Yes you can because Mommy made 7 pies to share!

I made my first Caesar salad tonight. Wasn't that hard, actually. You get some romaine lettuce, croutons, shredded parmesan, and some Caesar salad dressing. Shake it all up in a tupperware container and voila! Caesar salad.

My stature in the cooking world grows.

I made waffles the other day, they turned out very well. I had used a recipe before that was all from scratch, but I didn't really care how they turned out, they were kinda thin and hard-ish. This time I cheated and used Bisquick; recipe's on the back of the box...they turned out much nicer: Fluffy and golden brown. Yum!

Bisquick is a wonderful thing...

Anyone have a good recipe for ginger-snaps? (They're very good with a cup of tea, by the way. )

Ginger Snaps: I have this older, classic recipe from my mom, who got it from a friend way back when. I used to bake these often, and they always turned out so yummy.

2 cups flour (sometimes a few more Tblsps are needed once everything is mixed together)
1 Tblsp ginger
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup molasses
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg unbeaten

Mix dry ingredients. Set aside.
Boil molasses; pour over shortening; add sugar and egg.
Mix wet and dry together.

Form into small balls (the balls shouldn't be floppy; they need to be fairly firm), rolling in sugar before baking, if desired, and bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes.

I made my first pizza dough from scratch the other day. It was a little bland, but that may have been because it wasn't a yeast based recipe. I found a non yeast version online. I added some garlic to it and that helped. It was still really thick so if/when I do it again, I need to work on the recipe and figuring out how to roll it out better.

[Also copied into the first post of this thread...]
The other mods and I have decided to change this thread into a general food discussion thread. Pretty much everybody likes to eat, but not everybody likes to cook. Feel free to discuss anything related to food in this thread!

For Christmas this year I bought my husband a really nice grill/smoker. He has suddenly become REALLY good at grilling food so we grill a lot. Tonight we're attempting ribs for the first time. I'm par-cooking them first so they don't have to smoke all day, then I'm gonna rub them down with loads of herbs and spices, and then he's gonna grill them. I'm really excited, I hope they come out awesomely.

Why in the world did I look at this thread? We are so close to moving that we aren't cooking very exciting food, mostly just what's in the freezer. Boring!!! Right now, I'm really wishing I could bake pies or something.

Ginger snaps sounds so good! We have a really good recipe for them, but right now I'm not sure were it is.

You are making me hungry, fantasia!

SnowAngel

Well, the ribs were interesting. Any rib aficionado can tell you that they should be falling off the bone. Well I cooked them ahead of time, and then we tossed them on the grill, but forgot to check the temperature and it was waaaaaaaaay too hot. Each side was charred in two minutes. So because they didn't have enough time on the grill they were NOT falling off the bone. Lesson learned, check the temperature next time. But even though the texture wasn't right, the flavor was awesome. Here's the rub that I used in case anyone is interested.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/hughs-dry-rub/detail.aspx

*munches on smoked salmon, cheese, and crackers* Yum.

I have know taken two cake decorating classes.
Here is my final project for the first class

Here is my final project for the second class

Here is a cake I did for Easter this year.

That rib rub sounds amazing, fantasia. *bookmarks it* As for your experience with the charred ribs, live and learn, eh? And hope for better success next time.

Twigs, those cakes are great! I mentioned this earlier, but I have really good memories of a few cake-decorating sessions I have taken over the years. It's such fun, filled with creativity. And even better, edible!

You are making me hungry, fantasia!

Totally with you there!

You are making me hungry, fantasia!

Totally with you there!

I can talk food all day long. I'm pretty brave in trying anything. I have one rule though, I won't eat anything that's still alive.... that's about it. There was a really fun thing that showed up on Facebook a few weeks ago, I thought I'd share it here....

The Food List Challenge, how many of these have you tried?
1. Abalone
2. Absinthe
3. Alligator
4. Baba Ghanoush
5. Bagel and Lox
6. Baklava
7. Barbecue Ribs
8. Bellini
9. Bird's Nest Soup
10. Biscuits and Gravy
11. Black Pudding
12. Black Truffle
13. Borscht
14. Calamari
15. Carp
16. Caviar
17. Cheese Fondue
18. Chicken and Waffles
19. Chicken Tikka Masala
20. Chile Relleno
21. Chitlins
22. Churros
23. Clam Chowder
24. Cognac
25. Crab Cakes
26. Crickets
27. Currywurst
28. Dandelion Wine
29. Dulce De Leche
30. Durian
31. Eel
32. Eggs Benedict
33. Fish Tacos
34. Foie Gras
35. Fresh Spring Rolls
36. Fried Catfish
37. Fried Green Tomatoes
38. Fried Plantain
39. Frito Pie
40. Frogs' Legs
41. Fugu
42. Funnel Cake
43. Gazpacho
44. Goat
45. Goat's Milk
46. Goulash
47. Gumbo
48. Haggis
49. Head Cheese
50. Heirloom Tomatoes
51. Honeycomb
52. Hostess Fruit Pie
53. Huevos Rancheros
54. Jerk Chicken
55. Kangaroo
56. Key Lime Pie
57. Kobe Beef
58. Lassi
59. Lobster
60. Mimosa
61. MoonPie
62. Morel Mushrooms
63. Nettle Tea
64. Octopus
65. Oxtail Soup
66. Paella
67. Paneer
68. Pastrami on Rye
69. Pavlova
70. Phaal
71. Philly Cheese Steak
72. Pho
73. Pineapple and Cottage Cheese
74. Pistachio Ice Cream
75. Po'Boy
76. Pocky
77. Polenta
78. Prickly Pear
79. Rabbit Stew
80. Raw Oysters
81. Root Bear Float
82. S'mores
83. Sauerkraut
84. Sea Urchin
85. Shark
86. Snail
87. Snake
88. Soft Shell Crab
89. Som Tam
90. Spaetzle
91. Spam
92. Squirrel
93. Steak Tartare
94. Sweet Potato Fries
95. Sweetbreads
96. Tom Yum
97. Umeboshi
98. Venison
99. Wasabi Peas
100. Zucchini Flowers

I ended up getting over half of them. 54 when I first took it, and then the next day my husband ran out and got some Churros so I could check that off my list too. I also had to google a lot of them cause I had no idea what they were. One or two of them I discovered I had actually eaten, I just didn't know what it was called. (Like Umeboshi for example... which I can't stand for the record )
The item I've not had before that I most wanted to try after looking it up was Currywurst.
Anyways, I thought I'd share this with everyone cause I thought it was fun.

ETA: And if this post wasn't already long enough, I found this recipe for Linguine with Tuna Puttanesca that I might have to try soon.

johobbit: thanks so much for the recipe! I'll be trying this soon...do you roll them in sugar?

Pattertwigs Palyour cakes are so nice! They looks really good.

fantasia_kitty: YAY! Another foodie person!

...how many of these have you tried?
6. Baklava
7. Barbecue Ribs
8. Bellini < sounds familiar, I think I had this
10. Biscuits and Gravy
12. Black Truffle < this too
14. Calamari
15. Carp < and this, man I'm really bad with this, so much sounds familiar!
17. Cheese Fondue
23. Clam Chowder
25. Crab Cakes
42. Funnel Cake
45. Goat's Milk
50. Heirloom Tomatoes
56. Key Lime Pie
59. Lobster
61. MoonPie
69. Pavlova
71. Philly Cheese Steak
77. Polenta < I actually just made some a little bit ago...yum...
81. Root Bear Float
83. Sauerkraut
88. Soft Shell Crab

Pretty good! I could stand to do more though, but I bet actually had more, just don't know what they're called!

We usually roll our ginger snaps in sugar, AslansChild. But sometimes I drizzles them with white chocolate. Yum!

I counted 16 on the list that I have had. Most of the things on the list I would not eat. I really want to make funnel cakes again, it's been years since I made them. I'm making a list to cook after we move. I'm getting hungry! I think I need some chocolate!

SnowAngel

okay, thanks SnowAngel! They look SO good! Quick question though: Do you need the shortening? And can you replace it with something else? See, I'm making them for someone who's rather health conscious: so I'll be using raw sugar, non bleached flour, and replacing the molasses with agave nectar. (Sounds great, right? ) But...how do you replace shortening?

I usually replace shortening with butter, just use the same amount of butter that it calls for shortening. It should work fine, they might be a little flat though.

Sounds like something my older sister would make. I hope they turn out great.

Pattertwigs Pal, your cakes are so cute! I love the flowers, I wish I knew how to do that.

SnowAngel