Pinspired in the Kitchen

   Hey you guys! (By the way, sometimes when I say that I do it long and drawn out and super loud, like on Electric Company. Remember that awesome show?) This summer I have collected more gorgeous, tempting, and inspiring ideas on Pinterest than is probably healthy for any one person. One day I was even (politely) kicked off of the site by the Pinterest Powers That Be for displaying signs of being a Spammer. I Pin you not. They actually thought I was Spam. I am not Spam. But I do love me some Pinterest.

   Anyway, it's been a while since I posted Pinterest experiments here on this blog, so tonight I'm just gonna offer up half a dozen recipes drawn from that deep, glorious, digital well of brilliant ideas. The only photo I am using here is my own. And I have linked you to the original posts then included my notes for each.

   Ready? Okay! (Say that like a cheerleader.)

Cooking hot dogs in a slow cooker:
Crock Pot 365 blog
WAHOO, this works pretty great! They really did taste like the roller-cooker style hot dogs you might buy at a gas station.

Muffins that taste like donuts:
Stylish Cuisine blog

   Okay. These. Are. Delish. They are tender, soft, and yummy, and the buttery-sugary coating is just so good. Downside? This recipe is tiny. I mean, it doesn't make very many individual servings. I made mine as miniature muffins, and they spilled over so far that the muffin tops ended up looking more like cookies. Not a disaster, unless presentation counts for you. I had made these to send to Handsome's office food day, but they were rather ugly, so...we ate them all. We are martyrs in that way.
Suggestion: use muffin papers and double the recipe.

Zuchinni Tots
Curious Country Cook blog
Oh, yum. These were very, very good. I made them on the recommendation of our friend Steph. Even Handsome loved zuchinni tots, which is fantastic! Any new fresh-vegetable dish we both enjoy is a score. And these are fast to make, too, with few ingredients. Try this recipe!

English Muffin Bread
One Good Thing by Jillee blog
Another easy recipe with big returns on flavor and homemade goodness kitchen Karma. Do you love English muffins? This bread has that fab texture on both sides when you slice it. And as with most homemade bread, the lingering aroma pretty much doubles the work pleasure.
Suggestion: Make this in triplicate. I shared some with our neighbor as a thanks for inviting our horses to graze on his rye grass meadow, and he loved it too!

Buffalo Chicken Dip
Tidy Mom blog 
I made this for Handsome on a night I was absent for book club or beekeeping or something. I thought it would be super satisfying for him, kind of a comforting, spicy, guy's dinner for playing video games or whatever. I served it with a big bag of tortilla chips and wished him luck. It turned out okay, but he was not crazy about it.
Suggestion: Use less of something liquid, maybe the ranch dressing, or maybe add more chicken. I think it would be flat out delish and addictive with a little more substance. Or maybe my guy was just sad I was gone all night.

Butterfinger Chunk Cookies
Recipe Girl blog
These are so tasty, and obviously the aroma? Oh my... The whole farm smelled like Butterfingers and bread and general bakery goodness the afternoon I made these for a going-away-to-college dinner for our friend's son. But they are not fool proof. I baked these exactly according to the recipe, but they were too crisp for my taste. As in, they stuck in my teeth. Not fun, but still tasty.
Suggestion: Under cook these bad boys more drastically than you have ever under cooked anything in your culinary life. 

So there you have a handful of recipes to try! Perhaps it seems like all we do is eat. Perhaps that is a fact.

What's Cooking in Your Kitchen These Days?
xoxoxoxo