Panini night!

Well, as you may have noticed, I didn't post yesterday! Had a very busy day making a pound cake for a friend's party (we had delicious Chocolate Fondue with mixed berries and cake... yummy!!), a whole batch of mandarin jam (got 10 jars, for a little over $5 total!), and some baguette :)

Dinner for the rest of the family (since I was at my friends... Girls only) was left-over chili and cornbread... still as good!

Tonight I'll make some panini with fresh home-made baguette (that I made yesterday), cheese, turkey pastrami, lettuce, tomato and olive tapenade... mmm, can't wait ;)

Come back later for my baguette recipe... it takes time, but it's easy and so much better that store-bought bread!

Chili and Creamed Corn Cornbread... yum!

I've been wanting to make chili and cornbread for several weeks, but every single night I forgot to soak the beans! I'm not a big fan of canned beans... I guess it's my budget-conscious side that refuses to pay for a 14-oz can more than what I would spend on a whole 1 lb of cooked beans (that yield the equivalent of at least 3 cans).

Last night I finally remembered to soak 1 lb of pinto beans (only beans I had in my pantry... I make chili with pretty much any type of bean) and to transfer 1 lb lean ground beef from my freezer to the fridge, so I was all set for this morning.

Right now Chili is ready :) I'll just reheat it when dinner time arrives. My Creamed Corn Cornbread recipe is an adaptation of Alton Brown's one. Since I'm a big fan, I follow his recommendations and use home-made creamed corn instead of the tasteless goo you can find in a can, but if you only have a can handy, add some saute onions, garlic and a rosemary to give some flavor to it.

A few changes I make on Alton's recipes: for the creamed corn, I use a 12 oz bag frozen corn (thawed and drained) instead of the fresh corn, just 1 Tbsp cornmeal and 1/2 cup evaporated milk instead of the cream; then I use ALL that creamed corn instead of the 8 oz when making the corn bread... I also increase the amount of buttermilk on about 1/4 cup.

Cornbread is in the oven! Can't wait to try a piece!

It's cold out there... what about some soup!

Brrrr, it's cold! I know... you'll probably laugh at my "winter" temperatures in Southeast Texas, but I'm seriously cold today! (I just enjoyed a cup of hot cocoa... mmmmm)

For tonight I'm making Lentil and Ham Soup. I love this recipe because it's easy, yummy and SO comforting! Sometimes I replace the ham for cooked smoked sausage or turkey bacon. My family loves it :)

For dessert I'll be baking Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies... my friend Diane tempted me with those a few days ago and I haven't been able to make them yet, but today I will!

Stay warm...

One of those days...

This is one of those days in which I wish we didn't have to eat... I'm heartbroken by the loss of one of my friends and I've been crying every time I think of her and her family...

I think I'll dig in my "teething day" stash to bring something eatable to the table even if I don't feel like eating and would rather have a huge bowl of ice-cream and some cookies.

In my "teething day" stash I always keep gnocchi. There are some good quality store-bought brands (nearly as good as home-made, which I make on occasion) and they cook in MINUTES. Literally... from the moment the water boils until the moment your gnocchi is done... 3 minutes tops. I also have some chicken tenders and half a box of white mushrooms, so I'll make a chicken and mushroom "Alfredo" sauce to go with it. I put "Alfredo" on quotation marks because this is not your typical 1000 calories/serving sauce. My version is a lot lighter on your belly and your pocket, but very yummy!

Just dessert... my favorite "food group" :P

Today we are invited to a dinner party... which means no cooking for me! Well... almost. I'm still making dessert to bring, but it's an easy and delicious one, so I don't mind, and anyway, I LOVE baking!

I'll be making a Fruit & Grand-Marnier cake. The first time I tried this cake was in December 2009 at a friend's house. I was immediately in love with this cake and asked for the recipe. I was VERY surprised at how simple it is! I love it because it's soooo moist... it's nearly a mix between a cake and a bread pudding. You MUST give it a try ;)

"Recycled" food ;)

Don't call it "left-overs"!

This morning we all got up with a sore throat... UGH!! so I don't feel like spending too much time in the kitchen, but I still want something yummy for dinner. Fortunately I have a container of polenta (from the Braised Chicken and Polenta) and I found some meat-tomato sauce I had stored in my freezer from some spaghetti I made last week. I will transform those into an entirely different dinner with the help of some spinach and mozzarella cheese!

But it's not dinner if it doesn't have a name, so let's call it: Layered Polenta Casserole.

For dessert we'll be having some Spanish Style Hot Chocolate with nice slices of Cinnamon Graham bread I made yesterday :)

Thursday night is game night!

On Thursdays I cook something relatively quick and we play a board game :)

I usually make pizza on game nights but today we feel like having some fish, and I happen to have some flounder fillets in my freezer (gotta love the individually packed ones!). I also have a large bag of frozen Asian-style veggies I got during the last Kroger Mega Sale (paid like $0.44 for it... GREAT deal!), so I'll be making Asian-style Fish Stir-Fry with steamed rice. For dessert we'll have some left-over cake ;)

Today is also my "baking day" and I'll make Cinnamon Graham Bread and English Muffin Bread. We'll eat those for breakfast on the next few days.