Five on Friday

The most wonderful day of the week - am I right? Okay...maybe that title really goes to Saturday but there's no need to get nit-picky. If a day of the week is also part of the weekend, it's always winning.

So - five things on my mind as this weekend starts...

One. Corn & Bacon Pasta - This recipe was in a recent edition of Women's Day and it immediately caught my eye. I only started eating corn about a year ago (I know - what a weirdo, right?) and I'm a big lover of all things pasta, so this recipe seemed a little random but also incredibly tempting. So I made it. And well - it was fabulous! I tweaked it just a bit but I wanted to share the recipe below... if you love corn and pasta and bacon, you will just lap this stuff up!

• 4 slices of bacon
• salt & pepper
• 6 ears of corn, shucked
• 8 ounces of pasta (your choice)
• 1/3 cup shredded cheese (I used Monterrey Jack)
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. basil

Now - I'll be real with you - I did not use 6 ears of corn that had been shucked. I used one can of White Shoepeg Corn, heated on the stove with 1/2 cup of real bacon bits (as opposed to 4 slices of bacon). I cooked the pasta according to the package directions and then held 1/2 cup of pasta water in reserve.

Transfer the cooked corn & bacon, the 1/2 cup of pasta water, salt, pepper, onion powder, basil and 1/3 cup of cheese to a blender & puree until smooth. Toss the pasta with the corn sauce and top with additional bacon pieces and cheese and devour! Y'all - this was so delicious and good - the sweetness of the corn, the smokiness of the bacon - I ate half of it for dinner and reheated the rest for lunch the next day! So divine!

Two. Perfectly Pumpkin Pampering - Perfectly Posh launched their Autumn/Spooky pampering products yesterday and they are made with fermented pumpkin...which I suppose might sound a little strange, but there are so many benefits to using fermented pumpkin in skincare! The products released yesterday were a body creme and a jelly shot face mask - both with a wonderful pumpkin scent that is perfect for Fall. You can get yours (limited release) at http://NatalieSummerlin.po.sh and I've shared some benefits of fermented pumpkin below!

• Provides intense moisture
• Helps minimize the size of pores
• Reduces signs of aging while being gentle on skin
• Full of fruit enzymes & Alpha Hydroxy acids, both powerful in increasing cell turnover
• Contains vitamins A & C to boost collagen production
• Increased levels of antioxidants which fight off free radicals, repair elasticity, ease inflammation, reduce breakouts & improve skin texture.

*The It's A Fall World After All bath bombs will be released next week!

Three. Autumn is Making an Effort - It has been oppressively warm this week in Northern Virginia...much too warm for any area of the country that has Northern in the name and much too warm for September. *sigh* However, I stumbled upon a tree in the neighborhood yesterday that is really going above and beyond in the fall foliage category and is already almost completely turned - while all the other trees in the neighborhood are still green! Oh well, at least this tree is trying...

Four. Weekend Plans - They are actually fairly nonexistent! I had contemplated going to a Fall Open House at a nearby Orchard on Saturday and of course, I'll go to church on Sunday and I'd thought about doing outdoor things because the weather was supposed to be much cooler...  Then I checked the weather forecast and well - there is an 80% chance of rain and thunderstorms today. There is a 90% chance of rain and thunderstorms tomorrow... and there is a 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms on Sunday. I'm thinking the Open House may be a no-go... and while church will still be on the docket, I'm not sure rain and outdoor activities are a good combination. So having said that...

Five. Binge Watching - It's been a spell since I binged something... I just started watching The Mindy Project on Hulu and I do love it, but I also just don't know that I can sit on the couch and watch multiple hours of one thing. I don't know. I cannot binge the way I did when I was in college - I feel lazy and useless, ha-ha!

Having said that - if I feel the need to take a break from all things Mindy and Danny (I'm 100% here for that already...), does anyone have another show or movie that is worth checking out? I have Amazon Prime (HBO & Starz), Netflix and Hulu - so I feel like the possibilities might be endless...

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Well - that's all I've got for this Friday. Perhaps when I pop back in on Monday, I'll have had adventures I didn't know I was up for... or perhaps I'll have watched way too many episodes of The Mindy Project. Either way - onward to the weekend!