Corn and Potato Chowder

I've been trying to cook more meals at home. The goal has been to make something that I can eat for dinner and take to work for lunch (because I can eat Lean Cuisine every day, but my cooking is definitely better!).

This recipe says it's six servings. I tend to think that it's closer to 3. It's still only 318 calories for a double-serving, so I don't feel guilty.

Corn and Potato Chowder

Ingredients
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 russet potatoes, diced
1 tbsp butter or margarine
2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1 cup skim evaporated milk
1 cup corn (if canned, drained)
pinch salt
pinch pepper(optional - 1 tbsp red pepper flakes)

Directions
Melt butter over med-hi heat in a large pot,
Saute onions for 6-9 min, until clear/cooked through
Add potatoes and broth, bring to boil
Reduce heat to low and simmer partially covered for 15-20 min.
Add evaporated milk, corn, salt pepper (and red pepper), and keep over low for another 5 min. to heat through.

Now, there are no pictures this time, because I wasn't paying attention. First, I burned the sauteing onions. Then I burned the potatoes and broth (by keeping it way too high and boiling off all the broth). But I wasn't ready to admit failure, so I just added more broth and scraped the bottom of the pot. I probably shouldn't have scraped the bottom. My entire apartment smells like that smokey bar-b-cue flavor, and my soup has it too. And the soup looks... ashy. It's got a few giant flecks of charred remains, and the whole thing has a grey tint. but honestly, it still tastes pretty good (once you pick out the giant black charred remains of potatoes).

Gingersnaps

I just realized that I never posted pictures of the completed Christmas gingersnaps! I ended up with 30-some boxes of a dozen cookies each. I found these perfect boxes in the last week before Christmas - they were super cheap, and the perfect measurements (4x4x5).. Yay! So, I wrapped the cookies individually in wax paper, sealed each with a sicker from etsy, and stacked them nicely in their boxes. I was more proud than I ought to have been. :)

Best New Year's Eve EVA!

I got engaged!!! So, it looks like most of my blogging energy will be over on StepfordWedding for at least the next 8 months. I've already been slacking off, but I think it's time to officially withdraw from all the great baking contests and challenges in which I was participating.

Of course, I'll be spending a lot of time on wedding planning, but I'm also trying to pay off my (other than student loan) debt and lose some weight before the wedding. And it'll be easier to accomplish both of these goals if I do a little less baking.