Time for a Change

I have officially decided to move my blog to its new home over at wordpress. They have many more features that I like and I just need something new to occupy my time. :)

This site will remain up for you to be able to visit all my past posts, but I may try to move all of them as well to the new site. We'll see how ambitious I really am!

Please change your bookmarks to...

www.itallstartedwithmacandcheese.wordpress.com

My Blog turns 1 (and Chocolate Cake of course)

Apparently I have been blogging for a year this week! Time flies when you are having fun, baking, and gaining weight. To mark this blogiversary I decided I would try to make my very first tiered cake. I wanted to try to mimic a bakery in Greensboro that I like because on some of their cakes they have a beautiful chocolate ganache finish. Mine didn't turn out as pretty but good enough for a first try!

The cake I used I got from a Today show segment a while back, but can't find the origin of the recipe. It makes a 3 layer 10 inch cake, but I used one batch to make 2 6in and 2 8in layers. It's a good cake but wasn't as moist as I wanted this time...oh well. I will keep searching for that perfect cake recipe!

Coffee Cake

One of my friends at the office had a birthday this weekend and I wanted to do something a little different for her bday cake. I figure everyone is always trying to wait to an appropriate time to dive into my treats (but I find nothing wrong with dessert for breakfast) so this time I made a coffee cake so anyone can eat it right away. I really did some experimenting by combining 3 or so different recipes into one. My trusty taste tester Kris approved so hopefully everyone at the office will too.

This turned out to be an extremely moist cake so give it a try sometime!

Chocolate Pie

The queen of chocolate pie making in our family is my Aunt Edna. Now for some reason I always seem to miss out on the family meal where she provides this pie, but I hear it is delicious. Aunt Edna makes her pie the old fashioned way with a regular pie crust and topped with meringue. Meringue is not my favorite thing, but it is starting to grow on me.

Since tomorrow is my birthday I decided it was ok to treat myself to a sinful dessert. I searched online for different recipes and didn't find any that looked fabulous so I decided to piece together my own. Using Aunt Edna's pie filling recipe, I paired it with an oreo crust and whipped cream...after all it is MY birthday.

This is a simple recipe and I made it even easier by making the filling in the microwave instead of stovetop. I also used skim milk (insert gasp here) and it thickened up just fine. This justifies eating two pieces today right??

Chili

I should've posted this recipe before the super bowl and big blizzard we just experienced, but better late than never right? Anytime there is a chill in the air coupled with a rainy day I automatically crave chili. I know everyone has their own version of chili and you can debate forever whose is best. I think this is a great starter recipe for you to make your own adjustments to if desired. This recipe comes from my friend Taemi, who also gave me the chicken brining instructions...I told you she was a great cook. I love having a recipe to follow as chili was one of those non-recipe recipes in my house growing up.

Meme's Famous Rolls

I've been meaning to write this post forever and kept putting it off, mainly because I lost the photos and it wouldn't be good without pictures - luckily I found them just this week. I just wish I had done this sooner so my wonderful grandmother could read it herself, but I know she is watching me write it now. :)

My grandmother Meme made the best dinner rolls ever. I can remember my dad videotaping her making the rolls during one of our summer trips to KY. We came home and he tried almost every day to recreate her rolls. They turned out horrible to start and he eventually asked her what he was doing wrong...turns out he forgot to tape the part where she added the sugar! One day he finally got it right and we had delicious rolls, and after that he never made them again.

This past summer I had the opportunity to make the rolls with my grandmother and watch the magic happen. I took care to measure out the flour (since of course she doesn't measure) but I somehow didn't translate that measurement to paper. I tried to make these by myself on Thanksgiving, but they didn't turn out very well. I even had to make two batches because Kris ruined the first ones before they could even rise (he put them on top of the oven vent so the dough started to cook - silly boy). I guess practice will have to make perfect, but I am really trying to stay on a diet so making rolls is not the best idea.

You need to plan ahead if you want these rolls for dinner - they need time to rise and Meme said that they are better the more times you are able to punch them down and let them rise. Just like Nana's macaroni and cheese, maybe one day I will get these rolls right and carry on the tradition.

Roast Chicken and Stuffing

I decided this past weekend that I would try to make a traditional roast chicken for our Sunday dinner. I added stuffing to the meal since enjoyed my Thanksgiving version so much that I thought I would try to make it once more. My mom was always whipping up delicious comfort food meals like this so I thought it was about time I do so as well. I can remember the best roast chicken meal she ever made was when I returned home from a weekend camp in high school (camp Wewa for any of your peer counseling classmates out there). I don't know if it was so good because I was sleep deprived and hungry, or if it really was something she did in the actual cooking of the food. Either way, it was one of the best dinners I ever ate.