Amy's WFD Blog!

Chewy Granola Bars - These were awesome fresh out ...

2009-11-10T16:30:45.073-08:00

Chewy Granola Bars - These were awesome fresh out of the oven. I didn't have any chocolate chips but I did dried cranberries. They were so good! However, once they got hard, we didn't love them as much. They're still good but I don't think a toddler could eat them, they're so hard now. I will make these again and we'll just eat them fresh from the oven because I really enjoyed them then. Also, I used Whole Wheat flour in place of the oat flour.

Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder - I saw the WW reci...

2009-11-10T16:30:18.478-08:00

Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder - I saw the WW recipe and used that to sort of make up a "less healthy" soup. It turned out really great and it was so quick to throw together. It wasn't super thick since I used non fat milk but I really enjoyed the flavor.

Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder
Amy - amylz

2 Yellow Potatoes
1 tbsp Olive Oil
2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup diced celery
1/4 cup dried onion
1/4 cup chopped bacon
2 cups non fat milk
1 cup cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Pierce the potatoes with a fork and microwave about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, cook corn, celery and dried on in olive oil for about 5 minutes. Add bacon and milk. Dice up and mash the potatoes and add to the soup. When soup is hot, add in cheddar cheese and stir until melted.

Quick Calzones - This was a great lunch/snack when...

2009-11-09T18:34:22.058-08:00

Quick Calzones - This was a great lunch/snack when we didn't have a lot of time. These took about 5 minutes to prepare and then 10 minutes to cook. I would say they were pretty good but not anything you'd bring to a party. The kids gobbles them right up though and I have to say the sauce was pretty darn good. I think it would make an excellent pizza sauce.

Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry - This was so quick and eas...

2009-11-09T18:33:59.050-08:00

Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry - This was so quick and easy and pretty healthy. I did cheat a little and used a bag of frozen stir fry veggies instead of the snow peas, peppers, parsley and basil in the recipe. It came together in about 5 minutes though and was great with the rice. My 3 year old loved the shrimp. I did have to peel the shrimp but that only took a few minutes before I threw it in the pan. Overall, this was quick and simple!

Crispy Pork Fried Rice - This was ok. I would say...

2009-11-09T18:33:50.822-08:00

Crispy Pork Fried Rice - This was ok. I would say that it was quick and easy and didn't taste bad, it just wasn't the best fried rice I've made. I liked how simple it was though and the few ingredients it required. I had some leftover rice and some leftover pork so this was the perfect recipe to use it in. I did use vegetable oil as I didn't have any peanut oil. I also left out the cilantro as that just didn't sound good to me in fried rice at all!

Lemon Blueberry Muffins - I made this into mini lo...

2009-11-09T13:14:22.314-08:00

Lemon Blueberry Muffins - I made this into mini loaves instead of muffins and it came out great! The thing I liked about this recipe was it was all ingredients I had on hand. This recipe made 4 mini loaves for me. I didn't have any lemons to zest so I just added some lemon juice and it seemed to work great. I think these would be delcious muffins though. Next time I might to mini muffins.

Oven-Easy Beef Bake - I really enjoyed this. Next...

2009-11-09T13:13:44.638-08:00

Oven-Easy Beef Bake - I really enjoyed this. Next time I would cut the potatoes into more bite sized pieces or at least the same size at the stew meat. I used tenderized stew meat and that was perfect in this. It just melted in your mouth. I did make up 2 packets of mushroom gravy mix instead of using it from a jar. This tastes just like beef stew but it's so simple. Next time I will add some mushrooms to this. We all really enjoyed it and seriously, so easy! Oh, and I used a 12oz can of the spicy V8 juice (like for bloody mary's) and it was great. I think you could probably get away with using tomoato sauce too.

To Die For Cranberry Coconut Squares - These were ...

2009-11-09T13:13:32.015-08:00

To Die For Cranberry Coconut Squares - These were very good and very pretty and festive looking. I didn't add the powdered sugar at the end and I don't think they need it. Overall these were yummy. If you like coconut and cranberry, give these a try!

Peanut Butter Bars - These were very easy to make ...

2009-11-09T13:13:22.166-08:00

Peanut Butter Bars - These were very easy to make and pretty good. They are kind of like an oatmeal/PB bar when they're done. The "icing" on the top isn't really like frosting at all but more like a glaze. If you're a PB lover, you should like these though. I thought they were good.

Delicious Dilemma - These were something fun and d...

2009-11-09T13:12:55.336-08:00

Delicious Dilemma - These were something fun and different. They weren't as good as I imagined they would be but they were still good. This was pretty simple too since you use the store bought sugar cookie dough. I described these as raspberry, chocolate, cheesecake bars.

Tasty Pork Ribs - These turned out great! They we...

2009-11-09T13:10:31.446-08:00

Tasty Pork Ribs - These turned out great! They were nice and moist and had great flavor. I normally don't eat ribs (ever) but I snuck a few bites of this and actually liked it. There are a lot of ingredients but again, it's all stuff you probably have on hand so overall this was very simple to throw together!

Big Bud's Beer Can Chicken - This turned out great...

2009-11-09T13:10:05.615-08:00

Big Bud's Beer Can Chicken - This turned out great. My kids loved this and the 7 year old said it was the best chicken. I would say it was pretty easy to throw together and the rub was all ingredients you probably have on hand. I will use this recipe again!

Crockpot Apple Butter Ribs - These turned out pret...

2009-11-06T08:44:26.742-08:00

Crockpot Apple Butter Ribs - These turned out pretty good. My husband still thought they needed BBQ sauce so that tells me that the apple butter sauce wasn't substantial enough. I'm not a fan of ribs in general so this is not my area of expertise. The kids all ate it and seemed to like it. My husband said they were cooked perfectly.

I've made the clone before...twice. The first tim...

2009-11-06T06:38:43.576-08:00

I've made the clone before...twice. The first time it was more clone like, but both were good.

A good story GK Chesterton: “The poets have bee...

2009-11-05T10:47:10.600-08:00

A good story

GK Chesterton: “The poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese.”

Voila: www.tastingtoeternity.com. This book is a poetic view of 30 of the best loved French cheeses with an additional two odes to cheese. Recipes, wine pairing, three short stories and an educational section complete the book.

From a hectic life in New York City to the peace and glories of the French countryside lead me to be the co-founder of www.fromages.com. Ten years later with the words of Pierre Androuet hammering on my brain:

“Cheese is the soul of the soil. It is the purest and most romantic link between humans and the earth.”

I took pen and paper; many reams later with the midnight oil burning Tasting to Eternity was born and self published.

I believe cheese and wine lovers should be told about this publication.

Enjoy

Sour Cream Peach Muffins - These are pretty good. ...

2009-11-05T09:54:26.980-08:00

Sour Cream Peach Muffins - These are pretty good. I used canned peaches that I diced up and that seemed to work well. This does almost come out like cupcakes in a way but it is a cake mix so I guess that can be expected. The kids like them though.

Beefy Macaroni - This was something I whipped up f...

2009-11-05T09:53:45.572-08:00

Beefy Macaroni - This was something I whipped up for lunch and it was super quick and easy. Of course my kids loved this! The directions weren't super clear but I assumed you were to mix the noodles and sauce. I did add the cheese (even though my kids won't eat cheese) and that was a good call because it melted in and helped bind it all together. The kids didn't even know there was cheese in it. It's kind of milder in flavor but if you like hamburger helper type dishes, your family should love this! I did make a couple changes based on what I had on hand. I used 1.5 pounds of ground beef, the entire can of petite diced tomatoes, and left out the beef bouillon and the cumin.

Stir Fried Beef & Vegetables - This was really gre...

2009-11-05T09:53:24.523-08:00

Stir Fried Beef & Vegetables - This was really great too! I took a major short cut and used a bag of frozen stir fry veggies. Then I skipped the noodles completely and served this with rice. It was really good and everyone ate it. I didn't think the sauce would add much but it was really nice.

Baked Slow Cooker Chicken - This was great! I tot...

2009-11-05T09:53:11.216-08:00

Baked Slow Cooker Chicken - This was great! I totally forgot to do the foil on the bottom so I'm not sure if that is super important or not but the chicken was really good. This was so simple too! My husband said it was the best chicken I've made and I didn't even really have to do anything. I will use this method again!

Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs - This was really ...

2009-11-02T19:42:47.057-08:00

Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs - This was really good! I used all turkey and no sausage . Everyone enjoyed this. The only change I would make is to double the sauce next time.

Shepherd's Pie - This was very simple to throw tog...

2009-11-02T19:42:12.940-08:00

Shepherd's Pie - This was very simple to throw together and tasted pretty good. I had never done a Shepherd's pie with tomatoes so that was a bit different. Everyone gobbled it up though.

Astrid's Pasta Salad - This was good and a little ...

2009-11-02T19:41:37.693-08:00

Astrid's Pasta Salad - This was good and a little different than your typical pasta salad. I liked the marinated mushrooms. That was a really nice addition!

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup - This was very easy to ...

2009-11-02T19:36:54.768-08:00

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup - This was very easy to make and tasted pretty good. I would have liked it to be a bit thinner as I thought it was much too thick. I did use my emersion blender rather than the actual blender though. My mom loved this. She took the leftovers home and said it was wonderful over baked chicken. So, it's nice to know it has a 2nd purpose.

Mushroom Pork Chops - My husband loves pork chops ...

2009-11-02T19:35:52.969-08:00

Mushroom Pork Chops - My husband loves pork chops baked for like 3 hours with cream of mushrrom soup over it but I don't always have time to do that. So, when I saw this I thought I would try it out and I would say it was a success. This took about 30 minutes and my husband approved. He did think we should leave out the pepper and I omited the onions all together. We will make this again!

Cornmeal Cranberry Muffins - I am in love with the...

2009-11-02T19:34:06.087-08:00

Cornmeal Cranberry Muffins - I am in love with these muffins. They are like cornbread meets the cranberry. I used fresh cranberries (I assume that's what the recipe is asking for) so they are very tart but the sweetness of the cornbread matches that perfectly. I'm not usually a big cornbread or muffin fan but these are my current favorite! I think I've eaten 6 myself!