Saturday Cooking

I was really in the mood to bake and cook today. After not being able to cook or bake in my own kitchen for over a month, I really wanted to get back in the swing of things.

Fall is in the air and what better way to celebrate fall than with a spice cake. Betty Crocker's recipe had way too many ingredients that I didn't have on hand so I went to my trusty website for finding any and all recipes: http://www.allrecipes.com/

I found a lovely sour milk spice cake recipe. I wanted to jazz it up a little by adding some raisins and apple and I am glad I did! The apples made the cake incredibly moist and I don't think it needs frosting. If you absolutely have to use frosting, I would suggest just some whipped cream.

Here is the linky to the recipe. If you feel inclined to add raisins, add about 3/4 cup of raisins. If you want to add apples, peel the apple (I used a Honeycrisp apple) and cut it up to about the same size as the raisin. Use about 1/2 cup.

And the obligatory picture:

For dinner, I had thawed some pork chops and didn't want to make any old mashed potatoes. Boooooring. Instead, I decided I would make Jason's favorite side dish: Macaroni and cheese. Not just any macaroni and cheese but his mom's recipe. It's pretty good. She adds a little heat with cayenne pepper and white pepper.

Here is the picture of what it looks like before baking:

And here's the after picture:

Yum right?

And the recipe:

Macaroni and Cheese

4 cups cooked elbow macaroni

4 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup flour

2 cups milk

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1.5 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and then whisk in the flour. Let the flour cook to a golden brown.

2. Slowly add the milk while whisking constantly. Let the milk heat to almost boiling. It will get very thick. Just before boiling, remove from the heat and stir in the cheese. Depending on how cheesy you want the sauce, add more to your liking.

3. Mix in the elbows and then pour into a greased casserole dish.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I served the mac and cheese with our baked porkchops and green beans. Yes, we like canned beans in this house. After having frozen green beans for several years while living with my mom, I grew tired of them. Canned all the way.

To cook the porkchops, make a breading out of plain bread crumbs and whatever spices you like (I used smoked paprika, granulated garlic, salt and pepper). Dredge the pork in the breadcrumb mix and place on a pan. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20-25 minutes or until done.

Voila! My day of cooking. I think I am going to take it easy tomorrow.