The Week of Free Food

So you may be thinking, "Michelle, why aren't more of your hilarious cooking mishaps...I mean "adventures" on this blog?!" or you are probably just thinking about how delicious tacos are. Well the thing is I'm currently on campus, but all of my meals are being provided through this orientation group that I'm volunteering for. Yippie!! I'm especially stoked because my fridge currently has the following items:

• Tea/Juice V8 drink (super delicious by the way)
• Water
• Juice Boxes of the fruit punch variety
• Strawberry Jelly
• Velveta Cheese (thanks Mom!)

Yea, not even a culinary genius could come up with a meal given these ingredients. I'd love to see that as the challenge for Iron Chef. I think Bobby Flay would stab his foot with a parring knife on purpose to leave early. 

I've been thinking of some ideas for how to best set this blog up. My darling friend Kelsey (who you can find here http://roahg.blogspot.com/ and creep/read about her lovely adventures in Italy [SUPER JEALOUS BTW]) suggested I post the recipes that I'm using along with suggestions, comments, and overall experience. So that's what I'll be doing from now on! Hold on to your chef hats ladies and gentlemen. This is going to be a bumpy ride.  

Sour Cream for Moist-ness?!

I know that I said my dive into the culinary world would begin on Sunday, well that turned out to be incorrect. Mea culpa. My amigo Jerry came over today and we decided to bake (him being a fancy-smancy award-winning high school culinary dude...yea whatever some kids are talented.)

Cookies were the name of the game. Basic, delicious cookies. There was only a ten percent chance of me screwing anything up and/or burning the house down. Being exciting and adventurous people, we chose to attempt chocolate-chip cookies but with a twist! Sour cream was called for, like half of a cup! Weird, right? Well, I thought it was. Turns out adding sour cream just makes your cookies moist. (side note: moist is one of those words that is incredibly fun to say and yet oddly disgusting at the same time. moist, moooist, moiiiist, moisssst. yea now I've disturbed even myself) If for some insane reason your home didn't have sour cream (like miniature possums ran through the front door and went straight for the fridge) plain yogurt could be used. Right, because I just happen to have a tub of plain yogurt and not sour cream. Good one Betty Crocker.

Because I am currently still at my parent's house, we had no need to go to the store. It's like we have our own personal ingredient store. We are never, ever without a certain spice. Ever. I think we have a life time supply of pink sea salt just lying around. Yea, pink sea salt. Fancy. So when we went to add in the chocolate chips, low and behold, there they are but only about a fourth of what the recipe called for. In went caramel bits! Which made me incredibly happy because I love caramel far more than chocolate. Dear Betty said it should take 12-14 minutes for the cookies to get their act together. Lies. It was more like twenty. Perhaps it was the oven. Nah, I blame Betty. All in all they were delicious especially with milk (but really, what cookie isn't good with milk. All cookies are good with milk. All of them.)

Here's what our delicious creation looks like (or I should say looked because they are now in my stomach)

Sorry for the poor quality, took this snap shot with my phone. 

So, I wouldn't say this is my grand debut as a culinary icon but, hey, it's a start. Rome wasn't built in a day people. So stay tuned! (please) (thank you)

Time to Cut the Apron Strings

In, well now 2 days seeing as it is 2:15am I shall begin a culinary adventure all my own. That's right, I'm spreading my wings and learning to season or boil things. No longer will I be hiding behind the apron strings of my mother or chef coats of my father. Now don't get me wrong, I am a master chef of the essentials (mac&cheese, toast, pizza, cookies, and cereal) but there is a reason that grilled cheese is my favorite meal to prepare. But the time has come. I shall be a domestic goddess or perish.

I love everything about food. Just not preparing it. Or cleaning up after the meal is done. Okay, I love to eat. Growing up with a chef dad and my awesome mom (who bakes like there is no tomorrow) I never found it necessary to dabble in cooking, it was always done for me. Everyone always says, "Oh I bet the food at your house is just swell!! You should invite me over sometime!" Uh, one, yes the food is always delicious (minus that mushroom veggie thing we once had, ew) and two, no sir I just met you at the grocery store and I think you smell like an un-cooked potato. So I sluffed off cooking for 19 years because I thought, hey not a necessary skill at this moment. That mentality has really come back to bite me in the ass. Big time.

You may be thinking, "Michelle, why don't you just buy yourself a meal plan! Wouldn't that prolong your whole "not cooking" phase?" And to that I say, meal plan is not an option. Though a free meal on taco and tator-tot day would be fantastic.

Alas, this blog will be about my attempts at preparing delicious meals for myself and my roommates (if they dare eat what I prepare) and perhaps interesting food-related things I find on the interweb or in magazines and books. I know a food blog isn't as original as sliced bread (see I'm already doing food humor!! Jokes like that are like oranges...rather a-peal-ing!) but being a food writer is a dream of mine (because HELLO free food for reviews!!) and why not start now! Or, in two days.