Quick Curry

This was my first curry ever. Quite nice tasting, a little bit spicy.

First I browned some lean pork and removed it from the pan after just brown. Then, I sauteed onions, garlic and ginger. Then I added chicken broth and brought it to a boil. In went a little bit of flour to thicken it up. I added the pork back in and added two heaping tablespoons of curry powder.

What I liked best about this was the spicy basmati rice. I roasted some coriander seeds, cumin seeds and mustard seeds in a saucepan. Then I added the basmati rice and water. Using the trick that Sheri taught me last month: When the rice is done, wrap a towel around the lid and cover the pot. The towel absorbs the steam and keeps the rice separate and fluffy. I dislike it when my rice sticks together, problem solved thanks to Sheri:)

Authentic Philly Cheesesteak

Les and I were laid over in the Philadelphia Airport in 2003, it was the closest to an authentic Philly Cheesesteak we were going to get. The waitress at the airport bar & grill promised that this was how people in Philly really ate their sandwiches. We've since watched many shows on Food Network and PBS thatit is indeed true:)

Anyone can sautee up some onions, mushrooms and steak and pile it atop a french roll.....but it takes a really brave genius to pony up the secret ingrediant - Cheez Whiz! Yeah baby Cheez Whiz! Hey....it's made from real cheese...it's just been processed beyond recognition and it's quite tasty. I don't care what you foodies say (I can see you rolling your eyes and turning green right now) there comes a time when the low road is also a good way to get to your destination:P

Harvest Polenta and Steamed Salmon

I've been feeling guilty about not eating enough fish lately, so while I was on my way home I stopped at Mitsuwa Market. They are an Asian supermarket, so the fish is always fresh and Grade A because they like the sushi:D

I seasoned the salmon with salt, pepper and wasabi powder. Then I wrapped it with a bunch of cilantro and placed it in the steamer for about 40 minutes.

While that was cooking, I made some polenta on the stovetop and transfered it to the oven to get really firm. I pressed a leaf-shaped cookie cutter into the polenta because I'm feeling a bit festive these days. I really love the fall....it's my favorite time of year and I get really excited for cooking Thanksgiving dinner with my Mom. Oh, and not to mention pumpkin everything!

I roasted an acorn squash and make a sort of Raita to serve over the salmon as well as thinly sliced cucumbers.

Carmelized Onions

While on our bike ride over Marin Headlands, Sheri and I talk about everything. Of course, the conversation turned to food and she gave me an idea of what to do with all of the onions I have in my house.

My mom brought me a lot of onions from a local farmer near her home in Placerville. She told me that when she's got lots of onions, she puts them into a pot to reduce down and carmelize. Then she puts them on sandwiches and Oh how Les and I love carmelized onions, so that's exactly what I did.

This was the building point of tonights dinner. I bought some really yummy buns from Trader Joe's and topped them with chili, cheese and the onions. I boiled and salted edamame for the side.

Les wanted ice cream for dessert. Yes, LES wanted ice cream but I didn't stop him. We drove to PW Market and bought two kinds of Clover Stornetta: Cookies and Cream for me and Pralines and Cream for Les:)

Spanikopita Turkey Burgers

Ya know...sometimes Rachael Ray really knows what the heck she's talking about...even if her use of EVOO is a bit much to take. I still like her.

Lean ground turkey with spinach and feta cheese. I found some Greek Seasoning at Albertson's and threw that in there as well. I roasted some sweet potato fries and served them with a Greek yogurt-cucumber dipping sauce that I loved. It's so refreshing and clean tasting. I could probably eat it with everything.

White Bean Cassoule with Fennel Roasted Chicken

Shawn and Misha came over for dinner tonight. Ever since Les and I watched Monday's episode of Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello, I had to make this dish.

Appetizers included roasted red peppers, sliced heirlooms, french bread and chimichurry sauce (I eat this stuff right out of the container with a spoon it's sooooooo good!).

The main course turned out deliciously. I toasted fennel seeds, coriander seeds and black pepper then ground it into a fine powder to rub the chicken with. Next, I roasted parsnips and carrots. Last, I put the beans in a heavy pan, topped with the veggies, then topped with the chicken and roasted it all for 40 minutes. Turned out very tasty if I do say so myself:)

Dessert was toasted coconut flan. They could have cooked and set up for five more minutes, but it was already 10:30pm and time to go so I rushed it. I also think that I didn't temper the cream into the eggs slow enough so it had a very eggy rather than coconutty taste as if the eggs were cooked a bit too much. It looks nice though, doesn't it?

First Fennel

Les and I went over to the Santana Row Farmer's Market to pick up some of my favorite Olive Oil Olivas de Oro. We got some garlic infused and the Mission Blend. Very tasty and worth every penny.

We also got some fennel, heirlooms (yum!), okra, leeks and honey sticks because Les loves to snack on them.

When I got home I tackled my first ever fennel experience by cutting the bulb and roasting it. I made some brown rice and a citrus chicken salad with red onions.

Breakfast taco

I love quick breakfastses! Whole wheat tortilla topped with scrambled eggs, bacon and havarti cheese. I have a tasty secret for my eggs that you'll never guess....fish sauce. It adds a totally new taste dimension. Salty, but not as if you'd put regular salt in it. Go on, give it a try:)

Cookies....Glorious Cookies!

Oh yes, tonight, I made cookies. I am faithful to a Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe I found on Allrecipes.com one day (recipe below). Man these things are tasty!

I tweaked it ever so slightly and added the zest of one orange. Les said it tasted like Terry's Chocolate Orange, the round chocolate in a box that you bang against a table and it breaks into orange-shaped segments. I say it tasted like something that tastes incredibly delish!

I also made flourless Peanut Butter cookies and they were totally *in my best Cartman voice* Kick Ass! Recipe is also below. You've got to try these. I used natural peanut butter and just drained off the extra oil from the top.

What sparked this little cookie adventure was a trip to Viking Gourmet because I wanted some kitchen gadgets. Well, I found those cute little baby ingredient cups like Sheri has as well as the smallest measuring cup that I loved so much at Sheri's house. So, once I had those in my hands, I just had to have more things. I ended up with new cookie sheets, cookie cooling racks, a kitchen timer, a new peppermill, a new whisk with a 90 degree rotating head, and one of those things that will scoop up my chopped things so I don't ruin the blade of my knife.

Out of control? Yes. Having fun doing it? Absolutely!

Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 cup butter, melted
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line
cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2) In a medium bowl, stir together the melted butter and
brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
Combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda, gradually
stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
3) Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow
cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing
to a wire rack to cool completely.

Best Peanut Butter Cookies Ever
2 cups peanut butter
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line
cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2) In a medium bowl, stir peanut butter and sugar together until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the baking soda, salt, and vanilla. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them two inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Press a criss-cross into the top using the back of a fork.
3) Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Homemade Meat Balls

We had a long day trip to Half Moon Bay today with Huggy. You can see pics of our outing here:)

So I had been thinking of dinner all day and what I would make. I decided on Whole Wheat spaghetti and turkey meatballs. Soy sauce, dijon mustard, honey, worchestershire sauce, bread crumbs, and parm cheese went into making these yummy balls of meat. I roasted a winter squash with olive oil and kosher salt. It was very good.

Rare Salmon Occasion

Sheri and Amy have posted so much salmon lately that I felt I was a little behind the curve. I totally cheated and bought salmon stuffed with rice and herbs from Safeway. The first time that Les ever cooked for me he made this with some stuffed mushrooms and mini-quiches. Theme - he likes stuffed things!

Anyway, it's the only way I like salmon because the stuffing is buttery and yummy and you can't even tell it's salmon.

I sauteed carrots in olive oil and honey and wilted a bit of spinach. But the best thing, I think, was the parmesean garlic bread (Sheri's garlic spread worked perfectly for me this time). Thankfully I only made two slices...otherwise we would have eaten a LOT more of that buttery garlicky goodness.

Lamb Chops!

Les loves lamb, so when I was shopping yesterday, I picked up some chops because they are sooooooo cute in the package! I force myself not to think about what they are because I think it's attrocious what they do these baby animals (I can't eat veal either). Living in a 3x3 pen is not my idea of happiness....even if my purpose in life is to be eaten.

But anyway, I made a really nice rub (all willy-nilly in the bowl) and it turned out to be a delicious flavor if I do say so myself. Threw these babies in the grill pan and seared both sides for five minutes and they were yummy.

I served the chops with creamy parmesean polenta and braised kale with shallots. No magazine or recipes either:P I done gud.

Rub:
Equal parts - Chipotle Chili Powder, Cumin, Paprika, Ground Cardamom, Kosher Salt and the secret ingredient: Brown Sugar (double this amount).

Tenderloin Spinach Salad

The tenderloin was scrumptious and moist and tender and gooooooood!

Les wanted a salad tonight, so I totally loaded the plates with spinach, cucumber, tomato, yellow bell pepper, brocolli and carrot. I sauteed shallots and mushrooms to top the tenderloin and drizzled the whole thing with some super righteous olive oil that we picked up at the Santa Row Farmer's Market.

Tenderloin Pitas

Not spectacular, but fit the bill for a fast feed. I lined the pitas with vegetarian refried beans, romaine lettuce, orange heirloom tomato, and tenderloin. I topped them with yogurt and salsa. Served with a cesar salad because Les looooooooves cesar salad!

Curry crusted turkey cutlets

I kinda stole this idea from Sheri's curried chicken fingers. She used a mayo-curry mixture before breading them, but true to my lower fat compulsion, I used yogurt-mayo. They turned out really nice, Les liked them a lot. Served with sweet potato hash and tomato basil salad (somewhat reminiscent to bruschetta topping).

Blappleberry Crisp:)

Dinner was so tasty, we had to keep the taste buds high on flavor. I made a blueberry/fuji apple crisp. Les has been waiting for this crisp for two days...and was soooooo happy when I served it up tonight.

Both of us can just live on the crisp topping. It's so sweet and crumbly and great! But hey, blueberries are full of anti-oxidants and the apples are full of fiber. In other words, Crisps are HEALTHY:D Yep, for sure:)

Turkey Tenderloin

We didn't even know that turkey's had "loins" but then I realized that it was the sweet spot on their very large breasts:D

They were pre-marinated with southwestern seasonings and I threw them in the grill pan on high heat for a few minutes and finished them off in the oven. They were completely moist and tender and uber delish.

Served on a bed of slightly wilted spinach and roasted asparagus and mushrooms. Sliced heirlooms tomotoes are alternated in the slices of tenderloin. Yum.

Turkey and Black Bean Burgers

I got this idea from Sheri...who got it from Fine Cooking...but I put my own twist on it. Instead of using white beans, I used black beans and added worchestershire sauce. I think they turned out really good, and we have leftovers for lunch during the week. We have been eating lots of salad before our meals and it's doing what it's supposed to do...make you feel full as well as get tons of extra nutrients and not so many extra calories.

Groceries!

We finally got to the grocery store and stocked up on all of the yummy things that Clyde Wilson suggested we feed ourselves. Clyde is with Sports Medicine Institute in Palo Alto and Les and I had a nutrition consultation done last week. I knew that I was feeding us good things (mostly!), but the problem was timing of our meals and caloric pacing. We learned good things and have been making a very good effort to change some bad habits. Thankfully I don't have to banish ice cream from my life, just not have it AND other bad things during the day:)

PW had really nice looking fruits and veggies, so we stocked up. They also have Living Basil and I put it in a deep mug and plan on using it a lot this week.

Hubby makes dinner:)

Tonight Les grilled up some lemon chicken and corn on the cob. He bought stuffed baked potatoes...these are so good...cheese, butter, and bacon....can't get any "badder" than that!