The past few days, I've found myself in the unfamiliar state of having no appetite. Not that I have to be hungry to eat. I eat, therefore I am. It would be impossible for me to say no to something tasty if the offer arises. Yet, the last few days, due to my cold, I really could care less about food. It'll pass. Before the cold set in, I've been cooking quite a bit lately. I've discovered the scent of green bananas by Santos, through her gorgeous photos on Flickr. Her images make my eyes happy and my tummy rumble. And the relatively new Saucy Magazine dishes up ample servings of news, recipes and musing on all things food. I picked up the April issue of Everyday Food this month and ended up trying several of the recipes. For Sweets' birthday, I turned out the Apricot-Glazed Pork Tenderloin and Horseradish Mashed Potatoes. The recipes were quick and easy. Dinner was on the table in less than an hour. Best of all, Sweets was ever so pleased with the meal. Grams gobbled up the dinners I dropped off to her, too. Later in the week, I whipped up polenta stuffed red peppers and paprika chickpea snacks. My only complaint was the chickpeas didn't stay very crunchy. Other than that, everything was easy to prepare. I'm thinking of subscribing. I don't have as much time to cook these days as I'd like. It's hard to be inspired and pressed for time. Last night when I got home from work, Sweets was still slaving away on a special section at his office. So, I decided to surprise him with cupcakes when he came home. Good ol' Duncan Hines did have something to do with it. In a flash, I turned out a dozen and a half Red Velvet cupcakes. Half were iced with cream cheese frosting. The others with pink, strawberry flavored marshmallow Fluff. Garnished with some pink and red candy corn left over from Valentine's Day. Mmm Mmm Good! Music I've been cooking to.... Ryan Adams: Love is Hell Part 1, The Dears: No Cities Left, and Angie Stone: Black Diamond