Cranberry Cornmeal Pancakes

One of my favorite undergrad memories was when a roommate decided to make pancakes.  She offered me pancakes as well, and of course I accepted.  Who declines pancakes?!  Well, thirty minutes later I had a plate of beautiful, golden brown pancakes sitting in front of me waiting to be devoured.   I eagerly dug in, only to discover that while lovely, these pancakes we raw in the middle; ooey-gooey, runny, raw.  One bite in, we both stopped, exchanged glances, and burst out laughing.  So much for pancakes that day...

These pancakes are much different than those oozey ones.  They have a crispy outside and subtly sweet flavor, punctuated by tart cranberries.  I wish I could take all the credit for the idea, but alas, I cannot.  A cute little restaurant in Chicago, called The Bongo Room, is where I first ordered cranberry cornmeal pancakes.  It's been a good while since I had those, but I think these come pretty close to measuring up :)

Copy Cat Panda Express Orange Chicken

There is this game I play, all by myself, every day on my way home from work--it's incredibly fun.  It's called See if you can come up with something good for dinner based on only what's in your house, before you pass the last grocery store.  Ever heard of anything that sounds funner?  It consists of scouring recipes/Pinterest at stoplights, and perpetually reminding myself that while I call salad dinner, the sir in my life does not.  Yesterday I planned on having sandwiches for dinner, but then I realized I didn't have satisfactory bread on hand, or really anything to make it more exciting than bread, meat, & lettuce.  And, while an average sandwich like that is acceptable for lunch, I have this notion that a sandwich for dinner needs to be exciting.  Like fancy cheese, avacado, arugula, heirloom tomato-exciting.  So alas, if I made sandwiches I would have to go the the grocery, and lose my game (which I do on pretty much a daily basis.... but I was feeling motivated yesterday!)  Thus, orange chicken was born.  It consists of mostly pantry staples (and because of my inexplicable affinity for Asian food, I had it all on hand...) and comes together pretty quickly.  Plus, it earned a high-five from the sir, so you know it's good.

Healthy Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies

 I get really excited about Fall, because it means beautiful foliage, and pumpkin everything.  So, the other day I had this streak of brilliance and decided I needed to make non-dairy pumpkin yogurt.  While in theory, it was an awesome idea, I failed epically.  But upon my culinary defeat, I had an extra cup of pumpkin to use and alas these cookies were born, and far from a culinary defeat they were.  Plus, who doesn't love the notion of eating a cookie (or four) for breakfast--and at only about 50 calories a cookie, you totally can.

Creamy Honey Mustard Dressing

So, I have this sister-in-law and she's magic. Seriously. I like ANYTHING she feeds me, even things that have spent decades on my list of least favorite foods.  She's converted me to mayonnaise (although I still won't spread it on a sandwich), mustard (which I eagerly spread on sandwiches), enchiladas,  pasta salad, and a bunch of foods I previously considered offensive for one reason or another.  This conversion isn't a small feat either, I was the pickiest child in the world.  I basically lived on refried beans and plain noodles as a kid--gourmet, I know.
Ever since I discovered mustard is actually really good, I've been finding ways to include it in everything and even made my own (which despite the simplicity of making mustard was a total fail, 4 entire cups of total fail that are still sitting in my fridge, to be precise...).  My new favorite use for mustard, however is this creamy, tangy, sweet and surprisingly healthy salad dressing.  Its great on lettuce (or should I say with lettuce... I practically use a 1:1 ratio...), as a dressing for pasta salad, or as a veggie dip.  You should probably try it :)

Creamy White Bean & Artichoke Dip

 I'll write something exciting later... I have dishes to wash.

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise*
• 3/4 cup canned white beans
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 shallot, quartered
• 1/2 Tbs apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 tsp Kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp ground mustard
• 1/8 tsp white pepper
• 14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained
• 1/4 cup sliced pickled jalapeños, drained

1. Put everything except the artichoke hearts and jalapeños in a food processor or blender and zap until creamy.  Add the artichokes and jalapeños and pulse until they are incorporated, but still offer a bit of texture.
2. Serve with pita chips, tortilla chips, celery sticks, or other veggies.  Keeps about a week in the fridge, although the jalapeño flavor will strengthen.

Notes:

• I generally use great northern beans, because it's what I always have in my pantry.  Cannellini beans will yield the creamiest dip.
• If you like a milder heat, a 4oz can of green chilis can be subbed for the jalapeños.
•  If you plan on using the dip immediately, you can sub in Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise, it simply won't last as long in the fridge.

I Know This Isn't a Recipe...

But it's totally food-related.  I swear.

So, this last weekend I headed back to St. Louis for a bridal shower.  It was the first bridal shower I have ever been to, and it coincidentally was also my own. 

The outpouring of kindness was completely overwhelming.  I received so many kind gifts and sincere wishes, many from people whom know my family more than me personally.  It was such a wonderful day.  Not to mention, I got so many kitchen goodies, I can barely keep my composure thinking about it.  Seriously, wedding showers are way better than birthdays-- nobody sings to you, you're not getting any older, and everything you get is incredibly useful [and often kitchen-related :) ]. 

While I haven't been posting a ton of new recipes just yet, I have certainly been cooking, a lot.  The recipes should follow soon.  Until then, you can look at all the pretty things I got for my kitchen.  They make me giddy.

Coconut Caramel Cinnamon Rolls

Poor coconut caramel cinnamon rolls.  I made them all the way back in June, and just now remembered to blog them.  My forgetfulness, however, has absolutely nothing to do with the flavor of these babies, because they are absolutely delicious.  Not to mention they are vegan... which means healthy.... right?!

Creamy Cashew Chicken Salad

Does anyone else eat weird breakfasts?  For instance, through middle school, I at a PB&J sandwich every day at the bus stop at the crack of dawn.  After awhile, if I brought a waffle instead, my classmates found that strange.  Well, my eclectic breakfast habits have only elevated since then... I woke up this morning, opened my fridge, and passed up my yogurt, fruit, etc and decided I wanted chicken salad.  So I made chicken salad, but not just any heavy, oily chicken salad--this is special chicken salad--guilt-free chicken salad.  Cashews provide the creaminess, while white grape juice concentrate lends a tangy sweetness, all punctuated by crunchy grapes, celery and just a hint of soy sauce.  This stuff made me a chicken salad believer.