As I sit at my computer, I am so mad. I forgot my camera when we went out to dinner at our local Chinese/Japanese/Sushi joint known as FU'S. I usually take Moe, Larry and Curly there when The Husband goes out of town for the night. If he is eating out, so are we. Every time you drive by the restaurant it is open. I don't think the owners or workers ever sleep.
No Thank You Boy has been branching out of his food cocoon lately. He tried my California Roll a couple weeks ago. Tonight besides his basic Chicken and Broccoli (always good with the broccoli cooked just right and tender pieces of chicken), he got a Dragon Roll. I wish I had a picture to show -- it is really pretty. Barbecued eel and cucumber wrapped with sushi rice, nori and avocado. It is topped with a sticky teriyaki sauce and caviar. One of our family favorites because it is kid-friendly. He enjoyed it except for the avocado - too squishy for him.
I always get the Sushi Dinner which is a deal for $13.95. Miso soup and a lame salad with ginger carrot dressing to start. 6 pieces of sushi (2 salmon, 2 tuna and 2 I don't know what) and a California Roll complete the meal. Since we don't eat out that much, I love getting this dinner. a little hot saki makes for a happy Mom. The sushi making dudes (I'm sure they have a more professional sounding name)were making some really cool looking stuff tonight. Next time I am going to try something new. My Middle One got an Egg roll and Beef Lo Mein. My Oldest got Chicken Fried Rice. Both the Lo Mein and the Fried Rice are HUGE portions, which we like, so there will be leftovers for tomorrow. No blogging tomorrow. Dinner is in the bag.
As with most Chinese/Japanese restaurants, fortune cookies and pineapple chunks are complimentary. After learning how to say "behave yourself" in Chinese, finding out our lucky numbers and reading our fortunes were were off to home to put on our pajama pants because we ate too much. Can't wait for the leftovers.
Is There a Bun in the Oven?
A review of the dinners so far this week have revealed that......I have been making a lot of repeat recipes. Teriyaki salmon with sugar snap peas and rice, grilled barbecue chicken with sauteed zucchini and orzo. Nothing too earth shattering so far. Even though I love to cook and do it numerous times a day, it still takes up A LOT of my time. I can't even imagine the drudgery some people most feel at preparing the next meal when they don't even like to cook. Kinda like me and exercise.
I am still on my refrigerated and freezer dough kick. I made two more recipes. One kinda exciting and the other really exciting. Nothing gourmet but sometimes I'm going for convenience. I guess they are only exciting if you like to cook. I found a recipe for Sloppy Joe Buns and made up a recipe for Apple Turnovers filled with Spiced Cream Cheese. After these 2 recipes, I'm pretty much done with the dough for a while. I'm starting to feel like the Pillsbury dough boy.
The Sloppy Joe Buns are great to have in the frig or freezer for a snack or meal for the kids. Just reheat them in the microwave or oven. The Apple Turnovers are just for me. I did share a few with my family members but they never know how many I made to begin with. What happens in the kitchen, stays in the kitchen.
Sloppy Joe Buns
makes 16
1 package Grands Big and Fluffy biscuits, separated into 2 thin pieces of dough
1 pound ground beef or turkey
about 1/2 cup Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce
1/2 cup cheddar cheese plus extra to sprinkle
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brown the ground beef or turkey in a pan for about 8 - 10 minutes. Add the barbecue sauce, and cheese and stir to combine. Grease 2 muffin tins and put each half biscuit in a cup and push up the sides. Put a heaping spoonful in each muffin cup. Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes. Remove from oven and top with remaining cheese. Return to oven and melt cheese. Let cool in pans for 5 minutes then remove. EAT!
Apple Turnovers filled with Spiced Cream Cheese
makes 8 turnovers - 4 for yourself and 4 to share
2 sheets of puff pastry - like Pepperidge Farm
4 apples, peeled and sliced kinda thin
2 -3 TB brown sugar
dash of cinnamon
1 TB butter
4 oz cream cheese, room temp.
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
sugar for sprinkling - best if you have the big crystals
1 egg mixed with 1 tsp water for the egg wash
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a pan, cook the apples, in the butter with the brown sugar and cinnamon. They should just begin to get tender. Let cool. Mix together the cream cheese, egg yolk, cinnamon and nutmeg. Roll out one sheet of the pastry to about a 12 inch x 12 inch square. Cut into 4 smaller squares. Place a dollop of the cream cheese mixture in the center of each square of the pastry and top with a glob of the apples. Brush the edges of the square with the egg wash and fold the 2 opposite corners to the center to overlap. Brush the outside of the pastry with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with the remaining pastry to make a total of 8 turnovers. Bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown.
Life in the Not-So-Fast Lane
As I look back on my blogging, most of my recipes are pretty run of the mill. I thought that when I started this blog, I would be writing about grandiose recipes with exotic ingredients that I would travel around the world to find. Reality has set in. I'm a mom to 3 kids and 2 dogs, a wife, a personal chef to my clients and my family, a maid, a driver, a homework helper, a friend, a financial advisor/bill payer and a cheerleader to many football, field hockey and softball games. I guess I could find time to travel the globe looking for new and unique foods to make. But at this point in my life, I am content with all the activities that keep me busy on the home front. Anyway, I can find many interesting ingredients and recipes at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and in Cooking Light and Bon Appetite magazines, my daily newspaper, the Internet, and the multitudes of cookbooks out there.
I picked out two of my relatively new cookbooks and adapted a couple recipes the other day. A big pot of turkey chili and a batch of chocolate cupcakes were the lucky recipe winners. I really don't follow a recipe for my chili. It usually tastes relatively the same each time it's made - just a little variation here and there. I consulted the American Test Kitchen's Family Cookbook for their take on chili. Taking a cue from Cincinnati's 5 way chili, shredded cheddar, pasta, sour cream and diced onions are always offered with a big bowl of chili. Sometimes even a slab of cornbread is hidden at the bottom of the bowl to sop up the extra sauce.
Rarely does a day go by that there is not a dessert of some sort at our house. It just doesn't seem right not to have a cookie, cake or brownie sitting on the counter. I love the single serving desserts - cupcakes, muffins, cookies, mini quick breads. I tinkered with a recipe from America Test Kitchen again. Their Best Make-Ahead Recipe cookbook has a great muffin recipe and who wouldn't want a chocolate cupcake with chocolate ganache on top?
Two easy recipes. No exotic ingredients. Found all the ingredients already in my pantry. Made a majority of the family members happy. Got to watch a field hockey game, football practice, make a trip to the library, and eat dinner too. A pretty good day all and all.
Chunky Turkey Chili
adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
This chili is pretty mild. Add about a teaspoon of cayenne pepper to spice it up!
2 pounds ground turkey
olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 TB cumin
2 tsp chili powder
salt
pepper
6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cans of beans - one kidney beans and the other black beans
2 cans crushed tomatoes - 28 ounces each
Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a large pot. Add the onions, cumin, chili powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook an additional 30 seconds.
Add the turkey and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the beans and tomatoes and cook for about 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add some cayenne pepper to spice it up.
Serve with cooked and drained small shaped pasta, shredded cheddar cheese, diced onions, sour cream and cornbread.
Chocolate Cupcakes with Semi Sweet Chocolate Ganache
makes about 14 - 16 cupcakes
adapted from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe cookbook from Cook's Illustrated
3 cups flour
1 TB baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup cocoa
10 TB butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat 2 cupcake pans with cooking spray.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa. Set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar with a mixer for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time and mix well.
Add one-half of the flour mixture followed by one-half of the yogurt. Add the remaining flour mixture and then the yogurt. Mix just to blend. Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake in oven for about 20 - 30 minutes. Let cool in pan 5 minutes before removing the cupcakes. Dip the top of the cupcakes in the ganache. Don't eat them all before your kids get home from school.
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Ganache
1/4 to 1/3 cup half and half
about 1 to 1/2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla extract
Warm the half and half in a small saucepan. Add the chocolate chips and stir to melt. Stir in the vanilla. The ganache will thicken as it cools.
I picked out two of my relatively new cookbooks and adapted a couple recipes the other day. A big pot of turkey chili and a batch of chocolate cupcakes were the lucky recipe winners. I really don't follow a recipe for my chili. It usually tastes relatively the same each time it's made - just a little variation here and there. I consulted the American Test Kitchen's Family Cookbook for their take on chili. Taking a cue from Cincinnati's 5 way chili, shredded cheddar, pasta, sour cream and diced onions are always offered with a big bowl of chili. Sometimes even a slab of cornbread is hidden at the bottom of the bowl to sop up the extra sauce.
Rarely does a day go by that there is not a dessert of some sort at our house. It just doesn't seem right not to have a cookie, cake or brownie sitting on the counter. I love the single serving desserts - cupcakes, muffins, cookies, mini quick breads. I tinkered with a recipe from America Test Kitchen again. Their Best Make-Ahead Recipe cookbook has a great muffin recipe and who wouldn't want a chocolate cupcake with chocolate ganache on top?
Two easy recipes. No exotic ingredients. Found all the ingredients already in my pantry. Made a majority of the family members happy. Got to watch a field hockey game, football practice, make a trip to the library, and eat dinner too. A pretty good day all and all.
Chunky Turkey Chili
adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
This chili is pretty mild. Add about a teaspoon of cayenne pepper to spice it up!
2 pounds ground turkey
olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 TB cumin
2 tsp chili powder
salt
pepper
6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cans of beans - one kidney beans and the other black beans
2 cans crushed tomatoes - 28 ounces each
Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a large pot. Add the onions, cumin, chili powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook an additional 30 seconds.
Add the turkey and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the beans and tomatoes and cook for about 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add some cayenne pepper to spice it up.
Serve with cooked and drained small shaped pasta, shredded cheddar cheese, diced onions, sour cream and cornbread.
Chocolate Cupcakes with Semi Sweet Chocolate Ganache
makes about 14 - 16 cupcakes
adapted from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe cookbook from Cook's Illustrated
3 cups flour
1 TB baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup cocoa
10 TB butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat 2 cupcake pans with cooking spray.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa. Set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar with a mixer for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time and mix well.
Add one-half of the flour mixture followed by one-half of the yogurt. Add the remaining flour mixture and then the yogurt. Mix just to blend. Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake in oven for about 20 - 30 minutes. Let cool in pan 5 minutes before removing the cupcakes. Dip the top of the cupcakes in the ganache. Don't eat them all before your kids get home from school.
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Ganache
1/4 to 1/3 cup half and half
about 1 to 1/2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla extract
Warm the half and half in a small saucepan. Add the chocolate chips and stir to melt. Stir in the vanilla. The ganache will thicken as it cools.
All Wrapped Up in Phyllo
I have been on a big packaged pastry kick lately. Last week I made Apple Turnovers with Spiced Cheese filling using puff pastry. This week has included Asparagus wrapped in Phyllo and tonight's feast -- Chicken wrapped in Phyllo with Brie and Lingonberries!! I am starting to get a few comments from the peanut gallery that they have had enough of the flaky dough.
The menu tonight also includes homemade stuffing with gravy and steamed sugar snap peas. Going for the Thanksgiving theme. My Oldest started playing field hockey and is ravenous when she walks in the door. The menu tonight was her request. With all the different schedules around here, I am preparing everything ahead of dinner time and heating up as needed. Everyone seems happy but, No Thank You Boy has eaten about a million of the Yo Crunch yogurts because he hasn't been a very adventurous eater lately or ever. He only needs to eat 5 a day to get his daily supply of calcium. I think he is set for about the next week.
Phyllo gets a bad rap in that most people think it is hard to work with. On the contrary, (that sounds Sherlock Holmesy) it's a piece of cake or dough for that matter. Thin layers of dough are stacked on top of each other with a coating of melted butter (or Pam for the weight watchers) in between. Fill the dough with whatever you like, fold it up like a package, put it on a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes. Viola!
My creation is filled with thin chicken breasts seasoned with salt and pepper and topped with brie and lingonberries (right from a jar). My Oldest LOVES the Swedish Meatballs with Lingonberries and at the restaurant at IKEA and she loves brie cheese. This entree incorporates 2 of her favorites. At least I know one person will be happy at dinner time. Looks like Yo Crunch for No Thank You Boy again tonight.
Chicken Wrapped in Phyllo with Brie and Lingonberries
4 chicken breasts
6 sheets of phyllo dough
4 slices of brie cheese
4 dollops of lingonberries - or try raspberry or apricot jam
melted butter - about 3 tablespoons
salt
pepper
Place one sheet of dough on a cutting board and brush lightly with melted butter. Top with another sheet and more butter and then the last sheet and more butter. Cut the sheets in half to make two rectangles. Place one chicken breast on each half. Top with brie and the lingonberries. Fold both sets of opposite points toward the middle to form a package. Brush with more butter and place on a baking sheet. Make two more of the packages. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 15 minutes or until an instant read thermometer registers 165 degrees.
If you want, you can cool the packages, and freeze. When you want to eat one, put it in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes until heated through.
Try using puff pastry instead of the phyllo dough. It will add a bunch more calories, but it will taste really good.
California Rolls via New Jersey
When we lived in southern California, I fell in love with sushi and sashimi. I could eat a boat load of sushi and an ocean of sashimi. Our favorite restaurant was Agoura Sushi in Agoura Hills. The place was about as big as a shoebox and always jammed packed. The wait never mattered. I would have stood around for hours to get a table.
Tonight, I tried my hand at the most elementary roll -- the California Roll - in honor of our 4 year stint in California. To my surprise, rolls are of so easy to make. They usually call for sushi rice. But since I was already making fried rice, I just doubled up the recipe. A couple unique ingredients, a bamboo rolling mat, little chopping and I was rolling away.
Rave reviews almost all around. My Middle One and even No Thank You Boy LOVED it. The last time No Thank You boy tried a California roll at our local sushi joint, he almost gaged to death. The piece was way too big. My Oldest passed on trying it. She had a bad experience with a recipe I tried a couple years ago for a Sushi Wrap sandwich that include rice and mayo. She still has flashbacks of that fateful night.
All in all, I think the recipe went great. I am even making it for a party we are attending this weekend. As soon as I find a good source for sashimi quality fish, I'll give that a whirl.
The New Jersey Roll
makes about 18 pieces
About 4 cups cooked rice, cooled to room temp.
1/4 cup sushi vinegar
Julienned carrot, red pepper, cucumber, and imitation crab
3 sheets of nori
soy sauce for dipping
pickled ginger
wasabi
Mix the rice and sushi vinegar. Place a sheet of nori on top of a bamboo rolling mat. Place about 1 and 1/4 of the rice on the nori and spread over 2/3 of the nori with damp fingers. Lay the carrots, red pepper, cucumbers, and crab about 1 inch from the bottom. Start rolling up the mat and gently press down to form a tube shaped roll. The rolls (covered with plastic wrap) can be refrigerated for a couple hours before serving.
To serve, slice in about 1 inch pieces. Serve with soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi.
Do You Fondue?
Growing up in the 70's, fondue was all the rage. It has been making a come back in recent years. We love it at our house. Best to have kids that are a little older because it would put a damper on the evening if someone got 3rd degree burns from the scalding oil. It is so simple to prepare, can satisfy meat lovers to vegetarians, and you can even make do without a fondue pot.
I usually ask what everyone would like to eat during the week. The first to speak up was My Middle One. She requested fondue. I personal cheffed today for my favorite client so it was easy enough to pick up what I needed at the store on my way home. As with most of our meals, I I always trying to take picture. Tonight seemed to be a challenge for some reason. My Middle One almost went into convulsions because she said she was so hunger. Guess it was more important to catch the latest episode of Hannah Montana than get something to eat when she got home from school. By the way, she did not pass out from the lack of food.
We had two types of fondue -- one was a cheese medley with bread chunks, apples, and blanched cauliflower. I thought I had broccoli at home - forgot it went into my vat of broccoli cheddar soup a couple days ago. The other was straight smoking hot oil, heated to about 365 degrees, to cook up some strip steak. A nice accompaniment is a horseradish cream or a spicy mustard. No Thank You Boy just eats meat. He hoards the steak and hot oil fondue pot. My Middle One ate about a foot of the baguette I cut up with gobs of cheese fondue and is feeling the repercussions as she does her homework. My Oldest is still adjusting to her new early morning high school schedule and 3 hours of field hockey practice after school. She basically shovels in the food and is off to do her homework. She had an appetizer of Spaghettios and Meatballs to hold her over until I could get the fondue done.
My favorite fondue combo is a chunk of baguette dipped in the cheese and topped with a rare piece of steak. My version of the fondue cheese steak sandwich. My Middle One and No Thank You Boy tried frying up some bread cubes in the oil. The result was hot soggy bread cubes soaked in oil. They were too impatient to wait to cook them fully.
Triple Cheese Fondue
1 pound grated cheese - I used sharp cheddar, swiss, and provolone
toss cheese with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch
1/2 cup half and half
1/2 cup white wine
good squeeze of lemon juice
pinch of nutmeg
Heat half and half, wine and lemon juice to a simmer in a small pot or fondue pot. Add cheese and a pinch of nutmeg. Stir to melt cheese. If you have a fondue set, keep the fondue warm over sterno. Serve with bread chunks, apples, blanched cauliflower and broccoli and anything else you want to dip in cheese.
The Last Supper
A somber, al fresco dinner last night. The idea of al fresco dining conjures up images of a bistro on a street in Paris with the lights of the Eiffel Tower twinkling in the background. Our al fresco dining consists of 3 kids, 2 parents, 2 dogs circling the table looking for an arrant glob of mashed potatoes, a stream of ants making their way toward the aforementioned glob, a drying rack with the days laundry and, the neighbor's lawn mower serenading us in the background. We tried to have a relaxing dinner before the first day of school on Wednesday. Even at a balmy 78 degrees, complaints could be heard from The Middle One and No Thank You Boy about the bugs flying up their noses. As most school kids have been back at school for weeks, the East Coast kids have been frantically reading their summer reading books - not - before school starts tomorrow. Dinner last night was a repeat from earlier in the year - Grilled Strip Steaks with Caramelized Onions, Creamed Spinach, Mashed Potatoes and Fruit Salad. Nothing too exciting but sometimes I get tired of thinking of new menus. And the non-stop question of "What am I going to eat?" when a kid is presented with Grilled Eggplant stuffed with Ricotta Cheese. I usually try to get everyone to try all the dishes at dinner time so I can see what is a hit and what is a miss. Last night, I threw in the towel when The Creamed Spinach, a favorite of 3 family members, was compared to something you wouldn't touch if it was an offering in the school cafegymatorium. Who cares if one of your kids only eats steak and another is making a Close Encounters-size mountain of mashed potatoes on her plate.
With lots of talk around the dinner table about the impending FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL, we turned to discussing what to pack for lunch. School lunches for my youngest two kids consist of pb&js, a bag of grapes which comes back home, a water bottle and a chocolate chip cookie. They aren't that adventurous and are going for the world record of Repeat Lunches Eaten in a School Year. My Oldest One, on the other hand, will take last night's Creamed Spinach on top of Mashed Potatoes in her thermos and tell me after school how great it was the second time around even though her lunch posse complained about the smell.
My kids have been sleeping in all summer. With school starting tomorrow, The Husband and I broke the news to the kids that we would be waking everyone up early today, just like it was school. That would be 5:45 am for one and 7:45 am for the other two. Doesn't really seem fair that one has to catch the bus at 6:45 am but, who said life is fair. Well, here I sit typing away, the Husband is off to work with his Tupperware of quiche and a salad from the frig and, the kids are still asleep. Guess tomorrow will be a fun morning around our house.
As I look back on my blogging so far this year, the recipes are pretty good but the writing has been boring. There is a good story here and there but, nothing unique to set it apart from the others. I am digging deep to reach those creative juices to prepare good food and provide better insight into the reactions from all that is involved in feeding a family in today's world.
From growing up in the Midwest in the 70's and 80's, I remember those "Leave it to Beaver" - type dinners. I'm sure that I am only remembering the good times. Today's dinners in our house are a far cry from what I remember from my old days. Not that that is bad; it is just different. We have new schedules, traditions, stories, and eating habits and I am going to focus on relating that to my readers. First and foremost, I love to cook. There will still be a bunch of new recipes because that is what this blog is all about. Hopefully, it will be a little more entertaining too.
From growing up in the Midwest in the 70's and 80's, I remember those "Leave it to Beaver" - type dinners. I'm sure that I am only remembering the good times. Today's dinners in our house are a far cry from what I remember from my old days. Not that that is bad; it is just different. We have new schedules, traditions, stories, and eating habits and I am going to focus on relating that to my readers. First and foremost, I love to cook. There will still be a bunch of new recipes because that is what this blog is all about. Hopefully, it will be a little more entertaining too.
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