What's for dinner tonight?

I dont know what's going on with me, but I've been craving rice-based meals lately. I've had Japanese, Thai, Mexican and Cuban in let last week. And tonight, I'm looking at a Chicken and rice recipe that I'm going to tinker with. This is a good example of how I cook. I find recipes that look or sound good. I print them out only to find out that I don't have 2 or 3 of the ingredients, so I make due with what I have on hand. Or maybe I'm craving something in particular, like tonight, I want rice, but I know I have asparagus in the fridge too. That would be yummy in this dish too...ooooo or spinach. As the recipe stands, it calls for no veggies. I need to sneak veggies in where I can if they kids will eat it. And they both LOVE rice! If this dish turns out well, I'll post the recipe.

Manic Mondays

So I finally got around to making the Thai lettuce wraps tonight. Even though its not exactly a quick fix, it didnt take all that long. There's plenty of leftover sauce and can make for a quick meal again later in the week. Alot of the prep work can be done in advance and the sauces can be ahead of time as well. This recipe contains chicken, but it can easily be substituted with tofu or shrimp.

Start by making the dressing.

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar (I used white wine vinegar as I was out of rice wine vinegar.)
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/8 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp hot mustard (I used spicy brown mustard)
2 tbsp hot water

Dissolve the sugar in the 1/2 water in a small bowl. Add soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, lemon juice and sesame oil. Mix well and refrigerate this sauce until ready to serve.
Combine the 2 tbsp hot water with the hot mustard and set this aside. You will combine this with the sauce above before serving.

Next you will need:

3 tbsp Olive oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup water chestnuts (I left this ingredient out because I despise the nasty little things!)
2/3 cup mushrooms
1 small onion diced
1 tsp minced garlic (1 large clove)
5-6 large leaves of lettuce (You can use Iceberg, Bib lettuce or Boston lettuce)

Place 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, place chicken in the frying pan. Saute for 4-5 minutes per side or until done. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
While the chicken is cooking, dice the onion and mince the garlic. Mince the water chestnuts and mushrooms to about the size of a pea. (This can be done quickly in a food processor, but be careful not to over process. And do them all separately.)
As the chicken cools, prepare the stir fry sauce.

2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp rice wine vinegar (again, I used white wine vinegar)

Combine the above ingredients.

Add 1 tbsp of oil to the frying pan used to cook the chicken and warm over medium heat. add mushrooms, water chestnuts and onions. Let the items cook down for about 3-5 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic after a minute or two.
While these items are cooking, dice the chicken breast into pea-sized pieces. Add the chicken and the stir fry sauce to the pan. Turn up the heat to medium-high and cook for a minute or two, just enough to thicken the sauce a little.

To serve, place a lettuce leaf on a place so that its like a cup. Scoop desired about of chicken mixture on to the cup, drizzle with some dressing, fold over the edge of the lettuce to secure the contents and enjoy!

Manic Mondays

I've gotten off my 'usual' schedule due to the holiday and later this week we're going down to D.C.
So this week will also be a mix of postings, if I get to them. The next few weeks maybe sporadic as well because my class is ending soon and I need to start studying for my final.

But tonight's dinner is going to be a concoction. Basically, I opened the fridge (after being away for the weekend) and I am trying to salvage stuff. I have a package of mushrooms and a bunch of asparagus that both need to be used today or tomorrow at THE latest. I also have some green onions and chives. The bean sprouts I thought of using are too far gone.

So I'm cooking down the mushrooms in a non-stick pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. I'm also cooking the asparagus in another pot at the same time. I diced up about 4 stalks of the green onion. I added half to the pot cooking the asparagus and the other half to the mushrooms once they were 75% cooked down. After about 5 minutes in a pot of boiling water, the asparagus was ready to come out. I pulled out the asparagus with tongs, leaving the green onions and water.
I set the asparagus aside to cool. It will get cut up into 1/2" pieces and added to the mushrooms. In the meantime, I added 3 large chicken breasts to the boiling water, along with some salt.
(The chicken was frozen when I added it to the water.)
I decided to add rice to the meal. I didn't want to repeat my undercooked rice again, so I actually read the instructions on the bag of rice. I added 1 cup of rice to the pan of mushrooms, green onions and asparagus, hoping the veggies would give the rice a nice flavor. Then I added the recommended 2 1/4 cups of water (I ladled the water from the pot the chicken was cooking in.) I then added another 1/4 cup of chicken broth, just to be sure I had enough liquid. I also added some salt and pepper. I brought the liquid in the pan to a boil for about 30 seconds then turned down the heat to low (2), covered and let it simmer for about 50 minutes. If I didn't have time to wait for the rice to cook, I always have the boil-in-the-bag rice on hand (plus I just cant seem to cook rice.) It's not the same texture or flavor but it's quick and is never under cooked!
When the rice was nearly finished, I added 1/2 c heavy cream and about a teaspoon of rosemary to the pan to give the sauce some thickness and flavor.
I took the chicken breasts out of the water, trimmed the excess fat off and patted it dry. I then heated up a skillet and melted a tablespoon of butter. I added the chicken when the butter started to bubble. I just wanted to brown the chicken and give it a little flavor. Browning the chicken quickly will also help seal in the moisture (boiling chicken tends to dry it out a little.)
Once the chicken was browned, I added it to the mushroom and asparagus rice mixture. I stirred it up and let it sit for 5 minutes, then served.
The rice with the mushrooms and asparagus came out great! The chicken was a little bland. Next time, I think I would removed it from the water sooner and give it more time in the frying pan. Maybe with some garlic and onions or I could add it to the pan with the mushrooms and asparagus at the same time I added the rice. This way it could collect all the other flavors.

What's for dinner tonight?

Asian Lettuce Wraps.....recipe will follow on Friday

Tips and Tricks Tuesday

Sometimes, even waiting 10 or 15 minutes for a meal to be prepared is brutal. Especially when your toddler (or husband!) is growing crankier and crankier by the minute due to hunger. So when I make pasta, I make the entire package. Chances are we'll only eat about 1/3 to 1/2 a box in one meal. I either add a little olive oil (or melted butter for more flavor) to the pasta and store in the fridge.
When hunger (aka crankiness) strikes any one of my boys, I can just scoop out some pasta, sprinkle on some velveeta, parmesan cheese or (zack's facorite) ketchup and we're good to go!

Sunday Suppers/What's for dinner

One of the best dishes I was introduced while living in South Florida is Arroz con Pollo (literally rice with chicken.) And of course the best place to get this dish is in a cuban restaurant on south beach, Puerta Sagua. The only catch is that you can't just walk in and order it, you have to order it ahead of time. Arroz con pollo takes at least an hour to cook...that doesn't include prep time. I saw Arroz con pollo being made on ATK recently, but I was skeptical about their recipe as the show is filmed in the New England area. I decided to give it a try anyway. I made a few minor changes to the recipe in my attempt to make it more authentic tasting. This recipe took me (from start to eat time) about 2 1/2 hours to make. Here it is, my changes are in red. 

 Arroz con Pollo (original recipe from America's Test Kitchen) 

6 medium cloves garlic, minced 

1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp dried oregano 

1 tbsp rice wine vinegar, plus 2 tsp.  

2 tsp black pepper 

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (3 1/2 to 4 pounds), trimmed of excess fat 

2 tbsp olive oil 

1 medium onion, chopped fine 

1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped fine  + 1 red bell pepper, stemmed seeded and chopped fine 

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes 

1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro 

1 can (8 ounces) diced tomato sauce 

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 

1/4 cup water (there's a note saying for long grain rice to use 3/4 cup of water, but I'd say use an additional 1 cup of water) 

3 cups medium-grain rice (I used long grain rice) 

1/2 cup green olives (Manzanilla), pitted and halved (I used about 2/3 cup olives and some of the brine that they come in.) 

1 tbsp capers 

1/2 cup jarred pimentos, cut into 1/4 by 2-inch strips (I did not add this ingredient as I just added some of the pimentos from the olives and I had added the red bell pepper.) 

1 tsp Sazon Goya con Afrazon. (Next time, I'll add an entire packet.) 

1. Place garlic and salt on a large bowl; using a rubber spatula, mix to make a paste. Add oregano, 1 tablespoon vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper to garlic-salt mixture; stir to combine. 

2. Place chicken in bowl with marinade. Coat chicken pieces evenly with marinade; set aside. 

3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, green pepper, and pepper flakes; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften, 4 to 8 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons cilantro; stir to combine. Push vegetables to sides of pot and increase heat to medium-high. Add chicken to clearing in center of pot, skin side down, in even layer. Cook, without moving chicken, until outer layer of meat becomes opaque, 2 to 4 minutes. (If chicken begins to brown, reduce heat to medium.) Using tongs, flip chicken and cook on second side until opaque, 2 to 4 minutes more. Add tomato sauce, broth, and water; stir to combine. Bring to simmer; cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10 minutes. 

4. Add rice, olives, capers, and 3/4 teaspoon salt; stir well. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Place pot in a 350 degree oven. After 10 minutes, remove pot from oven and stir chicken and rice once from bottom up. Return pot to oven. After another 8 minutes, stir once more, adding 1/2 cup water if rice appears dry and bottom of pot is beginning to burn. Cover and return pot to oven; cook until rice has absorbed all liquid and is tender but still holds its shape and temperature of chicken registers 165 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes longer. 

5. Using tongs, remove chicken from pot; replace lid and set pot aside. Remove and discard chicken skin; pull meat off bones into large chunks. Remove remaining fat or dark veins from chicken pieces. Place chicken in large bowl and toss with remaining tablespoon olive oil, remaining 2 teaspoons vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons cilantro, and pimentos; season with salt and pepper to taste. Place chicken on top of rice, cover, and let stand until warmed through, about 5 minutes.

What's for dinner tonight?

Subway...

Fresh Friday

I decided to stick with my 'egg' theme for the week and feature an often sneered-at variation of the egg, the Egg Salad sandwich. Even I cringe at the thought of one, they smell funky, look a little something that's been regurgitated on bread and are often overloaded with mayo.

Dave is the first person that I can remember meeting that regularly orders an egg salad sandwich when we're in a deli or bagel shop. I eventually nibbled on some of his egg salad and didn't mind it, not something I'd order though. In general, I've never been a big fan of eggs cooked in any fashion. So I was surprised when I found an egg salad sandwich that I loved. It was in Starbucks of all places! In some Starbucks (not here in State College,) you can get ready made sandwichs. The ones I've had are pretty good. I think its a combination of the bread and the egg salad they use that makes it so good. I examined the ingredients on the packaging in an attempt at figuring out what their secret was. Of course, I had no idea what, besides egg and mayo, went into egg salad. The best I could come up with was eggs, mayo, salt and paprika. So that where I began my first attempt at egg salad.

The first round came out waaaaay too salty! The next came out pretty good, but was still not the same. Several attempts later, I think I have something that's pretty good. I don't care for the taste of the yolks so I disguard about half of the yolks.

As I mentioned earlier this week, boiling the egg is the hardest part. Timing is everything, too long and you will get that green/grey ring thing that surrounds the yolk in many hard boiled eggs. The key is to avoid over cooking, and to dunk the eggs in a bowl of icy water to stop the cooking after you remove them from the hot water.

Egg Salad:

8 large eggs
1-2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt and pepper (I recommend using kosher salt for better flavor)
1/8 teaspoon paprika
A tiny squeeze of lemon juice
1/2 bunch chives, chopped (or dill)
2 small handfuls of lettuce
8 slices of whole grain bread, toasted

Place the eggs in a pot and cover with cold water by a 1/2-inch or so. Bring to a gentle boil. Now turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for ten minutes. Have a big bowl of ice water ready and when the eggs are done cooking place them in the ice bath for three minutes or so - long enough to stop the cooking. Peel the eggs and place on a cutting board. (You could just mash them in a bowl, but I like mine a bit chunkier.) Dice the eggs into small chunks, about 1/4" wide. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper, then add the mayonaise.

Stir in the paprika and chives. Taste, and adjust the seasoning - adding more salt and pepper if needed. If you like a little crunch, add in 2 stalks of chopped celery.

To assemble each egg salad sandwich: place a bit of lettuce on a piece of toast, top with the egg salad mixture, and finish by creating a sandwich with a second piece of toast.

Enjoy!

What's for dinner tonight?

Sloppy Joe's!!!

Crepes

I'm not sure how it popped into my head, but yesterday I decided I wanted crepes. I googled crepe recipes and learned that there's super easy to make. There 6 basic ingredients. Flour, eggs, milk, water, salt and butter. I decided to also add a little bit of sugar to give them a little crispiness. I sliced up some apples and added some cinnamon and sugar. Aaron and I devoured 2 of them! (Zack was too busy whining over not having a waffle to even try them.)

Here are the steps I took to make the crepes:

Crepe Ingredients:
1 cup ap flour
2 eggs
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. water (for thicker crepes use 1/4 c.)
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp. butter, melted

First I peeled, cored and quarted an apple. Using a mandaline, I sliced the apple.
Next in a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and water. Then with your sifter over top the egg mixture, add the flour to the sifter. Continually whisking with one hand and gently shake the sifter over the bowl to slowly add the flour. (If you're not this coordinated, then give the sifter a good shake, set it down, whisk the batter until all the flour is incorporated and repeat until all the flour is added.) Once all the flour has been incorporated into the batter, add the salt and melted butter.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan (I used a 6" frying pan) over medium heat. Pour 1/4 c. of the batter into the pan. Tilt the pan in a circular motion so the batter spreads evenly.
Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes (or until golden brown.) Loosen the edges with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. This is when I added my filling. I sprinkled the crepe with my cinnamon and sugar mixture (which I always have on hand) and layered a few of the sliced apples down the center. After the second side is nice and golden brown, transfer to a plate. I then fold the edges of the crepe over my filling with the fold side down. (I will look like a burrito.)

A few options for fillings that I want to try:
Bananas with peanut butter (or chocolate or nutella)
sausage (or bacon) and cheddar cheese
raspberries/strawberries and cream (or chocolate)
diced ham, onions and peppers or ham and swiss cheese (gruyere cheese)