culinary adventures and occasional disasters
A local magazine was having a cookie recipe contest, so of course I wanted to enter! It's an unusually chilly summer day today, and it's raining, so I think I came up with these because they remind me of fall. Makes about 4½ dozen. Ingredients 2¼ cups pecan halves 2 tbsp melted butter 1¼ cups… Continue reading Spiced Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies
A friend has surgery recently and was really craving a flavorful soup, but it had to be entirely pureed (cheese in the photo was my test bowl - cheese is optional.) At first, I was going to try to make something similar to my chicken tortilla soup, but I didn't have all of the ingredients.… Continue reading Southwestern Tomato Soup
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which are marked with *. I receive compensation from purchases made using these links. I have a "book club" with a group of girlfriends that really isn't a book club - we get together and eat good good and drink wine. Why is it called book club, then? Long… Continue reading Gnocchi Bolognese With Braised Short Rib
I love classic custard and meringue pies, especially lemon meringue and lime meringue pies. This recipe is perfect for summer, but let's be honest, I make it year-round. The one in the picture is made in my vintage Pyrex fridge dish (approximately 8" x 6.5" x 2.5"), but I've also made it in a traditional… Continue reading Lemon Meringue Pie
There is a new local restaurant in an area that desperately needs some good restaurants. One of their specials the first night I went was short rib ravioli, and it was amazing. I knew I needed to try to replicate it at home. I took a major shortcut and used sauce from Wegmans because I… Continue reading Short Rib Ravioli
I volunteer to cook at a local shelter once a month with a group from church. I've typically signed up for side dishes and desserts, but this time I signed up to make the main dish. After almost running out of time with my roasted potatoes last time, I wanted to make something that would… Continue reading Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa, Ground Beef, & Basil
I had a potluck with my horseback riding club on Friday. I made brownies to bring, but my bestie was leaving late from work and wasn't going to have something to bring... so I made guacamole for her to bring! I used my stand mixer for this because I don't own a molcajete anymore. The avocados… Continue reading Guacamole
