recipe sunday no. 3 | chicken scallopine with saffron cream sauce

Okay, well the next post from KC will not be entirely food related, as it's Recipe Sunday, and my turn!

This Sunday I chose 2 recipes from my new Giada's Kitchen cookbook, a Christmas present from Mama G:

Chicken Scallopine with Saffron Cream Sauce

Broiled Zucchini and Potatoes with Parmesan Crust

Both winners, hooray! (I made a pasta dish from the same book earlier this week that was an epic fail, so I was hoping these would be drastically better.)

I was a little hesitant on the saffron, a) because I had never tasted it, much less cooked with it, and b) because it was almost $15 for a tiny jar (yipe!). KC & I stood in the spice aisle at Kroger for a few minutes debating: picking it up, putting it down. Finally we decided to go for it. The recipe only calls for a few threads and it's supposed to keep for a good while as long as it's sealed tightly. I'm really glad we took the risk because it was really fantastic flavor, and we'll definitely be using saffron again.

Chicken Scallopine with Saffron Cream Sauce

Broiled Zucchini and Potatoes with Parmesan Crust

Showing off  my sweet new knife skills (thanks Chef Matarese) in my sweet new apron (thanks Mama H).

Oh, and in case you've ever wondered, cooking classes through Whole Foods are the jam. Salud!

recipe sunday no. 2 | beer cheese soup

Okay dish number two:Beer Cheese Soup. Can you tell we're soup people? Overall this was good, but I think we decided that we'd prefer it without all the accessories (carrots, potatoes, etc.) with a smoother consistency. Also, I'm not sure all the beer was cooked out because I was tipsy afterward. Ha. Just kidding, but really, it was pretty potent and probably could have cooked longer. 

recipe sunday no. 1 | onion soup gratinee

I have to admit that, although I really love cooking, I've done little of it since we got married. Not getting home until 6:30 or 7 most nights means that, if I do cook, we don't eat until 8:30, and by the time we're done cleaning up, it's 10pm and that's just exhausting to do every night. We'll get into a good routine, but for now, we're going to start with Recipe Sundays.

Here's the first dish: Onion Soup Gratinee. It was a hit for our taste buds and budget. I used gruyere instead of provolone, & swapped out 2 of the yellow onions for a red and some scallions. I also added some red wine to the mix.

beans & rice, and rice & beans. and hot sauce.

the dave ramsey way - that's how we roll.

economical, yummy, and guaranteed leftovers.

what compromises do you make to achieve your goals?

october eats

Wednesday night : KC made pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella, and gorgonzola. He made dough from scratch. It was pretty perfect.

Thursday night : KC wanted tuna boats; I was hesitant. It's not my favorite meal, and last time we made it, it wasn't great. But this time we used wheat buns and added swiss cheese, tomato, and spices. I made a salad of baby spinach, white nectarines marinated in balsamic, garlic + olive oil and feta.

{above: kc's tuna boats}

{above: those are nectarines, not potatoes- I promise}

Tonight : beer brats. Num num.