Improv Night

So, what does one do when they put Salisbury Steak on the menu?  Get a recipe?

Brian don't need no stinkin' recipe.

Voila!  Salisbury steak, improvised.

It was delicious.  Brian and I thought so, anyway.  Sean gave it a try and ended up eating four bites.

Will, on the other hand, was ok with the flavor until he found the greenery.  (Parsley, and maybe a little spinach.)  Then he pronounced it "a combination of a murdered cow and a vegetable garden."

In other news.....laughter will egg your ten-year-old on.  It's important to keep a stern face in these matters.  Or, at least try.

Pi Day!

For the last two years we've joined geeks around the world and celebrated Pi Day.  Pi Day is March 14th, or Pi 3.14.

This year's Pi Day almost didn't happen, until Brian whipped up some apple hand pies.  We had leftover phyllo dough in the fridge and it made for a pretty good crust.  They didn't last long.


To add to our celebration:  pound cake.  Will adores pound cake, and he and Brian made this one together.  It was a strange recipe--you put it in a cold oven and turn it on.  Came out nicely so I guess it's a keeper!

"two great tastes that taste great together"

Date Night!

On a rare night out, we got out to a Japanese hibachi place for a sushi dinner.  Brian and I hadn't had sushi out in ages! 

When the sashimi dinner came out for him, it was incredible.  This thing was more than anticipated.....this tub - like thing filled with crushed ice, shells and color changing LIGHTS under the ice!  And to top it off, raw tuna arranged into a rosebud.  Almost too pretty to eat.  Almost.   

We walked out of the restaurant very happy and with no appetite for the swanky dessert place two doors down.  Now that is a first.  :)

We Do Snowstorms Right

I'm a lucky girl.  When Brian hears that there's going to be a storm and we're going to be snowed in, he starts dreaming up something good to cook.  Because, if you're going to be stuck inside, you might as well eat well.

This particular storm:  chicken and waffles, and our first homemade ice cream.

First up, chicken and waffles.  I'd never had chicken and waffles before.  I knew that it was a Southern thing, and I've said it before:  I adore southern cooking.  We don't eat a lot of southern food often because done right, it's laden with calories.

Now, I couldn't see what the big deal was about chicken and waffles because I was picturing a fried chicken breast on a plate, side by side with a waffle with maple syrup and butter.  And although that sounded intriguing, it wasn't WOW!  This is incredible!

Suffice it to say, I get it now:

This. Was. Incredible!  Fried chicken, in a batter with tabasco flavoring, served atop a perfectly crisp waffle, and then topped with a pan gravy that has a little bit of maple syrup in it.  The most beautiful pairing of sweet and savory that I have ever tasted.  That being said, it's certainly not going on our menu again anytime soon.  And I don't feel the need, because a once-in-a-long-while treat like this is the greatest.   I don't want it to lose it's special-ness.



And now for the ice cream...Brian got an ice cream maker for Christmas, because when watching Cutthroat Kitchen or Chopped he always remarks "We should make our own ice cream!"  It's definitely not cheaper than buying ice cream, but certainly fresher.  And it doubles as a fun activity for kids.  Will helped make the base, and he smashed the cookies for our inaugural ice cream batch:  Chocolate Cookies and Cream.

It was deliciously rich, and I'm glad it doesn't make a bigger batch.  The only critique that Brian and I agree on:  scrape the chocolate cream out of the oreos next time.

Next time we may make strawberry ice cream.  I'm not a fan of artificial strawberry flavored anything, but I'll bet fresh strawberry ice cream would be incredible!  Or banana, with bits of Nilla Wafers.  Good Lord, the possibilities!

First Meals of 2015

The holidays have passed, and now we're happy to get back to a routine.  And also, cook some healthier, less rich food.  Not that we don't love the rich stuff, because we do.

Brian got a new 30-minute meal cookbook for Christmas put out by America's Test Kitchen.  So far we've had three recipes from it and have plans for more.  Like most things ATK puts out, everything has been good so far.

First dinner:  Salmon with lime and spice, with rice and broccoli.  Nothing too fancy...

Saturday night: white chicken chili.  This was definitely more than 30 minutes, more like 45.  It probably has more to do with the fact that dried hominy was used instead of the canned hominy that the recipe listed...but oh well. Hominy was a new ingredient to us, and took a little getting used to.   Leftovers yesterday weren't quite as chewy, and the flavor was really good.  It's weird eating chili with no tomatoes or beans, I definitely prefer the other way better.

I roasted a chicken on Sunday, and we had baked potatoes and roast carrots and parsnips.  The whole dinner in the oven, yeah!  Roast parsnips are so delicious and sweet.

last night:  meatless Monday!  Tortellini with asparagus and peas, in a tarragon cream sauce.  Yeah, I said healthier and less rich.  Total lie tonight, but no meat, so it's a trade?

Tonight's dinner is scallop risotto with tomatoes.  I'm dying to see if the "thirty minute recipe" is the real deal or full of lies.  We shall see.

Homemade Meatballs 'n Sauce

In an effort to be more health conscious, we've been eating more fruits and vegetables, drinking more water and reading labels at our house.

One of the biggest eye openers?  How much sugar is in everything!  Places you wouldn't expect it, either.  Ketchup, salad dressing.  And the biggest surprise:  jarred spaghetti sauce!

So Brian decided to give making some a whirl.  Not even from canned tomatoes, but fresh.  I always thought that tomato sauce, though worth the effort, took a ridiculous amount of time.  Not so.

We made it on a Thursday night, from "The Joy of Cooking."  And it was wonderful!  Served with homemade meatballs that had been in our freezer, and substituting a bit of the spaghetti with spaghetti sauce.  The sauce was a bit thin, which is another big surprise.  Why is jarred sauce so thick!  The thinner sauce was much more flavorful, and savory over sweet.  Delicious!

I'm not saying that we'll make homemade all the time.  Because I know that with two working parents, some prepared foods are necessary at times.  But this was well worth the effort, and the expense.  So much in fact, that we're doing it again on Tuesday.  :)

Unprocessing

The more things that we make from scratch instead of a box, the more things we want to try to make ourselves.

This weekend was homemade cornbread and homemade mayonnaise.  The cornbread was because we had our friends Tracy and Michael over for chili and not enough jiffy mix.  Brian chose a recipe online and ta-da!  Cornbread for a crowd.  It was quite unlike store - bought,  it had plenty of moisture!  That came from giving the cornmeal a 5-minute milk soak.

The mayo was also born out of necessity.... Brian went to make a roast beef sandwich and we didn't have any!  He said that it was quite an arm workout but that it was delicious.

So, in no way will we attempt to cut out pre packaged foods permanently, as they are a huge time saver for two working parents. But whenever there's time on our side, we are sure to do this kind of thing again.

Brian's Creations

Brian wrote the menu last week, and it was all based on ideas instead of recipes.  I don't usually cook like that, I prefer a recipe.  But he's good at it.  

First one was his new take on Chicken Parmesan.  He had seen something on a food network gameshow that gave him the idea, and this is the result:

Fresh Chicken Parm with Couscous

Pan-fried chicken cutlet, topped with canned tomato, a slice of mozzarella and a spinach-arugula blend.  Oh, and shredded parmesan.  Couscous was a nice departure from the normal spaghetti, too.  It tasted light and fresh, which while I love traditional chicken parm, one does not describe it as "light."

Seared sea scallops over linguine.

This recipe puts Olive Garden to shame!  I say that because we went to Olive Garden last month and it was truly disappointing.  I ordered a chicken pasta dish that was like sixteen bucks and what was it?  A pound of angel hair with a little butter and wine, couple of pieces of chicken and a whole pepper cut into huge hunks.  Not their best efforts.  This was scallops, a wine and butter sauce, pepper and onion stirfy and some more of that shredded parmesan.  Not to mention, the rest of that spinach and arugula blend, with Brian's own made-up balsamic and lemon dressing!  (Totally made up on the spot, and it was great!)

I wrote the menu this week, and it's back to recipes.  It'll still be good, though.

Dulce de Leche

I can't believe that I forgot to write about this....In January, Brian was reading a blog about making your own dulce de leche and I didn't think it would be easy.  He proved me wrong, and it was a snap!

Then he made homemade crepes on Sunday morning for breakfast, with the dulce de leche, strawberries, marscapone cheese, nutella and bananas, make your own!  It was incredible.  Dulce is dangerous though, because it filled a mason jar and can keep in the fridge for some time.  Not something I'd want to make often, but hey, once in a while is ok, right?  :)

Evolution of Taste

I've always said that I like most food, that there is a very short list of things that I won't eat.  A few of those things that have made the list:  chickpeas, olives, lima beans, mint, lamb, conch fish, venison, beer and cilantro.

As I grow older, things change.  For example, I may not like chickpeas whole, but if it's garlic or red pepper hummus, I dip chips and veggies like there's no tomorrow.  It turns out that I don't care for dried cilantro, but fresh is delicious in a homemade salsa.  And I even appreciate a cold beer on occasion.

I can stand the occasional black olive in a salad or on a pizza.  Not much else though, I adore Greek salads on Wednesday nights at knit night at the local Panera but I always pick out the olives.  (Because I never, ever remember that I can order the salad without them!)  Last month however, Brian made a chicken dish from "50 Shades of Chicken that featured garlic and kalamata olives.  I thought I'd hate it, but I didn't.  Turns out I like the FLAVOR of olives, but not whole and the having to pit them.  And if they're canned.....blech.  As a side note, the "50 Shades of Chicken" is a parody cookbook of the E.L. James "50 Shades of Grey" book series.  I don't believe that it was well-received, as Brian found it on the bargain bookshelf at Barnes and Noble when it first came out.  Which is a travesty....every recipe in there is a hit so far!

Even Brian has to admit that his tastes have changed.  The man that insists that he hates Mexican food suggested making enchiladas this past weekend.  Enchiladas!  I love Mexican food, so this sounded great to me!  A friend of ours used to make them but they were vegetarian, using refried beans as the protein source.  No wonder Brian didn't like them....but I thought they were OK.  Anyway....his enchiladas came out fantastically on Sunday night!  He took a recipe from ATK's "Simple Dishes" cookbook that called for ground turkey and subbed ground beef and mushrooms.  Not only were they delectable, they made scads of leftovers for this week.  It also turns out that, like lasagna, the leftovers taste even better!

"Sexy."

Yesterday was Hubby and I's 13th anniversary.  Lucky number 13!  Since we're going to the Cape this weekend to celebrate, it was a pretty low-key Monday.  With the exception of dinner, of course.  At least, that's what was on the social calendar of the evening.

Brian chose a Rachael Ray recipe online, for "Sexy Surf and Turf."  How can you not like a recipe with a name like that?  It called for sweet vermouth, so I stopped at the liquor store to buy some.  Not being much of a drinker, I didn't know that there was a difference between "sweet" and "dry" vermouth so I'm glad that the recipe was specific.  The steak had a rich sauce with shallots and vermouth, aptly called "Manhattan Sauce."  Let me tell you, it was to DIE FOR.  The three perfectly-cooked sea scallops on top were excellent as well.  I had also purchased a bottle of prosecco, which neither of us had ever tried.  It was very nice, sweeter than the usual champagne.  I guess I DO like champagne, when it's cold and fresh.  The little sip that you get at a wedding toast is usually flat and warm.

So that was the "sexy" part of the evening.  The rest of the anniversary was decidedly un-sexy.  Pre-dinner, the sauce smoked a bit and set off the smoke detector.  In this house, if one goes off they all go off, and that really startled the kids.  Every window and door had to be opened, and a fan put on "exhaust" in the living room window.  Sean cried while Will hung out on the front stoop to get away from the noise.  Did I also mention the rain and potential thunderstorms?  After that was over, we sat down for a nice dinner.  The kids enjoyed their plain steak and rice.  No sooner were we all on our last bite, the power went out.  Apparently, it doesn't take much for that to happen around here!  With no TV, I read the boys stories from Will's school bag, and we all snuggled up on the couch and loveseat in the living room, by candlelight.  We got the boys situated in sleeping bags on their bedroom floor.  Many thanks to Papa, for getting them light sabers at a yard sale.  They make for great "glow sticks" in a power outage!

Fall Favorites in Pork

It's not quite "Apple-palooza" at our house yet but this is one of my all-time favorite fall suppers.  And the weather at night is getting chilly so it's the right time!

Pork Chops with Cider Pan Sauce!

There is no recipe, Brian makes it up as he goes along.  It's moist, perfect pork with just a little tang from the cider.  I love, love, love it!  Even Will got into it this year and ate a whole serving.  Sean, not so much.  But lately if it's not chicken or peanut butter and jelly, he won't touch it.  Everything else, in his words, is "No, no no.  This is 'au-skuskin."  (disgusting.)  Ah well.  More for us!  Sadly, there were no leftovers.

Lemon and Garlic Week!

This week's theme is lemon and garlic.  Apparently.  This was purely accidental, but it's definitely two well-loved ingredients in this house.  Brian wrote the menu and it's chock full of delicious recipes...but clearly he was craving lemon and garlic when he wrote it!

Monday night:  grilled chicken with lemon and garlic, rice and frozen peas.  Chicken recipe courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens.

This was a whole chicken that he cut up and grilled.  On a weeknight.  :)  The intensity of the marinade was incredibly flavorful.  I couldn't wait for the leftovers the next day!  And yes...frozen peas.  My mother will be happy to hear that she was right...frozen does taste way better than canned.  Not to my child self, but as an adult frozen are the way to go.

Tuesday:  rib eye steaks with grilled garlic.  Accompanied by baked potatoes and grilled Caesar Salad.  Steak recipe courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens.

First of all, there's no such thing as too much garlic.  That's the way it is in our house, anyway!  Roasted (or in this case grilled) garlic, smushed on a piece of bread is delightful.  The same garlic smushed on steak is to DIE FOR.  And the steak was cooked perfectly, medium to medium-well.  Just how I like it best.  :)

The first time I ever had a "grilled" Caesar salad I wasn't sure I'd like it.  But the smokiness of the grill, combined with the saltiness of the shaved parmesan and the tang of the caesar dressing....it's something special, I tell ya!

 The last meal in the theme of the week:  Lemon Tilapia packets with corn and zucchini.  Recipe courtesy of Hubby's Mom, who emailed it to him.  Served over quinoa, which we almost forgot to make.

Couple of things:

-Fish store didn't have tilapia, so we substituted cod.  By the by, I loved having a small local fish store in our old neighborhood, and now we have one near here, too!
-Recipe called for corn on the cob cut into rings with the kernels intact.  There really wasn't any fresh corn in the stores, so Brian substituted the chinese-style canned mini corn ears that you see in stir-frys.  I don't think it translated well.  If we were to make this again, it would be when corn on the cob is available.
-Fish can overcook quickly.  It was still edible, but it could've been better.  This was a tough dinner because of the distractions.
-I have to say....quinoa isn't something I pictured myself eating.  But the more I have of it, the more I like it!

So there you have it:  Lemon and Garlic week is over.  Pretty soon it'll be time for fall suppers and crockpot stuff!

Why I'm a Lucky Girl

Hubby made me breakfast today for no reason other than "just because."

Ham and veggie omelet, sliced peaches with raspberries, juice and coffee.  Love you honey!  :)

A Woman of my Word

I said last week that we'd make meatballs, and I keep my word.  Last night:  meatballs.  :)  I originally wanted to make these on Sunday but we as a family (read:  Crafty Mama)  tend(s) to overcram Sundays.  So last night after dinner, it was meatball city!

No recipes...just flying by the seat of our pants.  A package of ground pork, a package of ground beef.  And I got really daring and didn't measure ingredients.  Sometimes it's best that way.  Some bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, two eggs, oregano, rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Brian rolled them and fried them in vegetable oil while I worked on feeding kids and doing dishes.  (We make a good team that way.)    He used his induction cooker to better control the temperature, which seems like it was a good idea.  Next time Brian wants to make them like his mom made them growing up:  added to sauce and simmering in a crockpot for several hours.  I've had Mom G's meatballs, they are pretty good!

All in all, I'd say the process only took about an hour, give or take.  I wish I had taken a photo of the meatball assembly line, but alas, I did not so you will have to imagine it.    Now there are several bags of (hopefully) good-quality meatballs in my freezer, and one bag to go with cheese tortellini and leftover marinara tonight.  Looking forward to it!

Steel Skills

On Thursday night I took a knife-skills workshop.  I've always wanted to take one, since my husband likes to poke fun at me because I used to only chop with a steak knife.  I'll be honest, I was pretty apprehensive of anything bigger!  As time went on Brian helped me get more comfortable with chef's knives but I still could use some more skills.

The workshop was 90 minutes long and was part demonstration, part hands-on.  I learned how to hold a knife so that it is an extension of your arm and isn't has hard on your hands.  I learned the proper way to dice  peppers and onions, and how to cut an onion with a little less crying.  (NO crying isn't an option for me.)  I also learned the correct way to cut up avocados and mangoes, two foods that I love but avoid because of the messy prep.  No more!

There were six people in the workshop including me, and together we chopped and made a tomato salsa and a guacamole with mangoes.  Delicious!  I came home with a big grin and a little leftover guac, and was thrilled to tell Brian how much I loved it!  He's taken a class there before, and now we want to do a Couples Night sometime.

Tomorrow night I'm making soup.  And I can't wait to chop all the veggies....by hand!

Zucchini by the Pound

To say that our zucchini plants are thriving is kind of like saying that Big Ben is well....big.  Three HUGE zucchini plants, and I've already given some away.

Our new favorite side dish:  grilled zucchini.  Slice, salt, grill, serve!  Even Brian, who is not overly fond of zucchini, enjoyed them.

One thing to be careful of......the zucchini cook quickly and smoke up fast, too.  I needed to run the fan and open the doors to get rid of the smoke.  (Disclaimer:  No smoke detectors were tripped in the making of this meal.)

Grilled zucchini is extra-special when you dot it with balsamic vinegar and a little shredded Parmesan.

Cherry Pork

I had to work this past Saturday morning.  I honestly cannot remember the last time that happened, which is a good thing!  I attended the dedication ceremony for my new job, which went very well.  Afterwards there was a cookout at the church that sponsored the new building that I will be managing.  I didn't stay, and I'm glad for one reason:  if I'd filled up on hot dogs or hamburgers, I would've missed this beauty for lunch:

Pork Chops with Cherry Sauce

I love cherries, they're my second-favorite of summer fruit.  (Peaches first, watermelon third.)  I don't eat them often, because they're usually ridiculously expensive.  Also, it's another food that only gets eaten by me, so I end up wasting part of a bag of cherries.  This was the first time that either of us had attempted cooking with cherries, as cherries are not easy to pit.    Brian put this together from an online recipe, with ingredients like honey and tarragon.  He's not usually a fan of cherries, but proclaimed the sauce delicious!  I saved the leftover sauce to pour over a little vanilla ice cream.  That will be a great little sweet treat later on.  :)

Dinner, Day Two

Brian's Day Zero List includes perfecting homemade ravioli, and I get to reap the benefits.  :)

Last night:  shrimp ravioli with alfredo sauce.  The sauce is jarred, but that doesn't make it any less delicious.  The ravioli wasn't bad, just a little undercooked.  It made for decent leftovers for lunch today, too.  

The Makings of Awesome

On the menu for tonight:  beef and eggplant casserole.  Picked not by me....but Brian.  I read the menu when he wrote it up and gave him a blank stare.  "Are you sure?  Eggplant?"

Glad he was up to it...I adore eggplant.  This casserole (from the trusty old "9x13, The Pan that CAN!" cookbook I received as a gift a few years ago.) was incredible.  So incredible in fact, that I didn't take any pictures because I was too busy devouring it.  It was a pasta meatsauce, with bits of fried eggplant.  What's not to love???

Lots of leftovers, and even hubby wants to take some for lunch tomorrow instead of his usual ham and cheese sandwich. This one is obviously a keeper.  (The recipe AND the man!)