A Girl's Gotta Eat!

Due to a birthday wish that was lovingly fulfilled, Mike (and I) are the proud new owners of a brand new slow cooker. We’ve always had one, but Mike decided we need one larger than our current 3.5 quarts. His mom bought him a 6-quart, programmable Crock-Pot for his birthday, and we finally broke it in yesterday with Sandra Lee’s recipe for Zesty Turkey . Both he and I were pleased with the results, and there is something so very satisfying about coming home after working all day and being welcomed by the smells of a tasty dinner that’s already cooked and ready to eat. And let me tell you, this did smell delicious! The recipe didn’t say how to serve this, and we thought about making rice, but it ended up being very tasty all on its own. We served it in bowls, as is. A few recipe notes: *We could only find frozen turkey breasts, which we subsequently forgot to thaw the night before. This ended up working out just fine, because the recipe calls for cooking on Low for 4 to 5 hours, and ...

I've been wanting to try this one for a while, and when I had bananas turning brown as Mike and I were packing for a weekend camping trip, I decided it was time to put said fruit to good use. Into the freezer the ailing bananas went, and out came the recipe for Anne's Breakfast Banana Bars . The recipe was easy to stir together and smelled divine while baking. I'm holding off trying them until breakfast tomorrow, but I really don't see how they could be bad, and it seemed a slightly more nutritious option than making Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (which still sound tasty, but I'm trying to exert a little self control here, and they wouldn't help with the banana situation anyway). I used blueberry Craisins for the dried cranberries and almonds instead of walnuts or pecans. Also, I lined my baking pan with foil, then coated with nonstick spray so the bars would be really easy to remove from the pan. UPDATE: Very tasty indeed. If you cut the entire pan into 12 equal p...

Mom and Dad got Mike ground buffalo and elk for his birthday, so we decided to bust out the fresh game for Game Night in Tennessee (Titans v. Jaguars on MNF). We’ve eaten buffalo/bison burgers before, but never made our own at home. We used the recipe for The Perfect Bison Burger found in The Hunter’s Table , and we were VERY pleased with the results. Add a little olive oil to the meat before forming it into patties so your burgers won’t turn crumbly and fall apart on the grill, and heed the advice in the recipe: do NOT overcook!     Before...   After  There’s also Elk Chili Colorado in The Hunter’s Table , which we may be trying next with Mike's birthday elk. As a side note, this book would make a GREAT gift for anyone who loves to hunt or fish or anyone who loves to enjoy the labors of someone else who hunts or fishes. Mike and I tried the Trout with Creamy Dill Sauce before I began my blog and thought it was a great, different way to fix the trout he caught....

After finishing the birthday brownies last night and sending them off with Mike, it was time to start his birthday cake. I offered to make whatever kind of treat he wanted, but he said to fix whatever I wanted. I know he likes raspberry and lemon, so I tired to find something with one or both of these flavors. I looked through quite a few books before deciding to try Lemon-Filled Pound Cake from the Junior League of Nashville’s Notably Nashville . I’ve owned this book for a while, and the recipes never disappoint, so figured it was a “safe” recipe to try for such a momentous occasion (did I mention this is his 30 th birthday?). I LOVE my pink standing mixer. It's the best for creaming butter and sugar in baked goods. I will tell you in advance that sadly, JL Nashville just sold their last copy of this book. However, it is still available on Amazon.com (just a few copies, so act fast.) I’m sure you’ll see more recipes from it on here, so you might as well go ahead and pic...

Mike’s 30 th birthday is tomorrow, so I wanted to make a birthday treat for him to take to work tonight. I thought about cupcakes, but Mike mentioned brownies sounded good, and I’ve recently come across several recipes I want to try. I narrowed it down to either Whiskey Brownies or Mocha Brownies with Coffee Frosting. I had every intention of making Whiskey Brownies when I arrived home from work and the store, but alas…no whiskey anywhere in the house. Mocha Brownies it was!! The brownie recipe itself was simple enough. I used butter-flavor Crisco sticks for the shortening, because that’s what I had in the house. They baked up fairly nicely. I went to book club after I pulled them from the oven so they’d have plenty of time to cool before I frosted them. If you want a big melty mess, go ahead and try frosting warm brownies or cake, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.  The brownies batter was REALLY thick. Be sure to spread it evenly in your pan.    The frosting really was t...

Mike and I decided it was time for another batch of chili, and since the Titans played the afternoon game it was a good time to try a new recipe. Mike chose this one, Southwestern Black Bean Chili, because it was similar enough to another we make, but the black beans and ground coriander were new ingredients that seemed like a delicious twist. The original recipe actually called for dried beans that you soak overnight and then cook, but we didn't pick it until Sunday morning, so we went with canned that I then drained and rinsed really well. The recipe called for hot chili powder and mild chili powder, but we used mild and ancho powders. Last thing, the recipe called for "4 cups (16 ounces)" of dark beer, but I happen to know those measurements don't jive (4 cups is 32 ounces), so we used used 2 (12-ounce) bottles and reduced it by a third instead of a half. I've incorporated all my little changes in the recipe below... I would say this is definitely a new fav...

On tonight's menu...Monday Night Football and Moroccan Carrot Soup!  That peeler is one of the cheapest and best kitchen gadgets I own! Nothing says Fall has arrived like football and soup, and since the temps around here finally dropped below the 80s, it was time to break out the soup pot. I first tried this carrot soup at my aunt's house several months ago, and I couldn't wait to make it again so Mike could try it, too. It's really easy to make, and I believe relatively healthful. I'm not sure where the original recipe came from, so consider this one, "From the Kitchen of Aunt Sheryl." I used Greek yogurt, and doubled the recipe so we could have leftovers for lunches. The recipe as listed says it will serve 4. Drizzling in the honey... Moroccan Carrot Soup 2 Tbl butter 1 cup chopped white onion 1 lb large carrots, peeled and chopped into ½-inch pieces 2½ cups low-salt chicken broth 1 Tbl honey 1 tsp fresh lemon juice ⅛ tsp ground allspice...

Last night I tried a recipe I've been waiting to taste since I read about it months ago: Baked Goat Cheese Salad. I only recently discovered I even liked goat cheese, but now that I know, it seems new and wonderful ways to use it keep cropping up. Overall, I was pleased with how it turned out. I served it as the entire dinner, but I can see that it would be tasty as a side dish or "starter" if served with fewer cheese medallions. It was relatively easy to make, and I think one could easily prepare the cheese medallions earlier in the day if company was coming. The creamy cheese and crunchy panko coating was delightful. The only thing I might change is adding kalamata olives to the actual salad, just for a little saltiness and extra yum factor. I did enjoy it with the recommended hard apple cider, something I would encourage you to do as well. I wasn't sure if plain or flavored cheese would be better, so I used one log of each. The general consensus was the plain ...

I plan on trying an actual recipe tomorrow, but for now we'll count this as my test post :) Recently while shopping at Kroger I spotted some fontina cheese on manager's special and ecided I just had to have it. California_Pizza_Kitchen pizzas have chunks of fontina on them, and I always think it's delicious, so why not do it at home! Tonight we had do-it-yourself pizza. No recipe, but super easy and adaptable to whatever your tastes may be. We topped ours with said fontina (cubed, not shredded, to allow for little gooey puddles of goodness), thick-sliced deli salami, quartered artichoke hearts, black olives, and some shredded mozzarella for good measure. Let me just tell you...it was de...li...cious. I haven't decided yet what exactly I'll make next, but I promise more tasty treats. Leave comments with any questions, suggestions, requests, whatever! Oh yeah, and wish me luck on this blog thing!