Apples Away!

My dear cousins Whitney and Laura Checketts (who have just moved up to a family of 3 - congratulations by the way) were so kind as to share some apples with me this last month. I simply refused to see one of them go to waste (or at least that was my excuse for finding time to bake with them as much as I could). Consequently, I had a party in the kitchen all month long. Behold Apple Recipe Number 1: Apple Crumble.







An Autumn Apple Blue Plate Special.

Long Time, No See

Absence makes the heart grow fonder (or more forgetful). Anyhow, here I am again with more food to report on. Here we see a simple bowl of cornflakes:

Cornflakes

cornflakes dry cereal
milk

Combine approximately equal amounts in a bowl.

Stunning, and yet so often passed over in the culinary world. Good food doesn't always require lots of effort. Cold cereal may be one of my personal favorite Blue Plate Specials.

Spontaneous Dessert

After a nice meal one night, (more on the meal later) I was feeling creative and craving adventure, so I set out on a spontaneous quest through my food. I found a darling pear, some dashing brown sugar, and some dainty sour cream. Together, we formed a fellowship with one goal in mind: Dessert.

After trials and struggles of the most perilous nature we emerged triumphant, and this was the result:



Victorious Pears

1 pear half, sliced
1-2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1-2 Tbsp. sour cream

Place the pear slices in a ramekin. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and spoon the sour cream on top of that. Microwave 1 min. Taste sweet victory.

Another masterfully complete Blue Plate Special!

Just Plum Jam

I discovered that there are plum trees at my apartment complex! Beautiful red plums, just turning purplish now. I stood under the tree and hopped to reach branches until I had picked a bagful (and gotten some quizzical looks from passers by). Some sugar, water, and a long time on the stove transformed my complimentary fruit into a delicious plum jam! Is it not a beautiful red color? A spin in the food processor made it deliciously smooth.

I've been enjoying peanut butter and plum jam sandwiches all week, and, with another jar in the freezer, I suspect I shall be able to enjoy them for quite some time.
My favorite thing about making jam is how simple it is. It seems magical that just sugar and heat can transform just picked fruit into spreadable jam.
Another tasty, beautiful, miraculous Blue Plate Special!

broccoli . . . cheese . . . Delicious!

I was looking over my food stuffs Friday night and realized that I might just have all the ingredients for Broccoli Chicken Casserole! Mother gave me the recipe and I only had to buy lemon juice to have everything I needed. It's so simple, it's so delightful.

Note the nice bread crumbs on top (courtesy of my new toaster). I also made a nice little spinach salad to go along with it.
A deliciously simple Blue Plate Special.

You love it

I know that making pigs-in-the-blanket is something that you only do when you are 7 years old, or perhaps when you are a mother of small children. But I say if hot dogs are on sale and your roommate has a good biscuit recipe, you are allowed to make them as a college student. Plus, I also ate some grapes, which are very dignified, so that pretty much balances out.
Another well balanced, if somewhat childish, Blue Plate special!

Some delicious "wings" anyone?

Since I'm posting now, I thought I may as well just catch up on all the dishes I've made in the last few months. I made these chicken tenders from David's wing recipe found on their blog. Since I already had some regular chicken breast pieces, I just used those instead of actual chicken wings. I think the sauce sticks better when you use wings with skin on them, but the tenders were good anyway and I liked the barbecue sauce. Although, for some reason, my sauce turned out a little grainy. I think I may have added the granulated garlic too late.

Substitute wings and grainy sauce--the essence of Blue Plate specials!

Mexican Summer Soup

Doesn't this just look delightful? This taco soup came from a recipe in my Gabby Gourmet cookbook. It was delicious--my only regret is that it couldn't be served on a blue plate {alas, my life, I know}.
My favorite parts of all taco soups are the toppings. Homemade tortilla chips (thank you, Ruth, for the tortillas!), cilantro (thank you Mother!) and sour cream (I actually bought it myself!) just enhanced all the Mexican goodness in this summery dish.
My first blue plate special!