Tamara's Cauliflower deluxe

I am fortunate to have friends.  I am REALLY fortunate to have a friend who is a professional chef.

Seriously.  How cool is that?  She is better than Allrecipes.com.

I was home alone a few weekends ago and wanted something fun to make.  I love cauliflower so I wanted to make something with it.  I sent her this note on facebook and I KID YOU NOT in less than 30 seconds this is what I get back. 

I'm a huge fan of cauliflower, two cheap and dirty recipes come to mind.

Cooked chicken cut up (this is optional, I would totally make it without anything else)
Chopped cauliflower
Chopped onion
Rotini or wild rice (I used regular elbow pasta)
1 can cream chicken soup
1 cup mayo  (I would use 1/2 cup next time)
1/2 cup sour cream
Shredded cheddar (notice no amount listed.  Use your best judgment.  I used it all)
At least 1 T curry powder or paste.  (Next time I would use at least 3 T of curry powder)

Her directions:

Get your Mise en Place together with the chopped chicken and onion, add soup, mayo, sour cream and spices in a bowl and mix. Boil rotini, at the last minute throw in cauliflower, strain, shock in frigid water, toss with other ingredients. Add ingredients to an oiled or sprayed pan, top with plenty of cheese, bake for 30 minutes.

I like to freeze half for a later, "I don't want to cook tonight" moment. This is one of those leftover recipes, I would have a grilled chicken one day and have made cream of broccoli or cauliflower soup on another and just start tossing stuff in.

I might cook a little longer to heat through the cauliflower.  This is AMAZING.  Sooooo good.  I had it for dinner with a salad and several lunches the following week. Thank you my friend.  And no, I won't share her email address.  :)

A long, lonely summer

We have no kitchen. Ummm, I guess technically we do have a kitchen, only it's several walls, a subfloor and a nicely painted ceiling thanks to Paul and Deb. So what have we been doing all summer? Jimmy Johns, 10 minute and a host of local restaurants with coupons from friends. This has not been an inexpensive proposition - not from the renovation perspective or the eating out perspective. All the way around it's been expensive!

So I dream of baking in my new kitchen. We will have a convection oven and by friends' accounts, it is pretty slick. Here is my first order once the new kitchen is up and humming.

Blueberry Cobbler (courtesy of Lakeside Living and Entertaining)

1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup sugar, divided (I might try Splenda)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup boiling water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water (not to be confused with the boiling water part)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
4 cups fresh blueberries rinsed and drained.

Oven 400 degrees. Baking sheet covered with aluminum foil.

In a large bowl, mix flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles course crumbs. Stir in boiling water just until mixture is moist.

In a separate bowl, dissolve corn starch in water. Mix in remaining sugar, lemon juice and blueberries. Transfer to cast iron skillet and bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Drop dough into skillet by spoonfuls. Place skillet on baking sheet and bake 25 minutes or until golden brown.

INVITATIONS HAVE BEEN SENT!

Friends and Family,
I have sent out invitations to you so you can access this blog, the East of the Equator Cafe. The way it is currently set up, all of you can access the East of the Equator Cafe group in Google (earlier today invitations were sent out from the Google Group). In that group I have uploaded recipes, in PDF format, that you can access and either read on line or print. If you click on the link titled "East of the Equator Group" under the "Recipes" tab in the top left side of this blog you can access this group. I am hoping to populate the group with more recipes that I find and I hope that you do, too! I will also add some suggestions and tips that I have learned as the "Head Chef" for Deirdre all these years. I also would ask that if you have any suggestions to improve this blog or the group, please do not be shy. Share any idea you have as I certainly do not have the "good ideas" market cornered!

Paul