Here We Go Again

Deep sigh…we’re again rushing the change of seasons, again.  We just can’t seem to wait.  We’re like children on Christmas Eve.

Stores have been festooned with autumnal, Halloween and Thanksgiving merchandise for weeks.  I’m not interested in Turkey Day trimmings and winter coats in July and August…or even September.  Christmas items and cold-weather apparel are already stocked in stores.   Seems like we’re in such a hurry to bid summer adieu.

Crostata by Carol

Cousin Carol is at it again. She’s a whiz in the kitchen…and her latest offering, a rustic Blueberry Peach Crostata, is easier to make than a pie, and makes delicious use of fresh fruits. Her Italian tart is no exception; I’m inspired to share it with you.

Mac and Cheese, With a Twist

I haven’t made mac and cheese for a while…but the family requested a bacon ranch meal. Could I satisfy us all with one dish? Inspired, I went upscale to create a bacon ranch mac and cheese entrée, sure to please us all.

I started with the original Pillsbury mac and cheese recipe – see my blog from October 24, 2021, Easy Mac and Cheese.

Ingredients:

• 1 can (12-oz) evaporated milk (yep, I keep a couple of cans on hand)
• 1 lb. uncooked elbow*** macaroni
• 2 cups of shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 oz.)

My Additions:

• 1 Great Value Classic Ranch Salad Dressing and Recipe Mix package (1-oz.)
• *** A 1 lb. mixture of Great Value Garden Rotini pasta and Great Value Penne pasta
• 1 bag (2.5-oz.) reduced-sodium real bacon pieces (I used the Walmart Great Value brand)

Steps:

• In a five-quart Dutch oven, heat evaporated milk, four cups hot water, macaroni, ranch dressing, bacon pieces, and salt to taste over high heat.
• Reduce heat to medium-high; cook for six minutes, stirring frequently.
• Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for eight minutes, stirring frequently; do not drain.
• Remove from heat; stir in cheese until melted.

My Take:

When they say stir frequently, they aren’t kidding. You want this dish to be creamy, so stir frequently.

The family’s verdict? We have a winner…so I’m already thinking about how I can make this different for next time…stay tuned.

Are you a traditional mac and cheese fan, or do you like to change things up?

Drop me a line. I’d love to hear from you.

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Savor(y) Every Day

If you don’t pick up a free copy of Savory magazine from Stop & Shop, you’re missing out. A recent trip to S&S yielded the Cosmic Crisp apples I just blogged about…and the July/August issue of Savory.

A quick perusal produced more than a few recipes and ideas that inspired me…and I’m happy to share them with you.

An Apple A Day…

The advent of Summer has me enjoying Mother Nature’s fruitful bounty in a medley of colorful salads that have been lacking diced apple. I like my apples sweet, crunchy, and packed with flavor.  Snap Dragon apples had been my favorite for a while…but I’ve been unable to find them lately at area grocery stores. What to do? I needed another apple option, and I needed one ASAP so I could satisfy my salad cravings.

There’s Nothing Like Fresh…

I use fresh scallions (green onions) often in meal preparations. That is when I have that vegetable (and yes, they are a vegetable) on hand. I use them in chicken salad and egg salad sandwiches, and top chili, soups and pierogi with scallion slices, just to name a few of the ways.

When I occasionally run out of scallions, I need to decide whether to go to the grocery store and buy more or skip them in the recipe.

With that in mind, I was inspired to turn to Google for ideas on how to refresh, renew and reuse the scallions I already had. This way, I would have a seemingly never-ending supply.

More Winter Thoughts?

You must be thinking, has Kathy lost it? It’s not officially summer yet, and here she is thinking about winter, again. What gives?

Blame it on a recent trek through Walmart, and my curiosity as to what was in a $1.00 bin. I dug through and found three different packs of warmers – for toes, the body, and hands. Perfect for home and car emergency kits, so I was inspired to purchase a multi-pack of each.

Scallions? Green Or Spring Onions?

I’ve seen scallions, green onions and spring onions at grocery stores. Are they the same, I wondered. If not, what makes them different? My natural curiosity inspired me to check Google for more information about one of my kitchen staples…and I’m sharing the information with you.

After tooling around Google and looking at different sites, I came across an article (Difference Between Scallions and Green Onions and Spring Onions) by Christine Gallary on thekitchn.com.

“When we want a hit of less-intense onion flavor, scallions and green onions are our alliums of choice. But what are spring onions — and are they the same thing as scallions? Speaking of which, are scallions and green onions also the same thing?  To know more, let’s dive into the world of these colorful fresh onions!

Winter? What?

I know, I know. It’s springtime in New England. So what the heck inspired me to think/write about winter?

I was at Kohl’s recently – and you know how much I like Kohl’s – and they were offering an additional 50% off of all clearance items. As my better half would say, “It would be rude not to at least look.”

And since I’m not a rude person, I happily browsed Kohl’s and came across some great buys. Two of them are the subject of this blog.

Haagen Does

I know, I know. You’re wondering how I can write about Haagen-Dazs ice cream…so rich, creamy and decadent…after I championed mindful eating in a previous blog post.

Well, I believe you can have your cake – or in this case, ice cream – and eat it (mindfully), too.

While in the frozen confection aisle at Stop & Shop, I couldn’t resist a look at the ice cream offerings. So many choices…and even more calories.