Since cooking has been my passion these last few weeks, blogging has taken a backburner (even when it is about cooking). ‘Back burner’, see what I did, there?

Monday: Scotcheroos

Oh, these were fantastic. I have always loved these, but never made them. It’s funny how we just decide somethings are too hard. For me, buying butterscotch seems like a big deal. Not sure why.  I don’t hear the cookie- gods pause and watch with bated breath when I grab a bag of semi-sweets, but for some reason, butterscotch just seems so demanding. “Will you actually cook with me?” it seems to ask, while it looks down it’s curly-que nose at me.  “Or are you just going to open me with your noble intentions, and end up tossing me back with a glass of milk during Friday Night Movie Night?”

Well, I did it.  I made the scotcheroos. (Nyah, butterscotch, take THAT.) Unfortunately, it was in the morning…everyone was at school. Blaaah, I got so sick.  Mental note: only make these when 20 people are scheduled to show up at your house…within the hour….expecting scotcheroos. Thanks Hagey’s for this one!

Tuesday:  Easy to Stuff Manicotti

This recipe, by Anne Moran, was fun for me. Instead of mixing up ricotta, you just put a cheese stick into the pasta. So easy.  Since, I have never made manicotti, this was a treat for Dale. He was  impressed. We even got Jon (pickiest kid, ever) to try it when we told him it was just a cheese-stick and spaghetti sauce.

Wednesday: Peanut Butter Fingers

I had to make this recipe after our sweet friend Robin brought us a plateful. The end of the note she attached was  classic. ” I hope you enjoy these Peanut butter Fingers (pg 116).  – Robin.”  Ok, it isn’t a direct quote, but you get the point.  Robin has the most subtle, clever humor. I love it.  Teri Bisbee’s recipe was, of course, super yummy.

Thursday: Us.

I sat there at 11:30 again, almost in tears. It was really hard for me to face the fact that I was just too tired and would not make something tonight. I was so afraid of failure.  I was so afraid if I stopped, it would be over. If I didn’t do a recipe from the book, I knew I would never complete the challenge.  When I turned to pg. 172, my heart lept.  This recipe was such a needed break. What a ‘tender mercy’.

Us

1 Me

1You

Beat Differences. Drain Arguments. Put in 1/2 Your Feelings and 1/2 Mine. Add Understanding, Fun, Conversation, Touching. Stir together. Put on a Silver platter.

Thank you, Melody Bennit.

Friday: _______

Well, I  obviously had a valid concern about missing one day. Yep, this was the kids’ first day home from school and I just didn’t cook.

Star Wars Anniversary....no cooking.

Saturday: ________

We celebrated our anniversary a week early and in all the hubbub of a busy day, I didn’t cook again. But Star Wars: The Concert was great. We had a delightful time.  We also, were lucky enough to finally try the little Taqueria Jalisco on O’Connor. I have heard rave reviews. Everyone was right! Loved the Puffy Tacos and the refried beans are the best I have had…anywhere.

Sunday: Peanut Butter Crunch Bars

At 11:45 pm, I realized I could not let this go to three days with no recipe. I had to make something!  I was so happy to find a no-bake recipe that I had all the ingredients for. This recipe was quick and easy, but I found that I don’t like raisins with chocolate. (It was totally tasty, otherwise.)   For me, raisins and cinnamon should be together, like Edward and Bella. They are the true soulmates. Chocolate with the raisins is like having Jacob in the mix. It’s just confusing… though it does look good without it’s shirt.

(You didn’t think I would get through this whole experiment without a Twilight reference did you?)

(Note:  I am a week late with this post, I will post the current week, #3, later this week.)

So, this week was even more fun. I had a refreshed food budget this Tuesday, so I could finally buy some ingredients!!! (I am faithfully trying to stick to my envelopes system so when the food budget was gone, well, ok I wasn’t perfect there, either. Anyway, back to the food…..)

Monday: Ziploc Omelets

These were actually really good.  I did find out later there may be a problem with using Ziploc bags that way, but the omelets did turn out well. It was fun to mix them, until one child took the bag into the living room to mix.  “Um….why is there so little egg in your bag?”  Oh. No.  Bissell, you are Child X’s best friend right now.

Tuesday: French Dip Sandwiches

Yum. Yum. And Yum. This recipe was a bit more expensive, but my family went crazy for it. (by family I mean Bob, Dale, and Ashley) It was so rich and melty. Thank you, Jean Vogler for reinventing our sandwiches!

Wednesday: Taco Squares

Loved this recipe. Dale and I chowed down!! My kids aren’t big taco fans. (I know, right?) But they enjoyed their cereal and we enjoyed not having to share! This will be an Offret favorite….at least for the parents! Thanks again, Jean!

Thursday: Biscuits

These have the best flavor! I am not sure what I did, but I only got half what the recipe said I should and they were a bit too dense and crumbly. I called Melanie Johnson and requested a tutoring lesson! These taste too good to give up on! Seriously, there is cream in this recipe!

Friday: Chicken Salad Croissants

I had to improvise so much on this one, that it didn’t even really resemble the salad I have had numerous times at Anne Moran’s functions. I have to say, though, it was still good! Not as good as the real recipe way (which I tried again later in the week) but good enough to realize I needed to get all those ingredients, STAT! This was my first chicken salad and my husband was so happy. We ate so much! Gotta love Costco’s croissants.

Saturday: Carol Lenz’s Rolls

Going to bed at midnight and then realizing you didn’t make a recipe, stinks. It seems to be happening a lot! As I made these up, I was so sad that Carol Lenz had left for the summer in Idaho the week before.  If only I could just ask her a couple of questions! Well,  you can imagine my joy when I saw her get up to say the prayer this Sunday! Yaay! The poor woman didn’t even get out of the chapel before I was after her with my questions. “Ok, so how big should the rolls be before I let them rise?  How tall should they be when they have risen?” Poor, Carol.

I then ran home during Sunday School to find super inflated rolls mocking me from the oven where they had been rising. “Why did you even ask. Look at us, woman!” they seemed to say. As I tried to brush on the glaze, they recoiled from my touch. “No. Don’t even touch us.” Well, too bad, you guys are going in.

Yes, they were too spongy and light, but the flavor was fantastic!  I proudly brought a sample into Melanie Johnson as a thank you (and a “Can you believe I made these!”). I also brought a sample to my friend Julie who has been super supportive of this endeavor. I mean, they didn’t have to be perfect.  In church, you are so hungry, the baby’s Cheerios look like a feast! I can’t wait to try these again. This time I will make sure I leave out the fast rising yeast. I know, I should have brought Carol a sample, right? I just didn’t have the nerve. That would be like bringing my Playdoh sculpture in to Michelangelo! “Here, sir, I brought you a ‘David’!

Sunday: Nauvoo Chicken

This recipe is really good. It is creamy and rich and perfect for Sunday! I am not sure why it is called Nauvoo Chicken since I don’t think Pillsbury Crescent Rolls were very accessible along the Mississippi in the mid 19th century , but I digress. I think this may have been my first time baking with almonds. It won’t be my last.  Again, Dale and I chowed down!

We had some technical difficulties in uploading this picture to Facebook, so Dale sent along a random picture of the children’s book in front of him to test it out. “No Dale!” I yelled. “People will think we are saying we baked the Sneetches!” Well, this dish will probably be known as ‘Baked Sneetches’ from now on and no one will remember why.

Lotta help those belly stars were!

Oh what a week! I was nervous to start, but ya know what? This is an awesome experience. I was actually giddy as I made my first recipe. I could feel myself at the gate of a new me. A chubbier, slightly more domestic me.

Monday: King Ranch Chicken, Lemon Cheese Bars

This was Dale’s one request from the book, so I had to start with a bang.  I am a bit of an onion-phobe so I always cut the onion in a recipe in half. Well, not this time. Woohoo! Dale and my stepdad, Bob, loved it! I think I have been making my food too bland. Bob said it was so pretty, he wanted to take a picture of it. Awww. Thanks!  Good recipe, Heather Morris! I called Kirsten Bates to ask her a couple questions about it she told me it had the wrong name. It was actually her sis-in-law Heather’s recipe. Oops, a typo. Being an awesome cook, she answered my question, anyway.

April Clerc’s Lemon Cheese Bar recipe was actually the first cookie bar I have tried since the 90′s. I had had a bad chocolate chip bar experience. (I won’t go into it, it’s too painful.)  I think I messed these up too, but they were still pretty good!

Tuesday: Peanut Butter Krispies

Karo syrup is cool! I always thought you had to use marshmallows. These bars were from Sarah Parks and they were super yum. Kids (ok, me too) snatched these up. They didn’t last long. This was the first delivery that didn’t make it to Bob.

Wednesday: Balloon Buns

Super gooey, super yummy.  Jonathan prepared 2 of these then took off. Well, at least I got the picture. Every time I see this recipe, I think it says Baboon Buns.  I’m thinking these will forever be called that in our house. Classy, I know. Melanie Johnson, you were right. They do go fast! Next time, I will make more….and maybe let them cool. At least I will try.

Thursday: Epic Fail Snickerdoodles

Was it the fact that it was 11:30pm or that I had never dealt with Cream of Tartar before that stopped me from realizing that 2 TABLEspoons of the stuff was probably a typo?  Epic, epic fail. Well, at least I didn’t miss a day.

Friday: Julie’s Oatmeal

Again, 11:30pm. Shoot. It’s late, we are low on groceries *flip, flip* Aha! The ace in the hole, Julie Carter’s easy microwave oatmeal. It was good. REALLY good. I will never buy instant again and will keep a steady supply of walnuts and dried dates in my house. Delicious.

Saturday: Pumpkin Cake (and chicken casserole)

Well, the StoveTop chicken is something I have made for years (Thanks, Jess) so I didn’t feel it really fair to count that. In Teri Bisbee’s recipe, she said to just use half of a soup can of milk. I had always just used a half cup, so ..um..I guess it was kinda new.

The pumpkin cake was awesome. I got a bit nervous when I started Lindsey Kennedy’s version and realized it called for a tube pan. Oh well, I can adapt. I just slapped it into a 9X13 and baked it like I would any other cake. It’s actually  a big deal that I had the confidence to trust my inner domestic goddess.  I have freaked out and given up for less. So sad.  Anywhoo, Andrew definitely approved of that cake as I found 2 fistfuls gouged out of it. Grr.  Good thing I didn’t bother with the icing.  Second delivery that didn’t make it to Bob.

Sunday: Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies

Ok, these are good.  Again, Teri Bisbee knows her stuff!  As I mixed and baked these, I was convinced they were messed up. (I have cookie shame issues.) I persevered and ended up with some seriously delicious treats.  This is when I began to realize the annoying thing about this challenge. Since I have to keep making new things each day, I can’t repeat recipes. Well, who says I have to put hem in the blog, right?

Ya, you guessed it. Third delivery that didn’t make it to Bob.

On to the next week!

(Copied from my May 16, 2010 Facebook note.)

“That which we persist in doing becomes easy to do……”

Some ladies in our church just put together the best church cookbook I have ever seen. The recipes are ones I have drooled over for years. Living in this ward (or church’s local congregation) for seven years, I have seen some amazing things show up at our potlucks. Now, I have the recipes! Do I have the skill? Not so much. This book seems seem so approachable and reasonable, though! One of the ladies in church was joking that one of us should do a ‘Julie & Julia’ inspired experiment with it. A whole year? Hahaha. No. I do wonder what could happen in 30 days….

Since we are encouraged as women to ‘create’ and develop our talents (in this case, I would be actually creating a talent), I think this may be a win/win effort. I’m gonna do it. I am going to try a new recipe from the book every day. Because there is a large variety of effort required, with a bit of planning, I should be able to find something to suit the day, no matter how crazy. Each Sunday, I will create a little note to report my glorious triumphs and epic failures. This experiment would serve two purposes. 1.) I told you all I will do it so I have a bit of accountability and 2.) writing about it will give me a chance to learn about my inner domestic goddess. (Which is currently somewhere between a demi-goddess and Medusa. Yes, we did just see Clash of the Titans!)

What is Dale’s take on this? “I will try anything you put in front of me. If it is seafood, greeny or looks like seaweed….just give me a couple of minutes.” Awww. Isn’t he sweet? Don’t worry honey, I didn’t see any aspics.

Well, wish me luck. If I use your recipe, I will definitely sing your praise…even though it may not resemble your actual results. Do any fellow contributors have an entry they would like to see me take on? Leave me a request in the comments and consider it done. (Oh, I may end up regretting that.)

My one contribution to the cookbook.

Special thanks to Melanie Johnson for spearheading the cookbook, it really is very cool. I also have to thank Cherie Borden for giving me the idea! Thanks for always keeping me in irreverent giggles whenever I sit by you in church.