Food endeavors

We like to cook together.  A lot.  One of the things we were most looking forward to is picking out what meals we would try while I was here visiting. We went through several ideas, picked a few, and went grocery shopping.  Even grocery shopping with Blair is fun.  Our favourite part of this past grocery trip was when we were getting the mozzarella cheese.  I had grabbed the smaller bag thinking that was the one on sale, and started to walk away.  Blair was still looking at the bags, and realized it was the bigger bag that was on sale instead.  So I threw him the small bag, and he threw me the bigger bag down the aisle.  We both got a good giggle.  :)

We started with homemade pizza.  I made the dough.  And we have this AMAZING recipe for pizza sauce that we just love.  Then we topped it off with fresh basil, tomatoes and shredded mozzarella.  Oh so very good.

With extra ingredients left over after making two pizza pans, we decided to experiment with savory pizza cupcakes.  We were afraid it would be doughy, but they turned out perfectly!!!  Yum.

The next day we tried a brand new recipe: Caribbean Seafood Stew.  

The recipe called for shrimp and red snapper.  Unfortunately, we are in New Mexico, and seafood isn't exactly easy to come by.  The commissary doesn't even have a fish section.  *sigh*  We tried a few other area grocery stores but couldn't find any snapper.  So we decided to use trout as a substitute.  It turned out really well.  This is such a tasty meal!

 Served over hot white rice.

The next night we tried a four cheese sausage pasta dish.  YUM!  Even the pictures make me hungry for it again.

It was date night at home.  Brand new red wine from the winery we went to for Blair's birthday, movie, and super tasty dinner.  Good night indeed.

A few nights later (after eating all the awesome leftovers) we attempted another recipe.  Grilled chicken bruschetta.  This is the yummy topping goodness.

Earlier in the day, we did a specialty olive oil/balsamic vinegar tasting and purchased a cranberry balsamic vinegar.  I decided to make a salad dressing out of it for a side to our bruschetta.  Spinach salad with craisins, toasted almonds, and the awesome homemade salad dressing.

 Chicken on the grill.

Blair - master of the grill.  And yes, it is pitch black outside.  We have a tendency to get messed up by the late sunsets in ABQ.  We haven't been eating dinner until about 9pm or so every night.  Ha!

 Yummy goodness is complete.

Another recipe I've really been wanting to try:  Coffee-Glazed Italian Doughnuts.  Without a fryer or a thermometer, I faked it.  Luckily, we didn't burn the house down.  I was in charge of most of the prep work and glaze, Blair did the good frying. 

They look a little weird, but they tasted REALLY good.  That glaze is amazing...and makes a ton extra.  But oh so very tasty.

Turns out, the oil was a little too hot.  So the outside was cooked, but the inside was a little doughy.  Now we know what to do for the next time. :) 

On Tuesday night we went to our bible study.  This week wasn't really a bible study, but a ministry night.  They decided to have a potluck dinner together and spend the time preparing meals for our church's homeless outreach.  I was in charge of bringing the bread for our group.  I made Parmesan Bread.

Before:

After: 

We ended up making two because there was going to be so many people at bible study.  Yum!