Happy Holidays! Leftover Turkey Enchiladas

Hi again!

I know, really close to my last posting, ain't it? But, I wanted to get this up so people might still have a chance to try it out while they still have leftovers. And yes, you read that title correctly: enchiladas made with leftover turkey.

While planning out meals for the week, I decided to make enchiladas. There's a method on allrecipes.com that I'm fond of, so I decided I'd make those. I even considered blogging about it as a F.E.A.S.T., because it is rather simple to make and it tastes quite good. But! Then the idea came up to make the enchiladas using some of the leftover turkey in the fridge and, since the method was designed with leftover chicken in mind anyway, I decided that I just had to try it out.

Without further ado, here we go!

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
1 tbs butter
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1/2 tsp garlic power
1 4oz can chopped green chiles
1 10.75oz can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups cubed leftover Thanksgiving turkey
1 cup (or a little more!) shredded cheddar/colby jack cheese, divided
1/4 cup milk
6 fajita size flour tortillas


THE METHOD!!!
To begin, reheat your turkey; this can be done via the microwave or in your skillet. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350, and spritz a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.

In your skillet, over medium heat, melt the butter and saute the green onions with a little salt until softened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add your garlic powder, then stir in the chiles, soup, and sour cream and combine well. Pull about 3/4 of the mixture out into a soup bowl and set aside. To the 1/4 mixture that's left, toss in your turkey and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Combine well.

Fill each of the six tortillas with 1/6 of the mixture, roll up, and place seem side down in the baking dish. Pour the milk into the soup bowl with the reserved mixture and stir to combine. Poor this new mixture over the tortillas. Be sure to get even coverage. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup (or a little more!) of cheese, again, going for even coverage.

Bake in your heated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned and nicely bubbly.

Ok, I'm gonna level with you: this worked surprisingly well. The turkey actually tasted really good when combined with the cheese and chiles, so I think this is something everyone should try. I'll just let the results speak for themselves.

As always, thanks for reading. Go forth and eat well!

Elixer Soup

Hey all!

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving weekend. I know I did. I spent the time with family and good friends, and I always consider that a great time. Naturally, since this weekend is host to one of the biggest meals of the year, it also means I spent a good deal of time in the kitchen.

Now, I know what you might be expecting: some recipe or another about turkey or stuffing or homemade cranberry sauce. Well, I decided to forgo that idea. Everyone has their own take on Thanksgiving, so trying to impress my own opinions on the subject seemed like it might prove difficult. Instead, I'm going to share a recipe I decided to try for lunch over the weekend: Elixer Soup!

For those who haven't noticed, if you look on the right side of this page, you can see a link to another blog entitled "The Geeky Chef." I love this blog. The creator like to take the food that appears in video games, nerdy tv shows/movies, and geeky literature and turn it into real-life food. And I have to say The Geeky Chef does a damn fine job too. If you like all things nerdy, you should go check it out!

But I digress. I decided to try making The Geeky Chef's version of Elixer Soup from The Legend of Zelda: the Wind Waker. In the game, after healing Link's grandmother with a faerie, she makes him his favorite soup as a way to tell him what a good grandson he is. And it is the best healing item ever created in a Zelda game. It restores all of Link's health and gives him a power boost. And you get two servings in one bottle! Trust me, it's awesome.

This version of the soup uses a ton of healthy vitamin C rich veggies in a base of savory chicken broth, and it sure to give you a boost! My take on the soup changes things up just a bit, but you can follow along with the original here. Let's take a look, shall we?

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
6 tbs butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped (or about 3 good tsp)
1 lb yellow squash, chopped
1 acorn squash
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 cup cauliflower, chopped
4 cups chicken broth
Juice of 1 lemon
Hot sauce (Tobasco, Frank's, etc.)
Salt & pepper to season
Shredded Parmesan cheese

THE METHOD!!!
Cut the acorn squash in half and remove all the seeds. Place the squash cut side down in a microwave-safe dish with about a half-inch to an inch of water. Place the gourd in said hotbox and heat for five minutes. The goal here is to soften the squash enough to remove all the good stuff from the skin. Scoop out the meat with a spoon, or else cut into strips and peel with a paring knife. Chop the squash as you did the other veggies.

Melt the butter in a pot over medium heat. Drop in your onion and garlic with a little salt & pepper, and saute until softened, or about ten minutes. Once this is done, add the remaining veggies and stir it all up to distribute everything evenly. Add your chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once you hit a boil, drop the heat to low and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until all the veggies have softened.

Here comes the tricky part. You need to puree everything down to a soup consistency. This can be accomplished one of two ways. If you have an immersion or stick blender, you're golden; use it. If yours, like mine, is broken, fear not! Pull out your trusty blender! The soup is hot, so work in batches. I did mine in three. Ladle about 1/3 of the soup into your blender.

Don't seal it tight though; the heat and steam will cause difficulties. Most blender lids have a piece in the middle that can be removed for adding ingredients during the blending process. Remove that and cover with a towel. This way, you don't have an airtight seal, but you're still protected from flying soup. Blend each batch down to a soupy consistency, then transfer to another dish to hold. Repeat this process with the remaining soup, and return it all to the pot.

Now, stir in your lemon juice, add hot sauce if you like (just enough for a little kick!), and more salt & pepper if you feel it's needed. Serve with a little Parmesan sprinkled on top and a good loaf of sourdough bread on the side!

This soup is delicious. It has a nice smooth consistency, but with enough body and texture to still have that hearty feel. The veggies and the savory chicken broth give it that warm comfort-food taste, and the butter and onions and garlic make everything just smell heavenly, but the acidity in the lemon juice brings a brightness and a lightness that you wouldn't otherwise expect in a pure vegetable soup. It's absolutely wonderful. If you get a chance, I would highly recommend trying this out the next time you feel like making a nice bowl of soup.

I had a lot of fun with this recipe, and I hope y'all do as well. As always, thanks for reading. Comments and thoughts are always appreciated. Go forth and eat well!

F.E.A.S.T.: Fish Pouches

Hey everyone!

So this week's culinary shenanigan is my attempt at another F.E.A.S.T.. Unfortunately, this one was not quite as successful as my last, but hey, experimentation is a part of this whole wacky process, right?

This week, I wanted to try something I haven't done in a while: pouch cooking. What's that, you ask? Excellent question. Essentially, it's exactly what it sounds like: cooking in a pouch. You basically wrap all your food up in a pouch of folded parchment paper or aluminum foil, throw the package in the oven (or into a bed of hot coals, though I've never tried this), and steam/bake the whole thing.

So, how do you do it, you ask? Another excellent question. Boy, you're really on top of things today, aren't you? First you pick a protein. I feel that since other meats like beef or pork really benefit from browning, and there's none of that here, fish is an excellent choice. I had some tilapia left over from my Fish and Chips meal a few weeks ago, so I went with that. Second, you pick a starch, such as rice or pasta. I went with gold potatoes, because I thought they'd be tasty. Third, you pick a few veggies to accompany your meat. I went with tomatoes, bell peppers, and mushrooms. You also select a couple of aromatics, in my case, an onion and some garlic. Finally, you choose your seasonings (salt and lemon in my case) and a flavored liquid (white wine here).

I'll have more to say afterwards, but I figure let's get down to the actual cooking first.

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
4 tilapia fillets  (from a $4 frozen bag)
6 gold potatoes  (about $2)
4 roma tomatoes  (about $1)
1 red bell pepper  (about $2)
1 yellow bell pepper  (about $2)
8 baby 'bella mushrooms  (from a $4 package)
1 medium yellow onion  (about $1)
4 cloves of garlic  (about $0.50)
salt
2 lemons  ($0.25 each)
A few good splashes white wine  (from a $3 bottle, but you can use fancier)

Final price: about $20, give or take.

THE METHOD!!!
Make sure your fish is well thawed in the fridge first. Once it's thawed, season it with a little salt. Set your oven for 425 degrees.

Now start chopping. Dice your potatoes. You'll want them small so that they can cook thoroughly. Seed and chop your tomatoes. Seed and chop your peppers. Clean and slice your mushrooms. Peel and slice your onion. Peel and smash your garlic cloves.

Make sure you have four large sheets of parchment paper ready to go. You want them big enough that they'll be able to fold over the food with enough left over to be folded shut.

Begin your assembly. You'll divide everything four ways, naturally. Place your potatoes down first. Lay a piece of fish on top. Squeeze half a lemon over the fish. Pile on your tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, onions, and garlic. Last, give the whole thing a good splash (maybe 1/4 cup?) of wine. Fold the parchment over, and crease your edges together to seal the whole thing shut. (Watch out that you don't let your liquids leak away!)

Place on a cookie sheet (for ease of movement) and bake for at least 30 minutes (it took me closer to 50, actually) or until everything is done as you desire.

Ok, like I said, I wasn't terribly pleased with my results this time. Oh, everything was cooked through, so the process worked, don't get me wrong. But I had a few points of contention.

For one thing, I used too much food in each pouch. This increased the cooking time by nearly double and made the pouches difficult to seal. I actually had to double layer one of them because the first layer was too small. For another, I need to improve on my seasonings, as the whole thing tasted a bit bland. Plus, the flavors of my veggies and aromatics didn't mesh as well as I would have liked, but that could also be because the seasonings were off.

Let's review the acronym:

Fast: Sadly, no. The whole process took about 2 hours from start to eat, which is double my target time. Next time, I want to use fewer veggies (four instead of six potatoes, only one pepper, etc.) to decrease both my prep time and my cook time.

Easy: The process itself if actually pretty straightforward: chop everything up and throw together in a pouch. Cook. Done. So here, I'd say we have success.

Affordable: Here I pushed things a bit. My goal here is not to go above $20 for four people to eat, as $5/person seems pretty cheap to me. But again, next time I plan to use less food, which will also reduce the cost.

Super Tasty: Unfortunately, the best word to describe the taste here is "meh." It wasn't bad by any stretch, but it was hardly Super Tasty. It needed more seasoning, and it needed more contrasting flavors. Definitely something to work on.

So in the end, the meal itself was less than successful.

But fear not! I have not given up hope!

I plan to try this again after some careful consideration. In fact, while writing this, I came up with a fairly wacky idea that I plan to try at the earliest opportunity. But as I said, I will revisit this method, in the hopes that I can improve on the whole thing and turn it into a proper F.E.A.S.T.! So keep your eyes open for my next few posts!

Thanks again for reading everyone! Go forth and eat well!

F.E.A.S.T.: Sloppy Joes from Scratch

Hello again everyone! I hope you're ready for another F.E.A.S.T., 'cause I've got a good one lined up.

Everybody loves Sloppy Joes, right? I mean, it's good, wholesome comfort food from our childhood. The problem is: who ever makes them from scratch? I mean, why do that when you can just as easily buy a can of Manwich, right?

Well, I say to hell with that!

Sloppy Joes are easy to make, even from scratch, and I guarantee this version will taste better than anything coming out of a can. Sure, it takes a little more effort, but trust me, it's totally worth it. Even better, it's not even pricey, and the whole thing takes about 45 minutes from start to eat. Don't believe me? Well, read on then.

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
1 to 1 1/4 lbs ground beef  ($3.50)
1 medium onion, diced  ($0.75)
1 red bell pepper, diced  ($1.75)
2 tsp diced garlic, or 2-4 cloves  (staple)
1 8oz can tomato sauce  ($0.25)
1/2 cup ketchup  (staple)
1/2 cup chili sauce  (from a $1.50 bottle, see below!)
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce  (staple)
3 tbsp brown sugar  (staple)
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar  (staple)
1 tsp cumin  (staple)
hot sauce, to taste (optional)
ground red pepper, to taste (optional)
salt and pepper, to taste (not optional)

Final price? $7.75

Ok, I admit, some of you may not keep some of the things I listed as "staples" on hand at all times like I do. So you can round up to $10-15 if you want. The Worcestershire sauce is probably the most expensive at about $3-4/bottle. Trust me though, it's worth it. And since all of these things will keep forever, you'll get plenty of meals out of each.

THE METHOD!!!
This couldn't be simpler. To begin, brown your beef in a skillet set over medium to med-high heat. When you can't see any more pink, drain off the fat.

Next, add your onion, garlic, and bell pepper, plus a good pinch of salt, and cook until the veggies begin to soften, about 5 minutes or so.

When that's done, add all your tomato sauce, ketchup, and chili sauce, and stir to combine. A quick aside: no, the chili sauce is not spicy. It's not Sriracha or anything like that. Essentially, it's a flavored ketchup, but it adds a nice spice-flavor to the mix. If you can't find it, just replace it with more ketchup.

Last, add the Worcestershire, sugar, vinegar, cumin, salt and pepper. If you're adding red pepper or hot sauce (woo, Frank's!), now would be the time to add that too.

Stir it all up, give it a few minutes for the flavors to meld, and voila! you're done. Serve on buns, or over rice or potatoes.

Like I said: super easy. And it all gets made in one skillet, so clean-up is a breeze too. So let's go over our acronym, shall we?

Fast: 45 minutes, from the time I stated pulling out veggies to the time I started piling food on the bun. Check.

Easy: Brown the meat. Add veggies. Add flavors. Done. Check.

Affordable: I'll give you that some of the staples may not be normal fare in everyone's kitchen, but they should be. Still, we're talking under $10 for about eight sandwiches worth of food. So I say check.

Super Tasty: Meaty. Savory. A touch of sweet. A touch of spice. The aromatic smell of fresh onion and pepper and garlic, combined with floral scent of tomatoes and earthy aroma of cumin. Trust me, your whole kitchen will smell delicious. Check.

The best part is: you can adjust the meal to suit your tastes. Don't like spices? Forget 'em! Want it a bit sweeter? Up the sugar by a tablespoon or two. Want to be adventurous? Go forth to your spice cabinet and have at it! I've seen methods calling for everything from chili powder to cloves to mustard. Besides, everyone should have their own favorite way to make Sloppy Joes. They're just that good.

Anyway, as always, thanks for reading. Go forth and eat well!

Happy Holidays! Broken Glass Cupcakes

Happy Halloween everyone!

I love Halloween. Next to Christmas, it's probably my favorite holiday. I love the fun, the costumes, the creepiness, and, of course, the food. So the more ways I can find to combine a few of those things together, the better, I say. And is there a better way, here, than to make fun, creepy food? I say stoutly, that no, there is not!

BEHOLD!!

MWA HA HA HAH HAA!!

::ahem::

Sorry, but I can't resist a little maniacal cackling in the kitchen now and then. Anyway, I saw a version of these on Facebook last year, after Halloween had already come and gone. But I was so enamored with the idea that I vowed on the spot that I would make them for next Halloween. I swore that nothing would stop me from creating these creepy little gems and sharing them with my friends and family.

Naturally, a year later, I almost forgot about them.

Luckily, I remembered in time, and I was able to put them together for a Halloween party. I am quite pleased to say that they were a big hit. As such I would like to share them with you. Though not the original method I saw last year, I thought that this version was the best one to try. As usual, you are welcome to follow along with me as I plow through.

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
The Cupcakes
1 box Red Velvet cake mix
Eggs (as per the cake mix, plus 1 egg)
Milk (substituted for the water in the mix)
Melted butter (twice as much as the oil called for in the mix)

The Frosting
1 8oz package cream cheese, softened
1 1/2cup stick butter, softened
1tsp vanilla
dash of salt
4cups powdered sugar
1cup white chocolate chips

The Candy Glass
1cup sugar
1/2cup light corn syrup
1-2tsp clear flavoring (I used clear artificial vanilla)

The Edible Blood
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
red food coloring
black food coloring
clear flavoring, to taste (I used raspberry)

THE METHOD!!!
To begin, make the candy glass. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment or wax paper. Stir the sugar and corn syrup together in a microwave-safe bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave the sugar on high for 3 minutes. Carefully! remove the plastic wrap (beware of steam!) and stir in your flavoring. Recover with fresh plastic, then microwave for another 2-3 minutes. You have to watch it; if you let it go to long, the sugar will start to turn an amber color, and that means you've gone too far. For me, it took 2minutes 15seconds, and I think I could've gotten away with a bit less.

Working carefully!, remove the plastic wrap and pour out onto your cookie sheet. Spread slightly with a spoon or spatula, then set aside to harden. This will take several hours, hence doing it first. Once it's hardened, you can take a knife tip to it to break it into sharp (no, really, they are sharp!) little shards. Just place the knife tip down on the candy and gently but firmly tap down to break it up.

Next, make the edible blood. Mix everything together.

No, really, that's it. Just play with the colors until it looks like blood. I wanted a nice dark red, but I went through an entire tube of black gel and barely got it past pale red-colored-milk red. So use your best judgement.

To make the cupcakes, follow the instructions on the box. The method calls for a few easy substitutions, which I enumerated above, all of which I recommend. Add an extra eggs. Sub out an equal amount of milk for the water. Use double the amount of melted butter as oil. (Mine called for 1/3cup oil, so I measured out 2/3 cup butter and melted it gently in the microwave). Other than that, I recommend you find some cool black and white paper cups. On mine, the red velvet cake actually turned the white paper red, which I thought looked pretty damn cool.

Last, make the frosting. Beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and salt together on medium speed until smooth. Incorporate the powdered sugar a cup at a time, and beat until combined. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave (go in 20-30 second increments, stirring in between. It only took me two rounds to get it smooth), and mix that in as well. If desired, but it in a piping bag (or a ziplock with the corner cut out so a piping tip can peak through) and get ready to decorate!

To create your creepily wonderful cakes, frost each cool cake as desired. I used a star tip in a ziplock bag, as I said, and went in tight spiral, getting a double layer of frosting on each cake. Next, insert a few shards of candy glass at odd or violent angles. Finally, go to town with the blood! You can put it in another bag, sure, or you can do what I did. Dip a fork in the blood, lift, and then flick the resulting drizzle across cake, frosting, and glass alike. Remember, these are supposed to be tasty and creepy, so think blood spatter and gore here. After all, you want to get into the holiday spirit, right?

These were a lot of fun to make and eat. The cake turned out nice and moist, and just dense enough to really have some good body to them. The glass turned out great, even if I did make it a smidgen too dark. The blood was also tasty, if not quite the shade of red I wanted. But the frosting... now that was the best. Lightly rich, not at all saccharine, with hints of cream cheese tang and white chocolate sweetness. It was perfect for these cakes. Like I said, they went over really well at the party, and I will definitely be making them next year!

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this little piece of my insanity. As always, thoughts and comments are appreciated, and thanks for reading!

Deep Fried Goodness: Fish & Chips

Hey everyone!

So yeah, been a while since my last post, hasn't it? Rather than hang my head in shame, I will carry on with business as usual. I ought to get one of those "Keep Calm" shirts... "Keep calm and cook something!" I wonder if that actually exists...?

Where was I? Ah, yes. Cooking and talking about it.

Anyway, guess what? I bought a deep fryer!

Now, I know what some of you are going to say... probably some variation of, "WTF?" I expect. No matter, though. Maybe some of you will think I'm crazy for acquiring such a device, but let me offer you this counterargument: I get to fry things now.

I've wanted one for a while, so I finally decided to bite the culinary bullet and pick one up. At first, I had buyer's remorse, I admit, but then I realized how many different dishes I could create with the bloody thing, so I got over it quick enough. And for my first foray into deep frying, I decided to go with a classic: Fish and Chips.

As per usual, you can follow along with my inspiration, here.

THE INGREDIENTS!!!

4 large baking potatoes
2 cups AP flour
1 tbs baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
a good few dashes Old Bay seasoning
~1.5 bottles Shiner Bock beer (or similar dark brown brew)
1-1.5 lbs white fish (I used frozen tilapia fillets, sliced in half)
cornstarch (for dredging)

THE METHOD!!!
To begin, cut your potatoes into vaguely french fry shaped strips by whatever method you choose. I just took my chef's knife and cut them in half lengthwise. Then I cut each half in half again, and cut each quarter into about four strips. Once you have your taters cut to size, soak them in cold water for at least 15 minutes to remove excess starch. When they're done soaking, they'll need to be dried as thoroughly as possible, either with towels or a salad spinner.

Meanwhile, make your batter. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, and Old Bay together in a bowl. Then add the beer. I started with one bottle of beer and found it wasn't enough, so I added more until it got a nice gooey-batter consistency. Imagine the consistency of cake batter, and you have it right. Once this is made, give it about a 10 minute rest in the fridge, just so that the flour can absorb all that delicious beer.

Ok, now begins the frying. Get your oil to about 325 degrees and your oven to about 200 degrees. All will be made clear. Working in batches, fry the potatoes for about 2-3 minutes or until pale and floppy. Remove from the oil, drain on paper towels, and set aside to cool to room temp. This is only the first frying; the second time in will get them crispy and GBD.

Raise the oil temp to 350 and get your fish ready. Dredge each piece lightly in cornstarch, being sure to remove any excess powder. Then, submerge the fish in your batter, coating evenly. Gently introduce the fish into the oil; don't just drop them in or they'll sink to the bottom of the pot and stick. Once the batter sets, flip them over with a metal instrument of your choice (I used a spatula, but you can use tongs, a fork, a flute, whatever's handy), and cook until GBD. This'll take about 2-3 minutes. Once they're done, drain them and set them on a pan in your warm oven while you finish the fries.

Raise the oil temp again, this time to 375. Working in batches again, fry your potatoes for 2-3 minutes or until GBD. Remove from the oil, drain, salt, and consume. Oh yeah, and get the fish outta the oven too. I like my fried fish with malt vinegar, personally.

THE AFTERMATH!!!
Ok, so this was a fairly simple method. But simple does not equate to easy, now does it? The challenge here was learning patience, and understanding that I couldn't do everything all at once. Next time, I need to use smaller potato slices (like cutting the ones I had in half) and work in smaller batches so that the fries crisp up a little better.

But, in the end, everything turned out pretty good. The outside of the fish was very crisp and savory, and the fish itself was perfectly cooked without being dry. I would perhaps consider using different fish the next time though, since I thought the tilapia was slightly too soft.

But perhaps I'm being overly critical of myself.

I know; me. Shocking, isn't it?

Anywho, thanks as always for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading about it as much as I enjoyed making it.

F.E.A.S.T.: Chicken Gyros

The last time I posted a meal like this, I called it a Q.E.C.T., which while technically an acronym, has absolutely no panache whatsoever. So, this time I have a shiny new acronym: F.E.A.S.T.! It stands for Fast, Easy, Affordable, and Super Tasty!

I love it.

It explains exactly what I was going for, and it actually spells out a culinarily-related word. It's also got a touch of irony, which appeals to my literary side. And yes, I know "culinarily" isn't really a word, but if an English Major can't make up words, well, who can? I mean, if Shakespeare could do it, why not me? Right?

But I digress.

So I love gyros. They're great sandwiches, loaded with lots of savory, meaty flavor. They remind me of the week I spent in Greece back in college. Unfortunately, since I don't have a vertical rotisserie (aka the rotating meat rack of goodness) like the kind found in Greek restaurants, it's kind of hard to replicate the experience. AB has a method using a normal rotisserie, but alas, I am lacking in one of those too. So, what did I do? I improvised.

Basically, I substituted chicken for the lamb traditionally used. I also sauteed up the accompaniments, just to help meld the flavors. I think it turned out really well too.

THE INGREDIENTS!!! (and prices, rounded to the nearest $0.25 for convenience)
1 17.6oz tub plain Greek yogurt ($3.25)
1 cucumber, peeled and seeded ($0.75)
4tsp (or cloves) chopped garlic (stock item)
1 good pinch kosher salt (stock item)
4tsp olive oil (stock item)
3tsp red wine vinegar (stock item)
A few good shakes of dried mint (or 5-6 fresh leaves if you have it)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (from a $6.50 frozen package)
3 roma tomatoes, seeded ($0.75)
1 medium white onion ($0.75)
1 6oz can pitted black olives ($1.00)
1 5oz package crumbled feta cheese ($2.00)
lemon juice (from a $0.50 lemon or a bottle)
Pita bread ($2.75)

FINAL PRICE: $17.75 to serve 4 people

THE METHOD!!!
First, make the tzatziki sauce. I'm basing this off the AB method, found here.

Drop your peeled and seeded cucumber into a food processor and pulse a few times to finely chop. Then, drop the cucumber into a tea towel and squeeze the heck out of it to remove any excess liquid.

Combine the Greek yogurt, cucumber, garlic, salt, olive oil, vinegar and mint together in a bowl. Chill and serve. This whole process took about 15 minutes, so I'd say it qualifies as fast, no?

Next, the chicken. Cut the meat into bite-sized pieces. Saute the chicken with a little olive oil, salt and pepper over medium to med-high heat until done.

Meanwhile, slice your onion to your desired size and shape. I prefer half-moons for this, but whatever works for you is fine. Make like with the chicken, and saute with a little olive oil and salt over medium to med-high heat for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until the onions begin to take on a light golden color.

Drop your seeded tomatoes and olives into your food processor and pulse a few times to chop. When the onions are ready, add the tomatoes and olives and heat for a minute or two or until the tomaotes begin to release their juices. Add your lemon juice and the feta cheese, and heat through until the cheese begins to melt. It won't take but another minute.

Serve on pita bread, hot-dog style.

Like I said, it took about 15 minutes to whip up the tzatziki, and then it took another 30-35 minutes for everything else. And as with last time, I started the timer when I first started pulling out ingredients, so that includes chopping and mixing and what-not. So, under an hour for a good hot meal made with fresh ingredients.

The results? Delicious. The cooked onions, tomatoes, and olives worked quite nicely with the chicken, and the salty sweet feta cheese complimented the whole thing perfectly inside the pita bread. Moreover, the fresh tzatziki really brings the whole thing together to make for a great flavor. Is it a real gyro? No, not really. But it still make for a damn good sandwich in my humble opinion.

So. Let's do our acronym check.

Fast: the whole process from start to finish took less than an hour, so I'd say that qualifies. If you want to get any faster, you'd have to turn to your microwave.

Easy: nothing fancy here. All you need are some basic cooking skills and the ability to properly squeeze a cucumber into oblivion.

Affordable: ok, I'm willing to concede a little bit here, since I have so many "stock" items on the list, and some people may not keep those things on hand as a matter of course. But! Once those things have been acquired, it's a simple and wallet-friendly matter to purchase the last few items.

Super Tasty: Yes. Enough said.

But don't take my word for it. Make up a batch to try for yourself!

As always, thanks for reading!

Beer and Bacon Pancakes

Y'know what I've always thought was a great idea? Breakfast for dinner. I tend to make it on a fairly regular basis, but I don't always experiment. Well, that's changing.

So. Pancakes. Made with beer. And bacon. Crazy huh? My roommate suggested the idea of pancakes made with beer, and a quick Google search led me here of all places. Rather than following this method exactly, I decided to simply use it as a guide and improvise a little. I adapted a basic pancake recipe to my needs, and these are the results:

Not bad, huh? Truth to tell though, the results weren't quite what I hoped they would be. Don't get me wrong, they were tasty enough, but I think the idea needs some tweaking. For one thing, the "beer" flavor overwhelmed the others, so we lost the delicious savory bacon taste except in small bursts. And although I used a seasonal beer (Shock Top pumpkin wheat), a lot of the warm autumn flavors fell to the background too.

Next time, I think I'll use a lighter flavored beer, like maybe a blond or a hefeweizen. The other option, if I want to stick with the pumpkin ale, would be to add more spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. I love the praline bacon (yes, you heard me), and I think it works well in the recipe. But next time I plan to use think-cut bacon instead of the thin stuff; I think it'll hold up better in the batter.

Well, I suppose I should actually get to the method now, shouldn't I? As always, if anyone has an suggestions or comments, I'm always glad to hear them.

THE INGREDIENTS!!!
2 cups AP flour
5 tsp baking powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 12oz beer (something of quality, please)
1 12oz package bacon
2.5 oz brown sugar
1.5 oz pecans

THE METHOD!!!
 The first step is to make Praline Bacon. It's pretty easy to do, actually. First, heat your oven to 400 degrees. Grab a cookie sheet with a lip and line it with a big piece of aluminum foil. Set a cooling rack on top and lay out the bacon in a nice neat row. Bake until almost, but not quite, done. The thin stuff took less than 10 minutes, but the AB method calls for a full 30 on the thick-cut strips.

While the bacon bakes, drop the pecans and brown sugar into a food processor and chop to a fine bread crumb consistency. When the bacon is almost done, pull it out. Working carefully, sprinkle the bacon with the brown sugar/pecan mixture and gently pat down to set it.

Place the bacon back into the oven for another 10 minutes or until done. And make sure to watch it; I didn't keep a close enough eye on it and ended up burning it a little.

Oh, don't look at me like that. I know it's a culinary sin and I'll go to confession later.

Anyway. When the bacon is (properly) done, let it cool for a few minutes before removing from the rack and chopping into bite-sized pieces. Again, work carefully so as not to burn yourself.

Meanwhile, combine the flour and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Add the eggs, beer, and bacon, and stir to combine.

Heat your electric griddle to medium, about 300 to 325. Drop the batter in 1/4 cup increments onto the hot griddle, and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, or until done. Serve with (real!) maple syrup.

See, it's a pretty straightforward method. It just needs some fine-tuning.

Anyway, as always, thanks for reading!

Food in Canada

Hi again!

After my brief trek to Indy for the gaming convention, I went to visit some family that lives all the way up in Canada. Again, I didn't really have an opportunity to do much cooking, but we did eat at a few cool places, and I felt like sharing them with you. So, without further ado:

Big Rig Brewery
The place: Your basic bar and grill, except for the fact that they do serve only the beer they brew themselves. The place has a kind of dark and modern brewery sort of look, which is totally a thing, I promise. As you might expect from a restaurant like this, you can purchase overpriced merchandise of all sorts in addition to your meal.
What I ate: I chose the Parmesan Crusted Chicken & Gouda Sandwich. It's exactly what it sounds like: a piece of grilled chicken encrusted in Parmesan cheese, with avocado, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, and Sriracha mayo served on Swiss panini bread. It also came with hand-cut fries and a vinegary coleslaw, both of which were quite tasty. I also tried their Big Rig Rideau Red beer, which I also enjoyed.

My thoughts: I'm having a hard time coalescing my thoughts on Big Rig, truth to tell. The food was good, and the beer was delicious, but nothing about the place really stands out for me. I guess I was distracted by all the family I was with. It just means I need to go back and try it again next year to get another gauge of the place. For now, I'll give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Lanark Pizzeria
The place: Unfortunately, this was delivery, so I can't really say anything about the location itself. I can say, however, that it's a local pizzeria, named for the county in which it resides.
What I ate: We ordered a basic pepperoni pizza and the Lanark Special, consisting of ham, pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms and green peppers. The cool thing is that up there, the pizzerias put all the cheese on top, so it gets extra brown and crispy in the oven. It also seals in all the flavors from the other toppings, steaming them after a fashion. The flavor of it is great.

My thoughts: A local pizzeria as good as any you could hope to find. 4 out of 5 stars.

Harvey's
The place: Ok, so this is basically a fast-food Canadian burger chain, kinda like Burger King. As such, there isn't much to describe here. I mean, it's a burger joint, right? But it's a pretty nifty place nonetheless. They make your burger to order, and then they have a station laid out to add what toppings you want right in front of you. That way, you can customize your burger to your exact taste. Unfortunately, what they have is pretty basic, except for the salad peppers, so the option for a bacon-mushroom-swiss is out of the picture.
What I ate: I opted for the number 2 combo, a Harvey's burger with cheese, topped with lettuce and tomatoes, mayo and ketchup. I also had poutine. What's poutine, you ask? That's when they take your french fries and top them with brown gravy (poutine sauce) and white cheese curds. Yes, it sounds like some crazy Canadian concoction, I know, but trust me, it's actually pretty good. Seriously, don't knock it if you've never had it.

My thoughts: Like I said, it's good ol' fast-food burgers and fries. But, we make sure to eat there every time we go to visit the relatives, so that should tell you something. I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars on the (fast) food scale.

Wheeler's Pancake House
The place: Wheeler's is set back in an actual sugar camp, where they drain the sap from maple trees and distill it down into the magical amber brew known as maple syrup. Can you tell I'm a fan of the stuff? In addition to that, the premises hosts a small museum showcasing paraphernalia from the history of the maple industry. The restaurant itself is a big log cabin style hall, decorated with tools of the maple trade and family photos on the walls and fireplace mantle. It is a family business, after all, and the focus is definitely on the food.
What I ate: I ordered the Sugar Bush Special, consisting of two pancakes and three homemade maple sausages, and a side of maple baked beans. Like I said, the focus is on the food, especially the maple syrup, which comes in plentiful amounts. The food is simple, delicious, and thoroughly infused with Canadian maple goodness.

My thoughts: I love this place. Like Harvey's, we're sure to go there every year, but I always look forward to Wheeler's the most. I'm also sure to stock up on maple syrup and maple candy (as in addiction-inducing solid maple sugar) whenever I visit. 4.5/5, easy.

I'm still trying to get a handle on this whole food review thing. I think the pictures definitely help, but I need to take better notes so that I can describe things in better detail. I mean, I have a pretty easy time talking about food that I've made myself, but this is a bit more of a challenge somehow. I promise though that when I start reviewing restaurants in earnest, I'll be able to provide a much more thorough analysis.

As always, thoughts and opinions are appreciated! Thanks for reading!

Food in Indy

Hi everyone!

So, last week I took a short vacation in order to attend Gencon. For those who are unfamiliar, Gencon is a huge gaming convention that takes place every year in Indianapolis. Obviously, I didn't have any way to cook while I was there, but I did eat at a few fine establishments instead. So I thought, for something different, I would share with you a little bit about what and where I ate. After all, with a nerdy name like +1 Knife of Cooking, I can hardly let a huge gaming event go by unremarked, right?

Without further ado, I give you, in no particular order, a brief tour of the food Indy has to offer:


Granite City Food and Brewery
The place: A restaurant and micro-brewery, with a relaxing atmosphere and good service.
What I ate: I went with the Granite City Reuben, consisting of pastrami and corned beef on rye, with Swiss cheese, thousand island dressing, and coleslaw served in the sandwich. I also tried their beer sampler, which consisted of 8 different beers all brewed in-house.
My thoughts: We tried this place out on a whim, and we were all pleasantly surprised. My Reuben was a good size, and the meat wasn't overly salty. Adding the coleslaw was a nice touch too, I thought. And I liked the beers, even though there were three IPA's and I'm not a huge fan of those. But I'm pretty sure we'll be going back next year, so I'd say 4 out of 5 stars.

Greek's Pizzeria
The place: A definite hole-in-the-wall pizzeria. Kinda dingy, sure, with framed newspaper clippings and a pair of TVs on the walls, but everything was clean and well-kept.
What I ate: I went fairly simple with this meal, and ordered the pepperoni calzone, or as they called it, the pepperoni shell. Nothing to special about it really: meat, sauce, cheese and bread.
My thoughts: We found this place by accident, and it was pretty good. If nothing else, the pizza crust was amazing: soft, chewy and buttery smooth, everything you could want. The service was a little lackluster, but they were shorthanded that night, so I can't fault them too badly. Still, 3.5 out of 5 ain't bad.

Little Eataly
The place: A lot of food trucks congregate outside the convention center, so I decided to grab some lunch from them one day. Not much to say really; I mean, it's a food truck, what more do you want?
What I ate: The Pig and Fig sandwich, a tasty concoction of prosciutto, mozzarella, basil and fig butter of all things served on Ciabatta.
My thoughts: I initially went with this because it was kinda odd, but it really paid off. It was a good sized sandwich, and the sweet fig butter really meshed well with the fresh basil and the ham. I may have to try to duplicate it, if I can track down some fig butter. Score: 4/5

Pearl Street Pizzeria and Pub
The place: I thought this place kinda had a nice sports bar vibe, even though it was definitely a fancy pizzeria.
What I ate: My pizza was half Hawaiian, half Margherita. The Hawaiian side came with capicolla ham and a thai chili sauce, and the Margherita side came with big slices of fresh tomato and was topped with large leaves of basil.
My thoughts: The pizza took a long time to cook, but it was well worth the wait. Everything was hot and fresh, so no complaints there. I also got to try their breadsticks, which were truly amazing. 4 out of 5 stars.

Punch Burger
The place:Your basic hole-in-the-wall burger joint. Nothing much to say about the place really: minimal decorations, food served in plastic baskets, menu written on the wall in chalk.
What I ate: I tried the Aloha burger. As you can tell, I have a weakness for the ham and pineapple combinations, so when I saw they had a burger with black forest ham, grilled pineapple, Swiss cheese and teriyaki sauce, I jumped at it. I also tried their sweet potato tots on the side.
My thoughts: A good burger, and the tots were delicious. Admittedly, they messed up my order, trying to combine my Aloha with the Thai someone else had ordered (pineapple and peanut butter don't really play well together), but I got the right sandwich in the end. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

The Ram Restaurant and Brewery 
The place: The Ram comes off as your typical sports bar, right? Except during Gencon, when the whole place become a veritable cornucopia of nerddom. The whole place gets decorated with paraphernalia from the Warmachine and Iron Kingdoms universe, and they throw nerdy movies (Lord of the Rings, anyone?) up on the big screen TV above the bar.
What I ate: Renamed the Judicator in honor of the occasion, I partook of the Buttface Bacon Cheeseburger. The burger, served on a pretzel roll, comes with hickory smoked bacon, a large deep-fried onion ring, and a cheese sauce made using their house-brewed Buttface Amber Ale (hence the name), of which I also had a pint (the beer, not the cheese).
My thoughts: A good burger, although they skimped on the cheese sauce and I had to ask for more. Overall though, they cooked it to the correct medium rare I ordered, and it arrived hot and fresh at the table. I give it a 4 out of 5.

Slippery Noodle Inn
The place: An old blues music bar and grill. Unfortunately, I can't attest to the musical quality, as we were only eating lunch there. But it definitely has a casual music bar vibe.
What I ate: I had the Whiskey Pepper Steak Sub. It's exactly what it sounds like, and comes with thin-sliced sirloin steak, grilled onions, and provolone cheese on a hoagie roll. They also use their "famous" whiskey pepper sauce, a savory spicy white sauce, to top it all off.
My thoughts: A pretty good sandwich, if a rather messy one that was a bit difficult to eat. I would rather have had fries instead of potato chips, but the meal was overall quite good. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Weber Grill
The place: A very nice steak house, but not a suit and tie kind of place. More of a backyard grill brought indoors and cleaned up a bit.
What I ate: I went for the New York Strip (cooked medium rare, thank you kindly), served with sauteed mushrooms, garlic mashed potatoes, and a blue cheese and pecan coleslaw.
My thoughts: A good steak. Last year, my steak was really chewy, so I admit I had my reservations. But I'm glad to say that the meal turned out perfectly. I thought the coleslaw was an interesting idea, but then I've been on this blue cheese kick recently, so perhaps I'm just biased. Still, I give the place a 4 out of 5.

So, this is my first time reviewing restaurants, and I think I need to refine my technique a bit. I also need to take more notes so that next time I can give you all a more in-depth review. Still, I think these are some good overviews, and I hope you'll agree.

Thanks for reading!

Take Two: Twice-baked Chicken Parmesan Potatoes

Hi again everyone!

I decided to give the Chicken Parm Taters another go on Friday last week. If you will recall, last time I came to the conclusion that while tasty, the potatoes were a bit lacking in the Chicken Parm flavor, which was, after all, half the point of the recipe. So, this time I did a few things differently. The results? Well I am very happy to report that it was a great success!

I'm actually quite proud of how these turned out, so I'm going to share the complete process once again. If anybody out there wants to give it a try, go for it! Just let me know what you think!

THE INGREDIENTS!!
8 medium baking potatoes
4 medium chicken breasts
16 oz ricotta cheese
3 tbs butter, diced
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1 16oz block mozzarella cheese
1 jar marinara sauce
1 c panko
3 more tbs butter, melted
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

THE METHOD!!
Scrub the potatoes clean and set aside to dry. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Rub the dry potatoes with a little canola or vegetable oil and place on a sheet pan (lined with parchment if you have it). Bake the potatoes for 45 minutes to an hour, or until they are fork tender. Set aside to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, cube the chicken and cook over medium to med-high heat in the skillet of your choice. You don't need anything fancy for this: a little olive oil (extra virgin not necessary), a little salt, a little pepper, done. Once cooked through, you can choose to dice the chicken into smaller bits if you like.

Slice sixteen strips of mozzarella off the block and set aside.

Mix the panko with the melted butter and set aside.

When the potatoes are just cool enough to handle (depending on your heat threshold), slice them in half longways. Use a spoon to scoop everything out of the middle and into a large bowel. Set the shells into a pair of 9x13in baking dishes, or a similar vessel of your choice. If you don't have two, either work in batches or just go get another one!

Mash the potatoes with a fork and incorporate the diced butter. Work in the ricotta, the shredded mozza, and the chicken. Get it all evenly combined, switching to a larger stirring implement (or your hands!) when it becomes necessary.

Scoop the potatoes mixture into the shells, mounding it slightly. When they're all full, make a little depression in the top of the mix, just to flatten it out a bit. Spoon two good tablespoons of marinara sauce over top of each potato, or a little more if you like! Top this with a slice of mozzarella. Sprinkle the whole thing with the panko mixture and the Parmesan cheese.

Bake at the same temperature as above for about ten to fifteen minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the panko has browned to that magical golden color.

Consume.


Ok, y'all've got to admit that looks pretty dang good. Like I said up above, I'm really pleased with how it turned out this time. If I were to do anything different on the next go, I'd probably up the chicken a bit, just for the sake of more meat. As I'm writing this, I've just realized that some Italian seasoning mixed in with the potatoes might not be a bad idea either, and I probably could've added some more salt and pepper to help season the taters as well. But honestly, we didn't miss it.

Keeping the sauce on the outside and spooning it over the top definitely helped to bring out the idea of Chicken Parmesan. Furthermore, I'm glad I left out the bacon and the green onions. Now, before you lynch me for my blasphemy against bacon, keep in mind that Chicken Parm doesn't use bacon, and that was part of the point. Bacon, while delicious, was not necessary in this dish. But... maybe next time I'll try a little bacon, if it'll make y'all happy.

So, that's the dish! I hope that some of you will give it a try. I hope even more that you'll try it and like it as much as we did. As always, I love getting feedback, both on the food and on the blog itself.

Thanks for reading!

Q.E.C.T.: Chicken and Veggies with Egg Noodles

Ok, so the acronym may need some work, I admit.

It stands for Quick and Easy, Cheap and Tasty. That's the point of this recipe. I wanted to show that good food can be made on the cheap in a relatively short amount of time for a relatively small amount of money. So let's just jump right to it, shall we?

THE INGREDIENTS!! (and prices)
3 boneless chicken breasts, cubed (from a $6.99 3lb frozen bag)
1 16oz bag of egg noodles ($1.29)
1 package crimini mushrooms, chopped ($1.49)
1 cup frozen peas (from a $0.99 bag)
2 cups (handfuls) baby spinach, chopped (from a $2.99 bag)
2 cans condensed cream of mushroom and/or chicken soup ($0.79 x2)

I bought everything at Aldi and Wal-mart, because I know I can get it all for fairly cheap. Final price? $15.33, assuming you have to buy all of it, and half of that is the meat. Keep in mind: this leaves you with plenty of frozen chicken, some frozen peas, and a good amount of spinach left over to use in other dishes.

THE METHOD!!
Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Saute over medium-high heat in a little vegetable oil (I normally use olive oil, but I was out) until done all the way through.

Once the chicken is done, wipe out the skillet and repeat with the mushrooms. Saute until the 'shrooms are browned all over. Work in two batches; it actually helps the mushrooms to cook faster if you don't crowd the pan.

Warm up the peas as per package instructions, probably in the microwave. For me, it was a cup of peas with two tablespoons water, covered, for six minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the egg noodles to al dente, again as per package instructions. If you don't care for egg noodles, any sort of pasta will do: bowties, penne, you name it.

After you drain the pasta, toss it all back in the pot and add one of the soups. Use a splash of hot water (I just save some boil water) to help thin the soup slightly.

Put the chicken and mushrooms back in your skillet, add the peas and spinach, then add the other soup. Again, a little hot water helps to see everything evenly coated. Mix it all together, and season with more salt and pepper to taste. I also added some crushed red pepper and Italian seasoning, because I happen to be a fan of both.

When this is done, add the meat/veggie mixture to the noodles. Stir thoroughly to combine, serve and enjoy. Add a bit more pepper or another sprinkle of Italian seasoning if you like. I put a little Frank's RedHot Sauce on mine, because apparently you really can put that sh!t on almost everything.

Ok, so let's go over our acronym checklist then.

Quick: from start to finish, the whole thing took me 40 unhurried minutes. And I mean start to finish. From the time I started to pull my thawed chicken breast out of the fridge to the time I sat down to eat was a mere 40 minutes. Not as fast as a sandwich, I admit, but still pretty quick for a hot filling meal.

Easy: well, I'd say it's pretty straightforward. Nothing complicated or fancy. Boiling pasta and chopping some veggies is all fairly easy I'd say. Cooking the chicken shouldn't provide any major difficulties either, unless I miss my guess. Again, not as easy as a sandwich, but we're still talking about a hot meal here.

Cheap: if you don't count the chicken, the whole meal costs around $7 to make. For me, frozen chicken is a staple, so I'm not inclined to include it in the price of the meal, since I almost always have it on hand anyway.

Tasty: yes, quite. Just try making it, see what you think. I bet you'll decide you like it too. The tastes are pretty simple, but that means it's open to all kinds of customization: different veggies, different meat, and different soup flavors are all very real possibilities here. Next time, if I want to up the budget a smidgen, I may throw in some shredded cheese for a little extra indulgence!

In the end, I think this is a very successful first attempt at a Q.E.C.T. (yeah, I really need to work on that acronym...) meal. It's not anything fancy, but then, fancy wasn't the point in the first place. The point was to be able to cook a good, hot meal when you come home from a long day at work without having to worry that it'll take forever or else break your bank. And in that, I believe I have done well.

Anyway, as always, thanks for reading, and I look forward to hearing from everyone!

Sushi

Hi everyone!

For my (other) roommate's birthday last week, I made sushi for dinner. Now, this is not something I've ever tried to do before, mind you. But he said he wanted to give me a little challenge, and he made the request, so I said OK.

I wasn't about to try making any kind of sushi that requires raw fish. Don't get me wrong, I'm not scared of raw fish, but unfortunately I don't have a reliable source for quality seafood. As such, I decided my best option was to make California Rolls. They're relatively simple, and they don't require raw fish, so the chance of something going terribly, terribly, "why God, why?!" wrong is immensely decreased.

For those interested, I used the AB method for Cali Rolls, since it's pretty straightforward and easy to follow.

First, I made the sushi rice. You do this by rinsing 2 cups of short-grain (sushi) rice until the water runs clear. You then combine the rice with 2 cups clean water in a pot over high heat and bring it to a boil. Once that happens, cook the rice, covered, over the lowest heat for 15 minutes and then off the heat entirely for 10. The rice is then deposited in a large glass (or wooden) bowl.

Meanwhile, you combine 2tbsp rice vinegar with 2tbsp sugar and 1 of salt. This goes into the microwave for 30 seconds to dissolve everything. Now, I found that this wasn't enough liquid, so I added another tablespoon of vinegar, which still wasn't really enough to dissolve all that sugar and salt. Maybe I shouldn't have used kosher salt this time, since the flakes are so big. Next time, I think I may just buy some sushi rice seasoning and use that instead. Regardless, this gets sprinkled onto the rice and is cut/folded into said grains with a big wooden spoon. You don't stir, per se, because that can turn the rice into a gummy pile of mush.

If possible, you're supposed to use a paper fan (or similar apparatus) to cool the rice as you go. This is not as easy as it looks. After a few minutes, the awkwardness kinda gets to you. Granted, I only had a paper notebook to use as a fan so maybe I'm biased. But the point is that once the rice is cooled to room temp it's ready to be used.

Ingredients: cucumber, krab, avocado, nori, and rice

The most challenging part of the process, in my opinion, is the assembly. I had everything I needed ready to go. OK, so, that's not completely true. I did not have a bamboo rolling mat ready to go. Because I don't own one, that's why. I thought, "Hey, I'll just use some foil or some parchment; how difficult can it be?" I should know by now that these kinds of thoughts never bode well for me.

Cali Rolls: first (or second?) attempt

Rolling the sushi was a challenge. I reckon it mainly requires more practice than I've had, which until that night was none. I did find it was easier to roll with the nori (the seaweed sheet) on the outside, rather than trying to have the rice on the outside as is the norm for Cali Rolls. Maybe my rice wasn't sticky enough, but I had the damnedest time just trying to get the rolls to seal themselves.

Inverted Cali Rolls (with cream cheese added like in Philly Rolls. Yum!)

Fortunately, the sushi was quite good and, even better, they actually tasted like Cali Rolls! All things considered, I believe they were a success. I can't wait to try again! It's actually quite fun to make, and I'm hoping to one day be able to try the raw fish. It's a bit risky, true, but it just means I need to be extra careful.

Regardless, I love sushi, and now that I've made it once, I won't be so apprehensive about giving it another go. I've learned that I can't let my nervousness get in the way when I try to cook something new. Yes, there's always the chance something can go wrong; that's always the case when you try something new and different. But, if you let that worry get in your way, how will you ever know if you can do it, right? Now, am I going to get past this bump overnight? Probably not. But the more I do, even if I make mistakes, the better I become and the more I feel confident about trying to make new things. So yes, I would say I met this challenge, and I'm looking forward to the next one.

Anyway, tell me what you think. As always, thanks for reading!

Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Ice Cream

Yeah, you read that right.

I made ice cream with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes. And I served it over a bed of macaroni.

Why? Because I could. And because I thought it'd be a fun, crazy idea. And I'm going to tell you all how I made it.

I basically adapted a simple and straightforward ice cream recipe:

THE INGREDIENTS!!
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
10oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped, to taste

THE METHOD!!
All you do is mix the milk, cream, sugar, and salt together with an electric mixer on low speed. Once the sugar and salt are dissolved, stir in the spinach. Refrigerate over night.

The next day, make the ice cream as per the machine's instructions. At the end, stir in the chopped tomatoes. It's a good idea to have the final resting place ready and chilled so the ice cream won't melt during transport.

When it's time to eat, cook up some pasta (I had macaroni, so that's what I used) and cook to al dente. Drain the pasta, but reserve some of the water. Toss the noodles with some salt, and use a little of the reserved water (a few tablespoons) to help it stick if you like.

Let the noodles cool from piping hot to warm, then serve with a scoop or two of your ice cream.

In the end though, I'm sad to say that my crazy idea was not a huge success. My victims, er- I mean: tasters and I all agreed that the ice cream was tasty and had a good foundation. However, it was simply too rich and too sweet to have as a main course. I tried for a hot/cold salty/sweet dish, and I achieved that goal, true. But I also had an overabundance of spinach and not enough of the tomatoes for the flavors to balance correctly.

But! I will not consider the dish a failure. It may not have turned out quite how I wanted it, but it was a fun experiment. Now that I know the ice cream itself will work, I need to go back and tinker. A little research may yield a better base recipe with which to work. Further, I may skip the pasta next time and just have this be some kind of appetizer dish, assuming I can get the balance right. It just means I'll need to try again!

Well, thanks for joining me on this quick post. If you have any thoughts regarding the dish or the condition of my sanity I look forward to hearing them! Until next time everyone!

Twice-baked Chicken Parmesan Potatoes

So, a couple of days ago I decided to try something a little different. Originally I had thought to make twice-baked potatoes for dinner one night, and a chicken Parmesan-like meal for another. But then, I had a brainstorm: why not make both on the same night? That is when this idea was born.

Now, it still needs some work. I plan to tinker with it, but for now I'm going to post the recipe as I designed and executed it. Overall, I'm pretty pleased with it.

THE INGREDIENTS!!
8 potatoes (these were small to medium sized), scrubbed and allowed to dry
1 pkg bacon (maple smoked if you want to know)
4 chicken breasts
5 tomatoes, cored, seeded, quartered (no, not a lot, I know)
balasamic vinegar
chopped garlic
16oz block of mozzarella cheese
8oz block cream cheese, softened (I found one made with Greek yogurt and wanted to try it)
green onions
1 cup panko (coarse Japanese breadcrumbs in case you're unfamiliar)
3 tbs butter, melted
grated Parmesan cheese, to taste

THE METHOD!!
To begin, I baked the bacon. Its easy: put the bacon on a cooling wrack over a foil-lined baking sheet (one with a good lip all the way around). Put the apparatus in a cold oven and set for 400 degrees. Wait about 20 minutes, or until the bacon reaches the desired crispiness. You could fry it if you prefer, but I like this method.

Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium to medium-high heat until they're done all the way through.

Toss the tomato quarters with a splash of balsamic vinegar, a few teaspoons of chopped garlic, and a pinch of salt. Lay them out on a baking sheet (I always line mine with parchment or foil) cut side up. Meanwhile, rub a little oil on the potatoes, pierce them a few times with a fork, and lay them out in a 9x13 inch baking dish.

When the bacon comes out of the oven, up the temp to 450, and put the tomatoes and the potatoes in. The tomatoes need 20-30 minutes, while the potatoes need more like 45 to an hour. You're looking for the tomatoes to be soft and sizzling and for the potatoes to be fork tender.

Once that's all baking, you can assemble everything else. Slice enough mozzarella to have one piece for each potato half (in my case, I sliced 8 pieces off the block and cut each in half) and grate the remainder. Chop the bacon into small pieces. Ditto that with the green onions. I also chopped the chicken into smaller pieces for convenience. Run the tomatoes through a food processor or blender until liquified.

Cooking can be a bit messy... and blurry, apparently.

When the potatoes are done, pull them out of the oven. Without burning yourself, cut each one in half and scoop the insides into a large bowl. Be sure to save the skins. Mix in the cream cheese until it's all incorporated. Then add the chicken, mozzarella, bacon, green onions, and tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Fill each empty skin with a genrous serving of the potato mixture and return to the 9x13.

Combine the panko with the melted butter. Put a slice of mozzarella cheese on top of each potato, and sprinkle with the panko. Throw some grated Parmesan cheese on for good measure.

Put the whole thing back in the oven for 10 minutes, or until the panko browns and the mozza is nice and bubbly. Cool for a few minutes, then serve immediately. Top with sour cream if you desire.

THE RESULTS!!
Overall, I like the idea. But, while it was indeed quite good, I felt that the whole "chicken Parmesan" thing I was going for got a bit lost in the execution. For one thing, the green onions provided too strong of a flavor. For another, I did not have nearly enough tomato sauce.

On the plus side though, the bacon and chicken worked well together and with everything else. The cream cheese and mozzarella came together nicely, providing a uniform texture throughout the dish. Plus, I really liked the nice crunch from the panko.

I think next time I'm going to try to change things up in one of two ways. The first option is to use larger potatoes (I didn't like the small ones; not enough meat) and more sauce. I might lose the green onion entirely. The goal would be to have the flavor focus on the chicken and the tomato sauce. So, maybe use a little less bacon as well, since it has such a strong presence.

For the second option, imagine that I left the chicken and tomato sauce out of the mix. Maybe ditch the green onion again. Then, after filling the skins, lay a few pieces of chicken on top of the potato mixture. Top that with the sauce and a slice of mozzarella, essentially making a mini chicken Parmesan on top of each twice baked potato. Or, should the chicken stay in the mix with just the sauce on top? Hmmm... I guess call that option 2.5 or something.

If anybody has any suggestions about which method would be better, please let me know!

Well, I hope this all sounded interesting to everyone, because I really enjoyed making it. I'm hoping to try it again sometime in the future, and when I do, I'll be sure to let you all see the results!

Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake

One of my roommates just had a birthday, and I, looking for any excuse to make a dessert, asked him to pick something for me to make. His choice was a cheesecake. More specifically he asked for a strawberry swirl cheesecake, as opposed to a plain cheesecake with a strawberry topping.

Cheesecake and I don't always get along. Don't get me wrong, I love cheesecake. And sure, I can make 'em fine, but often times something goes amiss. But, the man made a request and I endeavored to fulfill it. So I went searching through the internets, and found a recipe that I liked. I liked it because it seemed fairly simple. I wasn't about to get cocky, however, because often times the simplest things to make are the simplest to get wrong. This would not be a cheesecake afflicted by hubris.

I gathered my ingredients together, which was easy enough. Cream cheese, strawberries. graham crackers, etc. I did depart from the recipe slightly in the crust. Nothing big, mind you. But I like my graham cracker crust to have some... character, I guess you'd call it. Rather than use pre-ground crumbs, I take whole crackers and crumble them up by hand in a plastic bag. It makes for a more rustic texture, and I really like it. (OK, I admit, it's also and AB thing)

Other than that, I followed along with the given method, and I didn't have any hiccups. I thought for sure the strawberry sauce wasn't going to work. After all, it's just frozen strawberries and a little cornstarch liquified in a blender and applied with heat. But it turned out well as a sauce, and it swirled into the cheesecake rather nicely.

I'm also happy to say that the waterbath worked correctly for once. I figured out the trick to it: you have to use large sized heavy-duty foil. Anything else will just tear. Yes, I know, it seems obvious doesn't it? But sometimes you learn that the things you miss are often the things that make the most sense. The point is: now I know, and I won't have a repeat of past mishaps. (Trust me, hot water plus graham cracker crust in a leaky springform pan is not fun.)

All said and done, it turned out pretty well, and was quite tasty, so I'll give you a few money-shots to ogle for a while:

Also, it has been pointed out to me that while I have plenty of cooking, I am lacking in shenanigans. Now, I don't want to do crazy just for its own sake (at least not all the time), but I do want to experiment more. So, If anybody has any suggestions on something I can try, let me know. Even if it's, "hey, what would happen if you (insert action here) with that mac and cheese recipe?" It can even be something simple with the challenge of making it more interesting.

Anyway, if you have any thoughts, please post them in the comments section. Thanks everyone!