Dill Pickle and Peanut Butter Sandwiches... and Eggs

I've been an experimenter since I was a kid. In elementary school I tried my hand at baking a cake from scratch - without a recipe. Had I used baking powder, the cake might not have been flat as a pancake. In junior high I discovered my love for dill pickle & peanut butter sandwiches... or, if I was feeling really clever, peanut butter with cake sprinkles sandwiches. Throughout high school my friends scoffed at my love for green olive & cream cheese croissant sandwiches which often frequented my lunch sack. A delicacy, in my opinion.

Along with my experiments & odd taste buds, I am also capable of being a complete disaster in the kitchen. On most days I can follow a recipe pretty decently... most days. There was the day when my cousin Julie and I put two CUPS of salt into the gingerbread cookie dough rather than two teaspoons (we were eight I think, and it was probably my fault - she is a fantastic cook). The lovable men with cute buttons who are supposed to have that sweet gingerbread taste came out of the oven tasting like they'd been immersed in the ocean. On another tragic occasion, I attempted to make low fat muffins which called for self rising flour. We had all-purpose - which means it functions with multiple purposes right? Wrong. The muffins looked like play-doh.

Then of course, there are the days when the recipe is followed closely, but my clumsiness (or stupidity) takes over and peanut butter is splattered all over the entire kitchen because I tried mixing the peanut butter with the wrong hand blender (my mom might still find some behind the refrigerator or in the lazy susan), or the ground turkey I've just made and put into a plastic container is suddenly sizzling because the plastic container, which I brilliantly placed on the previously hot burner, has now melted completely through so that the meat is reheating and a funny plastic odor fills the room (hey I'm getting used to electric - and yes, this did happen two nights ago. ground turkey everywhere).

Believe it or not... I do have my fine moments when experiments are a success and a recipe is followed to the "t" without any mishaps. For instance, I have been on an egg kick for the past few years. I love eggs - well, egg-whites - and one of my favorite things to do is create more ways to use eggs in my meals. In college, my roommate Jackie and I came up with the 310 Scramble: egg whites with diced ham, avocado, cheese, spinach, tomatoes, bell peppers, and garlic salt. This particular breakfast was served at least three times a week with either an english muffin or corn tortilla, and always with coffee. We also enjoyed sharing a large artichoke dipped in garlic butter sauce served with raspberry mochas (don't ask why - but for some reason the flavors really complemented each other)

With adjusting to our family economy (aka - dirt poor), we have discovered newfound creativity in the kitchen with leftovers. Lately, I have enjoyed fixing an egg white omelet filled with JD's Puerto Rican beans (which have green olives in them for flavor), rice, hot sauce, and plenty of cheese... the Groves omelet. JD prefers more of an egg bake: a bowl stacked with rice, beans, cheese, two or three fried eggs on top, and more cheese... eggs a la' JD . I might add, these meals may be served for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner...


Now that you are probably completely freaked out and wondering if I do much of the cooking for the family, it will give you great relief to know that JD is the chef and we eat quite well when he wears the apron. If I do attempt to prepare a meal, however, JD keeps a close eye on me until he can't handle it any more and flees to the living room while he waits for dinner to be served...

Bon Appetit?