Fluffy Pumpkin Cake

Ok, so just a quick post from a quick experiment before I get back to the less-than-sane amount of work I have right now. Since this is my blog, can I gripe for like two seconds? I have no idea how I am going to get a dissertation grant proposal, a manuscript, all my finals/final projects, and all of my grading done by Dec. 9th...and all that only to start my competency exam reading which I have not been able to touch...oh Jan. 11th, you will be a good day! Ok, ok...#firstworldproblems for sure! I love what I am doing, I actually want to spend time on all the work I listed above, I just am useless after about 12-14 hours of work and I need about 30 hours a day!

So, now that you are stressed for me, go make this and don't even feel guilty for cutting yourself a large slice!

What I used:

1 box of angel food cake mix

1 can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

about 1/2 cup of water

splash of vanilla (literally, I just splashed some in, maybe about a TBSP)

pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon to taste (I tasted the raw batter until I liked it)

Optional (choose 1 or 2)- chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, pecans, cool whip

What I did:

Preheat the oven to 325 and spray a 13x9 pan with non-stick spray. Note that the batter puffs up and would likely boil over a smaller pan! Dump angel food cake mix and pumpkin in a large bowl (it will puff up). Add water, vanilla, and about 1 tsp. of each pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon. Stir until combined, then taste test the batter. Because this is an angel food cake it will have that slight sour taste, so you can add more spices if you want to down play that. The pumpkin flavor did not come through much for me when I tasted the batter, but did once it was baked. Pour this in the 13x9 pan and bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until the center is set and slightly firm to the touch.

Optionals: Chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, or pecans- approximately half-way through the baking time sprinkle 1/2 cup on the top of the cake...by not stirring them in you make the cake look prettier and get a hint of the flavor with less calories!

Cool whip- allow cake to cool and then top with cool whip as you would icing. Sprinkle with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. If you serve the cake warm you could top individual pieces with the cool whip.

This was great- fluffy and light and probably perfect for ending a Thanksgiving Dinner! It did seem to get gooey as time went on, so unfortunately this is probably one to make the day you plan to serve it. Enjoy!

Chipotle Chicken Chunky Chili

Ok, confession- I've been withholding this one. Not because I don't want anyone else to enjoy it- and you will enjoy it! But I've been a little busy with classes and teaching and grants and...I digress. So I made this a couple weeks ago, loved it, planned to share it, but didn't. Then tonight I pulled out the frozen half of the batch and had some for dinner- and here I am deciding that the dissertation grant can wait, this is too good not to share! Like pumpkin spice latte good! Like Hershey's dark chocolate Kisses good!

What I used:

• 3 slices turkey bacon
• olive oil
• 1 lb chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces (I suppose you could use chicken breasts, but thighs are cheaper and flavorful!)
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• cumin, salt, pepper
• white cooking wine
• 1/3 white onion, diced (less if you are not a big onion fan)
• about 1/3 cup diced green pepper
• 1 15oz can chicken broth
• 1 15 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 15 oz can creamed corn
• 1 cup diced potatoes
• McCormick White Chicken Chili packet
• McCormick Chipotle Grilling marinade (ok, its something like that)
• flour (optional)

What I did:

In a large stock/soup pot (i.e. what you typically make chili in) cook turkey bacon until crispy (or as crispy as turkey bacon gets). Remove and set bacon aside, but do not rinse pan...there won't be much fat but you want whats there. Add just about 1 tsp-1Tbsp of olive oil (more or less depending on the fat in the pan). Add chicken and garlic, salt and pepper (err on the side of too little seasoning) the chicken, then cook until chicken appears cooked but not brown on the outside. Add peppers and onions and continue to cook adding about 1/2 cup of wine before the chicken gets browned- you want it juicy! Add broth, fill the can with water and add that. Bring to a boil and add potatoes and cook until potatoes are al dente, adding water if needed. Reduce heat to low simmer and add 1/2 the McCormick White Chicken Chili packet, 1/4 the Chipotle marinade packet, beans, cooked turkey bacon (torn into bite sized pieces) and creamed corn. If you want it thicker, mix about 1/3 c flour and 1/3c water together in a bowl, then stir into pot. Just simmer until reduced to your desired thickness. Check the flavor and you can add more of the packets or more salt and pepper as desired. It will have just a bit of a peppery kick.

This freezes and reheats well and has a very comfort food feel, but for what I typically budget for dinner in terms of WW points. I'd serve it with a salad or a fruit salad as it's pretty heavy...filling and delicious! Enjoy!

No sanity. But yummy Veggie Beef Stew

I like this recipe. It's homey but feels healthy because it's jam-packed full of veggies. It's a lot of work, but I've found it to freeze well so I make a big batch. You could add or subtract veggies as you choose, but be brave here! The veggies you aren't as excited about will likely be hidden in all the other good stuff! Oh and the prep takes a while with all the chopping, then it cooks for a while and the longer it sits the better the flavors come together so start this one before you get hungry! In honor of the first pot of the fall season, here ya go.

What I used: (these are approximations, you don't actually have to weigh the veggies)

1 lb beef (I usually go eye-of-round or anything marked "roast"...I'm not butcher case savvy)

2 med. size sweet potatoes

16 oz. potatoes (4 small or 2 large)

2 carrots (about 7 oz., so a bunch of baby carrots)

30 oz beef broth

1 packet McCormick Beef Stew mix

1/3 green pepper

1/3 white or yellow onion

1/2 of a small-med butternut squash

1-2 cups fresh or frozen green beans (if you have to use cans add them in the last 5-10 mins)

any other veggies you like! I've considered corn (same as green beans) and broccoli

1. Clean and chop carrots, potatoes, and butternut squash into bite size pieces. Set aside.

2. Trim and cut beef into bite size pieces. Season beef with salt and pepper. Heat a large pot and brown beef pieces in this pot.

3. Add beef broth and 1 cup of water.

4. Bring to a low boil. Add carrots. Carrots seem to take the longest to cook.

5. Clean and chop sweet potatoes into bite size pieces. Set aside.

6. Add potatoes and butternut squash to pot. Add seasoning packet as well, and more water if needed. You can bring up the boil a bit as it will cool back down every time you add new veggies.

7. Clean and chop pepper and onions into bit size pieces. Add sweet potatoes, peppers, and onions to pot. I know the sweet potatoes seem really hard and you think they should go in with the carrots, but trust me they cook fast and then sort of turn to mush. This isn't a bad thing and seems to help thicken the stew, but adding them late will leave some of them intact.

8. Finally add the green beans (and any additional frozen veggies). Let this simmer down until the stew is someone thick. Left overs will get thicker. Don't simmer too long or all your veggies will get soft. Check the potatoes once in a while- they are a good indicator. You'll want to stop before they are mashed potato soft.

Enjoy!

Outta Eggs Kitchen Sink Cookies

Today I felt a little like Amelia Bedelia...I was running late, lost my ID, accidentally work my old navy flip flops with dress pants (hard to remember to swap shoes after taking the dog out), got DRENCHED in a downpour (like pants soaked from cuff to zipper drenched), and then had my workout in the indoor pool thwarted by outdoor lightening. Sheesh.

So I went home (and put on comfy dry clothes) and made cookies. I couldn't decide what kind, so I just started adding stuff. And I was out of eggs. And you know what- they're delicious. Now I am posting a pseudo-recipe, but only to inspire you to give it a try yourself! I'm amazed what cookies can hold up to.

On an related note, comfy/stretchy/drawstring shorts were made for I-made-cookies-cause-my-workout-was-cancelled days.

Here's what I used: (approximately)

3/4 c. butter, softened

1 c. white sugar

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

some vanilla (literally just splashed a little in)

a BIG spoonful of peanut butter (maybe 1/2-2/3 cup? I also gave a little to the dog)

some malted milk powder (1/2 c.?)

1/4 c. water (may not need depending on how dry everything is)

1/4 c. milk

1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 c. self-rising flour (though I think you could sub in regular flour and some baking powder, or not run out of eggs)

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/4-1/2 tsp salt

2 c. quick oats (I'm finding most of the oats work for most baking)

1 c. chocolate chips

craisins (1/2 c.?)

shredded coconut (1/2 c.?...you get the idea-I have no idea how much!)

2 Tbsp. sunflower seed kernels

10 kraft caramels town into little pieces (about 4-5 pieces each)

1 c. rice crispy cereal (yep!)

Here's what I did:

• preheat oven to 350ish
• combine sugars, butter, vanilla, and milk. If this is liquidy hold off on the water, if not add it.
• stir in peanut butter and malted milk powder.
• add flour, then add baking soda on top of this, then sprinkle with salt, THEN stir to mix in wet ingredients (this is how I avoid the "use two bowls" method). This should still be somewhat runny, definitely easy to stir and not what you'd describe as doughy. If a doughy ball seems to form when you are stirring, then you need to add the water.
• Stir in oats, then stir in chocolate chips, craisins, coconut, caramels, sunflower seed kernels, and anything else you are adding that won't get soggy (M&M's, raisins, peanuts, etc.). Last, gently stir in rice crispy cereal (and anything else that would get soggy or crushed- I was wishing I had thrown in potato chip crumbs for a salty touch).
• Taste the dough. Go ahead, it's eggless. See if you want to add more vanilla, peanut butter, or malted milk to change the flavor. Then drop by heaping spoonfuls onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
• Bake approximately ten minutes, or until top and edges are golden brown. Note- this will not puff up or set like you expect from cookies. As a matter of fact, if you try to eat one immediately after removing from the over you'll need a spoon (which I highly recommend!). However, when you return 1/2 an hour later and the cookies are completely cooled you will be able to remove them from the cookie sheet and store/eat. I think it almost becomes a cross between an oatmeal cookie and a brittle of sorts.

So easy, so good, so random. Enjoy.

Chicken Taco Soup

Incase you are thinking "she said she tried 5 recipes, but she only talked about two" let me mention that the malted milk chocolate chip cookies were good, though you wouldn't be able to identify that extra special taste as malted milk if you didn't know. I might add more next time. I also tried to make macarons which will require another attempt and the white nectarine galette (but with the peaches and nectarines I had). Funny thing about the galette- I took it to a gathering, then left before we cut into it so I have NO IDEA how it was. It turned out too juicy, but I think it's because I swapped out the 4 small white flesh nectarines for 4 large, juicy nectarines and peaches. It looked good though.

Ok so the soup. I got a recipe for something similar while looking for some "lighter" options, but adjusted it for what I was trying to clean out of the pantry. (The previously mentioned cousin Mandy also sent me a similar recipe that I'll have to try out as well! She really needs to be a guest blogger here; I'll get on that.)

It was good, tasted really fresh, and had just enough spice. I added some sour cream to top off my bowl and it was delicious; next time I might add some guacamole. I'm excited to have left overs for the next few days. The original recipe said it made 4 servings, but I think it will be 6-8 for me (as a main entree). And this one is obviously an easy one to edit to your liking! Enjoy.

What I used:

1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken, cut into smaller-than-bite-size cubes

salt & pepper

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

1/4 a green pepper, diced (could have used more if I'd had it)

2 tsp. cumin

3 large or 6-7 small tomatoes, diced (you could used canned if needed, 2-3 cups)

1 c. salsa

4 c. chicken broth

10 oz. corn, I used canned, you could go frozen or even fresh

10 oz. black beans, rinsed (or whatever the regular size can is)

you could add cilantro or lime or both, but I don't like cilantro and I didn't have any lime :)

What to do:

Spray a skillet with cooking spray; salt and pepper and brown the chicken in the skillet. Set aside. Wipe and spray the pan, add a little olive oil if you like (my sister says I put olive oil in everything, but it's the good-for-you oil!), and cook the garlic, onion, and peppers. Sprinkle these with cumin and cook until tender. While the peppers and onions are cooking, start a soup pot heating with the chicken stock. Once this is lightly simmering, add tomatoes, salsa, beans, and corn. Once cooked, add the garlic, peppers, and onions as well as the chicken to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until you are ready to eat.

You can cook of liquid or add liquid as you choose, but know that this will be a runny soup with a clearish broth. I wasn't sure about the liquidyness at first, but it was really good. And then I added the sour cream which made it creamy; you could add some cheese too if that's your style.

This dish required a lot of chopping/dicing which I always find sanity-inducing. It's so methodical! Enjoy!

Sidenote: I made my own granola bars last weekend and, while delicious, they turned out pretty crumbly. I'm going to try again to try to get them to hold together better and then I'll share my recipe with you.

Pepperjack Potato Salad

So last Friday I spent all afternoon and evening in the kitchen, then I was too tired to blog. Saturday Mac (the dog) and I were up at the lake all day which meant I was too tired to blog on Sunday as well. And then, ya know, the week happened. Now it's 6 days later and I am trying to remember what I even did...

Ok, so homemade hummus- I started from hard chickpeas, cooked 'em, shelled 'em, mashed 'em up with some other stuff. Not great and not worth the effort. I was strongly encouraged to try again starting with canned organic chickpeas/garbanzo beans. Overall thoughts/tips- don't buy the expensive, fancy tahini. Look for the more reasonable stuff in the "international" food isle. I would also suggest using less lemon than recipes call for and roasting your own red pepper- the kind in the jar had a weird taste/smell. I'd also go ahead and cook any garlic you are going to add; raw garlic seems to leave a strange stinging feeling for those who eat it. Honestly, I may dub this one of the few things I think is more worth buying store bought than making your own. I'm not even convinced it is more economical to make your own, especially if you can find store bought on sale. See, I'm so unconvinced this is worth it that I won't even point you to a recipe. Maybe I'll try again in the future.

Pepperjack Potato Salad: one word- awesome. This was so delicious I didn't even want to share. I ate it hot as soon as it was done, I ate it at room temperature when I was putting it away, I ate it cold when we served it up with sandwiches for lunch. The juice from it was so good I dipped my sandwich in it. So yummy and the pepperjack cheese was a bonus for me, but it would still be good w/o if you are not a pepperjack fan. This recipe originally came from my cousin Amanda (not sure where she got it so I can't give further credit), and I tweaked it a bit.

Time: uh...?

Leftovers: This seems delicious hot, warm, and cold. My only concern would be if you added the pepperjack cheese when hot, then served/ate cold. But I would totally use this as a make ahead recipe!

What I used:

12 small red potatoes, washed but not peeled, cut into bite-sized pieces

10-12 slices turkey bacon (I couldn't bring myself to buy the real stuff)

1 small onion, diced

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 c. white vinegar

1/4 c. water

1/4 c. white granular sugar

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. parsley flakes (I am shy with parsley, Amanda used 2 tsp. chopped parsley)

2-3 oz. pepperjack diced into very small cubes (like pencil eraser size...I'm so technical)

Prep potatoes, onions, etc. Place potatoes in pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Boil about 10 mins or until potato is slightly tender (not mashed potato tender!) Drain and set aside.

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crispy (I had to do it in a couple batches to make sure all the bacon gets surface space). Remove to paper towel; once cool, crumble. Add olive oil (you won't need this if you use real bacon, just for turkey bacon) and heat, and onions. Continue cooking onions until browned, then add vinegar, water, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil.

Combine cooked potatoes, half of bacon (crumbled), and onion-liquid mixture. Add pepper and parsley. Stir to combine thoroughly. You can do this in the onion-liquid mixture pan if you plan to serve hot. Now I added the pepperjack after everything was cool because I was serving it cool. I suggest adding the pepperjack at the serving temperature because you don't want to add it hot, let it get melty and stringy, then cool everything off and have pepperjack plastic making it hard to scoop out your potatoes. Crumble remaining bacon on top.

May I just say that I have never even been willing to try potato salad because I think it looks so gross all creamy and gloppy, but this was so delicious that I am just trying to figure out when I can make it again. Enjoy!

lacking sanity....

12 days of no posting is a great way to lose any followers my little blog might have had. Being in Indiana, traveling back to North Carolina, and going through doggy-surgery (that's what happens when your little dog eats bread ties, tupperware, string, and hair in the same week) has left me out of the kitchen. And it's been way, waaayyyy too hot to cook.

But tomorrow I am trying out 5 (count 'em 5) new recipes that I'll report back on! I plan on sticking pretty close to Tartlette's nectarine galette and macarons (different from macaroons apparently), as well as Ree the Pioneer Woman's Malted Milk Chocolate Chip cookies. The pepperjack potato salad will be my own, with some heavy borrowing/guidance from a recipe my cousin Mandy gave me. Get this-potato salad without mustard, mayo, or eggs! She took out all the gross and just left the delicious. and bacon. and I'm going to try to add pepperjack cheese. We'll see. Finally, I'm going to try to make my own hummer (black bean and roasted red pepper) just because I want to know if I can. Look for posts on all these soon!

Turkey In A Crock Pot

Yep, I cooked a bone-in turkey breast (which I thought was the same as a whole turkey, but maybe not? I guess there weren't any legs/drumsticks now that I think about it) in a crock pot. Why was a I cooking a turkey in July? Good question, long answer, we'll skip that. Why do it in a crock pot? Because it's July so our apartment is hot without having the oven on for 4 hours and my dog is very sick so I just wanted to start it and leave it with minimal effort. I wouldn't have made it at all, but I didn't know if you could refreeze a totally thawed turkey.

Anyway, it turned out delicious, moist and tender, though not particularly beautiful if presentation is important to you. When I lifted it out of the crock pot one whole side came, leaving the bones and the other side totally separate and still in the pot.

I used:

7.5 lb bone in Turkey breast

6 quart crock pot

olive oil, about 1/2 cup total

black pepper (about 1/2 Tbsp.)

salt (about 1/2 Tbsp)

season salt (about 1/2 teaspoon)

garlic powder (about 1/2 Tbsp)

thyme (about 1/4 teaspoon)

1/2 onion (any but red), peeled

3 cloves fresh garlic, peeled

I thawed the turkey completely in the fridge. I rinsed it, then trimmed off most of the skin, the neck, and any yucky stuff inside (including removing the provided gravy packet which I almost always manage to slice open when removing the turkey wrapper). I rinsed the turkey again, then patted it dry with paper towels. I used my hands to rub a layer of olive oil all over the inside and outside of the turkey. I put the garlic cloves and the 1/2 onion inside the opening of the turkey.

I mixed all of the seasonings together in a small bowl, then added enough olive oil to make the mixture the consistency of a thick paste. I rubbed this spice paste all over the outside of the turkey, and even some of the extra inside the turkey. I placed all of this in the crock pot and turned it on high. That's it. Well, actually I then Lysoled the entire kitchen counter and sink.

After 3 hours I used a meat thermometer to check the turkey. I had read that the turkey needs to reach 140 degrees in the first three hours to be safe; mine hit 150. I can't vouch for the truth in this, but it does make sense that you don't want a semi-warm turkey laying around. I put the lid back on the crock pot and left it for two more hours. After a total of five hours of cooking the top side of my turkey (out of the liquid) reached 190 degrees and the bottom side (in liquid) over 200, meaning it was cooked thoroughly. Given the seriousness of getting poultry cooked thoroughly to prevent illness, I'll direct you to the experts for info on how to know your turkey is done.

Now I don't need to worry about presentation for my turkey, but I am guessing you could broil this for a few minutes after it was finished in the crock pot if you wanted to brown it a little, and then arrange it nicely on a plate. I am excited for turkey, turkey sandwiches, and a number of other left over turkey creations in the next week or so (I refroze some of the cooked turkey). It's a nice change from what I typically eat and if you can catch turkey on sale midsummer, you just might want to give this a try! It's been a weird weekend so why not make a turkey?

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie (no, I'm not 80)

It's always been the misfit pie, the joke pie in my family. As we prize pies with chocolate and drive out of our way to pick up coconut cream pie, we have always made faces about people who chose to eat rhubarb pie when there were other options.

But I was feeling a little antsy and a little fired up yesterday, so when I encountered rhubarb at the farmer's market I felt up for the challenge. As usual I only sort of measured (i.e. The lady in front of me in line said she was making a rhubarb pie so I just told the cashier to give me the same amount that lady got, which was $4 worth, which my dad did the math to figure out was about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 lbs.). I have a new love (a natural true love with a big green leaf...ok I watch too many Truvia commercials).

Prepare the rhubarb: Ok, let me just suggest you google this because I am no expert! My rhubarb was all red on bottom and transitioned to all green on top. I trimmed off the bottom red ends and cut off the top at the point where it was more green than red. I learned that you are supposed to use a peeler and shave off some of the outsides of the red bottom if they are stringy. I also learned that the leaves are (supposedly- according to the interwebs and my grandma) poisonous- don't eat those. Wash the trimmed rhubarb, then chop into small pieces about the size of the tip of your pinkie finger.

What I made: 4 small (6 inch) pies with lattice top crust (I actually made 5 and two had no top and they weren't totally full, so you should make 4 with this recipe). You could probably make one full 9 inch pie with a lattice top or full crust top, but lattice is prettier!

You'll need:

• 4 6 inch pie pans (or 1 9 inch)
• 1 (2 piece) store bought pie crust (or make your own, but I don't if I don't have to)
• as much rhubarb as the lady in front of you (ask a lady who looks older than your mom, she'll be impressed you even know what rhubarb is and be happy to give you guidance!), or about 1 1/2 lbs.
• 1 cup white sugar (or more, my grandpa said it could use more, I liked it tart)
• 1 1/2 c. (approx.) strawberries (washed, trimmed, cut into smallish pieces)
• 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
• nutmeg (I gave it 2 shakes from the spice bottle)
• cinnamon (I gave it a bunch of shakes, let's guess 1/2 to 1 tsp.)
• vanilla (I gave it 2 splashes, let's guess 1/2 Tbsp? aren't I helpful?)
• the online recipes all call for some kind of citrus (a little orange or lemon zest or lemon juice), but I forgot it and didn't miss it at all

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put chopped rhubarb and sliced strawberries together in a large mixing bowl. Pour in remaining ingredients over the strawberry and rhubarb. Use a large spoon to gently stir until all of the ingredients are well mixed and the rhubarb and strawberries are all covered in the sugary, powdery mix. Set this aside while you prepare the crust; doing this step first allows some juice to gather on the bottom of this mixture.

Lay bottom crust in the pie pan(s) making sure to gently push the bottom all the way around the edges (so it won't tear when you fill it). If using 4 little pans you will need one whole crust piece and about 1/4 of the 2nd one; you'll have to squash it together, divide it into 4 balls, and roll it to fit your pans- just thin enough to cover the bottom and sides of the pan.

Stir the rhubarb strawberry mix again to pull the juice from the bottom over all the fruit (vegetable? what is rhubarb? weird!). Pour this into the pie crust(s). If dividing it among pies, be sure that the juicy goodness in the bottom gets split over all the pies (or put it all in one awesome pie and keep that one for yourself!).

Prepare the lattice crust for the top. You have two options- fancy and not-so-fancy. We did not so fancy because we were in a hurry. For this just cut the top into strips (be sure you have enough if you made multiple pies) and lay all the ones going one direction, leaving space between them for the pretty red mix to show through. then rotate the pie one-quarter turn and lay the same number of strips going the other direction. For fancier you would actually weave these. It's not that hard and involves folding back the "top" pieces while covering the "bottoms" then switching what is a top and what is a bottom. Watch a google video, it will make way more sense!

Place the pie pan(s) on top of a baking sheet (they may overflow) and bake uncovered until the crust is a light golden brown (I used a convection oven so this took nearly 20 minutes), then cover with foil. Poke some holes in the foil to vent and continue baking until your total baking time reaches about 45 minutes (for smaller pies in a convection oven, probably need longer for a big pie and a regular oven, possibly up to 60 minutes). If you can snag a little piece of rhubarb through a hole- all you are going for is really tender rhubarb and semi-thick pie filling.

Enjoy with vanilla ice cream. Really, give it a try. Rhubarb is weird, but delicious!

Don't Be Intimidated Baby Back Ribs

I've wanted ribs for about oh, two years now. Ridiculous, I know. But they are kind of pricey and come in big packs and I didn't think they made good left overs and I just found them kind of all around intimidating. But I talked my parents into them and between the three of us and google and a rub recipe we made some pretty good ribs.

Unfortunately I don't know which of the steps we took were important to the end result and which didn't matter, so I'll just give you all of 'em.

You'll need:

3 or so pounds of pork back ribs (or however much you want really)

apple cider vinegar, a few cups

water

a dry rub of your choice, we used Meatheads Memphis Dust- (see notes at bottom for how I changed it)

Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce (you knew it was coming!)

napkins, lots and lots of napkins

We rinsed the ribs thoroughly in the sink. Then we cut the rack in half to make it more manageable and laid it meaty side down in a baking dish. Over the bony side I poured about 2 cups of apple cider vinegar and 1-2 cups of water. The ribs were not covered, but there was about 1/2 inch or so of liquid in the dish. We wrapped plastic wrap over the top of this and put it in the fridge for two hours. Then we remembered that many websites said to "remove the membrane", which I didn't remember seeing. So I pulled the ribs out and saw the disintegrating membrane on the bony side. I peeled this off, flipped the ribs over in the dish, and spooned the vinegar liquid over the meaty side of the ribs. Rewrapped and back in the fridge for 2 or so more hours.

Then I removed the ribs, which I felt were visibly tenderized, rinsed them, and patted them dry. I rubbed the Meathead's Memphis Dust all over the ribs on all sides. (My dad said he couldn't taste the rub coming through, so feel free to use A LOT). My mom grilled the ribs straight on the hot grill for about 15 minutes. I think you could skip this step if you don't have a grill. Then we baked them in a baking dish (without the vinegary liquid) covered over with foil at 300 for about 2 1/2 hours. We topped them with Sweet Baby Ray's and baked them another 20 minutes uncovered. The bones were slipping out of the meat when we tried to pick them up, so cook until you get everything nice and tender! We dished 'em up with fresh Indiana sweet corn (sooo good) and my not-gooey green bean casserole.

We went grill before baking because we were afraid the really tender meat would fall through the grill and didn't see the point of finishing them on foil on the grill. It seems to be a matter of opinion.

Meathead's Memphis Dust my way- On advise of a friend we cut the paprika in 1/2. We didn't have any onion salt so we skipped that and the rosemary. In the future I think I'll include the onion salt and maybe just a touch of rosemary. I will definitely be making ribs again!

Oh, and a leftovers note: We cleaned all the leftover meat off of the bones (I'd also recommended cutting out the really fatty parts that you aren't going to eat anyway) and storing in Tupperware. The meat resembled shredded meat, reheated well in the microwave, and made a fabulous sandwich the next day!

Easy Blueberry Trifle...really, really easy

Need a last minute recipe to take to the 4th of July pitch in but don't want to look like you were tempted to spend the whole day on the couch in pajamas soaking up air conditioning and then, upon deciding to go, needed a last minute recipe? Here's one for you!

2 quarts fresh blueberries, washed (I honestly don't think frozen and thawed would work...too squishy)

1 box low fat brownie mix (though you won't use it all)

2 large (12 oz) tubs of Cool Whip (I used cool whip free)

1 angel food cake, the round kind (I used store bought)

Find a trifle bowl or other glass container between 8-12 inches in diameter. I used a trifle bowl that doubles as a punch bowl and a cake plate if that helps you guess. I did put a glass in the middle of my trifle bowl to fill up some space, but in the end I wouldn't have needed too. Use your best guess. I also think a tall cylinder vase would be pretty to use!

Cut/tear angel food care into chunks about 1x1x1 inches or smaller. Fold 1/2 cup of brownie mix powder into each tub of cool whip (so 1 cup of brownie mix is used total). Place half the chunks of cake (for a two layer trifle, adjust as needed for more layers) on the bottom of the trifle bowl. Top this with a layer of blueberries 1-2 blueberries high. Spread 1 tub of brownie-fied cool whip on top of blueberries forming a relatively smooth and flat layer. Push the remaining angel food cake chunks into the cool whip layer. Top with another layer of blueberries. Spread the remaining browniefied cool whip on top of blueberries. Finally sprinkle a few blueberries on top (just to look cute). Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

This is soooo easy and sooo good! I used really fresh (as in we picked them the day before, thanks Owen!) blueberries which I think made this so yummy! May have to switch to later season berries in a few weeks. Enjoy and Happy 4th!

P.S. Get off the couch, get out of your pajamas, and go celebrate!

Make Your Own Hot Pockets: Italian Chicken & BBQ Chicken

Ok, not fair (fare? jeez, I should know that) to say I'd post two more hot pocket ideas, hold out on you, and then make a bigger deal of them than they are. Here's how it goes:

For Italian Chicken-

Do everything from the past post EXCEPT instead of adding salsa add marinara sauce. Still cook out most of the liquid, so the marinara sauce gets super thick and sticks to the chicken and veggies. Replace Mexican cheese with Parmesan cheese. Presto, that's it!

For BBQ Chicken-

Do everything from the past post EXCEPT instead of adding salsa add Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. Again, cook out as much liquid as you can which means the BBQ sauce sort of caramelizes on the chicken (=awesome). I even used the Mexican cheese in this, though I am sure Pepper Jack would be good too. When I reheated a left over BBQ one it seemed a little dry (it had lots of extra crust), so I just dipped it in some more SBRs.

I liked all three, I loved the salsa chicken pockets and the BBQ chicken pockets.

Just in case you didn't catch it yet- I really think the key is to have the ingredients pretty dry when you put them in the pockets. I'm also still not sold on pie crust as the best way to go about this, but I know it is much better than puffed pastry, and pizza dough seems too heavy though maybe not if you got it thin enough. I'll have to keep trying...

Headed out of town tomorrow, but fully intending to test recipes on the family so I'll keep you posted! I have a blueberry dessert in mind that I am anxious to experiment with :)

Make Your Own hot pockets: Salsa Chicken

So I had a pie crust laying around... you know, since they come in packs of two. What did I use the other one for? Why do I own pie crust? Oh yeah, the mini poptarts.

Anyway, I decided I wanted something different and home made hot pockets sounded just right. Now I made 6 out of one pie crust, but if you wanted them to be the whole meal you'd probably want to plan of 4 per crust. I feel like any food wrapped in pie crust is a splurge, so I kept them small and paired with fruit or salad. I made three kinds, but I'll give you the amounts of each thing to make them all one kind. Look for Italian chicken and BBQ in the next couple days.

Salsa Chicken hot pockets

1 refrigerator pie crust (I guess you could make your own...)

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, and cut into about 1/2 of what you'd call bite sized

1/2 c. peppers, I used red and green bell peppers, finely chopped

1/4 c. onion, I used yellow, finely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2-3/4 c. salsa (less if runnier, more if chunkier)

1 c. Mexican blend cheese

Keep the pie crust refrigerated until you are ready for it! It needs to be cold going into the oven. Heat your olive oil in a skillet. Add garlic and stir that around just for about 30 seconds, then add peppers and onions. Stir all this around and then let cook for just a minute or two. Add chicken. Cook uncovered for a few minutes, then cover and let cook just until chicken is done. Remove lid and let ALL the liquid cook out. Add salsa and stir until everything is well mixed. Again, cook ALL the liquid out.

Wait, cook out ALL the liquid? Then why did I put the salsa in? For the flavor of course! It makes the chicken so yummy that I could (read:did) eat it straight out of the pan! But you need all of the liquid out before you put this in the pie crust so it doesn't make the dough gooey. Once all the liquid is cooked out, remove this mix from the pan and set aside to cool completely.

Once the salsa chicken veggie mix is totally cooled (i.e. not even the least bit warm!), take out your pie crust. Unroll it from the wrapper and place on parchment or wax paper, then use a rolling pin (or glass or whatever you have) to roll it just a bit thinner. I just rolled in until I had more of a square than a circle. Use a pizza cutter to cut twice as many squares as the number of pockets you are making (4 pockets= 8 squares, 6 pockets= 12 squares). You will want the "top" squares to be bigger than the "bottom" squares by about 1/2 inch in length and width.

Place your bottom squares on a lined baking sheet (I used parchment, but I'd guess foil would work, ungreased!). Layer the cheese on top of the bottoms (1/4 c. for 4, 1/6 c. for 6). This will help protect the bottom crust from some of the moisture bound to come out of the chicken mix. Then top the cheese with 1 to 2 Tbsps of the chicken mix. Wet one side of a top square with your fingers, then place the damp side down over the chicken mix and push the crusts together (the water will help hold them), then use a fork to crimp the crusts together all the way around. You will want to be able to seal it all the way around, so adjust your chicken mix amounts as needed. Use the fork to poke small holes in the top of the pocket so it won't bust open. You may have left over chicken mix which is not a bad thing, just grab a chip or a fork and eat up, or toss in a salad or a wrap.

Bake in a 450 degree oven about 7 minutes, or until you get a nice brown around the edges of each pocket and a firm, but white crust in the middle. Then turn the oven down to 300 degrees for another 7 minutes. I suggest letting them rest a couple of minutes before serving (1. to avoid lava filling tongue burn and 2. not to loose any of the yummy stuff running out).

I like to mix some taco seasoning with light sour cream to have with these, especially if you feel like they are a little dry. It is taking all the will power I have not to go eat all the ones left in my fridge! A leftover hint: I individually wrapped the left over ones in foil for storage in the fridge, then just popped one in the toaster oven inside the foil for a few minutes to reheat.

Blueberry Lemonade Bites (lightened up)

Wow, it's been a whole week out of the kitchen and my sanity is feeling it, so I have multiple experiments going today! I am also looking forward to going to visit family for a week or so starting Wednesday...I need more people to test recipes on. Since the make-your-own hot pockets aren't done yet, let me tell you about the Blueberry Lemonade bites.

Now, to be honest, these were heavily inspired by a Kraft Food & Family recipe and a few similar recipes floating around, though I definitely lightened it up. Beware: these require delayed gratification. It's been a challenge all day! Takes about 15-20 minutes to get everything together, then about 4 hours in the fridge.

Makes at least 36 mini muffin size bites (I don't know exactly because I made 12 little ones and 6 big ones and disposed of some extra...I only need to eat so many)

mini muffin paper liners

4 sheets Low Fat graham crackers (not 4 little rectangles...16 little rectangles=4 sheets)

2 Tbsp butter, melted

1/2 packet Sugar Free Lemon Jello, unprepared

3/4 c. boiling water

2 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese

3 oz. frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed (or somewhat thawed)

4 oz. Cool Whip Free

1 c. blueberries

Use a food processor (or a zip lock bag and a coffee mug) to crush the graham crackers into fine crumbs, mix thoroughly with melted butter. Spoon into mini muffin papers, then pack down into the bottom of the paper. Pop in the oven at about 350 for just a few minutes. Remove and set aside (or in the fridge if you are impatient) to cool.

While the crusts cool, stir together boiling water and jello for two minutes until dissolved. Set aside. Use a hand mixer to soften cream cheese (No really, trust me, you are going to want to bother with the hand mixer), then beat in lemonade concentrate. Beat in dissolved jello mixture until thoroughly mixed (make sure this isn't too hot at this point). Fold in Cool Whip Free and blueberries (if you so desire). This took me a long time to get the Cool Whip to mix into the very liquidy mixture. I have an idea to fix this in the notes below.

Spoon lemony-blueberry mix into crusts. Refrigerate for 4 hours. The results are tart and lemony and yummy. The little crunch on the bottom is great and the fluffy, lightness on the top is wonderful.

Next time: After I was too far into this recipe to turn back, I saw a recipe for a similar idea that made use of yogurt. Next time I'll replace the cream cheese with Greek yogurt. I am actually thinking I could use 1 1/2 cups of vanilla Greek yogurt, stir the lemon Jello powder straight into the yogurt, then fold in 2 cups of Cool Whip Free...I'm just not sure how well it would set up. Anyway, what I did this time is good, but I'm more likely to have Greek yogurt on hand than cream cheese. I'll let you know how this works out when I get to try it this way, or you let me know if you beat me to it!

Check back soon for the results of 3 different types of homemade hot pockets :)

Green Bean Casserole, minus the mushroom soup junk

I think all green vegetables should be prepared in a way that ends like a trail mix, like that yummy salad with apples, walnuts, and craisins. So that inspired a green bean casserole with a trail mix feel.

Servings: 2 (but maybe only 1 if you hadn't been eating dump-it-and-leave-it BBQ chicken straight from the crock pot for hours)

Cooking and leftovers: Prep time was about 5 minutes, cooking about 20, but might be longer if you are making more. I'm guessing it will be fine leftover if it gets re-heated in an over or toaster oven.

2 cups fresh green beans, rinsed, trimmed, and snapped into approx. 1 1/2 inch pieces

1/8 c. red onion slices (more or less to your preferences)

1 tsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. walnut chips (almonds would probably work too, but they make me sick :(

2 Tbsp. craisins

salt, pepper, cooking spray

Clean and prep the green beans while you preheat the oven to 400 degrees. You'll want a pan that fits all of this in one or two layers (I used my little 4x8 glass rectangle), so hunt that out. Spray pan lightly with cooking spray. Toss in green beans and red onions. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt (sea salt if you have it, I don't) and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven, stir contents, and then toss walnuts and craisins on top. Cook another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle again with salt and pepper to taste. Green beans should have just a bit of firmness when you bite them, onions are soft. Be sure everyone gets some of the trail mix-y stuff in their serving!

The sweet, salty, nutty, freshness is delightful. Enjoy.

I have a running list in my head of quick tips and short cuts that aren't really a whole post, but certainly make my food life more enjoyable.

Chicken & Sprouts

I'm back and so are the Brussels sprouts. Yummy! Ever since my cousin Amanda mentioned a friend who sautes sprouts I have been trying to come up with a reason to try it. Here it is:

Sorry, I have no idea on the time or leftover-ness of this one. I'm still recovering from travel. :)

about 2 servings, I'd serve it with bread.

1 Tbsp walnut chips

1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed and cut to bite size pieces

10-15 sprouts

2 cloves garlic

1 Tbsp butter

white cooking wine (optional)

Start with all the cutting/chopping/dicing. Chop the Brussels in half, then half again, then a few more times to get dime-ish sized pieces. Dice the garlic cloves.

Heat a pan over medium heat. Toss in walnut chips and let toast for a couple minutes. Remove and set aside. Spray pan with non-stick spray and add chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook thoroughly, remove, and set aside. Melt butter in pan, add garlic. Cook for a couple minutes, then add Brussels. Stir, toss, and otherwise mix around. Cook until a few pieces of Brussels just start to brown. Add back in chicken and walnut chips, sprinkle with salt and pepper. This is where I added about 1/4 c. of cooking wine, adding another flavor to the mix and cutting a little through the butter. BUT, I think I would have also been quite pleased w/o it. Serve it up! The Brussels flavor comes through as fresh (and a little bit sprouty), the chicken is delicious, the walnuts add a little crunch, and I found it to be very filling.

So when I shop I look for the various meats packed in "value pack" size, but 'em cheap, and store what I don't need for a given week in the freezer. Well, I am declaring it purge-the-freezer week. I'll be experimenting with cube steaks, pork chops, and tilapia. I'll keep you posted :)

outta the kitchen...what to do?

Well I didn't want you to think I'd abandoned the blog already. I'll be out of the kitchen for a few days at a conference in Rhode Island. I've never been to RI, which I consider New England, but geography was never a strong subject for me. (I'm hanging out in the airport and every time they announce boarding for Chicago I want to jump on...would anyone notice? I'd be so close to Indy) Anyway, I guess I'll have to experiment and seek inspiration on the road. I'm guessing seafood will make up the local cuisine, so we'll see what I end up eating.

Happy weekend!

Brownie Sundae Pops=defeat

I once lived in Asia. And when the "plumber/electrician" came to work on getting us hot water, he told us "installation be defeated." That's what I think when I admit defeat.

So my sister and I were talking about Bakerella's adorable cake pops and trying to come up with other yummy combinations. Now I don't know who thought of subbing in ice cream for the frosting, but I'll give Hillary that credit. Two days after we were kicking around ideas, I needed a sanity-seeking project and decided to tackle this idea. However, after some thought I decided I don't think the cake and ice cream will maintain any separateness. So, I decided to try brownies+vanilla ice cream+chocolate coating= Brownie Sundae Pops (well balls cause I didn't have sticks, but pops sounds better). And here's what happened:

1 8x8 pan of cooked and cooled brownies

2-3 c. vanilla ice cream, softened

chocolate for coating, I just got the bark stuff

Seems simple enough, right? I let the brownies totally cool, then cut them into small chunks. I put the ice cream and about half the brownies in the food processor and ran it long enough to incorporate the brownie into the ice cream, but not totally disintegrate the brownies. Then I folded in the rest of the brownie chunks by hand (so I had different size pieces). I put all this back in the freezer for several hours.

Once the brownie-ice cream mix got firm, I attempted to roll balls from it. I used spoons and my hands, neither was great, but I got close-enough shapes. As fast as possible I put these balls (not touching each other) back in the freezer. Unfortunately, the balls never froze hard. Might be my freezer, might be all the messing with them, I'm not sure.

My plan was to get the balls really, really frozen. Then I'd melt the chocolate bark, let it cool until it was thick but not hard, and dip/coat the frozen ice cream brownie balls. The coated balls go back into the freezer to freeze up and stay there until time to serve.

But this didn't work out. I'll be trying again, but if you get to it first, let me know how it works out!

To make up for this one, I'll post a couple healthy (or at least low cal) recipes the next couple days :)

Chicken Sandwich Awesomeness

Today has been rough. I don't think I've had that intense or that many different emotions in one day in a long time. Funny given I was teaching about toddlers and their varied emotions today. All this sent my head spinning, so my feet took control and carried me to the kitchen. Three projects later (well still wrapping up one), I feel like I have a little bit of a handle on things. And dinner was delicious.

First, I made these little mini-pop tarts. Not my own experiment, someone else's, but awesome just the same.

Then I took some inspiration from the Pioneer Woman and put my own twist on her delicious sandwich. Now she lives on a cattle ranch, but I am more of a chicken girl. After making this recipe of hers, I started playing around with my own. The results were yummy (and way more guilt-free than mini pop tarts and the other project-in-the-works).

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: About 20 minutes?

Leftovers: not sure yet, but I am thinking they'll need reheated in a pan on the stove, not microwaved

This makes about enough for 3 sandwiches: (Sorry I didn't measure well, I told you it was a rough day.)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts trimmed and cut into thin slices

1/2 green pepper, sliced into thin strips

1/3 yellow onion, sliced into thin strips

2 cloves garlic, diced

white cooking wine

Worcestershire sauce

chicken bullion, dissolved in about 1/2 c water

olive oil

butter

chili powder

Tabasco or other hot sauce type sauce

Heat about 1 1/2 Tbsps of oil in a large pan/skillet. Toss in garlic, peppers, and onions. Saute for a couple minutes, then add about a 1/4 c. cooking wine and let cook until peppers and onions are no longer crisp. Remove from pan and set aside.

Add another 1 tsp. of oil to the pan. Place chicken in pan one layer high, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook for about 2 minutes, turn, and finish cooking. Set this aside and continue cooking chicken until all is done.

At this point I rinsed/wiped out the pan. Add about 1 Tbsp of butter, let melt. Add all chicken and vegetables back in and sprinkle lightly with chili powder, then add chicken bullion broth, another 1/3 c. or so of cooking wine, a teaspoon (or more if you like it) of Worcestershire sauce, and a few sprinkles of Tabasco. Now I don't have Tabasco, but I have a Chinese Sichuan sauce that is really spicy, so I added a few drops of that instead. Stir all this and allow to simmer for a few minutes, making sure there is liquid remaining. If all the liquid cooks out, add more bullion broth or white wine (or both!).

Grab your favorite (or easily located) bread, toast it just a bit, and scoop on the chicken, peppers, and onions. Be sure some of the liquid in the pan makes into onto the sandwich, even if it means eating with a fork! If you are the cheese eating type, I think a slice would help this sandwich. I also have hopes of making a garlic aioli someday that I think would be perfect on this. Enjoy!

There is something about slicing vegetables that is good for the soul. And something about them sizzling in a pan that is so satisfying. This, my friends, is why I find sanity in the kitchen. Some people meet with the Lord in nature, I think I do in the kitchen. It's like something about creating puts me in tune with the Creator. I'll share about the still-in-the-works project tomorrow!

dump it and leave it BBQ chicken

So after a week of what I am calling a heat wave (and the rest of NC is calling summer), it was time to cook something that wouldn't heat up the whole apartment. Here I must give shout outs to Mark and Erika F. for introducing me to the beauty of crock pot cooking (w/pulled pork) and Craig B. for nudging me towards my love of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. This recipe is so easy it doesn't even count as cooking.

Time: prep: 5 min if chicken is already trimmed

cook: approx 3.5 hrs on high, 5.5 on low

Leftovers: Freezes very well, reheats well.

A crock pot is a must for this one! Mine has choices in size, so I just use the 2 (quart?) setting.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed (thawed or frozen, but trimmed!)

1 Tbsp. vinegar (I use plain old white vinegar)

1/4 c. brown sugar

about 3/4 c. Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce to start (you could probably sub in another kind, but I make no taste promises if you do...this stuff is the best!)

Ok, get ready. This is your big cooking moment. Dump chicken in crock pot. Dump vinegar over chicken. Dump brown sugar over chicken. Dump BBQ sauce over chicken (this is the one thing I forgot to measure, but the top layer of chicken was mostly covered...you can always add more later). Put the lid on the crock pot, turn the crock pot on low (or high if you are in more of a hurry), and leave it. Resist the urge to stir. Resist the urge to cut chicken smaller with kitchen scissors. Resist the urge to mess with it at all (unless the crock pot has run out of liquid, then pour in more sauce, but this has never happened to me.) At the end of 5 hrs (on low, or 3 on high), remove lid and gently push the edges of one chicken breast with a fork. If the chicken begins to fall apart easily, use two forks to "shred" or pull apart chicken. This should be very, very easy. If not, continue cooking and check back in half an hour. Shred all chicken in the crock pot, stir, lower setting (to low or warm), and let cook another half hour. And there you have it, you're done! And it is so worth the wait!

Serving suggestions: by it self, on a sandwich, on a salad, in a wrap, over a potato (topped with more BBQ sauce), straight from the pot...

Let me warn you, once you fall in love with this, you will stop buying the little normal bottles and start buying the jugs (like you are running your own school cafeteria). Don't be embarrassed, just pass along this super easy, super delicious, and super-great-for-making-ahead secret and know that you will have caused another to make the little-bottle-to-big-jug switch :)

Chocolate Cherry Brownies

STOP! Before starting this recipe, go eat a Hershey kiss. Wait, you're making this because you are out of Hershey kisses and you have a major chocolate craving and it's been a few long days teaching undergrads so you are seeking some sanity in the kitchen and the heat wave has you determined not to go back out to the grocery store? Well then, prepare to eat the gritty, chocolaty, sugary mix about 1/2 way through using your finger. I warned you. (Oh and read the whole thing including the "What I'd Do Differently" section before starting)

I cooked this in a cupcake pan (in an attempt to control myself and not eat it all today), so this recipe makes 6 brownies-in-a-cupcake-pan. It might make more if you don't eat so much of it in the gritty,chocolaty, sugary mix stage :)

You'll need:

8 fresh cherries, pitted, and diced

5 Tbsp unsalted butter

just under 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

just over 1/2 cup white sugar

2 Tbsp powdered sugar

1/4 tsp salt (I don't even measure this, I just too some in my palm then in the bowl)

splash of vanilla

1 egg

1/4 cup flour

Fill a small sauce pan 1/2 way with water. Cover with a heat safe bowl. Put butter in the bowl and let it begin to warm. Stir in cocoa powder, sugars, and salt. Continue stirring as butter melts and mix ingredients. This is the gritty sugary chocolaty mix I kept eating with my finger. Let this get warm-hot (where you stop eating it with your finger), then remove from water and cool. Add vanilla. Then add and stir in egg. (Don't do this when the mix is too hot, I think you'd end up with chocolate scrambled eggs). The mix should turn more glossy and smooth. Stir in flour, then add diced cherries and continue stirring until ingredients are all combined. Bake in cupcake pans (or not, any brownie-type pan will be fine) at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes. Note: my cherries were pretty dry. If you are adding in a bunch of cherry juice, you may need to add more flour. The cherry flavor is minimal (or missing, see below), but this totally hits the spot for chocolate!

Things I'd do differently: I would use only powdered sugar, replacing the granulated sugar with powdered. Also, the cherry flavor did not come through much, so I would either leave the cherry pieces bigger or pick different cherries. I used California cherries, but something more tart would have been nice with the very rich chocolate. You could aways swap the cherries for some other brownie mix-in.

Brussel Sprouts...no really!

So I meant to make brussel sprouts to go with my dinner, but then it was suddenly 7 and I hadn't started them and I was starving. I guess they'll wait until tomorrow. But this is a repeat experiment so here's the plan:

For 1 serving:

about 6 brussel sprouts

1 tsp of olive oil (about an additional 1/2 tsp for each additional serving)

sea salt and garlic powder OR garlic salt

black pepper

1 tbsp finely chopped walnuts (chips)

Cut the end (where the core starts) off the brussel sprouts and peel off a few outer layers if they look rough. Soak sprouts in water for a few minutes, then rinse once more. (supposedly they can be really dirty, I've never had that unfortunate experience.) Now here is the innovative part- chop 'em up! That's right, cut them in half so you have a flat side and then cut them in half again (now you have quarters). Cut each of those pieces about three times, then use your hands to separate the leaves a little more. Toss all this in a small glass baking dish. Drizzle on the olive oil, then shake or stir (or use your hands) to make sure they get coated evenly. Sprinkle with pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, and walnuts. Stir or shake again to mix it around. Bake/roast in the oven on about 400 degrees until the first few start to turn brown on the tips. (If I had made this today I would remember how long and tell you, but I don't). You won't want to overcook because they shouldn't be dried out. Give 'em another fluff with a fork after they are out of the oven and enjoy!

Brussel sprouts? yep! love them. And no, they were never forced on me as a child. As a matter of fact, I think I first forced them on my mom. But I've long heard the tough part about them is the texture and chopping them up changes that. The walnuts add a bit of crunch too. And if you read for long, you'll discover that I think any vegetable can be fixed if you get it spicy enough or garlicky enough. And I see nothing wrong with not mentioning to family members that this delicious little roasted veggie is a brussel sprout.

***A note on doubling, etc. the recipe- the 1 tsp of olive oil coats both the sprouts and is enough to keep anything from sticking to the pan. However, I'd suggest only adding an additional 1/2 a teaspoon for each additional serving. Remember 2 things with olive oil: 1) you can always add more. 2)olive oil is good, embrace it.

now I'm hungry and wishing I had made them after all...

Chili "Fries"

Why do I crave chili on 96 degree days? No idea, but it's so good. All the time. This is another one of my perk-up-the-leftovers ideas, so you can start with any chili you have hanging around (probably not much this time of year), but here's mine (approximately) in case you are just venturing into the chili cooking world:

Serves: a bunch! (approx. 10-12 one cup servings) and freezes & reheats well.

1 lb lean ground beef (in my opinion- as lean as you can afford!)

1 can black beans, rinsed (approx. 15 oz.)

1 can kidney beans, rinsed (approx. 15 oz.)

1 can corn, drained (approx. 15 oz.)

1 can diced tomatoes (approx. 28 oz.), flavored if you like

1 can crushed tomatoes (approx. 28 oz.), flavored if you like

1/2 green pepper, diced

1/3 onion, white or yellow, diced

3 garlic cloves (the little sections), diced

a little olive oil

a little chili powder or McCormick chili seasoning packet (seriously, I'm a McCormick commercial)

In a large pot heat oil. Add garlic, saute for a couple of minutes. Add green peppers and onions, saute a few more minutes. Stir often to keep garlic from burning. Add ground beef, breaking it apart to crumbles. Cook until ground beef is browned. Add tomatoes, beans, and 1/3- 1/2 McCormick packet or chili seasoning to taste and stir to mix well. Let simmer for 30 mins or so. When it comes to chili, in my opinion, simmering is good. So if you have to add some water to allow things to simmer longer, I say go for it. But clearly I feel like you should do whatever you want in the kitchen :). About 10 minutes before you are done simmering, add corn and stir to mix everything well. I never thought to put corn in all my years of living in Indiana (the corn state), but a year into NC I was adding corn and loving the "fresh" taste it adds! This, by the way, will make a lot of chili.

Now you can stop here and dig in! Delicious, especially topped with sour cream and guacamole. (Guacamole? Yes! trust me!)

OR, you can make it awesome. Here's how:

For each serving thinly slice 6-8 ounces of potato into circles/coins (russet and Yukon are both good). For each serving pour in about 1/2 tsp of olive oil and mix around until potatoes are lightly coated. Shake seasoned salt, garlic salt or powder, and black pepper over potatoes. Mix around and repeat the seasonings. I suggest using a Tupperware with a lid for all this pouring/mixing/shaking stuff. Once potatoes are well seasoned, bake them on a baking sheet (covered with foil but NOT sprayed with cooking spray) in a 400 degree oven. If you sliced yours as thin as mine, 10 minutes will be good. If they're thicker, cook longer! Go ahead and test one, their delicious on their own. A few will get crunchy/crispy, but most will still be soft/tender. This is why I call them "fries" not fries.

Once potatoes are done you are ready to assemble. The ideal dish for this is a wide bowl. Layer in the potatoes (for each individual serving). Top with hot chili (about a half serving of what you'd want if you were just eating chili). Add on top of this sour cream and guacamole (Yes, the guacamole!), and cheese if you like. Dig in. This is comfort/sweatpants/football watching food if ever there was any! And yet I've made it, measuring serving sizes and leaving off the cheese, for a Weight Watchers Points Plus value of my typical dinner. And you will be full. Try it, love it, make for friends. Even if it is 96 degrees out.

Garlic Scapes, Green Peppers, & Chicken Stir-Fry

This is what I ate last night and it was delicious! So this is not so much a recipe as a recommendation: 1. Find Garlic Scapes (aka garlic stems) 2. wash and cut the into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces 3. stir fry them in something. I love 'em. A note on preparation: It is my impression that you only eat from the widest round end to the little nub. Above the nub, the shoot narrows and is less firm. I've never eaten that part, but that doesn't necessarily mean you can't, I just don't know.

What? You've never heard of garlic scapes? That's not surprising. I didn't discover them until just a few weeks before leaving China (after living there for 2 years), but when I did it was love at first bite. They are little green shoots that grow out of garlic bulbs and are often removed to encourage growth in the bulb. They are only good while they are green, left to grow to long they turn white and too my knowledge are no longer used in cooking. If you ask the produce person at your local grocery store and they look at you like you are crazy- I can empathize. Been there, done that. Not the you-might-be-crazy-but-let-me-ask-someone-else, the flat out you-have-made-this-up look. However, farmer's markets to the rescue! In both IN and NC I have found garlic scapes at the farmer's market. They do have a limited season, but ask around at a farmer's market (especially the veggie people) and someone should be able to help you out.

So last night I heated up some oil (olive oil, but I wanted sesame. It, too, got lost in the pantry) and cooked my thinly sliced chicken breast just to done, then set it aside. In that already hot pan I added a touch more oil and chopped green pepper and garlic scapes (washed and cut to about 1-1 1/2 inch pieces). I let them sizzle for a couple minutes, then added a little white wine vinegar, put the lid on top, and let the sizzling and steaming commence. Before all the liquid cooked out I added a little soy sauce and my favorite Chinese flavored stir fry sauce- Sichuan. Now I say Chinese flavored stir fry sauce because I think this is how grocery stores in America think of them, so if you look in the international isle, you should have some stir fry sauce options (sweet & sour, Sichuan or spicy or red pepper or just plain hot!, kung pao, etc.). I learned to eat veggies while living in China and the spicier they were, the better. If you're not so into the burning lips and runny nose, try another flavor or go with just the soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Remember with any of those sauces that it is easier to add more than to "fix it" if the dish gets too sweet or too anything you don't like. I served this with quinoa because I had a low protein day, but rice would have been great too.

Stir fries are a great way to experiment in the kitchen!

Chipotle Chicken Pasta

Of all the recipes to start with, I'm not sure this is my best. But it is one that made me call my sister and tell her I had come up with something new if she wanted to try it.

Recipe amount for 1 serving for 1 individual, increase as needed. I don't anticipate this would make good left overs, but it should double/triple/quadruple well.

Chipotle Chicken Pasta

1 c. cooked pasta (your choice, I used spiral pasta because I couldn't find the spaghetti in the pantry)

3 oz. cooked chicken

1 tbs. butter

1/4 c. flour

1/2 c. sour cream, light

1/4 c. skim milk

McCormick Taco Seasoning mix

McCormick Grill Mates Chipotle Pepper marinade (optional)

Prepare chicken by marinading in McCormick Grill Mates Chipotle Pepper marinade and baking or grilling. Honestly, I suggest making this chicken alone as a different meal and making enough to have leftovers for use with the pasta. Already have left over chicken? Use that! Tear cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces.

Cook pasta to al dente, keep pasta cooking water.

In a sauce pan melt butter over low-medium heat. Stir in flour until well blended. Stir in sour cream. Add 1 tsp. McCormick Taco Seasoning. Stir in milk and prepared chicken. Add more McCormick Taco Seasoning 1/2 tsp. at a time to desired taste. Stir in cooked pasta and add pasta water about 1 tsp at a time to your desired consistency. (If you like thinner sauces add more water or milk, thicker sauces add just 1 or 2 tsps of pasta water.) Continue to heat and stir on low-medium heat until cooked chicken is thoroughly warmed. Dig in!

Nothing fancy and a good way to use up left over chicken and/or pasta, but so delicious! Totally met my comfort food craving without crashing my most recent attempts at reasonably healthy eating. This, by the way, it pretty rich so I'd pair it with a salad or fresh fruit.

Well, maybe I'm a little crazy in the kitchen too

Alternate title: Like we needed another food blog.

We don't. I get it. I mean, I love them, but I'm not setting out to have one of those amazing blogs with artsy pictures of each ingredient. Rather, I thought this would serve as a great place to record what I'm cooking and what I'm making up as I go and how it keeps me sane. I often get asked for this or that recipe, so here's an organized storage place to direct folks.

Unfortunately, my recipes aren't always useful. My frequent response to the "hey, can you give me the recipe for this?" question is "uhm, maybe...if I can remember it." You see, where as I thrive on order and rules in all other areas of life, the kitchen is where my creativity kicks in. And that means I rarely measure, barely follow recipes (I consider them inspiration), and have a hard time repeating exactly what I've created. Disasters occur on occasion and I consider that more a part of the process than failure. So, how will this blog be helpful? Well, maybe I'll start measuring. Or not.

But all this to say I love to cook. I'm working on my PhD and it is not unusual for me to show up during the busiest time of the semester with a plate of Dark Chocolate Chip Cranberry Oatmeal cookies. (If I ever figure out how I made them, I'll let you know. They were delicious.) My tag line is "I cook my stress," and when I share the products with others, I only end up eating part of my stress :) I love to feed people. The books may say there are 5 love languages, but I beg to differ. I suggest 7: cooking (and pranking) should be added.

I have no delusions of daily updates, or of pretty photos, or of gourmet food. But I come from the generation inspired by that woman that married a cowboy and that lady that took on Julia Child's cookbook and this move back towards making, actually starting from raw ingredients and making your own food. Not that I don't take short cuts; I mean thank goodness for McCormick. But inspired to know that not every fruit comes from a can and cakes actually start with flour, not Betty Crocker magic dust.

And so here begins the blog about what I'm cooking and if it is keeping me sane. Perhaps I should note that I am have multiple food personalities and will likely blog recipes from the "clean eating" personality, the weight-watchers-friendly-but-not-so-clear personality, and the chocoholic personality. All things in moderation friends, all things in moderation.