I’ve professed my love for potatoes many times. Add cheese and bacon, I’m done. I simply can’t resist a hot cheesy potato sprinkled with crisp bacon. It’s my crack, well… one of them. Sour patch kids, peanut m&ms and this new jar of ‘beer nuts’ I recently picked up can all be added to that same list. Seriously, someone take the jar away from me. Continue Reading
You probably don’t need to tell me that Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away. Or at least I hope I didn’t have to tell you that. You did know, right? It’s hard to believe it’s that time already! I mean wasn’t it just summer? I’m a strong believer that time really does go by faster the older you get which is truly sad. Sure, some days we want to fly by but an entire season or two? I can do without the extended winters we get in New England but please lets let summer and fall linger a bit.
I’m on dessert duty at Thanksgiving this year, most years really unless it’s at our house. I don’t mind that at all. I love making desserts but you know, I really wanted to share a super easy, very traditional and must have dish with you. I grew up with bagged stuffing. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I still adore it. Those uniform squares of crunchy bread cubes. Soak them in butter and broth or water and bake away. Oh YUM! I’m not even remotely kidding that I could sit and eat a bowl of that stuff. And I definitely have, probably every time it’s ever been made. It’s just that good. Yes, I’m a carboholic. Continue Reading
If there is one thing you should know about my vegetable choices, it’s that I love potatoes. I’m not a huge veggie eater. I’d much rather sit down with a bowl of fruit or a platter of bacon. One extreme to the other, yes I know, but they’re both so good. However, when it comes to potatoes I’ll eat them in almost any form. Fried, baked, mashed, grilled - they’re all equally tasty.
Some days I question if our oldest is really mine. Of course I know she is, but this child will not eat mashed potatoes! It baffles me. Who doesn’t love mashed potatoes? It’s a sin, right? Her younger sister is definitely mine, she loves mashed potatoes and will eat them by the handful… okay that’s because she’s not using utensils on her own yet but you get the point. Continue Reading
I love breakfast. I could eat it any time of the day. Some people disagree with this and think it belongs strictly eaten in the morning. If that were the case I would miss out on so many good breakfast meal opportunities. I’m not always on the ball first thing in the morning or at least not when it comes to cooking. I need some time to gear up and get my head on straight. And you know, if breakfast were only meant to be eaten in the morning then places like IHop and Denny’s would have to change their menu completely. It would seriously limit the possibilities. I’ve not once gone to either location, or some place similar, and gotten anything but breakfast. And that is regardless of the time of day.
There are loads of main dish options but the sides are often what make or break the meal for me. If the bacon is ruined, the sausages aren’t fully cooked, the toast is cold and unbuttered or if even the potatoes aren’t absolutely perfect then it just might be a breakfast disaster. There are simple things that can turn a perfectly good item bad in my eyes. For example, when The Cheesecake Factory puts onions on practically everything. Onions do not belong on my eggs. Or my potatoes. Ever. You want to ruin my meal, add sauteed or carmelized onions ontop of a previously perfect dish.
I’ve already found a way to make bacon delicious in a super easy and practically foolproof way. A quick how to on baked bacon. Sausages I generally leave for Josh to cook. I like my sausages with a crispy exterior. They’re seriously good this way. Toast, it’s so hard to mess up I don’t know how people do. Of course you need to get acquainted with your own toaster or other means to determine how long and what temperature or number is perfect for you. At our house a 4 is just right. Lightly toasted without being too done. Slather on butter. Cut in half diagonally. That part is important, nearly as important as the slathering of butter. Have you noticed that when you get toast at a restaurant it’s always sliced that way? Is it because the toast then fits in your mouth easier and is potentially less messy? Continue Reading
Before kids, we ate out a lot. I mean seriously a lot. One of our favorite restaurants has the most amazing potato skins. They call them ‘outrageous potato skins: crispy, cheesey and gooey. With melted cheese and bacon.’ Oh my goodness how can you resist that temptation? Then they bring the platter to your table and you just about die looking at the sizzling goodness. It gets better as you bite into a piece. I fear I will never be able to make potato skins that are that good but I can try.
I’ve made fries or potato cubes before and tossed on cheese and bacon. It’s a nice quick and easy treat. But never before now have I made potato skins. I definitely plan to do some tweeking next time. And you may find you’ll want to play around with toppings and amounts as you go as well.
Are these as good as my favorite restaurant potato skins? Not a chance. They were still delicious. Next time I’ll do double the cheese and bacon. You can’t ever go wrong with more cheese and bacon. Also remember to not go overboard on how many you make unless you have a crowd to feed. Potatoes are super filling.
