Jo's Kitchen

Category: Cooking

  • And now for something completely different

    Name that movie! The blog world has gone pumpkin crazy.  Pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin cake, pumpkin ravioli and even pumpkin macaroni. I love it, but Nick swears he just doesn’t like pumpkin.  Sad face for me. So instead of a pumpkin recipe, I bring you pork! Sweet and sour pork. It’s so sad that…

  • Last and a First

    This is probably the last rhubarb of the season. But this is the first time I’ve ever made pie. I’ve made pie crust before, though not exactly successfully. I Googled for about a week, trying to learn all the secrets of pie crusts. How does one make them flakey? What about perfectly golden brown? How…

  • Rosemary Garlic Olive Oil

    I decided that it would be super fancy to have Rosemary Garlic infused olive oil. You all know how I like fancy. We grew garlic in our garden this year, and I’ve had a pot of Rosemary getting sunny on my windowsill for a few weeks now. All I needed was a vessel for the…

  • Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches

    These are a very special treat. That I’ve been making just about weekly this month. Let me explain. I’m spacey. Flighty. Some may say forgetful, I say I just get excited sometimes. So excited that I forget to take pictures. And then I forget to take pictures of the final product when I make them…

  • Spring Rolls and a Promise

    So yesterday was my birthday. I wish I could tell you that I made myself a cake.  Or cupcakes.  Or these! But I didn’t. Honestly?  I was feeling lazy. Like, oatmeal for dinner lazy. That’s ok, right? I did win at ping pong, and I’m totally going to believe that I won legitimately, and that…

  • Not so much a recipe…

    More of a “why have I not been doing this for years?” post. Remember back when I made caramel sauce? For some strange reason, I haven’t made it since then.  I know, right!? The other day, I decided to make caramel sauce.  I had no idea what I was going to use it for, but…

  • Pasta Salad

    You know how every family has a set of side salads that appear at functions? Like Grandma’s broccoli salad, or Auntie’s guacamole? We’ve got those too. But we have things like “Romance Jello” or “Frog Eye Salad.” We were hilarious as kids. Those side dishes are wonderful, but this one is a little different. It…

  • The Best BBQ Garnish

    Tasty, easy, fast, and cheap! Plus, people seem to really enjoy it. I get requests for this recipe at just about every summer function with my family. It’s macque choux! (Pronounced mock shoe) My sister and I cooked at her house on the 4th of July, and other than heating up the kitchen a bit,…

  • Skillsets

    Yep. Yep.  Mmmhmm. Yeah. I’ve made cakes before. Delicious, moist, fluffy cakes. Sometimes with frosting, sometimes glaze, sometimes with just a dusting of powdered sugar. But I’ve never made a layer cake.  And we all know that presentation isn’t my strong suit. I’ve always wanted to do it–try my hand at making things look as…

  • Eggplant Mykonos

    I got to use my kitchen. It was fantastic. I’m definitely not used to the stove though. It was a learning process last night, but the good news is that I didn’t burn anything! I moved my cutting boards around. Moved them back. Sighed with happiness at all the natural light streaming in from everywhere.…