Herbed Tofu Cakes

by Irene Lindvall

I had to take a couple of days off for personal reasons but I'm back today with an appetizer that I served for lunch. They don't look very pretty because the shape wouldn't hold. Maybe they needed more flour? Maybe I needed to let the tofu dry more? Regardless, they still tasted fine and so we pretty much ate it as a scramble instead of a cake. The sauce tasted great, and the crispy sides were the best.

Things I learned from this recipe:

It's hard coming back from a break - really hard.

Would I make this recipe again?:

No

The recipe

Raspberry Chocolate Cups

by Irene Lindvall

It's bowling night and I needed to make a quick dinner (not a new recipe) so I went with another new recipe I could bring to bowling. These little cups only take two ingredients. I bought chocolate chunks and raspberry jam from Trader Joe's and that was it. I should note that the grocery store did not have small foil cups and I had to text my baking friend to ask where I could find these cups. She mentioned Michael's and I was near a JoAnn Fabrics and was lucky to find they had an extensive baking section that included these little guys.

I think any chocolate you have would be fine for this recipe, and I went with heating it on the stove rather than the microwave. The first round of cooling the chocolate took twice as long as they recommended, and I decided to counter cool them for three hours for the last round and they didn't seem to set so I put them in the refrigerator for six minutes before leaving for bowling and they set perfectly. I enjoyed these little treats and so did everyone else!

Things I learned from this recipe:

Trader Joe's has delicious and cheap jam.

It's a little hard to make these things perfectly. I think I could've used even the tiniest cups. 

Would I make this recipe again?:

Yes

The recipe

Paella

by Irene Lindvall

We are back from a short trip to St. Louis and I had planned last week to make paella today. I have wanted to make it for quite some time. I don't usually get to try it at restaurants because it is often cooked with pork, but I I decided to use spicy chicken sausage instead of chorizo. I also substituted edamame instead of peas (for Eric's sake). Other than those two things, I followed the recipe. I was weirded out that practically the whole recipe was cooked in the microwave. I know this recipe was labeled the "Cheater's guide to paella" but still. The other thing I didn't have high hopes on was the rice. I know I said I had given up on rice other than my Japanese rice, but I really did want to follow the recipe and Whole Foods had the Arborio the dish called for. The rice actually came out fine and I was glad I used it, but I overcooked the chicken by pre-cooking it. Other than that I thought the dish was fine, and it left me wanting to make a more traditional paella which can take up to two hours. 

Things I learned from this recipe:

Saffron is not only labor intensive to harvest, but the crocus flower it blooms on only produces three threads. Amazing. 

Would I make this recipe again?:

Maybe

This recipe is similar to the one I made.

Prize Caramel Apple Bars

by Irene Lindvall

I had another busy day today and decided on baking something to bring to bowling tonight. The recipe called for cinnamon Cheerios which I couldn't mind at the store, but I instead went for apple cinnamon Apple Jacks. I think this effected the recipe slightly, in that Apple Jacks are a lot thicker and Cheerios probably would've been a little less of a focal point of the bars. I brought them to bowling and most of the ladies really enjoyed them, but I really thought they were a little odd. I'm not positive what it was, but I didn't care for it. My friend suggested  graham crackers instead of the cereal and maybe adding chocolate chips. I definitely like those suggestions. 

Things I learned from this recipe:

Frans caramel sauce is amazing.

Would I make this recipe again?:

No

The recipe

Mussels w/Corn-Tomato Salsa

by Irene Lindvall

The second dish of the night was mussels. These were my favorite by far. I really appreciated how all the flavors worked together and I've realized this is what I strive for when I'm cooking. I want to make dishes where all of the ingredients combined together work so well with the protein that you hardly even taste it.

Fresh corn, tomato, salsa and cilantro coupled with sriracha was really interesting and flavorful and I would combine them again in a heartbeat.  

Things I learned from this recipe:

I made a recipe with mussels many months ago and I realized (again) I need to serve mussels more often. So easy to cook, fairly inexpensive, and incredibly tasty. 

Would I make this recipe again?:

Definitely

The recipe