New Year - New Ideas

I'm off to a good start on my "Resolution" to try at least one new recipe a week. Tonight I ordered three new cookbooks. I have a lot of cookbooks already, but it was frustrating trying to cut the recipes down so I wouldn't have leftovers for a week. The three books had good reviews and so this is what I ordered: "Healthy Cooking for Two (or Just You)" by Frances Price; "Eating Well Serves Two: 150 Healthy In a Hurry Suppers" by Jim Romanoff and "Rachael Ray's Big Orange Book." I'm probably one of the few people who doesn't have a Rachael Ray cookbook. I started watching her show after my granddaughter, Mandy appeared on her show in November of last year. Some of her recipes look quite interesting. I am excited about browsing through my new cookbooks!
Click here to see Mandy on the Rachael Ray Show.

Potluck Season

So, this is the season for potlucks. Again I am using the "Hometown Recipes" book, but am using others' recipes. The Orange Salad Delight on page 19 and the Ribbon Salad on page 20. So, get out your little Winton book and try some of the recipes.
I can't wait to try some of my Dirks cousins' recipes, they are all good cooks!
The other salads I am making don't require a recipe, i.e. carrot raisin salad and macaroni salad.
Here's a picture of the Merced Sun-Star photographer who came out to Rosalie's house when the book was first published. He is trying out one of Avanell's recipes. The Sun-Star printed a full page and a half article. It was great publicity.
I'm not trying to sell the "Hometown Recipes" book, we only have 2 or 3 left to sell. We did a second printing, but will not do another one. So, who knows, someday, it may be a collectible.

What's for Dinner?

Last Sunday, I decided to make the "Chicken In Red Wine, Hunter's Style" which is on page 33 of the "Hometown Recipes" book published by the Winton Historical Society.
Well, o.k.,I contributed that recipe, it's a favorite that I haven't made in years. I searched in the cupboard and found a bottle of red wine with the year 2000 printed on it. My daughter advised me to taste it to be sure it hasn't turned to vinegar. It was the best wine I remembered ever tasting. It's a Zinfandel,made in Sonoma, CA at the Forest Glen Winery. It's probably not a cheap wine, it's too smooth. I had some with my dinner and will have some tomorrow with the beef stew I plan to make. I decided to buy stew meat after I saw the brown and serve sour-dough French bread at the grocery store that my husband used to buy quite often.
The Chicken in red wine was delicious, I cooked spaghetti to go with it. I ate it for 3 days in a row and never tired of it. It must have been the red wine that made it so good. It wasn't exactly "chicken one day and feathers the next" but I don't remember what I had for dinner after that. Sometimes it's tamales from the freezer that I bought from the Mexican restaurant close by.
The week before I made the "German Cabbage Soup" on page 9 of the same recipe book. It's now a favorite recipe too.
Oh, I forgot, I made the "California Vegetable Casserole" on page 87 of the "A+ Recipes" published by the Grace Mennonite School Of Winton.
So, little by little I am getting into the 'cooking from scratch' mode.
Sort of. Like I said before, I only have to please myself.