By Request- Eggplant Parm

This past weekend, we hosted some of our nearest and dearest friends who we've walked with since our pre-dating days...such amazing memories with this group of friends and it was so refreshing to my soul to get to spend some time with them. All in all, we fed 8 adults and 4 babies between the ages of 12-18 months- and my leftover Eggplant Parmesan kind of snuck in and stole the show for best recipe of the weekend.

So, by request of a few of my favorite mama's, I thought I would post the recipe.

I did not actually find this one on pinterest, but I'm sure it's there somewhere. I came across this recipe while flipping through my most recent Real Simple Magazine. I haven't ever made eggplant before but have always liked it at restaurants and thought a meatless dish might be good for our highly carnivorous family :)

Here's the basics:
Ingredients:

• 2 medium eggplants (cut into 1/4-inch slices)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 3 cups marinara sauce
• 12 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan (about 2 ounces)
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
• 
  

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400° F. On 2 rimmed baking sheets, brush the eggplants with ¼ cup of the oil; season with ¼ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Bake until tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. Spread 1 cup of the marinara in the bottom of an 8-inch baking dish. Top with half the eggplant, half the mozzarella, and half the Parmesan. Repeat, ending with the last cup of marinara. Top with the bread crumbs.
3. Bake until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes.

Here's a link to the recipe on the Real Simple website. They served it with a mixed greens salad (as did I, just not this one).
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/eggplant-parmesan-00100000106384/index.html

This was delicious, even though it was not really on the healthy side considering the abundance of cheese...but who doesn't love cheese??!!!

PINTEREST FAIL

I know I'm supposed to stick to recipes since this blog is called Pinterest test KITCHEN....but this fail was too big not to post.

It all started when a young, west Texas girl moved east to the central Texas town of Waco and discovered that when introduced to humidity, her very thick, long hair suddenly kinked up into something between a curl and beachy wave... but let's skip ahead a few years.

I have a 16 month old and hair that takes 40 minutes to blow dry, therefore, I am constantly looking for a fast fix that doesn't require me to juggle entertaining a very active little boy by allowing roll after roll of toilet paper to be shredded and strewn across my bathroom while simultaneously attempting to properly use a round brush and blow dryer to de-curl and smooth hair that clearly just wants to be free.

This brings me to the false hope that is this pin:
http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966383506879/

Go to Bed with Wet Hair - 3 Ways to Wake Up to Gorgeous Hair-

 for crazy early mornings; Pin now, read later. Doing this.

SO- I went to this link

http://shine.yahoo.com/beauty/3-ways-wake-gorgeous-hair-144100463.html

Followed these steps:

"wake up to less frizz

Giving your hair a break from heat can actually be beneficial-especially for those with natural waves. "The less you do to curls the better," says Gibson. 

1. Apply a light leave-in conditioner (try Ted Gibson Tame It Shine Lotion, $20) and use a wide-tooth comb to distribute it to your ends. A brush or a fine-tooth comb can destroy your curl pattern and create kinks. 
2. Part your hair down the middle. Divide each side into three smaller sections. 
3. Starting at the bottom of one of the smaller sections, create a pin curl by wrapping the ends up and over two fingers as you would a foam roller and continue winding up toward your roots. (This prevents curls from tangling or catching on your pillow at night.) 
4. Slip your fingers out and secure the pin curl to your scalp using a clip. (Try these no-crease versions from Ricky's, $6.) Then repeat steps three and four on the other five sections. 
5. Remove the clips in the a.m. and lightly spritz your hair with water to soften curls and eliminate static. "

AND GOT THIS....

UMMMMM.....thanks Yahoo Beauty- total fail...and clearly, still plenty of frizz.

Obviously, I cling to the hope that the blow dry bar trend sticks around for a long, long time.

Pioneer Woman Potatoes

As obvious as it is that I enjoy cooking (first item submitted  for evidence: I started a cooking blog), there are definitely lots of occasions when I'd rather send my husband outside to throw some meat on the grill while I catch up on episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" and/or any of the Real Housewives who hail from California (there's just something more interesting about those west coast women).  

This weekend, we were hosting some family for Sunday night dinner and I was searching for a side to accompany the chicken skewers that my grill-master was busy preparing outside.  Awhile back I had come across a Pioneer Woman recipe for smashed potatoes that sounded really good and gave you a great potato side dish without all the cheese, butter and sour cream.... Not that I'm saying it's necessarily a healthy dish...but it's delicious and I find it much easier to justify to myself :)

So, here it is: Crash Hot Potatoes via Ree Drummond aka The Pioneer Woman

Pin: 
http://m.pinterest.com/pin/103793966384903520/

Or Direct to Pioneer Woman:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/crash-hot-potatoes/

Ingredients

• 12 whole New Potatoes (or Other Small Round Potatoes- I used Russet's because it's what I had)
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
•  Kosher Salt To Taste
•  Black Pepper To Taste
•  Rosemary (or Other Herbs Of Choice) To Taste

Preparation Instructions

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender. (about 30 mins)

On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookie sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.

With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the potato masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil. ( I like to remove some of the skin from the middle of the potato after I mash them- see my pic of my mashed potatoes before removing the center skins.)

Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available.)

Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

This recipe is super easy and a great option in case you felt like buying one of those big bags of a small variety potato at Sam's was a brilliant idea...not that anyone ever buys things in bulk that they don't need...I'm sure that I've never done that...you either? Good, glad we're not "those people".

Hope you enjoy these potatoes and please thank Pioneer Woman for being consistently awesome when it comes to the kitchen. 

My Famous Breakfast Roll

Not to metaphorically "toot my own horn", but I thought I would share a recipe that I've become somewhat known for by friends and family who I cook breakfast for. This was one of my first ever pins on Pinterest, and it was so good, I have tweaked it and made a go-to for all occasions where breakfast is served...

Here's a link to the original pin
http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966381568285/

So, here are the ingredients:
Eggs, Scrambled (apprx. 12)
Bacon, Cooked (approx. 8 slices)
1 packages Crescent Rolls (Pillsbury preferred)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (about 1/2 cup)

Here's what you do:
Scramble and season your eggs (my favorite is to season with some Tony's cajun seasoning while the eggs are scrambling in the skillet), cook and drain your bacon.
On a cookie sheet topped with a piece of parchment paper, unroll your crescent rolls and separate each roll, arrange them in a circle,  like a wreath with the widest ends in the center (sorry I didn't get a photo of this, but you can find great photos form the original pinner's site here http://bacontimewiththehungryhypo.blogspot.com/2011/02/beautiful-bacon-egg-cheese-wreath.html )
They will overlap in the middle and leave about a 3 inch whole in the center.

Next, lay one piece of bacon on each crescent roll. Cover the center with your scrambled eggs and sprinkle with about about half of your cheese.  Next, take the narrow ends of your crescents and fold them toward in toward the center of your egg mix. This will make a somewhat enclosed wreath of tastiness- it should look like the pictures below.

Last, sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top of your wreath (you can add other toppings here like jalapenos for a spicy kick, parsley for some color etc.)

Pop this in an oven preheated to 375 degrees for about 14-17 mins checking often. (follow the cooking instructions on the crescent roll can) It is done when the rolls are golden brown and the cheese is gooey and melty (yes, those are real words when related to the melting of cheese).

This recipe never fails to impress (unless you cook it too long, or burn the bacon, or don't know how to scramble eggs...all of which I do not assume responsibility for. Please take those things up with your mother.)

Hope you enjoy!

A Pinterest 1st Birthday

I need to start with a great BIG APOLOGY for my lack of postings on this blog. It turns out that building a house, trying to get settled into a new city, working part-time, and having an infant really doesn't leave a ton of time for blogging....but I'm hoping to remedy that situation in the coming months. While I haven't been posting, I HAVE been cooking and testing recipes from Pinterest very regularly and I've got some catching up do! But, to kick-off my return to experimental pinterest-ing, I thought I'd post some pics from my son's 1st birthday party! 

His current favorite read is "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?" so it only seemed appropriate that we do a book themed, rainbow colored party! I tried to pull in all the colors from the book and create a very bright and fun birthday, but let's be honest, it was a one year old party so I tried not to go too overboard and create an over the top, pinterest-perfect party. I did, however, allow pinterest to inspire some of my decor and theme/food ideas. 

Here's the table, all decked out with our brown bear inspired foods...

Brown bear fabric ordered from the Eric Carle Storybook Museum Gift Shop, Cupcake toppers designed by Frost and Fete via ETSY,  Food labels made by me and my mom :) and cake by Sweet Hope Cafe, Tyler, TX

It's hard to see but I paper clipped monthly photos of the little guy to balloon strings that hung over the table. This was inspired by this pinterest post http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966382996028/ Also, I made a cute balloon wreath but I put it around the bottom of the cake stand and liked it so much I left it as table decor instead of hanging it. Inspiration and instructions here http://pinterest.com/pin/127226758192694324/

This was the favor table. I made a little snack mix of chocolate Teddy Grahams (Brown Bears), Goldfish Crackers, Animal Crackers, and colorful M&M's and ordered the cute gift tag designs from Frost and Fete on Etsy. Floral Arrangment by my mom (she's gifted).

Gift Tags

One of my favorite shots...not too sure about that cake :)

...But he came around

Little man had an amazing time at his first birthday. We also served juice boxes and my dad's famous breakfast burritos (for the grown-ups:).  I ended up buying a couple of craft punches and LOTS of colored cardstock, rainbow plates etc...we may be having a Brown Bear themed birthday party for the next 4 years :)

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

Oh Pinterest, you post recipes that look and sound delicious....and then you make me do something that completely ruins the hope for the deliciousness to live up to my expectations, like cook chicken breast at 500 degrees. sigh.

Well, I knew this recipe was flawed when I read through it, but for the sake of keeping the test kitchen true to it's roots, I decided to give the recipe the benefit of the doubt and assume that whoever wrote it knew something I didn't (not too hard to imagine that would be true, right?).   The result was some well flavored rubber chicken that was, literally, hard to swallow.

So, here you go pinterest world. I made this mistake so you don't have to!

Link to Pin: http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966383043581/
Link to Actual Recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/easy-garlic-chicken-5478

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 tablespoons brown sugar
3 teaspoons olive oil

HERE's WHERE IS ALL WENT WRONG:
Directions
Preheat oven to 500 degrees and lightly grease a casserole dish
WARNING- if you cook chicken at 500 degrees it actually turns into a rubber chicken! DO NOT serve rubber chicken... PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 350 DEGREES.

In a small saute pan, saute garlic with the oil until tender, remove from heat and stir in brown sugar.

Place chicken breasts in a prepared baking dish and cover with the garlic and brown sugar mixture.

Add salt and pepper to taste, bake uncovered  for 25-30 mins  (original recipe said 15-30 minutes, a 15 min. cook time window is pretty catastrophic for people who like to follow a recipe exactly!)

It's hard to review this one since I cooked it with the 500 degree method but I will say the flavor was great and if I made it again following my revised recipe above, I think it would be a great weeknight chicken dish!! If you make it, let me know your thoughts!!

Sausage Rolls

Another Saturday morning standing hungrily in my kitchen and rummaging through the fridge led me to whip up these easy sausage rolls. Seriously all you need is crescent rolls, cooked sausage and some cream cheese and this is done!

Link to Pin: http://pinterest.com/pin/103793966383181877/
Link to Recipe: http://abiteofmylife.blogspot.com/2009/02/cream-cheese-sausage-pinwheels.html (use this link for the recipe, she's got great step by step instructions with photos.

Cream Cheese Sausage Pinwheels

1 Roll Breakfast Sausage

1 Tube Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

1 Pkg Softened Cream Cheese

Brown sausage and drain.

In a large bowl, combine cooked sausage with softened cream cheese. Remove crescent roll dough from packaging do not separate sections, and roll out into a rectangle, sealing the perforated areas with your fingers.

(the only pic I remembered to take...oops)

Spread the cream cheese mixture over the dough in a thin even layer. Roll the dough lengthwise (if you roll from the short side- the pinwheels will be fatter- but you wont get as many!)

Once rolled up- refrigerate for at least 20 mins- or if you are in a hurry like I usually am, put it in the freezer til' firm... this will help the dough keep shape while cutting

Cut in about 1/4" sections and lay on baking sheet. Bake for about 15 mins or until crescent roll is cooked.

Ingredient Availability-10
 I keep crescent rolls on hand at all times, and who doesn't stock cream cheese and sausage??
Ease on the Waist Line-5

Enjoy in moderation :)
Prep Mess-8

very little mess
Overall Difficulty-EASY
Overall Taste- 8
My friend made a different version of the same thing for a brunch at MOPS and it was better...I'll try and figure out which pinterest recipe she used!
Hubby Rates It-8
Great little brunch food item, and it's got sausage...man food.
Ease of Clean Up-8