What's Cookin' at Casa Dowell

I've been in a major supper rut for awhile now.  I'm tired of eating the same things, but not feeling adventurous enough to try new stuff.

Remember: Cooking is not my gift.  When I was pregnant with Audrey I attempted to make scotcheroos and I messed them up.  How can you mess up a recipe as easy as melt, stir, and press into pan?  I'm not sure.  But I did.

Lately, I've been feeling crazy.

I made homemade sweet potato fries for the first time ever.  No more tator tots for me.  Sweet potato fries are easy and delish.  My basic recipe is a hybrid of a few things I found online.  Slice one large sweet potato (that's enough for our family) into fry shaped spears.  Toss in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil, a few shakes of sea salt and a pinch of sugar.  Bake at 400 for about 30 minutes, flip them half way.  Broil for a minute or two at the end.

Of course the first time I made sweet potato fries my parents were over, I left them on the broiler too long and I burned them.  Eh, typical.  

Overall, they were a hit.  The leftovers are a bit mushy for my taste, but lucky for me I know someone who loves eating mushy finger foods.

Another fall favorite: Ridiculously Easy Pumpkin Muffins.  Just two ingredients.  One can of pumpkin, one box cake mix.  And they are moist and yummy.  I've made them with yellow cake as the recipe says and with spice cake.  Both yummy.  I've heard you can use chocolate cake, too.  Mmmm....

And tonight we tried a new one.  Iowa Girl Eats has a knock-off of PF Chang's Lettuce Wraps.  LOVED them.  Next time I'd step up the soy sauce a notch, but otherwise great.

I'm started to feel more confident in the kitchen already.