Two new Recipes under my Belt and I tried something new to eat! About This Page:

[iamgrumpy]

Ok so hopefully some of you remember my Pumpkin Soup (was supposed to be a pie) and the fact that my skills in the kitchen are well for the lack of a better word...lacking.

Well so far this week I have made....Melon Granita using a Cantaloupe and mom ate half a bowl and loved it loved it! She said she couldn't stop having some it was so refreshing yay me!

Then Yesterday I baked...yes baked and the house is still standing! I made Blueberry Almond Muffins and boy those are yummy and very well blueberryish. Mom took a bunch to work to share and she said everyone wants the recipe!

Then last night I had California Rolls at dinner for the first time and I was surprised that 1. I actually tried it 2. I actually LIKED it! For those who know me or read my posts about dining I am very picky. I rarely try new restaurants or places for fear of having to eat something (in my mind) that is weird!

So I thought I'd share the recipes for the Granita and the muffins.

Melon Granita

Ingredients
1 Medium Sized Melon
2/3 cup Sugar
1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice (I substituded the bottled lemon juice and it came out fine)
3/4 cup water
Pinch of Salt

Preparation
Peel the melon, split in half, scoop out seeds. Cut melon into chunks and puree in a blender or food processor with sugar, lemon or lime juice , water, and salt until completely smooth. Pour mixture into dish or bowl. and place in freezer. Check after about 1 hour. once it begins to freeze around the edges, take a fork and stir the mixture, breaking up the frozen parts near the edges into smaller chunks, raking them towards the center. Put mixture back in freezer. Continue to check mixture and rake frozen parts every 30 minutes until fine crystals have formed.


For the Blueberry Almond Muffins:

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup 1% milk
1/2 tablespoon vanilla
1/2 tablespoon almond extract
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350ºF. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well blended. In another bowl combine oil, egg, milk, vanilla, and almond extract until well blended. Pour liquid mixture into middle of flour mixture and stir until not quite all combined.

Add blueberries and gently finish combining. Spoon batter into 18 muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 15-18 minutes. ( I found mine because of the type of pan i used needed a little over 22 minutes)


Enjoy!

[Colexis Mom]

They both sound delish Amy!!

[lauren-roxy]

Thanks for the recipes!!

[stretch2864]

Those sound good, Amy! Congrats on trying some new recipes!

[chezp]

Those sound great.

[debsta922]

They sound yummy Amy! Thanks for sharing!

[Caldercup]

Good going, Amy!

If you're interested in learning to cook, there is a TV show on PBS called America's Test Kitchen. Their cookbooks are also awesome and I have yet to -- after three years of making GREAT food from them -- find a recipe that isn't miles above anything I've tried elsewhere. (They also have great video podcasts that are terrific teaching tools!)

If you see it, their "family" cookbook (sold at Costco and Sams Club) is a great cooking primer. I highly recommend it.
Eileen

[crystalloubear]

Way to go!! Glad you didn't burn down the house!

[DisneyFanAnn]

Amy!!! and thanks for sharing the recipes!!

[AmyJune]

Way to go! I'm a little chicken about trying new things too. I have a lot of food allergies so I'm one of those people that likes to know "what's in it?" I'm famous for making my DH taste things and then asking him if he thinks I'd like it.

[DyanKJ130]

Sounds like you're improving in the kitchen, Amy!!

[Starla4436]

I will most certainly try the granita.