each canning jar for extra flavor!

Instructions:

1. Use a square of cheesecloth to make a bundle of the ginger slices, cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, cloves, and peppercorns.
2. Add all ingredients and the spice bundle to a large, heavy pot (I’m using a ) on medium-high heat.
3. Bring to a boil, and then reduce the temperature to medium-low and let simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the berries have broken down slightly and the mixture starts to resemble a jam with some berries intact.
4. Transfer to canning jars or an airtight container. (If water bath canning, leave 1/2” headspace and process for 10 minutes.)
These last in the fridge for up to a month and a year if canned!

Cover Photo: .creative

12/05/2025

Preserving pomegranates! Pomegranate can be EXPENSIVE out of season, so grabbing them in bulk now means you can enjoy them all season long!

Like I said in the video, I LOVE fresh pomegranate juice, but if you’re buying (versus growing your own) pomegranates to save it isn’t particularly cost effective when it comes to fresh juice. However, I’ll be making pomegranate balsamic out of the fresh juice and it’s delicious!

12/04/2025

Persimmon-Pomegranate Fizz ✨

For the Mocktail:

2oz Persimmon Syrup
1/2oz Pomegranate Juice
Sparkling Water (about 4oz)

Layer persimmon on the bottom of your glass followed by pomegranate then sparkling water for the pretty, layered effect!

For the Persimmon Syrup: (Yield 8oz)
1 Cup Persimmons, roughly chopped
1.5 Cups Water, divided
1/2 Cup Sugar

In a small sauce pan bring persimmons and 1/2 cup water to a boil then reduce heat and let simmer on medium low until fruit is soft 15-20 minutes. Blend using a stick blender or traditional blender, return to pan and add remaining water and sugar. Cook on medium low until all sugar has been dissolved and mixture is homogeneous. Strain mixture through a sieve to catch any large pieces and store in an airtight container for 2 weeks.

11/30/2025

This whipped cranberry goat cheese dip is a simple but stunning festive side! If you watched my cranberry-themed grazing table video with earlier this week; you’ll have seen that this was one of the recipes I used on that board! This is perfect as a dip with crackers but it’s also great slathered on toast *or* my favorite way to use it, as a spread on a sandwich! (Try it with turkey leftovers!)

Ingredients:

8oz Goat Cheese
1/2C Greek Yogurt
1/2C Fresh Cranberries
1 Tbs Honey
Juice and Zest of 1 Lemon
1 Sprig Rosemary

Method:

In a small saucepan (I’m using a pan) over medium heat combine cranberries, lemon juice and zest, and the sprig of rosemary. Stir frequently until cranberries because soft and pop, 6-8 minutes.

Meanwhile, add goat cheese and yogurt into a food processor and blend until smooth. Add honey, blend again.

Remove the cranberries from the pan, discarding the rosemary. Add to the cheese mixture and blend until well combined.

Transfer to a bowl and, if desired, garnish with fresh cranberries and rosemary! If storing, store I an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Cover Photo: .creative

Habits of a Modern Hippie

12/23/2025

12/22/2025

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12/18/2025

12/17/2025

12/15/2025

12/14/2025

12/12/2025

12/10/2025

12/05/2025

12/04/2025

11/30/2025

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