Light and Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

Okay, I know that I wrote about pancakes last week, but I have a pancake problem. Since it is Saturday morning I feel like it is an appropriate time to talk about pancakes once again. This way you will be prepared for Sunday morning. And with these pancakes, your Sunday will start off just right.

I was going back and forth about posting a breakfast, dinner or dessert this morning. Actually, I was planning on posting this yesterday, but then there was bowling, and I got distracted. Let it be said that I am a mediocre bowler. This is very sad, especially since boyfriend is such an excellent bowler.

I progress the same way every time I go bowling. I start off pretty bad, generally keeping the ball in the center of the lane, but only knocking down five or six pins. Toward the end of the first game I am in my bowling groove and nothing can take me down. This was especially true last night when I picked up twenty-nine pins in the last frame.

After bowling for an hour or so I tend to start to lose focus. When bowling with a large group of people I get distracted. I’m like a puppy, running around talking to different people. Since last night was supposed to be a meet and greet, I felt I was doing my job by chatting up everyone. But this butterflying was affecting my game. I peaked in the last frame of my first game and then steadily went downhill. First place in the first game, second last in the second game.

But if my boss asks, our group crushed the opposition. It was a bowling pin massacre. The other groups were amazed at our bowling talent and showered us with confetti and champagne at the end of the games. To celebrate, today I made pancakes.

White Chocolate Cheesecake

There are some days that just aren’t going to work out. When you walk out of your house in the morning to discover it’s colder than you planned for. Shiver, shiver all the way to work… Or when your work project decides that it is going to fail and disappoint you. Grumble, grumble at your desk… Or when you find yourself wishing doom and destruction on your coworkers, just to spread the misery around. This has turned out to be one of those days.

If you were to happen upon me today, depending on the time, you would have found a sad person, a crazy person or even a vengeful person. The crazy person period of time lasted longer than my coworkers appreciated, I’m sure of it. But sometimes you just go off the deep end and you need to take a lap or two before you climb back out.

Luckily things seemed to turn themselves around toward the end of the day. My boss was understanding and we devised a new plan of attack. My coworkers decided not to commit me and waited out my cuckoo crazy hours. And I got a package from UPS! (Doesn’t that always cheer you up?) And on top of all that, I got to come home to this cheesecake.

When I read this recipe I knew I was in trouble. Cheesecake is rich to begin with, so adding a half pound of white chocolate would only make it decadent. Delicious. Very, very heavy! This cheesecake has to weigh at least 5 pounds once completed! I don’t even want to do the calorie count, I just know that I have to run the stairs of my building before AND after I have a slice. I brought half of the cake to work to get it out of my house! Luckily it freezes well, so now I have half a cheesecake (in lovely personal-size slices) in my freezer. No, you can’t come over.

White Chicken Chili

It seems as though fall quickly took over, leaving summer just a memory. It has been so long since I lived in the Northeast that I forgot how quickly those last days of summer disappear. Being caught off guard by a warm day waning into a cool evening. Going to sleep with the windows open and waking up with a cool, crisp air in the house. The sun dipping low earlier and earlier in the day.

I never want to let go of these last few days of summer, but I love these early days of fall. It is this time of year that I want to be able to enjoy the day, outside, in the sun. Yet I also want to bundle up at night, huddled under the covers. I want to eat ripe peaches with warm apple cider. Can I still wear sandals with my long-sleeved shirts?

On a recent cool night I decided it was just fallish enough for chili. I love to make chili. It is the perfect combination of light and filling, ideal for this in between time. I like to make my chili with turkey and cannellini beans, rather than beef and kidney beans. A white chili has a milder flavor that I like to kick up with lots of spices.

This recipe can be doubled or halved, it is incredibly versatile. I’ve made it with chicken, with more beans, with seasoned tomatoes, even with hot peppers. It freezes well, so you can make a big batch and save half for later. So bubble up a pot of chili, pop some corn bread in the oven and get the sour cream ready. Fall is coming, but hopefully this will help make the transition a little smoother.