Kitchen Mistakes & Discoveries

I am a recipe junkie and I don’t even follow most of them after the 1st time through. Honestly, I barely follow instructions the first time, but that’s what it’s all about for me. I make mistakes and I make wonderful discoveries. Here’s a quick roundup.

Brown Rice, Black Beans, & Peppers Casserole -> MISTAKE!

I followed the directions to the T! It was absolutely the worst thing I’ve ever eaten in my life. I’d rather eat squash & I HATE squash. Funny story behind that is my husband tasted it first and didn’t give me any signal that it was terrible. I love that dude for taking one for the team, BUT we clearly had to discuss him telling me the real deal about the food. That ain’t cool. My man can’t be going around starving for some good cooking when I decide to try the random healthy recipes without doing my research. I now cook all brown rice with stock so I also made a DISCOVERY that day. Brown rice needs stock to agree with my taste buds.

Beet Lemonade -> DISCOVERY

I did not follow the recipe every detail, but ooohhh was it delicious to me. My husband doesn’t care for beets so to him it was just alright, but better than he thought. And although, I will still make it again - I know I’m the only one that will partake for the most part. I’m okay with that. The lil one steers clear of beets for whatever reason, but I’ll let ya know if he likes it.

Ice Cream Bread -> MISTAKE!

I messed this up twice so far, but I’m determined to make it work. The 1st time I didn’t mix it up enough (ie. didn’t melt the ice cream enough). The 2nd time, I’m blaming it on my flour. i tried to substitute, but it didn’t work. I only had all-purpose flour & needed self-rising. I failed big time. It’s cool though because I’ll just go get me some self-rising flour and make it again with some melted ice cream. I’m having Strawberry Bread for breakfast one of these days!

Granola Bars -> DISCOVERY

I followed the directions for the most part and they were delicious! Now that I’ve brought it back up, I should make some more soon. They were easy to make & healthier than the ones in the store. Yup.

Baked Oatmeal -> DISCOVERY

We always have oatmeal nowadays because of the health benefits and whatnots, but regular oatmeal does get a bit drab after so long. That meant I went to the internet for other ways to use oats and of course, I was NOT disappointed. I had a list of flavors to try from sweet to savory. but this one right here stuck! Oh how we love some baked oatmeal. I barely use recipes anymore and just kind of throw things together and it still comes out delicious. Recently I made some Strawberry Brown Sugar Baked Oatmeal and ooohhhh man - divine! I didn’t even have all of the ingredients I needed and kind of just made it up as I saw what we had. [Yes, I need to start actually writing down recipes, but I keep forgetting until I’m eating it.] Anyway, go make some.

Cheesy Oatmeal -> MISTAKE!

Now about those savory oats, I wrote of above - NOT FOR ME. I tried Cheesy Oatmeal and knew it was a bust before even tasting it. It just didn’t look right to me, but I made it so I had to eat it. I only made a small bowl of it and was glad I didn’t go for the gusto as usual. YUK! It’s not for me & I LOVE cheese. This one was a disappointment in a half. I believe I can’t get past the fact that I want my oats to be sweet.

Raisin Bran Bread/Muffins -> DISCOVERY

For a minute, we found ourselves with a boatload of Raisin Bran Cereal. While I do eat them, I couldn’t have ate that much Raisin Bran to save my life. It was just too much. To the internet I went and I was a little suspect of using the cereal, but oh what deliciousness it created. I made Raisin Bran Bread and muffins for a good couple months to get us through those Sundays that we went to both services & attended Sunday School. Whew! Anyway, if you ever find yourself with a lot of Raisin Bran - definitely try out some Raisin Bran Bread or Muffins. They’re real easy to make too.

That’s the end of my Kitchen Mistakes & Discoveries, but I’m sure there will be plenty more. I enjoy trying out new recipes and whatnot. What’s your latest Kitchen Mistake or Discovery?