Sour Cream and Dill Potato Salad

The thing I love the most about this potato salad is that its different. There is no mustard in it.* Not one little bit. Plus, its sour cream. And dill. In other words, its perfection.

Last week I was out with a friend and she was talking about planning her daughters birthday party. During the conversation she mourned the fact that, as she doesn't eat potato salad, she doesn't really know how to make it. Cue Liz.

So I volunteered. And while I was making this batch, I boiled pretty much every potato in my house and made approx. 8 lbs of potato salad. Half for the birthday party, half for a pot luck meeting I am going to have tomorrow.

Now, potato salad is really easy to make. The only reason I don't make it more often is that it really is sort of time consuming. I mean, you (sometimes) peel, you boil...then you have to chill it...so even though its a very easy process, if you don't have the time to wait on a pot of water and fridge time...

But in the end its so worth it.

This recipe is one I found in one of my favorite cookbooks ever, a Best of Southern Living cookbook. My mom has used this cookbook for years, and when I got married she went and bought me a copy. I had never tasted it before I got married however. My mom always just makes an old family recipe for potato salad...plus my dad refuses to eat anything that has sour cream in it. His loss. :)

Sour Cream and Dill Potato Salad
(Photos and recipe by Busy Nothings. Original recipe: Southern Living)

3 lbs new red potatoes(you know...the little ones)
2/3 C. mayo
1 (8-oz) container sour cream(I usually end up using a little bit more...I love my sour cream!)
2 T parsley
3 T dill
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper

Cut new potatoes in half or in quarters, depending on how you like it. Boil in water until soft. Drain and move potatoes to large bowl. Add mayo, sour cream, and seasonings. Mix well. Refrigerate 4-6 hours, or overnight. And enjoy the BEST potato salad ever. Really.

*I'm not hating on mustard potato salad. Really. I like it, I do. But...this is sour cream. And dill. Isn't that explanation enough?

Hearty Chili

It's kind of a 'blah' day today...The perfect day for some homemade chili.

Now, I think everyone who makes chili has a tried and true recipe. The one they grew up eating, the one that has been handed down. And don't get me wrong, I have one like that too. Its delicious. It makes me think of home and cold winter days. But when I opened my freezer and saw that I only had one pound of ground beef...and a whole bunch of ground venison, I decided to scour the net and find something new to try.

I found a ton of recipes and after reading all of them and looking through my cabinets I decided to just sort of...well combine a few of them. What I ended up with and is now simmering on my stove smelling delicious is what I'm going to call 'Hearty Chili'.

Hearty Chili
(Recipe and photos by Busy Nothings)

1 lb ground beef
1 1/2 lbs ground venison
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 (28-oz) can whole tomatoes
1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes (I used the can with the Italian herbs in it)
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1/4 C chili powder
3 T. cumin
1 1/2 t. garlic powder
1 1/2 t. onion powder
3 green onions, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 (12-oz) lager style beer (I used Killians)
1 lb BACON! (Told you it was hearty!)
3 cans dark red kidney beans.
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the ground meat with the onion and garlic. Add the tomatoes and stir. Add all the spices and the green onion, bell pepper and beer. Stir. Cook bacon in a skillet and crumble. Add to the chili. About 30-45 min before serving add the kidney beans. Salt and pepper to taste!

One of the things I like best about chili? Its insanely forgiving. Don't have a whole onion? No problem. Want to change up some seasonings? It'll still be fine. It's one of the easiest, tastiest things you can make.

I like to serve mine with some corn chips (like Fritos) cheddar cheese and sour cream. DELICIOUS!

A New Look and a New Purpose

I had to revamp. Why? Because I have finally decided to make this undecided blog decided, that's why! I've decided to make this my 'official' cooking blog. I had a few cooking posts scattered here and there but now thats pretty much all there will be, and I'm excited!

Today I also have signed up to become a Daring Baker and a Daring Cook! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it. The Daring Kitchen is a website where they host monthly challenges to cooks and bakers alike. At the end of the month, you can post your results and pictures on your blog, and on the website! I wish I had seen this site years ago!

I'm already telling my friends about the site and hoping that some of them join!

And now, I'll sign off here for I need to figure out what to make for dinner...Pierogis? Perhaps!

Happy Cooking!

Cast iron and chicken nuggets.

There's something wonderful about a cast iron skillet. No joke! If you don't use one, you have no idea what you're missing. Today, I broke mine in.

Lunch was swift approaching, and I knew I had to make something, otherwise we'd end up eating leftover lasagna. Again. (Ok, ok, so I shouldn't have made such a big pan. I've learned my lesson.) So, I took out the chicken I had defrosted yesterday and stared at it in deep contemplation. Chicken nuggets! Aha!

Not only was I going to make chicken nuggets, I was going to make parmesan chicken nuggets. And not only were they going to be Parmesan chicken nuggets, they were going to be cooked on my new cast iron skillet.

It was so easy it is almost insane. All you do is take an egg, beat it up, dip the chicken in it, then dip the chicken in a mix of seasoned breadcrumbs (I used Italian) mixed with parmesan cheese and dried basil. Fry on skillet of choice, in some butter and oil, and BAM. You have lunch. Delicious lunch.

It really was tasty. And, for those wondering, parmesan cheese makes such a lovely crispy crust on anything you dip it in. My son is gobbling them down as I type. This is definitely a keeper.