No Bake Mini Key Lime Cheesecakes

We go through a lot of cream cheese in our house.  Seriously, a lot.  If I can't get the 9 year old to eat anything else, he will at least eat a whole wheat tortilla with cream cheese or refried beans on it.  Plus I also cook with cream cheese.  So every week I pick up a brick of it.  If cream cheese is on sale, I pick up two or three.

Difference Between Pork Loin and Pork Tenderloin

Have you ever read a recipe that called for a pork tenderloin and you bought a pork loin instead thinking they were the same thing?  Frustrating isn't it, when your glaze burns and your meat isn't cooked through at the time the recipe said?  Or, worse, done it in reverse and cooked a pork tenderloin to death in a roasting pan.

Birthday Sleep-over Snack Food

On Saturday the 8 year old will be having his 9th birthday party at the local skating rink and afterward his 3 closest friends will spend the night with us for an "after party."  The party package includes pizza and sodas, but we'll be eating around 4:30.  So I thought our overnight guests will probably want more to eat later in the evening.  I can't see corralling them to sit down for a meal, though.  That's where heavy "finger food" snacks come in.  I'll be setting things out buffet style and letting the boys eat what and when they want.

Kettle Corn

You know that sweet popcorn that smells so good when you go to a fair or street carnival?  Here our city holds a street festival in conjunction with our Christmas tree lighting, and there is always a kettle corn vendor.

Mexicali Corn and Bacon Relish

Yesterday we went to a neighborhood cookout hosted by the family of one of the 8 year old's friends.  The cookout was covered dish, so I took the opportunity to add another dish to my covered dish/pot luck repertoire.  A few weeks ago I'd run across a recipe for bacon corn relish that sounded good but the flavor profiles weren't what I wanted.  So this dish is very much inspired by what I found, but really the only thing that stayed the same were the corn, bacon, and onions.

Chicken of the Woods and Asparagus with Vodka Sauce

I love chicken of the woods.  It's a type of mushroom called a sulfur shelf that generally grow on hardwoods.  My favorite farmer at the local farmers market and his wife are fantastic mushroom foragers.  Anytime we have a day or two of heavy rains, they are out looking for oyster mushrooms, chicken of the woods, and morals. 

Potluck Favorites - Round Up

Mother's Day is just around the corner, as is Cinco de Mayo, so it would stand to reason I'd do a round up of brunch ideas, easy meals dads can make, or Mexican inspired dishes.  However, for me, potluck season is just around the corner too.

Creamy Cole Slaw

Cole slaw is one of those things I've struggled with trying to make for a long time.  When I was 16, I worked in the kitchen at a camp in a small town near the North Carolina - South Carolina state lines.  The head chef was a woman in her 60's everyone called Mama Ruth.

Broccoli Salad

My very favorite vegetable is broccoli.  Even as a young child, I'd get excited to learn my mother was fixing broccoli for supper, and because I was excited about it, she'd make sure I got broccoli as much as she could buy and fix it for me.  Normally I prefer my broccoli pretty much unadulterated.  Just a little butter and salt for me, please.  It's also good in fettuccine Alfredo and because I like it so much, I often add broccoli to that dish when I make it.  But I'm not crazy about raw broccoli.  Sad, but true.

Meal Plan Monday - Easter 2013 Edition

As I type this on Sunday evening, my in-laws just left with the 8 year old in tow so he can spend the majority of his spring break with them.  While they were here, we had a beautiful (if I do say so myself) dinner.  I don't get to cook holiday meals often because we are frequently traveling, so I was having a great time preparing this dinner.

Sausage Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls

The 8 year old will eat just about anything if I wrap it in what he calls a "blanket," i.e. a crescent roll.  He still won't eat tomatoes, though, so I do leave them out of his portions.  Because he loves sausage gravy, I thought he would love this too, and I was right.

Pancakes

It's pancake night!  Well, almost.  Tuesday, we'll have pancakes to mark Fat Tuesday and the beginning of Lent.  While we aren't particularly religious, nor are we Catholic, I do like the idea of a period of reflection and service.  But I also like pancakes especially when they are covered in yummy berry syrup.

Fruit or Berry Syrup

This recipe is so simple, it's more method than recipe.  In the picture above, I've used a mix of frozen blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.  You can also do this with one berry or cherries.  Whatever floats your boat. 

Momma's Chili

Like my momma's meatloaf, I suspect this was first my grandmother's chili.  Also like my momma's meatloaf, my mother and I don't make this the same way.  The basic "core" recipe is the same, but the combination of spices is slightly different.  And it's generally not made the same way twice.

Bruschetta Crescent Pinwheels

In July or August I ran across a recipe for pimento cheese pinwheels made with crescent rolls and homemade pimento cheese.  It looked delicious, but I wanted something a bit different and slightly more gourmet for a PTA board meeting appetizer potluck near the beginning of the school year.
For inspiration, I wandered the gourmet foods aisle at the grocery store.  The thing that I kept going back to was bruschetta.  I thought the flavors of bruschetta would go nicely with cream cheese and by the time I left the grocery store I practically had a recipe written in my head.

Buffalo Chicken Wings

We don't watch a lot of sports around here because we're pretty strict about how much TV we let the 8 year old watch.  So generally when the 8 year old is awake or nearby, the TV is off unless he's indulging in his limited "screen time" for the day.  However we do like to watch the bowl games near the first of the year and we must watch the Super Bowl no matter who is playing.  And when we think of game time, our food of choice is buffalo wings.

Meal Plan Monday - First Week Edition

Happy New Year's to all my bloggy friends!  How is your family celebrating?

Before the 8 year old came along, my husband and I would fix a big fancy meal, usually trying a new recipe or trying a new food.  Since the 8 year old is going off to Nana's for a few days starting tonight, I thought I'd bring back that tradition and fix a newish recipe for us.  We've had a lovely week of visiting with family and spending extra time with the 8 year old, but I'm looking forward to a "date night" with my husband.

Merry Christmas

From my family to yours, may you have the Merriest of Christmases!

Wednesday Recipe Reivew - Cranberry Butter

Because I don't cook Thanksgiving dinner, I don't really do a lot of holiday foods.  However, I saw this recipe for cranberry butter at The Chic Geek that looked so good I really had to give it a shot.  I'll be taking this to my parents' house on Friday to see what they think of it too.

Cranberry Relish

When I was growing up my mom would make this awesome cranberry relish.  There really was no recipe.  She'd just chop up some apples and oranges and push them through her meat grinder with cranberries until her taste testers (my brother and me) said it was perfect.  There may have been some lemon juice and sugar involved, but 30-some years later, I don't really remember.  Every Thanksgiving for years I've wanted that cranberry relish again.