chicken tikka masala (and how i'm starting to maybe enjoy cooking).

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if you've followed this blog for any amount of time, you probably know that i'm not exactly
a master chef in the kitchen.

i went from hating cooking, to getting my feet wet, to actually maybe enjoying making an actual meal...gasp!
i know, i'm just as shocked as you are.

having the summer off has definitely helped in my cooking endeavors.

i have to give myself a whole lotta time to get everything ready if i want to avoid being stressed, or hurting myself, or ending up doing an ugly cry and telling mr. lesley "i'm such a bad wife."

i'm made a few good recipes this summer, but the one i made last night is one of my favorites.

if you like indian food, you should probably make this chicken tikka masala for dinner tonight.

the recipe is pretty simple and it turns out delicious!
(i cut out the garam masala because i couldn't find it at the store and substituted curry paste for tikka paste and it still turned out great!)

let me know if you make it and what you think!

happy cooking.

 

cherry pie...from scratch...bucketed.

at the beginning of the summer, i wrote a little bucket list to keep the adventures 

coming and to make sure i didn't waste these glorious days.

one of my goals was to make a cherry pie from scratch, and on tuesday, i did it! 

the amazing jenny found this recipe and invited me over to bake in the a.c. 

{because i don't believe sweat is an ingredient in cherry pie.}

our friend mary joined in the goodness too. 

because, really, baking is a team effort.

we pitted, we mixed, we worked our muscles rolling out the dough, we talked about life 

{like the good, real stuff} we learned how to make a lattice {the easy way}, 

and we took waaaaaaay too many photos.

it was pretty much the perfect way to spend a summer afternoon.

when this little baby came out of the oven, looking beautiful and like an actual, real life pie, 

i was overjoyed.

you know i don't always have the best luck in the kitchen.

so this was like big. 

really big.

if truth be told, this pie quickly turned into my little baby.

i was admiring it and taking too many pictures of it and found myself 

staring longingly into its lattice strips.

too much? 

i'm sorry, i couldn't help myself.

i made a freakin' pie. 

from scratch.

and i was proud.

none of this would have been possible without this lovely lady.

and she even had to transport our pride and joy to our friends house, 

all the while, pie juice spilling all over her pants.

she's the real deal, folks.

from my kitchen {ok, not exactly my kitchen but that's beside the point} to yours.

keep your eye out for this face to be on the cover of a 

southern living magazine at a checkout counter near you! 

a taste of all that is glorious and wonderful and divine.

i made these cookies for mr. lesley this weekend and...wow.

i've tasted a lot of cookies in my day, and these are some of the best.

i found the recipe here and you should drop everything and bake them...

 if you know what's good for you.

p.s. when the directions say to only bake them for 8-10 minutes, you should really do that.

it makes for some soft, chewy, not hard as a rock cookies.

enjoy.

INGREDIENTS: 

1 cup (16 tablespoons) butter, softened to room temperature 

2 cups smooth or chunky peanut butter 

1 ½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar 

1 cup granulated sugar 

2 large eggs 

1 ½ tablespoons milk 

1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract 

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour 

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda 

1 teaspoon baking powder 

½ teaspoon salt 

2 cups chocolate chips (or a combination of peanut butter and chocolate chips) 

 DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine the butter and peanut butter and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy (you can do this with a hand mixer or with an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment). Add the brown and white sugars and mix until well combined. Add the eggs and mix for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture is well combined and light in color. Add the milk and vanilla and mix. Add the dry ingredients and mix just briefly. While there are still large spots of flour, add the chocolate chips (or peanut butter chips or both) and mix until the flour is completely mixed in and the mixture is well combined. Let the cookie dough sit for 15 minutes before scooping onto the baking sheets. It will firm up as it sits. When ready to bake, scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets leaving about 1 to 2 inches in between the cookies to allow for spreading as they bake. Bake for 8-10 minutes, taking care not to overbake in the slightest! Leave the cookies on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes after baking before removing them to a cooling rack. This will help them set up and be firm enough to transfer without having them overbake in the oven. The cookies may look slightly underbaked but they will firm up as they cool. Resist the urge to eat them warm as they taste much better cooled. I pop baked and cooled cookies into the freezer (in a large tupperware or freezer-safe ziploc bag) and they taste great out of the freezer, especially if they are left to sit at room temperature for a few minutes.

spinach lasagna rolls

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mr. lesley and i made this recipe a few weeks ago, thanks to pinterest and christy, and overall it was pretty delicious.

if i made it again, i would watch it more closely as not to overcook the noodles (whoops), and i would add more sauce.

enjoy!

Spinach Lasagna Rolls 

Source: adapted slightly from Skinny Taste

Ingredients: 

9 lasagna noodles, cooked

 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and completely drained

 1 (15 ounce) container fat free ricotta cheese

 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 1 egg

 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasonings salt and fresh pepper

 (optional) 1 chicken breast, cooked and diced

 32 oz tomato sauce (I used spaghetti sauce)

 9 Tablespoons part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 350°. Make sure you drain the spinach well. Combine spinach, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, egg, garlic, Italian seasonings, chicken, and salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Pour about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Place a piece of wax paper on the counter and lay out lasagna noodles. Make sure noodles are dry by patting them with a paper towel. Take 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture and spread evenly over a noodle. Roll carefully and place seam side down onto the baking dish. Repeat with remaining noodles. Ladle sauce over the noodles in the baking dish and top each one with 1 Tablespoon of mozzarella cheese. Cover baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes, or until cheese melts. Makes 9 rolls. To serve, ladle a little sauce on the plate and top with lasagna roll.

crock pot chicken taco chili

as i prepare myself for life as a domesticated woman, i figured i should share some recipes in hopes of encouraging everyone that if i can cook, you can cook! 

tonight i made this recipe in the crock pot, and it was a hit.

thanks gina and pinterest!

mr. lesley had two bowls, and we even had some to freeze for later. 

double bonus.

Ingredients: 

 1 onion, chopped 

1 16-oz can black beans 

1 16-oz can kidney beans

 1 8-oz can tomato sauce

 10 oz package frozen corn kernels

 2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies

 1 packet taco seasoning 

1 tbsp cumin

 1 tbsp chili powder (i left this out since neither of us are spice weaklings)

 24 oz (3-4) boneless skinless chicken breasts

 chili peppers, chopped (optional) (yeah, we passed on this too)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (and i forgot to add this...whoops)

Directions: 

 Combine beans, onion, chili peppers, corn, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder and taco seasoning in a slow cooker. Place chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream. 

(we ate ours with tortilla chips, sour cream, and shredded cheese!) 

this recipe was simple, delicious, and made my apartment smell like i actually knew how to cook.

winning.