The Foodie BlogRoll

Welcome Foodie BlogRoll readers! I joined a group of foodies posting blogs on the web. I've been reading some of the blogs, and they are top-notch. My style of cooking is geared towards comfort food (not that there's anything wrong with that)...but I have a few tricks up my sleeve- I think I'm going to have to step it up! Thank you, Jenn.

The bread pudding didn't happen last night because a tornado nearby knocked out power. It was back on a few hours later, in the wee hours of the morning. Was the bread pudding doomed from the start? I don't know yet! I am going to try again later today- check back and I'll let you know...and the eggs.

It's Chili in Miami

As the forecast predicted, it's cold and rainy. Okay, maybe you northerners don't think 73 degrees is cold, but it is cold enough to cook up a big 'ol pot of chili in Miami! Step one is done and in an hour, I'll add the beans. Here is what is cooking now:

Diced large red onion
Diced green jalapeno peppers (5)
Garlic cloves minced (3)
Ground beef (not lean) 1 1/2 pounds
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. seasoned salt
1/3 cup chili powder
A couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 lg. can diced tomatos
1 lg. can crushed tomatos

First, I heated the vegetable oil in my chili pot. Then I threw in the ground beef, onion, jalapenos and garlic. After letting that brown up for 10-15 minutes, I added the tomatoes, chili powder and salts. After bringing to a boil, the heat goes on low and the pot gets partially covered for one hour. After an hour, I'll add one can each of black beans, red kidney beans and chili beans and bring everything back to a boil. At that point, it's ready to eat, but I think I'll let it simmer for a couple more hours. No matter how long I let it cook today, it will still taste better tomorrow! My partner is making the best cornbread recipe ever, a recipe we found on the internet late last year. The words the "best...ever" are admittedly overused, but if you try this cornbread (and I strongly suggest you do), you will see that the descripton is appropriate in this case.

Chili- finished and ready to eat. It was wonderful.

I'm gonna make some mighty fine bread pudding tonight...and the eggs.

Italian Weekend

No, we didn't spend the weekend abroad. We spent it enjoying the new flat-screen television we installed in the backyard near the pool. Maybe it was The Sopranos marathon which, as it subconsciously poked at our bellies, hypnotized us to crave pasta. Sunday night we had spaghetti bolognese. The sauce takes a full day to cook and is flavored with pork ribs- it's the tastiest sauce we've made yet. We added meatballs made with ground pork and ground beef. Monday evening, we had chicken marsala. A friend at work gave me the recipe (I had never made marsala anything). It was okay, it was on the rich side and I didn't see the point to the chicken. I think I would use veal if I made it again...or make it meatless. (I can't say vegetarian because there is chicken stock used in the preparation of the sauce). It tasted best without chicken on the fork- just the sauce, fettucine and mushrooms made a savory combo.
I guess I should check the TV Guide this weekend to decide what to buy at the grocery store...and the eggs.