This post is part of The Daily Post 2/12/2018.

I love this word conjure because it helps me to conjure up recipes, blog post ideas, and the best thing is I am also able to conjure up many different routes to take my seven dogs on their walks. But of the above I must say that conjuring up new recipes makes me feel like Winnifred Sanderson from the movie Hocus-Pocus played by Bette Midler.

When I was a teenager I moved out at the age of 17 and of course at that point if I was going to eat I had to teach myself to cook. Over the years as I have grown older, I am now 51, I have learned to conjure up and cook many more things in my repertoire. I can say that one of the things I like to do is make soups. Now most people have cookbooks which I do, or recipes that have been handed down for decades from grandma’s and aunts. I do have all of those, the only thing I use a recipe for is my banana bread because if you don’t follow it just right it will not come out correctly.

Often when I make my soups whether it be my cream of potato, my chicken and vegetable, or just a vegetable soup I tend to conjure it up in a very large pot like Winnifred because I also share with my neighbors. The other things that I’m known for are the different marinades that I conjure up for pork, chicken, beef and vegetables. I am a firm believer that you can use soda as a marinade on anything. My go to sodas are Dr Pepper, root beer, and any citrus type such as Sprite and orange soda. I also use fruit juices – orange juice, lemon juice and some of the kind of blend juices like pomegranate orange or something like that for pineapple orange juice. The marinades I conjure up begin with the base of either soda or juice and then whatever goes in goes in. I do have one particular spice blend that goes in and on every thing. It is Bolner’s Fiesta Uncle Chris’ Gourmet Steak Seasoning. It is absolutely the best and adds the best umami to anything you are conjuring up in your kitchen.

So as I was writing this I asked my husband Cruz, what is your favorite meal that I have made you over the years? Now mind you, this Wednesday on Valentine’s day we will celebrate our 17th anniversary. His first answer was pineapple upside down cake. I said that’s not a meal that’s dessert. He said it falls into a meal category. I said no, what is your favorite meal that I make you? He said meatloaf and mashed potatoes. That brought a smile to my face because this is another thing that I never used a recipe for to conjure up my moist delicious meatloaf. Sometimes I flip the switch and do something unusual. I like to add chorizo into my meatloaf. I have even made a Florentine meatloaf where the spinach was mixed in and baked in the meatloaf, this one was absolutely delicious although it was one time Cruz did not like it so much – but his mama did.

And yes, I am known for my pineapple upside down cake even though I do use a box mix and it comes out more delicious and does not taste like a normal box pineapple upside down cake. The secret is don’t use oil, use butter instead and no water as is on the box, but use the pineapple juice from your slices and Sprite or some other citrus soda.

So yes I do like to conjure up delicious dishes and desserts in my kitchen and I tell you the best feeling is when my mother -in-law calls me after she gets home from picking up dinner from our house and tells me how good a particular dinner was for her. If Cruz eats seconds, then I also know I have hit the jackpot with dinner!!

This is what is in My Rattled Cage today! Thanks for stopping by!