Chicken-Mushroom Quesadillas

I haven't been doing much blogging lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been cooking. I tested out the Angel Food Cake with Mango Sauce and it was delicious. I had to use frozen mangos due to the time of year and living in McCall, but it was quite tasty. The second was Chicken-Mushroom Quesadillas, again it was quite tasty. Truly there's only been one recipe that was just so-so thus far, but there are so many yet to try! The problem is narrowing it down to which one first...

Happy Cooking!

Catch up

Not catsup, but catch up! I haven't been very good about blogging lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been cooking. I have tested several new recipes from So Easy and they are still so easy! The first was Tri-pepper Steak. I was a little worried about this one as Travis doesn't like peppers, but much to my surprise he loved it. And I quote "(she) makes nasty green things taste delicious."

Second was a first attempt at cooking shrimp. I believe the recipe called for pre cooked shrimp, but there was a sale on fresh shrimp at the store so I decided to try something new and learn to shell, devein and cook shrimp. I didn't quite have all the ingredients the recipe called for, so I shall have to try it again sometime and perhaps with pre shelled shrimp!

Third was a berry cobbler. Simple and delicious.

I think that's all for now. Happy cooking!

New Tuna Noodle Casserole

Recipe number two is down and I can't say that it impressed me as much as the first one. It was just okay and I probably won't be making it again anytime too soon. But as Nana says "it fills the holes" and now I am one recipe closer to cooking through the whole book!

Pork and Beans

Not a very creative name for my first recipe, but the taste far surpassed the name. Pork and Beans will definitely be a make again recipe. And so easy, too! I guess I should have expected that, though, from a cookbook entitled So Easy! And to round out the meal I made corn bread muffins and a spinach salad. I love cooking!

I was contemplating yesterday whether or not I had to follow to recipe exactly for it to count as having made it. But after much thought I decided, no, that would not be necessary. If I did it that way it would take away a lot of the fun of it, and if it's not fun then really, what's the point? Therefore, substitutions will be allowed. However, if the afore mentioned substitutions are so immense the recipe becomes completely unrecognizable or the substitutions were poorly chosen and the recipe tastes bad then the recipe shall remain on the list of ones yet to be tried. That is my consenssus.

Inspiration

A new cookbook for Christmas, combined with watching Julie and Julia creates a desire to cook through an entire cookbook. Probably not Mastering the Art of French Cooking that seems like a bit much and a bit costly (lobster is not commonly found in McCall, though the cow's foot might be a bit easier to come by). However, I am seriously considering taking up the task with the cookbook I did receive entitled So Easy by Ellie Krieger. Doesn't that sound so much less daunting that Mastering the Art of French Cooking? I thought so too. Plus, it only has just over 150 recipes, not 524, also much less overwhelming! As for a timeline, I don't think that I shall actually be setting one, unless it's dragging on for decades and then it might be necessary to impose a time frame to expedite the process. But for now, it will happen when it happens. Though one thing I would like to add to my project is to actually rate the recipes as I make them so I can recollect if it's something worthy of making over and over, or perhaps just now and or if it should be never attempted again. Because really, even 150-ish recipes is a lot to attempt remembering which ones you did and did not like for future reference!

Yes, the idea was inspired by Julie and Julia and yes, there are probably hundreds of other people in the United States right now with the very same plan in mind. But, if it is something that seems fun and pleasurable does it really matter how many other people are doing it? I think not. And thus the cooking shall commence!

As I was sitting in a fellow coworkers cubical yesterday I saw this quote she had posted on her wall and I really liked it.
"Be yourself, not what you think others expect. Be what emanates from your core that cannot be duplicated by another.

The Art of Bread

I began baking bread last year out of a desire for quality bread and an aversion to the high prices they charge for it at the store. Since then it has developed into more of a passion. There is something to be said for the feel of the smooth dough between your hands as you knead it, watching it rise as it waits to go in the oven (at least, most of the time they rise, though I've learned there is never a guarantee!) and then the amazing smell that wafts through the house as its baking. I quite enjoy! And I am continually amazed at the massive variety of recipes to be tried. I'm afraid I shall never get through them all! My two latest interest have been sourdough-I made up a sourdough started a few weeks ago have since been experimenting with pleasing success-and more recently, artisan breads. What are artisan breads? Well, I'm not exactly sure but as far as I can tell they are pretty much anything that falls into the category of the beautiful (though not necessarily perfect-looking), often crusty, delicious breads that you get at quaint bakeries and restaurants. They seem to have much more of an art form to them than a typical recipe you might throw in the bread machine at the last minute. Not that I'm disregarding a regular loaf of bread, it's quite yummy and definitely has its place, but still, to be able to bake a loaf of bread with the crunchy crust and the soft airy filling, I don't know, it feels more gourmet, I guess. Perhaps that is the appeal. Well, as I write, my first loaf of "rustic bread" is waiting to be put in the oven so I shall close with this quote I read that sums things up nicely.

"No yoga exercise, no meditation in a chapel filled with music will rid you of your blues better than the humble task of baking your own bread."