I've been going back and forth with the idea of doing this and my virtual friend and fellow Forbes blogger, Adrienne Graham, challenged us on Facebook to do something new today. Well...this is my something new.
Publishing a cookbook is on the list of things I'd like to accomplish in life. My problem is that I cook like my mama (and all the other mama's who shared their kitchens with me) and I never measure anything. Turns out, Sharon cooks the same way. FYI...I know this because I pour my heart out to my Facebook fans and they in turn do the same.
When I told Jackie about my cookbook dilemma she suggested I write my recipes the same way I tell people how to prepare them. I get phone calls all the time from my sisters and friends asking, "What do you put in your _____? How much _____ do I put in my _____? How long do you cook yours for?"
My neighbor friend Amy shared this recipe with me and when she did, she didn't give me any measurements - she just kept on saying, "You only need 4 ingredients!". When I asked what it was called, she responded the way only Amy can and said, "It doesn't have a name, my mom just makes it for us."
The Girl requested this last week and I made it on Monday. Thanks to her, it now has a name and here's how you can fix your own if you dare try:
PICKLE NOODLE STUFF
Stuff You'll Need:
1 box of pasta
small can of chopped black olives
some real mayo
pickles
What You Do To/With the Stuff:
Cook the pasta like the box tells you to.
Cut up the pickles (note: Great Value Dill Spears turn your fingernails a pickley color).
If you like alot of olives, put that much in there. If you like just a little, put that amount. Same goes for the mayo and pickles.
Put all the stuff in a bowl. I suggest you use a bowl that's also a serving dish/
container with a lid so you don't have so many dishes to wash.
Stir your stuff up and taste it. Like it? Leave it alone. Don't like it? Add some stuff accordingly.
Eat and refrigerate.
Optional Stuff I Added To Mine:
onion powder
garlic powder
dried parsley
paprika
I added paprika on top because my mama says food is supposed to have color.
Let me know what you think and I'll let you know if I'm gonna share more Stir-Tries.
In the meantime, if you want to see a real bona fide food blog complete with pretty pictures, go over to Jamie Is At Home. She's my neighbor friend too, and Amy's sister, but they aren't twins.
Recipes with minimal ingredients are important to have. Thanks for sharing. Also, thanks for turning me on to Jamies blog. It's beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThanks Chris...Jamie's blog is a real treat!
ReplyDeleteThis made me LOL because my family went through this trying to get my Grandmother's recipes down. In particular there was this Butterscotch Pie she made - simply to die for!
ReplyDeleteThe four ingredient thing is always great for busy moms. Thanks for sharing.
I love your descriptions, like when I call my grandma to see how long to cook potatoes for potato salad and she tells me "till they're done"..and I'm sure there's loads of unnamed noodle pickly things! Great post, makes me more confident that I could post a recipe :)
ReplyDeleteNicole - I never really put alot of thought into the ease of the 4 ingredient thing until you and Chris brought it up. But I will say I'm completely turned off by a recipe if it has a laundry list of stuff you gotta buy to go into it.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeLovinMom - my universal answer to my oldest sister when she asks how long to cook something is, "cook it 'til it's done!" That's funny.
Nicole - I never really put alot of thought into the ease of the 4 ingredient thing until you and Chris brought it up. But I will say I'm completely turned off by a recipe if it has a laundry list of stuff you gotta buy to go into it.
ReplyDeleteCoffeeLovinMom - my universal answer to my oldest sister when she asks how long to cook something is, "cook it 'til it's done!" That's funny.