Morsels of Megret

Let me just take a minute to brag on my dear husband . He listened to me, listened to my subtle little wishes for one last kitchen gadget to satisfy my craving for a pseudo-gourmet kitchen. There are many tools that I would never, ever have any use for....in fact, a trip to Williams-Sonoma makes me see many things which would be rendered totally useless in my opinion. Yet there was this one thing....this one thing which has been on my wish list for a long time, as well as my yard sale list (although anyone who'd let this thing for for under $5 would be totally clueless)....a slicing mandoline. Imagine my surprise when I opened my birthday gift yesterday and found this underneath the two layers of white wrapping paper (to cleverly hide the "OXO" logo...he knows me well). I haven't even opened it yet....but supposedly I can even make waffle fries with this thigamajigger. I can't wait to test it out.

Last night for chili night at Home Group, I made Rachel Ray's chili. Of course, I doubled the recipe. Yummilicious. Hardly miss the meat. I highly recommend you trying this one. Wait for a cold, overcast, drizzly day. Chili goes up ten notches on days like that. Veg-Head Three-Bean Chili (by Rachel Ray, The Food Network) 2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan) olive or vegetable oil 1 medium yellow skinned onion, chopped 1 large red pepper, seeded and chopped 1 large green pepper, seeded and chopped 1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped 4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped 1 cup pale beer or vegetable stock/broth 1 (32- ounce) can crushed tomatoes 1 (14-ounce) can black beans 1 (14-ounce) can dark red kidney beans 1 tablespoon ground cumin 2 tablespoons chili powder 1 tablespoon cayenne hot pepper sauce, several drops 1 teaspoon coarse salt 1 cup spicy vegetarian refried beans Toppings: 8 ounces (2 cups shredded) spicy monterey jack or smoked cheddar Chopped scallions, w...

Gardner helped me make Barbara Bush's chocolate chip cookies in honor of President's Day. They turned out scrumptious! Gardner anxiously awaited their arrival from the oven after he helped me make them. After lunch, it was time to try a taste. BARBARA BUSH'S PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (from Allrecipes.com) 1/2 cup butter, softened 1/3 cup packed brown sugar 1/3 cup white sugar 1 egg 1 1/2 teaspoons hot water 1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips Beat butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and egg until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in hot water and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour, baking soda, and salt, until well blended and smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop dough by well-rounded teaspoons onto greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 10 minute, or until golden. Cool cookie sheet on a wire rack for 1 minutes, then rem...

My friend Suzanne was laughing and remarking the other day how my food blog has been very sparse lately, and when I do post a recipe, it's usually junk food (or at least heavily-sugared). Well, I laughed, too, because she's exactly right. With this pregnancy, seeing a photo of, re-living the consumption of, or description in writing of what meal I made the night before is taboo. I just can't do it in most cases. But desserts are another thing entirely. I may not want to eat them when I see them pictured on the blog, but I don't mind talking and writing about them. Here's another recipe I tried yesterday. It was a recipe flop that I turned around and somehow rescued. (Instead of rolling the dough and cutting out shapes, since it never solidified enough, I made them into balls dipped in sugar instead. Still yummy.) These taste like miniature chocolate pound cakes. CHOCOLATE-SOUR CREAM DROPS (amended BH&G recipe) 2/3 c. butter (not margarine) 3/4 c. sugar, ...

Hope your Valentine's Day is the greatest! Make some special treats with your Littlest Valentines to make the day that much more special! :)

To help use up the surplus of the out-of-season yet still incredibly delicious strawberries I had in my refrigerator this week, I decided to make these. Cook's Country has done it once again. Wow. These were like little pillows of pure bliss. I implore you to try them, either now if you have good strawberries available, or when they finally do come in season. STRAWBERRY SCONES 2 large eggs 1 T. plus 1/4 c. heavy cream 1/4 c. buttermilk 1 t. vanilla extract 2 c. all-purpose flour, plus extra for work surface 1/3 c. plus 1 T. sugar 2 t. baking powder 1/4 t. salt 6 T. unsalted butter, cut into 1" pieces 2/3 c. strawberries, hulled and chopped Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Beat 1 egg with 1 T. heavy cream in small bowl; set aside. Whisk remaining egg, remaining 1/4 c. heavy cream, buttermilk, and vanilla together in medium bowl. Pulse flour, 1/3 c. sugar, baking powder, and salt in food processor till blended. Add butter and pulse till...

Am I the only one who thinks that cupcakes are more fun than cakes, anyday? They're miniature. They're cute. They're more fun to decorate. They're easier for kids to devour. And they're just cute (or did I say that already?). I have friends who would say about that what they say about the "Fun Size" candy bar bags. "Fun!? What's FUN about a candy bar one-fourth the size it's supposed to be?" I guess I'm different in that respect. I'd rather have birthday cupcakes than a cake anyday. And when holidays near, especially Valentine's Day, I go cupcake crazy. (As you can see by the photo. I know it's two weeks early, but I just couldn't wait.) Hooray for cupcakes!