Foodies at Home: Epic Feast Weekend!

That's right... Epic Feast (yes, that is absolutely an Office reference) weekend! For some reason, I got the cooking bug, and wanted to have some fun in the kitchen. I have been working a lot lately, and Paul has been the primary dinner preparer... so I decided it was my turn, and that is was going to be unforgettable. And, that it was. I scoured my Google Reader starred items for recipes I have tagged over the past few months and chose a few that I thought would be a little bit challenging and would blow us both out of the water. And, I think I won!

ROUND 1: Roasted Butternut and Sweet Potato Lasagna


This one grabbed my attention immediately. But, took a little convincing on Paul's end, since those are not his favorite ingredients. (And, note... I used regular lasagna noodles, not whole wheat. That was our compromise). But, boy are we BOTH glad we gave this one a try. It is rich, sinful almost, creamy, savory, there is a touch of sweetness. It is so complex, yet so comforting.


I am pretty well aware of the fact, that this is likely in no way, shape or form good for you. But, the nutrients from the squash and sweet potatoes have to be worth something. There is a lot of cheese. But, man, for a special occasion or dinner party, this dish is worth the time (which wasn't too much) and will certainly impress. I stuck to the recipe pretty closely (except for the noodles) and didn't so much measure the salt, pepper, and nutmeg, but this was perfection. The one hiccup... I didn't buy the specifically "no boil" noodles, and some of the noodles were a bit tough, but it was totally a forgivable issue.

ROUND 2: Roast Chicken and Herb Waffles

How could you go wrong with this combination? Chicken, great. Waffles, awesome. Herbs, fantastic. Put them all together, and... PERFECTION. Again, I only went slightly off recipe (I stuffed the chicken with sliced lemon and garlic cloves and put the lemon juice and spices under the skin as well as on it), but mostly, I stayed the course. Oh, and the chicken needed to roast for WAY longer (at least 30 minutes) than the recipe said. So, be prepared for that. In other words... don't start this when you are starving. It will take a while.

But, I have to say, this meal was utter success. The chicken was tender, juicy, full of flavor (the skin was a bit (OK, REALLY) salty, but we shouldn't eat that anyway, right? You could absolutely tell that the lemon and garlic from inside the chicken infused it with flavor. The waffles were the right blend of sweet (like a waffle should be) but savory as well from the herbs. I used parsley, chives, Greek oregano and some rosemary for ours. All fresh. I could probably have let them cook a little longer, but I was ready to eat by that point. We ate this with Dijon mustard. Grab a little chicken with the fork, then a piece of waffle, then dip it in the mustard... SO GOOD. And, it really wasn't that difficult to make.

And, I am not kidding, but Paul said this while we were eating it... "This is possibly one of the best meals I have ever had!" (And he is probably really excited that I actually posted this picture!)

ROUND 3: Herb Waffles with Marscapone Bacon Glaze/Spread

OK, that's right... there were waffles left. So we decided to eat them for brunch on Sunday. But, what could we do to make them more brunch-y? How about add the frosting from the Bacony Breakfast Cupcakes we love so much? It's marscapone, maple syrup, and bacon. How could those things NOT work with these herb waffles.

And, it sure did! Holy cow! Perhaps one of my favorite brunches I have ever had! We served it with sliced strawberries (so there was some redeeming quality to the meal) and chowed down. I maybe over did it a little (this girl CAN NOT put away three waffles... just so you know) but every bite was heavenly. And, we didn't have to re-make waffles. We just froze them overnight then Paul toasted them in the toaster. YAY!

Round 4: Roast Chicken WITH Roasted Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Lasagna

I know, I know. We are taking this a bit far. But, it was Epic Feast Weekend! For dinner on Sunday... the leftover chicken with the leftover lasagna. And, they worked. Well together! So, I totally recommend making all of these things in one weekend! And, I think I only gained a pound or two! :)