About Me and Good Dinner Mom
Hello and welcome! My name is Sally and I love to be in the kitchen. Making fresh, unique dishes is my way of showing love for family and friends and I hope that here you’ll find recipes of both healthy and indulgent dishes that will inspire you to cook more at home while sharing some love of your own.
A few years ago my husband and I took steps to place a larger focus on healthy eating than what we previously had. Fast forward through a lot of personal research and experimentation, including conversations with our medical doctors and a trusted professional naturepath. The changes we’ve made have given way to amazing results at the doctor’s office and to the way we feel in general. Today we have modified our eating and I now enjoy creating great meals with whole foods, healthy fats, lots of fresh produce and minimal sugars, unless it’s an occasional indulgent dessert or treat. I don’t search out extreme low-fat recipes as a rule because I don’t feel fat is the enemy as long as I use fats that are considered good for you; like olive oil, coconut oil, avocado and yes, small amounts of butter. I also try to add as much colorful produce as possible. Though we are not vegan or vegetarian exclusively, many meals are meatless and I prepare vegan friendly fare on a regular basis. We buy organic produce and grass-fed, free-range meat and poultry. I don’t specify using organic or grass-fed ingredients in my recipes because I’m not trying to preach to you that you should. There are different thoughts on whether this practice is necessary and I know we all use what works for our families and lifestyle.
About All Things In Balance
I started this blog to share some of the healthy meals we love. These recipes can work for most of today’s busy families, with lots of flavor and that wow! factor that we all appreciate.
You will see some beautiful desserts and sweet treats on my site. Some desserts will have health benefits; use of fruits, spices and high quality chocolate. And some will be just pure indulgence!
About You and Me
I am so appreciative and humbled that you have chosen to visit Good Dinner Mom and are right now taking the time to get to know a little more about me. I hope you’ll visit with me often, leave comments and share your own thoughts on things we might have in common.
Contact me anytime at gooddinnermom@gmail.com. I look forward to it.
About just other stuff
We now also have 3 backyard chickens! I will be sharing with you how we became crazy happy chicken owners and you will meet the ladies of The Cracked Egg Breakfast Joint as well.
Also, I live in Utah which is a beautiful place and I can’t wait to share some of its beauty with you. I will be hosting a section called Where I Live in which I share some of the beautiful, amazing and even kooky, weird places in our state.
Sharing on Good Dinner Mom
In addition to sharing my recipes here on my blog, I also share through Pinterest, Facebook, FoodGawker, Twitter, Instagram and Yummly– a great recipe sharing and collecting site.
Top photo is me with Ryan, my youngest son – at Dead Horse Point State Park, Utah.
Above photo is in Rifle, Colorado with my incredible husband Dave.
By the way, ”Good Dinner Mom” was coined by my daughter many years ago when she would give me this treasured compliment from the heart. She is grown now and has a beautiful family of her own as you can see here. She is well on her way to being the next generation’s “Good Dinner Mom”.
Good Dinner Mom’s daughter and family.
Here is my oldest son Christopher. He has been the creative motivating force behind Good Dinner Mom.
Lastly – About a quote to sum it all up.
I hope even one of my recipes can inspire you to show your love through food. I recently came across this quote and it definitely says what cooking is all about for me-
“You have to love either what you are going to eat, or the person you are cooking for. Then you have to give yourself up to cooking. Cuisine is an act of love.”
– Alain Chapel (1937-1990) renowned French Chef.
Who doesn’t like maraschino cherries, pineapple, bananas & coconut? My husband said, “This bread is THE best thing I’ve ever made!”
He can’t stay away from it and keeps asking me if he could have another one. I made 6 mini loafs, 12 regular size cupcakes and 28 mini cupcakes. I wish I could attach a picture. After he devoured 6 mini cupcakes, he said he had to try the cupcakes…he ate 2 of those, I know the mini loathes will disappear when I’m not looking. I made 1/2 with and without nuts. I will be visiting this website more often to see what else you’re creating.
Nice job! Thanks for the share! I hope you and your family are doing well.
Deanna
Oooo, I love the idea of making this delicious bread into muffins! Thanks for this great comment, Deanna!
Sally, thank you for taking the time to run this blog! I’ve lurked here for about a year and a half, and after repeatedly returning to many of your recipes (admittedly, I’ve only dug into the sweet baked stuff), I’ve decided I *really* need to post a message to let you know how beloved your recipes are in our household. The recipes I we have made over and over again are the
-fig coffee cake, which inspired my husband to PLANT a fig tree in our backyard this fall so we can have better access to fresh figs. That’s how crazy we and the kids are for it! And I give this recipe to anyone I know with a tree, too.
-perfect blueberry muffin, which I’m making right now and my husband says is the best homemade blueberry muffin recipe he’s had
-buttermilk peach coffee cake
-kuchen
We have a big sweet tooth for baked goods, but we find most published recipes to be too sweet. I almost always reduce the sugar. But yours have been surprisingly spot on for our tastes.
So, congrats on making something, sending it into the world, and bringing joy to a complete stranger.
Julie!
Thank you so much for this thoughtful and encouraging message! To say you made my day is an understatement, more like you made my entire year! I just had my husband read it and told him I’m going to print it out and paste it in one of my workbooks to inspire me to keep blogging.
I love that you appreciate my baking recipes and how you noticed they’re not overly sweet. I try to make sure there’s just enough sweetness in the recipes without overpowering the other ingredients especially when there’s fruit in the recipe. Your comment about the fig tree is so dear because I too planted a fig tree in my yard last year for this very recipe. FYI, I’m still waiting for figs and understand it can take a few years before seeing the first one, so keep that in mind and don’t give up on your little tree. 😉
My family loves every single recipe you listed, so I appreciate your taste! And since you’re into the baking recipes on Good Dinner Mom, may I take a minute to tell you what others I think you should take a look at?
Berry Galette is a recipe you cannot go wrong with. If you want pie but are a little intimidated by such an undertaking, this is your recipe. https://gooddinnermom.com/berry-galette-foolproof/
IF your family is into nuts and likes the flavor of Pecan Pie, than my Walnut Torte is amazing https://gooddinnermom.com/walnut-torte-soda-cracker-pie/
And I absolutely have to share my Aunt Pat’s Famous Cream Puffs with you. I’ve had two friends lick their plate on separate occasions, and one follower even sells them in her bakery. They’re a little time consuming but not difficult. The instruction list is long but that’s because I give a lot of details for success. https://gooddinnermom.com/aunt-pats-famous-cream-puff-recipe/
If you ever decide to try my dinner-type recipes, I recommend any of my Instant Pot recipes, if you do have a pressure cooker. And more than one follower has said that my Chicken with Tomato and Basil Cream sauce is the best thing they’ve ever made https://gooddinnermom.com/chicken-with-tomato-and-basil-cream-sauce/
Blogging can seem rather solitary at times, so when people comment on the recipes, that’s where the connection feels real and worth all the work. Seriously, you taking the time to reach out and let me know how you, your husband, and family feel about my recipes means more than you’ll ever know. AND thanks for sharing the recipe to the Fig Cake with people! xo
All the best to you and I hope to hear input on more recipes you try in the future!
So happy I found your website for IP recipes. I will be making your chicken wings recipe today and can’t wait to try them. Thanks for putting the recipes together. Best, S
I’m about to try your baby back ribs for tomorrow’s dinner in the slow cooker!
Hi Michelle, that’s great! Let me know how they turn out for you. We love them!
Hi Sally,
Came across your website when looking for a pumpkin seed snack recipe for my vegan (5 months!) daughter, Noa. You’ll be happy (I hope!) to know that people as far away as Israel are accessing your recipes! Lovely pictures, both of food and family — congratulations! All the best,
Galina
Galina, this is wonderful and I’m very happy to meet you. Thanks for the kind words and I hope you stop by for more recipes and to say hello. 🙂 Sally
I just found your website! I was looking for a recipe for chicken wings using the IP. Can’t wait to make it! Great photos and nice website. Thanks! Sending love from Long Island 😀
Hi Kim, I hope you like the wings and look forward to hearing back how they turned out for you!