Food Wins

I love food. And I love taking pictures of food I love. I've had some major wins recently, and I thought I'd share them with you. Pizza Meatloaf A variation of Sabrina's stuffed meatloaf, except I used 1 pound of sausage and 1 pound of hamburger, then stuffed it with the pepperoni and mozzarella (or in this case, Italian blend shredded cheese). And I topped it with even more cheese, instead of your normal ketchup-y sauce on the top. This was even better as leftovers than it was straight out of the oven! Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Born from a major craving for chicken and bacon one day, I tried to find a recipe that combined the two. I found a lot that sounded like something I would like, but none that would meet the stringent anti-poultry tendencies of my husband. So I set out on my own. I cut chicken breast tenders in half, then sprinkled them with blackening seasoning. I wrapped each chunk of chicken in a slice of bacon, securing it with a toothpick. I broiled them in the oven and viola! Paul said they were good enough I could put them on the menu as a regular dish. We even tried out smothering them in Italian shredded cheese, and they were excellent that way as well. Dill Bread I love bread, and have an incredible weakness for crackly-crusted, chewy inside bread. Or any type of homemade bread, really. So imagine combining the two! I printed off the recipe for Dill Bread from Grit.com that I got in a newsletter forwarded to me by my mother-in-law. It sounded interesting - dill in bread. It was wonderful! It's not so much the dill I'm in love with, as I couldn't really taste the herb, so much as the end result (maybe because my dill is several years old). If you love ciabatta bread, you will love this recipe. I had to deviate from the recipe a bit - it mentions using dough scrapers, and I don't have any. So I used a combination of a large rubber spatula and my hands, and I think it turned out fine. I also didn't have bread flour, and I thought it turned out great. I did lower my oven to 400. I've had trouble with things burning, and didn't want to chance it. Cooking the bread in the pot with the lid on makes it deliciously moist and chewy on the inside, while that last 10 minutes after you take off the lid makes the crust delightfully crackly and beautifully browned. I loved it, and may or may not have eaten 2/3 of the loaf on my own. It does make a rather small loaf - 8 inches around and 3 inches thick. It's a one-day loaf, not a eat-on-it-all-week loaf. Other Random Food Pictures: Mom's Bread Recipe. My mom makes the most amazing wheat bread and rolls. I have her recipe, but she's tweaked and adjusted it so much over the years, that she's not positive of amounts. I'm getting close. In fact, I've quit buying bread and just make our own. Serves as a two-fold: It's better for us (all natural), and not as easy to just grab a slice and eat it, so not as many carbs for me. Grilled Cheese on Mom's Bread with Sauteed Onions. Saute some onions. In bacon grease is the best. Slice up the above homemade bread, and assemble a grilled cheese sandwich - layer the onions in between two slices of cheese. Heaven. The Ugliest Most Delicious Cookies. I'm going to brag. I make the best sugar cookies. They are amazing. One morning Nathan woke up as Paul was leaving for work, and was inconsolable, about seeing from his upstairs window Paul pulling out the driveway . I finally got him calmed down when I suggested we make Daddy cookies while he was at work. Nathan asked, "And we'll take them to him at work?" How could I refuse? I asked what kind he wanted. "Blue cookies." Okaaaaaay. I asked him if he wanted to put frosting on them. "Yes, purple frosting. And sparkles [sprinkles]?" They didn't really turn out blue, and the frosting wasn't quite purple, but they weren't any less amazing. And Paul enjoyed them even more because they were hand-delivered by the cutest two boys in the world, so he didn't even notice how ugly the cookies were. Cinnamon Rolls. I make treats once a month for Paul's shift. He likes treating them, and I don't mind doing it. I tweaked the The Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls (I can't ever be satisfied with a recipe the way it is written), and this is what I come up with. I send this many with him when I make them (which is a double batch), and it makes 1-2 round dishes (pie plates) of extra and ugly ones that we (I) get to enjoy at home. (When I send cookies, I make a quadruple batch.) Do we even need to ask why I can't lose weight?