Ms. Betty Crocker

I always thought I couldn't cook. I used to tell people that my cooking skills were limited to the microwave, and maybe the oven. As long as I knew exactly what temperature and for how long...I could venture to the oven. But other than that, my cooking consisted of microwaveable items.

But lately, I've really gotten into the whole cooking/baking thing! My thing is, if I'm going to cook, I want it to be from scratch! I guess I'm just one of those people. If you're gonna do something...do it all the way! ;)

So in the past few months, I've made Chicken Parmesan (a semi-healthy version using croutons), Chicken alfredo, bourbon chicken, and garlic chicken (with my cousin). I'm starting to notice a "chicken" trend. Lol. I'm not really a meat-eater, so we eat a lot of chicken!

Last night I went way over the top! My mom was talking about chili and cornbread all weekend. It's one of her favorite dishes to make in the cold weather. It's also one of Chris' favorite meals. So I decided that I was going to make both. But, I wasn't going to stop there. I was also going to attempt Pineapple Upside Down cake. That has always been Chris' favorite cake, and in six years...I've never made it for him. The name itself, to me, always suggested that it was too hard.

I googled some recipes. Went to the grocery store. And then came home and did the unthinkable! CLEANED! Yup, you heard right! I swept, vacuumed, & mopped. Washed & folded clothes. And did the dishes! All of the things I loathe doing, I did! I really wanted to surprise Chris with a clean house and home-cooked meal! I was a little Martha Stewart/Betty Crocker.

Of course, Chris had other plans! He wanted to surprise me. All day he kept saying that he and Tata would get into town around 8pm. So I was thinking 8:30ish. Anytime Chris says he'll be somewhere at a certain time...it usually means add 30 or so minutes to whatever he tells you! But, at 6...yes, 6! A whole two and a half hours earlier. He calls and says he'll be home in 30 minutes. He's just dropping off my grandpa, and then heading home. So here I am rushing to finish the cleaning. Get the cake in the oven. Start the chili. And, look semi-presentable! I mean had cleaned all day, so I wasn't looking too hot. Normally I wouldn't care cause Chris loves me regardless of what I look like. But after not seeing him for a whole week, I kinda wanted to look cute when he got home. That didn't happen though. I didn't even have time to change from my pj's.

Bad news is...I didn't get to make the cornbread. I accidently forgot to buy the baking powder at the store & didn't realize until after I had already mixed the eggs, milk, & butter together.

Good news is...my chili came out great! As did the pineapple upside down cake! He loved them both, and said I did a great job cooking, baking, and cleaning! :)

So, I guess I've been wrong all these years. I actually can cook! Now I find myself wanting cooking/baking stuff. Pots, pans, utensils, spices. The whole sha-bang! Hopefully, Santa realizes this and gets me lots of stuff for my kitchen. :)