Kitchen helper

New favorite past time? Shopping at the grocery store. A lot. Last time we were there looking for hoagie rolls for our Italian Beef Sandwiches (more on that to come later) I gravitated toward the clearance section.....and look at what I found!

Isn't she awesome? I know!! My very own My Little Pony. She has a bowl full of batter, half a dozen eggs, a carton of milk, and a pie in a box (which isn't in the picture because it's too big and flies off the top of the microwave when I open the cabinet doors.)

On to the food from the past week and a half!

I have been trying to branch out a little from my usual chicken and rice, spaghetti, and taco dinners. Which I'm sure Jeff appreciates because I've actually been buying beef! Go Amy, go Amy, go Amy.

London Broil with a fresh herb butter:

Homemade Bread:

In honor of World Nutella Day last Friday we had homemade bread with Nutella:

We had 3 other couples over for Italian one night last week. It was lots of fun, we ate a ton of food, and started off with this delicious caesar salad. YUM!

Then we ate lasagna. It was so good, there was only one serving left....you know, the one no one will touch because it's the last piece....
Jeff didn't mind eating it for lunch the next day! He said it was just as good reheated. :)

Valentine's Day!!! I love Valentine's Day! We had such a delicious dinner.

Started off with this! Cheesy artichoke and tomato squares. They are amazing. I found the recipe in a Pampered Chef cookbook that my Grandma gave me when we were out in Texas visiting her in December.

Now onto the entree! Chicken Tikka Masala with saffron rice and homemade naan bread. Indian food is one of my new obsessions. I love the flavors and the simplicity, and the colors. We both really enjoyed this and decided it's going on the list of staple dinners.

A picture of our V-day dinner table. Look at those lillies!

And last but not least, Italian Beef Sandwiches with munster cheese and giardiniera. Jeff was in meat heaven. Since we are going to be in Chicago in less than a month I figured we better get to practicing our 'Chicago Lean'.

What's that? You don't know what the Chicago Lean is? Blasphemous! From italianbeef.com:

The Chicago Lean (a step-by-step guide)

Put your sandwich on the counter and stand in front of it, with your chest about 12 inches from the edge of the counter.

Lean forward so your chest is at a 45-degree angle to the counter (Note: if you’re wearing a tie, make sure it’s tucked inside your shirt)

Pick up your sandwich, resting your elbows on the counter

Angle the sandwich at a 45-degree angle to the counter, with the top end towards your mouth. (Imagine making a triangle: the counter is the bottom, your head and chest are one side, the sandwich is another)

Eat and enjoy. For best results, keep the sandwich wrapped in the wax paper it most likely came in, unwrapping it as you go.

I think we are ready to go to Chicago now. I know I am ready for the food! I can't wait.