My favorite thing to make is a dish my dad brought back from Thailand. I'm not sure of the exact spelling, so I'm going to type it as it sounds to me: COW POT Did your nose wrinkle JUST a wee bit at the name? It's easy to make, too. Bacon. Cooked rice (I like brown rice), chopped onions, about 3-4 eggs beaten so you can scramble them, and soy sauce. I usually cut the bacon before its cooked as it makes it easier to cook and the dish is better with bacon pieces. Store bought imitation bacon pieces just won't work.

Either crepes or cakes as those are about the only two things I enjoy making. I cannot stand touching raw meat (and cooked meat, actually) and most vegetables so the range of foods I actually cook myself are limited. Flour, butter, eggs, sugar and milk, fortunately, are things don't particularly mind getting on my hands. Although, I would rather not get eggs or milk on my hands... Flour, sugar and butter, I can live with.

Hard to choose one thing, but I'll lead with a nice pot pie. Chicken, turkey, beef - doesn't matter. I like the whole process, plus it makes the house smell SO GOOD. Since we just had Thanksgiving, I made a giant pot of turkey stock and there will certainly be a turkey pot pie making its way into my oven in the next day or so.

What is your favorite food to make and if you have one, why? I love a good old fashion turkey and cheese grilled cheese sandwich. (Sometimes with tomatoes on it). Just simple easy comfort food for me.

Tell us about some of your cooking disasters. From burning the food to it tasting absolutely gross or putting the wrong ingredient in (anyone ever have a salt cake because you put salt in instead of sugar... I have!) Pics are always welcome.

Tell us about some cooking successes, whether it be an accident or you trying something new for the first time. Show us pics if you have them (and share Recipes on our Recipes tab if you want too).

This full meal recipe takes bread-crumb encrusted chicken and roasted vegetables, and puts them together for a flavourful, filling dish. It also doesn't take much time to prepare, if you've got the ingredients on-hand, so it can be a great idea of what to do with that chicken sitting around in the freezer for the last few weeks. Potatoes Carrots Garlic cloves Boneless skinless chicken breast Butter Heavy whipping cream (can sub milk) Dijon mustard (I always use honey Dijon) Panko breadcrumbs 1 tbsp water 2 tsp oil 1 tsp salt Peel and cut the potatoes. Peel, cut the tops off the carrots, and cut them into sticks. Lightly crush the garlic. Boil the potatoes, garlic, enough water to fully submerge, and 1 tsp salt. Cook until fork tender. Drain, leaving the garlic in, add butter and cream or milk, and mash. Whip instead for fluffier potatoes. Keep warm. Place Dijon in one plate or shallow dish, and panko in another. Mix 1 tbsp water with Dijon (don't skip this, believe me xD). Coat chicken with Dijon, dredge in breadcrumbs until coated. Heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken and sear on either side until just slightly browning. Place carrots on one side of foiled baking sheet. Toss with 2 tsp oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper. You can add basil, or oregano, if desired. Place chicken on other side of sheet. Roast for 10-12 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked. Potatoes can be garnished with herbs and spices, or green onion. You can use other vegetables besides carrots, too. I like to roast peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Zucchini is another roasting classic. The best roasting tomatoes are the ones with a lot of flesh and less juice, so plum tomatoes/Romas, for instance, would work great. If you don't have garlic cloves available, you can just use garlic salt or powder after cooking. Taste test it so you don't add too much. You can also use a variety of oils for roasting; canola is good for not having much of a taste, but I've used coconut and sesame oils, too. Sesame gives it a nice nutty flavour. If you've never roasted before, the sweet spot seems to be around 400. Certain oils' smoke points (the temperature at which they begin to smoke and burn) can be fairly low, so be conscious of what smoke point you're dealing with based on what oil you're using. Canola's smoke point is about 400, whereas virgin coconut oil has a lower point of around 375, but I've be able to roast with it at a higher temp than that (albeit only just higher). I'd also flip the vegetables over halfway through to prevent sticking and charring. Roasting vegetables covering other vegetables can also cause them not to roast properly. If you need more pan space, foil another baking sheet and move some of the vegetables over there. Be sure not to use too much oil if you're using coconut oil for roasting, because you'll get it solidifying into unappetising clumps as it cools off. A temperature gauge can be useful in making sure your chicken is thoroughly cooked (needs to reach 165F internal temp).

This stuff's too good not to eat all of it, and the ingredients together can make enough for everyone in the house! Toss together almost any veggie. It's a salad, make it fun! Ingredients: Salad: Greens Carrots Mandarin Oranges, canned (for the juice) Sliced Almonds (you can get these pretty cheap in the baking aisle) Green Onion Chicken, either pre-prepared or baked/fried at home Could probably substitute just about any other meat, it just needs a protein source and you'll want it boneless/skinless Sesame seeds (these are usually with the salt and seasonings) Salt/pepper to taste Dressing: 1 tbsp Mandarin orange juice (ngl I actually just dump like half of the juice I have in there XD) 1 oz toasted sesame oil 2 oz rice vinegar (two oz is a quarter cup in the US) 1 tbsp sugar Preparation: Slice up the carrots however you like and combine with the salad greens. Drain the oranges and reserve the juice. Trim off the ends of the green onion, and slice them on an angle. Prepare the chicken if necessary. Combine the orange juice, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and sugar. It doesn't mix perfectly easily, but fairly. If you need to sub the sugar for something, that's fine, and I think the sugar can be halved or taken out without much issue. If you want a bit of extra flavour, sub for honey. Saute the sliced almonds. Very low heat, and be very careful, as they burn easily. Add the dressing to the salad mix. Toss to coat evenly. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Slice chicken into 1/2" pieces. Add chicken to salad greens, top with toasted almond, green onion, mandarin oranges, and sesame seeds. Aside from the dressing, this doesn't have much in the way of specific measurements. This is purposeful. Eyeball it. The dressing measurements above actually make quite a bit of dressing, but it can be doubled, or halved, as you see fit. Add in other vegetables, tomatoes, or sub one for another. I've made it with red onion, too, also fairly good but they had to be roasted a bit first to take out the bite. xD

Apologies for the image rather than a written-out recipe, but this is a fantastic recipe for courgette and herb fritters that can be adapted for almost any shreddable vegetable. Dips can vary too. This book is now out of print so I'm not too worried about breaking copyright here. Hope you enjoy it!

Yes, I'm one -those- people who make tons of food on a Sunday and pack it up into individual servings to feed me the rest of the week. Its how I feed my lazy yet stay on track for my health goals so figured I'd share this simple chili that is nutritionally dense and works for both meal prep and if you need to whip of a batch of something for those holiday potlucks that doesn't completely derail goals. Ingredients: 1 lb ground beef (Recommend the 85% meat so that you have enough fat left in the pan to saute the onions) 1 Can beans (Tri-Bean blend is what I use but honestly pick whatever beans suit your fancy. If you need to make a larger, potluck sized batch recommend 2 cans of beans) 1 Can diced tomatoes (If you're feeling ambitious you can dice your own tomatoes but as I said... I do this to feed my lazy) 1 Can tomato paste (Depending on how tomato-y you like your chili you can go for either a small can or large can. I like the tomato so I go for large.) 1 Can mushrooms (Optional, if you do not have an inner hobbit I'd recommend the smaller 6 oz cans or you can forgo the mushrooms entirely) 1 Can dice jalapenos (Optional, if you don't like the spicy you don't have to) 1 Onion Chopped (If you're not an onion fan I'd keep it to half an onion) Salt Pepper Smoked Paprika Onion powder Chili Powder (optional, again depends on how much heat you are comfortable with) Tools: Frying pan Large pot Large spoon Metal Spatula - I'm sure I'm calling this the wrong thing but y'know, the metal thingy you use to flip things over in a frying pan. Some sort of slotted metal cooking utensil Apron - Don't be like me and grease stain half your fucking t-shirts 1) Season your ground beef with the salt, pepper, onion powder, smoked paprika, and chili powder at least 30 minutes before you intend to cool the meat. Also, leave the meat out during those 30 minutes so that it gets to room temperature allowing for a quick cook time. 2) Chop the one onion into whatever sized onion bits you prefer. 3) Once beef is seasoned and room temperature break up the meat into small bite-sized pieces and cook in frying pan on high temperature until brown. Recommend grease trap if you have it and don the apron if you have one. 4) While the meat is browning combine in large pot on stove: Beans, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, mushrooms, jalepenos. Recommend you drain the beans and mushrooms so that the chili isn't too soupy unless that is your thing. Put on low heat. 5) Once meat is browned, transfer meat to pot with slotted metal cooking utensil but leave the grease in the frying pan. 6) Put chopped onions into frying pan and let cook until caramelized. Onions should have almost translucent quality. Then add to pot with rest of chili ingredients. 7) Mix chili with spoon and cook for 10ish minutes adding salt to taste. Feeds: 2-6 pax or 2 folks for a couple of meals. Can pair with rice, baked potaoes, or riced cauliflower. Additional tips for potluck use: 1) Cook the chili the morning of your potluck and then throw it into a crock pot to keep warm. Do not recommend making the chili in the crock pot because the meat gets too dry after so much cooking... tried it once and ended up tossing half the batch because the meat was just blah. 2) Be mindful that folks in your potlucking crowd may not do chili as spicy as you like it so you may have to tone down the spice some (less chilli powder and no jalepenos). I learned this the hard way... that poor lady.

Taking a break from writing and feeling hungry? Craving that breaded chickeny goodness yet don't want to feel as if you're eating overcooked sheep testicles? Well, fear no more... http://www.melaniecooks.com/how-to-keep-microwaved-chicken-nuggets-from-getting-soggy/4510/

I learned this from a bartender at an Irish pub my family used to frequent. None of the places I tend bar now use it, but I like to bring it out at house parties to show off (and because it tastes like mint chocolate chip ice cream): 3/4 ounce Kahlua coffee liqueur 1/2 oz creme de menthe (or peppermint schnapps + 3 drops of green food coloring) 1/2 oz creme de cacao 8 oz milk (skim, 1%, or 2%) If you're good at freepouring, I think it tastes better with the milk poured first and the alcoholic elements added on top, but that's a recipe for disaster. Ideal glass is a highball glass, but any tumbler works. The twist on top is entirely up to you: when I want to be fancy, I usually top it off with whipped cream, mini chocolate chips, some hot fudge drizzle, and a Thin Mint cookie to pull it all together. Then again, I'm a showoff 🙂

I have been making this obsessively all week. It's so damned good. Also, stolen from Chloe Coscarelli. SAUCE 1/4 cup mango or apricot preserves 2 tbsp tamari or aminos 2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar (regular works fine, too--I ran out of seasoned rice vinegar once and subbed it and it was still delicious.) 3 tbsp light brown sugar (though I have totally used dark and it tasted delicious!) 1 tsp salt 1 tbsp tomato paste 1/4 tsp turmeric THE REST 8 - 10 oz rice noodles 2 tbsp olive oil 1 clove minced garlic (or if you have a jar of minced garlic, use 1/2 tbsp) 1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips (though I like mine diced, so I did it that way.) 1/2 cup carrot, cup like chips (about one large carrot. I used two large carrots, but I like a lot of veggies.) 1/2 cup snow peas (I used sugar snap peas, and again I put way more than that.) 2 scallions/green onions OPTIONAL Lime wedges Crushed peanuts (I toss mine in without crushing them.) In a large skillet or wok, heat your oil, then throw in your garlic, bell pepper, scallions, carrots, and snow peas. Lightly salt them, then cook them over medium for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. You want them to still have that crunch. Get a large pot of salted water boiling, and cook your rice noodles according to the packaging. Drain and rinse and throw it back in the pot. Once your veggies finish, add them to the pot. For the sauce, just toss all the ingredients together into a small bowl, whisk to thoroughly mix. Then throw that on the noodles and veggies and mix it all up! My sauce is usually thick enough I don't do anything additional from there. But if your sauce is thin, you can cook it all in the pot until it reaches your desired consistency. Voila! Easy pad thai! Toss your peanuts in, squirt on some lime, and enjoy.

TL;DR It's beef stew with seasoning from a beef tagine recipe In a slow cooker, combine: As many diced potatoes as you can reasonably fit As much beef as you want, because meat is delicious Diced onion because knives are hard and I don't know any other cuts Mushrooms (canned, because I'm lazy) Random frozen vegetables that I'm trying to get rid of Enough garlic to get a citation from the police One packet/cub of beef bouillon Culturally Appropriated Seasoning Mix Red wine instead of water, because we all need a moment to remember Jesus How to make the Culturally Appropriated Seasoning Mix: Equal parts (aka 1 teaspoon each) of... cinnamon ground ginger cloves nutmeg cumin paprika literally anything that shows up a lot in north african or south asian cuisine just do it you can add more potatoes if you put too much in And then cook on high for 4 hours or some shit, I don't know, we Proper Italian Families don't actually measure anything. And then eat you HERMITS JUST EAT STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER FOR TEN MINUTES AND ENJOY A HOT MEAL WHILE STARING AT AN OBJECT THAT'S MORE THAN TEN FEET AWAY FROM YOU DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT RESTING YOUR EYES FEELS LIKE? Anyway that's how we do recipes in my family.

Anyone looking for a non-dairy version of this recipe... Look no further. The heavy/whipping cream can be substituted with lactose free milk and margarine. Take 3/4 cup of the lactose free milk and 1/4 cup of melted margarine. Combine them to make 1 cup of "heavy cream". Though as a heads up, this mixture will not whip so it can't be used to make a proper whipped cream out of. Also it will split/separate rapidly so mix thoroughly and then put in the recipe and mix in quickly for best results. The recipe calls for 1.5 cups of heavy cream so... 1 and 1/8 cup of milk and 3/8ths a cup of melted margarine. You can also get lactose free cream cheese. Though it is a bit more expensive than cream cheese. You may also find it tastes a bit more tart than actual cream cheese (but given how much sugar and other sweetness is in the recipe, not enough to notice or care really). But you may have to buy an extra package of the lactose free cream cheese to use as those packages tend to be smaller. (Regular cream cheese packages here are 8 ounces per block, but the lactose free is like 6 ounces per container. )

3-Ingredient Apricot Glazed Chicken I'm not sure where I got this one at this point, but it's tasty and cheap and has become a regular in my meal rotations. It sounds like a weird combination, but it's delicious! As a bonus, it goes with almost any side. I like to use peas and corn, or roasted potatoes. Ingredients 3-4 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken parts (breasts, thighs, drumsticks, or a combination) 8 ounces Catalina salad dressing ½ jar (about 5-6 ounces) apricot jam 1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix Instructions Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. For easy clean-up, line a roasting pan or a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Place chicken, skin-side up, on prepared pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 glaze ingredients. Pour sauce over chicken and spread liberally on each piece. Bake, uncovered, for about 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked through.

I'm definitely going to make this. <3

I've uploaded a recipe I've done a few times, it's absolutely delish and there are super foods in there! I am such a fan of salmon. ^^ [Recipe] Broccoli and salmon tagliatelle.pdf

It's cookies....but not cooked all the way through, so they're still gooey on the inside. (And stolen directly from Nigella Lawson.) Serves 6 150g plain flour 1/2tsp salt 1/2tsp bicarb 110g unsalted butter 85g brown sugar 1tsp vanilla paste/extract 1 large egg 170g dark chocolate chips 6x ramekins (or a pie dish roughly 20cm in diameter. Apparently it needs 5 more minutes of baking). Preheat oven to 180c/gas mark 4. Measure the flour, salt and bicarb into a bowl and mix it together. Beat the butter and sugar together until you have a light creamy texture. Add vanilla paste/extract and the egg. Beat it again. Fold in the flour mixture and then fold in the chocolate. Divide up the dough and toss it into the ramekins. Spread it evenly and smooth off the top. Stick them in the oven for 13-15 minutes, until the tops have set and the edges are golden brown. Cool for 5-10 minutes. For those making ahead: You can make the dough up to 6 hours ahead, covered in clingfilm and stored in the fridge. Allow to come up to room temperature before baking. For freezing, wrap each ramekin in double cling film. and put in resealable bags. You can keep them frozen for up to 3 months. Bake them directly from frozen, adding an extra couple of minutes to the baking time.

@Bishop Can you post the link again please?

Fry that bacon. Fry it so hard in a big pan. Set you out two cups of milk to room temp. Drain that freaking pan until there is about 3tbs of grease left in there, leave those leftover bacon chunks too. (the rest of the bacon is on a plate waiting for the table) Cool it down a little, meaning don't start a grease fire. I like to turn mine to about med-high/med until I get the flower in because I've got scars on my arms to tell a tale. Take you a big spoon full of flower and throw it right on the grease. With a wooden spoon even out the flower so there are not lumps and it is bubbling up. Keep stirring! The trick is to not let it sit long! But do this slow! It helps too if you sing the Seawitch's part in The Little Mermaid to pass the time. This is also the time you salt and pepper it. Yes. I know, clogging the heart as we speak, but trust me. Add the salt and pepper BEFORE the milk and you won't have lumps. Once you get that flower all darkish and a creamy bubble toss that milk in...slowly. Don't touch the heat of the fire yet! Keep stirring! Stir. Stir. Stir, but slow--and with a wooden spoon. It will start to bubble too. When this happens, turn it down to low....like super low stir for a bit, taste it to make sure there is enough pepper and just let it hang out. (this is when I pull the biscuits from the oven and set the table) Once you are ready to eat, move the bacon gravy to a bowl and get that yummy junk to the table.

6-8 Roma tomatoes or 10-12 cherry tomatoes (Important that you only use those) 4 gloves of garlic Sea salt to taste (we normally use at least 1tsp and I do recommend sea salt over table salt) 1 Jalapeno (Or 2 if you are my family) A handful of cilantro. (meaning yes, just take your hand and break off a palm full) 1/2 white onion (the white onion is important, because the sweet/yellow/red make it taste tart) 1/2 fresh lime squeezed (the big limes, if they are the small do a whole one) Pepper to taste I'm Italian by marriage and I will do six cloves of garlic but sometimes that is too much for people, but taste as you go! Put all of this into a chopper and you will have the best garden fresh salsa! I like to chop the garlic and peppers up first, make it super fine, then do the tomatoes at a bigger setting, adding in the cilantro last. It doesn't have to be a liquid, the chunkier the better imo!

One thing that I have loved with having friends from Mexico, immigrants here raising their family, is that I get beyond the normal Mexican food. Sure we all have our favorite go-to places, but man have you ever had an authentic street taco? I'm in a small town so we have Taco Bell and few places that just put lots of cheese and serve endless chips and salsa, but this takes it to a whole new level. One of my favs is this one: http://carlsbadcravings.com/chili-lime-chicken-tacos-with-gri And it truly is amazing! It is easy to do, though it does take a good deal of time to prep. If you try it please let me know!

This is something that is pretty well known where I live, but once you get beyond Montreal, Quebec or into the USA no one knows what it is... So to maybe change that, here's the recipe for the Halifax Donair. I have not tried making this myself (I have no need to since I can buy donair meat from numerous places here) so I can't say this is an exact recreation of the recipe. Though from what I've read is in it... it looks pretty close. THE DONAIR MEAT INGREDIENTS 3 lbs lean ground beef 3/4 cup Italian style bread crumbs 1 tbsp ground black pepper 1 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 2 tsp dried oregano 3 tsp paprika 2 tsp onion powder 1 tsp garlic powder 1/2 tsp salt DONAIR SAUCE INGREDIENTS 10 oz (300 ml) sweetened condensed milk 1/4 cup vinegar 1/2 tsp garlic powder INGREDIENTS TO ASSEMBLE DONAIRS Pita bread (for the wrap) diced tomatoes Mozzarella Cheese diced onion Donair sauce INSTRUCTIONS HOW TO MAKE THE DONAIR MEAT Pre-heat the oven to 300°F Using a stand mixer (if you don't have a stand mixer see my note below) combine all ingredients and mix well for 10 minutes on medium speed with the paddle attachment. Once everything is very well combined, form the meat into a tightly packed oval loaf. Place the loaf on a broiler pan and cook in the oven for 2 1/2 hours. Once the meat has cooked allow to cool in the fridge overnight. The next morning after the donair meat has chilled cut the loaf into thin slices. I usually portion out the meat for individual donairs and put them in the freezer for when I want to make some. MAKE THE SAUCE Stir together all ingredients until thick. You might find that stirring it with a fork works best or you can use a stand mixer or electric mixer. You can use this right away but it tastes the best if it sits overnight in the fridge. TO MAKE A DONAIR WRAP Take a portion of donair meat and heat the slices up in a frying pan with a tiny bit of oil on low heat. You just want to heat the slices up and not brown them too much. While the meat is heating up in the frying pan take a pita and quickly wet both side under running water. Now take the pita and put it on top of the meat while it's cooking. Once the pita has been over the meat for about 1 minute flip it over and let the pita steam for another 1 minute on the other side. Take the pita and place it on top of a square of aluminum foil. Top the pita with donair meat and remaining toppings as desired. Top with donair sauce. Fold up the bottom of the pita and then roll it up. Wrap the aluminum foil around the donair and place into the oven for about 10 minutes to warm. (I usually set the oven to 350°F to warm them – this is great when you have cheese in them!) Repeat these steps for how ever many donairs you're making. Peel the aluminum foil away as you eat the donair. Make sure you have lots of napkins in hand – donairs are famously messy and delicious! NOTES If you don't have a stand mixer to combine the meat that's ok. Use a food processor to make the beef very finely ground and then you can mix in the remaining ingredients on pulse for a few minutes. Then mix by hand so that it's very thoroughly combined. If you're eating the donair right away then you can skip wrapping it in the aluminum foil and just plate it. Donair recipe Donair sauce recipe