Project #10 Vanilla Pound Cake

I will start this post by saying I am NOT happy! Although this recipe was easy to make and I had every ingredient in my cupboards already, that is where the good news STOPS! I was trying to be nice to my husband because pound cake with strawberries and whipped cream is his favorite dessert. We had strawberries already (and blueberries as a matter of fact) and I was thinking it would be a wonderful treat and delicious dessert after a Martha dinner. NOPE! The pound cake was: hard, tasteless and dry! I really would like to blame this one on Martha...I feel I followed the recipe to the letter. If anyone out there thinks they can do better, try! Let me know! I would love to know if I did something tragically wrong and this could be delicious. Sorry Mark, no pound cake for you for dessert. :(

Project #9 Crispy Chocolate Marshmallow Treats

Also made specifically for a trip in the mail up to UVM, these were made for Stevie herself. I enjoy making bars to mail because they are less delicate than cookies. This recipe was also found in Everyday Food, man I love that magazine! These are as easy to make as regular rice crispy treats, but look soooo much fancier! And are sooo much more delicious! My only gripe (sorry Martha!) is that her bar recipes often are only for a 8 or 9 inch pan! What's up with that? Where's the love for the 9 X 14 in pan Martha? It makes more cookie bars, which only makes more people happier! I suppose I could take it upon myself to double the recipe....
Let me know how they are Stevie!

Project #8 Oatmeal Raisin Bars

I made these delicious Oatmeal Raisin Bars for my sister, Stevie's roommate Sydney. She is one of those rare breeds who doesn't enjoy chocolate! Complete freak right? Just kidding Syd, you know I love ya! She once requested Oatmeal Raisin Cookies be sent to UVM, so when I saw this recipe in Everyday Food I immediately thought of her. Thank god for you Syd, because otherwise I may have passed these by! And what a tragedy that would have been to have never had these delicious cookie bars in my life. That's how delicious I thought they were. I only had one, and Mark had one also, because the rest were for Syd, but that was enough to tell that they were the best ever! I hope you like them Syd! Enjoy (they should be arriving today!)!

Project #7 Lighter Chicken Salad

I found this recipe for lighter chicken salad in Everyday Food and decided to give it a try for Mark. I don't particularly enjoy chicken salad myself, but Mark loves it, so why not be nice to my husband once and a while?
It was fairly uncomplicated and came together beautifully. I wasn't present for the consumption of this chicken salad, which explains the pics of the deconstructed sandwich (I didn't want the bread to get soggy!). Mark said it was delicious and took it for lunch 2 days in a row. He did comment on the overall lack of mayonnaise-ness, but it was suppose to be "lighter" chicken salad, so that explains that (sorry Mark, just add more mayo if you don't care about fatness or your cholesterol).

Project #6 Beef Stew

Believe it or not, I have actually never made beef stew before. Martha's beef stew recipe was completely easy, toss everything in the dutch oven, bring to a boil, toss in the oven. The beef was really tender, which I feel has been lacking in beef stews I have consumed in the past. I realized too late that I had nothing to serve with it, not even some biscuits, but whatever. Everyone was suffering from a cold, so it was a a miracle that we all assembled at the table together.

Verdict....delicious and I would definitely make it again.
(sorry the pics are orange-y I have no clue what's up with the camera sometimes)

Project #4 & #5 Devil's Food Cupcakes and Chocolate-Sour Cream Frosting

Man, I must really love you Kara!

Made for my co-worker Kara's birthday, these cupcakes were a pain in the ass. I don't mean to be negative, but I am kinda frustrated with the way the frosting turned out. Also, it was Martha's idea to pair these two recipes, but in my opinion, this was way too much chocolate for one experience. I think the cupcakes would have been better off with a butter cream frosting.

I guess I should start my saying that when it comes to frosting from scratch, I am NEVER successful. In theory, it seems like it should be fairly easy to make. There is usually little to no cooking involved, just a whole lotta mixing. Seems so straight forward. I just don't know what happens, but every SINGLE time, I am disappointed with the final product. I should probably stop trying and leave frosting to the pros.

All in all, the cupcakes turned out edible. I did bring tiny paper cups and milk with me to work though, so my co-workers didn't go into diabetic shock.

Project #3 Chicken Cutlets w/ Herb Butter

Picture this, it's Sunday nite, and i haven't been grocery shopping in more than 1 week. What is something that I always have in the freezer? Of course, b/s chicken breasts. Other than that, it's pretty slim pickings in the pantry. I had been doing Martha blog research that afternoon, so there are back issues of Everyday Food all over the place. Mark picks one up entitled "Chicken Tonight! All New Favorites". Sounds promising. We peruse through til we find a recipe that doesn't demand a trip to Shaw's for ingredients. Thank god for the guinea pigs...Emily had plenty of fresh parsley.

I made Chicken Cutlets w/ Herb Butter. Pretty tasty and very easy to throw together. Len man loved it, I think it had something to do with how tender the cutlets came out so it was super easy for him to scarf down. I would make this again, a nice change from baked chicken or BBQ chicken or baked chicken or BBQ chicken....you get the idea.

Project #2 Cookies & Cream Cheesecakes

My second project came from my beloved Martha Stewart's Cupcakes cookbook. These delicious mini cheesecakes even include a mini crust in the form of a Oreo cookie on the bottom of each cupcake liner. Although I had to make 2 trips to the grocery store because I misread the recipe (calls for 2 POUNDS of cream cheese, not 2 packages, which at first glance, is what I saw) I would make these again. My co-workers loved them. Also pretty easy to make, I just hate waiting for ingredients to come to room temp...

Project #1 Mint Chocolate Brownies

My first Martha project is Mint Chocolate Brownies. Delicious brownies made from scratch with a layer of mini York Peppermint Patties in the middle. I used mini heart shaped peppermint patties with pink filling to be festive and because they were adorable (and also that's what the grocery store had b/c Valentine's Day is the next holiday). The peppermint patty is a delicious treat sandwiched b/t these rich brownies! Mark, my husband, loved them.