big ol' crockpot of mac 'n' cheese

last week, kyle informed me of an exciting event, a team-potluck at his work.  although im not attending, cooking, whether you eat it or not, is exciting! we began to brainstorm and our minds immediately went to crockpot mode, a perfect and affordable kitchen appliance that not only feeds a number of people, but also maintains heat for several hours.  just what we needed! since someone took one of his favorite dishes, buffalo chicken dip, he has decided to bring a gigantic crockpot full of mac 'n' cheesy goodness.  honestly, who doesn't like mac 'n' cheese? besides my friend Smizzy. he hates cheese. i know, so wrong.  the twist for kyle's mac? bacon (ya hillary... all for you!), red bell peppers, mushroom, rotel tomatoes, salsa verde... AND 5 DIFFERENT CHEESES! parmesan, pepperjack, sharp cheddar, cottage cheese, and finally, muenster. 

overall, this dish sounds amazing, right? so many great ingredients in one dish with lots of cheese. perfect! however, because this was a practice run, we were "trial-and-erroring" a bit.  the final outcome for this meal was a bit controversial.  on a scale of 1-10, i would have rated it a 4 or 5... ya, not that great. kyle, on the other hand, thinks "it wasn't awful. dude, it was good!"

overall, it would have been fabulous if it weren't for a couple mishaps.  one, i ruined it with too much mustard. that's right, mustard. i saw a couple of "recipe blueprints" that called for mustard. i thought, what the hay, lets try it! although i always say "use a heavy hand," with things you are unsure of, like mustard in mac 'n' cheese, and when cooking for a large number of people, i'd say... let's lighten the hand a bit. in addition, the mac was a little too mexican and not enough southern. don't get me wrong, mexican mac is amazing, but that's not the final outcome we wanted for this pot-luck.  it lacked the true southern good 'n' cheesy bacon taste.  thank god for practice runs. therefore, below is a "new and improved" recipe for the final crockpot mac 'n' cheese. thanks to practice runs, friday's potluck will be great :) go kyle.

ingredients/directions:
- 1 box macaroni or pasta of your choice (boil/cook prior to crockpot)
- 1 package of bacon (cooked/chopped prior to crockpot)
- 1 bell pepper (chopped)
- 1/2 package of fresh mushrooms or 1 can (chopped)
- CHEESE!! lots of cheese... whatever kind of you want (cut into cubes for easier melting)
- 1-2 cups of milk
- 1 can tomatos 
- 1-2 eggs- beaten
- LOTS of the following: salt, pepper, garlic powder
- sprinkle bread crumbs and parmesan on top right before serving

place into pot for about 2-3 hours on low/medium to melt. stir every 30 min or so. VOILA you have mac 'n' cheese in a crockpot... and youll have about 10 servings worth. REMEMBER: you can always cut the recipe in half if you don't want as much. but why not? that's why humans created freezers. and remember... this is a BLUEPRINT! take things out, add what you want, and make it your own :) happy cooking.

an empty fridge? lets fill it!!

right now, my blog is an empty fridge... lots of white space, no ingredients for content or entertainment, and a blurry idea of what will soon occupy this empty square. the good news? we're going grocery shopping... and our cart is about to get crazy.

this is my goal for this food blog. i want to inspire readers and friends to produce great meals from everyday ingredients. my blog will take you through my personal philosophies of cooking... major belief; no boringness. we want flavor, spice, pizazz, and attitude. no holding the salt and pepper for your eaters to adjust. in the words of morton salt... when it rains, it pours. 

i have some general cooking philosophies i live by:
- NO MEASURING CUPS! this isn't baking. if it were, i would fail. baking is precise, predetermined, and demands a patient person... not to mention a timer. bottom line... i suck at baking. my old roommate katie r. can testify to this. i'm good at cooking. use measuring cups at first if you have to. you'll start learning to "eyeball" it. this saves dishes, time, and effort. except with rice... measuring cups are necessary with rice... BUTTT in order for me to share my non-recipe creations (literally, i always just throw stuff together. ask kyle), i'll make sure to list ingredients with a hopefully accurate estimate :)
 
- A RECIPE IS NOT A FINAL DISH. IT'S A BLUEPRINT: i never follow a recipe. i hate them. it limits you. a recipe is a starter. what you do with that blueprint and how you alter it is your creation. so be creative and add some extra personal flazor! you'll have fun with it and it will make you feel empowered that you thought of something cooler than betty crocker.

- BE FLEXIBLE WITH INGREDIENTS: so you don't have collard greens? use spinach, kale, or another green veggie. out of tomato sauce? mix a little tomato paste with water. dont want to use the fattening whipping cream for alfredo sauce? use sour cream and a little margarine. the key here is to use what you have and adjust to your preference. after all, this is your dish.

- START EXPERIMENTING WITH PRODUCTS: i was always scared of indian food. i had no clue what kind of spices to use nor what it was supposed to taste like. then my new roommate, deby, introduced me to curry powder and yogurt. bam. you have indian dishes. try adding unique products you would never think to use. for instance, i use a jar of baby food in a lot of my dishes. adds natural foods in a puree form. genius and cheap.

- TREAT EVERY DISH AS A "TRIAL" RUN: most of the time, I throw a million ingredients and spices together and hope it tastes good. usually... it tastes pretty good :) sometimes, it sucks... like homemade egg drop soup i tried to make one time. fail. if you treat each dish as a "practice," you can learn to perfect it more each time. maybe it needed more of something and less of another. or you want to put a fruity or spicy spin on it. no one is perfect and no dish is ever perfected. well... maybe.  the point is, treating dishes as a "trial" run allows for way more variations and a lot more experimentation.  

basically, i'm excited to share dishes and adventures in the kitchen. successes, inspirations, failures, and even exciting neighborhood eats i find fantasticly tasty. let's get some conversation flowing: comment, discuss, recommend! for people in my new place of living... can't wait for pot lucks and our weekly dinner :)  now lets get this egg crackin'.