Broccoli Cheddar "Mishmash" Soup

Call this a multitude experiment or just using what I had in the fridge and pantry.  I have a super huge bag of frozen broccoli in my freezer from Costco so it was time to give it some use!

Spinach & Three Cheese Cannelloni

I saw "ready to bake" cannelloni shells while shopping so decided to make some.  I can't remember the last time I made this which is the reason I'm blogging it.  We didn't have any mozzarella so I subbed aged Gouda for it.  

Asian Spiced Braised Beef

I saw this on food t.v. and was inspired to do my own take on it as I had stew beef thawed for dinner.  I got my enamel coated Dutch oven out and put it to work.  What I used:

Pecan Pie Brownies

This is the time of the year my Costco always has these "Ghirardelli Brownies" box mix in stock.  I don't eat them but my son does so I bought them for him.  I decided to try and perk it up by making a topping and found this recipe.   I subbed maple syrup for the corn syrup.

Crock Pot: Chicken and Dumplings

I saw this on social media and for some reason I wanted to make it.  I had to pull out my crock pot which I've never really liked.  I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much, but I did want to try it.  I detest peas so used edamame in its place for my adaptation of the recipe.

Instant Pot: Spicy Black Bean Soup with Smoky Bison Sausages

I saw this on Food Network one time and wanted to give it a try so I based my recipe on it.  I soaked my beans overnight just to make sure, but with an instant pot you probably don't have to.  I just didn't want any surprises.  I remember in the show she said lard was a must for this and I bought it for this recipe.  She said it made a great difference to the flavor profile (paraphrasing as it's been a while since I watched it).

Baked Chicken Cacciatore

It was a rainy, miserable day that matched my mood.  I had defrosted some bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs and this is what I decided on for dinner.

Ras el Hanout Lamb Shanks with Prunes and Pearl Couscous

I have always wanted to try the spice "Ras el Hanout".  I picked some up at a local gourmet shop in town.  I had some antibiotic/hormone free grass fed lamb shanks in my freezer from a local farm and thought this would be suitable to use with it.  This is what I created:

Japanese Fried Rice

I'm calling this Japanese fried rice because I used a medium grain Japanese rice to make it.  I also used Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise in it.  I really like that stuff, probably because it has MSG in it, but I find it really creamy and tasty.  The first 2 recipes I looked at for Japanese fried rice both included it.  Other than that, this is pretty much the same as I'd make my regular fried rice.  I use whatever is in the fridge/house at the time to assemble it together.

Thanksgiving: Funeral Potatoes

My son requested these for our turkey dinner tonight after I listed the potato options.  I have never made or eaten this before but it sounded delicious.  I have made similar casserole dishes for breakfast.  For me, the Thanksgiving meal should be comforting so this would fit right in with the stretchy pant nosh... I used real potatoes and parboiled them rather than frozen bagged hash browns which I'm not a fan of.  

Honeycrisp Apple and Feta Salad

I saw this salad on social media and I could not stop thinking about it.  I tried a Honeycrisp apple first, to see if I liked it enough to make the salad and I did.  Wow, extremely yummy apple!  Haven't tasted an apple as good in quite some time which is why I'm guessing they're twice the price of all the other apples...  What I used is what I had on hand to construct this today:

Lemon Brownies/Blondies

I had company coming and I was making 3 courses.  I almost bought dessert but it got tough as I wanted to make sure I served something they'd like.  I know lemon is okay with them so came up with this, as it's easy.  I decided I could make it the night before as well and if it sucked, I could pick something up the day of...

Pasta alla Formiana

Another summer tomato recipe I decided to try.  This was going to be the side with braised short ribs tonight.  I really don't like pasta dishes where the pasta goes in raw and comes out cooked but I was curious as it's been a long time since I've done it... I chose pasta that looks like a rooster.  I've always wanted to try it and this seemed like the recipe for it.  

Air Fryer: Crab Rangoon

I've always wanted to try making this.  An air-fryer made it more attractive as a recipe and now that I have that feature in my oven, it was time to give it a try.  

Tomato Grandma Pizza

 Another tomato season recipe I found and decided to try.  What I used:

Tomato Tart with Corn, Caramelized Onions and Blue Cheese

Every tomato season, I always make Tomato Tarte Tatin.  Today, I decided to try a spin on it as there was fresh, local corn at the market so I decided to incorporate it.  I ended up making this up as I went along.  What I used:

Spaghettini allo Scarpariello

Tomato season!!!!  Yay!!!  Yay!!!  I've been eating them every which way this month!  I didn't go to farmer's market today as I still had lots to use from last week's over buying.  I didn't have any more cherry or "sun golds" which is what you're supposed to use for this.  I just used all the super ripe tomatoes I had left.

Apple Jelly Pork Tenderloin Casserole

I was gifted some homemade apple jelly and I was thinking I could use it with some pork tenderloin I had in the freezer.  I decided to create a casserole, all-in-one dinner on this rainy day.  I had some Swiss chard that needed using and we haven't had rice in a while, so those ingredients were included.  

Gluten Free Peach Cobbler

I had company coming who eats gluten free, so I made this dessert for us.  I was dismayed to find that arrowroot starch was $10 at the grocery store, seemed like a huge rip off!!!  My friend grew the peaches in her yard which was amazing and said these were the last of them for this season.  They smelled so good sitting on my counter it was hard to resist eating them.  I followed this recipe:  The bold italic text below is for the peach mixture, the rest for the topping.

Spaghettini al Limone (Lemon Pasta)

I was wanting something simple tonight so decided on lemon pasta.  There are a lot of variations of it out there, some with garlic.  I just used what I had on hand and kept it as simple as can be.

Cold Spicy Kimchi Noodles (Bibim Guksu)

Yay!  I actually had company for lunch today with a friend who likes spicy food and also eats healthy.  We ate outside, but this is progress and plenty of time past 2nd vaccines!  I thought I'd make some kind of salad, an upscale salad.  I looked at a lot of different recipes and based mine on this one.  The bold italic text is the sauce (Bibim):

Pasta e Fagioli Soup

I had an Italian boyfriend for a period of time and this title would come up in conversations (probably why I've never made it before, lol).  Anyway, I was craving hamburger soup but instead of my usual, I decided to give this a try.   What I used:

Francis Lam’s Ginger Scallion Sauce

I came across this and decided I should give it a try the next time I made fish.  I also just received a new ginger grater gadget that I was anxious to try out.  A food processor would be easier like the recipe showed but not for me today...

Sautéed Callaloo

At the farmer's market yesterday I stumbled across these greens called "Callaloo".  It was the first time I've ever heard of them, that I remember.  With a name like that, how could I resist?  The vendor said it was similar to spinach and I could use it in the same way.  He mentioned when a Jamaican food truck was on site at the market, they lost their minds when they saw this green...sweet memories of home ❤.  I perused recipes, it's a Carribean green. I decided I would just saute it and see what it was like.  I didn't have a "Scotch Bonnet" pepper or Habanero even, so I used Serrano.  

Instant Pot: Chinese Sticky Rice

I used the cooking method from this recipe.  I had "lap cheong" (Chinese sausage) in the fridge and I've always wanted to make this dish but never have.  I had dried shiitakes as I hope to make my own "umami" seasoning one day and I had dried shrimp too...After reading the comments, I was nervous as there were a lot "burnt" issues, but I guess we'd see... What I used:

Lemon Curd

I recently re-discovered this delicious treat and love it.  One of the few sweets I cannot say no to.  I had to try making it myself.  The one I bought was not only expensive but also hurt-your-teeth sweet!  I found a few supposed "easy peasy" recipes and made 3 cups as I wanted to gift some as well.  I even bought mason jars for it.  When I want to gift food, it often doesn't turn out the way I imagine, so fingers crossed!  🤞  What I used:

Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes

A friend sent me this recipe and said it's a tried & true staple in her household on regular rotation, so of course I had to try it.  I haven't had much luck with lemon potatoes so far in my cooking journey so I was ready to give it another go.  The only tweaking she said was to add the lemon zest.  I would do that anyway, as I can't waste zest off any citrus...  I watched the video too and he said this is one time to use dried spices.  I'm glad I watched because I was all ready to switch to fresh herbs.  

Roasted Baby Bok Choy

I had a bunch (haha) of baby bok choy in the fridge so I wanted to use it up.  I usually just put it in soups but after 6 bowls now, it had to go... I found this recipe which inspired me to make it like this.  

Chorizo Clam Chowder

I had chorizo in the fridge and frozen clams in the shell in my freezer.  I came up with chowder on this wet, dreary, gray day.  It was even more dismal with a binge watch of "The Handmaid's Tale".  "Praise Be"...  😉

Spicy Shakshuka With Feta Cheese (Eggs in Purgatory)

I've always wanted to make shakshuka. I've seen it on food t.v. for years now.  The opportunity presented itself to me in an easy manner.  We had lamb shanks last night for dinner and I had all this tomatoey gravy leftover and so it became shakshuka sauce today with a couple of edits.  My sauce had herbs, onion, garlic, carrots and "Bianco DiNapoli" crushed tomatoes.  I guessed there was about 2 or 3 cups there.  To make it compliant for this dish, I added:

Cock-a-Leekie Soup

Who doesn't want to make a Scottish soup with a name like this?  I perused a few recipes and liked that I found prunes and barley in some so that's what I used in mine.  A new friend in my neighborhood gifted me some leeks from her garden so that is what inspired this dish tonight.  We picked up a rotisserie chicken at Costco so I used the bones to make a broth for this.  I saw the leeks cut in big chunks in a lot of the soups, like an inch wide.  I didn't do that to mine, but hey, do as you like...

Ground Turkey Taco Impossible Pie

Well, I've made the dessert version, and now I decided to make the savory.  I didn't have "Bisquick" mix and wouldn't buy it anyway since it's easy enough to make.  

Salted Honey Buttermilk Pie

One of the best things I've done during the pandemic is join an online "Buy Nothing" community group.  Gifting neighbors feels great and even better is that things I no longer want finds a person who does want it.  The community spirit has given me comfort and hope in people during a time I've been feeling very 'out of sorts'.  One of the lovely people I've "met" (online only so far) unexpectedly gifted me some honey she makes in her own back yard as a hobby!  I wanted to do something with it, and share it with her, hopefully.  I found this recipe which I used for the filling.  "Sweet & Salty" is a nice combo...

Greek Lentil & Spinach Soup with Lemon

Somehow I stumbled across this story "surfing" and when I finished it, I knew I had to make the soup.  What an entertaining piece to read!  I won't spoil it, but I do suggest you click that link and enjoy.  And bonus, not once is "covid" mentioned  😉.  My friend gifted me some fresh lemon balm from her garden so I thought I'd throw a bit in here, and it's pictured below.  

Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Oatmeal Muffins

This came across my social media so I decided to make them.  I watch Molly's show on food t.v. and I really like her, makes me smile.  She certainly knows her baking.  Lots of ingredients but all pretty healthy.  What I used:

Seafood Chorizo Stew

This was made with the idea of clean up and get out ingredients that needed to go.  Soup or Stew?  You choose.  I doubt I'll ever make it again, but thought I'd write it up, because I'm "covid" bored.  It was a lousy rainy day and soup seemed good.  What I used for it sounded weird even to myself.  A while back I ordered this poke kit.  It turned out, I don't love Albacore tuna for poke, I prefer Ahi.  As I have 2 bags of it left, I tried to figure out what to do with it.  I made some ceviche and it was okay... 

Egg-in-a-Hole Grilled Cheese Sandwich

There's a perfect video of this recipe and is what I watched to make it.  What I used:

Oreo Crust Ice Cream Cake

I had an unopened bag of Oreo cookies.  As it was son's birthday coming up, I decided to use them to make an ice cream cake.  I knew the Oreo crust was ridiculously easy to make.    

Oven Beef Pot Roast with Prunes

I remember this was one of my favorite recipes in the early 90's?  I had the recipe on a newspaper clipping but alas could not find it in my overflowing binder of random food delights to conquer.  I remembered it was with whole pitted prunes, so I made this one up...

Swedish Ham

I ordered a "Swedish Ham" ( raw, mildly salted and cured, boneless, skin-on ham) from my favorite local sausage purveyor.  They always advertise it for "occasion" meals.  They weren't delivering it for Easter week but said I could get it frozen the week after for delivery, so I did.  I had to try it as I've never even heard of it before I saw it on their site.  I got a half ham for $32 which was about 2.2 kg.  They provided cooking instructions in the bag:

Easter Impossible Pie: Dark Chocolate with a Coconut Twist

My neighbor friend sent me this recipe and a picture of how hers turned out suggesting I give it a try.  This seemed right in my son's wheelhouse, so I made it for Easter dessert this year.  Since I like her pie dish so much, I'll show hers, and I'm always so happy when friends send me their food pics.   

Zha Jiang Mian Chinese Spaghetti

I saw chef Ming Tsai make this on food t.v. (childhood favorites) and I knew I had to give it a go.  My only decision was to use ground pork or "Beyond Beef" meat substitute like he did.  In the end I had a pound of organic ground pork in my freezer so I used it.  Plus a pound of "Beyond Meat" costs almost $11 here!  I wasn't expecting to find fermented beans at my regular grocery store, but I did!  What I used:

Stewed Puy French Lentils & Tomatoes

I have a big huge bag of French lentils in the cupboard that could use some love.  I was watching Ina Garten on food t.v. make this and decided it looked good enough to try myself.  She used fennel on the show but I didn't have any today.   I decided to add some feta cheese and a fried egg to finish.  I also served with homemade crusty bread.  What I used:  

Calzone

I would have told you I never made a calzone before tonight, but then I searched my blog and saw I have!  I asked my son if he wanted this or homemade pizza tonight and he said this.  His wish was my command...

Golden Beet, Tomato, Caramelized Onion, Goat Cheese Tarte Tatin

I realize the title of this is a mouthful.  I took out puff pastry and was going to make a pot pie but changed my mind and beet Tarte Tatin became the new plan.  I only had 2 beets though...so I put some onion in as well.  What I came up with:

Pork Hock, Andouille Sausage, Collard Greens Soup

I wasn't really sure what I was making out of this so called it a "soup" and was all over the map with it.  I was hoping for smoked ham hock when I did my grocery order but instead received raw pork hock.  Hmmm, what to do, what to do?  So, I took out some Andouille sausage and decided to throw some greens and beans in and see what happened... I was fortunate to find some collards.  Mmmm...  Below, I'll start with the "stock" I made for the dish:

Orange Banana Pecan Bread

I never leave my banana bread recipe that I've been making for over 25 years now, but I do sub in items from time to time, just for a change.  Today was orange.  We got some beautiful organic ones that tasted fabulous so I decided to incorporate this into my usual loaf.  

Lemon Ricotta Muffins

I ordered a new muffin tin that I thought was jumbo sized.  Much to my surprise when it arrived, it wasn't.  So I halved a recipe I found on Food Network.  I edited as I needed to suit me and my ingredients.

Poké Salad Bowl

I actually bought the albacore tuna for this in a Poké kit.  It came with the marinade for it as well and I let it stew in there for about an hour before I served.  The delivery arrived today and was dinner for myself this evening.  I used organic power greens for the salad.  I tossed them with a little ponzu sauce (Kikkoman from the grocery store) and S&P.  That was the bed for all these toppings:

White Chocolate Orzo Pudding

I saw this on food t.v. and it looked delicious and easy, especially if you like rice pudding which we do.  I halved the recipe being that there was only two of us and had to improvise a little with the ingredients.  I had leftover Italian white chocolates from a Christmas box, so that's what I used instead of white chocolate chips.  What I used tonight:

No-Knead Bread

I saw this on the news.  I decided it was time to make bread!  I've never done it other than loaves like banana bread.  It was time for this experiment.  I used my enamel coated cast iron Dutch oven.  It is big (12 ") so I doubled the recipe.  Thanks to Amazon, I was able to order a 10" banneton proofing basket for next day delivery.  I rinsed/dried it and coated it with rice flour and whole wheat flour when it arrived.  What I used and did:

Gomae (Japanese Spinach Salad)

I had about 8 oz of organic baby spinach in the fridge that I knew I was going to have to use soon.  I saw this recipe flash by on Social Media and went ding ding ding.  My son loves this and always picks it when we order Japanese food.  What I used:

Caci-Oat Pepe

I saw this on food t.v. and knew I had to give it a try for the next brunch. Plus I admire chef Michael Voltaggio and wanted to try his recipe as I thought it was ingenious.  He made avocado toast pizza too!  I added an over-easy egg to each dish, bacon on the side and fresh raspberries to complete plating.  What I used:

Quesadilla Panini

I saw this viral "Tik Tok" idea pass by on Social Media so I decided to give it a try for lunch today.  The idea is to make 4 quarters of fillings and fold it over clockwise to to make a compact, layered "sandwich" of sorts... I did see in the comments field someone said, "I have an easier way to do this.  Fold it like a burrito and done!"  That made me laugh and true enough...

Bison Sausages with Onions & Peppers

I took sausages out of the freezer this morning and this is what I came up with for dinner.  I would have loved to serve this on baguettes, had I had them...