cook's profile


LISAKP71
 
Home Town: Lakeside, California, USA
Living In: Arlington, Texas, USA
Member Since: May 2001
Cooking Level: Intermediate
Cooking Interests: Baking, Stir Frying, Slow Cooking, Mexican, Italian, Southern, Healthy, Kids, Quick & Easy
Hobbies: Knitting, Sewing, Gardening, Hiking/Camping, Walking, Photography, Reading Books, Music
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About this Cook
I'm a mom of three girls, ages 22, 11 and 7 (yeah, I know... I was pacing myself). I really got interested in cooking about 15 years ago, not long after I got together with my husband - I decided I was going to be a GREAT wife! Well, he's gone, but I still love the kitchen. I don't always have the time to try new recipes or cook as much as I would like, but do as often as I can!
My favorite things to cook
I tend to come back to several favorites: Mexican food, Italian food and a few favorite desserts (like Margarita Pie, which I make with a little tequila - EVERYONE loves me for that one!).
My favorite family cooking traditions
My grandma is Icelandic, and I've only attempted her famous vinarterta ONCE, but it was really great! It's a seven-layered cake/cookie alternated with thick prune filling stack of deliciousness that's usually reserved for special occasions - Christmas, in my family. She would also make an Icelandic twisted-knot doughnut with plenty of cardamom called kleinur every once in a while. So good! More everyday was Icelandic pancakes, basically crepes, rolled up with a tiny bit of sugar inside. Lots of childhood memories wrapped up in those three foods.
My cooking triumphs
Big triumphs, I would say a full Thanksgiving dinner for in-laws AND my family. I have the photos of me sacked out on the couch afterwards to prove it! Another was an Easter ham with Champagne & vanilla bean glaze. The in-laws were still commenting on that one 5 years later! Small triumphs - my girls telling me dinner is yummy, or watching co-workers' faces light up every time they see me hauling Margarita Pie to the freezer, or cookies to the kitchen.
My cooking tragedies
I don't know if it qualifies as a tragedy, but it's what comes to mind: not long after I'd really gotten into cooking, I was tearing fresh basil for some overly complicated recipe; my husband got a strange expression on his face, started looking around and sniffing, then announced, "I think that cat has been peeing in here!". Um, no. That would be your dinner. Also, my pie crusts suck. BAD.
Recipe Reviews 93 reviews
Easy Morning Glory Muffins
DANG, so good! First, just FYI: I filled my muffin cups FULL, zero space at the top, and I got a full 18 muffins. Plan accordingly! These have a texture full of crunchies and sweet bits of fruit that I really enjoy, and my tops turned out with a shiny little crust that's a little crisp on the edges. All that in a muffin flavored little like spice cake or gingerbread. LOVE. Like lots of other reviewers, I couldn't handle the idea of a full cup of oil - but I had no applesauce, so I substituted about half of it with plain Greek yogurt plus a little splash of milk (I was worried the yogurt would be too thick, but I probably didn't need it, based on the final batter texture). I only had sweetened coconut, but it doesn't seem overpowering. I also used golden raisins because that's what I had on hand, but I love that flavor so I'm sure I'll continue to make them that way. I will also use more walnuts, and use larger pieces next time. I just spied some leftover dried cranberries in my pantry, and I might even toss those in next time. Love this recipe as-is, and also for the possibilities!

2 users found this review helpful
Reviewed On: Jan. 1, 2012
Homestyle Beef Stew
One of my kiddos requested beef stew for Christmas dinner, and this was the recipe we chose. Because we were eating this over mashed potatoes (Baked Mashed Potatoes by Nancy F, very good!), I left out the potatoes in the stew and added some celery - probably 5 big stalks for my doubled batch of stew. This was very tasty, but it was much thinner than I'd anticipated; I always use much more flour to dredge meat because I hate getting almost done and having to wash goo off my hands to haul out all the ingredients again ...but even though I added probably twice the flour to the pot at the very beginning, it was still more soup than stew; just FYI based on your preference. Great flavor (my additions: about 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire, 1/2 chopped onion lightly browned in the pan after the beef, plus salt, onion powder, paprika & garlic powder to the flour) and pretty simple to assemble. I bet this would be a good slow cooker recipe once you have the meat & onions browned; I'll try that next. We'll have this a few more times this winter, I'm sure!

1 user found this review helpful
Reviewed On: Dec. 31, 2011
Baked Mashed Potatoes
First, know that I am a carb LOVER so chances were good I'd like them, but WOW. I actually just now saw the submitter Nancy F's review, and realized that 1) there was a reason they tasted SO deliciously oniony even though the description doesn't mention it (she wrote it with a Tbsp, not a whole onion's worth!), and 2) in the extreme multi-tasking of Christmas dinner preparation I somehow left out the egg! Dang. I will definitely use this recipe again, and will happily add way more than 1Tbsp onion, but will actually get that egg in there to see how it affects the final result. I left my potato skins on, and didn't mash thoroughly since our family likes chunky taters. BTW, after an hour in the oven, the onions are a mellow and delicious undertone, not at all raw or sharp. These were delicious in the bottom of a bowl of beef stew, and I'm sure we'll find lots of other ways to enjoy these this winter.

2 users found this review helpful
Reviewed On: Dec. 31, 2011
 
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