Life Through my iPhone + Favorite Recipes of 2012

I take a lot of cute photos — of my pets, of my food, of my family, of my friends. However, these photos are all posed and many times, all planned. I have this theory — the photos that really matter, despite their smaller, pixelated size, are the ones that you take with your mobile phone.

Think about it. In the past, we used to say “oh, wait, let me go get the camera!” By the time you returned, point-and-shoot in hand, however, the photogenic moment had passed. These days, whenever there’s a moment we want to capture, it’s much easier to whip out the iPhone (or Droid, or whatever) and preserve it for posterity. Here are 19 moments from 2012 that were worthy not only of capturing with my iPhone, but also saving until the end of the year. These were the events that were significant in my life this year — run your mouse over the picture to see the caption.

Casey Shea, Kelsey, and Tiffany at Rams Head Tavern in Annapolis on St. Patrick’s Day

It’s always exciting to release a new magazine that I was in charge of. It was doubly exciting that the couple on the cover was a former coworker and friend of mine.

It took a year, but we finally honeymooned in Jamaica. Nothing like kicking off a vacation with a glass of Champagne and a sunset over the balcony.

Let’s go, Os! Mother’s Day baseball game with Jenny and Chris.

We finally have all-new appliances in our kitchen!

No more linoleum. I need not say any more.

Not every day is a happy day. In 2012, we said goodbye to David’s uncle, who was killed in a motorcycle accident. The day was appropriately gray.

A blurry picture for a blurry night — that’s what Seacrets in OCMD will do to you!

I never expected it, but a photo I took graced the cover of a magazine in August 2012.

We rescued a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in July, who took to Porter instantly.

I’ll have what she’s having — Katz’s Deli on Kelsey’s birthday

Kelsey finally gets her dream car!

David gets hit by an 18-wheeler and walks away. Talk about counting our blessings — and I counted them even more in October when he got a new job that didn’t require him driving many hours of the day.

A beautiful weddings magazine — and the one that turned out to be my final as managing editor.

This year, I joined the board of directors for the local children’s theatre — there are some kids hamming it up backstage!

Clark Kent and Rainbow Brite

After staying away for 18 months, we visited Arizona (and its sunsets) for Thanksgiving

When visiting AZ in November, we almost brought home a cat. Crouton would not have been happy.

So long, What’s Up…in December, I took a new job at the School Nutrition Association. My little “office” on my last day, after being cleaned out.

Everyone’s in good spirits at our annual Christmas party.

Recipes for a casual holiday party

For the second year, David and I are hosting a Christmas Party. We’re so lucky to have friends who come from near and far to celebrate the holiday season with us — we’re currently at 30 RSVPs, and I’m sure that there will be a few additional guests for forgot to email, call, or text me prior to the party.

It’s an interesting week coming up — tomorrow is my last day at What’s Up? Media, I’m taking one day off — but I have SO much planned for that day — and then I start a new job at the School Nutrition Association on Thursday. Today after work, I have a happy hour planned with a fantastic group of coworkers/friends here at the magazine that I’m really and truly going to miss working with. This particular job has had its ups and downs, but one big benefit was working with an amazing group of 20-something gals who were all at the same stage of life as me. Tomorrow,  I have my last class at AACC (Fitness for Sports and Nutrition) for the semester, and on Wednesday, I have a board meeting at the children’s theatre. Luckily, Thursday night is free, but then on Friday, we’re attending another holiday party.

I take no credit for this photo nor this idea, that belongs to this blog. However, I AM going to implement it. I already have the mini candy canes!

Crouton’s One-Year Anniversary

It’s been a year since I launched Cooking with Crouton. Considering my incredibly short attention span for most projects, a year is a pretty big feat. Even crazier is that Crouton has made it through another year without maiming anyone — insects don’t count, and neither does that incident with the neighbors — and without anyone maiming her.

A Photographic Journey through Birthday Food

Does that title make any sense? This past weekend, I turned 27. And, like I always do, I ate and drank my way through my birthday weekend.

A New Tile Floor // The One Where Crouton Finally Cools Down

When we bought our house about 15 months ago, we got it for a really good price. In the D.C./Baltimore/Annapolis suburbs, it’s really difficult to find an affordable house, but we got lucky — kind of. In return for that really good price, we got a house that really needed some upgrades. Considering this was our first home, we were OK with that (or so I thought. I now hate when my husband asks, “Do you want to go to Lowes with me?”)

But there was one part of the house I particularly despised: The kitchen floor.

My favorite recipes of 2011

This blog was originally posted on my work website, The Bent Fork. Therefore, it refers to this blog as “my personal blog,” which might be a little confusing.

It’s the time of year for looking back and reflecting on what we did in 2011. I can say I did a whole lot of cooking.

Last year around this time, I posted a list of what I learned about food in 2010. I learned a lot in 2011 — cooking is a never-ending process of learning — however, this year, as I spent a lot more time developing and testing recipes, I thought it would be more appropriate to reminisce about my favorite dishes of the year. Just click on the link below, and you’ll find the full recipe.

Beef Bourguignon: One of the most recent recipes I made, this mouthwatering classic will be on regular rotation, for sure.

Beef Stroganoff: The unexpected secret to this dish is nutmeg.

Braised Greens with Mushrooms: My first real try working with Swiss Chard, and it was delicious.

Caribbean Shrimp Pasta Salad: Fresh and tropical, this was the perfect pasta salad for my friend’s Jamaica-themed bridal shower.

Coconut Curried Beef with Snow Peas: My husband doesn’t even like curry, and he commented on how good this recipe is.

Crawfish-Smothered Grits: Not healthy at all! But creamy and delicious.

Creamy Taco Mac: My husband loves Hamburger Helper, but I refuse to buy it. This was a good, healthier compromise.

Mussels Marinara: A simple, yet elegant recipe to serve over pasta.

The posts above are all recipes I’ve blogged about on the Whatsupmag.com platform. There are definitely some recipes that I’ve really loved that I haven’t blogged here because they’re either 1) from other sources, or 2) on my personal food blog. These favorite recipes from other chefs or websites include:

Orzo with Caramelized Vegetables: This is somewhat time-consuming, but wholesome and incredibly flavorful.

Roasted Chicken with Balsamic Vinaigrette: I make this with regular boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and it isso good over brown rice.

Shrimp & Scallop Bayou Pasta: This is adapted from an Emeril Lagasse recipe, and pictured above.

Spicy Boneless Ribs in Tomato Sauce: This slow-cooker recipe is so easy to make, but impresses people every time I make it.

What were your favorite recipes of the year?

 

Scared of Cooking? Start Here (Part 2: Cooking Tips)

Earlier this week, I posted about how many people don’t cook. This isn’t because they don’t want to or don’t like to, but because they’re scared of it. (There are plenty of other excuses: No time, fresh food is expensive, so on and so forth.) Perhaps “scared” is a strong word – rather, they’re overwhelmed or worried about doing it wrong.

Here’s the thing: When you’re making home-cooked meals with whole ingredients, it’s really hard to get it wrong. You might overcook a piece of chicken or serve gluey mashed potatoes, but you’re really light-years ahead of people who don’t even try. One of my other hobbies (though recently neglected) is running, and one of my favorite motivational quotes is “It’s better to run 1 mile than to think about running 5 miles.”

In essence, it’s better to try than think about it. If you’re ready to try, here are some of my best tips to start cooking very easily, healthfully, and inexpensively.

Make a list of five to 10 basic foods or ingredient you and your family enjoys, and strive to have them in your house at all times. For me, the list would look something like this: Whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, fresh broccoli, canned diced tomatoes, chicken breasts, frozen shrimp, zucchini, chicken broth, and dried beans. With these nine ingredients, plus basics like olive oil, salt, pepper, and other herbs, I can always put together a meal that my husband and I will enjoy. Therefore, every single time I go to the grocery store, I buy these ingredients.

Look for recipes with less than 7 ingredients.Maybe I’m alone in this, but I find that simple recipe preparation tends to be the best. When I try to do something complicated, I tend to get into trouble. The other day, I made a really good dinner that consisted of just 7 ingredients for the entire meal. I marinated chicken breasts (1) in a mixture of Dijon mustard (2) and balsamic vinegar (3) while I was at work. When I came home, I cooked brown rice (4) in chicken broth (5) in the oven. When it was almost done, I added the chicken breasts and its marinade to the pan to give the rice some extra flavor. While it was cooking, I sautéed chunks of zucchini (6) in olive oil (7). Full meal, seven ingredients.

Read the recipe. Twice. How many times have I started cooking only to find out that the recipe requires 2 hours of chilling/resting/marinating/etc.? If I read the recipe first, I know what it entails.

It’s better to undercook than overcook. Obviously, you don’t want the chicken to be pink in the center or the bread to be doughy. But so many ingredients taste better when slightly underdone versus slightly overdone – vegetables stay slightly crisp, shrimp is tender rather than chewy, pasta has a bite rather than a bit of mush. If a recipe says cook something 10-12 minutes, take it off the heat at 10 minutes and let it continue cooking in the pan (Because unless you dunk it in ice water, nothing stops cooking immediately).Recognize potential, and try again. A recipe won’t always come out perfectly the first time. If it’s good, but not GREAT, work on perfecting it. The first time I made Chardonnay gravy for chicken or turkey, it was good with potential. When I made it again for Thanksgiving, it was GREAT.

Challenge yourself. I’m not beyond this step. I’m currently working on a “12 in ‘12” challenge for myself to try recipes I’ve either been afraid of in the past or would love to have that “perfect” recipe for. My list includes homemade ravioli, challah bread, New York cheesecake, veggie burgers, pho, and tagine, which are all dishes I’m afraid of, as well as cream of crab soup and fluffy dumplings, which I would like to perfect. The point of this exercise isn’t to do it perfectly, but to commit the time and energy to just trying it.

Next up: What kitchen equipment do you really need to cook well?

If you have any specific cooking tips, questions, or requests, always feel free to comment on the blog or email me at kcasselbury@gmail.com.

Scared of Cooking? Start Here.

I am two types of nerd: a food nerd, and an Internet nerd.

These two types frequently join forces as I spend a lot of my time on the Internet reading about food. I am convinced that’s what made me the foodie I am today.

I am not a chef. I have never taken a cooking class.

Salads. I can do this. Most of the time. 

Sometimes, I’d barely call myself a cook. For all the praise my friends give me about my food, I make so many failures that I never share with anyone (other than my husband, because he’s stuck with it). Just today I tried making mini apple pies for an upcoming cocktail party, and I exclaimed out loud not once, but twice, “There is NO way I am serving these at the party.”

Everything I’ve learn about food has come from cookbooks, food magazines, my parents, and, oh yes, the Internet.

And in my reading about food on the Internet, I’ve learned there are a lot of people, old and young, rich and poor, educated and noneducated, that don’t know how to cook. Not just that, they’re scared of cooking.

Baked tilapia, roasted broccoli, whole-wheat cous cous, and roasted tomatoes — a pretty typical dinner for us.

And that makes me sad. Not because it indicates any sort of lacking on their part, but when I look back on my life, I think about how much of it is wrapped up in food memories.

I think back to when I was little and my mom and dad made cut-out sugar cookies with my sister and me, a tradition that I waxed nostalgic over today when I made my own sugar cookies.

I think about my mom asking me every year what I wanted for my birthday today. It was usually spaghetti, but I remember a turkey and wild rice salad that I just adored for a couple of years.

I remember making chocolate chip cookies.

I remember clumsily cooking for my college boyfriend at Penn State. Fettucine Alfredo, beer-cheese soup, and hamburgers … and a lot of late-night Steak-ums.

I think about making the first meal for my now-husband, barbecue-rubbed split chicken breasts, mashed potatoes, and Ceaser salad. And even though he hates chicken on the bone, something I know now, he told me he loved it.

In not-so-great food memories, I remember the first time he wouldn’t eat something I made, a Gazpacho pasta salad. Silly boy.

The table set for dinner … a rarity in our household. 

The point is that food is such an integral part of my life, and spending time in the kitchen creates such joy that I want everyone to know that joy (as long as they want to, of course).

I can only guess that these people are so scared of cooking because they’re afraid they’ll mess it up; that they’ll ruin an expensive ingredient, burn the meat, or sicken someone with food poisoning. While I’ve never sent anyone to the ER, I’ve definitely ruined meals, burned things, and been utterly disappointed by a recipe I had so much hope for.

This is pumpkin beer bread. And it’s burnt.

But when a recipe turns out right and my guests, my husband, or even me alone praise myself for it…well, there’s nothing to say other than it’s worth those ruined pricey ingredients or burnt rice.

There’s a line in the movie “Julie and Julia” that really speaks to me. “I love that after a day when nothing is sure, and when I say ‘nothing’ I mean nothing, you can come home and absolutely know that if you add egg yolks to chocolate and sugar and milk, it will get thick. It’s such a comfort.”

It’s true that cooking is both a science and an art. A comfort that the chemical reactions that happen will happen, yet the creativity to add a pinch of this and a pinch of that and, you never know…it could turn out to be the next masterpiece.

Pot roast. So comforting, so fragrant, so easy.

This blog posting was supposed to be a list of ways to conquer your fear of cooking, but I’ve spent too much time with a glass of pinot noir in my hand at my desk at home, listening to the sounds to Adele, and waxing poetic about my adoration of food. Typical me.

It’s something I thought about while I braised Swiss chard for the first time tonight and thought, “If I can do this, anyone can.”  So come back soon, and I’ll have that list for you.

My first turkey, roasted just days ago. 21 pounds, and I was terrified … but I did it. And no one got sick (and that’s the important part.)