A Cook's Quest

Potato salad in my house doesn't last long.  I typically stay with my usual recipe but occasionally I will get a wild hair and use Dijon mustard instead of regular, or even, GASP, different pickles.  But, for the most part the potato salad that this cook serves up is creamy, delicious and very predictable. Yesterday, while I was contemplating what to serve with the grilled chicken we had, I started looking up potato salad recipes.  How is it that I never thought of putting bacon or cheese into it?  I also found versions calling for capers, vinaigrette dressings, and many other assortments of tasty ingredients.  I decided to make up a recipe of my own, something new that I could make and surprise my family. The result was a fabulously flavorful, simple salad that paired wonderfully with the grilled chicken rubbed down in that tasty rub.  It is slightly reminiscent of a German Potato salad but the dressing is creamier from the blue cheese dressing, wh...

My mom recently returned from a trip to Europe and one of the gifts she gave to me was this lovely assortment of goodies:  Are you wondering why she gave me a grater, rocks, a wooden scoop and a bowl?  I sure was!  Then she explained that the rocks were salt from Salzburg .  You, grate the rocks using the little grater, into the bowl and then use the little wooden scoop to get what you need.  My friends have all heard of this rock salt but I must have been living under a rock because I thought it was just the neatest thing ever!  To top it off, the salt makes my food, especially meats, taste amazing.  I've been adding it to everything I can and loving the results. Then while digging through my cupboards I found this little contraption, also a gift, and also from my mom.  I believe it was given at Christmas and I had forgotten about it.  So I instantly knew what I was going to do...I was going to make a rub, using my new favorite salt...

The title of this recipe is a bit deceiving because it isn't really for a whole cobbler, just the crust.  You see, I have no interest in cooked fruit, unless the said fruit is an apple.  When served cobblers, my method is to eat a corner piece that is likely to have more crust than fruit and even then I'm not happy because most of the cobblers I have consumed didn't posses a crust worth remembering...now enter my friend Anisha's cobbler. The peach cobbler she brought to work shortly after starting in my office was amazing, phenomenal, superb, simply put, like everything else she cooks, Anisha's cobbler is legendary.  It is simple and straight forward, nothing fancy or overly hard to prepare.  I am told it works beautifully with any fruit filling you might want to put under it for the simple reason that the crust is so marvelous.  So go to the local market and buy whatever fruit you want (my kids wanted peaches), mix it with some sugar and cornstarch f...

I don't think any backyard BBQ is complete without beans.  Now I love homemade baked beans but I had never tried to make them.  I had, until now, been content with eating canned beans that I doctor up a little bit, or even better the homemade versions that others so kindly bring.  That is until I found this recipe posted by Heather at Gourmet Meals For Less , when she guest blogged over at Eatin' on the Cheap .  These beans are hearty, sweet, and utterly delicious with any food cooked on a grill, not to mention easy easy easy on the budget!  **Cook's Note-I am posting this exactly as Heather posted it originally. No changes or alterations were need by this cook!  Her pricing is close to what mine would be, check out the total at the bottom--I love a good deal! Calico Beans Recipe Source: Heather from Gourmet Meals For Less Serves 12 3-4 medium onions, halved and sliced 1.00 5 bacon strips, diced 1.00 2 garlic cloves, minced .08 1 cup p...

There is nothing like a delicious hot breakfast. During the school year, I am lucky enough that I don’t have to worry about my kids eating breakfast because they eat at school. Then summer rolls around and I realize that I either have to get up earlier in order to make breakfast for the three little darlings, or I have to make sure we pack a breakfast to take along to daycare. Some mornings it’s option one, but most mornings we end up taking breakfast along with us. In an attempt to find an easier solution I stumbled upon this recipe for baked French toast that was easy, tasty, and didn’t cause too much disruption to my morning sleep. Baked French toast in my opinion is very much like bread pudding. This one is layered with apples and lots of cinnamon sugar creating a decadent hot breakfast, which everyone in the family loves. The little pieces of apple stayed a little bit firm adding some crunch to the moist, fluffy French bread that soaked up all that egg and cream overnight and...

 Last week, Mel at Mel's Kitchen Cafe posted this recipe for Andes Mint Brownies .  I love, love, love Andes mints so I knew that this was a recipe I wanted to try.  Some of you may remember the mint brownie debacle that graced this blog a few months ago, let me just tell you that this brownie recipe is no way, shape or form even remotely similar to that mess. These brownies, THESE brownies are what brownies should be.  Soft, chewy, dense bites of rich choclate and at the bottom nice chunks of the perfect mints.  The mints make a layer of their own and are just the perfect match to a perfect brownie.   Need I really say more? Probably not, I think you all understand my stance on this recipe! Andes Mint Brownies Recipe source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe *Makes one 9X13-inch pan or cut the recipe in half and bake in a 9X9 pan for about 20-23 minutes 1 cup butter (2 sticks) 2 cups granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 ...

I am a cookie snob.  I'll just get that out there now so you all know that bit of information, that being said, I love these cookies.  I have used similar recipes in the past, from the back of certain brand name fruit packages and they were good, but I thought they needed a little something more. A dash of this, and dab of that and the cookies I liked before are now cookies the I LOVE! Every single bit provides chocolate and fruit, and the hint of cinnamon just rounds all those flavors out perfectly. I love these cookies in the morning because they aren’t too sweet and I can tell myself they are healthy with the dried berries. Oh, I can’t forget to mention you can change up the flavor profiles, use dried cherries or blueberries, or regular chocolate instead of the white. These are delicious!! Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies Recipe Source: A Cook's Quest 2/3 cup Softened butter 1/3 cup brown sugar packed 1/3 cup white sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp...