Viv and I have always loved making pizza at home.  Sort of like our version(s) of fried rice, pizza is often a "clean out the fridge" type of concoction. Often, I make dough in my bread machine, but this time, I bought the dough that you can buy in the Publix bakery.  One thing I've found about their dough, though, is I let it sit out at room temp for hours.  Otherwise, it's practically impossible to roll, stretch, pat out, etc.  It just doesn't cooperate if it's too cold/cool. Tonight, we wanted to use up some of the vegetables that we have on hand. We went with onio ..read more

 We've been on a bit of an Asian kick lately.  Yesterday, Viv came up with a by-the-seat-of-the-pants chicken stir-fry with mung bean noodles, which was very, very tasty. I was impressed with her use of the Shao Xing wine.  It makes such a significant difference and gives everything that distinctive Chinese flavor. We've been planning this dish and finally got it made today.  General Tso's Chicken!   As you can see, we paired our chicken with jasmine rice and some edamame blanched in water and soy sauce.  Viv found the dish rather spicy, which surprised me ..read more

Driving along today, I was having a familiar internal monologue, "What do I do with freakin' chicken today?"  As most of you know, I can get into my "I hate chicken and am so bored to death with chicken" mindset very easily.  As I ran through past recipes in my mind, I had a thought of something else.  Thank God! Teriyaki chicken rice bowls!  I mixed up a simple marinade of lemon, soy sauce, hot sauce, oil, garlic and ginger. I scored my chicken breasts and got them marinating for a few hours.  Next step was preparing the teriyaki sauce.  In a small saucepan, I ..read more

And proud of it.  One of my all-time favorites is corn chowder.  I have many variations that I like, so it can be a little different each time.  The last batch was a pretty standard recipe, which is delicious and easy.  There is some prep, but if you enjoy cooking with real ingredients, you have to prep them.  We're all on the same page there, right? This recipe came from another book in my extensive collection: Cook's Country 2009.  I have modified it a little from time to time, but I use this recipe because of the fact it has been tested by their kitchens and ..read more

 A knack for cooking, that is! My daughter is a sucker for a crab rangoon.  My issue with this little morsel, is that pretty much every restaurant on Earth uses "krab" with a K.  Here, in my little coastal state, we spell "crab" with a C, as it is so. Red-dyed surimi (Krab) is fish. Not crab of any sort. It's fake ass Krab.  So, due to my seething loathing for this stuff, I informed the wunderkind that I'd much rather make rangoons at home so I know she's getting the real deal. We made our inaugural batch together yesterday and were quite pleased with our results.  ..read more

 You know that feeling when you make something to eat and you love it so much that you're just really impressed with yourself?  Yeah, that's where I am right now.    I made some Asian-inspired chicken lettuce wraps tonight. Not only am I really happy about this dinner, but there is plenty left for later in the week for lunches or more dinner.  Takes a little prep work, but hey, we're talking about cooking.  Comes with the territory. Sauce: 3 Tbs soy sauce 3 Tbs hoisin sauce 1 Tbs sesame oil 1 Tbs rice vinegar 1 Tbs peanut butter 1 Tbs honey 2 tsp Sriracha 1 ..read more

  Despite what many think, soup IS NOT just for winter time.  Soup can be the most filling, comforting, nutritious and simple to whip up. For a long time, I couldn't stand tomatoes. Cooked, like in sauces (spaghetti, pizza, etc.) was fine, but raw or in your face tomato dishes like tomato soup, nope.  I was always jealous though, seeing others with a hot bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. If you are one of those people, then this roasted red pepper may just be the ticket for you.  If you aren't one of those people, then this roasted red pepper may just be ..read more

 We all go through faves phases, right?  My latest food I think about all the time is Mexican Street Corn.  I like it on the cob, grilled and slathered with that delicious seasoned crema. But, I also like it off the cob, in the form of a salad. Certain restaurants around town offer their versions and many are quite good, but as is usually the case, I like it best when I make it myself. A recent, super-quick dinner we made was lime shrimp and Street corn salad. I realize my photo is all yellow up in your face, but I've never claimed to be a master photographer.   Viv ..read more

 I've been away for quite some time.  Life since the pandemic has been hectic, chaotic, and sometimes just a pain in the ass. In the last year, we lost my mom, I've gotten divorced and my baby is now 18. There are too many adjustments to even count.  Through all this, I've never stopped cooking though. One major adjustment, along those lines, is learning to cook for two, or more often than not, just for myself. Now, I'm making the effort to commit to writing about my favorite subject again:  FOOD. With it just being me and the kiddo most nights, we've gotten to where we jus ..read more

 I love Thanksgiving as much as the next girl. I know people always talk about, look forward to and consume Thanksgiving leftovers. I'm not much of a leftover lover, but I did my duty and had them for supper last night, again for lunch today but I couldn't go for #3. So, I made CALAMARI. Have I ever made calamari?  Hell no!  Have you? I was shocked when I discovered squid in the nearby Food Lion. I had to buy it. They stayed in the freezer for awhile because I was duly intimidated. But you know what? They are so simple to cook, I could teach a chimp to do it.  If only I ha ..read more