Friday, December 16, 2011

December 16, 2011

Just over a week until Christmas...is all your shopping done? What about your baking? I haven't even started the holiday baking and I'm not sure what cookies I'll make. I am sure the kids will help me out when we get going on it this weekend, no matter what we bake.

This week was a pretty successful new recipe week! 2 side dishes, a main dish and a dessert; not bad! The most exciting dish of the week - you'll have to solve a riddle first. What is a vegetable and a side dish all in one? Cauliflower "rice"! It is ridiculously easy and so delicious. Even Liam loved it!!! This is going to be a regular in our home.

The pot roast was surprisingly flavorful, and with the leftovers later in the week we made individual Shepherd's pies. I forgot to take a picture, and there isn't a true recipe for this, but it was a great way to reinvent leftovers, and it was a hit at the table. Anything individualized, with initials piped in mashed potatoes on the top is likely going to be a keeper in our house.

I served mustard potatoes with the pot roast, and they were a huge hit. I had more stone ground mustard to use, so this was the perfect outlet for it. I was bit nervous because it seemed like a lot of the dressing for the potatoes was left in the bowl after mixing them, but the recipe said to leave it behind after you finish mixing them. I did leave it in the bowl, and cooked them as directed, and the potatoes turned out fantastic, and all were gone in a flash. The recipe I present here is half of the original, so clearly it will double well if you are serving more than 4 people.

Just a funny little story about Liam. When the pot roast was served, Liam looked at the meat on his plate and said "no no". But when we passed the gravy and asked him if he wanted some on his plate, he got on board. "More sauce" came out of his mouth a few times! I guess this baby just doesn't like dry meat! And he turned his nose up at the potatoes for most of dinner. By the time he finally tried one, and decided he did like them, they were all gone! I guess he learned the hard way - if you snooze you lose, especially with carbs like potatoes or pasta at our table!

Finally, the marbled graham crackers. My book club (and the monkeys) gave thumbs up all around on these - and even Ryan had a few pieces! It was a really easy recipe that turned out to have a beautiful presentation because of the marbling. You could break this into the natural pieces of the crackers, or break it more randomly for the traditional "bark" appearance - it is up to you.

Good luck with your baking and last minute holiday prep! Don't forget to put your feet up if you have time!

New Recipes
Cauliflower Rice
Marbled Chocolate Graham Cracker Treats
Cola Braised Pot Roast
Mustard Roasted Potatoes

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