2013 - Week 11

Hello again everyone. Here is what I was up to this week:

It was a pretty busy week at work, so I didn't get as much done as I should have. Some of my time for task and exercise had to get carried over into the next week, but I'll make up for it, so no worries. I kept up with my daily tasks, and still did make quite a few fun new things. 

First of all, these coconut macaroons. Nothing too special, and I've eaten them before, but I had never made them. Here's the recipe (complements of my friend Dennis):

2 egg whites

1 1/3 Cup toasted coconut (toasted in 325 F oven for about 6 minutes, stirred halfway through, then cooled)

2/3 Cup sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

dash of salt

Beat the eggs whites and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the sugar and salt. Fold in the coconut flakes. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake for 20 minutes at 325 F, cool on a rack. Store in a sealed container. 

I doubled the recipe, they were really tasty. They kind of had an odd popcorn taste, but I think that was because of the cooking spray I used and I used the pan twice. I think next time, I will grease the pan with something else. You should try them . . . they kind of remind me of that astronaut ice cream that I used to eat when I was little, but coconut flavored, yum.

We invited a friend over for dinner, so of course the first thing I did was make a dessert :) I tried these marble blondies. They weren't my favorite, probably because I don't love white chocolate, but they were okay. My husband liked them, so I'll keep the recipe, but won't make them again unless he asks for them. Here is the recipe (from Penzeys.com):

Marble blondies

Then of course, I had to make something for dinner, I planned a soup, but figured I needed something else besides that, so biscuits came next (have I ever mentioned how much I love bread?). These are a copy cat recipe for Red Lobster's "Cheddar Bay Biscuits". The only change I made was to use skim milk because I didn't have any whole milk. I must say, they were really tasty, and went perfectly with the soup.

"Cheddar Bay" biscuits

Now, to complete the dinner (it wasn't finished until quite a while after our guest got here . . . oops) I made Roasted Garlic and Sweet Potato Soup. It was awesome. I have quite a soft spot for garlic, and roasted garlic is so yummy. Combine that with thyme, chicken broth, roasted onions and roasted sweet potatoes = one really tasty soup (I didn't have parsley, but it was still good without it). I will definitely be making this again. I would suggest pairing the soup with the biscuits too . . . the sweetness of the soup went great with the savory of the biscuits.

Roasted Garlic Sweet Potato Soup

So the week was busy and rather stressful, but it ended with a very tasty Saturday evening. Enjoy :)