Drinkies!

There was a BBQ on Labor Day Monday at a friend's house and I was encouraged, possibly begged, into bringing Sangria. I made waaaaay more of it than I probably should have, but there we are. I used this recipe and found that after the required 24 hours it was absolutely the perfect blend of tart and sweet.

Unfortunately adding any soda water to that completely took away the deliciousness of the sweet and tart. I swore that I would avoid using Sprite in a Sangria recipe but adding a little bit of Sprite to a glass of Sangria made it perfect beyond measure. I still have tons of the stuff left over but I'm glad to know that I've found the Sangria recipe I'll be bringing to BBQs for the rest of my life. I may try a white wine one at some point though. I like the fact that white ones use peaches which are the loveliest fruit in the universe except perhaps for pluots.

I also brought to the party a mini of a brand of alcohol called Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea Vodka because one of the hosts is from West Texas and is a big fan of sweet tea. That mini was gone almost instantly as each of us at the BBQ tried a sip of it and found it to be amazing. It's not available everywhere unfortunately but it has to be one of the best kept secrets I've ever tasted. I'm already planning an original recipe (I know I said not to expect any, but this totally calls for it) for sweet tea cupcakes and this liquor is definitely going to be the star of it. School is getting a little hairy right now but once it calms down a bit again, I'll be trying my hand at original baking.

Tonight's recipe for asparagus sounds pretty simple but also pretty damn delicious. I think the main course is going to be something my dad calls plowman's share. It's basically whatever vegetables you have on hand cooked up in whichever way is easiest and then piled onto a baked potato with some sour cream. Since grilling is already happening for the asparagus, I'm going to chop up some other vegetables and get them into the grilling action as well.

I shall report back!

Virgin Posting

I'm a student with not enough time on my hands and far too many things I want to do every day. I still somehow contrive to find time for boredom as well (miraculous being that I am). Anyway, the whole point of this blog is mainly for me to keep track of what I cook and what I thought of it. I have yet to craft an original recipe so expect nothing in that field. Rather, expect reviews of recipes that you might be interested in.

I should also say, that if you don't feel like trying something out but want to know what it tastes like, I'm perfectly willing to be the taste tester. My only stipulations are that I don't cook fish though I will happily eat them at a restaurant, and I will not cook anything with eggplant/aubergine as the primary ingredient.

Today I cooked two things:

Rachel Ray Curry in a Hurry

and

Cauliflower and Chickpea curry


The RR curry was a bigger hit with my parents. I would describe it as a mango curry chicken dish, rather than a straight up curry. The flavor from the chutney comes through very clearly but I strongly suspect that almost any chutney could be used. As a massive fan of lime, I'm very tempted to make it with lime chutney. I used mild chutney but may try and kick it up with some hot chutney as well. I used Patak's brand chutney because it was readily available and cheap as hell, which counts for a lot with me. Also, instead of the half and half that RR requires, I used coconut milk because I knew it would work nicely alongside the chutney. The result was a smooth and delicious psuedo curry that was jam packed with vegetables.

The Cauliflower and Chickpea curry was a little less stunning in the flavor department but still nomful. Not sure I would make it again without doubling the spices called for and throwing in a pinch of sumac to hold up the tang that was supposed to come from the ginger and tomatoes. I did use fire-roasted tomatoes which added some depth to the flavor but not nearly enough. Normally I love cauliflower but the flavor didn't penetrate through it sufficiently. The recipe was certainly easy enough to merit a second shot though. I value a simple and cheap recipe that can be tweaked more than a difficult and costly recipe that's a winner from the get-go.

Next thing I'm scheduled to make is a double recipe of Citrus Sangria for a cookout with some friends. I shall let you know if Citrus Sangria is the winner that I very much believe it will be or if I'm going to keep looking for the perfect Sangria recipe before bookclub meets (and imbibes) again.

Next thing I want to try cooking while Cilantro is still plentiful is Cilantro Chicken