That Time I Made Candied Ginger...

When Husband and I went on our first cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), he fell in love with one of their cocktails: The Matador. He loves it so much that we now have to get the drink package for every NCL cruise we go on. (Skip to end of the post for my Making a Matador video.)

When covid happened and our Alaska cruise on NCL was cancelled, I decided that I needed to make him one (or three) at home. This required possession of candied ginger. I realized after-the-fact that it can probably be purchased in a store. 

Instead, I bought fresh ginger and looked up a recipe. I found one by Alton Brown (from Food Network) who's recipes and techniques are spot-on. You can use his recipe for your ginger, or if you want my Amateur-Tips (like "pro-tips," but more like "hacks"), essentially the same recipe is below with said tips.

Let me know if you try the recipe and how you liked it in the comments!

Candied Ginger:

Ingredients:
Ginger
Water
Granulated sugar

Equipment:
Saucepan
Parchment Paper or cooling rack

Non-stick cooking spray

Kitchen scale

Directions...

That Time I Made Pumpkin Pie Parfaits...

For Christmas last year, I decided I wanted to make a dessert with my parfait cups I'd specifically picked out to replace different parfait cups I had that took up too much room in my cabinet... and then never used. I held off on posting this until this fall, because it would be an excellent mini-dessert for Thanksgiving or this Xmas.

And, no. I'm not going to make you scroll past paragraphs and paragraphs of I-don't-even-know-what sprinkled with photos and ads, making your phone practically freeze from all the memory use it takes, till you get to the recipe (I may have a beef with recipe bloggers who do that. They are the worst.)...

That Time I Made a Carnival Melting Chocolate Cake

If there's one thing that everyone misses from Carnival cruises, it's the chocolate melting cake.

Carnival has the recipe online, and it always sounded easy enough, but I never took the time/effort to try it...

That Time I Started Eating Pasta...

The first time I made this recipe it was with a friend for a potluck she was going to. I previously didn't eat pasta. It was just bland to me. Putting buffalo cheesy goodness to it (somewhat unfortunately) changed everything.

Buffalo Chicken Baked Ziti

Ingredients:

• 1 12oz bottle ranch dressing
• 1.5c Buffalo wing sauce
• 1 box penne pasta
• 2c of shredded cheddar cheese
• 1c mozzarella or additional cheddar cheese
• 2 cans 10-12oz canned chicken
• 16 oz cream cheese

Directions:
1) Fill a large pot with water and cook pasta according to directions on box.

That Time I Made Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars...

I found this recipe a long while ago when I used to follow a bunch of recipe blogs on Facebook. Turned out that was bad for my diet because I became hungry every time I scrolled through my feed. But I made a version of this recipe, loved it, and modified it because I didn't have enough peanut butter for the original recipe. I think I like this one better. 

This recipe is great for using up graham crackers you have left over from making s'mores. I know I never use a whole box each summer and I doubt you do either. Also this is the only no-bake recipe I've ever seen that doesn't use oats. 

Note: the meringue powder is optional. It's used to make make the bars stackable as the bottoms are otherwise very sticky. If you do want it, you can find it in huge large quantities in supermarkets, or in normal quantities in a craft store. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 tsp salt
2 c graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 c powdered sugar
1/2 c peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 c (1 bag) chocolate chips
4 TBSP meringue powder, divided

Directions...

I Mentioned the Bisque...

This is an awesome recipe for shrimp bisque which I tried and loved. This is saying a lot because I am excessively picky. Enjoy!

Shrimp Bisque:

Ingredients:
10-14 oz. raw shrimp (can be frozen)
7 scallions
1 onion
1 carrot
1/2 c. butter
4 c. vegetable stock
4 parsley sprigs
1 bay leaf
4 black peppercorns
2 1/2 c. milk
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
< 8oz. tomato paste
1/2 c. sherry
1/2 c. heavy cream
A pinch nutmeg
Salt and pepper

Directions...

That Time I Went To The Cinnamon Festival...

Okay, I didn't go to a Cinnamon Festival. As far as I know it's not a real thing. But it was in an episode of Psych so...

This recipe was inspired by said episode in which Gus and Shawn eat more slices of cinnamon pie than I can count (okay, I could but then I'd have to watch the whole episode, which I didn't have time for). Per my post yesterday, this is actually from years ago, when I had a different blog (same blog different name), and never published it... because of reasons?

Looks good right?

Cinnamon Pie

Ingredients:
1 c. white sugar
1.5 Tbsp flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 pinch salt
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 c milk
1 unbaked pie crust (10", these are found in freezer section)
Optional: Whipped cream

Directions...

These Pretzels Are Making Me Thirsty...

Here's a really simple, fun, quick, tasty recipe (What? Too many adjectives?) for an elegant treat. Enjoy them yourself or give as a gift!





Chocolate Covered Pretzels:

Ingredients:
2 Bags Pretzel Rods (I use Snyder's)
1 Bag (14 oz.) Chocolate Wafers
1 Bag (14 oz.) White Chocolate Wafers

Equipment:
2 Tall coffee mugs
Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Sheet

*Note: When buying pretzels, look for bags with the least amount of broken rods. This is harder than it sounds.

Directions...

That Time I Invented S'mores Cookie Bars...

With summer in full swing, I wanted something summer-feeling to take to a couple of parties my friends were throwing, so s'mores cookies felt like an appropriate treat. I wrote this recipe 4 years ago and decided to bring it on back. Enjoy them this summer with all of their marshmallow-y, chocolate-y, graham-cracker-y deliciousness!

S'mores Cookie Bars
(Printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1 1/4 cup ground graham crackers (9 crackers), divided
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips, divided
1 cup mini marshmallows, divided

Directions...

That Time I Made Garlic Shrimp...

I bought this crazy-old out-of-print cookbook put out by Bennigan's on Amazon, hoping there would be a recipe for their chicken fingers. There wasn't. So I made this recipe instead.

Make ahead:  
Garlic Lemon Butter

Cream 1 stick of softened butter with an electric mixer.
Mix in 2 tsp crushed garlic and 1.5 tsp lemon juice until smooth.
Refrigerate until needed.

I eat anything that doesn't need a knife with chopsticks

Garlic Shrimp

1lb peeled, de-veined shrimp

1/4 c + 2 Tbsp garlic lemon butter

1lb linguini or 4 servings rice

Optional:

4 tsp bread crumbs

4 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

4 tsp fresh minced parsley

Directions...

That Time I Baked Salmon...

Here's a really simple recipe for baked salmon that I love making when I'm just cooking for myself. I make it in my toaster oven, but if you do not have one, you can make it in the oven, just make sure to use a small baking dish.  Also, If you don't keep white wine in your home, like me, you can pick up 'cooking wine' in the grocery store!

Lemon-Baked Salmon

Ingredients:

Salmon filet
1/2 lemon per serving
1 TBSP Spreadable butter/margarine
1/2 c. White wine (+1/4 c. for additional servings)

Optional:
Salt/Pepper

Other:
Non-stick cooking spray
 

 ______________________________

Preparation...

That Time I Made Mushroom Soup...

I made this recipe using some recipe I found online but when it was done I was not impressed. That's what I get for picking something cause it's simple. First it was not so much soup as much as it was glop. Also it just sorta tasted like mashed up raw mushrooms if they could be raw and hot at the same time. So I added some stuff till it was way better. If you hate it though, I take no responsibility for it.

Cream of Mushroom  Soup

Ingredients:
5 c. sliced fresh mushrooms
2 c. + 1 c. chicken stock
1/2 c chopped onion
pinch dried thyme
3 TBS. butter
3 TBS. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 c. half and half*
1/4 c. Marsala wine**



Directions...

That Time I Made Chicken Marsala...

I decided to bring back an old feature, and only some weeks. I stopped using my recipe blog, so why not post some food stuffs here sometimes?

This recipe is easier than you think, it's super-duper yummy, and it's one of my favorites. Yes, I just said 'super-duper.' Anyway, like in all my recipes calling for some kind of wine, I use grocery store cooking wine so feel free to do the same if you don't feel like hitting up a liquor store.

Chicken Marsala

Ingredients:

3 boneless chicken breasts
1/4 c flour
1/2 tsp salt
pinch ground pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
4 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp butter
8oz fresh, sliced mushrooms
1/2-3/4 c Marsala wine


Directions...

That Time I Made Fettucine Alfredo...

It's time for another 20sb Cooking Challenge! This round is "Homemade Fettuccine Alfredo with Italian Breadsticks"

Okay so, cards on the table, I don't have anyone at home to eat the food I make, nor does my schedule easily allow to organize friends to come over to do the eating. Since I was already going to have a bunch of pasta to eat [so. many. carbs.], I opted out of making bread sticks. I know I lose a lot of points for that, but my waistline won't like it so that's how its gonna be. The Chicken and Mushroom Fettuccine Alfredo did, however, come out amazing. It was the first time I made an Alfredo sauce, and it was delicious, so that makes doing the challenge worth it!...

That Time I Made Pepperoni Pesto Mini Pizzas...

You guessed right! It's 20sb Cooking Challenge time again!

Today's challenge:


Chopped Appetizer Round
1) Enlist a significant other/roommate/sibling/parents/grumpy cat lady from across the street to put together a “mystery basket” with four ingredients that you MUST use — if they want to shop all ingredients cannot exceed $20 TOTAL (or £10 or €15 depending on your country). They must include a protein and a fruit/veggie...

That Time I Had A Plastic-Dilemma Bag...

What? You thought that because it's no longer July that I was going to stop saving the world? Ahahahaha. Okay, so with July over I will stop collecting the plastic I do get forced upon me in a bag. But during Plastic Free July, I collected all the plastic that was unavoidable in a "dilemma bag" that I could then go through at the end of the month. I'm gonna be honest. I think I did pretty damn good. And I included stuff that I bought in June. Though to be more honest, some of it I bought on June 30th in anticipation of July. So I included it and felt bad and will no longer buy tortillas and pita bread. 

So there's all the food packaging scrunched together on the left, packaging from online purchases on the right. At the bottom is some more packaging, a candy wrapper from a Flake bar that I didn't know it was possible to get in the US but I found at Wegman's, and then all the yellow stuff is the caps and seals from my milk bottles, a plastic fork and if I'd thought of it, there would be several straws that I either failed-to-ask-to-not-have or were failed-to-not-be-given-to-me. Yes, that was a sentence. It looks like a lot of milk for a month, but half was used to make yogurt, so one little cap replaces a quart-sized plastic tub. That's something right?...

That Time I Fried Some Tofu...

20SB Cooking Challenge: Recipe Revision

For this challenge, I had to think about a food I wouldn't eat as a kid and make it myself using a different/better preparation and determine if I still don't like it. The ingredient I am choosing is tofu and the recipe I will be making using it is tofu and mushroom enchiladas.

Here are this challenge's rules:

1)Write about a food you hated as a kid. It could be an entire recipe like tuna casserole or a single ingredient like mushrooms.
2) Cook a meal based on the food you didn't like. Make sure to link to your source if you're not creating an original recipe! And don't forget to take pictures :)
3) Try your dish and tell us if you've changed your mind or if you were right about it all along.

So.... 

1) I am very picky about food textures. I do not eat cooked vegetables or anything with similar consistencies. Tofu strikes me as being one such food and the look of it alone makes me not want to eat it. So I wouldn't even try it. But then I was in Japan visiting my brother and he bought some sort of crispy-thing-on-a-stick that he said was fried soy something-or-other, which was really tasty, so I've wanted to try to make crispy tofu ever since. I'm going to use this challenge to try. When I came across this recipe for Mushroom & Poblano Vegetarian Enchiladas (made with tofu), it sounded like something I could incorporate crispy tofu into so that I actually would like and eat the recipe. I am however making a couple changes to eliminate the cooked vegetables I still won't eat to make: Crispy Tofu & Mushroom Enchiladas.

2) Photos! (Also: recipe)

Fried tofu actually looks yummy.

So do the cooked enchiladas!

3) So I sampled a bit of the fried tofu separate from the enchiladas and I actually liked it. When I tried the enchiladas, I couldn't really tell that the tofu had been fried since the sauce and cheese un-crispied it, but I didn't try it with out the corn starch (that's what made it crispy when fried), so I could actually handle it in this dish un-coated.

However, I still will be hesitant to eat tofu when it's just cooked in broth or anything that leaves it looking like weird, white, squishy, soy-cubes. It's just such a strange food. Nothing about it looks like food. But I think that if it at least RESEMBLES chicken a bit, I could handle it.

That Time I Took A Coffee Break...

GOOD MORNING! Okay I know it's not morning, unless you're reading this in the morning any day after I post this, in which case... whatever. Anyway. 

So something exciting and blog related I did was I made my very own font on my blog picture handwriting. I know aren't you jealous that YOU didn't spend the time to do the same? But it will make adding text to my pictures a million times easier which means more posts for you (in theory)! We'll see how that works out. So here's a sample of it:

Yeah it looks like I just wrote it but that's because I did, except only each letter once with no copy/pasting. I'm not completely happy with it and will probably tweek some letters at some point.

Also this week, I debuted my first comic strip. I've been wanting to do something like that with my pictures for a while now but couldn't figure out how to do that exactly until now. So get ready to be bombarded with comic versions of my hilarious one liners I will blow your minds with. I considered reposting the one from Thursday but decided to grace you with a new one instead! And then after today they will be separate from the Sunday comics. Also I'm taking suggestions for a name for my comic for when it becomes crazy popular and all the news papers want it.

Every workplace has one of these guys

So, I'm not really sure how it happened but I forgot to include my recipe link in last weeks post. What that means is TWO this week!
Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie

Just in time for Thanksgiving, this is the perfect combination of pumpkin pie and cheese cake! You get the best of both treats!

And this week's recipe:
Shrimp Cevice

I don't really have anything to say about this except that it's yummy :)

















That's all I can think of for now so I'm off! Have a fantastic week!