Cooking with Amy

I may have shared once or twice or three dozen times my struggle with culinary pursuits.

I have long wondered how I would ever overcome the lack of motivation which I so acutely and chronically experience in the kitchen- once and for all. I've been struggling with it for 15 years after all. I have always wanted to make healthy, interesting food for my family on a daily basis and I knew that we desperately needed to get out of our food rut, which had become especially bad of late, but I have not yet caught the vision to the extent that it has become a way of life.

Suddenly it occurred to me in a blinding flash that I would greatly benefit from the same things that motivate me to exercise. Namely: goals (inspiration), companionship, and accountability.

And so I turned to Amy. As I do.

Amy and I work out together burning calories three times a week so it seemed fitting that she assist me in creating calories. Actually I enlisted Amy because she loves to cook. And she is really good at it. She also rarely cooks the same thing twice. I know. What a freak eh? All this and unlike the beloved Pioneer Woman who I continue to revere as an Alien (but marvelous) Freak of Nature, Amy does not consider butter to be a food group . ( I knew I needed a guru who would not lead me to commit involuntary manslaughter by way of clogged arteries).

Anyway...Amy kindly agreed to take me on as her apprentice. She provided me with several of her "red" recipes as my menu for the week. (Amy is such a domestic goddess that she has colour coded her recipes-red's are the ones that everyone loved so much that she may consider making them again). It was agreed that I would report in with her each day after my attempts.

And thus....my new project:





was born!

I am proud (and surprised) to announce that since Friday I have successfully made:
Chicken Tamale Casserole


It turned out well, it was easy and it was good. If you like cornbread. Which I don't particularly. But if you do, I recommend it highly.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Pasta



This took a long time to make and had several steps, so it is recommended as a "weekend recipe". I failed to read that until after I made it but fortunately I was having one of those rare and magical days when everything falls into place and for once I started with plenty of time to spare and it was ready at the perfect time.

While it takes several steps, all of them are easy, it was really fun to make and oh.my.go-osh. It is heavenly. Heavenly. So much so that when I went to have the leftovers for lunch and discovered to my horror that there weren't any leftovers, I was moved to call my husband, who confirmed this sad fact, whereupon I was moved to tears. Or almost. Certainly to whining.

and Hearty Potato Soup



I deviated from Amy's recommendations for this one and will henceforth repent of that. I had a bunch of potatoes and I needed to make something in the crockpot so it seemed like a good idea. I didn't enjoy this recipe very much. Which may have something to do with the Ghiradelli shortbread cookies I had baked earlier today (don't be impressed, it was from a box) and felt compelled to sample (about 6 times). My family didn't seem too wild about it either judging from the lack of clean bowls but it was infinitely improved by the awesome bread I had bought to go with it, so all was not lost. The reviews on the website were good though, so again, maybe it was me. If I made it again, I'd do a little less basil, and throw in some onions and garlic (or maybe some of the leftover shallots from the casserole yesterday-see how gourmet I sound already throwing shallots around when I didn't even know where to find them in the grocery store yesterday? ) It was easy to make but the prep was more time consuming then they would have you believe.

So! If anyone is interested in joining us in this julie and julia-esque venture let me know. I will post links to the recipes ahead of time and we can all compare notes. Or not. I'm ok to go it alone (with Amy on speed-dial).

So far I am enjoying the novelty of making things that do not rely heavily upon boxes and cans and my husband, tremendously, and I have found that my post-dinner cravings have been lessened considerably.

So that's what works for me this Wednesday. For what works for other people check out We Are That Family.

I'm reading: Cooking with AmyTweet this!