Food
Would I Make It Again: Maple Glazed Apple Pull-Apart Bread
I’m becoming predictable with these “Would I Make It Again” posts for two reasons. First, I don’t want to be mean. This is a happy place, after all. I’m not going to rip apart a recipe just because I didn’t enjoy a particular food. Chicken feet aren’t my thing, but millions of people seem to eat them quite regularly. Who’s to say they are wrong? Not me. Second, I have eaten enough food in my life except chicken feet that I have a strong hunch of what I will enjoy or not when selecting a recipe. While all the recipes I’ve featured in this series are pretty tasty, I’m on the…
Would I Make It Again: Balsamic Glaze VS. Regular Balsamic Vinegar
A new friend who has been absolutely so kind in welcoming us to the neighborhood  texted on a Saturday morning to see if we could come over for an impromptu BBQ that night. My thoughts, all in the course of about 3.2 seconds, were as follows. Uhhh, I was planning on curling up in my bed with a book tonight. We have friends! Woohoo! And they invited us to dinner! That’s so nice! But my bed… The kids would have a lot of fun swimming with her kids! But my bed… Handy Husband would have a lot of fun hanging out with the neighbors! But my bed… I wouldn’t have…
Would I Make It Again: Pasta from Chickpeas
The perk and curse of grocery shopping in the U.S. is there is always a new product to try. It is a seemingly revolving door of new product barrages introductions! It didn’t phase me much until I lived in Europe. Being back now and grocery shopping in the U.S. feels like I’ve been dropped into the middle of a carnival funhouse with a bunch of clowns jumping out every three seconds to show me the latest and greatest product. Then the funhouse mirrors show me what my hips will look like if I eat that product. Unfortunately, it’s never the mirror that shows me getting taller and skinnier. However,…
Would I Make It Again: Lemony Cucumber and Herb Pasta Salad
I’ve mentioned my potluck anxiety before, haven’t I? One bad experience with a mystery dish at a church potluck will do that to you. So now eating at a potluck is out. But I still get invited to potlucks! Sometimes I feel compelled to say, “Yes, I’d be delighted to attend because I haven’t flirted with food poisoning in awhile.” Then begins the second round of potluck anxiety. Yes, there’s a second level to this madness! What do I make that will travel well, can sit out and not make people sick, and be a crowd pleaser? I call this the potluck trifecta and it’s a difficult dish to find.…
Would I Make It Again: Cilantro Vinaigrette
If you are a faithful reader of this blog (thank you!), you might remember me rambling on at least once about trying a recipe for Cilantro Vinaigrette from What’s Gaby Cooking. I decided this blog needed less talk and more action, so the other night I made the Cilantro Vinaigrette. Then I decided to tell you ALL about it. The recipe is not hard at all, but it does take a few minutes to pick the amount of cilantro leaves needed off the stems. Spoiler alert! Do you want a spoiler? Okay fine. I’m feeling generous. It was a few minutes well spent. The Cilantro Vinaigrette recipe description says: “It…
Would I Make It Again? Blueberry Buckle Coffee Cake
Let’s ease into the week talking about something meaningful. Coffee cake. Otherwise known as the cake that is acceptable to eat for breakfast. That’s pretty much heaven on earth, right? This Blueberry Buckle Coffee Cake recipe came out of one of the three cookbooks that I own. Two of the cookbooks are out of print. All three cookbooks were gifts. Clearly, I am not a collector of cookbooks, but I’ve kept these three because I actually use them. Not as often as I use online recipe sites though. I equate it to trying out the newest exercise fad – ThighMaster, Tae Bo, pole dancing classes. But then always coming back…
Would I Make It Again? Chile Lime Almonds
Some girls get flowers and chocolate from their significant other. I get almonds. No, really. I did. It was a sweet and thoughtful gesture from Handy Husband. And I say that with the utmost degree of sincerity, not sarcasm. Sometimes I need to clarify these things. However, I kind of ruined the moment when I said, “You got me UNSALTED almonds?” And he said, “What? No. Why would they be unsalted? Check the label.” This isn’t my first almond rodeo. I know a package of healthy unsalted almonds when I see one. I humored Handy Husband though (there’s a marriage tip for you!) and turned the bag over to find…
Would I Make It Again? Cheese Tea
Yes, you read that right. CHEESE. TEA. Apparently, cheese tea is a thing now. Regular tea wasn’t good enough, so we had to fancy it up with cheese? They should have come up with a better name for it though. I mean…gross. The cheese tea trend originated in Taiwan about 5 years ago according to this article. Instead of tasting like cheese the tea is supposed to taste like cheesecake. That sounds better. But, wait. The original recipe is made with POWDERED CHEESE. *gag* That does not sound better, but my only experience with powdered cheese is from a box of mac n’ cheese. I’ll try and reserve judgment on…
Would I Make It Again? Chicken Rigatoni with Vodka Sauce
I don’t want to brag, but I’m no stranger to cooking and baking with booze. Do you remember my whiskey cake? And the Peppermint Schnapps Chocolate Cake? So when I saw a recipe for Chicken Rigatoni with Vodka Sauce by What’s Gaby Cooking  I said, “Who drank all the Why don’t we have any vodka?” Seriously though. We didn’t have any vodka, so I sat on this recipe for two months. Fast forward to last week and I finally had a stocked liquor cart the opportunity to make this pasta dish. I’ve made a few of Gaby’s recipes and have not been disappointed. She’s the real deal! This was going to…
Would I Make it Again? Apple Fritter Muffins
When I was a little girl, my Uncle Donny owned a doughnut shop. I can still remember the sweet smell of the shop, the flour smudges on my uncle’s all white uniform and, of course, the sweet treats. Looking back, I’m sure it was anything but glamorous to be up in the wee hours of the morning making bear claws, maple bars and apple fritters. But, oh, the deliciousness! Fast forward let’s not talk about how long to a couple of weeks ago when my landlord gifted me a bag of apples from the tree in her backyard. Tart green apples that were perfect for baking. That’s my kind of…
