WFD: August 8, 2011 - Chicken, pasta, asparagus

I wanted to make a nice dinner for my dad (and the rest of the family) to thank him for fixing the latch on the trunk of my car, and this is what I came up with...

First I marinated the chicken (I think it was 6 boneless, skinless breasts) in this:

1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper (ground)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup white wine

We don't keep fresh herbs in the house, but we have a TON of dried herbs and spices, so that's what I use.  After marinating the chicken for about 3 hours, I cooked them a bit on both sides (in a grill pan) until they became opaque on those sides, then I popped them into the oven to finish cooking. I had preheated the oven to 370 degrees (Fahrenheit) and baked them for 25 minutes (covered in foil for 20, and uncovered for the last 5), checking them periodically. They stayed really moist which was my goal, and they weren't over or underdone, so hurray!

For side dishes, I just did a rotini pasta with a garlic butter sauce (just butter and garlic powder, honestly) and some veggies in it, and then some steamed asparagus with grated Parmesan cheese on it. The vegetables are all frozen ones.

Normally I'm more of a crock pot person/casserole, so while this isn't a fancy meal, it's not my usual thing. I still baked the chicken versus grilling or boiling or anything, but it went over well.

Pasta for lunch

I need to go grocery shopping. Pretty bad. So yesterday for lunch I threw together a simple pasta dish. I took photos while I was doing it, and since it turned out well, I thought I would share it :)

Ingredients:
1 lb ground, mild Italian sausage
1 can of black, pitted olives cut into fours
1 package of spaghetti noodles
1 jar of vodka sauce
Mozzarella cheese

While my noodles were boiling and my sausage was browning, I drained my olives and cut each one into four pieces

Next I added my browned meat

I added a bit of my vodka sauce to my meat/olive mixture and let that sit for a moment while my noodles finished cooking, and then while I drained them

Added the pasta

Topped it with some cheese, though not too much because my daughter doesn't like cheese

And voila - lunch! (cheese melted in)

Hash Brown Casserole

I brought dinner to my man last night, and opted to try a new recipe; hash brown casserole. It was pretty darn good! I made it late morning at home, and then we reheated it for dinner at his place. I really liked it, but am anxious to try it again where I can eat it fresh out of the oven. Mmm!

The recipe is by Paula Dean, and where she uses 8 cups of cubed French bread, I used a mix of French and wheat bread. I did it for 50 minutes because usually my oven needs 5 more minutes than what most foods suggest, but I think 40 or 45 would have been best.

Ingredients
* 3 tablespoons butter
* 1/4 cup chopped yellow onion
* 4 cups frozen shredded hash browns
* 1 pound bulk sausage, mild, hot or sage
* 2 1/4 cups whole milk
* 8 large eggs
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
* 1 loaf French bread, cubed (no crust)
* 5 slices wheat bread, cubed
* 2 cups (1/2 pound) grated Cheddar
* 2 cups (1/2 pound) freshly grated Parmesan

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a deep 13 by 9-inch casserole dish with vegetable oil cooking spray.

Melt the butter in a large frying pan.

Add the onion and saute over medium-low heat until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the hash browns and break apart. Saute until soft, about 5 minutes.

In a second frying pan, saute the sausage, breaking apart large clumps. When the sausage is cooked through, remove it from pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the milk, eggs, salt, pepper, nutmeg and mustard, briskly to blend.

To assemble, spread the onions and hash browns evenly at the bottom of the greased dish. Place the bread cubes evenly on top of hash browns. With a slotted spoon distribute sausage as the third layer. Pour the milk and egg mixture over these layers. Add Parmesan as the next layer, while then adding the Cheddar.

Save a few tablespoons of Cheddar for the last 10 minutes of baking, where you can add a fresh topping of melted Cheddar.

Bake the casserole, uncovered for 45 to 50 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.

I didn't get a photo of it cut and served, because I just didn't think about it at the time, but you can see one by clicking here, where you can also find the original recipe.

Uncooking 101 Giveaway

I'm trying to enter the Uncooking 101 Giveaway, not for myself, but for someone I know that I think would enjoy it. The giveaway is for a 7 day stay at B&B+ including your private room & private gourmet chef on Martha’s Vineyard.

Here's some info about it:

One lucky person will receive a FULL WEEK stay at the B&B+ the days of May 1-8, 2011. This includes your meals. This includes several classes. This even includes a class on building your OWN business to share raw food with others in a way that will inspire and motivate them to take charge of their health and lives!
IMPORTANT: This promotion will only be running for the next 24 hours, so read through the entry rules quickly and hop to it!
What the winner will receive (total value: $2,363!)

• 7 nights stay in a private room at this beautiful water-view estate on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts. *A total value of $1349!

• All gourmet raw food meals including an all-you-can-eat buffet breakfast, picnic lunch, afternoon tea & sweets, and a lovely dinner get-together nightly. Even a homemade chocolate left lovingly on your pillow after your daily room cleaning! *A total value of $525+!

• And all of the following classes for you *A total value of $489!
  

  • MORNING BEACHFRONT YOGA MAY 2-7 - Join us on the beach every morning but Sunday, for a peaceful and rejuvinating yoga practice appropriate for first-time yoginis up to the most experienced. A special note from Eva: Yoga is a very spiritual practice in that it brings us peace and a connection to our bodies, the earth, and potentially the God or Gods in whom we have chosen to rest our faith. We have chosen to honor your choices by not including chanting or specific religious reference, and instead offering you a moving meditation to the backdrop of the ocean and your peaceful yet vibrant existence.
  • A GUIDED BICYCLE TOUR OF THE ISLAND – Includes a truly spectacular guided tour of the 3 scenic and most bike-friendly towns (Vineyard Haven, Edgartown, and Oak Bluffs), a shiny new bike fitted to you, helmet, lock, and 24 hrs bike use. We will go at your pace and certainly will enjoy the journey. Most of the bike route is quite flat, and you will find most of our trip will include vistas of the ocean that will remind you that your chosen vacation destination is truly a slice of paradise.
  • SOCIALLY RAW 101 – Troubleshoot social challenges with the raw lifestyle, including what to do when the loved ones in your life don’t “get it”, how to share what you are doing without sending everyone you know in the opposite direction, and even how to eat out and travel while eating as raw as you would like!
  • FLAVORS OF MEXICO – Learn to recreate the zesty and savory traditional dishes of Mexico, in the vibrant style of raw food!
  • DEHYDRATING 101 – Demystifying the techniques for and together creating and sampling fabulous: Crackers, Eva’s Easiest Bread Ever (SHOCKINGLY easy and yet oh-so-good!), Croutons, and even super-filling and hearty yet vibrant Bread Crackers
  • FLAVORS OF INDIA – Learn to mix the exotic flavors of India, including the basics of how to create the 5 Flavors and how to authentically fit them into the various raw food ingredient options.
  • SHARING 101 – Jump into raw business, How to Teach & Market a Class, How to keep friends/family truly interested and/or at least supportive

You can enter by clicking here.

With cheeeeese!

Remember my tortilla post? The one where I made a giant chip in the microwave? Well I added cheese to it today...

I shredded some Colby Jack cheese before tossing it in the microwave. Same time of 90 seconds. It came out good, but I wouldn't say that it's necessary. It tastes good with it, but it tastes good without it, too. So I'll do it sometimes, but won't go totally out of my way for it. The nice part though is it cooks on and is hard on the tortilla, not melty and messy. I would say that means it's good on the go... But this snack really isn't. It's so crumbly! But at least the cheese won't get on your hands, as the tortilla crumbles down your shirt ;)

Worth Our Weight

If you watch Food Network, you know who Guy Fieri is. And if you're from Sonoma County, you know who he is. Because he's local. He owns 2 fabulous restaurants (Johnny Garlic's and Tex Wasabi's). Well recently my mom and I were watching Guy Fieri on TV, and he mentioned a place called W.O.W. - Worth Our Weight. We learned that WOW is a culinary apprentice program and that they apprentice people ages 16-24 who have faced major challenges in their lives. The cooks, wait staff, etc are all apprentices and you pay what you think the meal was worth (no tips). They were located in Santa Rosa - one city away - so we decided to hit them up for brunch the next day.

We saw the huevos rancheros featured on the show, and Guy raved about them, so my mom and I both ordered that. It was delicious! Very flavorful. Very authentic tasting. I finished my entire plate. Seriously. The tortillas underneath were so fresh, the pork so flavorful, and the salsa mixture had just the right ratio of tomatoes and herbs.

What did we think the meal was worth? We paid $35 for 2 plates of huevos rancheros and 1 chocolate filled croissant (to take to my grandma). And we will most definitely be back to try other things!

This is what they brought when we sat down - various little bits of yumminess and some preserves. This was after everything (4 different items) were half eaten by either my mom or myself (we split them).

My plate all mixed up and already munched on - because I love to mix things.

My mom's plate - untouched.

Some rockin' pasta

I made a pretty delicious pasta tonight. Granted the sauce was jarred, but still. It was pretty friggin awesome. My brother even had 4 or 5 helpings!

I browned a pound of mild Italian sausage while boiling water for the penne pasta. While the pasta cooked, I continued browning the sausage, added some chopped red bell pepper and diced tomatoes. I also sprinkled on some dried parsley and onion powder. Once the pasta was done cooking, drained, and rinsed, I added the meat mixture and the sauce (Classico brand sun-dried tomato Alfredo) to it and then cooked it together with some more diced tomatoes for a few minutes. While that was cooking together a bit more I sauteed some baby bella mushrooms. I'm the only one in this house that likes mushrooms (and well, I love them) so I did it separate and just added them to my own.

The pasta turned out to be quite good. My brother loved it, my dad (who doesn't like bell peppers) liked it - and he added Parmesan cheese to his, and so did my daughter (she had seconds). I'm looking forward to the leftovers!

Fun twist on a staple item

My brother taught me this, and I love it. It's a fun way to eat a tortilla - essentially turning it into a big ol' chip! My 4 year old thinks it's pretty neat :)

Just take a medium tortilla and pop it in the microwave for a minute and a half - that's it! It comes out crunchy and full of air. It has the consistency of a really thin chip, and tastes just as good but with less salt. I'm going to try to sprinkle some cheese on it before doing it next time, and see how it comes out.

With normal flour tortillas

And with 100% whole wheat tortillas

I like both the whole wheat and flour, but as you can see, the whole wheat has less sodium and carbs while only 1 extra gram of fat, but with also extra protein. The whole wheat is of course the better choice.

Valentines

This isn't something I cooked... But lollipops are food... LOL

I just wanted to share the valentines that my daughter and I made this year. We made 80 of them to give out to her friends and classmates. I got the templates here, and bought some colored card stock at Office Depot. So we printed the flowers on a mix of the red and the pink paper, and the leaves on the green of course. Cut them out (took HOURS and left my hand cramped, and thumb tingly/numb), and then poked holes in the flowers. I tried to use a hole punch, but my punch doesn't go deep enough to fit the flower so I had to use scissors to do it. Then first we used tape to put the leaves on, though they didn't stay very well, so we went back and used glue after that.

Everyone loved these, including my daughter and I. Totally thankful to Skip to my Lou for such a fab idea. 

Sunday breakfast

Today we had a good ol' fashioned Sunday breakfast. Scrambled eggs (Barn Star cage free - not that the non-cage environments are good, because they usually are horrible), ham steak (Farmer John), bacon (Farmer John), and hashbrown patties (Harvest Day). Mmm.

Unfortunately for him, the only thing my brother could eat is the hashbrowns. He won't eat pork or eggs. 

2 servings per can?!

If you've ever looked at the nutrition label on a can of soup, you know that each can is two servings. Granted some cans are larger than others, but really? You're supposed to get two servings out of one can? One can fits in one bowl so to me, that means it should be one serving. But say you need to split a can of soup with someone (because you both want that LAST bowl of minestrone) else, and you know half that can will just not fill you up, then what? Add rice! You'll get a full bowl of food and you'll stretch that soup. You can even make it stretch with yourself - have half the can for lunch and the other half for dinner, or for lunch the next day.

I made some rice in the rice cooker, and put normal size scoops in my bowl. I used a white rice, but obviously you can use brown if you want to be healthier.

Then just tossed on half the can of my "traditional split pea soup" from Progresso

Mixed it together and voila - a full bowl of food for lunch, using only half the can of soup

This is also good for the budget conscious. Between the price of a big bag of rice, and half a can of soup you're talking as little as $0.75 for the meal, up to maybe $1.50 max.

Working on my pairing

On Sunday night my mom came over for dinner, and my dad made meatloaf. He made two kinds - one with ketchup on top, and one without. They were both 2 lbs so we've got leftovers! My dad uses Italian breadcrumbs in his meatloaf and that really adds something to it, versus when it's just rice or plain breadcrumbs. We love it. He thinks that using the Harris Ranch ground beef that comes in a tube results in a more moist meatloaf, but if I remember correctly, the last time he made meatloaf with that Harris Ranch beef that I purchased, it was an 80/20 fat content and what he made the other night was like a 93/7, and so I'm thinking it was the fat content that lead the other to be moist (not that these were dry, IMO).

I was in charge of sides so I chose potatoes au gratin (though I admit, I used boxed stuff due to lack of time). I also did corn and green beans. I like canned veggies flavor wise, but they just offer no nutrients and have a ton of sodium so I've been trying to get my family to convert to steamed. My mom and my daughter are on my side, and my brother could be more easily convinced than my dad.

My dad also wanted to do mashed potatoes, but those can get so boring (especially when my dad wants to have them almost daily), so I insisted on these. I thought they went well together, but maybe I'm wrong. I've been trying to work on being more creative with pairing entrees and side dishes, while making sure the dish still goes together.

Next I need to tackle the task of doing the potatoes from scratch! If I remember correctly, my late grandmother made really good scalloped potatoes... I wonder if anyone in the family has the recipe?

Easy breakfasts

If you're a "breakfast on the go" kinda family, this would be a good thing for you to try out. Simply make a huge batch of pancakes over the weekend. Like, a triple or quadruple batch. Then freeze them all, after they've cooled. In the morning before leaving, pop one in the microwave for like 30 seconds and you're good to go.

One is good for my kid, so I freeze them all individually, and just save the baggies to reuse. If your kid is a big morning eater, you could freeze 2 or 3 together. I wouldn't freeze a ton together, because they might actually freeze together, which can be difficult to get apart and keep intact.