I must admit.....

Baking has always been challenging for me, so in January 2007 I decided that I would spend that year sharpening my skills and becoming good at it. For awhile I thought I was getting there, but recently with all the pie trouble I have been having maybe not. Perhaps I shouldn't be so hard on myself, but really something has happened....maybe I am trying too hard, I am not really sure. So, I have decided I need to take a class on baking this summer. I am keeping my eyes open and am hoping I can find something at a local college or something like that.

Until then, I think I am going to spend some time experimenting with cooking. I am good at cooking, or so I like to think, and it has been some time since I tried something new. I am currently doing some research on healthy summer dishes to try. Any suggestions?

Clean Out the Fridge Stir Fry

Not to be confused with February post entitled Clean Out the Fridge Pasta. I would have loved pasta actually, I have been craving pasta like crazy for the past two weeks but have been resisting as I have decided it does not go well with my weight loss plan. However, tomorrow I will have to give into this craving as Peter has made reservations at my favorite Italian restaurant, Casa Nuova (stay tuned for blog entry) and I can't wait! Isn't he the best......actually I think he is sick of listening to me say I want pasta. :-)

Back to tonight....I had a lot of veggies in the fridge that had to be used so that they would not go bad so Peter suggestged stir fry.

So I got to work, we had chicken, carrots, celery, scallions, baby bella mushrooms, green cabbage, and soy beans. I made a quick sauce of sesame oil, soy sauce, and sesame ginger salad dressing.

Fantastic! I can't wait to eat it again for lunch!

Grilled Pizza, Pie Trouble & Left- Over Bliss

Long weekends are the best, here I sit in my PJ's, in my living room, on a Monday! Few things could make me happier right now.

On Saturday night a few friends came over and we made individual Grilled Pizzas. Peter and I make these pizza's once or twice a month, we just love them.

Start with a ball of store bought/ pizzeria dough. I use Publix pre-made dough which can be found in the bakery section. Cut into individual portions and roll out. Place on hot outdoor grill for about 3-4 minutes (be careful, you can burn them easily) then flip to brown the other side. Top with desired toppings and cheese and return to grill to melt everything together.

The leftover pizza toppings always find a good use. This time we made omelets for breakfast. Peter's was very boring (nothing new there) with just sausage and cheese. Mine was a crazy mix of all the left over veggies and some feta cheese.

For dessert I tried making this Chocolate Caramel Cream Pie from Martha Stewart Living, http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/chocolate-caramel-cream-pie?autonomy_kw=chocolate%20caramel%20pie&rsc=header_3.

I have had pie trouble the past few weeks and it is becoming rather frustrating. It all started with the dough.....again. I made it Friday night before heading to bed, everything seemed fine, came together as the recipe said it would and was not wet. Then around 12:30 am insomnia set in so I decided to get up and bake the crust. The only problem being it would not roll out. The dough was firm enough, however it kept cracking into large chunks. I worked at "saving" this dough for about an hour, kneading it, adding water, adding flour, rechilling.....nothing worked. So, I threw it out and started over and had the exact same issues. Finally, I decided to pick up a pre-made crust in the morning and said to hell with it.

Making the filling and the caramel whipped cream topping was a breeze....or so I thought. When I brought it out of the fridge to serve, it looked fantastic. However, when I cut into it, the filling was runny, the texture of pudding. Everything tasted really good but the consistency was not right.

Feeling defeated I called my Mom, who has a degree in the Culinary Arts, explained the entire situation and she thinks that all this trouble really is due to the weather. It has been very wet and humid recently, not ideal weather for making pies. I am going to run with this thought and hope she isn't just being nice to me because I am her daughter! :-)

Opa!

Several out of town friends were in this weekend for a wedding and the Gilbertson Family hosted a fantastic dinner on Friday night so we could all catch up. All of the food had a Greek theme, which is one of my favorite types of fare so I was very happy.....and full!

For starters we had a Greek salsa made of cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions and parsley which was very fresh and clean. Also, some of the best Feta cheese I have ever tasted, hummus and olives which were all to be eaten with Pita bread which Jeremy had lightly fried. This was all so delicious that I had to force myself to stop eating so that I could enjoy dinner!






For the main course we had grilled lamb chops that I believe just had a bit of olive oil, garlic and rosemary. I am not usually a lamb fan, however this is the second time I have had lamb chops at the Gilbertson's and both times they were delicious! Also, grilled veggies and terrific Greek style potatoes!



The meal and the company were fantastic! Such a great evening.

Oh yeah......I made blueberry pie for dessert (this blueberry pie has become an obsession) and again could not get the dough for the crust to come together right and had to use a store bought crust. I have been researching this issue and I really think it is due to the humidity in the air, I will however not be defeated, once the weather changes I will try again!

Honorary Blog Mention

My Mother and her friend Laura who lives in Arizona made this lovely tomato and mozzarella salad during their recent visit with purple basil. I have never had purple basil before, but it looks fantastic.

Great job ladies!

Mother's Day Celebrations

Today we honored the wonderful mother's in out lives.

We stated the morning with brunch at our house with my mom Marion, Peter's mom Jackie, and our sister in law Lindsey. On the menu was ham, roasted potatoes & onions, and fruit salad.

We also celebrated Norman's birthday, his favorite cake is red velvet so I tried my hand at this one from epicurious.com, http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/108256.

It was beautiful and the berries really added something. The only downfall was the texture of the cake. The flavor was great, but in reading the reviews many people commented that the texture was a bit dry. I took the advice of others and added a 1/3 cup of oil to the batter, but still found it to be a bit dry.

We were then off to my father in law's house to celebrate with Cristina. I made blueberry pie again and the filling was fantastic! Much better than my last go round and I think this is because the blueberry's are more in season. But for some reason the crust, which I have made several times, did not come together as well. I think it may be due to the wet weather we have been having, I am not sure, but I could not get it to be as firm as it usual is.

Lindsey also made delicious mac & cheese. This is a Kallos family fav and was enjoyed by all.

Lemon Spaghetti

Tonight, I had planned to make enchilada's (new recipe I am really wanting to try, and will soon) in the spirit of Cinco De Mayo, however since we had Mexican food last night with Lindsey & Riley I decided to go with something a little lighter.

Lemon Spaghetti is a recipe I saw about a year ago on Everyday Italian with Giada De Laurentiis. The sauce is made cold in a bowl and the heat from the pasta cooking liquid cooks it slightly.

I cheated a bit and bought a rotisserie chicken to add to the spaghetti, it was a long weekend and I was feeling tired so I didn't feel like taking the time to roast my own chicken as I normally would. We have also enjoyed this dish with shrimp, or on its own with a salad.

1 pound spaghetti

2/3 cup olive oil

2/3 cup grated Parmesan

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon lemon zest

1/3 cup chopped Italian Parsley

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the oil, Parmesan, and lemon juice in a large bowl to blend.

Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the lemon sauce, and the reserved cooking liquid, adding 1/4 cup at a time as needed to moisten. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with lemon zest and parsley.