Cookin' up somethin' new!....
By Rocketj1
@rocketj1 (6955)
United States
January 5, 2010 2:20pm CST
Last week, I found myself with an over-abundance of Apples in our house. I wanted to use them up before they went bad so I looked up an apple cake recipe on the internet. I found one for an apple spice cake which was basically like a pineapple upside down cake. It turned out beautifully (my fussy daughter even loved it!) and I was very pleased.
Then, our next door neighbor brought over some oranges. He had received a huge box of them for Christmas and after taking as many of them as he wanted, he was giving the rest away. I said "Sure! I'll take em!" They were delicious but were not really great "eating" oranges as the skin was rather tough. But they were very juicy and so my daughter and I spent an afternoon turning them into juice. We made a half-gallon! This was the first time I had made that much fresh squeezed OJ at one time. It was delicious.
The next day, I looked up a recipe for orange meringue pie. I had not made a lemon meringue pie in literally years and had NEVER made an Orange pie before! It was lots of work but very wonderful!!
Last night, I was feeling creative again and looked up a recipe for Spanish rice. It actually called for bacon (certainly not a low-cal recipe, but I knew it HAD to be delicious~!)It was the side dish to some soft shell tacos and was "woofed" down by my family!
My new recipe stats are now 3 for 3 and I am feeling really successful as a cook this week!
How about you? Have you been cooking up something new? What has been your family and friend's reactions?
3 people like this
12 responses
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
6 Jan 10
Good for u. Heidi, i'll give u the blue ribbon for all that, think u deserve it. Just cooking for myself i don't get too creative anymore. I have never had orange meringe pie, sounds good. Did u use eagle brand milk?U are a good wife & mother & i do think they appreciate u for it & that's wonderful.
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
12 Jan 10
Thanks heidi. i appreciate u sending the recipe. It does sound good.
1 person likes this
@thewayis (646)
• Bulgaria
5 Jan 10
Wow, you just described the products I have in my kitchen. I have too many apples, oringes, lemons and grapefruits left after the holidays and I think that I should make some use of them. You gave me good ideas, even though I wont risk with the oringe pie - I am not as good cook as I would like to be.
I held a party for NYE and since them I am eating the leftovers and havent really cooked for myself, because there is too much food and I am even strating to throw out some of it. the last thing that I cooked for myself for the first time was Spagetti Bolonese, because I love home-made italian food
1 person likes this
I don't mind leftovers though. Because, as you say, then I can take a break from cooking for awhile.
That Spaghetti Bolonese sounds wonderful!
Thanks for your response!:)
@dawnald (85137)
• Shingle Springs, California
6 Jan 10
Well the most exciting thing I did that was new was gulasch the German way. It's really just stewing beef in gravy over noodles. It went over pretty well, though I didn't have enough time to cook the meat to where it was soft enough. When I have a lot of leftover fruit I usually make juice.
1 person likes this
@dawnald (85137)
• Shingle Springs, California
11 Jan 10
Yes, I do have one. The Jack LaLanne power juicer. Works pretty well, though I must say that cleanup isn't quite as easy as they'd like you to believe. But it's a good way to get some vegetables (ie vitamins) into the kids by sneaking it into their juice.
1 person likes this
@SomeCowgirl (32189)
• United States
7 Jan 10
You HAVE been cooking up a storm! Well I don't know how to cook too many things, don't bother learning though know I need to. I'd love to be able to cook a lot of things from scratch though, and maybe have a tradition of cooking a pie per season, something that just cries "Hey It's WINTER!" or "Hey it's summer!" you know what I mean? lol. Oh and all the recipes sound delish! When it comes to fresh squeezed orange juice, I usually just do a cupful!
1 person likes this
@SomeCowgirl (32189)
• United States
12 Jan 10
It's something a bit different, or atleast I hope so! Have a great day!
1 person likes this
@EnglishTeaDuck (862)
• United States
6 Jan 10
I'm loving any creative ideas right now as I am struggling for money for groceries and I am trying to use up all the stuff in the kitchen to avoid spending on anything new!
I have worked out some meals (all rice ideas welcome, I have a LOAD of rice!) the main problem is keeping my husband (theres no SNACKS!) happy...lol...
Today I made some almond cookies which turned out really good, and they tasted a lot like some I used to get back in England but can't gethere in America, so we were both happy!
Orange meringue pie sounds great!
1 person likes this
@Polly1 (12644)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Ohhh, sounds good to me. I want to come to your house and eat. It all sounds so yummy. For Christmas I did some yummy cooking. everyone ate good and then came back later for leftovers, nothing got wasted. I have never had orange pie before but it sure sounds yummy to me, same as the appie cake. Happy Cookin.....
1 person likes this
@lingli_78 (12821)
• Australia
5 Jan 10
woww... that is wonderful... i'm not really a good cook and i never make a cake before... so i don't know even if i follow the recipe, i can be as successful as you... well done anyway and keep up the good work... it's nice to hear that you are able to make 3 new dishes on your first try... now you encourage me to try on some new recipes as well... take care and have a nice day...
1 person likes this
@rocketj1 (6955)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Good cooking just takes LOTS of practice! I have had my share of mistakes over the years but they have really helped me to be a better cook. I would love to take some lessons too to expand my skills. I really love to cook!
Thanks for your response!:) Have a wonderful New Year!
@cream97 (29085)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Hi, rocketj1. I am glad to see you here at myLot! And I can see that you were being very creative with your wonderful recipes!
I did make a Banana Pudding on Sunday night. It was very delicious. And about two weeks ago, I baked a spaghetti. I have not done this in a very long time. It was fun. And I got the hang of it too. That was first time ever making a Banana Pudding. I did not know how to do this. I was asking my husband the best way. I have seen my sister and aunt make it. My aunt made it hot and my sister made it cold. They both were very delicious either way. I was on the Internet trying to find out the instructions. And when I finally made it myself, I realized that it was nothing to it. I did a great job and it turned out just right. I was panicking for nothing!
I did make a Banana Pudding on Sunday night. It was very delicious. And about two weeks ago, I baked a spaghetti. I have not done this in a very long time. It was fun. And I got the hang of it too. That was first time ever making a Banana Pudding. I did not know how to do this. I was asking my husband the best way. I have seen my sister and aunt make it. My aunt made it hot and my sister made it cold. They both were very delicious either way. I was on the Internet trying to find out the instructions. And when I finally made it myself, I realized that it was nothing to it. I did a great job and it turned out just right. I was panicking for nothing!1 person likes this
@rocketj1 (6955)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Mmmmmm! Now I'm in the mood for banana pudding!
It's good to see you here again! I've been away for quite awhile working on my crafts that I sell online. I'm so glad to see many of my old friends here again!
Thanks for your response!:) Keep cookin'!:)
@walijo2008 (4644)
• United States
5 Jan 10
Sounds like you've been busy, they all sound good, and I bet that orange juice was really good. I haven't tried anything new lately, but I have been looking up some recipes that I've been wanting to try, I've printed them off and everything. Maybe soon I'll get around to it, my husband doesn't care what he eats as long as he eats..lol.
1 person likes this
@savypat (20216)
• United States
5 Jan 10
It seems like the new year has brought me a renewed zest for cooking, also I had many left overs I don't usually have so I have been inventive. Tonight I have left over roasted turkey so I am going to make a stuffing and roll the slices around the stuffing, cover with gravy and roast in the oven until hot. Hope it turns out OK
1 person likes this
@BinaryKat (735)
• United States
5 Jan 10
How awesome! Orange Meringue Pie sounds really delish. You also made fresh homemade orange juice which not only economical but also had to be so good. Great way to use things up. I try to cook something new with basic and fresh essentials every chance I get. My auntie sometimes buy a big bag of potatoes that are on sale at the store. She splits them with me and what I do with them is make fries and other things as a side dish for my main dish. My favorite recipe with potatoes is Oven fried potatoes. It is from Taste of Home collection and the recipe is on allrecipes too. I usually make it with breakfast or as a side dish to a meat dinner. I absolutely love mexican food so I try out things when I can. I have made burrito pie, fajitas, mexican pizza, mexican lasagna etc. This thursday I am thinking of making is cinnamon and lime chicken fajitas which I found out about from my allrecipes newsletter. I hope my husband will like it. I also like trying different sweets too so this weekend after hitting the store, I am going to make monkey bread which uses cinnamon, sugar, and biscuits. It is one of those desserts you just pull apart and eat. I have done some experimentation with different cooking oils. I found I really love olive oil and use it nearly everything I am baking or sautee. I have tried coconut oil once and it didn't go well lol. My husband asked me not to try that again lol. Our poor stomachs didn't go for the food being cooked in coconut oil. I really love cooking.
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