Oh happy day! I have been trying to hunt down the Target Chefmate Dutch Oven ever since I read about it in Cooks Illustrated after Christmas. I naively thought that I would be able to simply walk into Target, pick up this bright red pot and start cooking stews to my hearts content. I vividly remembered seeing them all over the place before the article came out, but of course none were to be found as soon as the Test Kitchen declared this $40 item to be on par with the much more expensive Le Creuset versions. I still covet the Le Creuset, but for the penny pinching time being I’ll happily make do with my Target knock off. However, please note that should Le Creuset ever decide to make pastel additions to their cast iron line my credit card will be making a command appearance. Just imagine the brilliance of a pink Le Creuset — “Le Sigh…”

Confession time: I am having way too much fun with my new pink KitchenAid and I’m happy to report that Ellie Krieger’s (surprise! surprise!) Triple Chocolate Cookies are definitely as decadent as they sound. I generally shy away from using whole wheat flour in my baking but I may have to reconsider that stance now. I’ve also been using those new Nestle Chocolatier baking chocolates recently and I highly recommend them. I’m pretty clueless about the science behind baking so I did freak out a bit when I realized that the recipe didn’t call for the addition of baking powder or baking soda but it didn’t appear to matter.

Cream Together	Add Oil & Eggs
Whisk Together the Dry Ingredients	Chocolates 2 & 3
Seriously Chocolate Batter	Silpat Love
Cool	Milk & Cookies - The Sixth Food Group

I’m starting to wonder if I should change the tag line of this website to Erin Cooks:  An Ellie Krieger Retrospective.   What do you think?  Anyway, here’s another yummy option to wow your friends with:   Fettuccini with Creamy Red Pepper-Feta Sauce.  I couldn’t find whole wheat fettuccini so I used linguine.  My one quibble with this recipe is the use of parsley.  Next time I plan to use chopped basil as a garnish since I found the parsley to be a little bitter.

Onions, Peppers & Garlic	Blitz
Whole Wheat Goodness	Who Needs the Olive Garden?  Not Me!

The super tasty and figure friendly dish below has officially allowed Ellie Krieger to overthrow Giada as my favorite food network celebrity chef. Should the Patriots make it to the Super Bowl you might just see this awesome meatball sandwich on my coffee table — if you’re lucky enough to receive an invite to the party of course. Unfortunately If the Colts prevail on Sunday all bets are off…

In addition, the turkey meatballs actually serve as a “double duty” meal since I made them the night before via this recipe with a spicy tomato sauce and whole wheat pasta. I also sliced all of my peppers for the sandwiches while the sauce was cooking and placed them in a container until I was ready to make dinner the next day. Rachael Ray would be so proud of me for prepping ahead. I know this was an Ellie dish but it was probably the first time I ever truly succeeded in making an honest to goodness “30 Minute Meal” (that didn’t consist of tortellini and store bought Alfredo).

Fresh Baguette	Hollow Out
Tri-Colored Peppers Before	And After
Top With Mozzarella	Broil

Biscuits are a big deal in my family.  It’s a well known fact that the only person who can make acceptable biscuits is my grandmother.  The rest of us generally don’t even try.   Whenever I’m visiting my mother in Maine we call my grandmother early in the morning and request freshly baked biscuits.  They’re to die for.  Especially when slathered with real butter.  Of course, like millions of other people, I need to get into better shape.   So I decided to try a lighter (possibly new and exciting) Sweet Potato Biscuit recipe that I found in this month’s Cooking Light magazine.  I’ve actually subscribed to Cooking Light for the last year but this is the first time I’ve ever tried one of their recipes.   Probably because I’m so enamored with Ellie Krieger’s healthy meals on the Food Network.  Anyway, the biscuits came out pretty well.  I was actually shocked that they rose so much,  and I’m sure they were really reasonable calorie and fat wise, until I spread on some Maple Butter…and then a little more Maple Butter.

Bake	Puree
Mix the Dry Ingredients	Combine the Milk & Potatoes
Cut	Bake

Butter

Ever since I was a little girl I’ve always loved pouring over cookbooks, marveling at the gorgeous pictures, and wondering how each one would taste. I have vivid memories of leafing through a well worn edition of the Better Homes and Garden’s Cookbook at my grandmother’s house and I can’t express how excited I was last week when I found a reprint of that very book, complete with fabulous retro images of fondue parties, shish-kabobs, and diagrams detailing how to set a table. It totally makes me want to put on pearls and host a vintage dinner party. Can I offer you a mini gherkin?

Speaking of cookbooks, I used to really dislike the Everyday Food magazine. I remember picking it up on many occasions and thinking that all of the recipes were either ridiculous or disgusting. Now I’m not sure if the magazine has changed or if it’s my attitude, but presently it’s one of my favorite new recipe resources. I’m even a subscriber (thanks to Chris’s grandmother). This month’s theme is cooking light. Now I’m not sure what exactly is light about Chicken Braised in Red Wine, but it certainly tasted like a cold winter’s night…even though it was 60 degrees today. Don’t you just love global warming?! Please note: don’t add extra stock like I did. Just because you have extra broth left in the carton doesn’t mean you have to use it. The base is supposed to be thicker than it appears in the images below. Also, I think it’s only fair to warn you that the carrots in this dish are so going to rock your socks.

A Spice Bouquet	What’s Up Doc?!
Mmm…Bacon	Mmm…Cooked Bacon
Brown, Turn, Brown, Turn	Set Aside
Carrots, Onions & Garlic	Tomato Paste to Thicken
Pour the Wine (and a Glass For Yourself)	“Sophisticated” Chicken, Anyone?