Spaghetti or Squash?

Week 3 Dinner! My turn again.  I had a hard time trying to come up with something to make.  This week I decided to experiment with spaghetti squash!  I have never made it before but I have heard good things.  I made spaghetti squash with grilled chicken, sun dried tomatoes, broccoli and peas.  It was fabulous! AND pretty healthy!

I might be substituting spaghetti squash for pasta more often.  My only complaint is it takes sooo long to cook (unless anyone knows any other secret way to make it that I don't).  The recipe I used took 45 minutes in the oven and then another 10ish minutes in a skillet! 1 hour??  Spaghetti takes like 15 minutes! Also, it was so hard to cut! What the heck!? I used a Cutco knife but maybe I should get one of those infomercial knives that cuts through steel or something instead.  Other than that though...fantastic!

Source: http://rufflesandtruffles.com/2010/09/spaghetti-squash-with-grilled-chicken-sundried-tomatoes-broccoli-and-peas/

As you can see below, Kristen's dessert did not turn out so well...but I'm so proud of her for trying!  That's the whole point of this!  To branch out and cook things you have never made before.  I'm sure we will both have more fails in the future but if we stop making mistakes then we have probably stopped learning, right?  I can't wait for Kristen to redeem herself and master that 14 layer cake!  You will nail it, girl!  My turn for dessert next week, any suggestions?

14-layer FAIL

Week 3, October 30, 2012:  I attempted my grandma's 14-layer cake recipe this week...  FAIL!  Sorry Bama Rita :(   I don't know what went wrong, followed the recipe in detail, but the icing was runny and the cake layers were not fluffy at all.  Any suggestions as to how to perfect this recipe would be much appreciated!  I WILL try it again.  Practice makes perfect right?  I guess you win some, you lose some..

What it was supposed to look like:

(from http://www.bakerella.com/fourteen-for-the-fourteenth/)

 My beautiful mess:

Nailed it?

Week 2 Dessert: White Chocolate chip brownie! YUM!

After our successful first dinner, I was excited to try Kristen's Mexican lasagna! (If you know me you know my feelings about Mexican food...LOVE!!)  I was in charge of a dessert for this week.  Rather than the boring old standbys I took to the mecca of dessert recipes...Pinterest!  I saw this recipe and I knew it had to be the one.  

She calls it a "White Chocolate Oreo Cake Brownie with Sweet Chocolate Topping"...I am not really sure where the Oreos come in though.  It uses those delicious Hershey's Cookies and Creme candy bars! (I guess that's Oreo?)  

Not the best picture but I can promise you, it was awesome!  Kristen and I each had a taste and then I left half with her and took the rest to my friends at school!  Everybody loved it!  Kristen, would you say "nailed it!"? ;)

SOURCE: http://fahrenheit350.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-had-epiphany-this-morning-my.html

Week 1 Dinner! Butternut Squash Pesto Pizza! - Megan

I made the first dinner of our little cooking challenge!  Our friend Madison came and joined us for our inaugural dinner as well and we were so happy to have her!  I knew Kristen loved pizza so I decided I'd make a homemade specialty pizza for her!  (Plus I knew I wouldn't have to do a ton of dishes! :))  I actually made this recipe up!

                                              (As you can tell we dug right in! :))
I did not have a ton of time to make a homemade pizza dough (I am a Grad student!) so I used a Pillsbury pizza dough (well the first time around...I actually ended up making it again the next week for my mom with a refrigerated ball of dough from the bakery section of Food Lion.  Have to admit, it was better the second time!)
I tossed cubed butternut squash and thinly sliced red onion in olive oil, salt, and pepper and baked them in the oven.  Then I primed the pizza dough in the oven as per package instruction.  I spread a basil pesto (from a jar...womp womp) over the entire pizza.  I put the butternut squash and onion on top of the pesto and sprinkled on some sun dried tomatoes.  Then I crumbled some feta cheese and shredded some asiago cheese on top.  I placed back in the oven and baked through.
It was delicious!!  I am not the biggest butternut squash fan but I really enjoyed it on this pizza.  I thought it was a very successful opening act! :) Also, only one pizza stone to clean! #ihatedishes

Mexican Lasagna- Kristen

Week Two, October 23, 2012:  Megan and I were talking about Mexican food and I told her about the delicious Mexican lasagna we used to eat at Camp Tekoa.  She was super excited at the sound of this, so I decided I would attempt to recreate it for my first dinner experiment.  I looked up different recipes, but came across this one from Rachel Ray.  I liked this recipe because it was a healthier version.  She used spinach tortillas instead of flour, black beans instead of refried beans, and ground chicken.  I did the fire-roasted tomatoes version rather than using taco sauce, and I only need 1 pound of ground chicken to fill the dish rather than 2.  It ended up serving Megan and I for 2 or 3 more meals each, so the 4 serving note is a little inaccurate.  But it was delicious!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/mexican-lasagna-recipe/index.html

Kristen's first dessert attempt

Week One, October 16, 2012:  I decided that, since it's pumpkin season, I would make my first Pinterest recipe.  I've been collecting recipes on Pinterest forever, so this was the perfect reason to test one out!

Pumpkin Nutella Cheesecake Bites:
http://www.thespiffycookie.com/2011/09/26/pumpkin-nutella-mini-cheesecake-bites/

They turned out really well!  I didn't have chopped hazelnuts to garnish, I just topped with leftover crushed oreos.  The recipe from the website actually made enough for almost two batches (24 mini cheesecake bites).  Here's a pic!  Nailed it, right Megan ;)

The Quest to Become Master Chefs

We are two sisters who love social events and hosting parties.  We have come from a family of amazing cooks, and found it about time that we start mastering our own creations to better serve our friends and family.  We have decided to make a meal together once a week, alternating who makes dinner and who makes dessert.  This is a blog of our experiences as we use each other as guinea pigs in our quest to become master chefs!  Hope you enjoy :)