Just Desserts

One of my jobs as Relay For Life captain is to help come up with ideas for fundraisers. Our latest idea...a silent dessert auction. After wrangling most of the team members into baking two desserts a piece, I really think this will be a success! Now, as a team member you know that I had to make two desserts too. Y'all remember my fine cooking skills right?!

I've been told I shouldn't be so hard on myself (okay she actually said I shouldn't be misleading the public) when it comes to my skills in the kitchen. I can cook. I have a handful of things that I cook/bake/throw together really well. My cooking skills just aren't exactly where I wish they were...I make huge messes in the kitchen, I set off the smoke detectors on a regular basis, and I've had some total flops. But, no one would starve if I was in charge of all the cookin'.

So, back to today's kitchen activities. I volunteered to bring a lemon cake and a chocolate cherry trifle. Sounds yummy right?! I'm hoping that they are (well actually I know that the lemon cake is wonderful!) good and look great too. Not that I'm going to be crushed, but I don't want them to bring the least amount of money. Hmm...is that wrong to say?!

Also, in addition to mixing batters and putting together the trifle, I also need to clean some berries. Tomorrow the kids are making fruit and yogurt parfaits in class. We've been talking about making healthy snack choices and they love to play with food. I really think this is the most action my kitchen has seen in a long time! At least the oven is playing nice and not smoking every time I open the door.

Now, if you'll excuse me...despite the encouragement I've given the dishes...they aren't getting busy and washing themselves. Darn dishes. They must be good friends with the laundry that doesn't wash itself either...

Terrific Flops

Ever had one of those things where everything you touched flopped? I was pretty sure this was going to be my lot yesterday as I was getting ready for Bunco. December was my month to host which means I'm in charge of the meal. I picked items I thought were going to be easy to make. Oh, they normally are, but come on...it is me and the kitchen. By the way, would these kitchen adventures be as much fun to read about if everything I cooked came out right?!

It started with the pralines. I don't really make a lot of candy so I'm not really "in the know" about things related to candy making. To my mom's credit she did warn me to make it on a day with the smallest percentage of humidity. Well, it was getting down to the wire and I didn't have much of a choice. I made it on a day with 85% humidity. Well, it never set...ever. I was pretty sure this was going to be a huge flop. After some quick thinking, I decided to buy some premium ice cream and melt the candy to use as a topping. I confided to one person that it started out as a flop. After one bite, she suggested that I keep that flop business to myself and just say I meant for it to be an ice cream topping. I did...and everyone wanted the recipe to my wonderful praline sauce. So, on one hand the terrific part is that the pralines were still a wonderful dessert. On the other hand the flop part is that now I have to explain that it was a flop and I don't know how to make it sauce. I just sort of lucked into it.

My next dish was a corn casserole. I've made this numerous times before but in the original recipe. Last night I needed to double it. Doubling a recipe isn't normally hard, but this one was tricky. I couldn't remember if I was supposed to double everything but the oil or not. That casserole had one cup of oil in it. Doesn't that just sound wrong?! Anyway, I cooked it and when I took it out it was nice and brown on top. And a little bit shiny. I had to pat it down with paper towels to get some of that extra oil out. So, now I know...do not double the oil. Thankfully, when everyone ate it last night it tasted fine. Hopefully no one woke up with clogged arteries!

After those two things I was beginning to think that I'd made a huge mistake saying I'd cook. The last thing I needed to make was the taco casserole. Normally, I'd think how can someone possibly mess up meat, cheese, and tortillas. But seriously people...I don't have the best track record here. I started to gather up the ingredients and discovered that I had forgotten to set the meat into the fridge the night before. All my meat was frozen! I quickly defrosted it in the sink with hot water. So, finally the meat was done and I was ready to layer. Only problem...I ran out of cheese. Let me just say that I did stop at the store and grab some cheese so the casserole turned out fine. Actually, everyone loved it! It would have been terrific if I'd remembered to grab the lettuce and tomatoes that were supposed to go on top. Now, I currently have two bags of shredded lettuce and three tomatoes. Well, salads are in right?!

Even though every single part of that meal could have been a disaster, everything turned out okay. I don't question it. I'm just in awe of it...my ability to have the most terrific of flops!

Frightful Weather

Remember that holiday song, "Oh the weather outside is frightful..."? Well, the weather here is pretty darn frightful! All weekend long the temperatures have hovered around the forties. There was even snow on Thanksgiving in my hometown! We weren't there (we were at my grandparents' house) but according to the television there was 4-6 inches of the white stuff. I love that! What I'm not loving is all the wet and cold weather that followed me home today. It is currently 40 and the rain hasn't let up all afternoon. Now I know what you Northern readers are thinking...what a wimp. True, but remember that I'm from Texas! I say that like it explains so much.

Anyway, I had big plans of getting home early in the afternoon and getting a jump start on getting my Christmas decorations up. Unfortunately, I've pushed that back until tomorrow. Getting to sleep last night was a chore and staying that way was even harder. Plus, the wet weather has brought on a runny nose and sore throat. When I got home I crawled under the heavy covers and took a nice long nap. I'm still excited about getting my tree put up and decorations out, but I think I'll just start fresh tomorrow.

Thanksgiving was great! The food was plentiful and delicious. I even snagged a Glad container of dressing to bring home! But, of course it wouldn't be a holiday without a little misadventure in the kitchen. In my family, my Mimi, Mom, and I are the only ones that like sweet potatoes. I volunteered to get them ready for the oven. I know how to smash and stir in ingredients. I just wasn't too sure about the recipe. I added some of this and some of that and covered them with mini marshmallows. Sounds fine right? Something terrible happened in the oven. When we pulled them out, the marshmallows were a little too brown and the potatoes were a horrible sludge brownish black. Not wanting to write them off completely, I tried them. The tasted great, but boy were they terrible to look at! My Mimi said, "Steffany your potatoes look like heck!" and that was the nicest thing that was said! I'm still puzzled by what went so wrong, but even if they weren't the most eye catching thing on the table at least they tasted okay!

I hope that everyone had a Thanksgiving that was just as wonderful as mine turned out to be!

Crock Pot Chef

Lately I've been eating out more. I know this comes from all the late nights at school and the need to just come home and do absolutely nothing mind bending. Anyway, all this eating out has but a strain on my budget and my rear. So, I committed myself to going back to cooking.

As y'all know, cooking is sort of an adventure for me. Normally I make stuff that can be popped into the microwave or nuked in the toaster oven. That stuff is easy and normally smoke alarm proof. Feeling a little daring, I decided to try some stuff that isn't in my normal routine.

Yesterday (you know when I had to kill time at Walmart because I forgot about time change...yeah I'm still bitter about getting up at normal time on a day I could actually sleep late) when I was at Walmart, I saw a small pork roast and thought, "Hey, that's not something I've tried before!" I thought it would be perfect in my crock pot I got in college. Side note...I've had that thing for about three years and have used it about that same amount of times. Anyway, I put that roast in my basket and grabbed some squash (a zucchini and a yellow squash), an onion, and some red potatoes. I just knew this was going to end tasty!

After getting all the groceries put away, I drug out the crock pot and dusted it off. I wasn't totally sure how I was supposed to put it all together, but I got my veggies cut up and in the crock pot. I was proud...I had a beautiful mix of red, green, and yellow. Colors equals healthy right?! Anyway, I put the roast on top and sprinkled on some onion soup mix. I wasn't sure how much water to add so I figured more is better. I put in a cup of water (which I now know should really be just a dab will do you) and turned it on. I was such a nerd...I kept checking on it every five minutes. Apparently a watched crock pot doesn't boil either! I finally left it alone and went on about my business...namely laundry.

Now, it wasn't perfect. The roast was a little bit dry (despite all the juice it was sitting in) and the veggies were a little mushy (thanks Mama...only carrots should go on the bottom) but there were no smoke alarms going off and it was pretty good. So, here is to more daring adventures in the kitchen!

Oh, and if you have any great crock pot recipes you'd like to share please pass them along in the comments!

Fair On The Square Pretties

Sorry, to have just rushed away in that last post, but my parents had just driven up and I got excited! I hadn't seen them since July so I was ready. We're having a wonderful visit so far. Yesterday, we drove into Houston to see my cousin's new apartment and celebrate (though a little belated!) her birthday. I even baked her a spice cake (her favorite) for the occassion. Unfortunately, I didn't inherit my Mimi's cake decorating skills (or much else of her cooking skills) but Amanda assured me that the cake was yummy!

Today was the 33rd annual Fair on the Square in my little town. It always falls on the first weekend in October which is usually right around my birthday. It's basically a huge arts and crafts show set up around the courthouse. I love arts and crafts shows. How wonderfully thoughtful of Huntsville to decide to hold something I love right around my birthday!

My mom assures me that my birthday is the reason that they come and visit, but I know that she enjoys Fair on the Square as much as I do! Today turned out to be a good day for the whole event. It rained early this morning so it was sort of cool and there was a nice breeze. We got a great parking spot and while there were a lot of people it wasn't terribly crowded like last year. Most of the booths are the same year to year, but I found a few things I just couldn't live without!


If you couldn't tell I have a thing for apples! My kitchen is decorated in shades of lime, red, blue, and apples. I thought this oven hanging towel was so pretty. I especially love the little bushel of apples at the top. You can't tell from this picture but there is a lemon yogurt bread baking behind that pretty towel. (I'm experimenting and it smells delicious! How many wish you were on my Chirstmas baking list now?!)


I also found this sweet nativity. I have a thing for those too! Some people collect snowmen or Santas, but I love to collect nativities. I usually get two to three new ones each year. I found this one and thought it was an unique twist on the whole nativity scene. I love it!

The time goes so quickly when my parents are here, but we're trying to make the most of it. Tonight my dad and I are going to a college football game. That used to be our "daddy-daughter date night" thing when I was in high school. He'd take me to all the home games. These days I don't get to spend nearly enough time with him so this is a nice way to catch up. Tomorrow we might drive out by the lake...who knows...well after presents of course!

Thank you for all the wonderful birthday wishes! Sometmes I go over board (or as my mom says, "You just need to grow up!") with talking about and celebrating my birthday, but I can't help it. She who has the most birthdays lives the longest!

A Right Trial In The Kitchen Department

Remember a few weeks ago, my gracious neighbor put my new battery on my car in exchange for a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies? In theory that seemed so reasonable and easy to do. In actuality, well it was my usual kitchen disaster. Okay, perhaps the word disaster isn't quite right since the ultimate result was pretty sweet.

Saturday I picked out a recipe (www.foodtv.com was a huge help since oatmeal raisin cookies aren't in my recipe box) and checked to see what ingredients I'd need to buy. Yes, I picked the recipe that had the least ingredients...is that wrong? Anyway, after a quick trip to the local grocery store I had my oats and raisins and I was ready to go.

Along time ago, my mom taught me that you double check all ingredients and equipment before you start mixing to make sure that you have everything. Well, all I can say is thank goodness I checked. And that's when I discovered that I had the hand held part of the mixer but the beaters were mysteriously missing. How the heck am I supposed to cream the sugar and butter without the beaters?! This was almost enough to make me scrap the whole idea of cookies.

I didn't think I could put off this any longer...I mean I've been driving that car for several days and I figured he'd need some cookies soon too. So, I grabbed a whisk and decided I could cream anything if I beat it long enough. Off I started on those cookies. I was doing great until I came to the flour part of the recipe. I opened the canister and dipped in my measuring cup and came out with flour and some tiny moving things. What the heck? I'm not great in the kitchen but I'm pretty sure flour isn't enriched with bugs. I quickly dumped the whole canister of flour and took the trash out. Thankfully I had a bug free new bag of flour in the pantry.

At this point I was beginning to wonder if perhaps cookies were such a smart idea. No beaters and unexpected bugs (which my mom later clarified as weevils). But when you've got a bowl full of cinnamony oatmeal cookie batter you've got to follow through. I put in the first batch and prayed that they came out okay. Amazingly, the first batch came out and smelled pretty good. I let them cool and then gave them a taste test. They weren't bad so I kept baking.

Four batches later I had several dozen cookies cooled and ready to be delivered. I haven't heard anything back from him about the cookies but I didn't hear any ambulance sirens in the night either. I guess I shouldn't go on and on about what a bad cook I am (I mean I can cook) but it usually comes with some amusing story or the smoke alarm going off.

Now if you'll excuse me there is an oatmeal raisin cookie calling my name!

In The Hot Seat

I volunteered to be "interviewed" by a fellow reader and posted below is a sampling of questions. They range from the nice to the naughty and everywhere in between. I think these things are fun and interesting because these type of questions usually dig a little deeper into the interviewee and make the interviewer think a little past what-is-your-favorite-color type questions. Enjoy getting to know a little bit more about me (probably some things that wouldn't normally just come out in a post!) and if you'd like to take a turn in the hot seat let me know!

What is your favorite soup?
My favorite homemade soup is my mom's Southwestern Soup. I bet everyone has a recipe for something "kind of like that" but I think my mom's is the absolute best! It's thick and hearty and perfect for cold days. It's also very easy to make and practically fool proof (which sometimes I need!)

And because I'm a nice kind of gal I'll even share the recipe!

1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. dry ranch dressing mix
2 med. onions
2 cans ranch style beans
2 black beans
2 cans whole corn (with the liquid)
1 can hominy
1 large can diced tomatoes (with the liquid)
1 can mild (or spicy depending on your taste) Rotel
1 lb. Velveeta cheese

In a large (and I mean LARGE) soup pot brown the ground beef and onions together. Drain away any unwanted grease. Add the ranch dressing mix and stir together. Add all of the remaining ingredients (except the cheese) and bring to a boil. Slowly add the cubes of Velveeta cheese and stir until melted. It's the dump and heat method...very easy and very good!

And when I feel lazy my favorite soup is Campbell's Select Italian Sausage with Pasta and Pepperoni.

If you were going to buy underwear for a man, what would you get?
This is kind of tricky to answer as I don't really buy underwear for guys. I guess I would say that I'd probably buy briefs in colors. And perhaps one or two pair of goofy boxers (the kind with cartoons or inappropriate crotch jokes on them) just to add some variety to the mix.

Have you ever stolen anything on purpose?
Yes, I stole a hot glue gun stick from Michael's Craft Store when I was about 6 or 7. My dad found out I'd taken it and made me return it to the store and apologize. Also in college I one time changed the price sticker on a book at Wal-Mart so I didn't have to pay full price. That was a moment of weakness and being broke. I haven't stolen anything else.

Does anyone have naked pictures of you?
Yes. (I think the interviewer was referring to those embarrassing naked-baby-in-the-sink type pictures all parents have...right?!)

What one thought turns you on more than anything else?
Being with a guy that is totally turned on by the good girl in me and the girl that wants to do the unexpected and break all kinds of rules and taboos. Oh, and that guy should have a great mouth! You can tell a lot about a guy by the way he kisses and uses his tongue. ;)

There you go...more about me. Now, who wants to go next?!

Sensitive Little Thing

I'm never going to burn down my house. Well...I should say that I'm never going to burn down my house without knowing it. I won't because I have the most sensitive little smoke detector ever!

Now, most of you have read my tales of cooking. I'm not really great at it even though I really like cooking. I'm used to a few curls of smoke and maybe a few scraping off a few patches of burnt, but I love to cook and experiment in the kitchen.

Until lately.

Oh I still like the idea of cooking, but a few things have put a damper on it for me. One...the vent fan thingy above the oven went out. Some might argue it wore itself out sucking all that smoke out of the air. Anyway, it's out of commission. I still open it but the suckage isn't there so it doesn't really provide the desired result. Two...did I mention these really sensitive smoke detectors that I have? They go off all the time. They go off when the food is just done...not burned...just done. I'm waiting of the day when they go off when I pour milk on my cheerios. Three...I hate electric stoves. I can never get the tempature right. I'm sure that contributes to the burnt factor. I usually get things too hot.

Anyway, I'm going to try the toaster oven...can't really burn stuff up in there...can you? So, if you see a big cloud of black down in the south don't panic. It's probably not a wild fire or anything like that. I'm probably just trying my hand at cooking!