I know I haven’t really had much to put over here lately, but I haven’t been cooking either! I’ve bought lunch at work every day this week, and I’ve either gotten dinner out (mmm… Subway…) or mooched food off of family pretty much every night. I haven’t gone to renew my license plates yet, so I don’t know how much/if I have money for grocery shopping. There were some things that I really wanted out of this week’s grocery ad, so hopefully I have at least a little bit of money to go to the store with.

Don’t worry though, I’ve still been looking for ideas, and things to make. Definitely speaks to being a fat kid that most of the recipes that jump out at me are desserts! Don’t forget, I’m accepting recipes from you guys in the Recipe Challenge.

As I mentioned in the very first post of this blog, I’m still learning to cook. But I’m trying to add to the list of things that I can make, and that’s where you come in. It’s called the Recipe Challenge. It’s where you challenge me to make one of your recipes. The recipe can be anything you want it to be– a favorite meal or dessert, a simple meal you think I might like, or something you’re just dying to see me attempt (so you can laugh at me, you naughty reader!).
I’ve put up a submission form on the Recipe Challenge page, so you can submit a recipe to me that way. Just put the recipe ingredients and directions into the message field. Or you can email it to me at jenn{at}jenncooks.com if that is easier for you. Just make sure you include all of the necessary instructions!
So come on, put me to the test! If there’s a good enough response, the Recipe Challenge will eventually be made into a contest with prizes!

Special thanks to Loretta at Just Not Martha for so graciously letting me steal her idea!

The plan for today is to balance my checkbook so I know how much money I’m working with, and to put together a shopping list for the grocery store. I can’t even make a peanut butter sandwich with the ingredients I have on hand!
Grocery shopping is always a challenge for me because I don’t plan ahead as to what to make for meals. That tends to leave me a little lost as to what I need to buy. I make a list out of the ads or things I know I’m out of, but I have to make as comprehensive a list as possible. If I don’t, I will walk up and down the aisles and come home with things for one meal, and a bunch of junk food! It’s also challenging for me because I live by myself, so a lot of things go bad before I get the chance to use them, and that’s frustrating for me.
Today I’m going to get the ingredients for Johnny Marzetti and Taco Salads. I know, Taco Salads aren’t exactly branching out, but they save and heat up really well. That’s important when you’re living by yourself– you always end up with a lot of leftovers!