Menu Monday + My first cheesecake!

You may have noticed that there was no Menu Monday last Monday. Oops! With my trip to DC the weekend before, our whole meal plan was all out of whack. And this week with Thanksgiving, we're going away again. So instead of posting this week's meals, here's the low down on what we've been eating for the past week...

My Meals:

• Crab Quesadillas and Guacamole
• Cheese and Pepper Pasta (Cacio e Pepe) inspired by Iowa Girl Eats and original recipe here

J's Meals:

• PW's Red Pepper Risotto
• PW's Drip Beef Sandwiches (these were SOOOO good!)
• Gnocchi and homemade pesto (this was our "easy" meal for the week)

And now for my cheesecake! Two years ago (from today!) I starred this recipe from Pioneer Woman in my google reader. I even asked my mother in law to buy me a spring form pan for my birthday so I could make it. And here we are two years later and I have made my first cheesecake in that pan!


This recipe was a bit more work than I had bargained for, and while it didn't turn out "pretty," it was certainly yummy! My cheesecake was full of cracks and caved in a little in the middle, but who cares. It was tasty!

*I did see on The Neely's today that it helps if you place the spring form pan in a roasting pan full of water. This way the cheesecake is cooked more evenly and there are no cracks...interesting idea. I might try it on my next attempt at a cheesecake.