A look at past food...

I finally returned home Sunday evening- exhausted beyond measure but feeling so...light. Anyway, I didn't feel like cooking, so hubby took pity on me and we had an awesome pizza! I think he should cook more often, because he has an inquisitive nature when it comes to combining food. He needs to have more confidence in his culinary skills, because they are great!

I played hookey from work Monday, so that night was a baked ham. Man I was in heaven! I added collards and rice to the meal to round it out, but I could have happily ignored both. All I needed was biscuits!

Last night was boiled shrimp, butter potatoes, and green beans. The shrimp are cooked in hot sauce, Cajun seasoning, Old Bay, Red and Black Pepper, and a bottle of beer. When the shrimp turn pink, they're done! TO me, they still weren't spicy enough, but when you measure with your eyes, you can only expect so much!

Tonight will be my version of fried rice using leftover ham and whatever else I can find to throw in there. It's different everytime!

Last supper

So, considering I won't be home the rest of the week, I decided to cook a really good meal last night so hubby and the kids would weep with frustration while I was gone. I fried chicken strips, made homemade mashed potatoes, green peas, gravy, and biscuits. The biscuits were really tasty with some local honey.

Unbeknownst to me, I was supposed to cook birthday lunch today at work- which I did. Guess what the request was? Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and yeast rolls. I guess we know that I make a fine southern cook... glad someone else did the cake!

Dinner let down

Last night was kind of blah in the whole scheme of meals. Boneless pork chops with lemon pepper, onion rice (onion soup mix when your cooking your white rice), and lima beans. But hey, it filled the hole called a stomach and made it stop growling anyway. Plus I finished off my bottle of wine.

However, tonight we have been invited out to a friend's house for dinner for St. Patty's day. They promise to have a real Irish meal with cabbage, potatoes and corned beef (plus Guinness, Irish Whiskey, and coffee with Bailey's). Such a shame, but I can't eat beef. Is it bad when you pick up Chinese to take to someone's house on St. Patty's day?

Thanksgiving?

No, not really- but we did enjoy a semblance of Thanksgiving last night...a smoked bird! Paired it with my homemade mashed potatoes, dressing, and green beans. Forgot the yams until we were getting ready to sit down. Crap! Also drank a nice red (yeah, I know, supposed to be white- but I was out!) put out by Duplin called Black River Red, which is a mellow, sweet blend of Muscadine grapes, dotted with ripe Catawba grapes. Very tasty and it's hard to stop with one glass...but I did. Check them out at Duplin Winery My personal favorite is the Scuppernong Blush- now that doesn't stay in the house long!

Other than that, it seems I spent my weekend on the sofa taking catnaps when I should've been doing homework or knitting. Being sick can really knock you for a loop and it takes a while to care about getting up and doing anything again. At least I got to rest in relative peace.

An oldie but goodie...

Since I have generally been feeling really yucky this past week, and I had practice, I decided on something simple for dinner last night. It's a an old stand-by that I combined from several different recipes then tweaked to my liking. Keep in mind that it needs to sit in the fridge over night, or the bottom floats to the top when baking. Pair with a fruit such as apples or strawberries to round it out. Can be topped with anything from hot sauce to pancake syrup. Enjoy!

Breakfast Casserole
1 tube of refrigerated crescent rolls
1 lb. of Maple sausage
1 cup of four cheese blend
1 cup of milk
6 eggs
1/2-1 tsp. of onion salt

Roll the crescent rolls out in one piece in the bottom of a 9"x13" pan. I use a glass Pyrex dish. Cook sausage in a frying pan over medium heat until almost done. Drain if any grease. Set aside. Crack eggs in a dish and mix with the milk. For the recipe last night, I used 3 chicken eggs and 3 duck eggs- it makes the dish a little richer. Evenly pour the sausage in the baking dish over the crescent roll sheet. Add cheese. Pour egg and milk mixture over cheese and sausage. Sprinkle onion salt over top. Cover dish and set in refrigerator overnight. The next day, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you are using a glass dish, make sure it sits out for 30 minutes prior to placing in the oven to ensure that the heat will not cause the dish to shatter. Bake for 30 minutes. Eggs should be firm before removing.

To change the flavor of the recipe to your liking, change the type of sausage or cheese used. I've used this recipe with hot sausage and sharp cheddar before- it was still great!

So if you know the next night is going to be hectic, or you're having friends over for breakfast- this is a great recipe to use!

Where have I been?

Well, it appears this hair-brained idea didn't stick too long. Hubby wasn't very interested in the tag team effort and I haven't eaten out that much at new places. School has kind of sapped me of all energy and what's left is usually taken by work and kids. But I should be up and running with this again real soon. A croaking economy is forcing me to be really creative in the kitchen- I must say most of the efforts are palatable. In addition to this blog, I'll be creating a mock blog for one of my classes that bills me as the media coordinator for a Public High School. All comments and creative criticism will be welcome- just don't go overboard and piss me off, K? Here's the link: Trouble High It's in infancy so be patient!