Sunday, March 8, 2009 at 7:49PM 
Not because it has only 5 ingredients, but because the idea of brown sugar ice cream sounds sooo good. I have a few recipes bookmarked to try, but I would love to taste Hagen-Daz's version.
Sunday, March 8, 2009 at 3:31PM
I'm sure I could just say Fettuccini and Meatballs but it just sounded weird. I didn't have any spaghetti, so I just used the fettuccini I had. This came together very quickly, in about 30 minutes, because I made most of the components in advance. I like to make a lot of meatballs all at once and freeze what I don't use for that evenings meal so I can use them in Italian Wedding Soup or other quick dinners. I also make a lot of tomato sauce in advance and freeze it. It makes for quick homemade suppers.
To make the sauce, I use Giada De Laurentiis' recipe for marinara sauce. However, after I remove the bay leaves, I blend it until smooth in the blender. This is something she recommends in a different recipe, but not in the linked one apparently. Then I portion it out and freeze it.
To make the meatballs, I use this recipe (minus the other soup ingredients of course). I have also substituted the pork sausage for turkey sausage with good results. When shaping the meatballs, put them on a waxed paper lined cookie sheet. When they are all shaped, put them in the freezer. When they are hard, put them in a freezer bag and store in the freezer until they are ready to use.
To make this particular recipe, I did the following.
I minced 1/4 of a yellow onion and sautéd it in 1/2 tablespoon olive oil. Then, I added 2 minced cloves of garlic, 2 teaspoons dried basil, 2 teaspoons dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried parsley, and 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper. I let this cook for about 1 minute. Then I added about 1/2 cup of dry red wine. I let that cook a little bit and scraped up the bits off the bottom of the pan. Then, I added about 20-30 (1/2 inch sized) frozen meatballs to the wine and onions, put a lid on it, and let it cook for about 5 -7 minutes while the tomato sauce finished defrosting. Then, I added 2 cups of tomato sauce to the meatballs and stirred. I let it cook for about 15 - 20 minutes while I made the pasta. When it was finished, I grated some parmesan on top. It was fantastic!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at 8:35PM During my blogging hiatus, I spent a lot of time reading food blogs. There are just so many good food blogs out there and there is just so much we can learn from each other. I have really learned a lot from other blogs and made some really delicious things. I wanted to share two of my more recent discoveries.
Firstly, I made the Oreo Brownies from Eat Me, Delicious and they were divine. It's funny, because many years ago, in about 2000, when I was in the early stages of "foodie-ism" I had one of my first food dreams. I dreamt that I had made the most delicious Oreo Brownies and they caught on all around the world. When I woke up I was determined to make the best Oreo Brownies anyone had ever tasted. However, at that point in my life, I still relied on box mixes (not that there's anything wrong with that) and didn't have a lot of baking knowledge. Well, I crunched up a bunch of Oreos and tossed them in my batter and baked it. Unfortunately, they were horrible. I don't know what I did, but they were dry and awful. At my young age, I promptly decided that there is probably a reason why I'd never had an Oreo brownie before and I should just give up my quest.
Fast forward 9 years... and I stumbled upon the above recipe and my fervor for Oreo Brownies returned in full force. The brownies on Eat Me, Delicious look exactly the way I dreamed they should and I suspected they tasted the way I dreamed they would. Was I ever correct. I have had a hard time not devouring the whole pan. In fact, I took all but 5 to work today so the temptation would be tempered. They are awesome... make them. There is nothing I would change about the recipe, it was perfect as written!
Secondly, I made the Roasted Garlic Chicken Soup from Mike's Table and it too was incredible. I varied the recipe a little bit because I was a bit crunched for time. The day before I rotisseried some chickens in my toaster oven/rotisserie (Awesome wedding gift, by the way!). Before I rotisseried them, I rubbed them all over with garlic, thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley, salt, pepper and olive oil. They were so tender that one of them actually fell off the rotisserie and landed in the drip pan near the end of the cooking time!
I also roasted the garlic ahead of time in the oven and put it in the fridge. Mike instructs the reader to use the best broth that they have available and to even consider making it yourself. I think this is a wonderful idea and I plan to do it, I just didn't have time and my belly really wanted Roasted Garlic Chicken Soup. So, I boiled 5 cups of water, threw in 5 teaspoons of Better Than Boullion and the chicken wings off my rotisseried chickens, for added chicken-y flavor. I let all that simmer while I chopped and cooked the leeks and shallots. Then I strained it and it was a very nice and rich broth. I added more thyme and some parsley and it was super fantastic. Very rich and more filling than I imagined it would be. Definitely give it a try.
Saturday, February 28, 2009 at 8:30PM 
This recipe was given to my by a dear friend several years ago. It is very easy to modify to your own tastes. It also makes a lot of soup! Usually, I put it in freezer bags and freeze it. When I want some soup, I pull it out, defrost it in the microwave and then reheat it in the microwave.
I listed a few variations for this recipe below. I used the roasted red pepper variation this time around and it was excellent. It was actually my first time roasting red peppers and I was surprised how easy it was. The next time I make this, I may throw a bit of roasted chicken or turkey in and see how it works.
Corn and Black Bean Soup
2 cans black beans
1 can fat free refried beans (spicy or regular) (You could also use full fat and it'd be fine)
2 medium onions, diced
2-3 cloves minced garlic
2 red peppers diced
12 cups chicken broth
3 large russet potatoes, diced
1 bag frozen sweet corn (10 oz)
2 tablespoons olive oil.
cumin, to taste (I used about 1 tablespoon)
chili powder, to taste (I used about 1 tablespoon)
salt, pepper, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste (I used about 1/4 teaspoon)
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil. When the onion is tender, add the spices and stir. Cook for about 1 minute. Add chicken broth and scrape the bottom to loosen any browned bits. Add the diced potatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the peppers, beans, corn. Simmer 10 minutes. Mash slightly to thicken the soup, or puree 1/2 the soup in a blender and stir to recombine.
Possible garnishes: grated cheese (Monterey Jack or Manchego are good), sour cream, cilantro, or green onion.
Variations:
To roast red peppers:
Wash, dry, then lightly oil the outside of the peppers. Place on broiler rack or foil lined pan. Broil turning as needed until all sides are blackened . Put peppers in a bowl and cover with a towel to loosen the skins. Peel the skins off with your fingers. Slit up the side, remove the core and the seeds. Scrape away any remaining seeds then dice. Any juices left in the bowl can be added to the soup to help impart a smoky flavor. The peppers can be roasted in advance and stored in the refrigerator in an air tight container.
Sunday, February 15, 2009 at 11:20PM Hello! Welcome to my new food blog. I started my very first blog, The Garlic Press back in 2006. I blogged for about 1 year and then life got crazy and I stopped. I feel I want to start blogging again, but in a different place. I found Squarespace and it seems like decent blogging tool. I'm still working out some of the kinks and fleshing the site out a bit, so expect a few changes. But... here I am. Enjoy!
Sometimes, there is nothing better than a steaming bowl of parmesan infused polenta covered in spicy turkey sausage and sauteed red peppers and onions.
