Bacon Bliss

A couple of weeks ago I was introduced to a new method of cooking bacon. It has changed our life. . .or at least our diet!

{Maybe not for the better. . . but our tastebuds certainly are happy!}

I now cook bacon in the oven.

How many of you already do that?

Have I been living under a rock?

{Don't answer that.}

I first saw my mom doing this a few weeks ago and couldn't believe how well it actually worked.  And then I tasted it.  Oh yeah, it works.  And in our house, it has become a favorite!

Good bye, frying pan!  Hello, broiler pan!

The best method I have found is:

• Line an edged pan with foil
• Lay bacon strips flat
• Place is a cold oven 
• Set temperature to 400 degrees
• Cook for 17-20 minutes
• Keep a close eyes on it after 17 because it will burn easily if it goes too long.  When it's done, place on separate plate so the hot grease don't continue to cook the bacon.

The greatest about this method?

NO STINK & NO MESS!

I hate coming home the day after I have cooked bacon and having a dirty greasy smell permeating everywhere. But this way, no smell!!

And once you have all that crispy-cooked-to-perfection bacon...

the possibilities are endless!

We started with this:

Bacon & Brown Sugar Stuffed French Toast

(recipe available here) 

  

This was some good stuff! 

Perfect with fresh maple syrup, straight off the farm!

Next on my list to try is a Peanut Butter & Bacon sandwich, creation compliments of Lindsay.

What do you do with Bacon? 

Winner Dinners

Do you ever get into a cooking rut?

Same dishes week after week?

We've definitely been in need of a dinner-makeover at my house during the past couple months.  

So off I went to the library and came home with a stack of what I had hoped to be inspiration.

Yes, as you can tell, these were pretty much quick & easy cookbooks. I still have not mastered the art of working full-time, staying on top of all the laundry and housework, AND having a wonderful full-course meal on the table by 6:00 PM. 

I tried it for awhile when we first got married, but I never got out of the kitchen until 8:30 or 9 PM, and that put me on the verge of going crazy. What I've realized though is that pre-planning is half the battle.  If I know ahead of time what I'm going to make for dinner, than I can have the meat already thawed out and proper ingredients on hand so I don't have to make last-minute dashes to the store when i realize mid-recipe that I'm short on tomatoes, beans or broth. 

"Express Lane Meals" by Rachael Ray was the biggest disappointment to me.  I've perused several of her cookbooks and I don't think I've ever actually tried any of her recipe.  They all have really strange ingredients, and don't seem economical or appetizing.  Skip that.

I enjoyed the "Hungry Girl" cookbooks and made a few good things from those.  I like "real" ingredients though (not liquid egg substitute and stuff like that), so I used her recipes as a guideline and just tweaked whatever I made. 

I like tweaking. 

T-w-e-a-k-i-n-g. 

Tweaking.

Ahem.

Then there is always the trusty Internet, filled with creative recipe, absolute disasters, and some real winners!  Some of of my current favorites are:

Buffalo Chicken Spaghetti

Mongolian Beef (crockpot)

Lemon-Herb Zucchini Fettuccini

Baked Oatmeal (crockpot)

Noodles & Co Mac & cheese

Each of these recipes I have altered to suit our personal tastes.  More or less sauce, rice noddles instead of pasta, differently seasoned meat, etc.  I use the recipes like a canvas and take my own set of colors to spice it up!  Cooking is often my outlet for creativity these days. 

Have you tried anything new lately?

Happy Cooking ~

Grillin' Out

My husband is the Grill Master.  Everything he cooks on the grill tastes better than whatever I cooked in the kitchen -- he knows how to get er done!  

Another part of the reason it tastes so wonderful might also be because it meant he was helping me cook and everything is better when we are doing it together!

This past weekend we decided to use a new contraption we had picked up at the store and try our hand at grilling corn-on-the-cob. 

You peel back the husks, remove the silk, and slather the corn with butter and seasoning. 

Pesto for the Girl           Creole for the Boy

Into the corn-holder they went and we slid them onto the grill.

Waiting....Waiting.....

It smelled so good....

And 25 minutes later. . .
the finished product was bursting with juice & flavor!

This was our first attempt at grilling vegetables
but it's definitely something we want to do more of!
Do you have any recommendations?

More Jam

You might remember when I made Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam a couple months back, and although I thought it was delicious, hubby was wishing it was just plain strawberry.  Soooo, the other night I gathered the energy (and necessary ingredients) and decided to whip up a couple batches of jam: Lemon-Blueberry and my man's favorite, Strawberry. 

Freezer jam is my favorite, as it is a breeze to make and I love seeing lots of homemade-goodness stacked up in the freezer, especially in the winter.  So I prepped my load of containers and set to work!

I decided to put half the blueberries in my food processor first to give the jam a little smoother consistency.  The rest of the berries I left whole, and they would cook down as it boiled.

I cooked the blueberries and sugar, and instead of adding regular pectin at the end, I added one package of lemon gelatin.  It added just a subtle taste of lemon and made it very refreshing.

I'm hoping to try a bit of this jam slathered on some homemade waffles or pancakes! 
The rich color would make for a beautiful presentation.

Next, I moved onto the Strawberry jam, and the sinful load of sugar that goes into it!  I even called my mom to make sure my recipe was right. 

Yep, lots of sugar.

I boiled, stirred and disolved, all to make this beautiful jellied goodness.

Ta-dah! 

Into the freezer it shall go! 

What's your favorite kind of jam / jelly?

Foodie Alert

My husband lovingly calls me a “foodie.”

He is so right.

A few years ago I never would have guessed that I would fall into that category, but considering the fact I was raised by a foodie, I shouldn’t be surprised.

food•ie [foo-dee]

–noun Slang

a person keenly interested in food, especially in eating or cooking.

Yep, that’s me.

This week I have been re-watching “Julie and Julia” which is an incredibly fun and well done movie (especially for those of us who used to watch Julia Child on TV). That movie always makes me want to run into the kitchen and create some form of dining pleasure, amazing enough to tempt even the pickiest of palates. True cooking is an art, as well as an escape for those who love it. I admit though, most nights when I’m headed home from work and scrambling to come up with something for dinner it doesn’t feel like an escape! And often what ends up on the table doesn’t look like my cooking was an art.

Then my husband and I sit down at the table, the work day behind us, and we bite into something that I prepared, something lush and better than restaurant-quality, and I remember that cooking is indeed a beautiful piece of creativity and art, and I sigh me a happy sigh and revel in the reminder of why I love to cook.

I will say though, that often the greatest cooking pleasure comes when I don’t have to cook, but when I simply want to. Freedom of expression in the kitchen is so exciting, as you throw a pinch of this and a dash of that into a dish, and voilà, out comes a masterpiece!

Any recipes I make have been tweaked – nothing remains as it was first written on the page. How boring would that be! Subtle creative urges take over when I begin to cook and my ideas always seem to make more sense than what somebody else constructed when they published the recipe. I love being able to take any recipe and adapt it to how we would like it, which also makes cooking very personal.

I also love photographing food, something I have been laughed at many times for doing. But food makes such great subjects! It stays as I placed it, doesn’t talk back, and offers varying delightful ambiances depending on the composition. Such fun! Besides, I love being able to chronicle my kitchen successes and failures with visual aids.

I loved this post because decorating a wall with my food photographs is definitely something I would be tempted to do! Isn’t it so inviting? It would make me feel like I was eating in a café every time I sat down at my kitchen table. Besides, it’s really nice to know I’m not the only one who takes pictures of everything I eat or make!

This weekend hubby & I strolled through the local Farmers Market and admired the rows zucchini, blueberries, and fresh baked bread. We didn’t think the selection was great, but it is always fun to browse those kinds of places just the same. I came home with a jar of raw honey and a desire to cook with more varieties of vegetables. I love the challenge of taking vegetables and actually making the good and desirable to eat! Green beans, asparagus, corn and sweet potatoes are about the only veggie staples in our house, but I’m working on adding other ones in. Spinach in our smoothies, pureed squash, carrots, or squash are great in soup, but broccoli is one vegetable that I can’t camouflage enough to make it go unrecognized.

Any suggestions?

All that being said, I suppose I should plan out our menu for the rest of the week!

Bon appétit!

Making Hummus

As mentioned in my previous post, I love hummus! And if anybody wants to try making it, please do not be intimidated! It takes a grand total of five minutes and stays good stored in the refrigerator for over a week. Hummus is a food that allows you to get in touch with your inner-creativity and make it taste exactly how you want it to taste. I never use a recipe -- I simply alter as I go until it’s just right.

There are many varieties of hummus out there, and if you search any of the recipe websites I’m sure you’ll be able to find a dozen or so that sound worthy of trying. I’ve seen variations with roasted tomatoes, lemon & basil, etc. The recipe I am posting is for basic hummus with tahini (sesame paste), which is the only kind I’ve made because I am so in love with the rich fullness of the sesame flavor. My favorite Lebanese restaurant in town makes to-die-for hummus and theirs is loaded with tahini, more than I’ve ever tasted in any other hummus. It’s amazing.

Basic ingredients:

• 1/4 C. Tahini (usually found in the ethnic aisle of the grocery store)
• 1 tsp. Lemon juice
• 1 can garbanzo beans/chick peas (same thing)
• 1 Tbsp. Garlic, minced
• 1-2 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 1/8 tsp. Salt

 Drain garbanzo beans and reserve the liquid.  Put beans and garlic (to your liking, but I use about 1 Tbs = 1 clove) in a food processor and give it a whirl to break up the beans (it helps everything to mix in better later, at least in my machine!).  Add in a scant 1/4 C. of Tahini (you can always add more later), about 1 tsp. of Lemon juice, a couple swirls of Olive oil (probably 1 Tbsp to start), a dash of salt (no more than 1/8 tsp. to start with), and a few drizzles of the reserved bean juice.  Blend it all together, adding more Olive oil or reserved juice as necessary based on the desired consistency. 

After adding in the beginning amounts, take a taste and see what you think.  Keep adding more of those ingredients until it's to your liking -- more tahini for a stronger sesame flavor, more garlic if you're looking for an extra kick, more salt if it needs it (but over-salting hummus is gross -- trust me, I know this), etc.  The options are pretty endless on this one and it's nearly impossible to mess up!

In case you haven't noticed, this is not an exact science!!! I tend to like my hummus as bit thicker than what you would purchase in the grocery store, but that's just me. I've come to the conclusion there is no right or wrong way to make it. I know you can also experiment with adding chili powder and cumin to the hummus, but I haven't tried that yet. I even saw a recipe for peanut butter hummus, but I don't know if I've brave enough for that one...

When I'm all done, it usually looks something like this (can you tell presentation isn't my strong-point?).  Sometimes thicker, sometimes thinner, depending on my mood when I was whipping it up. 

This is great on wraps, sandwiches, as a dip with veggies, on pitas, or even on grilled cheese (yum!).  Do you have any other ideas of what we could use it on?

Trying New Stuff

Last night I had a burst of energy and decided to whip up some yummy-goodness in the kitchen.  On most nights after work I have just enough motivation to make dinner and sometimes enough umph left in me to do the dishes.  Most of my cooking-adventures happen on the weekend when I don't have to get up early for work the next day, and actually was able to get enough sleep at night without waking to the annoying sound of an alarm clock.  All that to say, this was a sudden and unusual burst of energy.

Item #1:  Cranberry Chicken & Rice

Definitely one of my husband's favorite meals!  And the lovely thing is that if you have chicken cooked up, you just throw all the ingredients together in a pan and it's ready in 15 minutes!  Doesn't get much easier than that.

Item #2: Hummus

Each time I make a batch of hummus it turns out slightly different, probably because I never really follow a recipe.  My batch from last night however, was magnifique!  The perfect blend of ingredients and such a lovely consistency.  It was so delectable that I ended up having hummus & carrots as my dinner. :)   I love the versatility of hummus.  Aside from eating it as a dip with veggies, we often spread it on a wrap or sandwich to add more substance and protein, and eliminate dressing or mayo. 

Item #3:  Grapes

Several blogs I have read lately have sung the praises of frozen grapes.  I absolutely love grapes to begin with, so I was eager to try a method which claimed to make them taste even better.  I washed a bunch of grapes, sealed them up in a ziploc bag and popped them in the freezer overnight. 

The result?  Wow.  The first bite wasn't overly impressive, but the more I ate, the more I became addicted.  The flavor explodes in your mouth when you bite into them and the juice is sweeter than normal.  I'm definitely a fan now!  Try it and let me know what you think! 

Item #4:  VOO

Yes, that says VOO, which stands for Vegan Overnight Oats (no, I'm not Vegan -- I like chicken & cheese way too much for that!).  I have tried making these before, but without the Chia seeds, making it runny and admittedly rather gross.  This time I was armed with all the proper ingredients and a slightly modified version of the recipe so I decided to give it a try.  Angela from Oh She Glows has half a dozen variations of this breakfast and here is where I got the recipe for the one I whipped together -- Strawberry Carob Overnight Oats.  I made a few slight variations to boost the flavor and make it a bit sweeter for our first time, but overall I thought it was pretty good.  The more I ate of it the more I liked it.  The Chia seeds thicken it up nicely and adds a cool texture.  It's a great quick breakfast because you throw it together the night before and eat it straight out of the fridge in the morning.  I really liked this version of it with all the strawberries in it!

After I was done with all my creations I was too tired out to clean the kitchen -- so that's on my docket for tonight.  Why is it always so much more fun to make the messes than it is to clean them up?

Have you made anything new or exciting lately?

A Day in the Life: the Kitchen

Welcome to our little home!  Would you like a cup of tea or coffee while we chat for awhile? 

Last week I had a sudden burst of energy and decided to do some serious cleaning & reorganizing in our kitchen. Our very small kitchen. And while I was cleaning, I decided it might be fun to give y’all a tour of my happy little place. Our kitchen is small and not laid out very efficiently, but I LOVE to cook so I have learned to make the best of it.

The stove is not the ‘norm’ for the modern-day family. It is what I would guess to be a 1950-60’s style with two ovens that are so narrow half my cookie sheets won’t fit in them. That being said, I LOVE my stove because the burners heat perfectly and the ovens cook to perfection! The white beast might be an eye-sore, but it cooks like angel! Aesthetically speaking however, I think it would more appropriately belong in either Aunt Bee’s or Lucy Ricardo’s kitchen.

Our lovely avocado-green refrigerator stands at a mere 5 ft tall, making it what my mother calls “a conversation piece” because you can talk to another person while looking right across the top of it. Because our refrigerator is so short it becomes a catch-all for things much like a dining room table might: vitamins, coupons, gift-cards, mail, etc, making it a cluttered-up mess! And speaking of that, the top of the refrigerator was the first thing I tackled when I started deep-cleaning the kitchen.

BEFORE

AFTER

I also needed to jazz up the overhead of the cupboards because that is the first thing people see when they walk into the house. I just grabbed a few things from different places in the house and I thought it turned out rather cute.

There were several other adjustments made, things gotten rid of that don't get used, shelves organized, and then the counter tops were scrubbed, floor swept, dished all washed. 

Just in time for me to cook a big meal and dirty it all up again!

Tonight's Menu:

Classic Italian Lasagna

Sautéed Green Beans w/ Pecans

Cheddar Biscuits

Biscuits baking in the oven 

Pecans caramelizing on the stove

Finished Green Beans

Let's Eat!!!

  

Christmas Fun!

“…presents underneath the tree, candles burning bright…stockings hung with lots of care…on this silent Christmas night…”

All our Christmas shopping is finally done as of this morning. Internet shopping = For the Win! Amazon.com has the best deals and it sure beats having to push & shove your way though the crowded stores (not that I’d ever shove, mind you) and wait in insanely long checkout lines.

I can’t believe I haven’t watched any Christmas movies yet this year. Tragic. However, “The Grinch” is an absolute-must before December is over! Little Cindy-Lou Who is completely irresistible and no holiday season is complete without watching Max try to pull the overstocked sleigh or the Grinch sewing his own Santa suit. *sigh* I love animated films.

The holiday festivities for the week include:

• Tuesday I’ll be going with my husband to his company Christmas party, which I hear will be complete with pizza and Guitar Hero…

• Christmas Eve is our Christmas together with just the two of us, and then a Christmas Eve service at church, which is always very lovely.
  
  
• Christmas day is split between our two families, which always makes me more thankful that none of us are too far away from each other! Breakfast with his family, supper with mine – always great memories made on that day!

Mom asked me to make hummus for Christmas, so I have to whip up that on Thursday and a Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball for the party on Tuesday. We have a vacation coming up in January so I've been trying not to keep too many sweets in the house this season.  So far so good, although I did splurge on a batch of brownies last week... :)

Are you making any new recipes or anything fun this week?

Recipes, please!

If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you’ll know that I have fallen in love with cooking over the past several months. The time has come however, to simplify my week-night meals in the hopes of cutting back on our grocery budget and to have cooking & clean-up take less time out of my evening.
Which has lead me on a hunt for more recipes in the following categories:

•  Chili 
• Soup 
• Crockpot meals 
• Meals easily frozen

Anybody have anything they want to contribute?

But so it’s not all-take-and-no-give, here is a vegetarian chili recipe I made last week which was quite scrumptious.
(My hubby likes meat in his food and said it would be good some ground beef or turkey added.)

Bean Chili

•  5 c. chopped fresh tomato (if you don’t have fresh, or not enough, substitute with canned diced tomatoes) 
• 1 can refried beans 
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 
• 1 can red beans, rinsed and drained 
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 1 zucchini, shredded
• 1 can corn, drained 
• 2 packages taco seasoning 
• 1 package dry Italian dressing 
• 1 tsp. chili powder 
• 1 Tbsp. vinegar 
• 1 c. beef broth 
• 1/4 c. packed brown sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot
 and simmer on low for 5-7 hrs.

Yes, it’s that easy.

ENJOY!

Cooking

Okay, I admit it. I’ve fallen in love… with. . . . Cooking. Never thought that would happen. The unfortunate part is that I spend 40 hours at work each week. Meaning, that by the time I get home at night, there is a severe damper on my culinary creativity because I usually just want to relax. However, I have found so much pleasure in my newly discovered love for this art that I make time to be in the kitchen, either in the morning before work or sometimes working until nearly bedtime. My food is not gourmet, mind you, but it is yummy and satisfying. Oh, and it’s usually healthy, except when I have moments of weakness and pull out cream cheese, ranch dressing, or other tempting ingredients like that. I make to-die-for green beans, 101 different chicken dishes, great fruit smoothies, tempting desserts, and admittedly add pecans to any recipe where I can get away with it. There are few things that are "signature" dishes for me, simply because I like to try a little bit of everything. Every once in awhile there is a meal that ends up being a total bomb (like my oozy strawberry pancakes, which my darling husband graciously tried to eat so as not to hurt my feelings...) but for the most part I've learned to make things work, even if they don't end up quite like the recipe intended. Recently I have discovered that I cook by Smell, not by Taste (like normal people do). I will prepare an entire meal (never sticking completely to the recipe, of course!), and season it by smell. I never realized this until I would place dinner on the table and say to my husband, “Well, I hope it’s good.” He always looked at me with a quizzical expression and say “You didn’t try it? How did you season it?” Busted. It wasn’t until that conversation was repeated several nights in a row that I realized I seasoned by how something smelled. If it smelled like it needed a bit more basil or garlic, then I would add more until the aroma seemed right. This unconventional method isn’t failed me yet, but on the day it does, I’m sure it’ll be a memorable disaster. Creating mouth-watering-goodness takes work and preparation; culinary masterpieces don’t happen by random chance. But with the right recipes, a dash of sugar and a pinch of salt, you can temp the palate of even the finickiest of eaters. What are some of your signature dishes?