Asian snacky things

After today's 2.5 hr ride (Foothill to Arastradero Loop - 40 miles) I didn't feel like doing much. We had Subway sandwiches for lunch and I had a little nap. The rest of the day was spent getting ready for the arrival of Les' parents from the UK. The house is in order and I feel good about it:)

I did have a hankering for meat and shrimp for dinner though, so that's what I did. I made beef rolls with Enoki mushrooms and clover sprouts, shrimp, and steamed gyoza. Served it with a dipping sauce that is indescribable...sorry:P
Yum. Les didn't like touching the "bits" on the shrimps, but I find that shrimp keeps from drying out when you leave the shell and "bits" on.

Chromosome Sausage

Tonight's dinner was supposed to be easy, but the baked potatoes turned out to be all spaz-like. It took over an hour in the oven to bake them. I've never had that happen before. My potatoes usually turn out perfectly soft when I bake them in the oven....I've had a suspicion that the oven is dying a slow death.

Anyway, doesn't this sausage look like a chromosome? The X variety...girl power!! The spinach was tossed with some Korean bbq sauce, sweet and spicy.

Sweet-n-Sour Chicken

I watched Calorie Commando on Food Network today and decided to make what I saw. I modified it a little bit because I didn't really like everything he put in this dish.

I've started shopping at the Mitsuwa Market down the road from where we live. They package food in such a way that I can buy things to feed just the two of us and not have to worry about food going bad. Another reason is because it's a lot less expensive because Asians are penny-pinchers! They also have Mochi Ice Cream and I am totally addicted to that stuff!

MMMMMaria!

Broiled some pre-marinated Santa Maria Tri-Tip and made my very first risotto. I knew going into it that risotto is a labor of love that has attention deficit disorder. I thought I was up for the task, but after I was done....I vowed not to do it again. It turned out okay, just took forever. Rather than use the Olive Oil and Butter, I "lightened" it up by using chicken broth and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter light!! Hehehehe...I know that makes you just cringe, doesn't it?! Maybe that's why it took longer too soak up the juices. I dunno, maybe I'm just lame and can't make risotto:P

Zuni Roast Chicken...following recipes again!

This recipe was handed down to me from Sheri. Both she and Amy have made this chicken and raved about it so I had to give it a try. I was happy with it, Les really liked it. I think it could have been better had I not gotten a chicken that was soaked in brine. The salt crust that I added made the drippings a little too salty.

I think the thing I liked most about it was that I was able to take my time with it. It was not really a lazy Sunday, but I just wanted it to be special so I didn't rush it.

The bread salad was incredible, I couldn't stop snacking on it as I was making it! I served some lamb's lettuce marinated in ginger/soy dressing. Yum. I will definitely make this again.

Honeybaked Ham Trauma

Never tried a Honeybaked Ham before and it was actually really delicious, but won't go through the trouble of buying one ever again. You have to reserve them over the phone and pick up the ham in the store. I'll not go into all of my traumatic details because it's giving me high blood pressure just thinking about what I went through, but be assured that it had a LOT to do with poor customer service and I just despise that.
Dinner was fabulous though, good time had with family at Cabernet. We had the ham, spinach, roasted potatoes, coconut-almond shrimp, and bread. Mom made Chickie Cupcakes for dessert...they were cute

Gorgeous Chocolate

Huggy and I were running this morning for an hour and a half at the Los Gatos Creek Trail. I came home and Les had a surprise waiting for me at home. He brought me to the bedroom, told me to close my eyes and hold out my hands. Now when I was young my friends and I did things like this to each other, but the surprises were never nice. You'd usually open your eyes to find a hairy spider or some gross thing someone found on the ground. This time, the surprise was different. A beautiful chocolate tulip from Joseph Schmidt. I can't bear to break into it, so it's in the freezer under cryo suspense!

Thai Peanut Chicken

This was so incredibly tasty I will definitely do it again. I just happen to have bought boneless chicken thighs at the store....I never buy dark meat, but this changed me forever. I cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and cooked them on very high heat just until heated through. I made some soba wheat noodles, drained them and then tossed the chicken in with some thai peanut dressing. Amazing. Les ate it all gone and the leftovers were gone before morning because he snuck in the fridge while he was up until the wee hours coding.

Tuesday is a perfect day for burgers

Lean ground turkey is so flavorless that you must make up for it with seasoning. I did something completely different with these and Les loved them. I put the usual egg, worschestershire, and Lipton Onion Soup mix in, but also threw in some French Fried Onions that I had in the cubbord. YUUUUMMMM. So much onion flavor, but not over powering. I oven roasted some french fries and put a salad on the side. It was a winner. I love good old American meals:)

mmmmmm...parsnips

nothing special at all about this, just quick and easy...like Sheri. Just kidding, wanted to get your attention:D This is kielbasa with onions and roast parsnips. I threw some green squash in there for good measure.

Kielbasa Fritatta

Breakfast in bed with eggs. Nothing better:) This time we had no nap, on the run all day. We went to Santa Cruz in the morning to check out the site for this year's Nor Cal Strongman Competition. Les is going to be the DJ for it again. It's the same day as Tierra Bella, so I'm not sure what time I'll be able to go down there. I don't want to miss it though because it's a great time. Keg Tosses, Conan's Wheel, Overhead lifts of crazy weight. It's fun to watch.
Les

London Bridges broiling down...broiling down...broiling down

Okay, that titles is a bit lame, but I'm rushing rather un-lovingly through this just to get it done! London Broil is one of our favorite things to eat. This was particularly good because I seasoned it with sesame oil and grill seasoning. And get this....I actually broiled it! I usually grill it, but felt like doing something different this time.
Oh, and that's steamed broccoflower on the side.

Chili and Salad

Yes, this blog has become a bastard of a thing to keep up with...so I'm just now getting around to posting two weeks worth of meals...so don't ask me to remember the details that far back...or provide color commentary of said meals:D

You knew it was coming!

Pork Tenderloin! On a bed of baby spinach with ginger dressing. Yes, we like it:)

Lloyd's Rocks!

Tonight I sucked it up and joined the Sunnyvale Masters. I have never swam...swum...swimmed (?) so much in my life! It was awesome. I called Miss Sheri to see if she wanted to come along, but she denied me. She's not feeling well, so I'll let her sickly little self off this one time! I plan to swim three times a week. That should get my ass in shape rather quickly. I'm not going to let a boatload of people pass me at Wildflower, and I'll be swimming 1500 meters that day. I liked TI, but this structure is what I need and the drills are horrific. It's just the way I like it, I'm a sicko...I know.

So, 2000 yards later I'm ready for dinner! Thankfully while talking to Sheri earlier, I was reminded there was no food in the house so I did some shopping before swimming. I pulled out the easiest and most instantly satisfying thing I could...LLOYD'S! Yummmmmm.

Elephants in Bars

Les and I went to dinner last night at The Elephant Bar. This is one of my favorite places to eat...as far as chain restaurants are concerned. Les had just learned the meaning of bonking because when he came home from the gym he was absolutely wiped out and in need of food.

We both ordered the lemon herb chicken with garlic mashed potatoes and spinach. I also ordered a side Jamaican Mojo Salad that had some really great dressing. It was a mixture of spicy and sweet and had those amazing candied walnuts and dried cranberries mixed in. I was quite happy with my meal selection:D

Teriyaki Two Times

I absolutely love sushi restaurants. I'll never ever ever turn down the opportunity to go to one. Today I went out to lunch with two of my co-workers before we went to visit a client and passed sushi....we had to go. I ordered the chicken teriyaki and california roll bento box. I loved it. I loved it so much, I made it for dinner!

Chicken teriyaki, scalloped potatoes (yes from a box Sheri and Amy:P), acorn squash, and spinach. I topped it with some pine nuts and dried apricots. Simple, and yummy.

Roasted Things Are Good

I love parsnips...and anytime I can get away with making them, they go in the oven at high heat to be roasted. I also roasted some broccoli, carrots, and mushrooms. Les doesn't eat all-veggie meals so I made some Swedish Meatballs in a Merlot reduction. My first reduction ever and it was nice and syruppy and yummy and good!

I actually kinda followed a recipe!

Tonight I made tequila lime chicken, corn casserole, and an endive salad with balsamic honey dressing. I think it's just Les getting over his illness, but he liked it a lot. The casserole called for a lot of butter and half & half, but I just can't justify the fat or calories, so I omitted the butter and used fat free h&h. The chicken did not turn out like I wanted it to, but it was still good. Thank goodness for the grill pan, I love that thing!

Tonights dinner

was seriously not even worth posting about, but I'll recap: Leftover pork tenderloin, Stove Top chicken stuffing, and some carrots. It was good, but nothing to write home about:D