Chocolate zucchini muffins

I am praying my zucchini, which has languished in my fridge for a week while I started my new fellowship, is still good. I am making chocolate zucchini muffins. This recipe is fantastic and I have used it before. I am so happy I found it again! I think it's almost healthy, since it has equal amounts of zucchini and sugar.

In fact, if I ever had a food business or a cooking show, I would call it "Almost Healthy." Somehow, I don't think that would work for a medical practice.

Food food food

I have been cooking a lot lately, and it's been a lot of fun.

I am party planning (again). We are hosting a medium-sized pre-Independence Day dinner party tomorrow. I invited five couples over. (I originally called it a small dinner party, but I guess it's kind of relative what size it is.)

So, far, it will be a mostly Latin themed menu. I am planning on making grilled skirt steak with chimichurri, mojo style chicken drumettes, and lime garlic shrimp, also on the grill. I am also going to make two salads on the side, a green salad with tomatoes and red onion, and a "white" salad with marinated mushrooms, chick peas, hearts of palm, artichoke hearts, and minimal green elements. I want to add roasted red peppers to it, but I have a friend who is sensitive to nightshades who may be attending, so I may leave those out.

I have a friend who will help tend bar by making mojitos.

I am trying to not buy too much extra stuff, since money is tight. I have one friend bringing dessert, a trifle with chocolate and kahlua that I am really looking forward to. I heavily hinted towards cheese-y appetizers. I hope we get some. I kind of want to go buy some anyway, because I am that kind of a hostess.

We will be attending 3 (3!!) 4th of July parties on Saturday. Two of them specifically ask for people to bring side dishes or beverages. Picky is pushing me to bring bottles of wine. I was thinking of making extra white salad. He doesn't really consume either.

Farmer's market deliciousness

I am making tomato pie with beautiful fresh tomatoes. I stuck to the recipe pretty closely, except for putting in three times the bacon. Uh, yeah, I went there. I made it before and it was scrumptious, but there is a reason why our adopted family name is the baconderfers.

I am making garlic scapes on the side. They are so cool. I woke up dreaming about them this morning, and they were actually at the farmer's market! They are only there for a limited time each year. I must have felt their call.

I will be back with pictures.

F'ed up fish n chips

I was making fish n chips with frozen bake em in the oven curly fries and tilapia I was chopping into chunks and battering myself. Well, I got the huge pot of oil going, and then realized I didn't have the cornstarch called for in the recipe.

I was annoyed from tearing apart the pantry for forever, so I quickly mixed together the dry ingredients, adding extra flour to replace the cornstarch, and poured the beer in.

Well, the recipe said I was supposed to reserve some of the flour and dust the pieces after I battered them. With thinner batter that had cornstarch. Somehow it turned out awesome.

Yum. Crunch. Evil.

click to embiggen the blurry photo. Sorry, I was eating when I took it.

Can I haz cheeseburger?

Heather from Home Ec 101 was asking about convenience foods. I think I found the scariest one.

Canned, entire cheeseburger. With bun, lettuce, tomato included. And a year shelf life.

(h/t Fark.com)

A little twist with a peel

Ha, wow. My puns are as bad as my photography.

We had some orange marmalade that was a little tart for us to handle on toast. I have a dinner I call the 3 P's dinner (I can't believe I have never posted it here) that involves pork (usually country ribs), pineapples (usually fresh precut but canned will work in a pinch, and you may certainly choose to wrestle a whole one), and peppers (usually fresh sweet mini peppers but yellow and orange bell peppers work beautifully.)

Anyway, I am trying a twist on that recipe tonight.

I browned salt and peppered country ribs in a big pan with a few glugs of olive oil. I added chopped onions, and peppers. In a pot, a put I about a cup of pineapple juice (left over from the inauguration party) and most of a jar of orange marmalade with lovely slivers of orange peel. I added a scant half a cup of sugar. That reduced at a lively simmer into a syrup while the pork browned.

I poured the syrup on the pork after the pork browned on all sides. I added a bunch of minced garlic and chopped fresh basil.

Wish me luck. I may post reviews and pics.

ETA



It was a tasty, huge success. The schmutz of onions, peppers, garlic, basil and onion peel was scrumptious.

And as for the review, S suggested I take an "after" photo:

Easter supper

I am making ham steaks with sage tangerine glaze and baby carrots, based on this recipe but quickie style. Hope it works!

I am also making macaroni and cheese and green beans. Yum!