Braised Sweet Potato

Recipe: Braised Sweet Potato // How to Cook Everything

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This was an excellent side dish. Flavorful & healthy. I highly recommend.

We Recreate a BBQ Experience at Home

Recipe: Pulled Chicken in the Slow Cooker // Jesse Cardozo
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Side Recipe: Macaroni & Cheese with Black Beans and Chipotle // Serious Eats

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Side Recipe: Roasted Russets with Chipotle Aioli // Moosewood Restaurant

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Appetizer: Fried (Baked) Pickles (not pictured) // Full Flavor Food

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In spite of the varied kitty ratings, this was a favorite meal! The chicken was superb, and not actually cooked by Seth or myself. Our friend Jesse was the master chef there, and we enjoyed it with smoked apple cheddar.

What Seth and I did make was all the side dishes. I enjoyed the idea of the mac & cheese, but our pasta ended up being overcooked because it finishes cooking on the stove. I would have preferred if the dish had been baked. But it was creamy, and I liked the addition of the chipotle and black beans for something a little heartier.

We've enjoyed the original roasted russets with chipotle aioli at Ithaca's Just a Taste Wine and Tapas bar. Ours were not as delicious as the original, but not a bad homemade attempt. I especially liked the chipotle aioli.

The fried baked pickles were edible, but nowhere near as tasty as the steaming-hot fried pickles we've had at varous pubs. I wouldn't make it again. Because they were baked, ours ended up dried out, and covered in an even dryer coating of panko and breadcrumbs. We ate them all because we were hungry, but not because we particularly enjoyed them!

Also pictured is some refreshing fruit salad that helped to lighten up the meal, and some store-bought cole slaw.

French Bread Pizza

Recipe: The Best French Bread Pizza // Serious Eats
Bread Recipe: French Baguette // Local Breads

Recipe:

Our French Bread Pizza turned out truly amazing. I started the bread in the morning, and by the afternoon we had some fresh, soft loaves. We didn't have crushed tomatoes, so we whizzed a can of whole peeled tomatoes around in the food processor. The pizza wasn't soggy in the least; our sauce cooked up nicely and we loved the garlic butter base. If I could give this five kitties, I would.

Egg Salad on Italian Baguette

Recipe: Egg Salad with Pickled Celery // Smitten Kitchen
Bread Recipe: Italian Baguette // Local Breads Cookbook from Bread Alone

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I had a good time baking the bread. It was the first recipe that I've tried from this cookbook, and I'd say it was a success. I didn't use the bread machine! I did use my stand mixer to knead it, though. Even with an extra 10 minutes kneading, I never accomplished the proper "windowpane" elasticity. I moved ahead with the recipe though, because I was afraid of over-kneading it.

After meticulously following all directions, I accidentally baked it for an extra ten minutes. When the smoke alarm wouldn't stop going off, I should have taken the hint. The bottom was burned, so you can see I cut it off.

Deb's egg salad is tasty. I doubled the recipe, because who makes egg salad with only 4 eggs? I need leftovers. Mine had too much mayonnaise because I got tired of measuring. But it's still tasty. I added dry dill and skipped the salt at the end. The mustard, shallots and celery were excellent. A very hard-earned and pleasing lunch!

Lamb Chops

Recipe: Broiled Lamb Chops // How to Cook Everything (pg. 478)
Side Recipe: Roasted Broccoli & Feta Salad

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This was our first time cooking lamb at home. It had a nice flavor, and was rare in the middle. I cooked the chops on a cast iron skillet on the stovetop, but perhaps I should have broiled them. There wasn't much to the recipe besides adding salt and pepper and cooking at a high temperature for a few minutes.

I liked the feta salad with it -- we made a lemon vinaigrette that went well with the meat but wasn't that good on it's own.

Morning Sticky Buns

Recipe: Morning Sticky Buns // Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook (pg 472)

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These are a decadent morning treat. However, I would probably skip the caramel topping next time. It's just a little too much over the top sweetness for me. I suppose I prefer a non-sticky cinnamon bun.

We didn't have light corn syrup, and our lousy A&P didn't have any, apparently. Turns out water and (more!!) sugar is a fine substitute. Also, the price of pecans was outrageous, so we used walnuts instead.

I made Seth take half of the buns to work because it would be dangerous to leave me at home with so much delicious bread. The rest will come with us on our mid-week vacation to Atlantic City! How delightful.

Gnocchi of a Different Color

Recipe: Gnocchi of a Different Color // New York Times

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This gnocchi turned out fine, I just wasn't that wild about it. We made spinach & carrot gnocchis in a garlic sauce. I would have liked to make the beet gnocchis, but I don't expect I'll bother making this again. There are many other potato recipes I like more.

Also, we were really wishing we had a proper food processor for this recipe.