Are you trying to seduce your mailman?? Or are you just being friendly?

i got big into my slow cooker/crock pot recipes this year. here's one that is nice and hearty, but still has summery flavors:

layered pesto potatoes w/ sun-dried tomatoes

• 3tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3cup oil-packed or reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
• 1-1/2lbs yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4" thick slices
• salt and (of course) freshly cracked black pepper
• 1/2cup bread crumbs (i like whole wheat panko ones)
• 1/2cup homemade pesto (recipe to follow)

1. heat 2 tbsp oil in large skillet over medium heat. add onion, cover, cook until softened (approx. 5 mins). stir in garlic and tomatoes and cook 1 more minute. set aside.
2. lightly oil a 3-1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker. arrange half the potatoes in the bottom of cooker. top with half the onion mixture. season with salt and pepper and dot with half the pesto. top with a layer of remaining potatoes, remaining onion mixture, and remaining pesto. season again with some salt and pepper. cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until potatoes are tender.
3. in small skillet, toast bread crumbs in remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat until light golden brown. set aside.
4. when ready to serve, top evenly with bread crumbs.

pesto
(you can always go store bought, but i don't)

• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 2 cups firmly packed fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

combine garlic and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until you get a coarse chop. add basil, salt and pepper to taste, and process until ground into paste. while still pulsing, drizzle olive oil through top of processor until all is well blended.

a side of simple sauteed spinach or swiss chard is awesome with this, but i'll usually just do a simple spinach and red leaf salad with garden veggies and italian or balsamic.

haha, i am completely disinterested in our gay mail man.

Mac & cheese with soymilk is good stuff. I wonder what would happen if you tried to make this buttermilk pie with soymilk.

1. i don't think the soy milk would curdle in the same way as buttermilk might, because of the way buttermilk is extracted from the original dairy product.
2. there is such a thing as soy cream, which is thicker than soymilk, and can prove a better substitute than soy milk in some things (i do mac and cheese with the cream style), because soy milk can lend a watery nature to the entree. this might be obvious, but for cooking savory meals, always make sure the soymilk is unsweetened.

haha, i am completely disinterested in our gay mail man.

KK, just curious.

Mmmmm... Pesto.

I have to admit Katie, you definitely know your shit.

Yeah, pesto is amazing and so easy to make. Hummus too.

Pesto rawks.

When I cook, I usually use 6 drops of Essence of Terror, and 5 drops of Sinister Sauce...

Is that what you call your semen? Sinister sauce??

No, Essence of Terror.

i have to know my shit because i can't expect anyone else to cook my weird food for me!

the following is an easy, awesome summertime lunch entree or snack...i bring a tupperware container full of these to the beach in my cooler and have all the omnivore boys drooling over my vegan delights.

asian mango summer rolls

• 1 mango, peeled, sliced into matchstick-like pieces
• 1 cup bean sprouts and/or seedless cuke, also sliced into matchsticks
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves (no stems, people)
• 4oz. super thin rice noodles
• 1/4 cup peanuts, finely chopped (i like to use roasted, unsalted ones)
• 20 or so rice paper wrappers (they can be tricky at first because they tear quite easily, but i got the hang of it by my third try at a roll the first time i ever made these)
• thai dipping sauce (recipe follows)

1. boil a medium sized pot of water. turn off heat, add noodles. let them soak in the water for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. drain and run them under cold water when the time is up, until they feel cold to the touch. set aside.
2. have ready a large wide bowl (a pie pan works great) filled with hot water (can be tap, not boiling). i place one wrapper in the water at a time because they're so fragile, and they become flexible after about 30-45 seconds. very carefully remove from water and lay flat on cleared off surface/cutting board/whatever.
3. in lower 2/3 area of the wrapper you want to put about 1 tbsp of the noodles. sprinkle about a 1/2 tsp chopped peanuts over them. then on top of that i put about 5 mango matchsticks, then on top of the mango a few bean sprouts and/or a few cuke matchsticks, and finally a couple of cilantro leaves (i love cilantro, so i usually go pretty heavy with the leaves).
4. fold the left and right sides of the wrapper over the filling, then take bottom of wrapper and begin rolling. i try to make them as tight as is possible without smushing everything. it makes them a lot less messy to munch on. if they're too loose, the stuffing goes everywhere after your first bite.
5. keep chilled and covered until ready to serve.

thai dipping sauce

• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tsp asian chile oil (for thin sauce variation)
• 3-5 tbsp thai chile sauce (for a spicier, thicker sauce) ***
• 3 tbsp roasted peanuts, chopped
• 1-1/2 tsp sugar (normally i use turbinado because it's unrefined, and i'm no lady)

mix all this shit up, chill, and dip those delicious love sticks in it before devouring them. mmmm.
***this is the way i do it, but the chile oil version was recommended by a vietnamese friend. there's a serious awesomeness to the sweet and savory combo of the sweet mango and the spicy thai chile sauce.***

p.s. i also have done these without the mango, and called them imitation california rolls. the rice noodles sub for sushi rice...avocado, carrots, sprouts, cukes, same thai dipping sauce...and the rice paper wrapper may not have the health benefits of nori seaweed sushi wraps, but mine are a fuckload easier to roll than actual avocado rolls. at least in my opinion.

The one meal I can cook well is creamed spinach, mashed potatoes, and steak.  I can also buy a mean breakfast taco!

Either you're as horny as me or you're just getting to know me rather well. 

no, i can just tell you are an insecure wanna be tramp who needs attention from men to validate yourself.

it's okay, you'll grow out of it some day.

Either you're as horny as me or you're just getting to know me rather well. 

no, i can just tell you are an insecure wanna be tramp who needs attention from men to validate yourself.

it's okay, you'll grow out of it some day.

You're totally wrong!!! I need attention from women, too.

When I cook, I usually use 6 drops of Essence of Terror, and 5 drops of Sinister Sauce...

Is that what you call your semen? Sinister sauce??

No, Essence of Terror.

That was my second guess...

Either you're as horny as me or you're just getting to know me rather well. 

no, i can just tell you are an insecure wanna be tramp who needs attention from men to validate yourself.

it's okay, you'll grow out of it some day.

You're totally wrong!!! I need attention from women, too.

You're totally my favorite person ever.

 

no, i can just tell you are an insecure wanna be tramp who needs attention from men to validate yourself.

join the club...

Sloppy Wet Asian Lesbian Kissing

Lucas, I think we should make hip's asian mango summer rolls at our BBQ.

okay, but when you say "we", that's just going to be you. 

I slept on it, and I decided that not cooking is more relaxing than cooking. 

I figured it would be me, cause the only thing you know how to make is buttermilk pie.

I can also make PBJ sandwiches, turkey & cheese sandwiches, spaghetti, and hamburger helper!

Which you might THINK explains how I got to be 270 pounds, but that really was a lot of beer and a change in living conditions (more sedentary).

Lucas, I think we should make hip's asian mango summer rolls at our BBQ.

you will have to call them just "asian mango summer rolls", however. and i want pictures and reviews. when is your bbq?

Saturday, the 30th. Smoked ribs and rotisserie chicken. Yummy!

how about marinated then grilled veggie skewers and a nice slab of bbq-spice rubbed tofu (extra firm, and pressed), grilled to perfection...

?

You could get away with veggie skewers as a side item, but if I tried to BBQ tofu I'd have to lynch my own self.

as i typed "grilled to perfection", even i smirked about it.

Tofu is awful.