Mongolian Beef

Mongolian Beef

As I previously predicted, I flaked out. I didn't completely flake, but I have not been keeping up with my posting. From everything that I have been learning about social media, blogging, and blah, blah, blah, etc. is that posting regularly and multiple times a week drives traffic to your blog. While that is very relevant for my job - here...I'm not that concerned yet!
I have been cooking though! I'll catch up, and I have a lot to catch you up on...so, let's get started. The photo above is the Mongolian Beef recipe from the November anniversary issue of Cooking Light. This recipe is great if you are short on time. The other great thing is that the majority of the ingredients are those that should already be in your pantry. I did make a couple of changes. I did not have peanut oil and substituted vegetable oil. You could use canola oil too. Part of the reason that peanut oil is being used is because it can withstand higher heat. Vegetable oil can too but is not as healthy. Canola oil can be used in a pinch but may not handle the heat as well.
My sister wanted to make this recipe and I suggested that she use canola oil to her as she did not have peanut oil. It seemed to work out for her. I also suggested that she cut the amount of chile paste in half because it's kind of spicy. I went for full spice...maybe a smidge extra, Damon and I are spicy folks. Both my sister and I added extra veggies. I added broccoli and carrots and she may have too - but to be honest, I forget if she did!
This recipe is great. It's fast, easy, and pretty tasty. We've made it twice and it was something easy enough for Damon to make (I'm teaching him to cook a few things...as they say "teach a man to fish").

Mongolian Beef

Ingredients
2 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce 
1 teaspoon sugar 
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon chile paste with garlic (such as sambal oelek)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons peanut oil (vegetable or canola oil will work too)
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1 pound sirloin steak, thinly sliced across the grain
1 cup chopped broccoli (optional)
2 carrots sliced (optional)
16 medium green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces

Directions
Combine first 8 ingredients, stirring until smooth.
Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add minced ginger, minced garlic, and beef; sauté for 2 minutes or until beef is browned. *If you are added broccoli and/or carrots add it here and sauté for about 2 minutes. Add green onion pieces; sauté 30 seconds. Add soy sauce mixture; cook 1 minute or until thickened, stirring constantly.

Note: If you feel like you need a bit more "sauce" add about 1/4 cup of water at a time until you reach a desired consistency. I used about a 1/2 cup of water... and it's because I added broccoli and carrots and it sucked up all the sauce!

Enjoy!

A Pinterest Recipe that is NO JOKE...The Nutella Cookie Recipe

The Nutella Cookie

There has been this recipe floating around on Pinterest that claims to be fast and easy. You may have seen it, you may have pinned it - The Nutella Cookie...don't add the sugar! I pinned it. Of course I pinned it, who doesn't love Nutella? I have not tried many of the recipes that I have pinned, but last night it just so happens that I finally tried the Nutella one.

Damon and I were both looking for something sweet to eat. I was also being kind of lazy and didn't really want to make a complicated dessert. Damon says to me,"Come on! You can make something out of nothing!" And all of a sudden it dawned on me: I have Nutella, flour, and eggs! I'm doing this! So I pulled up Pinterest, found the recipe and made the damn things in all of 20 minutes. They are good too. Not too sweet, kind of fluffy.

The point is that this Pinterest recipe is no joke. It is fast and it is good.

The Nutella Cookie
1 cup Nutella
1 cup All-Purpose Flour
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Put all items in a bowl and beat for about 2 minutes with a hand mixer until it forms a thick dough. You could do one of 2 things - either treat it like a drop cookie and take a small spoonful of dough and drop it on to the cookie sheet OR you can form little balls and put them on a cookie sheet and slightly flatten them out. Then put them in the oven for about 6-8 minutes, and voila! Nutella Cookies.

SO GOOD.

Cooking from Recipes: Creamy Tomato Soup

Creamy Tomato Soup dusted with Parmesan cheese

OK. I kind of flaked out for a week or so. I will not make excuses, but I will say that I warned you about the possibility.

I made this Creamy Tomato soup on October 19th. My friend Rob came to visit and I decided to make a nice soup and served it with "adult" grilled cheese. With the seasons changing, the leaves falling, and the nice crisp cool air - it called for soup! The recipes were all from the October issue of Bon Appetit. The photos in the magazine were so much more appealing looking than my photos above, especially the photos of the varieties of grilled cheese. 

This recipe was great. It was fast, easy, and delicious. The only change I made was that I added 4 fresh diced Roma tomatoes to the recipe. I don't really know if it made a difference, but it turned out. It was creamy and had a bit of a...tanginess...as Damon says. In any event, I think it's an excellent recipe to try.

Creamy Tomato Soup from Bon Appetit

Cooking from Recipes: Bacon Wrapped Chicken Thighs

Bacon wrapped chicken thighs with sauteed kale

I haven't completely flaked out yet, just delayed a bit.  I have been keeping up with cooking though. Not everyday like I planned, because my life gets in the way and I get side tracked.

Last Thursday I made another paleo dish, bacon wrapped chicken thighs. To be completely honest with you, I didn't love it. Damon thought it was OK. He didn't hate it, mostly because it was wrapped in bacon - or that is what I think. I did follow the directions, but for some reason it was...bland. I don't know exactly what it was that I didn't like, but it was something. I think you can judge for yourself.

I served it with sauteed kale. It was nothing special, just sauteed in a tablespoon or 2 of butter, a couple of cloves of minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste, and a couple dashes of red wine vinegar. That's my go to kale recipe.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Thighs
4 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
8 slices of bacon
2 teaspoons Smokey Spice Blend (recipe to follow)

Smoke Spice Blend
1 tablespoon chipotle powder
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon sea salt
1/2 tablespoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
Sprinkle the chicken thighs with 1/2 of the of spice blend. Next wrap in chicken with 2 pieces of bacon each and then sprinkle the other 1/2 of the spice blend over the wrapped chicken. Bake for 40 minutes, uncovered, or until internal temp is 165 degrees F. If you feel that the bacon is not browned enough or crispy looking enough, broil the chicken for 2 minutes.

Cooking from Recipes: Hayley's Skirt Steak Tacos

Hayley's Skirt Steak Tacos

I wanted to make something that was fast and easy and to me, tacos are always fast and easy. This recipe comes from, again, "Practical Paleo" by Diane Sanfilippo. The recipe is named after Hayley Mason, co-author of "Make it Paleo"  - which I have not read. 

In true Michelle fashion, I made a slight alteration to the original recipe. I just needed an extra kick. Others may or may not agree, but the alteration is optional and I like it. I like it spicy! The recipe also calls for butter lettuce. As you probably can tell from the photo, I did not use butter lettuce. Truth be told, I forgot the butter lettuce when I went grocery shopping. I had romaine lettuce and it worked great! However, for Damon...I gave him corn tortillas. He's not big on lettuce as the taco shell. He's a guy and I don't blame him. He did like it though and ate all the extra steak. In the end, it's tacos and you can add or subtract anything you want from it and you can top it with what ever you want! But if you are on the Paleo Diet...no cheese, no sour cream. Me? I had both!

Hayley's Skirt Steak Tacos
Juice and Zest of one lime
1 clove garlic, grated or finely minced (I love garlic, so I used 3)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (plus 1/2 teaspoon cumin, optional)
1 small jalapeno finely minced (also optional)
Sea Salt and black pepper to taste
1-1/2lb skirt steak
1 head bib, butter, or Boston lettuce

Gently separate the leaves of lettuce and rinse them off. Set them aside to dry.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the lime juice, zest, garlic, and chili powder (and the optionals if you are going there). Place the skirt steak in the bowl and massage the seasonings into it. Add sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Grill for approximately 3 minutes per side. Set the cooked steak aside to rest for 10 minutes, then slice against the grain into small strips. You may want to divide the skirt steak into two or three sections before slicing, as it is typically very long.

Serve the steak, and whatever topper you are going with, in your lettuce leaves.

Cooking from Recipes: Mustard Glazed Chicken Thighs and Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Mustard Glazed Chicken Thighs and Roasted Brussels Sprouts

This dinner was quite successful. So much so that Damon actually said, "This is the best chicken! I even love the brussels sprouts! Is there more?" And no, there was not more.  I made just enough for the 2 of us, but this was definitely the day that I wished I made more. It's like getting kids to eat, when you find something they like you make a lot of it often. Needless to say, this dinner will make the regular rotation.

The chicken recipe comes from the book "Practical Paleo" by Diane Sanfilippo.  Yesterday's chop recipe came from that book as well. I bought the book because I was having some digestive problems and suspected that I was gluten intolerant. I needed a little inspiration and this book definitely gives me that, but it also gives me a lot of information about diet, allergies, and intolerance to food. It is supposed to be "real food" or "primal." I don't know whether or not I totally agree with everything in the book, but the recipes, techniques, and meal plans are great.

The Brussels sprouts recipe comes from the handy dandy, October issue of Cooking Light.  I love that magazine. You can't go wrong with that magazine.  Well, you can - but not often!

Mustard Glazed Chicken Thighs
1/4 cup melted butter or coconut oil
2 tablespoons gluten-free mustard
Black Pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
12 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

In a small mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, mustard, black pepper, and Sage Salt. Place the chicken thigh on a baking sheet or oven-safe dish, and brush the mixture evenly over each one.

Bake for 45 minutes or until a thermometer reads 165 degrees F when inserted into the center of one of the chicken thighs.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Preheat even to 425 degrees F. Combine 1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts, 2 teaspoons canola oil, 1-1/2 teaspoon maple syrup, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 pound halved Brussels sprouts on a jelly-roll pan.  Bake at 425 degrees for 17 minutes, stirring once.

Cooking From Recipes: Pork Chops w/Olive Tapenade and Roasted Broccoli and Potatoes

Pork Chops with Olive Tapenade and Roasted Broccoli and Potatoes

I am doing this! For how long? Who knows! So, my suggestion is to keep up with it while it lasts because I might flake out after a week. But really, I am trying to be serious about posting the recipes that I try.  I am also trying to be serious about using my gym membership. Maybe this thing can go hand in hand? Again, who knows! I did run today and go to Pilate's...

The above photo is Pork Chops with Olive Tapenade and Roasted Broccoli and Potatoes.  The pork chop recipe is a bit of an adaptation. The original recipe comes for the book Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo and calls for lamb chops. Well, I got lazy and didn't go searching out the best lamb chop - so I figured it would go well with pork chops and I was right!  Now the broccoli and potatoes...I just roasted them. It didn't come from a recipe. My husband, Damon, liked the pork chops quite a lot. He liked the broccoli OK, it's a challenge for him to really love veggies.  I like the veggies - but then again, I love broccoli and potates!  I really liked the chops, the olive tapenade really did kick ass and made it super tasty! I encourage you to try it. 

Lamb Chops with Olive Tapenade (or use pork chops like me!)

2 tablespoons bacon fat or coconut oil

2 lbs lamb chops (or pork chops bone in)

1 tablespoon Greek Spice Blend (recipe to follow)

Greek Spice Blend

2 tablespoons Lemon Salt

2 tablespoons dried oregano

1 tablespoons garlic powder

2 teaspoons black pepper

Olive Tapenade (can be made ahead 1 day)

1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons capers

1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste

Julie of 1/2 lemon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In an oven safe pan over medium heat, melt the bacon fat or coconut oil. While the pan heats, sprinkle both sides of the lamb or pork chops with the Greek Spice Blend.  Sear the lamb chops for 2 minutes on each side (if you are using pork chops do 4 minutes each side).  Next place the entire pan in the hot oven for 2 minutes (if you are using the pork chops do 4 minutes).  Remove chops from the oven.

To make the tapenade: Combine all ingredients in a food processor or hand blender. Top each lamb chop with a dollop of tapenade.  

Roasted Broccoli and Potatoes

1 pound of broccoli, florets cut from the thick stalk

5 red, Yukon, and/or purple baby potatoes quartered

3 garlic cloves minced

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Cover a jelly roll pan with tin foil. Combine above ingredients and bake on the jelly roll pan for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

 

 

 

Cooking from Recipes: A Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookie

Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie made by my sister, Jenny

It's been a really long time since I have posted anything to this blog and I really don't have an excuse. I guess it must be life, it gets in my way sometimes. I do have a plan to keep my posting on track. I have been talking with my friend about cooking from recipes. I have all of these magazine subscriptions and cookbooks and I think it makes sense to cook from the recipes within them. I do really like "freestyle" cooking and making new things up, but sometimes it is great to cook from recipes. The magazines I subscribe to and the cookbooks that I own have really great recipes, ideas, and techniques.  I mean, that is why I have them...right? So, for a while I think I am going to share with you the recipes that I have tried and to start, I am going to post a recipe that my sister tried. 

My sister, Jenny, she is quite the baker.  Her cookies always turn out way better, softer, and far more delicious than mine. Now that she has 2 kids, she has to find ways to get them to eat healthy - and sometimes she will sneak in vegetables to baked goods! Recently, she sent me a photo of some healthier, whole wheat cookies that she baked from a recipe in the October Cooking Light.  When she tried the dough, she was a bit unsure as to how they were going to turn out - BUT once they came out of the oven she said they were delicious! If you want to try out a chocolate chip cookie recipe that is lower in calories without sacrificing that yummy taste - try these cookies! 
Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ramps - not just for skateboarding

The above photo is a ramp.  It is also called a wild leek.  I feel like it is a cross between green onions and garlic.  It's mellow like a green onion but with a bit of a kick that garlic has.  It's de-lish.  I use it as the only ingredient to saute vegetables or roast vegetables. 

They are only in season for a short time in the spring and early summer - so find this stuff and use it!

Roasted Asparagus with Ramps

1 bunch of Asparagus, with the tough ends nipped off
1 bunch of Ramps, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
In a large bowl toss the asparagus with the rest of the ingredients and set aside.  Next, line a baking sheet with foil and then evenly distribute the asparagus on the sheet and bake for about 20-25 min. until tender.

Enjoy!

Mexican Meatballs in Chipotle Sauce

I know it is way more fun to have a photo of the dish so you can see what it looks like - or supposed to look like, but I didn't take one.  I don't know why either!  So, the photo above is robbed from the cookbook.  Sorry!  I have made it many times, and made it this past week when the family was in town.  It's not too difficult and makes a great left over for breakfast, especially because of the sauce.  The recipe that I have is out of my cookbook, Fresh Mexican by Monica Medin-Mora and Angeles Ayala.  I have made this recipe to their exact specifications, but the recipe that I am going to post here is an easier and less labor intensive version. 

Ingredients:

Meat Balls
8 oz lean ground pork
8 oz lean ground beef
1/2 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 egg
salt and pepper

Chipotle Sauce
3 Chipotle Chili's in Adobo and 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
5 Roma Tomatoes, diced
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 thyme sprig
1 1/2 cup Chicken Stock

First, make the meat balls. Mix the ground meats, onion, garlic, egg, and salt and pepper (I use a couple of pinches of each) in a bowl.  Shape the mixture into chestnut-size balls.  In a deep skillet, on medium high heat, brown the meat balls on all sides.  You will most likely have to do it in 2 batches.  You do not want to crowd them in the pan so that they can evenly brown.  Once all the meat balls have browned, set them aside and discard the oil from the skillet.

Once you have discarded the oil from the skillet, start the sauce.  Continue to keep the heat on medium high and add to the same skillet, the tomatoes, onion, garlic.  The juice from the tomatoes will deglaze the skillet and grab the brown bits from the meat.  Cover and let simmer for about 5 min, stirring occasionally.  While the tomatoes are simmering, add to a blender, 3 chiptole chilies, 1 tablespoon of the adobo sauce, and 1/2 cup of chicken stock and blend till smooth.  Once the tomato mixture has softened, add the tomato mixture and another 1/2 cup of chicken stock to the blender with the chipotle sauce still it and blend till it is a smooth sauce.  Add the sauce back to the skillet and turn the heat down to medium-low.  Add the remaining 1/2 cup of the chicken stock, thyme sprig, and bay leaf to the sauce and stir so it a nice "saucy" consistency.  Lastly, add the meatballs back to the sauce.  Give it a gentle stir so that the meatballs are covered with the sauce.  Cover the skillet and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Serve with rice, tortillas and pinto beans.  It also makes for a tasty left over with eggs!

Enjoy!

I think this is my next purchase

I need new pots and pans.  I am now convinced, well I think I might be, that these Bialetti Aeternum ceramic-coated pans are for me!

http://www.bialettishop.com/BialettiAeternumCookware.html

AND it isn't expensive.  If anyone has tried these pots and pans or has read reviews - good or bad - let me know!

I heart Food

I made a ton of dinners in the last 10 days and have really decided that I do well cooking for a large group - it's more fun... for me.  I made Thai, Italian(ish), Gumbo, British... all kinds of stuff.  Everything seemed to go over pretty well.  I think the winner may have been Christmas Dinner... Winner, winner, Christmas Dinner.  So here's the re-cap and the recipes.  I know some of you want them!

Jenny went back for seconds for the Gnocchi Gorganzola Gratin.  I got that recipe from Bon Appetit.  It was delicious, and if you want to be really lazy about it - buy prepared Italian Gnocchi from the store.  I got mine from Trader Joe's. 

The prime rib was delicious and the left overs made a really tasty Shepards Pie.  I got the recipe from the December issue of Cooking Light, Rosemary-Dijon Crusted Standing Rib Roast.  A couple of days later, I chopped up the remaining prime rib into small pieces and sauted it quickly with diced carrots and the remaining Au Jus.  I put the rib and carrot saute in a 9x13 glass baking casserole and covered it with mashed potatoes.  I planned to use the left over mash potatoes, but could not locate them, so I whipped up new mashed potatoes.  I then covered the potatoes with shredded cheddar and baked in the oven for 30 minutes and Voila! Shepards pie!

I think the Gnocchi and Prime Rib recipes can be made anytime, especially the Gnocchi.  I recommend both recipes!