Per Kacey's Request - what I want to cook/make in our dream kitchen!

Thank you for the great idea, Kacey!  As you know, with all the house hunting, the meals I've been making are either duplicates of recipes I've posted before, or simple, like hotdogs.  Yum.  I'm sure you all want to hear about that, right...no.  :)

So instead, tonight's post will be about what I can't wait to cook/make/bake in our dream kitchen!  And yes, our first home will be our dream kitchen, for now:)

1.  Anything grilled.  Okay, so yes, that won't be done in the kitchen, but on the deck/outside.  See, since we've lived in our rented townhouse, so the past 2 years or so, we haven't been able to grill; it's just not allowed.  See, before we moved into this area, per rumors, another townhouse renter, or maybe even owner, was grilling outside, as it was allowed then.  They decided it would be smart to put the embers/coals/whatever it was in their closet after the fire went out...yes, you read correctly, their closet.  Well, of course ever so surprisingly, there was a fire, big renovations needed = no more grilling for anyone.  So we CANNOT WAIT to grill!  But of course, we have to buy a grill...how much do those cost??

2.  Homemade spaghetti sauce.  I've made it once in a crockpot before (I don't remember how, it was a snowy day and we just used what we had), but I can't wait to experiment.  That is one thing I know I don't have to buy at the grocery store, and if I make a huge mess and stain the countertop, it's my own countertop that I own stained, not someone else's:)

3.  Thanksgiving dinner.  I've made a small one before, but I can't wait to make a big one for like 20 people!  Insane, right??

4.  Sharyn's homemade mac & cheese - bacon, gruyere cheese, yum yum yum - this may be the first thing I make there - it will make this dream kitchen smell wonderful!

5.  Brownie sundaes.  Just because;)

Also....how would you decorate your dream kitchen??  If I had to buy 3 things to make my kitchen homey and useful, what do you suggest they be?

I hope you check back tomorrow night for the first in a series of  "Holy wow, house hunting is crazy" posts:)  I meant to get to it today, Sharyn, just too busy:)  Goodnight all!

Did someone say sausage?

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Tomorrow is my Friday (I think...right now I'm taking the day off Friday, but now I'm thinking maybe I won't...but then I think of all the things I could get done...it's appealing;)  But then oh the work Monday that will be waiting...what to do, what to do!

Anyways, sausage!  Over the weekend when I was perusing recipes I came across this good lookin' recipe http://fruitychicken.com/?p=222.  I had to try it!  It was alittle vague for me, and I had to convert of course, but I was up to the challenge of figuring this out, and also being able to pick out the flaws at the end so the next time could be even better!

You will need:

• macaroni and cheese, made as the box says
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 cup milk
• 4 tbsp flour
• salt, pepper, and nutmeg, all just a little shake
  
• 1-2 lbs of any kind of sausage you like, uncooked - I used hot italian links, and cut them into bite-sized pieces
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup frozen carrots
• any shredded cheese you would like, about 2 cups total

Okay, so I was very scared to make this!  Kim's photo on her website of this looks exactly how I would like mine to look - a little browned/blackened, but still soft, runny, and warm!  I kinda just went with what I felt I should be doing.

Preheat oven to 425.  In a small pot, melt the stick of butter,  When melted and boiling a bit, add 4 tbsp of flour and stir; then add cup of milk and stir.  This is going to be a sauce inside the Sausage Bake, so make the sauce as thick or runny as you like - more flour for thickening, less flour/more milk for runny:)

While I was making the sauce I also prepared the mac and cheese box and cut up the sausage into bite sized pieces.  Once the sauce had a consistency that I was happy with, I add the shakes of salt, pepper, and nutmeg...and of course I added good ole CRP :)  I let this sit off to the side.

When the mac and cheese was done, and the sausage cut up, I combined those in a large bowl, added the frozen peas and carrots, and then added the butter/flour/milk/seasonings sauce.  I mixed it all up then poured it into a 9x13 baking pan.  I then poured a mixture of mozzarella, monterey jack, and sharp cheddar shredded cheese over the combined casserole.

 

Kim's recipe called for baking this 20-30 minutes.  Mine was closer to 50 minutes.  I have to admit, I started to get alittle annoyed, not at Kim of course, but at me....Kim had used pre-cooked sausage, but I decided to use uncooked sausage so everything would cook together, minus the mac and cheese.  When you get home from work at 6, and start dinner at 6:30, eating at 7:52 is not optimal. 

It tasted awesome, and I would definitely make it again for sure!  My fave part was definitely the sauce, and actually the taste of the peas with the spicyness of the sausage, mixed with the big cheese flavor, worked better than I thought they would together! 

 

I think I may try different versions, for example this recipe but with hotdogs, or chicken with the mac and cheese, with broccoli and rice pilaf.  Endless possibilities!

Cheycancook is quite sleepy tonight so I am out:)  I hope you all have a great evening, and maybe some of you also enjoyed the same shows I did tonight - The Middle, Modern Family, and Cougartown;)

Tomorrow - another new recipe that I came across last weekend that has me shaking in my booties!  Let me know what you think of the above recipe and any other versions you can think of that would work:)  Talk to you tomorrow bloggies!