Thanks for Thanks

Well, we made it through Thanksgiving and I am oh so thankful for that (among other, more important things of course - like health, happiness and family).  All those spreadsheets and hours of planning paid off because the day went off without a hitch!  Everyone loved it, we had a great time and great food. Here are some pics of our day of food...

9am - Shove that bad boy in the oven

The finalized tablescape.  I think the pears with brown bows really do it.  Eat your heart out Martha Stewart!

There she blows! The most luscious, perfectly browned turkey we could have ever been thankful for...

In addition to the luscious turkey, we had stuffing, homemade applesauce, corn, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and homemade gravy.  We were too hungry to stop and take pictures, sorry!  You'll just have to conjure up these cozy Thanksgiving images on your own ;)

Everyone's favorite part of the meal, dessert!

I was so excited to eat dessert, I forgot to take a pic of the pumpkin cheesecake before we served it!

Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

Lots of wine and great people and food, for me that's a success!  

Martha Freakin' Pumpkin Stewart Cheesecake

I did it! I managed to successfully make a cheesecake - a pumpkin cheesecake no less! No cracks, no mushy inside, homemade crust, this is restaurant quality stuff here people. After hearing how difficult it is to make cheesecake I was weary but I soldiered on and by god, won the prize. It tastes amazing, cheesy not-too-pumpkin-y goodness.  This could easily sit alongside one of my mother-in-law's homemade goodies.  

The recipe can be found here courtesy of the happy homemaker, Martha Stewart. She may not be able to manage her finances legally, but she sure can cook!  

I concentrated so hard while making it I thought my eyes would fall out. I painstakingly read each and every direction again and again to get it right. Patience and fortitude paid off because I got a Martha Stewart Cheesecake. Sorry Martha, I know it is your recipe but I'm taking all the credit for how this puppy turned out!

I even made my own graham cracker crust!

I said the cheesecake was a success, but I didn't claim it was sans mess!

There she is in all her un-cracked glory!

Tell me this beauty couldn't be in a bakery somewhere

So much for my diet...

Thanksgiving, Part 1.5

Frankenstorm hit, but luckily it did not cause too much disruption to my immediate area.  The same cannot be said for places such as NY and NJ.  My heart goes out to all those who lost things, people and their lives in that storm.

Considering the devastation of Hurricane Sandy I did not feel right cooking up an entire warm, cozy Thanksgiving meal as a test run.  It felt wasteful and unnecessary in light of the recent events.  I did make some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies however. (recipe can be found here). 

The first batch came out great (to my surprise!), the second batch, not so much (typical).  Maybe it was because the batter sat there while the first batch cooked?  Or maybe I made bigger cookies by accident and they needed longer to cook than the first batch, I'm not sure, but the first batch was great nonetheless.  Actually the cookies got better with each passing day.  The flavors seemed to meld together or something.  

Look at that ooey gooey goodness!!

Thanksgiving, Part I

I am hosting Thanksgiving for my in-laws this year so the pressure for it to be perfect is high. Not only is this my first time hosting any holiday, but its also my daughter's first ever Thanksgiving. My in-laws can cook, they eat with real dishes, they use real utensils and glasses, and they're used to perfect Donna Reed dinners and decor. My mother-in-law makes her own floral arrangements, makes Cinnabons and pies from scratch, makes clothes and can clean like someone with severe OCD! This woman does it all, how I am supposed to keep up with that?!

She's very particular and opinionated so the idea that my novice cooking skills (or lack thereof) will be put to the test this Thanksgiving is more than intimidating. I make box cake, I buy pre-made floral arrangements and I eat on the couch off paper plates. How ever will I survive??

I took all that nervousness and decided that I needed a plan. I'm the type of person who loves lists, organization, planning and efficiency. You could say I'm cursed as a perfectionist. So my planning commenced. I scoured the Internet looking for recipes that weren't too hard, had ingredients I recognized and that felt manageable. After hours (literally hours, three of them) of scouring I picked my menu. I then proceeded to make an Excel spreadsheet listing each part of the meal and the ingredients needed. I know what you're thinking and you're right.  I then sorted this into things I could make the day before and things that must be made the day of. THEN, I made another spreadsheet that took the like ingredients from each recipe and grouped them together so I know how much to buy of each thing. I'm nuts, I know, but it made me feel better.

You thought I was kidding, didn't you?  :)

Next it was time to plan the decorations. I looked at tons of pictures of tablescapes (thanks Sandra Lee for the technical term) only to feel overwhelmed. Do I want a rustic, warm colored decor, or do I want white, gold simple decor? Flowers or pumpkins and gourds as the centerpieces? Spray painting pears to use as place cards - overkill? too much work?

I love decorating and in all my excitement I knew I was getting carried away. I talked with my husband about all this pressure (for which he reminded me I'm the only one putting pressure on myself) and how I wanted it to be perfect. And then I asked how much he'd be comfortable with me spending on decor and he luckily had the same amount in mind that I did.

The next day I packed myself and the baby up and went to everyone's favorite place, Target. I expected to find a ton of Thanksgiving/Fall decorations but they had n-o-t-h-i-n-g. Target was full of Halloween and Christmas decorations, yes that's right I said Christmas. It's October! I don't know, I thought the Pilgrims starting America was kind of important, worthy of at least one aisle of decorations. I was even willing to settle for cheesy tchotchkes like wooden pilgrim couples or ceramic turkeys but even those were MIA. I couldn't even find a wreath. I wound up with a fall-ish table runner with matching placemats and napkins.

I have more work to do, this was just a preliminary test for looks 

I returned home feeling defeated but determined to scrounge something up for the decor. This weekend will be my menu test run, pray for me! I'll write about how it goes next week - maybe during the Frankenstorm!

What are you making this Thanksgiving? Share some of your best tips for impressing the in-laws (recipes, decor ideas, fun things to do, etc). How do you decorate for Thanksgiving?

I'm the Boss, Applesauce

After my husband picked a ton of apples last weekend (which you can read about here) I knew we needed something to do with those apples. Make a pie you say? Nah, trying to lose the baby weight. Eat them as snacks? Nah, I'm allergic to apples. I decided to make homemade applesauce.

I found a recipe courtesy of The Frugal Girls 

Lucky for me the directions couldn't be easier. Peel, core and chop the apples. Mix water, cinnamon, sugar and vanilla together. Pour over apples and place in the slow cooker for four hours. Voila, applesauce!! Now that is my kind of cooking!

YUM!!!!!!!

Homemade Granola Bars

I eat Chewy Granola Bars like it's my job. In a rush? Grab a Chewy Bar. Hungry but can't decide what to eat? Grab a Chewy Bar. Running out the door with no breakfast? Grab a Chewy Bar.

I've spent more money on Chewy Bara since I graduated college than any other food item (except maybe chicken) so I finally decided to save some dough and learn to make my own.

I wanted the chocolate chip kind, not the I'm-oh-so-healthy-I-eat-wheat germ kind of granola bar.  For once, I actually felt that this was easy!  Toss some flour, brown sugar, butter, oats, honey, a pinch of baking soda, a dash of vanilla and some chocolate chips into a bowl, and mix.  Pour into a baking dish, pat down and bake for 20 minutes, legitimately easy!

The best part is they are totally customizable - healthy, fruit, nuts, peanut butter, etc. - your own menu, created and baked by none other than you!!

Building my cooking confidence one recipe at a time.

Success, at Last!

My husband got home late last night as he was at his favorite place, Costco.  So late in fact that I had already eaten dinner. I felt bad, but a girl's gotta eat.  "Did you cook?" you ask.  No, of course not!  I heated up leftovers!

After watching my husband haul a ton of bulk items into our already cramped home, I offered to make him something to eat.  He thankfully agreed and requested a grilled ham and cheese sandwich.  Thank God he didn't ask for something more complicated! 

I can actually make grilled cheese.  It's like french toast but without the batter.  My husband told me about his day and he stood secretly observing my every move.  I took out all of the ingredients I needed - bread, butter, ham, and cheese.  

(For someone who doesn't cook my kitchen is pretty sweet, right?)

Proudly, I began.  And then I paused.  What heat should I put the pan on?  Do I spray it with cooking spray so the sandwich doesn't stick?  I really don't want to screw this up for him.

I swallowed my pride and asked him.  Then I was on my way.  Until, the butter.  Cold butter, fresh bread, they don't mix (which I've learned from tearing many a piece).  What I didn't anticipate however was getting butter from the stick onto the knife.  

My husband told me to scrape it off the top "because that's the easiest way to do it."  Yea right, maybe for him.  This is what resulted...

My butchered butter

Once I got the bread buttered I was in business.  

One of the main reasons I fail at cooking is because I am impatient.  I never wait long enough for the bread to get crispy or for the cheese to melt or for the cookies to bake.  (The other main reason of course is that I have no clue what I'm doing). 

I was nervous about the flip, but it went smoothly and things were shaping up nicely.  

My husband forced patience on me this time, probably more for his sake (and his sandwich) than for mine.  The eensy bit of patience paid off and the grilled cheese was complete.  SUCCESS!!!!  

Cooking: 1,000,000 - Me: 1

Two Halves Make a WHOLE Lotta Cupcakes!

As you know my husband is our family cook so for my husband's birthday I decided I would pamper him with a day free of cooking.

Breakfast went well as I made one of the few things I am good at cooking - french toast.  Low-fat milk, one egg beaten, cinnamon.  Dip the bread in and fry it up. Top with syrup, raspberries, blueberries and bananas.

Breakfast was at 11am since my husband slept in (which he never has time to do!) so dinner was up next.  I'm blaming the rest of the day's disaster on those cooking shows where they make everything look so easy.  I watched those shows for weeks looking for the perfect birthday dinner, until finally, lobster mac and cheese came shining through my television screen.  Dessert was easier to choose, boston cream cupcakes and chocolate orange cupcakes.  The ease with which Ina, Giada, Sandra, and Paula whipped up meals gave me confidence that I could do the same!  I forgot however, that I am not a chef as they are...

I had all my recipes planned and printed out, the ingredients were waiting in the fridge, and mentally I was prepared.  I was smart enough to see how long each recipe took and realized I had to start with the cupcakes first.  Through showers of expletives I carefully, and slowly, for fear of screwing up AGAIN, created the batter for the cupcakes.  As I poured the batter into the molds I realized I failed to halve the recipe.  Between the two cupcake recipes I was going to wind up with 50 cupcakes.....for two people....DAMN!

I thought that was the end of the cupcake battle, however I failed to see what lay ahead.  Boston cream cupcakes are supposed to have filling.  Ina took one of those cool pastry bags and shot some filling into her cupcakes, couldn't be easier right?  Fat chance.  I over-filled the pastry bag, cream was everywhere and shooting it into the cupcake without destroying it was near impossible.  I managed to get them done as I mumbled curses and asked myself, why did you decide to do this?  couldn't you just have taken him to a really expensive dinner?  

I was excited to learn to make my own cupcake frosting because I'll be honest, sometimes I buy it and eat is all by itself.  Everyone needs a guilty pleasure right?

I read and re-read the next set of steps over and over trying to understand the complicated directions. I didn't understand how a double boiler would make frosting, but hey what do I know about cooking?  I placed chocolate chips and milk over my makeshift double boiler stirring and stirring and stirring.  The next step was to dip the cupcakes in the "frosting."  This doesn't look like Betty Crocker's frosting!?  It's thin and syrup-y, not thick and creamy!  S***!

As my husband laughed at the noises emanating from the kitchen I plodded on.  It's too late to change my plan now.  I can't leave the other set of 25 cupcakes cooking by themselves to go get real frosting so I dipped my little heart out, 25 times.  I later found out from my husband that I made chocolate ganache frosting.  I should've known Ina wouldn't use normal frosting!

Luckily the lobster mac and cheese went a bit smoother.  Although grating and melting all the cheese was tedious and frustrating.  The cupcakes took so incredibly long that the time for dinner had almost passed.  Before my husband fainted from starvation I decided to make an appetizer - pita chips and dip. How hard could that be?

The dip was a sour cream based dip that called for parsley.  I diced and chopped the parsley, added it to the dip and realized I had enough dip to feed 30 people.  I proudly served my chips and dip to my husband who asked if I needed any help in the kitchen.  I was determined to do this by myself so I replied,  "Nope!"

I returned to the kitchen to begin the mac and cheese and glanced at my husband who was watching the game.  I noticed he wasn't really eating the chips and dip.  Oh no, he doesn't like it.  I knew he didn't like dill, why didn't I choose the pre-made dip?!  Because his mom makes everything from scratch and I'm trying to show him I can be a good cook, wife and one day a mom whose kids won't starve because I can't cook.  I ask how the dip is, and he says great, but I know better.  He's an eater and he's hungry but the dip is sitting there barely touched.  I walk in to taste it myself (which I've learned recently you're supposed to do before serving anything, whoops!).  It tastes VERY tangy and is hard to eat. I burst out laughing and ask why he ate it!  He said he felt bad seeing how hard I was trying and he was kind of scared with all the curses pouring out of the kitchen.

I told him what I put in the dip and he informed me that I used cilantro instead of parsley.  I thought they were interchangeable, like garlic cloves or garlic powder.  Close to tears, exhausted and covered in food, I wanted to give up.  He offered help, but I refused, still driven to finish what I started.

Another hour and I was done!  My loving husband thought everything (except the dip) was great and he enjoyed hearing my struggles, reassuring me that with practice it would get better (and perhaps I had bitten off more than I could chew).  He had to bring most of the cupcakes to work because they wouldn't fit in the fridge!

Lesson learned - don't try to go from zero to sixty, even if the ladies on tv make it look easy.

A success?  For me it was, but I didn't cook again for a LOOONG time.

Helping with Dinner

For good reason, my husband is the cook in our family.  I want to be good at cooking, I try to be good at cooking, but it seems I am missing the gene which predisposes you to be a good cook, or even an okay cook.

I attempted to help my husband make a simple dinner last night.  We planned to have my kind of meal - summery, healthy and simple - grilled chicken, corn on the cob and roasted potatoes.  While he was doing me a solid and folding the laundry I asked what I could do to help him start dinner.  He instructed me to marinate the chicken "half in Italian dressing and half in barbecue sauce."  I eagerly headed downstairs to promptly begin my next attempt at cooking.

I took the chicken out of the bag, careful not to spill the gross chicken juice on anything because although I can't cook I do know that's some potentially dangerous stuff.  I placed the chicken in a ziploc bag and poured in half Italian dressing and half barbecue sauce.  As I was doing this I thought that this particular combination of marinade was odd, but hey who was I to question my husband the family chef?  I proudly placed the chicken in the refrigerator and awaited my next set of instructions.

My husband descended the stairs and I proudly smiled at him eagerly watching as he headed toward the fridge.  He removed the bag of chicken and the following ensued:

Husband: "Where's the other bag of chicken?"
Me:  "What other bag of chicken??"
Husband:  "I told you to do half in Italian, half in barbecue..."
Me:  (crap, I just ruined dinner again)  "So you meant split the chicken in half and marinate them separately in Italian and barbecue?!  Oooohhhh!"
Husband:  incredulously laughing

Lessons learned:  My husband learned not to assume I know even the simplest things when it comes to cooking.  I learned to review my instructions with him before attempting to cook.

Luckily, the chicken didn't taste that bad!  The corn and potatoes were great, but you bet your behind my husband supervised the cooking of both the whole time.

Maybe I'll get it right next time, until then....