One Hundred and Thirty-Six

Wednesday, October 27

Butterscotch cookies.

Thanks to Janice Walsh for this recipe, and for introducing me to this website, where I found a ton of dessert recipes that I'm looking forward to trying out.

These get their butterscotch flavor from the combination of browned butter and brown sugar, which makes them taste really full-bodied. Very nice!

One Hundred and Thirty-Five

Tuesday, October 26

Kahlua cupcake.

Chocolate chocolate chip kahlua cupcake with kahlua frosting...pretty much yes. These were SO good!

One Hundred and Thirty-Four

Monday, October 25

Cappuccino cheesecake.

One of my favorite cheesecakes, always a hit.

One Hundred and Thirty-Three

Sunday, October 24

Tacos.

Inspired from the previous week's taco truck trip. Spiced ground beef, pinto beans, onion, cilantro, pepper jack cheese, salsa, hot sauce, lime. Mexican home run.

One Hundred and Thirty-Two

Saturday, October 23

Mediterranean sandwich.

Pita bread, filled with diced chicken, tomato, red bell pepper and fresh tzatziki (plain yogurt, minced cucumber, dill, dijon, minced garlic, salt & pepper). Super delicious and refreshing.

One Hundred and Thirty-One

Friday, October 22

Chocolate chip muffin.

I've been in a major baking phase lately, so these happened. There were complaints of "too many chocolate chips," but I feel that is ludicrous. The batter is really only there to hold them all together.

One Hundred and Thirty

Thursday, October 21

Cajun bangers & mash.

That's the only name I could think of. I think it works. Sauteed bell peppers, onions, garlic and smoked sausage with cumin and chili powder, served on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes. I was really impressed with this one, as were the other members of my family. Sorry for making your dish have flavor, England.

Too far?

One Hundred and Twenty-Nine

Wednesday, October 20

Coffee cake.

A classic in our house. Light, fluffy cake, topped with a brown sugar & spice streusel. I think I ate about half of this pan. AND I WOULD DO IT AGAIN.

One Hundred and Twenty-Eight

Tuesday, October 19

Broccoli cheese soup.

It had been raining for a couple of days and soup started to sound really good. I sauteed some celery, potatoes, onions and garlic in a pot with olive oil and spices (cumin, thyme, salt, pepper), added chicken broth and cooked it until the veggies were tender. After this came the broccoli, which I had steamed in the meantime. Then it was immersion blender time. Added tons of cheddar cheese and some half & half. For never having made this before, I was really pleased with the outcome. Good thing I wrote it down....oh wait.

One Hundred and Twenty-Seven

Monday, October 18

Enchilada casserole.

Layers of corn tortillas, enchilada sauce, cheese, tomato, black beans and lettuce (which I usually wouldn't include but it was pretty good), baked for half an hour and then topped with avocado, sour cream, hot sauce and cilantro.

One Hundred and Twenty-Six

Sunday, October 17

Tacos.

Went to a taco truck for the first time, right around the corner from my house, and it was amazing. Two chicken tacos, topped with onion and cilantro, served with pinto beans and radishes, garnished with lime and hot sauce of choice. So good. I'll be making my way back there many times, I'm sure.

One Hundred and Twenty-Five

Saturday, October 16

Hot dogs.

I love hot dogs. And they taste really good at midnight. I usually just eat them with ketchup, but mustard and relish are okay, too.

You know what sounds good? Sauerkraut. Yeah.

One Hundred and Twenty-Four

Friday, October 15

Pizza.

This from Guido's, the best pizza place in my neighborhood. Topped with green bell peppers and red onions. This also had anchovies on it...but I may or may not have pulled them off.

One Hundred and Twenty-Three

Thursday, October 14

Hamburger.

Got a craving for burgers after seeing one on tv...this happens a lot.

Mom's famous hamburger patties with all sorts of secret ingredients, plus lettuce, tomato, colby jack, barbecue sauce and dijon.

PS - Mom, I made one for Dad too so there are only 4 patties left in the freezer.

One Hundred and Twenty-Two

Wednesday, October 13

Pancakes.

Recipe, schmrecipe. Just throw some flour, sugar, baking powder, milk and eggs into a bowl, add frying pan and call it pancakes. They got the Chris Anderson Nod of Approval, so I'll mark this one a success.

Topped with buttah and maple syrup.

One Hundred and Twenty-One

Tuesday, October 12

Custard & berries.

Raspberries and blueberries, topped with a simple stirred custard (milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla) and whipped cream. Light and refreshing.

One Hundred and Twenty

Monday, October 11

Burritos.

Refried beans, colby jack cheese, hot sauce and sour cream in a flour tortilla. One of my favorite meals. Don't judge me.

One Hundred and Nineteen

Sunday, October 10

Yogurt & strawberries.

Trader Joe's strikes again, and I mean that in the football sense.

Is that right?

One Hundred and Eighteen

Saturday, October 9

Tea loaf.

Trader Joe's makes some really delicious breakfast foods, including one of my favorites: Orange & Cranberry Tea Loaf. It is stellar.

One Hundred and Seventeen

Friday, October 8

Steak & potatoes.

A nice dinner with the family. Grilled steak was the star, accompanied by grilled potatoes and steamed green beans, which I tossed with a homemade garlic balsamic vinaigrette. We washed all that down with a real tasty cabbernet soviggnun.*

*love you, Mom

One Hundred and Sixteen

Thursday, October 7

Turkey & strawberry sandwich.

I am a firm believer in fruit on sandwiches. This beauty was chock-full of turkey, sliced strawberries, baby lettuce, aged white cheddar, raspberry vinaigrette, and sprinkled with salt and black pepper. I was a big fan.

One Hundred and Fifteen

Wednesday, October 6

Soup.

Rainy day = hearty, sausage & bean soup. Lots of veggies, beans, grains, summer sausage...this dish was the warmth.

One Hundred and Fourteen

Tuesday, October 5

Whopper, Jr.

A day filled with lots of flying, lots of reading and lots of Burger King.

One Hundred and Thirteen

Monday, October 4

BLT.

Another BLT, this one without turkey...and on whole wheat. It IS different than that one I made before. Or that's what I'll keep telling myself.

One Hundred and Twelve

Sunday, October 3

Chicken cacciatore.

I'm not entirely sure, but I think the conversation went something like this:

Brian - "I haven't had chicken cacciatore in a long time."

Janice - "Okay, I'll make it."

And then it was delicious. Yet another reason she is so amazing.

One Hundred and Eleven

Saturday, October 2

"Texas Blossom."

An entire deep-fried onion with ranch dipping sauce...this is basically all things that are good.

One Hundred and Ten

Friday, October 1

Pasta, ground venison & veggies.

Capellini, tossed with olive oil, fresh basil, tomatoes and green bell peppers; ground venison, cooked with olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper; topped with mozzarella cheese. Served with Janice Walsh's savory green beans.

One Hundred and Nine

Thursday, September 30

"Cafe wrap."

Chicken, pear, baby spinach, sliced almonds, bleu cheese, raspberry cream cheese and red wine vinaigrette. I would go back to Deep Creek just for this.

One Hundred and Eight

Wednesday, September 29

"Firecrackers."

A southwestern spring roll from Santa Fe, one of my most-frequented restaurants in Deep Creek. Corn, red onions, tomatoes, hot peppers; topped with a spicy, creamy Chipotle sauce. Fantastic!

One Hundred and Seven

Tuesday, September 28

Tea.

Snatched some Earl Grey in my trusty travel mug (designed and created by the remarkable Jen Glen) on my way out the door, early in the morning in Deep Creek.

One Hundred and Six

Monday, September 27

Eclairs.

One small part of our many-faceted dessert after a great dinner with some of my favorite people.

PS - I love eclairs.

One Hundred and Five

Sunday, September 26

Dutch sausage rolls.

Part of our hors d'oeuvres for family dinner in Deep Creek. A classic in our household, they're basically ground beef sausages, mixed with all kinds of delicious things, wrapped in puff pastry. The Netherlands' answer to Beef Wellington, I guess. Beef Beatrix, if you will.

One Hundred and Four

Saturday, September 25

Caesar salad.

From a hotel restaurant in Maryland. Not the best I've had, but still pretty good. Parmesan, nice dressing and a few different kinds of croutons...not half bad.

One Hundred and Three

Friday, September 24

Sushi.

Thanks to Alison Farrier for hosting a great sushi party; after making the same conventional rolls over and over, we started to get a bit more creative. Her masterpiece is featured front and center here: beef jerky sushi.

My creations are left: peanut butter & jelly sushi, and right: cream cheese, avocado & potato chip sushi. The first tasted like a pb&j sandwich, which I suppose is what I was looking for. The second, though....well that was just delicious. Just ask Mike.

One Hundred and Two

Thursday, September 23

Candied ginger bread.

Oma's creation. Not a huge fan of ginger, but I really liked the texture and overall flavor.

One Hundred and One

Wednesday, September 22

Boddington's Pub Ale.

Kicking off Deep Creek 2010 in style. I quite like this brew, but if I'm going to go to the trouble of opening a can and having a CO2-releasing widget make me spill it all over myself, I'd rather have a Guinness.

One Hundred

Tuesday, September 21

Peanuts.

Compliments of Southwest Airlines. I almost choked to death, so thanks very much.

Ninety-Nine

Monday, September 20

Bacon.

Mike and I had to figure out what to do with an entire package of bacon before leaving for two weeks. Feeling very much up to the task, we cooked it all and ate it.

I know. We're pretty hardcore.

Ninety-Eight

Sunday, September 19

Chicken pot pie.

Thank you, Marie Callender, for being awesome. There's something about pre-packaged food that just makes me feel like a schoolkid. Not that I ever had pre-packaged food as a schoolkid.

Ninety-Seven

Saturday, September 18

Peanut butter & jelly sandwich.

PB&J = BFFs. That is all.

Ninety-Six

Friday, September 17

In N Out.

Cheeseburger and animal-style fries...I was in my happy place. Some people have bad things to say about In N Out, but it's amazing and haters gon hate.

Ninety-Five

Thursday, September 16

Chicken Caesar salad.

Mike and I tag-teamed this one, complete with Mike's phenomenal chicken seasoning and my homemade Caesar dressing. This is a repeat performance for sure.

Ninety-Four

Wednesday, September 15

Cookie brownies.

Credit to Mike for inspiring this.

Mike - "Linds, I want cookies. Or brownies. Or a combination of both."

Linds - "Okay."

Shaped like a brownie, dense like a cookie, crumbly like a brownie, chewy like a cookie, delicious like both...a delightful amalgam of both.

Ninety-Three

Tuesday, September 14

Bagel & cream cheese.

One of my all-time favorite breakfasts/snacks. Plain or onion, preferably. This was the latter.