What They Don't Tell You

A dear friend let me borrow a huge pile of cooking magazines.

2nd Only To The Nonesuch Cheesecake

This is a story about my dear friend Mike, and Christmas cookies.

Doctored Cake from a Box

I've been going through a cake phase lately.

Girl Scout Cookie Pie

It's that time of year again.

Dining In: Sweet Cornbread

This was my inspiration for this "Dining In" post.

Dining In: Outback Baked Potatoes

Our neighborhood is right across the street from our local Outback Steakhouse.

Dining In: Better-Than-Crack Brownies

During my photography weekend I came across some pictures that documented a cooking expedition I had with a recipe from HowSweetEats found on the Tasty Kitchen. Yes, you read the name right: Better-Than-Crack Brownies.

They are pretty simple. You start with a box of brownies.

Dining In: Trying not to burn down the kitchen

Yes, we are skipping Christmas this year. Which gave me a great opportunity to spend some quality time in my kitchen, dabbling in a little holiday baking. I had loads of fun getting to try new recipes, and sharing the goodies with our neighbors.  Below is a list of items I attempted to bake, along with my reviews. Sorry no step-by-step pictures, it was a little crazy in my kitchen this weekend.

Dining In: Recipe Failure

I get tired of all the cooking shows, blogs, discussion boards making everything look so easy. No one ever shows you the recipes that failed.

Dining In: Homemade Pizza

My better half loves Pizza. So this weekend I attempted to make homemade pizza from a recipe I found over at Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen.

Dining In: Teriyaki Chicken & Mashed Potatoes

This was my definition of a southern meal (loads of butter) with a little bit of zing.  I adapted the teriyaki chicken marinade recipe from that Taste of Home cookbook I have.  The mashed potatoes concoction is from my Mom and guesswork (it was my first time).

Dining In: Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

This past weekend we were invited to a cookout so I opted to make these delicious cookies.  They are great to make if you have some mushy bananas lying around that you didn't get to eat during the week.  And the bananas I had were in the perfect state:

Dining In

I have found that one way to simplify is dining in.  Now don't get me wrong I love trying local joints and eating the native cuisine.  But there is nothing like sitting in the peace and quiet of your home surrounded by people you care about at your table.  Ever since I snagged my better half I've been dabbling in the kitchen.  Here is a dining in meal I served this week: