someone's in the kitchen with Carol

Fall has arrived with a vengeance in Minnesota which has renewed my interest in cooking. It is finally cool enough to turn on the stove!

I've been going through cookbooks looking for some new ideas. One, because I'm tired of everything I cook and two, I'm trying to fill up my freezer in preparation for convalescence after knee surgery. While I love "mom" food prepared with time and care, I am much more interested in quick and easy cooking right now.

I went to my cherished cookbook collection and pulled a few books. Many are from Taste of Home which I learned to love at my beloved mother's knee. Better Homes and Gardens has some nice books and even Martha Stewart makes an appearance--I didn't think she did anything easy....

First, Better Homes and Gardens' Fast Fix family food. Colorfully illustrated which is a source of inspiration since everything looks good. I've got the fixings to make Red Tomato Soup (page 371) which has V8 juice and diced tomatoes as its base. I love tomato soup but canned soups are just too salty. Let's hope this one is a keeper--if I can taste the soup through the mountain of crushed crackers I always add.

Then there is Taste of Home's Dinner on a Dime. I've got Noodle Rice Pilaf (page 191) marked in this book. It is also known as homemade Rice-a-Roni. When I was growing up, my neighbor Colleen and I would make the San Francisco treat and sing "Sunrise Sunset" as our prayer since she was Catholic and I am Methodist it worked as a good compromise! (yeah, I know, I was a strange little kid.)

Better Homes and Gardens also produced Everyday Easy Recipes. Since everything is better with bacon, Bacon and Brie Salad (page 219) caught my eye. I first enjoyed that combination on a baked potato in a pub in Salisbury, England, eaten under the watchful eye of a huge deer head.

Taste of Home again with Simple & Delicious Cookbook. On page 70 is Linguine with Garlic Sauce...and a half a pound of bacon, spinach makes it healthy and guiltfree.

The Busy Family Cookbook is also from Taste of Home. It contains 10, 20 and 30 minute recipes. Citrus Garlic Shrimp (page 150) is a 30 minute meal and is served with pasta, which is a food group in my world. Yum.

Last, but never least, is Martha Stewart's Great Food Fast. Page 202 show Stir-fried Chicken Wraps, spicy chicken served wrapped in lettuce. Disgustingly healthy but I want to try it anyway. The Grilled Chocolate Sandwich on page 255 looks tempting too...maybe as a treat after a really good physical therapy session....