So that's what it is supposed to taste like....

Kitkat puts me to shame on a daily basis. Without fail, he manages to post to his blog, sometimes, more than once. As I will soon be climbing up the side of Kilimanjaro, I will be taking an even longer than usual break from blogging. So this is ‘Countdown to Kilimanjaro’ week ~ and I will post something every day.

9:56 PM on the Monday is not a very auspicious start to be sure, and this has nothing to do with climbing or mountains. Rather, it is about food, something I hear I will be challenged in finding much that is truly appetizing.

Recently, I tried two new recipes. One, polenta, as it was called for in a recipe and the other, Yorkshire pudding, just for the heck of it.

My first attempt at polenta was less than successful. Kitkat and Fauntleroy have played guinea pig for me more than once, with about a 99% success rate. There were some unfortunate grilled plantains, an undercooked pork loin and now polenta that looked liked mashed potatoes and didn’t taste near as good.

I followed The Joy of Cooking recipe to the letter and I guess it turned out as it was supposed to. Surely it must taste better than that as I have seen it in stores and on menus. If it tasted like that, who would eat it? I was determined to try it again, and at the suggestion of epicurious, substituted half of the water with chicken stock and added ¼ c. of grated parmesan cheese.

And rather than serve it right out of the pan, I made a loaf with it and then sliced it before serving. Under boeuf bourguignon it was tasty indeed.

As for the Yorkshire pudding, I am kicking myself for not making this sooner. So easy, so much butter and so good!

Rather than a loaf pan though, I opted for a large muffin pan. It makes all the difference in the world to heat the pan in the oven first, place your drippings (or butter) in the bottom and then pour in the batter.

If you happen to have any leftover next morning, a quick reheat, more butter a dollop of jam and you have a pseudo popover to be proud of.

I don’t expect to find afternoon tea waiting for me at the summit, well, actually I do, but I’m not holding my breath. I will be taking a couple comforts from home though ~ loose leaf tea, a pot of clotted cream and some nice chocolate. Just in case, I want to have something tasty for a last meal.