Morsels of Megret

That's what I screamed at a point of desperation after I had been married for about two years. I loved, loved, loved to cook, but I was so resistant to falling into a rut recipe-wise. To combat that threat, it was literally taking me 2-3 hours a week to look through recipe boxes, magazines, and cookbooks to find new and novel recipes. If I tried to find exact recipes using ingredients I had on hand or that were seasonal at the grocery store, that just threw a whole new level of confusion to the already ridiculous pandemonium. I needed a change. That's when Ken stepped in. My dear, sweet husband, a guru at all things technical, suggested something. "Why don't I set up a recipe database for you?" I stared, wide-eyed. That was possible? He could do that? Oh, wow. He set to work on it that day, and four days later, I had a working prototype of my "Food Database" on my laptop. I set to work entering in recipes (yes, by hand). Tedious chore, I know...

Oh, I simply cannot imagine having my own restaurant. I know the grueling task of planning a menu for just my husband and son (and maybe a few guests during the week)....I cannot grasp what it might be like to plan menus for an entire group of strangers who are paying me big bucks to bring them delicious meals that they won't forget. I would have an ulcer! Things I have noticed about menu-planning (very much blown out of proportion, but just for purposes of added laughs): - No matter how hard I try, there is always a weeknight meal which contains the following three ingredients...you can bet on it: corn chips, black beans, and tomatoes. Ken said he liked Mexican food, and boy, is he getting it....it is one of the easiest things to make "healthy"....and did I mention quick?! - I try to stick to what's on sale and make my menus accordingly, therefore trying to drop my overall grocery tab. What I forgot to throw in for consideration is the fact that I have cravings, name...

If you are used to the standard biscuit-topped cobblers, I beg for you to try something new. I used to work at a "meat 'n' three" restaurant here in my hometown. The owner/cook made a fantastic cobbler recipe that was passed down from his grandmother. He would keep the same basic recipe but switch out the fillings....strawberry, peach, blueberry, apple, and even sweet potato (you haven't lived till you've eaten sweet potato cobbler!). I was inspired to learn how to copy it. Though he didn't reveal the top-secret recipe, I was still able to gather enough information to at least see the technique for creating this luscious dessert. Unlike most cobblers where the dough is dropped on top of the fruit, this one has a layer of batter underneath piles of fruit....when the oven heats it up, the batter rises and creates a dense, buttery, flaky layer that's beyond compare. Last night, we made the blueberry version, as seen here. I guarantee you that you won...

Get out of the kitchen. Er....at least cook your dinner ahead and make an easy meal of salads for a cool summertime feast at dinnertime. Today was another scorcher. I decided to nix my original idea of making homemade falafel in search of a cooler, make-ahead option. Enter: salads. Not green-leafy salads which leave you hungry again in two hours. I'm talking chicken salad. And not just any chicken salad. The recipe my friend Karna gave me for Summery Chicken Salad. Of course, like with most recipes, I've "kicked this one up a notch." I've added and tweaked the ingredients to suit my tastes, and Ken swears it's the best chicken salad he's ever eaten. I paired it with a dish intended to be warm....Barefoot Contessa's Broccoli and Bowties . I made it ahead, though, and chilled it as a salad. Much better for summer days, in my opinion, and not lacking in flavor in the least compared to the original. I rounded off the simple meal with whole wheat popovers. ...

Last night, we had some good friends over for dinner. I am always looking for meals that I can prepare ahead, namely because it's easier to prep everything while my son naps so that I can just pop it into the oven or turn the burner on HIGH when the clock reaches 5 o'clock. I prepared chicken parmesan, a very easy dish to prep ahead (sans the pasta part). I made baguettes, which by the way, were long and flat this time instead of round and fluffy (maybe it was the humidity....yeah, I'll blame it on that). For dessert, I concocted an embarrassingly-easy pie yesterday morning that had no more work involved after I placed it into the freezer at 9am. You ready for this? All it is is a homemade Nilla Wafer crust, using salted butter, the real stuff, of course (and salted butter adds more complexity to the sweet flavors already in the pie). I softened vanilla ice cream (lowfat, actually) and mixed it with a 6 oz. can of lemonade concentrate. Into the freezer to chill, then ...

I spent yesterday afternoon catching up on culinary news and other food blogs. I came across some things I thought you might enjoy perusing through.... Cooking with Amy has a delicious looking blueberry tart recipe that I just might try. You might, too, if you're like me and you have summer blueberries coming out of your ears (or freezer). Ever loved a food so much that you wanted to exude its fragrance from your very self? Demeter Fragrance thought so. Hm. If I had to pick, I'd choose either Cotton Candy or Scottish Shortbread. But for some reason, I just don't see how exuding the essence of Popcorn would turn anybody on. Great news for those people who try to strip down their food so much that it's barely food anymore (Or is it food at all?? Can you say "GMOs?")..... Food flavor sprays ....all the flavor, none of the guilt. Does this seem weird to anyone else but me?? In other news, I have been cooking lately, but nothing worth a blog post. I have been ...

You know me....always looking up kitchy culinary oddities online. Nope, not really. But I did happen to stumble across this today. It's a fun frollick through the decades. Whether or not I'd actually try these recipes? Hm. Hafta think on that one.

On a recent trip to Earthfare, there was a sample station set up near the entrance with a man handing out ice cream. Peach ice cream, to be exact. What made me take a double take was that the ice cream was spilling out the front of a Champion juicer. I bought one of these juicers last summer, and I have to admit, I haven't used it as often as I should. Enter a new and novel way to use it: I'm hooked. I marked this thought down to pull up later when I came across some fresh peaches. Which is what I did yesterday. I exited our local produce stand with some ripened peaches, 1/2 peck to be exact (I always way overestimate). I came home and promptly set to work on this cold treat. Seven hours later, what you see here is what came out of my wonderful juicing machine. Pure delight. I never knew peaches could be captured so poetically within a slurry of milk and sugar. CHAMPION JUICER'S PEACH ICE CREAM (Makes 1 quart) 2 cups sliced peaches (peeled) 1-1/2 c. organic skim m...

In my humble opinion, when it comes to accommodating a hearty meal, the greatest competitor to a flaky biscuit is a light, delicate eggy bread....namely, the popover. Popovers are an American invention. They are believed, though, to have been inspired by Britain's Yorkshire Puddings. The name? Well, two theories abound.... One states that it is because the muffin tops "pop over" the rim of the pan in which they're baking. Another theory says that you can pop these into the oven with none other than common pantry ingredients....when an unexpected guest just happens to "pop over," no less. However you look at it, these seemingly complicated treats are easy as pie....that is, if you can resist opening your oven door while they bake (they will deflate if you try it). I think you'll agree that these babies are well worth a try if you've never attempted them before. One bite....smothered with honey or plain and straight-up, for dinner OR a leisurely breakf...

I am pretty good at knowing how to USE fresh basil in recipes, but as for keeping a live plant alive, I am 100% clueless. My thumb doesn't even resemble any remote shade of green. In fact, it's the antithesis of green. I just can't keep plants alive....inside or out. I bought a basil plant recently because it was actually $1.79 as opposed to a bag of cut basil which sold for $1.99 (uh.....better deal, you think?). It's half-alive. It's sagging a bit, a few leaves brown, the dirt turning spongy and dry (though I water it nightly). It is right by my kitchen window, so I know sunlight's not an issue (unless it's getting TOO much). Any advice? Should I transplant it to a bigger pot? Should I give it plant food? I want to keep alive the possibility to make bruschetta at a moment's whim. Please help save my basil!

One of my all-time favorite breakfast treats is blueberry muffins. Since they were sugar-laden, Mom didn't make them too often for us growing up. I can remember them on Saturday mornings and holidays, mainly....and oh, were they special. Hot from the oven, slathered with real butter, the berries bursting and steaming all at once when we ate them. I have been bombarded with blueberries for two weeks.....not that I'm complaining! I came to my wit's end tonight as to how to use them up. A baked good, no doubt, but what? Blueberry buckles and pies are too time-consuming and aren't too tasty left over the next day. No time to make jam or sorbet. Ah! Muffins. Yes, it's nearly 8:30pm, but any time is a time for muffins in this house. I make a 12 muffin recipe into a 6 jumbo muffin recipe. Topped with coarse turbinado sugar, they glistened as I brought them from the oven. Perfection, especially with a cold glass of milk. I felt like I was in a coffee shop instead of my humb...

Chocolate. Just the word sends waves of glee through a crowd. The mere mention of a chocolate dessert of any kind signals an "ooooooh" response almost always. I am a chocolate afficianiado, to put it mildly. I cannot imagine life without the stuff. I was raised on Hershey's Kisses ("silver bells," or so-termed by Grandpa) almost religiously. Even as a young squirt, I could tell the difference in the quality of some lesser chocolates such as cheap chocolate Easter bunnies or rice-crisp chocolate "coins." I guess you could say my chocolate snobbery started early. It has only grown from there. Today, I have become even more of a critiquer of chocolate, though fine chocolate is a rarity (it ISN'T cheap). Yet when I do have the finer versions of this luscious, dark treat, I can honestly make it last three months in my house before it runs out. The chocolate bar above is a fine example of such. Ken bought that bar for me for Valentine's Day...