Now im a cooking blog!

Just kidding. I do occasionally post about things I have baked on here. I enjoy baking things a lot. Cooking, I haven't gotten into quite as much.... YET! Lately I have been bored with the usual hamburger helper or whatever I make from a box, so I have been venturing out of my shell.

First concoction I'd like to share is a chicken fried rice:


Precooked white rice, precooked chicken, a frozen veggie blend of carrots and peas, soy sauce, water chestnuts, and some scallions. DELISH!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope it helps me be more adventurous at just throwing things in a pan and learning what combinations taste good together. This dinner was one of the few times where I didn't have an exact recipe I followed. That might not sound very adventurous, but I sure am one to write down recipes exactly and follow them to a T. (Which is more important in baking)

Second creation happened today. On the way home I stopped at Panera on a whim and picked up some pretty foccacia bread. Then went to the grocery store for actual fresh ingredients. The result?


Beautiful and delicious fresh basil, fresh mozzarella, and tomato sandwiches!!!!! I mean, seriously people, look at this sandwich.


Are you drooling yet?

I didnt have a panini grill, so they don't have the trademark "grill lines", but they crisped up nicely in a regular pan with a little olive oil brushed on them, and I tried to squish them down a bit to compress them.

I'd like to specify how FRESH all the ingredients were. I bought real fresh basil leaves, which I now need to somehow eat a pound of that is leftover in my fridge. Smelling the basil, I thought wow! that is powerful, i might not like it much. Boy was I wrong! Lightly chopped and put on the sandwich, MMMM awesome flavor!

The mozzarella was fresh too. As in, little disks of soft mozzarella that came floating in a water or brine or something. They were so pretty!

Here's a shot of the delicious innards:


Woot! This is also a success in my plan to try and incorporate vegetarian meals into my diet. Not that I would ever EVER give up meat (ummmm bacon!) but it is quite healthy and Lord knows I don't eat enough vegetables anyway!

And just so that this doesn't stray too far away from knitting...

I cast off my scarf today at lunch. :-)


Hooray!