Chocolate Eclairs

 

It’s time for Food n Flix!  This month is hosted by my friend Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm.  She picked the movie Simply Irresistible. 

Simply Irresistible is a quirky rom-com with a touch of magic.  Parts were a bit reminiscent of It’s a Wonderful Life, with an angel-like character intervening occasionally.

I have to admit that I found much of the plot confusing, and was wishing there was more explanation, for instance, how did the magic work, exactly?  Was it the earrings? The crab? The angel character? 

After watching the movie, I looked to see if it was a book first - my hope was that if it was originally a book, I could read it and the book would likely fill in the plot gaps.  But alas, it was not a book, just a poorly written screenplay.  So I am left only with questions and no answers.

But let’s talk foodie inspiration!  Since the movie centers around a chef, there is no shortage of inspiration.  One of the most memorable dishes, however, are Caramel Eclairs, which cause those who smell or eat them to become very...ummmm...passionate.

I’d never made eclairs before, so I thought it was the perfect opportunity to give these pastries a whirl, only I decided to make chocolate eclairs instead of caramel, because I love chocolate!

Chicken Alfredo Tortellini Soup

Is there anything better than soup in the winter?

This one has it all.  Chicken, cheese tortellini, and the broth tastes just like alfredo sauce!  It is divine!

I actually made this soup for this month’s Cook the Books Club pick.  Deb from Kahakai Kitchen picked Eat Joy: Stories and Comfort Food from 31 Celebrated Writers edited by Natalie Eve Garrett. 

You, guys...I was not a fan.  Here’s my Goodreads review.

Vietnamese Chicken Porridge (Chao Ga)

 

It’s time to travel virtually (since that’s all we can do), and we’re heading to Vietnam.

As happens often, I had to nope a lot of recipes because they included seafood (yeah, sill won’t eat it), or ingredients that I can’t get in my area (or would be prohibitively expensive).

The vetting makes this process more challenging, but I do love a challenge.  Finally I came across Chicken Porridge and it was perfect!  The recipe looked (and was) delicious plus Dude was getting braces and Chicken Porridge sounded sufficiently soft for him to be able to eat with sore teeth.

Pikachu & Pokéball Cookies

 This post was originally published in 2017 on my other blog, but I love these, so I'm sharing it here!

Spud’s half-birthday is just before Valentine’s Day.  Since he has a summer birthday, half-birthdays mean bringing birthday treats to school!

Since Spud’s latest obsession is Pokémon, he decided he wanted Pikachu and Pokéball cookies!

I love that these versatile little cookies can work as birthday or Valentine cookies!!

Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo

Is there anything better than a good alfredo?  When Hubs and I were dating, I would almost always order alfredo when we went out to dinner (well, that or chicken strips - haha).

Hubs and I were friends for a couple years before we started dating.  Once we finally started dating, it was only a matter of months before I knew I was going to marry him one day (but we were in college, so I knew that it would be a couple of years - neither of us wanted to get married before we had jobs).  

So, after a few months it was Hub’s birthday and I wanted to do something special.  I didn’t cook yet (at all), but I got a recipe for alfredo from my mom, borrowed the kitchen at my church, and made alfredo.