Christmas Breakfast '09

For a few weeks before Christmas, I was told "If you're bringing an egg dish, like the one from last year, bring enough! It was good and we ran out!" Well, no one could tell me what it was I'd brought. So, I picked something new and decided that would be our Christmas morning breakfast egg dish. OMG, it's yummy! It's not heart-healthy, but it's good! And easy! Mix up the night before and throw it in the oven in the morning!

From Allrecipes: Sausage Egg Casserole

• 3/4 pound ground pork sausage
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 10 eggs, beaten
• 1 (16 ounce) container low-fat cottage cheese
• 1 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• 2 (4 ounce) cans diced green chile peppers, drained
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Place sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and set aside. Melt butter in skillet, and cook and stir the green onions and mushrooms until tender.
2. In a large bowl, mix the eggs, cottage cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and chiles. Stir in the sausage, green onions, and mushrooms. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend in the melted butter. Stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
5. Bake 40 to 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly brown. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Spicy Meatloaf

This is what it says...unless you use mild sausage of course! I found a recipe on Allrecipes for meatloaf that contained beef and sausage. I thought "Yum! I have some spicy sausage leftover, I'll try it!" It was delicious. My husband, who grew up hating meatloaf (and many, many other things) really likes this one. If I remember, I will make meatloaf with sausage from now on. It doesn't actually make it spicy, there's just a hint of a burn to it. Really, really tasty!

1 1/4 lb ground beef

1/2 C Italian bread crumbs

1/4 lb ground pork sausage, spicy if you want

1 egg

1/2 C milk

1 small onion, diced

Dash (or 2) of Worcestershire sauce

In a large bowl, combine the ingredients until just mixed evenly. Do not over-work the meat. Form into a loaf and place on a sheet pan. I made 6 individual loaves with this, to speed up the cooking process. Bake at 350 until meat is no longer pink in the middle. It was about 40 minutes (possibly less) for the mini loaves, probably about an hour for a large loaf. Enjoy!

Roasted Pepper & Artichoke Spread

I was in charge of appetizers for our family Thanksgiving this year, and this was one of 4 that I made. I also made a dessert...I figure the more dishes you take, the more dishes you have to bring leftovers home in! This is absolutely delicious. A spin on spinach & artichoke dip...everyone loved it!

From Fix-It And Forget-It Cookbook

1 C grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 C mayonnaise
8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 garlic clove, minced
14oz can artichoke hearts, drained and finely chopped
1/3 C finely chopped roasted red bell peppers (from 7 1/4oz jar)
Crackers, cut up vegetables, or snack bread slices

Combine Parmesan, mayonnaise, cream cheese, and garlic in food processor. Process until smooth. Place mixture in slow cooker.
Add artichoke hearts and red bell pepper. Stir well.
Cover, cook on low 1 hour. Stir again.
Use as spread for crackers, cut-up fresh vegetables, or snack-bread slices

Crispy Chicken with Proscuitto and Mozzarella

We got a recipe from a friend, and I've altered it to our tastes, and my inability to find boneless chicken breasts with the skin on. If you find that, go ahead and use it. But I just use plain boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I also used all chicken broth instead of Merlot, as I'm not a Merlot drinker.

4 thin slices prosciutto
8 large basil leaves, chopped fine
4 sticks mozzarella string cheese (or 1/2 C grated mozzarella)
4 boneless chicken breast halves with skin
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 C Merlot
2 C chicken broth
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

Arrange prosciutto slices on work surface. Top each slice with 1/4 of the basil. Break the string cheese in half and place on top of the basil. If you're using shredded cheese, mix with the chopped basil and place 1/4 of the basil and cheese mixture on the prosciutto. Starting with short end, roll up each prosciutto slice. Remove small flap of meat from underneath each breast (these are tenders) and reserve for another use. Put chicken breast halves on cutting board skin side up and beginning at thicker end of breast half, horizontally insert a thin sharp knife three fourths of the way through the center of each. Open cut to create a 1" wide pocket in each half. Fit a prosciutto roll into each pocket and secure with a toothpick. Sprinkle skin with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over moderately high heat. Add chicken, skin side down, and cook 6 minutes or until skin is crispy. Turn heat down to moderate, cover pan and continue to cook skin side down until chicken is just cooked through, about 6 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter, arranging them skin side up, and cover loosely. To make sauce, add garlic to skillet and cook over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Add wine and simmer, scraping up brown bits, until reduced to a few tablespoons. Add broth and simmer until reduced by half. Mix butter and flour together well in a small bowl with a fork. Add a little bit of the hot liquid to the bowl and whisk butter flour mixture back into the skillet, along with any juices that accumulate on chicken platter. Bring sauce to a boil and simmer 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove tooth pick and slice chicken crosswise. Arrange on plates and spoon some of sauce over each portion.

Not Quite Grandpa's Spaghetti Sauce

Growing up, my grandpa made the BEST spaghetti sauce ever. Well, I remember it being the best. I can still (almost) taste it. Who knows if it really was that great. But I'm going to say it was! His recipe calls for a ziploc bag of tomatoes, a can of hot sauce, and other random ingredients. I didn't want to copy what he had done...this is the Inspired Kitchen, not the Imitation Kitchen. I've been afraid to try it in the past, because who knows what I'd end up with. I was so sure I'd do his "recipe" shame. But I've finally decided to try it. And while it is Not Quite his recipe, it is now my own and it was darn good! If you don't have the Tastefully Simple products, call me. I can get them for you! Or, you know, substitute onions and garlic as you see fit. If you're using fresh onions, I would brown them up with the meat. But that's just me. And this is my recipe! :)



1/2 lb ground pork sausage, spicy
1/3 lb ground beef
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic
2 tsp Tastefully Simple Onion Onion
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pinch of sugar

Brown the hamburger and pork together on medium-high heat; drain if needed. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer on medium-low for about 20 minutes, until slightly thickened. If you are preparing the pasta at the same time, toss in a ladle full of the cooking water.

Serve over pasta of your choice. Spaghetti is the obvious option since it is spaghetti sauce, but I'm sure this would taste wonderful with ravioli as well, or with a baked ziti dish. Hmm. Baked ziti. That's next on my "pasta to-do" list.

*Measurements are estimated...I did not measure as I was going. So if it tastes like it needs more Italian seasoning, it probably does!

Chicken Pot Pie Packets

I got the recipe for this from a friend. So easy and really yummy. Easy, if you don't realize after you have them sealed that you forgot the chicken. Yep, had to unwrap them and start over. It was worth it! (I even forgot to include the chicken in the recipe as I was trying to remember it to type it here!)

2 C leftover cooked chicken, cubed (I used chicken breasts, but rotisserie chicken would be great too)

2 8oz pkgs cream cheese, softened

1 small onion, minced

1 C frozen vegetables (I used peas and carrots, use whatever you like!)

2 pkgs refrigerated crescent rolls

2 Tbsp butter, melted

1/4 C seasoned bread crumbs

Mix together the chicken, cream cheese, onion and frozen vegetables.

Unwrap the crescent rolls. Seal 2 crescents together to make a rectangle. Put about 1/2 cup cream cheese mixture into center. Pull one corner over filling and seal into a triangle. If this doesn't work (it didn't for me), just put the mixture towards one end, pull the other end over and seal into a square-ish shape. Shape doesn't matter, the filling does! Continue until you have 6 little packets of goodness! Brush with melted butter and sprinkle on breadcrumbs.

Bake in a 375 degree oven 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Enjoy!

Easy Apple Crisp

I've made this one a few times. I got the recipe originally from HERE and it is absolutely delicious. I make it with less brown sugar than stated, and it's still great. And as the recipe states, it is super easy. Serve with vanilla ice cream for a heavenly dessert!

6-7 apples - peeled, cored and sliced (i used 3 granny smith and 4 golden delicious)
1 cup water
1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
Arrange apples in an even layer in bottom of baking dish. Pour water over apples.
In a medium bowl mix together cake mix, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Stir in melted butter or margarine until ingredients are thoroughly blended; mixture will be crumbly. Sprinkle mixture over apples.
Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes

Chewy Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

From Alder Lake Cranberries

Thanksgiving '06 was spent in my aunt's cabin near Rhinelander, WI. While there, we drove up to Boulder Junction to do a little shopping, and we stopped at a store that had food samples to taste. What better than food to go with shopping! One of the items tasted were these cookies, and I fell in love at first bite! I recently noticed that there is a very similar recipe on the Craisins package (and in some Ocean Spray advertising). I tried those today, and realized they are less sweet and not as much to my liking (they don't have white sugar or honey in them). So, I will go back to making these yummy cookies!

1 1/2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 C old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup butter or margarine
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp honey
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 C dried cranberries (1 6oz bag of Craisins worked perfectly)
1 C white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl mix flour, baking soda and salt, stir in oats and set aside. With a mixer, beat butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add honey and vanilla, beat until blended. Add the flour mixture in two additions, beating until well combined. Stir in cranberries and chips. Drop by heaping tablespoons about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Bake until the centers of the cookies are soft, about 9-11 minutes.

Baked Chicken & Pasta Casserole

I was at work today (yes, after 2 years of being a stay-at-home mom, I'm now a full-time working mom!) wondering what's for dinner tonight (it's not a terribly challenging job!), and I came across this one on my "other" blog. I got the original recipe from Everyday Pasta by Giada De Laurentiis. I had almost everything on-hand, so I decided to make it. I just needed to pick up the mozzarella and parsley. Probably could have used the cheddar I have in the house, but I'm never opposed to buying more cheese! The verdict? Super easy and delicious. Best thing I've made in quite a while, and I can't wait for tomorrow so I can have the leftovers!

• 1 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta...I used shells because it's what I had)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
• 1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs (I used Panko, because I had it on hand)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain pasta into a large mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. Add the canned tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Place the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish. In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

My Adventures With Moussaka

Looking through the latest Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine, I found a recipe I knew I would have to try for some friends coming to dinner. It's a healthified version of Moussaka, using ground beef instead of lamb. I actually used turkey, and it was fabulous. Time consuming, and totally worth it. I also had never used eggplant successfully, so this was my 2nd chance, and it worked. I didn't do everything in order the way it was written, because I didn't think I should preheat my oven before letting the eggplant sit for 40 minutes. Do what works for you!

2 eggplants (about 1 1/2 pounds), sliced crosswise 1/4" thick

4 zucchini (about 2 pounds), sliced crosswise 1/4" thick

Salt and pepper

1/4 C EVOO

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3/4 pound lean ground beef (I used more, and turkey instead of beef)

One 15oz can crushed tomatoes

3oz gruyere cheese, shredded

1 pint (16oz) low-fat cottage cheese

Preheat oven to 500. Line 2 baking sheets (I needed 4) with parchment paper (I used foil). Place the eggplant and zucchini in two bowls and season with salt; let stand for 40 minutes. Rinse the vegetables and pat dry. Arrange in a single layer on the prepared pans and toss with 3 tablespoons olive oil. Roast until golden, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a 9x11" baking dish (I used a 9x13 because it's what I had). Lower the oven temp to 350.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the scallions and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes; add the ground beef (or turkey) and cook, breaking up the meat, for about 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Spoon the meat sauce over the eggplant and zucchini. Top with half of the gruyere.

Using a food processor, puree the cottage cheese. Spoon the puree onto the moussaka, top with the remaining gruyere and bake 17 minutes. Transfer to the broiler and cook for 3 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before slicing.

Homemade Mac & Cheese

I needed the basic recipe for this, but made it with what was in my house already. I didn't want to spend nearly $10 on Gruyere cheese when I had blocks of extra-sharp cheddar and mozzarella waiting to be used up. I'm pretty sure macaroni & cheese can be made with whatever cheese you want! Here's what I did, using Ina Garten's technique for amounts of milk, etc.

4 C milk

1/2 C flour

8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter

6 C shredded cheese (I used extra-sharp cheddar, mozzarella and some jack)

Salt and pepper

1lb elbow macaroni

3/4 C panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375.

Cook pasta in 6 cups boiling, salted water until al dente, 6-8 minutes; drain.

Meanwhile, heat the milk on the stove, but do not boil.

In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter. Add the flour and whisk until thickened, about 2 minutes. Add the warm milk and continue whisking until smooth and thick, about 3 minutes more. Off the heat, add the cheese, 1 tablespoon salt, and pepper. Add pasta and mix well. Pour into 9X13 baking dish. Top with remaining butter mixed with panko bread crumbs. (I estimated this amount...I just melted the butter and added the bread crumbs until it looked good!) Bake in a preheated oven 30-40 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and topping is browned.

Stromboli-Oli-O

I made dinner for 8 adults last night, and like I predicted, it was fairly easy. I didn't go with tacos, I made a version of Rachael Ray's Stromboli, as I've done before. Seriously...I need to start trying NEW things. I'm pretty sure that's what I wanted this blog to be for. Regardless, they're easy, versatile, and tasty! If you don't like them, it's your fault, because you can determine what's in them! Here's what I did:

1 pkg refrigerated pizza crust dough (2 packages for 8 portions)

Cornmeal or flour (for dusting)

any pizza fillings you like: i did pepperoni & cheese (cheddar and mozzarella) and veggies (onions, mushrooms, sweet red peppers and black olives) & cheese

EVOO, sesame seeds, parmesan cheese, garlic powder and crushed red pepper flakes for topping

Roll the pizza dough out on a floured surface and stretch into a rectangle. That's the shape it's normally in, just stretch it a bit thinner. Cut into 4 equal pieces, cutting in half, and then in half again.

Top each portion with your fillings of choice, then roll it up on the diagonal, pinching each end and the seam closed.

Place on a cookie sheet. Mix together sesame seeds, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, red pepper flakes. Brush each strombli with some EVOO, then sprinkle topping over. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with pizza sauce: homemade or from a jar. Next time I'll try homemade!

*Update 4/12/10

I made this again tonight. Most of them had a mix of provolone and cheddar cheese along with red onions, red bell peppers, spicy italian sausage and pepperoni. Again, they were delicious. And devoured!

Keep On Keepin' On

I haven't cooked anything this week! Ok, I boiled some brats in some beer, but that's it. Over the weekend we went to Iowa to visit some friends, on Labor Day we grilled brats, and then Zander started daycare, so it's been a bit crazy. I'm thinking of cooking for a friend who is in town from Texas, but if I do that, I'm cooking for 7 adults and a 4 kids. I don't often cook on that scale. I'm going to have to think about this one. Tacos would probably be so easy and (potentially) so good. If you have any ideas, let me know. I just wanted to stop in and let you know I haven't forgotten, it's just been busy. :)

Chicken Parmigiana and Pasta

I was looking for something quick (because I had little time) and with chicken (since I had some in the fridge) so I looked to Giada's recipe for Chicken Parmigiana and Pasta. Sounded good, so I looked quickly through the recipe before I went to the store for dry nonfat milk to make homemade hamburger buns. Who knew I'd have to buy a box that makes 8 quarts of milk? I only needed 1/3 cup. I passed and bought buns instead. While I was there, I was thinking of the recipe I was going to make, and I didn't remember seeing any tomato sauce in it. I bought a jar of spaghetti sauce anyway, just in case. Because how do you have Chicken Parmigiana without tomato sauce?

Anyway, when I got home I looked at the recipe again and the "dressing" was a balsamic vinaigrette. Not really what I was looking for, so I used the spaghetti sauce instead. Super easy and really yummy.

1 1/2 lb chicken tenders (I cut up chicken breasts into chunks)

1 C buttermilk

3/4 C Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (I used panko - it's what I had - and added Italian seasoning)

1 1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

1lb whole wheat penne

1 jar spaghetti sauce of your choice (I used Classico Marinara)

Preheat oven to 500. Line a heavy duty sheet pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Place the chicken in a bowl with the buttermilk and set aside; let marinate for 15-30 minutes.

Mix Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs in a pie plate.

Cook pasta according to package directions, until al dente; drain

Preheat oven to 500. Line a heavy duty sheet pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

Remove the chicken from the buttermilk, letting the excess drain off. Dredge chicken in breadcrumb mixture, pressing to make sure it sticks. Line chicken up on prepared cookie sheet; top with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Bake chicken approximately 12 minutes or until cooked through. Add chicken to cooked pasta and toss with spaghetti sauce.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

I tried another of Sandra Lee's recipes last night, and I LOVED IT! It's pretty darn easy, so to challenge myself I plan on making the dough next time.

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 pound chicken tenders

2/3 cup barbecue sauce (recommended: Bullseye Original)

Flour, for dusting surface

1 (13.8-ounce) package pizza dough (recommended: Pillsbury Classic)

3/4 cup shredded Gouda

1 cup shredded mozzarella

3/4 cup shredded Parmesan

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken tenders and saute until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Remove from heat. When chicken is cool enough to handle, dice chicken to yield a little over 1 cup. In a small bowl, toss chicken with 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce. Set aside.

On a floured surface, roll out dough and place on a greased sheet pan. Shape to fill the sheet pan, about a 15 by 10-inch rectangle. Spread remaining barbecue sauce evenly over pizza dough. Sprinkle Gouda, mozzarella, Parmesan, onions, and chicken over top. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese bubbles. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and cut into pieces.

I didn't add the cilantro, and instead of taking the time to cook the chicken and THEN cut it, I just cut it up so it would have shorter cooking time. Worked out well, and I have some yummy leftover chicken. I also just pressed the dough into a greased sheet pan instead of laying it out onto a floured surface. Worked well for me! Because I forgot to mix the bbq sauce with the chicken before topping the pizza, I just drizzled some on last-minute.

We are going out of town this weekend, so I don't think I'll be doing much cooking. However, I think this would be a great time to make something our friends would enjoy. Hmm, let's figure this out. I'll keep *you* posted...whoever *you* are!

Chili Cheese Omelet

The best breakfast I've had (at least in a long time) is the Chili Cheese Omelet from Original Pancake House. Just thinking about it, I can taste it. It's a baked omelet, super puffy and nicely spicy from the chili. Instead of paying $9+ for an omelet, I wanted to try to repeat it immediately, but wasn't sure where to begin. So when I was at Barnes & Noble the other day, paging through Semi-Homemade Meals 2 from Sandra Lee, and found a chili cheese omelet recipe, I figured I would give it a go. It isn't exactly what I was looking for, but it did taste pretty good. And at least I only dropped one omelet in the sink...and at least it wasn't on the floor.

Because Sandra Lee did it, I also used canned Hormel Chili (I used the turkey variety) with beans. I don't have sausage or chives, so I used bacon and green onions. And instead of mexican cheese blend, I used the colby-jack I had on hand. I think I will leave out the bacon and green onions next time. I didn't find the need. And I will work on making chili that would go good with my omelet instead of using canned.

Over medium heat, melt a tab of butter. Whisk together 2 eggs, reduce heat to medium-low and cook just until set, pulling up the edges of the eggs to let the inside run out and get cooked. I like my eggs fully cooked, so I flipped the whole thing. Right into the sink. On the 2nd try, I just used a spatula, and while it wasn't perfect, I got the eggs cooked. Top half of the omelet with 1/4 C chili and 1/4 C grated cheese. Fold other half on top and slide onto a plate. Top with some more chili and cheese, and a dollop of sour cream. Which I just realized I forgot. I guess I have to try again tomorrow. I'll be adding some red pepper flakes too.

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

I went to the store today to pick up a few things, and while I was there I decided I wanted to make a dressing instead of buying one. My thought was on the spicy yogurt dressing I got on my Med Salad from Noodles last week. So I picked up a lime and lemon, a poblano pepper, some cilantro and some Greek yogurt. I figured I wouldn't need all these ingredients, but I'd find something to make out of it. While I was putting away my groceries, I found a bunch of cilantro in there already, so after slapping myself in the head, I went in search of cilantro-based dressings. What I found on Epicurious isn't what I started out searching for, but it looked so good, so I tried it. Until I realized halfway through that I should have gotten olive oil instead of extra cilantro. So, back to the store as soon as my son wakes up. But for now, the recipe as I found it. It's good with only half of the oil, I'm sure it will be fabulous when I add the rest!

Here is the recipe on Epicurious: Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1 garlic clove, minced (I used my zester)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp ground coriander
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (I just realized I added two. Probably because I have twice as much in my refrigerator as I need).

Mix ingredients together with a fork. Serve. Yum!

I've been inspired

I've been inspired. Hence, the title of this blog. I have had a love for cooking for some time now. Whatever someone wants to eat, I will try to make it. I've tried to be adventurous (Saucy Salmon, homemade boneless buffalo wings, a few of my own creations) and have fun with it. I've thought about culinary school, but don't think I'm cut out for that. So I cook. I watch Food Network all the time. There are at least 5 episodes of something food-related on my DVR at this time. I read cookbooks and cooking magazines. READ them. Not just look for recipes, but actually read what they have to say.

When I saw the previews for the movie "Julie & Julia" I thought "Hey, that would be fun!" Today I actually saw the movie. As it was ending, I was getting choked up. I thought to myself "I wish I could be inspired like Julie was!" And soon, it hit me. I just was.

This blog is my adventure in cooking. I don't know where it's going to take me, but I'm going to have fun with it. I'm not putting a 500 recipes in 365 days limit on myself. Because then what? What happens after that? I have a recipe blog right now, where I put the recipes that I like or want to try. This will be different. It will be more of a story.

I'm so excited and happy to be going on this journey. Thanks for coming along.

*Thank you to Melissa for going to the movie with me!!