Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, in which I am so tired, I nearly ruin dinner.

You know I don't really cook from a recipe right? I scan the list of ingredients, say "hmph" a few times when things aren't to my liking and then read the directions through and go with it. This is not because I am some incredible master chef, Oh no. This is because I am lazy. And tonight, it meant that when I was casually adding the cayenne pepper, I added a titch too much. You know, just enough so that sitting here 10 minutes after sampling a taste of what was supposed to be a nice, warm, soothing comfort-food dinner my lips are still burning. Honestly, my intentions were good. I was going to give my lazy version of this incredible butternut squash mac and cheese recipe that girlymae introduced me to. I'm sure her original is heaven itself, because up until today my lazygal's twist was pretty gosh darn delicious. But I've never made her original. Why? Because I am lazy. Also, very tired. So you know what? You're going to have to do the work tonight. I'll give you an updated recipe from girlymae and tell you my shortcuts, and then you're on your own, got it?



GIRLYMAE'S BUTTERNUT SQUASH MAC AND CHEESE
as made by your lazy, lazy blogger

INGREDIENTS:
1 butternut squash LAZY ALERT: I use frozen winter squash (about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 packages, and defrost in the microwave
1 pound elbow macaroni
4 Tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon dry mustard LAZY ALERT: I have no dry mustard, I use jar mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg plus more for sprinkling
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper LAZY ALERT: Do NOT over cayenne your dish, no matter how tired and lazy you are.
1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 4 cups)
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock LAZY ALERT: I've never added the stock, maybe because the cooked winter squash has more liquid naturally than a real squash? I dunno.
1 slice of bread LAZY ALERT: I use bread crumbs from a can. About a half cup.

INSTRUCTIONS:
SKIP THIS IF YOU'RE LAZY!
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Slice squash in half and discard seeds . Peel one of the squash halves and cut into 1-inch cubes. Spray the half and the chunks with cooking oil and sprinkle with a little nutmeg. Place the squash half, cut side down, on a baking sheet and scatter the squash chunks next to it in a single layer. Roast for 45 minutes until very tender.

While squash is cooking, make breadcrumbs by putting 1 slice of bread in the food processor and pulsing until it creates fine breadcrumbs. Set aside.

After removing squash from the oven, reduce the heat to 350.

When squash has cooled, set aside the chunks of squash. Peel skin off the squash half and discard. Puree squash half in food processor until it has a smooth consistency. Set aside.

START HERE IF YOU'RE LAZY, ALSO PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 350 SINCE YOU SKIPPED IT.
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Salt generously. Boil pasta to al dente - about 6 minutes. Drain pasta and set aside.

Melt 3 Tablespoons butter (set aside 1 Tablespoon) and slowly stir in the 1/3 cup of flour to form a paste.

Off heat, SLOWLY whisk in 1 1/2 cups of milk. Return to medium low heat until sauce fully blends and thickens.

Add pureed squash to the thickened sauce.

Add mustard, salt, nutmeg, and cayenne pepper. Stir in 3 1/2 cups of cheese (set aside 1/2 cup for the topping) and 1 cup of stock, alternating cheese and stock by cupfuls. Taste sauce, adjust seasonings if needed.

Combine pasta, squash chunks, and cheese sauce in a large casserole dish, toss to coat evenly.

Melt the remaining Tablespoon of butter and blend with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese and the breadcrumbs to form topping. Sprinkle mixture over the macaroni.

Place macaroni uncovered in a 350 degree oven until cheese sauce is bubbling and breadcrumb topping is lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
(Serves 8, leftovers freeze well if you're so inclined)

Greek Burgers

After a long few weeks of eating food provided by others (my mother, my husband, various restaurant chefs, the vending machine at work) or eating no food at all (thank you work, for making it difficult to impossible to eat over the last 2 weeks), I have finally returned to my home, my kitchen, my stove and lucky for you, my blog. So tonight, I had to gently ease my way back into cooking. And a triumphant return it was.

I love greek burgers. I mean, I finished mine about 15 minutes ago, I'm full, and all I can think about is when I'm going to eat my next greek burger. Which is pretty high praise for a dinner that was created because I ran out of yellow onion one day. GREEK BURGERS
INGREDIENTS:
1 package ground turkey
1/4 C red onion diced very fine
1/4 to 1/3 C kalamata olives pitted and diced
2-3 oz feta cheese crumbled
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper
olive oil
buns
DIRECTIONS:
Pour a small amount of olive oil in a small non-stick pan. Saute the onion over medium-low heat until it is soft and translucent. Add salt and pepper to taste, keeping in mind that the olives and feta are both salty. Add the oregano. Turn off heat, and mix well with the ground turkey meat. Allow to cool if you're planning on using your hands. Mix in the olives and the feta. Form patties. I get 4 big patties or 5 smaller ones depending. Heat up enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a cast-iron pan (alternatively, you could do this on the grill, I have no grill). and heat pan to medium. Add the burgers. Cook 4 minutes and flip. Cook 4-5 more minutes until done. Serve on a bun with lettuce, tomato, more red onion, whatever you want!

Better Biscuits

When I was 12 or 13, most normal girls my age were experimenting with crimping irons and doing their best to deplete the ozone layer by shellacking their bangs as high as they could. I was dreaming of being Scarlett O'Hara. And since a 17" waist and a Georgian plantation were out of the question, I was left to try to reclaim my southern heritage by baking biscuits. I stood in the kitchen, meticulously cutting the butter into the flour mixture using two knives, oh yes, I shunned the high-tech world of the mixer back then. And even though they were the first thing I'd ever baked completely unsupervised, those biscuits turned out wonderfully, and I continued to make them using the same recipe, until about a month ago. Now 18 years is a long time to be faithful to a recipe, so you have to understand just how incredible this new recipe is. Because I have thrown over those biscuits of my youth and I am not looking back. And if you have a problem with that, well, frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.



BETTER BISCUITS
original recipe found on Epicurious - Cheddar Dill Biscuits modified to be plain biscuits:
INGREDIENTS:
2 C flour
2 t baking powder
1 t sugar
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
5 T cold butter
3/4 c plain yogurt (yes, I use low fat or non-fat)
1/3 c milk
DIRECTIONS:
Mix dry ingredients together well. Blend in butter until it has a pebble-y consistency. In a separate bowl whisk the yogurt and milk. Then add the yogurt milk mixture to the rest and mix until the dough just holds together. Spoon heaps of dough onto a baking sheet - the recipe says it make 12, I usually get 14-15. Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes.

Incidentally, I've made this both with too much (1 Cup) and too little (2/3 C) yogurt. And both times it's still been wonderful. How's that for forgiving?

The Easiest Onion Tart You'll Ever Make

Quiches and tarts are not inherently difficult to make but with the sauteeing of ingredients, making the crust and mixing the custard, they can end up being a giant pain in the you-know-what. This tart is different. It doesn't have a million ingredients. Just the basics, done right. And it is heavenly.

EASIEST ONION TART
INGREDIENTS
1 large onion (maybe even a tad wee bit more than this)
1/2 to 3/4 C grated cheddar. (Now I'm usually all for adding more cheese to anything, but I've only ever made it with 1/2 C and it's seemed right).
2 eggs (or 1/2 C eggbeaters - that's right, I didn't even use real eggs)
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 T fresh thyme (use less if you're using dried)
1 recipe crust
DIRECTIONS
Slice the onion so that you have long strips of onion, not a dice. Add a T of oil to a non-stick pan on low heat. Cook the onion until carmelized, this can take 20-30 minutes, you can make the crust while it's happening, if you're a good multi-tasker. Onions are carmelized when they turn a golden brown and taste very sweet. Make sure the heat is low, or they will start to crisp up on you, which is not what you want at all. When they're done, add salt and pepper to taste, and the thyme. Put in a bowl and mix with the cheddar and the egg mixture. Pour into the crusts.

I cook mine in the toaster oven at 350 for 25-35 minutes or until the center is set and the crust is browned a bit. If you try it in a regular oven I would probably increase the heat slightly, but feel free to share what worked for you.

Here's the crust:

CRUST
1 C flour
1 T sugar
pinch salt
1/3 C butter
4-6 + T of ice water
DIRECTIONS:
This is a million times easier with a KitchenAid mixer. Cutting shortening/butter in by hand is no fun. So, mix together dry ingredients in the mixer. Add butter (still cold from the fridge, make sure it's not warm or room temp) in small chunks (I tend to cut my in tablespoon sized slabs). Mix until the whole mixture has a coarse sand or pebbley consistency. And this is where it gets hard. Add water. The amount you need varies based on where you live, the weather, the mood of your crust. You'll need to learn to add enough that it all holds together as a dough, but not so much that it's a wet mess. Go slowly, mix carefully. I don't measure anymore. I pour straight from my Brita of ice water into the mix (while the mixer is running) and see if it becomes a ball. I separated it into 4 small disks (because of making the mini-tarts) and let it refridgerate while I was grating the cheddar and finishing the onions. Then I rolled each out, and stuck it in the pie tins.

P.S.

See, now that's what the cider-gingerbread spice cake is supposed to look like. Pretty, yes?

Failure and Redemption

I'm just now getting around to writing about Thursday's dinner, things have been a bit hectic around here. Also, I wasn't so sure I wanted to share with you yet another failure. But it wasn't all failure, so for the sake of impending Thanksgiving dinners everywhere, I'll share with you orange dinner number 1,548 - Sweet Potato Soup with Pumpkin Pie for dessert. Clearly, I'm only eating orange foods these days. Maybe now that it's getting deeper into November, I'll branch out. Maybe.

So, I came home on Thursday, and immediately set about figuring out my new! improved! pumpkin pie plan. I had these delicious spice cookies, and I felt that they would make a delicious and more interesting version of the graham cracker crust. So I promptly whipped one up, popped it in the oven and set about reinventing pumpkin pie filling. About 10 minutes later, I pulled out these delightful looking treats. All of the crust had crept back down the sides and pooled at the bottom and the whole mess was slightly blackened. So after a few heart-wrenching moments and a phone call to my mom, I decided to scrap the whole bunch. Which made me wince, because I can't bear throwing out perfectly good food, but then again, you might argue that a burnt solid mass of cookie crumbs does not qualify as perfectly good food. With the filling already mixed, I didn't have time to experiment with another crust and went for the old standby crust I've been making since I was twelve. With my trusty crust, I managed to turn out some slightly sad looking little pies, which people kindly proclaimed "interesting." What they really meant was: This doesn't taste like what I'm used to, and I am so much in shock I cannot possibly give you my actual thoughts on whether or not this is tasty. After eating a few of them myself I can tell you that they are indeed, tasty, but not very related to the standard Thanksgiving pumpkin pie. Which is good to know if you plan on making this ever. Considering the fact that I managed to peel my thumb and burn a finger during the making of this meal, it really is a godsend that I managed to fix the sweet potato soup recipe so that it is no longer a sweet potato broth. See I told you it wasn't all failure.


INTERESTING PUMPKIN PIE (This is NOT gluten-free)
INGREDIENTS:
1 recipe crust - see below
1 can packed pumpkin puree
2 T + 1 t maple syrup
1/3 T molasses
1/4 C brown sugar
1/4 t ginger
1/4 t cloves
1/4 t cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
1 C whipped cream (I felt this was a little much, maybe try 3/4 cup?)
2 eggs
DIRECTIONS:
Mix all ingredients together. Pour into pie crust. Cook at 425 for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 cook for 40-50 minutes more.

CRUST
1 C flour
1 T sugar
pinch salt
1/3 C butter
4-6 + T of ice water
DIRECTIONS:
This is a million times easier with a KitchenAid mixer. Cutting shortening/butter in by hand is no fun. So, mix together dry ingredients in the mixer. Add butter (still cold from the fridge, make sure it's not warm or room temp) in small chunks (I tend to cut my in tablespoon sized slabs). Mix until the whole mixture has a coarse sand or pebbley consistency. And this is where it gets hard. Add water. The amount you need varies based on where you live, the weather, the mood of your crust. You'll need to learn to add enough that it all holds together as a dough, but not so much that it's a wet mess. Go slowly, mix carefully. I don't measure anymore. I pour straight from my Brita of ice water into the mix (while the mixer is running) and see if it becomes a ball.

REDEMPTION SWEET POTATO SOUP (This is gluten-free)
INGREDIENTS:
1 c onion diced
1 leek (cleaned by soaking the rings), sliced
1 carrot peeled and diced
2 bay leaves
2 large sweet potatoes (peeled and cut into 1/2" or 1/4" cubes)
2 garlic cloves minced
1 large regular potato (same as above)
salt and pepper
1/4 C white wine (or vermouth)
4 C chicken broth (or veggie, if you want it to be vegetarian)
1 C water for thinning (at the end, if needed)
butter/olive oil
sour cream (for topping at the end)
1 recipe buttered pecans (see below)
DIRECTIONS:
Add a few T of butter or olive oil to a large pot. Add the onion, carrots, leek, garlic, bay and salt and pepper. Cook over medium until vegetables are soft and translucent. Use the wine or vermouth to deglaze. Then add the potatoes (sweet and regular) and cover with chicken broth. Simmer for 20 minutes or until a fork goes into the potatoes easily. Remove the bay leaves. Puree mixture in a blender (I use an immersion blender). It may take a while to get smooth. Check the consistency, if it's a bit thick or lumpy, add the cup of water, and reblend until it's smoother. Pour in a bowl, and top with a big dollop of sour cream and some buttered pecans.

BUTTERED PECANS:
pecans
butter
Add a few T of butter to a skillet on low-medium. Add the pecans (maybe a bit under a cup) and stir until well coated. Let cook about 5-10 minutes. Be careful not to burn them. Not that I've ever done that. No not an expert chef like me!

Dinner Candy

The Boston Red Sox are World Series Champions, again. I have much to be grateful for. Like the Sox beating the Rockies, and also, not having children. Because if I did have children, they would inevitably be referring to this as my squash period and would spend much of their adolescence recounting tales of how mom made them eat all this disgusting squash and swearing they'd never eat it again. I wouldn't know anything personally about the extent of emotional scarring that can occur due to overexposing children to something like maybe zucchini or classical music, but I've heard it can get ugly. Thankfully, I have nothing to worry about. I can wallow in the glory of my favorite team being the best in baseball while eating what basically amounts to dessert as dinner: Fresh Fettucini with Roast Butternut Squash and Brown Butter and Sage. I adapted this recipe from one in Donna Hay's Off the Shelf Cookbook, because as it turns out, finding a pumpkin to cook is a lot harder than you think. I went in search of a "pie pumpkin" which are supposedly little and tasty. I got a lot of weird looks, and also helpfully informed by one supermarket employee that he was pretty sure that some of the pumpkins out front didn't have faces already painted on them. He then offered me canned pumpkin puree, which as you might guess, isn't my top choice for cutting into cubes. Fortunately, the recipe is pretty darn good (if not crazy sweet) with the squash.

FRESH FETTUCINE WITH ROAST BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND BROWN BUTTER AND SAGE
Ingredients:
1/2 lb fresh fettucine
1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed (.5 inch cubes maybe? a titch smaller?)
3-4 T butter
fresh sage leaves (maybe 6-8 leaves - stems cut off)
.5 cup grated parm
olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions:
Spread the cubed, peeled squash on a baking sheet, toss with olive oil and salt and pepper. Cook at 400 for 30 minutes, or until a fork goes in easily. When the squash is almost done, boil the pasta water, and cook the pasta according to the package. Add the butter and sage to a skillet, heat at medium until the butter is a rich brown color. Drain pasta, top with squash and parm then pour the butter and sage over top.

Squashapalooza

A baked stuffed squash - "Brilliant!" I thought. What better vessel to fill with the flavors of fall than a squash? All those rich, earthy tastes mingling in the oven. Problem is, I'd never cooked a squash, didn't know where to buy one, and found out a little late in the process that your pickings among online baked stuffed squash recipes are pretty slim. Armed with absolutely nothing but vague craving I went to the farm stands that are set up around a nearby square. I walked away with two very small sweet dumpling squash. Entirely unconvinced that what I'd bought was even intended to be used as food, I went to the local produce store and invested in that familiar, comforting squash - the butternut. I felt better. I'd just about settled on a stuffing of sausage, onion, mushroom and wild rice, to be topped with provolone cheese, when I came upon this recipe and became obsessed with the idea of sausage and blue cheese and thyme. In the end, there was no reasoning with myself, and after I'd popped the squash in the oven, I ran out to buy blue cheese. And therefore, we have squashapalooza. Refusing to bow to sanity, I made 2 different kinds of baked squash and stuffed each with two different stuffings. Now, this can't be done without consequences, and sadly, you all are the ones to suffer, because my recipes are hazy at best. But hey, I know what else is out there and you might even end up grateful.

SQUASHAPALOOZA

SQUASH PREP:
pre-heat oven to 450 , cut squash in half, scoop out seeds and all stringy matter, melt 1 T of butter and brush the flesh of the squash with the butter. Place squash face down on a foil covered baking pan. Cook for 50-80 minutes depending on the size of your squash. It can be done a tiny bit before the fork goes in smoothly if you want, because it's going back in for 10 minutes later, but I found it easiest to just let it cook completely.

SAUSAGE, BLUE CHEESE AND THYME STUFFING: - NOT GLUTEN FREE
1.5 sausages, casing removed (I used hot turkey sausage)
.5 C onion diced
1 T olive oil
.75 C homemade croutons - I used 3/4 of a deli roll
.25 C blue cheese, crumbled - I like blue d'auvergne
salt and pepper to taste
fresh thyme
drizzle of honey

DIRECTIONS: heat olive oil in a non-stick pan, add diced onions and cook until soft and translucent. Add salt and pepper, cook a minute or two more, and set aside. Add sausage to the same pan (don't even bother to clean, you like lazy don't you?) and brown. Break apart the sausage with a wooden spoon as you go. Drain sausage, add to cooked onions. While everything is cooking you can make the bread crumbs. Cut up a roll into crouton sized chunks, toast. Mix toasted bread, sausage, onion, with crumbled blue cheese, drizzle of honey and a few teaspoons of fresh thyme.

SAUSAGE, WILD RICE, MUSHROOM AND SAGE STUFFING: GLUTEN FREE
1.5 sausages, casing removed ( I used hot turkey sausage) - check labels to ensure gf
.5 C onion diced
1 T olive oil
.75 C mushroom diced (I used baby bellas)
.75-1 C wild rice cooked
1 T fresh sage, chopped
.75 C mixed grated provolone and mozzarella - shred your own or check labels, some pre-shredded cheese contains gluten
DIRECTIONS: heat olive oil in a non-stick pan, add diced onions and mushrooms and cook until onions are soft and translucent. Add salt and pepper, cook a minute or two more, and set aside. Add sausage to the same pan (don't even bother to clean, you like lazy don't you?) and brown. Break apart the sausage with a wooden spoon as you go. Drain sausage. Mix sausage, onion, cooked rice, sage. After stuffing squash (see below) top by pressing provolone and mozzarella on top.

STUFFING OF THE SQUASH:
After the squash has finished cooking, scoop a bit out of the squash and mix well with the filling. Leave enough squash to hold the edges up, the skin is very soft after this much cooking. After mixing the squash with the stuffing of your choice, spoon it back into the squash. Put it back in the oven and cook for 10 more minutes until nice and melty.

Both are delicious, the wild rice one really tastes like Thanksgiving and the blue cheese stuffing is sweet and salty goodness. So far, Ryan prefers the blue cheese stuffing in the butternut squash, but we haven't tried all possible combinations yet, so the final verdict is still out. Also, both of these can be made vegetarian simply by leaving out the sausage. Make some extra mushrooms or something. I've forgotten to add the sausage many a time with no ill effects.

Purple Pasta

If I ever invite the artist now(and formerly) known as Prince to dinner, this is totally what I'm serving. Because it's purple. And I don't eat other more famously purple foods, like eggplant. But this was really good comfort food, and I'd totally make it again (like when Prince comes over), and it made me inexplicably happy to eat such a happy looking meal. I'm really quite relieved it worked out so well, because I'd heard that purple cauliflower loses its color when you cook it, but mine was glorious thanks to some lemon juice (the acid helps preserve the color). And yes, you can make it with the boring white stuff, but don't expect anyone too ooh and aah before they even take a bite. That's reserved for those of us who can find the pretty.

PURPLE CAULIFLOWER AND PENNE
INGREDIENTS:
1 head purple cauliflower (or boring white cauliflower)
4-5 T lemon juice (probably only necessary if you're using the pretty cauliflower)
2/3 C bread crumbs
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
3 cloves garlic
4-5 strips bacon (I use turkey bacon) - obviously omit this if you want a vegetarian dish, or use some type of bacon substitute)
2/3 lb penne
~2 t salt
1 t red pepper flakes
parmigiano reggiano cheese
DIRECTIONS:
Prepare bowl with lemon juice. Cut the cauliflower into florets (discard stem, or use for something else). Put florets immediately into lemon juice and toss well. Prepare a pot to steam the cauliflower in, make sure that the steamer isn't actually in the water. Steam cauliflower for 2 minutes (if purple, which cooks faster, cook a bit longer for white maybe 3-5). You want the cauliflower to be done before it's mushy, absolutely. Take out, set aside (I covered, I have no idea whether or not this was critical).

Start boiling water for pasta, add penne and 1 t salt. Cook until al dente.

In a non-stick pan, melt butter and heat olive oil. Add bread crumbs and toss with spoon until all fat is incorporated, cook for 1-2 minutes. Set aside. Chop up bacon into bitesized bits. Cook until crisp. Add garlic (minced) and cook until golden. Add the cauliflower and cook for about 2 minutes on low. Add 1 t salt.
When the pasta is done add it and mix well, also add red pepper flakes.

Grate some parm into the bread crumbs and mix well.

Serve pasta/cauliflower top with bread crumbs. Yum.

Slapdash

Let me just tell you, when Game 3 of the American League Championship Series is about to start and your beloved Sox are on, you really can’t shovel food on your plate fast enough so that you can get out of the kitchen and back in front of the game. Later you will regret this, when Dice-K has given up a two-run home run to Kenny Lofton, but it will be too late.

I had been thinking out a nice blog entry for you, explaining all about my personal feelings on Emeril raking in the big bucks for marketing what is a combination of pretty basic household spices as “Essence” and how to make Ina Garten’s heavenly polenta recipe into something that will not cause Great-Aunt Myrtle to have a heart-attack on the spot and that despite the high fat content of the recipes, I really do find Ina's Barefoot Contessa Family Style Cookbook indispensable, but after putting together tonight’s dinner, all I really want is a kitchen with decent ventilation and a way to see the TV from the stove.


So here’s dinner in a hurry, courtesy of two of the Food Network’s shining stars. You go make something nice to eat. I’m going to go hide under the bed until the Sox are in the lead again.

SHRIMP WITH ESSENCE
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb Shrimp - Peeled and Deveined
~ 1 T "Essence"
Olive Oil
INGREDIENTS FOR ESSENCE:
2 1/2 T paprika
2 T salt
2 T garlic powder
1 T black pepper
1 T onion powder
1 T cayenne pepper
1 T dried oregano
1 T dried thyme
DIRECTIONS: Coat bottom of non-stick pan with olive oil. Turn on heat to medium-high.
Toss the shrimp with "Essence" until evenly covered. Add shrimp to pan. Cook shrimp 3-5 minutes per side until cooked through.

POLENTA (adapted from Barefoot Contessa Family Style)
INGREDIENTS:
1 T butter
1 T olive oil( + enough to coat pan for frying) 
2 cloves minced garlic 
2 C milk
1 C chicken broth
1/2 C water
1/2 t salt 
1 C cornmeal
1/2 C grated cheddar 
flour or cornstarch for dusting (use cornstarch if you'd like it to be gluten free!)
DIRECTIONS:
Heat oil and butter in a saucepan until melted. Add the garlic and cook on low until golden. Add salt. Add milk, chicken broth and water and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and sprinkle in the cornmeal, whisking all the while. I cannot emphasize the "sprinkle" part enough. Anything more will result in big clumps and your arms will get tired trying to whisk them out. So just do it right the first time. After the cornmeal is incorporated, cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat again, stir in cheddar. Pour into a pie plate and smooth the top. Refridgerate until firm and cold. This can take a few hours. So it's not the best weeknight dinner unless you get home early, like I do. But it is great for company, because you can do most of the work ahead. Okay, so once it's cold, slice in wedges, like a pie. Dust each triangle with flour. In a cast-iron pan heat oil. Cook triangles on medium-high to high heat for about 5 minutes per side. Don't overcrowd the pan until you are an expert flipper, or you'll end up with some pretty squished triangles and they will not be pretty. Still tasty, but not pretty. But maybe that's better for you, because you can eat your mistakes and not have to share them with the company. So go ahead. Overcrowd the pan.

Oh and sorry there's no picture, but it didn't show up on my camera. I took one. You can ask Ryan. He sat there patiently not eating waiting for me to shoot the food. But I got nothing. Some days are like that. Even in Australia.