Roasted Pear Scones with Chocolate Chips

So, it may seem like I'm not the most devoted blogger. As mentioned before, I'm not really getting off to the best start, considering that I started the blog about 6 months ago and have only posted... four times? Yikes! However, it is true that I may not be the best blog poster, but I'm still very excited about this blog and am constantly thinking of new ideas for it. It is truly a wonderful, creative outlet and a way for me to challenge myself not only in the kitchen, but also with writing and photography. But being the perfectionist and optimist that I am, it has been a challenge for me to realize that it's not going to start off looking like Smitten Kitchen (someday!), and that I need to allow myself the time to learn about blogging and let my blog evolve.

Over winter break, I sat down with my dad and we figured out a way to tackle my lighting situation, or lack there of. I live in a great little house with my roommates, and our kitchen has lots of space, but the lighting is atrocious for taking decent photographs. After a quick trip to Ikea and the craft store (let's face it, there is no such thing as a quick trip to Ikea or the craft store) I can finally say that the lighting situation is ten times better and now I feel a lot more confident about the resulting pictures. So without further ado... 

Roasted Pear Scones w/ Chocolate Chips

Recipe adapted from: Smitten Kitchen

So if I had been posting regularly, like a good little blogger should, then you'd know that I really love cooking with fruit, and especially pears. I love pairing the sweet, crispy pears (no pun intended) with savory foods, like a rich gruyère cheese. This recipe isn't necessarily an example of that, but it's delicious nonetheless!

This recipe was pretty straight forward, the only thing that I might stress is making sure to get really firm pears, because if the pears are too juicy it can effect the dough. I also had some chocolate chips at home, so I used that instead of chocolate chunks. 

Steak Tacos with Chipotle Cherry Salsa and Caramelized Onions

So... obviously I haven't started off as the best blogger. I've only posted one blog in the few months since I started the blog. You know, life gets busy! And it gets even busier in the summer. There are place to go, things to do, and countless episodes of Grey's Anatomy to be watched. But, I have been cooking... a lot! And I'm really, really enjoying it. Cooking new recipes is always fun, yet the ones I've chosen so far are also very challenging and I'm learning so much! It's also been specifically great to cook for my roomies---three males that are always eager for a meal! 

I've decided that since I'm not coming up with any recipes on my own (not yet, that is), I won't give full instructions on how to cook the recipe. Instead, I'll have the link of where I found the recipe attached to the post and I'll include a few thoughts on how I personally made the meal---my challenges, things I did differently, etc. 

Steak Tacos with Chipotle Cherry Salsa and Caramelized Onions

Recipe adapted from: The Partial Ingredient

For this recipe, I made steak tacos with a chipotle cherry salsa. It's probably best to make this when cherries are in season, otherwise you'll have to dish out quite the pretty penny to pay for all the cherries you'll need. This recipe also asked that you use a food processor to blend the cherries completely. That's great and all, but I like my salsa a little chunky, so I didn't blend it as much as they asked. 

This was actually a fairly easy recipe, however my biggest challenge was the steak. I opted for a less expensive steak that was about 1/2 an inch think... not something I should have done. The steak ended up cooking a little too quickly---I also learned that my new stove cooks a little hotter than I'm used to---and the meat ended up being a little over cooked. But alas, I am determined to cook steaks well! My grandma makes the best steaks EVER, so I've been picking her brain for all the details. I'm planning on making steaks later this week, so fingers crossed that they turn out better!