Butternut Squash & Apple “Cobbler” Bake, crockpot style

I really really wish autumn would get here and stay here already.  Here in middle Tennessee, we're experiencing cold-ish nights and 80-something degree days.  Ick. Because I recently started school again, I decided it was time to invest in the grand daddy of all crockpots--the programmable kind with automatic warm setting when your dish is finished.  This baby even has a meat probe that will turn the appliance to warm once the meat's internal temp reaches the desired heat.  AND I caught a sale at Kohl's, so it wasn't nearly as expensive as I was thinking it was going to...

Read More »

Ashley’s Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

On most Sundays, I get this urge to bake.  We're making brunch, and I just keep cooking.  Today, I was in the mood for cookies.  I saw a recipe in Southern Inspired magazine that I picked up for free at the gym a couple months ago.  The recipe was for Oatmeal Blueberry Cookies, but it involved creaming butter and sugar, and I really wasn't in the mood for all that cleaning.  My favorite vegan blogger, SusanV over at FatFree Vegan Kitchen: Sinlessly Delicious, rarely mixes anything in a mixer when baking (mainly because she doesn't use...

Read More »

Recipe Review: Paula Deen’s Gorilla Bread

My husband saw this recipe this past weekend, and he insisted on making it.  His mom usually makes monkey bread for Christmas morning, and it is a serious favorite.  Gorilla bread is apparently  monkey bread on steroids...meaning the sweet biscuit bites are filled with cream cheese and cinnamon sugar. I'm gonna go ahead and tell you that it is a 5 out of 5, a 10 out of 10, and 100%!  I was going to take off points for the high calorie content, but these little nuggets of deliciousness are just too good.  And I just can't make myself care because...

Read More »

Mama’s Summer Peach Pie

Sometimes I could just hit myself.  I made a peach pie yesterday, ate a slice before it set in the refrigerator, and only THEN realized that my blogger friends might like this!  I am smack dab in the middle of finishing the yearbook, and I think I am delirious.  If you've ever worked on a yearbook, you understand the nightmares involved in publishing 268 pages of (mostly) student work.  I say "mostly" because I simply have to do some of it because folks disappear in the summer. But it's cool.  I don't mind it...too much. Which is why this pie is...

Read More »

Stuck At A Standstill

So it's ridiculous how long it's been since I posted!  I pretty much had to stop all activities except for grading.  Well, that and hanging out with our German friends.  They come every year for a school exchange, and I must say that they are pretty fantastic people.  In the past month, we have done lots of eating from Pei Wei, Margo's kitchen, Glen's grill, and Marcus's fabulous Thai dish.  It has also been prom season around here, and I have chaperoned, fixed hair, done make-up, and taken tons of pictures. Our Germans' month here has turned into almost 6 weeks...

Read More »

Vegan Banana Bread with Blueberries and (fake) Chocolate Chips

I really like this whole baking without eggs thing. Plus I have this soy yogurt I bought for some other recipes. And plain soy yogurt is not really something I want to eat by itself. This was my first attempt at making substitutions for eggs, but I think it turned out pretty darn good if I do say so myself. 2 very ripe bananas 1/2 cup applesauce 2 tbsp. melted Earth Balance shortening or margarine 1 tsp. vanilla 1/4 cup soy yogurt 4 tsp. vanilla almond (or soy) milk 3/4 cup all purpose flour 3/4 cup wheat flour 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats (NOT quick-cooking...

Read More »

The Vegetarian Memoirs: Double Chocolate Balsamic Cookies

I haven't made cookies in a long time.  I love them, but we have a plethora of kids who sell stuff for their schools, and Joe loves to buy the cookie dough.  That is obviously not good for us, but Joe just can't say no to the little buggers.  When I came across this recipe that didn't involve a mixer, I had to try them pronto.  I made the first recipe below because they were lower in fat and I thought I liked cakier cookies like Susan described them.  It turns out, I like a lot more crunch...

Read More »

Aunt Wilma’s Million Dollar Fudge

It's the holidays, which means it is time to make sweet delicacies. My Aunt Wilma is an amazing cook, and my mom has been making this for years for folks. Everyone loves this because it doesn't have a gritty or sugary consistency, and it freezes well. It also makes a fine gift. A word to the wise: use the brand names that my mom insisted I type in all caps. It's as "serious as a heart attack" to get the right brands. Aunt Wilma's Million Dollar Fudge Ingredients: 4 ½ cups white granulated sugar one 12 oz....

Read More »

Holiday Hot Toddy Du Jour: Hot Buttered Rum

As we watch the New Mexico Bowl game and Jack, Joe’s brother, hopes for a Wyoming win (it’s some competition they play with the college bowl games at Christmas), I look forward to the hot buttered rum I will be enjoying after dinner. Beverages are pretty important around here at Christmas time. The fire is glowing in the fireplace, Joe and Jack are discussing beer choices of Nashville and Austin, and we girls are reading and half participating in the discussion topics. The dogs are lounging in front of the fire while we enjoy the vintage tradition...

Read More »

“Pumpkin Cheesecake” or “The Best Thing Ever!”

This comes straight out of The Taste of Home Cookbook.  I don't know why I was always wary of cheesecakes.  Perhaps it was the disastrous efforts of trying to make my mom's famous fudge.  Candy is a real doozy.  But I will perfect my mom's fudge this year.  And of course I'll be sharing the recipe.  Also look forward to some Martha Washington balls from my mom's friend Ruby this Christmas. I write this as my heart breaks about my oven.  The coil caught on fire earlier tonight, and I almost cried.  Especially since I had just deposited an Enchilada Verde...

Read More »