Homemade Gingerbread

Made this once for a Christmas party. Truth be told, I kiiiiinda like the boxed stuff better, but as gingerbread is one of my favorite desserts, it was satisfying to make my own for once. A food network recipe.

Spaghetti with Anchovies And Breadcrumbs

This was my first foray into cooking with anchovies back on Long Island. Not bad, though it didn’t become a frequent repeat dish, hehe. I’m anxious to try it now and see how my palate has changed.

Sausage and pepper sandwiches

This tends to be a weeknight meal after I’ve hit up Eastern Market, where I never can resist picking up some sausage.

Linzer muffins

I don’t bake much, but this is a breakfast recipe I’ve made a couple times. Possibly from Gourmet?

Rice cooker pilaf

Made this as a side this weekend. A little dry, but generally solid flavors.

Homemade Barbecue Rub

Decided to make beer can chicken to inaugurate my first day of herb gardening, but found myself without commercial bbq rub. So…decided to make my own. Was originally going to make the Steve Raichlen rub but found myself missing some ingredients/feeling like improvising, so I made some changes.

Italian Grilled Cheese

More of a panini, really. Won’t replace the original in my heart, but was a nice alternative that complemented Pasta e Fagioli well.

Pasta e Fagioli

I made my first recipe out of Bittman’s “How To Cook Everything” last night, and it was excellent. I’ve only had this dish once or twice (I believe made by my friend Lisa in college the first time), but it just sounded delicious when I was thumbing through the cookbook. Served with Italian Grilled Cheese of my own design (though hardly a creative stretch, hehe).

Lettuce-Wrapped Fish poached in White wine, butter

Very excited about this meal. Got the recipe from The Minimalist, who is quickly becoming one of my culinary heroes. The meal has a clean, healthy taste, and the Trader Joe’s frozen fish fillets performed very well here. I was also excited to use the steam function on my rice cooker for the first time (to make the asparagus).

Caramel apple pie

I made a pie Saturday in honor of a friend’s birthday (though she ended up having to cancel at the last minute, so it was really in honor of…the Caps’ hockey win?). I hadn’t made this caramel apple pie recipe (or really, any pie) in about three years, and to be honest, it’s kind of a pain in the ass. But I’m not much of a baker, so I decided to stick with something I knew.