♦  CatChat – Misty previews what you’ll find in each section this week  ♦

Tidbits – kitchen savings, sheet pan brunches {M > “one has baaaacon”}, perfect & easy corn on the cob  ♦  CS Marketplace Spotlight – pinch bowls {M >  “really, not punch”}  ♦  Featured Recipe – easy pizza fondue & dippers {M > “wonder if my paw qualifies as a dipper”}  ♦  Tip – slow cooker hints  ♦  Barbara’s Week – recipe trove, kicking up bean soup, using up pasta sauce

Misty’s History  ♦  Misty’s Gallery 

♦  Tidbits  ♦ 

Newsy, schmoozy stuff for cooks

♦  The latest issue of the always content-rich AARP Bulletin, borrowed it from a friend {uh huh}, featured 99 Great Ways to Save. Here are the ones that find a place in the kitchen: SnipSnap {not checked out} for coupon storage, 1/4 t baking soda in 1/4 c water for indigestion, if you’re in this silver category get restaurant discounts at TheSeniorList.com and for everyone Restaurant.com, compare unit pricing on grocery items, host brunches instead of dinners, buy wine by the case.  AARP Bulletin

♦  Ready for a sheet pan brunch? In a story credited to both Food & Wine and Real Simple, Grace Elkus treats us to the toss-together prep for a garlicky potato and veggie hash topped with fried eggs. Bonus 1: her suggestions for some variations. Bonus 2: a link to her sheet pan pancakes. Bonus 3: a link to her sheet pan egg sandwiches.  Brunch is ready

♦  Woohoo, corn season is upon us. Here are five ways the “Today” show says you can “cook corn on the cob perfectly – the easy way.” Recipes too, including one of my favorites, Mexican Street Corn.  Corn-ucopia

That beautiful corn image {and judging by the bright green relish, sport peppers, and NO ketchup, what sure looks like Chicago dogs} is by jeffreyw

♦  CS Marketplace Spotlight  ♦ 

Pinch bowls – a typo? Nope!

That’s what I thought when I first came across the term, having no clue what adorable dishes I was about to discover. Pinch bowls! also called portion cups and the more familiar ramekins, even just small or little bowls.

They’re diminutive vessels for the kind of stuff where you’ll want just a “pinch” salt, pepper, herbs, spices. But of course the uses go well beyond that.

Serve your guests individual dishes of nuts, sauces, dressings, dips, mousse, or use for pre-measured recipe ingredients, a mise en place.

Btw, the Amazon pages shows somewhat larger bowls as well, but the genuine article is typically about 1.5-4 ounces. They can be stoneware, porcelain, glass, stainless steel, silicone. All quite pretty.

Just a Pinch {shown}  ♦  Pinch bowls on Amazon  ♦  CS Marketplace

Also at CS Marketplace “Especially For Readers” & “Especially for Dog Lovers”

Dog {& Cat!} Lovers Extra – Oh these are so cute, so grin-inducing, and thanks once more to Reader’s Digest for bringing us a lovely highlight of our day. At least one of these pix had to have been taken just before some holiday havoc and another calls to mind a classic episode of “King of Queens.”  Fun & funny cat & dog photos

♦  Featured Recipe  ♦

Party on the weekend or perk up a weeknight

. . . with this fun dish. After finding that slow cooker recipe for the July 20 taco chili recipe, kept the book out to see what other goodies it might offer. And here’s one I think we all can like.

It’s not 5-ingredient like that previous one, but just about as easy. And so full of flavor! Thinking leftovers – if any! – could be poured right over cooked pasta, either leftovers if you used some as dippers or a fresh batch.

You might remember from before this book is available in paperback and spiral bound. Rates 4 stars on Amazon.

Supreme Pizza Fondue

10 servings

4 oz Italian sausage

Small onion, finely chopped

Garlic clove, minced

28-oz jar meatless spaghetti sauce

1 c slice mushrooms

2/3 c chopped pepperoni or Canadian style bacon

1 t dried basil or oregano, crushed

1/2 c sliced pitted ripe olives {optional}

1/4 c chopped sweet green pepper {optional}

Remove casings from sausage, if present. In a large skillet cook the sausage, onion and garlic {see Notes} until meat is brown. Drain off fat

In a 3 1/2-4 qt slow cooker combine spaghetti sauce, mushrooms, pepperoni or Canadian bacon, and basil or oregano. Stir in the sausage mixture.

Cover and cook on low heat setting for 3 hours. If desired stir in the olives and/or green pepper. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 15 minutes more.

Notes: For my personal taste would probably use a bit more garlic, and also I generally don’t add this ingredient until the other ingredients  – in this case sausage and onions – are pretty well cooked and then just for about a minute . . . I see no reason if you’re so inclined you couldn’t add both basil and oregano . . . suggested dippers shown in the recipe: focaccia or Italian bread cubes, mozzarella or provolone cubes, cooked tortellini or ravioli – could be interesting to dip in a small cube each of the bread and cheese on the same fondue fork. 

“Better Homes & Gardens Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes”

Other top rated slow cooker cookbooks

♦  Tip  ♦

Here are some more slow cooker hints from the cookbook

“During the holidays {or any time you’re hosting a party – bjn}, oven and cooktop space fills up quickly. Use your slow cooker to make the festive desserts in this book. Slow cookers provide a handy way to bake breads and cook vegetable side dishes. Also use slow cookers for potlucks, Carry side dishes and desserts in a cooker to the party; then plug it into keep food warm.”

♦  A Peek at My Week  ♦

♦  Needed a chocolate fix and lo and behold, a part bag of chocolate chips in the fridge. Hellooooo. But this also served as a reminder to me that I thought I’d pass along to you. It was inspired by seeing the recipe for cc cookies on the package, which is the one I always use. The reminder was that a lot of food packaging has recipes that we might be overlooking instead of looking over – because who knows better how to get the most out of an ingredient than the folks who made it. I’ll sure be paying closer attention.

♦  Two unplanned ingredients ended up kicking up some leftover bean soup. I needed a little more liquid but because there was also ham in the soup it was already salty enough, so that put broth or bouillon out of the running. Instead added a bit of cream. Enough liquid then, but had slightly diluted the flavor. Whether it was the common color or what, grabbed some cocoa powder {not mix}, stirred it in and had some mighty fine bean soup, could be in the new recipe now.

♦  Am I the only one that makes too much food resulting in an ongoing inventory of leftovers??? So in this case that was pasta sauce. No problem, picked up an eggplant to make some parm. Btw I never bread and fry the eggplant slices but rather brush them with olive oil and bake them. Oops, seeing them on the cookie sheet made clear it wasn’t enough for the sauce.

So . . .  sliced an onion and sprinkled that among the eggplant, along with however many garlic-stuffed olives were left in the jar and into the oven {afterward, sliced the olives}. Then layered that with the sauce and Italian mixed cheese – and what the heck, already upset the usual traditions, so included a layer of feta too – topped it off with some dried basil, olive oil, parmesan. Baked as usual and, well OK then, a fine Mediterranean-ized surprise!

Cook with passion and a party spirit, whether for a crew, or for two, or just for you