Spork and Skewer

At our house, we love leeks. They have a mellow onion flavor and can be cooked down to be sweet and creamy. A few years back, for my mom's 50th birthday, I made a delicious leek tart. Recently, Miles made a French onion type soup with leeks; it was a hit. Last week, I had a another leek craving; this is what I came up with. We served this baked potato as our main dish with a salad on the side. This recipe could be easily modified as a twice baked potato. In that case, I would serve half a potato per person as a side dish. If you are scared of leeks, give this recipe a try. You won't be sorry!

 

There are a few things that I am willing to admit about homemade salad dressing. 1. It takes a little more time than opening a bottle, and 2. It does have more calories. BUT...it's worth it. Trust me on this one. Miles often insists on whipping up a batch of this vinaigrette at dinner time, and who am I to decline? Give it a try; you might never go back to the bottled stuff.

My first recipe! We decided to try out a new recipe for tomato basil soup last night. The recipe is adapted from my Cooking Light Complete Cookbook. I chose this recipe for two reason. 1. My mom gave me a huge can of tomato juice (and I don't like Bloody Marys) and 2. It was cold and blustery yesterday, and that kind of weather calls for a warm, comforting bowl of soup. This recipe was great in the winter with canned tomatoes, and would probably be good with garden fresh tomatoes in the summer. An all season recipe! What a great way to begin.

So here's the story. I've been wanting to start my very own cooking blog for a long time. I spend too many hours reading them online. I love to cook. In fact, cooking and eating are pretty much the focal point of the day for both my husband and me. We argue over who gets to cook. We collect cookbooks and read them like novels. I am addicted to Food Network. My celebrities are cooks and chefs. I would rather meet Rachel Ray or Anthony Bourdain than Madonna or Brad Pitt. Is that crazy? Maybe, but I'm sure I'm not the only one out there.