Baked Dijon Salmon

I simply don't eat enough fish. I like some fish, but others? Not so much. Not a huge catfish fan; in my humble opinion (which is really all that matters, right?), it tastes like dirt. And I ate a fair amount of the stuff growing up (dirt, not catfish, although I had to eat some of that too since my dad was a fan), so I would know. Salmon is one of those fish that can be good or bad, depending on how it's made and who prepares it. Smoked salmon . . . well, can't really go wrong there. I love smoked salmon, but I wish it weren't so darn expensive in these parts.

The other day (ok, a while ago), I found a pretty decent deal on individual portions of salmon filets, 4 oz. each. I thought these would be perfect a.) portion control, and b.) for a night when I'm home alone and don't need to make a lot of food. We decided to pull 2 out of the freezer the other night with absolutely no idea how we were going to prepare them. Buppy suggested baking with a little butter and . . . Old Bay, I think. Eh, too boring for me. I decided to peruse allrecipes.com to see what I could find that was a bit more exciting. What I happened upon turned out fantastic, and I'm so glad I took the time to do my little search. Simple, with easy ingredients, and quick --- what's not to love?

Baked Dijon Salmon

Adapted from allrecipes.com

1/8 c. butter

1 1/2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

3/4 Tbsp. honey

1/8 c. dry bread crumbs

1/8 c. finely chopped walnuts

2 (4 oz.) salmon filets

Salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat toaster oven to 400F. (Note: we used our toaster oven because we were only doing 2 filets instead of 4 as the original recipe called for. Why not conserve energy, right? But if you don't have a toaster oven, by all means use a regular oven.)

In a small bowl, stir together butter, mustard and honey; set aside. In another bowl, mix together bread crumbs and walnuts. Brush each salmon filet lightly with honey-mustard mixture, and sprinkle the bread crumb-walnut topping over each filet. Bake salmon 12-15 minutes in the preheated toaster oven, or until it flakes easily with a fork. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

As for the side in the picture --- I took 1 large russet potato, washed it, poked some holes in it and microwaved it until tender (note: you could use the oven to bake it if you wanted to instead). Once tender, I sliced it into rounds and laid them on a plate. I sprinkled with garlic bread powder, onion powder and a small amount of Asiago cheese. I then microwaved them another minute or two, just to slightly melt the cheese. They were lacking a little in the salt department, so season to taste. Enjoy!

Deep Fried Goodness (Onion Rings)

These are bad for you, bad I say! Pretty obvious, since they're deep fried, but just in case you were gonna be all, "Well she didn't say they were bad for me . . . " They are. No ifs, ands or buts. They're also very tasty though, and if you don't eat piles & piles of 'em super often, I think they're ok to sneak in once in awhile. Then again, I'm no doctor. Point is: if you're going to make something homemade and deep fried, try these. They don't disappoint!

Southwestern Onion Rings

2 large sweet onions

2 1/2 c. buttermilk

2 eggs

3 Tbsp. water

1 3/4 c. flour

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. chili powder

1-2 tsp. cayenne pepper [depending on how spicy you want 'em]

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

Oil, for deep frying

Cut onions into 1/4 inch slices; separate into rings. Place in a bowl, cover with buttermilk and soak for 20 minutes, stirring twice. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and water. In a shallow dish, combine flour, salt, cayenne, chili powder, sugar, garlic powder and cumin. Drain onions; dip them into the egg mixture and coat in the flour mixture. In an electric skillet or deep fryer, heat 1 inch oil to 375F. Fry onion rings, a few at a time, for 1 - 1 1/2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Yield: 8 servings. Enjoy!

Roasted Asparagus & Mushrooms

If you’re in the mood for a fantastic, healthy and easy side dish, this recipe is for you. While I’m not sure where I picked it up, I can definitely vouch for its tastiness. Buppy and I have made it several times, both for ourselves and for company, and it’s always well received.Roasted Asparagus & Mushrooms

1 lb. fresh asparagus, trimmed
½ lb. fresh mushrooms, quartered
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, minced [we’ve also used dried in the past]
2 tsp. olive oil
Salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450F. Lightly spray a cookie sheet with vegetable cooking spray. Place the asparagus & mushrooms in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, then season with rosemary, salt & pepper; toss well. Lay the asparagus & mushrooms out on the prepared pan in an even layer; roast in the preheated oven until the asparagus is tender, about 15 minutes. Viola!

We’ve also substituted Mrs. Dash’s garlic & herb seasoning for the rosemary with delicious results. In fact, I think that’s what we normally use nowadays. Well, whatever spice[s] you favor, the roasted veggies will no doubt be wonderful. Enjoy!Asparagus is definitely my favorite veggie. Photo courtesy of Fistfulofcoupons, found at photobucket.com.

Menu Plan Monday - July 26, 2010

Menu planning. Hmmm. Have had a hard time following through with things these past few weeks. We'll see if this week is any better.

Monday: Parmigiano & herb chicken tenders, baked sweet potato chips & honeydew melon

Tuesday: cheesy chicken zucchini casserole & green salad

Wednesday: BLTs, baked potato rounds with cheese & raw carrots

Thursday: home alone, so probably leftovers

Friday: Pampered chef party

Saturday lunch: grilled Boca burgers, fresh fruits/veggies on hand
Saturday dinner: grilled chicken breasts & healthified crunchy Asian slaw

Sunday lunch: sloppy Joes & fresh fruit/veggies on hand
Sunday dinner: pizzas & green salad

Those darn chicken tenders have been on our menu plan for 3-4 weeks now, and I'm making them tonight if it kills me [although I must be honest, I'm hoping it doesn't!] The cheesy chicken zucchini casserole is going to be a spin-off of a recipe I found on allrecipes.com, so if it's good, I'll share. If not, you'll never hear about it again! I tried to do things that require minimal effort this week to perhaps help keep me on track better. Here goes nothin' . . .

Snicker's Salad

This salad is fantastic, period. My dad would eat all "10-12 servings" in one sitting if I'd let him. The ingredients are few and the prep is relatively easy --- 2 things that I love about it. It's a great summer dish for picnics, but I also make it around the holidays or for potlucks anytime of year at work [old job, not this one; we're not really a potluck crew at this job.] I just ran across it and am thinking about making this for the party on Saturday instead of the pistachio fruit salad. It still has fruit in it, so I think I'm good!

Snickers Salad

1 [5oz.] pkg. instant vanilla pudding mix
1 c. milk
1 [12 oz.] container Cool Whip, thawed
6 apples [peeled, cored and chopped]
6 [2.16 oz.] Snickers, chilled and chopped
¼ c. seedless grapes

Prepare the pudding using 1 c. milk and blend together with whipped topping. Add the apples, Snickers and grapes. Mix together and refrigerate until chilled. 10-12 servings.

See, how simple was that? And you could even serve this as dessert if you wanted to --- enjoy!

Update: I'm linking this to Life as Mom's Ultimate Recipe Swap for today, July 22, 2010. The topic is picnic recipes, and I can't think of anything better to bring along. Check out lifeasmom.com for more great picnic recipes!

Lemon Artichoke Romaine Salad

This salad was decent, although almost missing something in my opinion. It would be a good accompaniment to a meal that already has a lot of flavor components because it's really very mild in and of itself. I think I might add more garlic next time, but that's simply because I'm a garlic freak. Buppy and I enjoyed this on Friday night when we had good friends over for dinner. It accompanied slow cooker Italian beef and an Italian pasta salad. I'd like to think we all enjoyed it!Lemon Artichoke Romaine Salad
Adapted from Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005

10 c. torn romaine
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 can [14 oz.] water packed artichoke heart quarters, drained
3 Tbsp. water
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. minced jarred garlic
1 tsp. salt
Coarsely ground pepper, to taste
1/3 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a bowl, combine the first 3 ingredients. Combine water, lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt & pepper in a small bowl. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Sprinkle with cheese.I'm not sure if I really had all 10 cups of romaine in my salad; I didn't measure and used what I had in the fridge. The original recipe called for black olives too [1-2.25 oz. can], but I omitted because a.) we weren't sure how much our guests did or didn't like black olives and b.) I already used a full can in the Italian pasta salad and we didn't want them to overwhelm the meal. Me? I could have done with the addition of the olives, but I really like them. Also, I think next time I'd add a little more tomato. The recipe called for 4 plum tomatoes, but I don't like plum tomatoes so I used regular tomatoes I had on hand. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure I didn't have all of the lettuce it suggested using because I had salad dressing left over. I poured on about 3/4 of what I had made and decided that was enough. This, like darn-near all green salads, does not keep once the dressing is poured on. Enjoy!

Pistachio Fruit Salad

Simple? Check. Less than 5 ingredients? Check. Quick? Check. Tasty? Check. Chock full o' fruit so the whole family gets more of their daily servings? Check. Diabetic friendly? Check. Low-fat? Check. Low-sodium? Check. Meatless? Check. Wow --- this dish has a lot going for it!Pistachio Fruit Salad
Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005

1 can [20 oz.] crushed unsweetened pineapple
1 pkg. [1 oz.] sugar-free instant pistachio pudding mix
1 can [15 oz.] unsweetened fruit cocktail, drained
1 can [11 oz.] reduced-sugar mandarin oranges, drained
1 c. reduced-fat whipped topping

Drain pineapple, reserving juice. In a bowl, whisk together reserved juice and pudding mix for 2 minutes [mixture will be thick]. Stir in the pineapple, fruit cocktail and mandarin oranges. Fold in whipped topping. Cover and refrigerate until serving. Yield: 6 servings.

I made this last night and had some with my tuna melt, which turned out to be open-faced on really good Italian bread 'cause it was on sale. I enjoyed it with dinner, then had some for breakfast here at work this morning. Buppy hasn't tried it yet, but we'll have some for dinner tonight. I'm hoping he likes it; my main concern is the mandarin orange segments --- he's not a fan. Hopefully they'll blend in with the pineapple and fruit cocktail enough that he at least won't feel the need to pick them out. Enjoy!

Baked & Seasoned Potato Chips

Remember that darn ol' sweet potato from Thanksgiving that I keep wanting to use up? Well folks, she's finally in a better place now. Ok, maybe not better; she got pitched. I actually attempted to make baked sweet potato chips on Tuesday night, but there was a dark [ok, black] spot that ran all through the potato. While I could have cut that part off, Buppy and I agreed that we'd rather waste the food, the money it cost and the space it's taken up for five months than be sick.

The original recipe using the sweet potato comes from my Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005 cookbook. I know, shocker, right, seeing as how almost every recipe I've blogged about for the past few weeks has come from the same darn book. What can I say? I'm trying to eat better, and their food actually turns out pretty well. Ok, minus the white bean tuna salad. Not a fan. But I digress.

This recipe is super simple to throw together on a busy night, then shove it in the oven and forget it. And even though I'm not big into rosemary [why eat pine? might as well drink gin, I say], I really liked these puppies. So did Buppy. We'll be making these again, fo' sho', and we might even try 'em with sweet potatoes like the recipe calls for. Eh, maybe not. I'd probably buy one or two and they'd sit around for another year or so.

Baked Seasoned Potato Chips
Adapted from Baked Sweet Potato Chips found in Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005

3 medium white potatoes
1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
1 tsp. dried parsley flakes
3/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. ground mustard
Dash white pepper
1/2-3/4 Tbsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 400F. Cut potatoes into 1/8" slices. In a bowl, combine seasonings and olive oil. Toss gently with potatoes, making sure to evenly coat. Place in a single layer on 2 large baking sheets coated with non-stick cooking spray [we covered the sheets with non-stick foil instead of spraying].
Bake, uncovered, at 400F for 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are golden brown and tender, turning both the pan and the potatoes themselves once.

There ya have it. Super simple, really tasty and not bad for you! What more could you ask for? Enjoy!

Easy Waldorf & Raisin Salad

I grew up eating and loving my mom's Waldorf salad. I know now, as an adult, that it's not exactly something I could consider healthy. Yes mom, the apples, raisins and nuts are all good for me, but the marshmallows and mayonnaise aren't.

When I saw this recipe in my cookbook, I knew I had to try to make it so I could be healthier but still indulge in a salad that I've loved since childhood. While not exactly like my mom makes, it was really good. I took this, along with a fresh strawberry pie [to be blogged about soon] up to Gettysburg when we were up visiting Buppy's parents this weekend. They both liked it, too. I can tell you that Tiny Tot #1 did not like the raisins, which is odd because he eats them for lunch whenever we send them in with him. Tiny Tot #2 loved the raisins and didn't really want to eat anything else in the salad. I think that was partly my fault --- I was in a hurry to make this and cut the apples a little large for his mouth.

Easy Waldorf and Raisin Salad
Adapted from Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005
Janice Smith, Cynthiana, KY

4 c. cubed apples
1 c. unsweetened pineapple chunks, drained & chopped
2 Tbsp. chopped celery
2 Tbsp. chopped pecans
2 Tbsp. raisins
1 c. [8 oz.] reduced-fat sour cream
1 Tbsp. reduced fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. orange juice

In a large bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, sugar and orange juice. Pour over the apple mixture; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until chilled. Toss just before serving. Yield: 6 servings.

I can't post the nutritional info for this one as listed in the book as I changed the recipe slightly. Oh well, overall it's still light & tasty, and that's what matters to me. The orange juice not only helps keep the apples from turning brown, it added a really nice hint of citrus to the salad as well. I'll definitely make this again, especially now that it's Spring and fruit salads are all the rage [in my book anyway]! Enjoy!*Sorry, really bad lighting for the pic!

Linked to Life as Mom’s Ultimate Recipe Swap for 3/24/11 - Spring Recipes.

White Bean Tuna Salad

Most of the more recent recipes I've been trying out have been from my Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005 cookbook. I can say I've been pleased with the majority and will continue to test new ones. The following recipe is one that I'm still on the fence about.

It's good, but I think the red wine vinegar is overwhelming. It has a strong flavor to me, similar to balsamic vinegar, and it easily takes over the dish. All in all I like the flavor combo as well as the textures, but next time I'll add less of the red wine vinegar. I halved the recipe as I wasn't sure how we'd like it, plus we had other meals going on, so I didn't want too much leftover in the fridge. Turns out I made it prior to leaving for Gettysburg on Saturday and haven't even eaten any for a meal yet. What follows is the full recipe, not the halved version I used.

White Bean Tuna Salad
Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 005
Kathleen Law, Post Falls, ID

1/4 c. red wine vinegar
3 garlic cloves, minced [I used jarred & it worked fine]
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 can [15 oz. each] white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed & drained
2 cans [6 oz. each] light water-packed tuna, drained & flaked
3/4 c. sliced ripe olives
1/2 c. chopped red onion [I used white because it's what I had on hand and it worked just fine]

In a small bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients; gradually whisk in oil. In a large bowl, combine the beans, tuna, olives and onion; add dressing and toss gently. Refrigerate until serving. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 serving [3/4 c.] equals 247 calories, 7 g fat [1 saturated fat], 17 mg cholesterol, 754 mg sodium, 23 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber, 20 g protein.
Diabetic exchange: 3 lean meat, 1 starch, 1 vegetable.

Obviously I don't normally have all of the nutritional info that comes with recipes or things I happen to make up, but since it's listed in the cookbook, I thought I'd share in case anyone is interested.

I'm thinking this might be my dinner tonight. Buppy and I were both kind of stumped as to how to eat this as it's not really 'salad-y' enough to eat on it's own [in our opinions], so I might pile it on top of some romaine and add some tomatoes. The dressing in this recipe can then act as the dressing for the entire salad. Buppy said he was going to try to eat it with Triscuits, so I guess it'd be more like a dip for him. I'll have to ask how that works out for him. If anyone tries it and finds a new way to eat this, feel free to let me know. Enjoy!

Welsh - A - What?

For a long, long time, I've wanted to try Welsh rabbit. I've only had rabbit once or twice when I was young, and to be honest, it tasted like chicken. Chicken in a lot of butter. So it really tasted like butter. But I figured that if common ol' hippity-hoppin' bunnies are good pan-fried in some tasty hot butter, Welsh rabbit must be better. And I was right!

Welsh rabbit is warm and smooth and creamy and . . . . wait, what? You mean it's not "rabbit"? For real?? Oh.........it's rarebit. That makes so much more sense now. Whew.

So lets do a quick run through of what Welsh rarebit is and what it isn't. Sometimes yes, it's called Welsh rabbit [and that's ok!], but it has nothing to do with rabbits [or meat of any kind for that matter], so I'm going to stick with rarebit. It's basically a localized variation of fondue, with the main difference being that classic fondue generally depends on Swiss cheese as it's base and Welsh rarebit focuses on cheddar. Cheddar cheese sauce served over toast or crackers = Welsh rarebit. You can go to Wikipedia to check out what they have to say about the matter. Anyway, guess what? I don't wanna play in their sandbox. I wanna play in my own.

My sandbox consisted of taking a standard Welsh rarebit recipe and tweaking it. I didn't use a double boiler to prepare mine since I didn't have one, and instead I used my almost-brand-new electric fondue pot on warm. I also halved the recipe, which was almost a total success. Execpt that I accidentally added the full amount of salt. And a whole egg, because really, who can halve a whole egg once beaten? Yeah, I thought so. I also used a mixture of double cheddar cheeses and an Italian mixture, because that's what I happened to have on hand. And while my original intention was to serve it over toast topped with asparagus [my grandmother made something similar a lot when I was a child and it was divine!], I ended up omitting the toast [change of meal plan] and simply served it as a cheese sauce over the asparagus. Guess what? Even with all my changes, it was still good! A little salty, but hey.

The recipe listed below is how it appears in my The Joy of Cooking tear-off calendar, not with my changes because I'm not sure who'll want to halve the recipe and who'll have an electric fondue pot vs. a double boiler. Just know that it's flexible, so play around with it until it suites your needs. While I'm sure this would be great on toast or crackers, I'm sure it'd be good on most veggies [think broccoli, cauliflower, etc.] as well as steak oscar. Mmmmmm, steak oscar. That's a whole 'nother post right there folks. But --- back to the recipe:

Welsh Rarebit
The Joy of Cooking Tear-Off Calendar 2010

1 Tbsp. butter
1 c. beer, ale, milk or cream
4 c. shredded sharp cheddar or Colby cheese [1 lb.]
1 egg, well beaten
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. sweet paprika
¼ tsp. dry mustard
Pinch of ground red pepper
12 slices white, rye or other bread of choice, toasted, or 18 crackers

Melt the butter in a double boiler over simmering water. Once melted, stir in whatever liquid you choose to use [beer, ale, milk or cream] until warm. Gradually stir in the cheese. Cook, stirring constantly with a fork, until the cheese is melted. Stir in the remaining ingredients [except bread/crackers] and cook, stirring, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Serve at once on top of bread or crackers. Yield: 6 servings.

This was good. I'll be making this again, for sure, to top veggies and whatever else comes to mind. Enjoy!

Note: I'm linking this up to Life as Mom’s Ultimate Recipe Swap for today, 1/20/11, which is all about meatless meals. For more ideas, feel free to pop on over to her site.

Creamy Fruit Salad, My Way

For Sunday's brunch with Buppy's family, fruit salad had to be part of the spread. Can you really host a brunch and not offer some type of fruity goodness? No, I thought not.

My inspiration came from Hannah’s Hangout; to be honest, I'm not even sure how I found her recipe. Bloghopping obviously, but from where? Oh well. I changed it up a bit using what I had on hand as well as what she suggested, and it was divine. I can't wait to play with other fruits and flavors of Jello. So simple, yet very satisfying. As I said in a previous post, Buppy's dad had 3rds! His brother wouldn't eat it because it had pineapple, but other than that, it was a success.

Creamy Fruit Salad
Adapted from Hannah’s Hangout

1 (14.4 oz.) fruit cocktail (a little smaller or larger would be fine; this was the only normal size I could find)
1 (20 oz.) can pineapple chunks
1 small pkg. peach Jello (peach passion fruit? it was peach-something anyway)
1 (8 oz.) carton reduced fat sour cream
1 (8 oz.) container whipped topping (thawed)
1 medium-sized apple
1/2 c. mini marshmallow

I first mixed together the sour cream and whipped topping, then added the Jello and let it sit overnight. I felt that this would help cut prep time in the morning and would allow the Jello to fully dissolve. In the morning, I drained the 2 cans of fruit and added them, along with the chopped apple (mine was red delicious because it's what I had on hand) and mini marshmallows. I mixed it all together, transferred to a nice serving dish and viola --- instant hit! Enjoy!

*Linked to Life as Mom’s  Ultimate Recipe Swap for 4/28/11 --- salads.

Spoiling Yourself (a.k.a. Artichokes au Gratin)

Artichokes are one of my favorite veggies. I love to use them in dips, on salads and pizzas, and sometimes I just eat them right out of the jar. So yummy! I've steamed the full artichoke before but find that a less than rewarding experience. I'll stick with hearts, thank you very much.

For Thanksgiving this year, Buppy and I wanted to do something different. No vegetable medley. No steamed broccoli. No canned corn. We needed something unique. And we found it in my Winning Recipes from Taste of Home cookbook my mother gave me for Christmas '07. That woman always gets me some type of cookbook, whether it be a well known publication like this one or a small, church cookbook from Texas where they live most of the time. She knows me so well. Nothing excites me quite like a new cookbook. But I digress.

This dish was beyond amazing in my humble opinion. I'd make myself some right now if a.) I didn't feel like absolute crap, and b.) I had milk. Oh well, a girl can dream.

Artichokes au Gratin
Winning Recipes from Taste of Home
Marjorie Bowen, Colorado Springs, Colorado

2 cans (14 oz. each) water packed artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained and quartered
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 c. butter, divided
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 c. milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese, divided
1 Tbsp. dry bread crumbs
1/8 tsp. paprika

In a skillet, saute the artichokes and garlic in 2 Tbsp. butter until tender. Transfer to a greased 1 qt. baking dish.

In a saucepan, melt the remaining butter. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper until smooth; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg; return all to pan, stirring constantly. Add 1/4 c. cheese, stirring until melted.

Pour over artichokes; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Combine crumbs and paprika; sprinkle over top. Bake, uncovered, at 400F for 20-25 min. or until heated through. Yield: 4-6 servings.

Enjoy!

Update: I'm linking this up to Life as Mom’s Ultimate Recipe Swap. This week's topic is veggies. Head on over for more yummy recipes!

Mushroom Corn Casserole

While Buppy and I didn't really have a traditional Christmas meal, we sure did Thanksgiving up right this year. I haven't had time to blog about it since then, but here I am with some time on my hands and a great mushroom corn casserole recipe to share.

The original recipe came from my "Winning Recipes from Taste of Home" cookbook I received as a Christmas gift from my mom in 2007. I modified it a little by leaving out the green pepper and just substituting more mushrooms for them. Neither Buppy nor myself really care for peppers, so it was an obvious choice. I was worried my sister wouldn't really care for it as it calls for Swiss cheese; little did I know she now enjoys it (she used to hate it when we were younger.) This was a great accompaniment to our rotisserie turkey breast and cheesy potatoes.

Mushroom Corn Casserole
Adapted from "Winning Recipes from Taste of Home"
Submitted by Mary Jones, Cumberland, Maine

1/3 c. finely chopped onion
3 Tbsp. butter, divided
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 can (14 3/4 oz.) cream-style corn
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 pkg. (3 oz.) cream cheese, cubed
1 can (15 1/4 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained
1 c. chopped fresh mushrooms
1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
1 c. bread crumbs

In a saucepan, saute mushrooms and onion in 1 Tbsp. butter until tender. Stir in the flour, cream corn, salt and pepper until blended. Add cream cheese; stir until melted. Stir in whole kernel corn and Swiss cheese. Transfer to a greased 1 1/2 qt. baking dish. Melt remaining butter. Sprinkle bread crumbs over corn mixture and drizzle melted butter over top. Bake, uncovered, at 400F for 20-25 min. or until heated through. Yield: 4-6 servings.

Enjoy!

Crockpot Horseradish Scalloped Potatoes

I realize I should probably not make this my first food post since, well, let's be honest, it sucked, but all the same, I'll fill you in on the awfulness that was the crockpot horseradish scalloped potatoes.

The recipe seemed simple enough at a glance. The plan was to make them on Tuesday night when Buppy (as my boyfriend is affectionately known) was at work. I wanted them for myself for dinner and figured he could survive with some leftovers. I stopped at the store and got milk just for this recipe! And then I got home to discover that I had roughly 1 1/2 lbs. of potatoes and the recipe called for 3. Oh well, I'll just make half. Good call dear, except that once the potatoes were peeled, I realized they were older than I'd thought and had a lot of bad spots that had to be trimmed off. I wound up with about 1 1/4 lbs. potatoes in the end and decided this just wasn't gonna cut it. I made mashed potatoes out of those, and Buppy so kindly picked me up some potatoes yesterday specifically for this recipe. My status on Facebook talked about my plan to make these delish potatoes. Friends were excited and already asking for the recipe. And now?

Now I have to tell them all it was a bust.

There are only 7 ingredients to the recipe, one being Parmesan cheese as an optional garnish. The other six are potatoes, horseradish, heavy cream (I subbed 1% milk knowing it would affect the creaminess but hoping it wouldn't damage the taste), nutmeg, salt and pepper. As for damaging the taste? There really wasn't much of one. At all. I tried a bite once the potatoes were tender and it tasted like a hot potato, with pretty much no other flavor. It's wasn't like it was horrible and I spit it out, but it was just so . . . blah. I'm not a fan of blah foods and this? This was beyond blah.

Buppy and I will not be making them again. The problem is now we have these potatoes that are cooked that have the potential to be decent if we use them in another recipe. My suggestion was to make them the crust or top layer of some type of casserole. Wish me luck.

*Just an FYI --- usually I take pictures of my food so you'll get to see the good stuff, but this wasn't really worth it.