Philly Cheese Steakadilla

This one is a recipe I made up.
Its basically a philly cheese steak in the form on a quesadilla

Makes two whole dillas and makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb thinly sliced steak
10 button mushrooms
1/2 green pepper
4 flour tortillas
4 slices of melty cheese of ur choice (i used mozzarella)
salt/pepper/oil

Directions:
1. chop up the meat, mushrooms, and green pepper
2. saute these ingredients with some salt/pepper/oil
3. heat a tortilla on a flat pan with two slices of cheese
4. when tortilla is crispy and cheese is melted, pour half the meat and veggies over it and spread it out.
5. cover this with another tortilla and flip the whole thing over in the pan.
6. when the second side is crispy, its done.
7. repeat steps 3-6 with the other half of the stuff.

serve with the standard guac, salsa, or sour cream

sorry forgot to take a photo. looks like other dillas :)

Garlic Broccoli

Another minimalist dish that's all in the preparation.

ingredients:

two bunches of broccoli
two cloves of garlic
olive oil
salt/pepper

directions:

1. Boil a pot of water (enough to cover the broccoli)
2. During this time wash the broccoli and shop into uniform florets
3. When water is boiling pour over the chopped broccoli and allow it to blanch in a bowl for about a minute. you will notice the broccoli turn bright green.
4. During this time heat a pan to medium to high with some oil, salt, pepper, and course chopped garlic
5. Drain broccoli and saute quickly in pan for ~2 mins.
6. taste a piece to make sure there is no more raw broccoli flavor and take off the heat. If its not longer crunchy you cooked it too far.



its sooo much better than mushy and steamed!

Oven Fried Chicken Breast

Courtesy of about.com

My edits in Bold/StrikeOut

Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup margarine or butter 3 tablespoons of canola oil

* 2 cloves garlic, minced

* 8 4 boneless chicken breast halves cut into strips (so they cook faster)

* 2/3 1/6 cup grated parmesan cheese

* 1 cup fine dry bread crumbs ¼ cup of flour

* 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

* 1/2 teaspoon salt

* 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper or white pepper

* 2 pinches of paprika

* 2 pinches of cayenne pepper

Preparation:

Make a mixture with flour, parmesan cheese, parsley, and all other seasonings. Dip the chicken pieces in the mix (rinse the meat or you can quickly marinate in some salt and lemon juice to get the coating to stick – no need to dredge in egg). Preheat the oven to 350. In a pan that can also go in the oven (I used my cast iron) heat oil with minced garlic. Pan-fry the chicken pieces so that the coating becomes golden on both sides. Place the whole thing in the oven for about 10-15 mins depending on how big you cut the chicken strips. Should be crispy and moist. Place in a 9- x13-inch baking dish and bake at 350° for 50 to 60

(tip: consider fishing the garlic out before putting it in the oven...burnt garlic is not delish)

Good hot with home made honey mustard or with a simple pasta.

Great next day sliced cold on a salad.

want to try: quesadilla

Saw this in the comments of The Pioneer Woman Cooks' post on blue cheese burgers:

Quesadilla = Caramelized red onions and blue cheese, topped with some fresh cilantro and sour cream.

random dessert

I made a big batch of cookie dough last week (with some oatmeal subbed for flour, and butterscotch chips, white chocolate chunks, and dark chocolate chunks subbed for regular chocolate chips.). I haven't yet made actual cookies with it because I like eating dough so much.

So I put white chocolate chunks and dark chocolate chunks in a ramekin and microwaved them for about a minute.



Then I put chunks of cookie dough on top of the melted chocolate.



Chomp! It turned out gooooood :)

tuna piccata pasta salad

6 ounces angel hair pasta penne
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
6 tablespoons olive oil (forgot this)
1 (9 ounce) can solid white tuna packed in water, drained
2 teaspoons capers, drained (used salted capers, not brined capers)

Added:
lemon chive dressing just to see what it would taste like
1/4 of an onion
Note: there are tomatoes in my ingredient picture but I decided not to use them.

Directions
1. Cook pasta.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together lemon juice, mayonnaise, mustard and lemon chive dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add tuna, separating into thick chunks. Add capers and onions, and stir to combine. Pour pasta into tuna mixture, and stir gently to combine. Cover, and refrigerate.



Courtesy of AllRecipes.

Shrimp Fried Rice

Ingredient list (all approximations - as is with all my cooking)

1. about 2 cups of cooked rice
2. 1 lb of pealed shrimp chopped
3. 1 chopped green pepper
4. 6 sliced button mushrooms
5. 1 cup of thawed/cooked frozen peas
6. 1 cup of canned sweet corn
7. 2 eggs scrambled
8. 2 cloves of garlic sliced
9. paprika, onion powder, salt.pepper, green onion
10. Sriracha (or other hot sauce)
11. chili oil/canola oil (3 tablespoons tops)




Directions

1. preprep all ingredients (peal/chop shrimp, cook peas, scramble eggs, make rice, etc)
2. season shrimp with salt.pepper, paprika, and hot sauce
3. heat pan with oil, garlic, salt, pepper
4. saute green peppers/mushrooms
5. add shrimp when mushrooms are no longer white
6. when shrimp is cooked add peas, corn, and scrambled egg
7. add the write rice in when pan is hot again, gently combine the ingredients
(tip: if rice is cold add some water and pop in microwave for 30 seconds)
8. add salt/pepper/hot sauce/chili oil to your liking & green onion as garnish

The veggies will render a cooking liquid as it cooks that the rice absorbs as flavor...so its not really fried at all.

Serves 6



Try the curry version by adding curry powder in step 3. and 1/2 can of coconut milk in step 8.

and dont forget about tomorrow's lunch.

banana pudding

Tonight I embarked on a banana pudding journey for a class surprise, courtesy of southernfood.about.com

Ingredients:

* 1 large pkg instant vanilla pudding, (6 ounces)
* 2 1/2 cups cold milk



* 1 can sweetened condensed milk, (14 ounces)
* 1 container whipped topping, (16 ounces)


* sliced bananas
* vanilla wafer cookies

My notes are in italics.

"Preparation:
Mix pudding and milk; add condensed milk. Blend well; fold in half the whipped topping.

I have not made pudding since 1995, so I did not vigilantly stir the pudding mix and milk as they heated up in a saucepan; thus, there are flecks of burnt sugar in the pudding (and not in the sexy Toscanini's way). Similarly to my method of putting together furniture, I neglected to read directions and forgot to include whipped topping in this step. I also rushed the chilling stage a bit and am hoping it solidifies overnight.

Alternate layers of pudding, bananas and vanilla wafers; top with remaining whipped topping and a few banana slices.



Armed with the biggest tupperware I could find, considering that our biggest ones were filled with either grapes or tomato sauce, I did this step satisfactorily.



Refrigerate overnight before serving."

Note to self: Must get better lighting and learn to make my pictures look as enticing as SteamyKitchen's!

Note to self, post-eating leftover pudding ingredients...this is seriously sweet enough to kill a baby elephant.

Want to Try: 15-Minute Fried Herbed Chicken

Courtesy of the New York Times

1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 to 2 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs, like tarragon and sage
2 tablespoons tahini or peanut butter
1/4 cup olive oil, more for frying
Flour for dredging
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs or 4 half-breasts
Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
Lemon wedges for serving

1. In a blender or the container of a food processor, combine onion, herbs and tahini. As you purée the mixture, slowly add just enough olive oil through the feed tube to make a thick, smooth paste; do not let it get too thin.
2. Put flour in a shallow bowl. Place chicken in another bowl. Rub puréed mixture over chicken, then dredge each piece in flour. Gently shake off any excess flour, coat again with paste and dredge once more in flour.
3. Heat 1/4 inch olive oil in a skillet; when it is hot, fry chicken for about 4 minutes each side, until well browned and cooked through; it will take longer if you use chicken with the bone in. Garnish with parsley and serve hot or warm, with lemon wedges.

Yield: 4 servings.

Ching Cai (bok choy)

Ok I dont even know if this qualifies as a recipe (its more just tips for preparation) because its so easy and basically comprised of 1 ingredient. It is also very typical of real chinese food..ahh reminds me of childhood days. and no my parents didnt have to force it down my throat. I actually ate it. The basic formula is veggie+salt+pepper+high heat. (if you are thinking stir fry, you die...i mean you are wrong)

So this is that formula with xiao ching cai. or baby bok choy cuz its more tender, here goes:

1. peal the leaves apart from 2-3 bunches

2. cut green part away from the white stem part and chop into munchable sizes (im always annoyed when restaurants serve this stuff whole or cut in half long ways. firstly my mouth is not that big and secondly dont they know the stems and leafy greens require different cooking times? *sigh*)

3. heat oil in a pot (my mom prefers a pot to cook because the sides prevent oils from splattering spatter on you or the counter)
4. add salt and pepper to the pot
5. once the pot is hot (test by flicking some cold water and hearing a sizzle)
6. add only the white stems and stir it around
7. after a few mins taste a small piece, if its tender throw in the green parts
8. once its all wilted take it off the heat and eat.

Congrats! you've just consumed about 1/3 of a day's fiber.
its delish with some rice and another side.
Serves 2 as a side or 1 if its just me. (reheats well too for next-day lunches i.e. doesnt get mushy in the microwave)

Eat This / Not That

As much as I love to cook. I have to admit that its partially for vain reasons due to the well known fact that when you cook for yourself you can control what goes in your food. Subconsciously (or maybe consciously) I'm hoping i can eat whatever I cook and still be healthy and look hot in clothing I purchased early in college. So a few months ago i picked up this book at boarders, and i thought i was extremely enlightening, but it was all about eating out (ex: Bic mac is better for you than the whopper, breakfast sandwich at starBs is better than the branmuffin..wtf?...yeah see what I means?). So although it was interesting I didnt pick it up because I eat at home 95% of the time.

So anyway when I saw that the same authors came out with a SUPERMARKET version I insta-scooped it. (ok theres a kids version too, doesnt apply to me but why do kids have their own food anyway? There is no such thing as "kids' food" unless you count baby food. there are only foods MARKETED to kids. My kids will eat what i make for them..ok im getting off the subject. )



This book is awesome it does an apples to apples comparison of all the stuff you buy at the grocery store. Obv any fresh fruits and veggies are good for you, but what about the healthiest tortilla or ketchup or ramen (because dammit sometimes a girl just wants ramen). Anyway I love this book. Its all about the better of two evils. I can still have cesar dressing but now I know which brand is the best for me or atleast know to avoid the one that is the worst. I can still have icecream and know its not that big a deficit! It doesnt control for flavor but for things that i cant tell a difference between anyway its well worth it (who knew there was such a caloric difference between english muffins, oatmeal, and yogurt).

Additionally, it had a website: http://www.menshealth.com/eatthis/index.php

Here are some highlights that was new to me.

Worst food for Women
Health foods that Arent

Inaugural Luncheon Menu

Download the full recipes here.

I plan to make the first course when i figure out a recipe that serves 2 and when seafood goes on sale at the Teeter.

moroccan chicken and rice

Made this from Cheap Healthy Good. Edits are in bold and strikeout.

1 cup orzo, uncookedjasmati rice
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon turmeric or 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large clove garlic, minced
14-16 ounces chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces (1" or smaller)Used chicken thighs instead
2 teaspoons vegetable or olive oil
1-1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup low-sodium chicken brothveggie bouillon
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

chickpea burgers

Made these this weekend but neglected to take pictures...will do so the next time because they were yummy!

Changes/Observations:
-Fresh parsley makes a huge difference.
-I used Italian panko breadcrumbs and added in smoked paprika and crushed red pepper.

Pasta Salad a la Left Overs

new pasta salad I created....it was really goooooood, and I made it from random left overs and random salad stuff

small pasta: mini shells or bowtie.
arugula
carrots
purple onion
baby peas
parmesan
bacon
green peppers
cubed chicken (i used left over roasted chicken - just one drum stick)
salt/pepper
olive oil
chipotle mayo (optional - I used 1 teaspoon)

1. Boil water for the pasta.
2. chop veggies into about the same size as pasta.

**all veggies chopped up should be about double the size of the amount of dried pasta
I used 2 hand fulls of arugula-coarse chop, ~10 baby carrots (i actually chopped them into short strips), one slice of purple onion, 1/2 green pepper (more like these http://www.farmerfred.com/images/spanishspice2.jpg but not spicy), and hand full of cooked peas. You can adjust the veggies to your liking...my choices were dictated by what i had left over in the fridge.**

3. mix veggies together with oliveoil, salt, pepper, grated cheese (2 spoonfuls), and mayo
4. mince 1 slice of bacon, cook in pan with the cubed chicken (heats it up), add to mix.
5. once the pasta is cooked, drain, add to mix, and enjoy.

the heat from pasta/chicken wilts everything and its good hot and cold.
I made enough for dinner and lunch for both Los and I.
yay for leftovers.