CEiMB

I have been a Craving Ellie slacker lately, but I promise it hasn't been intentional slackage. I actually made the recipes for the last two weeks -- I just never posted them. However, I didn't make the lobster rolls that Duff, of Lonely Sidecar, chose for this week. Do go visit her blog, though, and not just to check out the recipe. Lonely Sidecar is easily one of my very favorite blogs. Duff is a fantastic, and interesting, blogger -- and some of her posts leave me in fits of laughter. Last week I thought that I would blog about the breakfast cookies and the vegetable cheese strata on Thursday, but I ended up not blogging on vacation. I don't know why I thought I would, actually, but I really thought I would.


First up, the vegetable cheese strata. Now, I made a strata last March when I was eating down my fridge and I remembered why while I was making this one. I don't like broccoli, it's so cliche, I know, but I dislike it nonetheless. I'm so-so on button mushrooms, and as I had some other veggies around, I decided to swap. I made my strata with some blanched farmers market green beans and some frozen chopped spinach. I used some chicken sausage that I had on hand in place of the ham, and I used Seduction Bread from Whole Foods (am I the only person who loves this bread?). When it was all said and done, I'd cleared my fridge of:

• Dijon mustard
• green beans
• spinach
• parmesan cheese
• shredded cheese blend
• chicken sausage
• eggs
• milk

And this was great! I love having a nice, clean refrigerator when I leave to go out of town. And, best of all, the strata was delicious. I loved the addition of sundried tomatoes -- yum!

On to the breakfast cookies. I was really nervous about making these cookies. I chose Sweet Melissa's breakfast cookies when it was my turn to pick the Sweet Melissa recipe, and I didn't like them at all. I actually threw most of them away, and I almost never throw my naked goods away unless I think they're absolutely without redeeming qualities. Add to that expereince the fact that these are made with carrot baby food and I was pretty much determined to sit this one out. But, then I read that you could substitute apple sauce and I thought maybe I'd make 1/2 of a recipe. Then I saw that a recipe only makes 12 cookies and I decided that I'd make the whole thing. I made the recipe with KA white whole wheat flour, Special K High Protein cereal (it seems similar to bran flakes to me), and dried cranberries. I am so glad I made these! They are absolutely delicious, and they're a wonderful breakfast solution. They taste healthy . . . but not too healthy. I know that I'll make them again!

This ends my CEiMB catch-up posts and I shoud be back to normal by next week!