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My First Blog Post

The greatest dishes are very simple.

— Auguste Escoffier.

Okay, so if you accidentally stumbled on this site, I am NOT Escoffier or anywhere near. I’m an untrained home cook. I watch Great British Bake Off, but do not aspire to make Pavolovas and biscuit sculptures. I’m hoping to create a recipe site that my kids will use to reference simple meals they can make when I’m not around either now or in the future. My plan is to limit the narrative to what is necessary for the recipe (maybe a bit of background) because my pet peeve with recipe sites is the pages of scrolling to get to the recipe. Right now, I’m just trying to get the hang of the new Word Press editor.

Skillet supper.

  • 1 pound hamburger/ground beef. I use 85/15
  • 1 lb button mushrooms white or brown.
  • 1/8 teaspoon each of allspice and nutmeg.
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 2 tbsp onion powder (or 1 medium onion)
  • 1 can evaporated milk
  • 1 lb cooked egg noodles or farfalla/bow tie pasta
  1. Pulse mushrooms in food processor until resembles the texture of coarse ground beef
  2. Optional: if using onion, pulse the onion in food processor until ground.
  3. Add beef and mushrooms (and onions if using) to cast iron skillet.
  4. Cook on medium low until mushrooms have released all liquid, breaking up the meat while stirring. Beef should be mostly cooked at this point.
  5. Turn up the meat to medium high to get a little crust on some of the beef. Add spices and stir (omit onion powder if using fresh onion). Salt and pepper to taste. Cook spices about 30-60 seconds
  6. Turn hear back to medium and add flour. Stir well into the beef and cook a minute or longer. Don’t burn the flour.
  7. Add can of evaporated milk.
  8. Stir. I used a metal spoon to scrape up anything stuck to the pan. Bring to simmer and cook until thickened and some of the liquid has evaporated.
  9. Off heat, Add the cooked pasta and mix well. Makes about 6 servings. More if you add a green salad and some bread.

Cost in 2025: $8.49 for beef at Target. Buy one get one half off so I got a second for the freezer; pasta was $1.15 for the box. Mushrooms were $2.49. Evaporated milk was $.79. Spices I already had in my pantry so cost nothing extra for them. All spice and nutmeg and onion powder can be purchased quite cheap.

Shockingly, my son asks me for this all the time. Super cheap. Inspired by Swedish meatballs.

Egg pie?

  • 2 cups frozen hashbrowns
  • 6 eggs
  • 1 cup cooked crumbled bacon
  • 1 cup finely diced onion
  • 1/4 cup cream
  • 1 tsp salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup sharp cheddar
  • 1tbsp fat (butter, oil, bacon fat)

In large bowl, mix eggs, bacon, onion, cream, salt and cheese. Add ground black pepper. Stir well breaking yolks until all incorporated.

In medium non stick skillet, add scant tablespoon of fat over low heat. Sprinkle hashbrowns evenly over bottom of pan. Pour egg mixture over all. Spread with back of spoon if needed. Cover with lid.

Cook covered 15 minutes on low. Jiggle pan to see if center is set. If loose, cook an additional 3-5 minutes until egg is set.

Use plastic spatula to slide egg pie onto plate. Bottom should be crusty brown and eggs just set.

Slice and garnish (or don’t) as desired (tomatoes or green onions can be good).

Hash browns in pan. These are pre cooked but frozen works better if you want to keep your eggs from overcooking.
3 on induction stove. This is low but not super low.
Set.
Overbrowned to me because I didn’t use frozen this time.
Slice with tomatoes.

Summertime citrus sorbet.

Two cups of COLD PRESSED orange juice (I use tangerine which I think tastes quite nice)

Wash a raw egg and dry it. Place it in the juice cup. Do not crack it. The egg is not in the recipe. Add 1/4 cup of sugar and stir. Continue adding sugar until the egg floats. Remove the egg, wash it off and put it back in the fridge.

1 tbsp of vodka or Cointreau for texture purposes

Optional: juice of one lime

Freeze in an ice cream freezer (I use the cheap kind where you add ice and rock salt) until frozen to a slushy/soft serve hardness. This is not creamy like ice cream.

Add to container and put in freezer a few hours for a harder texture.

This is essentially a sorbet but using cold pressed juice is key. You can also juice and strain your own oranges. The egg trick is just to make sure you don’t add too much or too little sugar as the sugar content in the juice can vary.

Small serving.

Quick and easy stir fry for 2-3

  • 1 strip steak sliced into strips
  • 1 medium onion cut into 1.5 inch chunks
  • 1 red or orange bell pepper cut cut into 1.5 inch chunks
  • 2 cups green veg cut into bite sized pieces
  • Korean bbq sauce
  • Cooking oil
  • Large skillet or wok
  • 2 cups cooked rice

Heat about a tablespoon of oil in wok or skillet. Heat on medium high. Add Onion and pepper. Cook until soft

Add green veg and cook until crisp tender

Remove veg from pan. Cook steak for a couple of minutes until just cooked.

Add veg back to steak

Add a tablespoon of the Korean bbq sauce. Toss all together with sauce. Serve over rice.

Fudge

Grandma’s fudge
  • 5 cups sugar
  • 1/4 lb butter
  • 1 can evaporated milk
  • 2 bags of semi sweet chocolate chips (24 ounces. Some chips bags are less than 12 now)
  • 1 jar marshmallow cream (two 7 oz jars or 1 large jar of 13-14 oz)
  • 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts. (Could use more)

Grease 9×13 pan and then add parchment paper (grease helps paper stick to pan). Brush parchment with melted butter. Set aside

Melt butter in large pot. Add can of milk. Add sugar slowly making sure you don’t touch the edge of the pot with the sugar. Stir slowly being careful to not let sugar touch pot edges until melted. Boil 9 minutes (I use setting 6 in my induction range) (target temp is 234-237)

Stir in chocolate chips and marshmallow cream until all melted. add nuts.

Pour into prepared 9×13 pan.

Cool. Makes 5 lbs.

Sugar mound in center of pot
Boiling. I used a thermometer to check if her 9minute time was too long. It was not. It’s a lot of sugar.
Mixing in the cream and chocolate. I left out the nuts.
Fudge with nuts sprinkled on top because I like the way it looks.

Accidentally Vegan Cake, or Depression Cake

  • 3 cups flour
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 cups wate
  1. Preheat oven to 350
  2. Mix together dry ingredients in an untreated 9×13 pan (Flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, salt) until well combined. I use a whisk and sometimes my hands if the sugar or cocoa is lumpy to break the lumps.
  3. Make three wells in the flour. Pour the oil in one, the vanilla in another, and the vinegar in the last.
  4. Pour cold water over all. Stir with a fork until well combined. This may take about 5 minutes.
  5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick (toothpick will come out dry with a couple crumbs clinging to it) or by pressing with your fingers gently. If it springs back, it’s done.
  6. Frost with your favorite frosting (I like an almond buttercream—make with vegan butter for a fully vegan cake)
Mixing the dry ingredients
Adding the liquids
Mixed
Frosted
Video showing some of the mixing process

This recipe is also called Wacky Cake. Invented during the depression (or maybe earlier) to make a cake without rationed or expensive items, so its made without butter or eggs making this accidentally vegan. One of my favorite cakes to make and eat.

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