I know you're not here for the scenery

My new, working gas cooktop... beeeeeutiful!

I made a pretty good dinner last night... My gas cooktop is finally up and running, which means I can give my microwave a break, and make stuff like scrambled eggs, grilled cheese, and rice! YAY for rice!

Sunday dinner was roast beef with baby potatos, acorn squash and gravy.

I'm sorry I didn't take any pictures.

Prepare your roast by sticking it in a pan with some garlic and chopped onions. If you're with it enough to have actual beef broth (which I am not) pour about 2 cups of that in with some worcestershire sauce and soy sauce- or mix 2 tbsp of beef oxo in a cup and add that. Stick it in the oven with a lid on at 350 for 25 minutes per lb... you'll need to take the lid off for the last 20 minutes... steamed meat is gross... but if you leave the lid off for the whole cooking time, you will have jerky.

Prepare potatos by cutting into a big pot, cover with salted water
Prepare squash by cutting in half and placing cut side down in a pan with about 2-3 inches of salted water... don't ask me what's with all the salt, I'm just doing it because I've always done it that way!

About 20 minutes before the meat is done, turn on the potatos and squash and cook at medium heat until they're soft.

Remove roast from oven and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Mash or don't mash the potatos
Use a spoon to remove the seeds from the squash, then dig the flesh out and put it in a bowl with a big glob of butter and a big spoonful of brown sugar and mash it all together in a bowl.

Prepare gravy according to package instructions- use the water from the potatos and the squash- it's got hidden goood-for-you in it!
OR take the drippings and broth from the bottom of the roast pan, add the veggie water and get it simmering on the stove. Add 4 heaping tsp of corn starch to a cup and make a gloop with COLD water. When the gravy base is simmering slowly pour the cornstarch gloop in while stirring constantly until a gravy like consistency is reached. Don't use too much cornstarch or you will have meat flavored jelly... Don't use warm water to mix the corn starch, or you will make a mug full of crap... DO pour slowly into the pan and stir well or you will get lumpy gravy!

Serve to your picky family and act like you busted your ass to make this!

I'm looking forward to having a "special guest" cook in the house soon. My buddy Fraser LOVES to cook and has been lusting after my kitchen since he helped me move in... Keep your eyes peeled for his appearance!

Food on the brain

There are some particular foods and dishes I've been thinking about since we've moved in here... mostly things I can't cook for lack of appliances, staple ingredients, or tools...

First on that list is probably eggs. Not only am I not supposed to eat eggs (the bloody cholesterol thing), but there is nothing NASTIER than microwaved eggs. No cooktop = no eggs.

Next is grilled cheese. The boys love grilled cheese. I've been making do by toasting the bread first then adding the cheese and sticking it in the nuker, but it's just not the same.

Then there's bread. I would love to whip up a batch of bread, but I can't find my bread pans, and I don't have any flour or yeast anyway.

Ah, and yogurt! Mom got me a yogurt maker! I need the cooktop to scald the milk to make the yogurt! I want homemade yogurt!

Lastly, one of my favorite make-for-me dishes is fried polenta with eggplant, zuccini and cheese... it's sooo good. That is probably going to be one of the first things I make when we get the cooktop put together!

Nothing can do more for one's appreciation for food than being stuck without a way to make it.

Just because it came out of a square box, doesn't mean it's a square meal!

Haha

I was thinking about this last night as I was lining up the stuff for a photo. I have come to terms with the necessity for "convenience foods" since moving into my house. I still don't have a working cooktop, so the microwave and the oven are my only tools. The microwave is quite a versatile machine after all, so long as you're not worried about radiation leaks, and adding extra molecules to your food.

Dinner last night actually turned out well. I made pork chops, broccoli and carrots in sauce, and penne pasta with bacon and alfredo sauce. The vegetables and pasta were done in the microwave according to package directions. The pork chops were baked in the oven with broccoli soup.

Pork chops with broccoli(or mushroom)soup
- line your dish with foil (because we hate cleaning)
- layer half the can of cream soup on the bottom
- lay out chops in pan
- mix remaining soup with half can of milk and pour over chops
- bake in oven at 350 for 35-45 minutes (thicker chops will take longer)

This recipe goes well with rice or egg noodles, you can use the soup as a sauce.