This is a picture of my recipe book. I got it for Christmas, and I'm already filling it with recipes! The best ones are the family recipes. My favorite is my great grandmother's bread, but I also have her peanut butter fudge recipe. It's amazing. I was already warned by my mom and aunt to never give it out. Apparently my great gram was very protective of it. When I look thru it I realize that most of the book is going to be baked goods!
I also got a crock pot for Christmas. It will hopefully help me balance out the baked goods. xD I started cooking a pot roast in it this morning. I can't wait for dinner! My mom found tons of crock pot recipes for me to use, so I am going to be keeping the resolution to eat more home made meals. Cooking and feeding people is a lot of fun. I think I'm going in the right direction by going to school for restaurant management. Only nine more months until I leave for NECI! I'm both terrified and excited, but now I'm almost sure that I'm making the right choice.
Where do your recipes come from? Does your family have any recipes handed down for generations? Other than family recipes, I actually get a lot from here. She writes books about a caterer who solves murders, how could she not include tons of recipes? I think I'm going to go and make that fudge now. =)
Oh this post is TOTALLY up my alley! I love that recipe book cover, that's the coolest. You know, it is VERY rare for someone to be interested in cooking AND baking. Most people gravitate to one or the other, not both. It'll be interesting to see if you end up choosing just one. I love both of course! I wish I knew that peanut butter fudge recipe but it sounds like a private family treasure. I'm so envious of you going to culinary school, I can't wait to hear all about it.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I don't know if you did this but it's always a good idea to season and sear the roast beef before putting it in the crockpot.
I make up some of my recipes, or adapt them. My (grown) kids used to tease me that I rarely used a recipe!
ReplyDeleteRice & lentils, & chicken over rice (baked) are two of my favorite stand bys. the lentils take ~ as long as brown rice to cook, & I like adding red & wild rice, if I have them. Season with Italian or herbs de provance (inc. lavender) & a bay leaf, add potatoes, carrots, of course an onion & few chopped cloves of garlic (all chopped in ~ quarter size pieces) & cook for ~ an hour. I usually use ~ 2 parts rice to 1 part lentils, water ~ double plus a bit more.
We love to use 'braggs liquid aminos' - like soy sauce, but better (our natural foods store carries it)
This is my stand by fare, I tend to make it weekly!
Oh - & my new *favorite* is rattatoui!! After seeing the movie, I pulled out some recipe books, & mostly found 'summer' versions (tomatoes, summer squash, eggplant) . . . I like making winter ones, too. Tend to begin with a stir fry - olive oil w/onions & garlic; & then lots of root veggies. Again, cut into chunks. I have a clay 'apple baker' that I put in the oven before preheating, & add the 'bits' from the stove top pan.
ReplyDeleteany root veggies - I like GOLDEN beets (don't stain like the red) parsnips, carrots, sweet potatoes or squash (I don't nec. peel, but you could) jersulam artichokes (I grow these - a sunflower tuber!) potatoes, a piece of kombu (seaweed that's great for a bit of flavor & extra nutrients) the same spices (italian or french) & a bay leaf, I bake @ 350 for ~ 20 minutes; keep adding things from the stovetop - pre cook in little groups.
I make stock by saving all the veggie trimmings but cabbage family & potatoe peels (carrot tips & tops, cellery tips, onion skins, garlic husks, etc. anything that's not moldy goes in a bag or old yogurt container in the freezer, & that goes in a stock pot on top of the stove while I'm starting the veggies, or in the crock pot for an hour or so. You can use just veggies, or add chicken bones -freezing keeps things 'fresh' till you need them! Learned this from a chef friend, & it adds a lot of nutrients & is SO easy!!