Tuna Melt & Fries

It was just me for dinner tonight, and it's slim pickings in my fridge this week. I'm not really a huge fan of tuna salad, but it's cheap and easy to throw together. I used some leftover tuna salad from Tuesday night, and made a tuna melt. To make my meal a little more fun, I made some homemade French fries.

For my tuna salad, I mixed a can of tuna in oil with diced green bell pepper, a little mayo, a little Dijon, and some ground black pepper. I've almost given up dairy (haven't dropped butter yet, and still indulge in cheese occasionally), but I'm doing a pretty good job. For this tuna melt, I used two Veggie Cheddar slices. It doesn't melt as well as real cheese, but it's not a bad substitute, in my opinion.

I sliced up a russet potato for my French fries, tossed them in olive oil, garlic powder, and Frank's red hot sauce. Baked for 15 minutes or so, and then broiled for a few minutes at the end to make them crispy. In other news, I've been on potato overload this week, and I think after this week, I'm going to have to avoid white potatoes for a couple weeks. Note to self: Don't buy a giant bag of potatoes.

Carrie: ICBC Pudding

The secret ingredient a couple weeks for ICBC was pudding. I don't actually like pudding, so I didn't eat any of this pie, but the Tuesday night dinner crew finished off the whole thing so I feel safe recommending it. The preparation was super easy too, which is another big plus for it. I'm going to put it on the Tuesday night dinner dessert short list. I found the recipe on FoodGawker, and it comes from chaos in the kitchen. One of the reviews of the pie was that it was pretty sweet, so you could probably take the sugar down just a notch.

Chocolate Pudding Pie (from chaos in the kitchen)
1 pie shell, prepared and baked
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
5 Tbsp flour
3 Tbsp cocoa
2 Tbsp butter, chopped
1 tsp vanilla

Combine milk, egg yolks, sugar, salt, flour and cocoa in a cold saucepan. Stir thoroughly to combine.
Turn heat to medium, stir constantly until thick but do not boil.
Once thick, remove from heat, stir in butter and vanilla. Let mixture cool slightly and pour into baked pie shell. Chill. I served it with a spoonful of Cool Whip. Enjoy!

Ice Cream Pie

This ice cream pie recipe comes courtesy of Gimme Some Oven, and I think I found it via FoodGawker. Anyway, it is the easiest dessert I've ever made, probably, and was delicious. It's a fun dessert because it's really easy to customize however you want. All you need is a half gallon of ice cream, one 9-inch graham cracker or cookie crust, and your favorite toppings (cookie crumbles, nuts, candy pieces, etc). Let the ice cream thaw just slightly, then put about a 1" inch layer of ice cream on top of your crust, add a light layer of toppings, then another layer of ice cream, then another layer of toppings. Cover with plastic wrap and place in freezer until ready to eat. I made this Tuesday morning and served it at Tuesday night dinner. This ice cream pie was made with a graham cracker crust, French silk ice cream, fudge-striped chocolate cookie crumbles, and pecan pieces. I think this might have to be a new go-to dessert.

Spicy Roasted Chicken Legs

For Tuesday night dinner, I found a recipe on The Pioneer Woman for spicy roasted chicken legs. They were delicious, easy to prep, and cooked in the oven for 30 minutes. They came together pretty quickly, actually, and I always appreciate that on a Tuesday night. It also helped when they came out delicious. I would definitely make these again. The drumstick was always my favorite part of the chicken when I was a little kid, too. They're the most fun to eat.

Spicy Roasted Chicken Legs (recipe adapted from The Pioneer Woman)
16 chicken drumsticks
stick and a half of melted butter
juice from 1-2 lemons
spices (I used cumin, chili powder, cayenne, kosher salt, oregano)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter into a bowl. Add juice from lemons to the butter. Season the butter and lemon juice mixture with your choice of seasonings. Taste to test. Mine wasn't spicy enough but it's up to you how you want to do it. I added tons of chili powder, and hints of cayenne, cumin and oregano. Rinse the chicken legs. Set up baking sheets with baking racks on top. Take tongs and dip each chicken leg into butter, lemon juice and spice mixture. Coat the chicken leg and place it on a rack. Repeat with all legs. Brush the legs with the excess butter/juice/spice mixture, and then season each leg again with your spice mix. In my instance, I just sprinkled more chili powder on top. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, if you think it needs a little additional crispiness, throw it under the broiler for an additional couple minutes. Enjoy!

Tuesday Night Dinner: Beef and Broccoli

I was really stumped this week as to what to make for dinner, so of course, I took my usual route of browsing food blogs for recipes and dinner ideas. When I search for Tuesday night dinner ideas, I tend to look for fast and easy recipes, party recipes, or budget recipes. I made my way to Steamy Kitchen, a beautiful site by a food blogger who actually just released a cookbook recently. She had the most delicious looking picture of beef and Chinese broccoli with noodles that I just couldn't get out of my head, so I knew I had to make that for dinner. I also thought it'd be a good choice because we rarely eat beef at Tuesday night dinners. It was the best decision. I've discovered a recipe that I could probably pretty easily slip into a regular rotation, and it was just so so delicious. At least, that's what I thought, and I think most everyone else agreed.

Broccoli Beef noodle stir fry (adapted from Steamy Kitchen)
1 pound flank steak, thinly sliced (Jaden recommends beef sirloin)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 tablespoons dry white wine, sake, or Shaoxing wine (I used white wine)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon tapioca starch or cornstarch (I used corn starch)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 pound fresh or 10 oz dried noodles
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 large garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
1.25 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 pound Chinese broccoli or common broccoli, cut into bite-size chunks or florets (I used Chinese broccoli that I did not bother cutting)
freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together soy sauce, oyster sauce, and wine. Add sugar and whisk until dissolved. Stir in corn starch until smooth. Add sesame oil and beef and marinate for at least 20 minutes.

Prepare noodles. You can use any kind of noodles here, just prepare according to package directions, but don't quite cook them all the way so you can finish cooking them in the saute pan at the end.

Heat vegetable oil in a skillet and stir fry garlic until fragrant. Add the beef and stir fry until tender, just a couple minutes. When you cook the beef, you should cook the slices in a single layer in your pan so it cooks evenly and creates caramelized bits. When the meat is finished, transfer it to a plate and add a little more oil to the pan. Add the broccoli and toss it so it's coated with oil. Pour in a 1/4 cup of the stock, turn the heat to medium low and cover with a lid. Cook until tender, 3 to 5 minutes and transfer to the same plate as the meat.

This is where I strayed from Jaden's recipe just a little. I tossed my noodles in the saute pan, added oyster, soy sauce, and chicken stock to taste, and tossed it around a little to flavor it and finish the cooking process. I chose to serve the noodles separate from the beef and broccoli so people could have an option of noodles or rice.

Sesame Noodles with Fried Tofu and Garlicy Soy Sauce Green Beans

I was going to an event Friday night, and therefore needed to come up with a dinner that I could throw together quickly. As is not unusual, I turned to one of my favorite bloggers, The Pioneer Woman. Ages ago, she posted a recipe called Simple Sesame Noodles. They take about 10 minutes, or as long as it takes to boil some spaghetti noodles. For a little protein, I cooked some tofu and for some veggies, I made some green beans. Fast, easy dinner, and totally delicious. Win.

Recipe (sesame noodles from The Pioneer Woman)
box of spaghetti noodles
firm tofu, cut in cubes
couple tablespoons of olive oil
1/2 lb of green beans
one small diced onion
2 cloves of minced garlic
4 whole green onions, sliced thin

For Sesame Sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp sugar
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
3 Tbsp pure sesame oil
4 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp hot water

Cook noodles according to package. Drain and set aside in a bowl. Throw green beans into pot of boiling water and cook for about 3-5 minutes. Drain green beans. Heat olive oil in skillet for tofu and olive oil in another skillet or wok for green beans. Throw tofu cubes into skillet and let brown on all sides, until golden. Add onions to wok for green beans and cook until translucent. Add green beans and garlic and toss together until green beans are tender. Season with soy sauce, to taste. Whisk together ingredients for sesame sauce and toss over cooked spaghetti. Toss noodles together and top with sliced green onions.

Carrie: Iron Chef Blogger Challenge Peanut Butter

I don't really like peanut butter. I'm crazy, I know, but we've had this discussion before. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? Not good. So I definitely was a little like oh...peanut butter...when I saw the secret ingredient. I thought about baking, but then decided to see what else I could find. And boy, am I glad I chose not to bake because I haven't loved a recipe this much since ICBC Bacon. I found a recipe on Love and Olive Oil, one of my favorite cooking blog sites. Their Tofu Noodle Toss with Taylor's Kick-Butt Peanut Sauce was so easy to throw together and completely delicious. Just as good the next day for lunch too. Make it. Now. I promise you won't regret it. There are no measurements for how many noodles or veggies, so it's kind of like an estimation game. But that also means it's pretty hard to screw it up. It's a recipe with a fair amount of wiggle room, I think, and that's a good thing.

Tofu Noodle Toss with Taylor's Kick-Butt Peanut Sauce
noodles (I used whole wheat spaghetti)
firm tofu, drained and cubed
veggies (I used eggplant, asparagus, green beans, red bell pepper, red onions, and green onions)
olive oil
kale, rinsed and stems removed

For Peanut Sauce (for 4-5 servings)
2/3 cup peanut butter
6 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons garlic salt (which I didn't have so I minced three cloves of garlic and added a pinch of salt)
6 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
Sriracha chili sauce, to taste
water, if necessary to thin sauce

Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Add a tablespoon or two of olive oil to a hot pan and brown tofu cubes. Place browned cubes on a plate lined with a paper towel.
Add another tablespoon of oil and cook veggies until tender. Remove from pan and set aside.
Add a couple more tablespoons of olive oil, add kale, and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until greens are tender. Remove to a serving dish.
To make peanut sauce, combine all the ingredients except for water to a microwave safe bowl and mix well. Microwave for 40 seconds and stir until smooth. Add a little water if sauce looks too thick. Move tofu and veggies back into the pan, add noodles, then peanut sauce and toss until well coated. Serve atop bed of kale.

Baked Dover Sole & Sauteed Green Beans and Mushrooms

For a quick, easy, and healthy dinner, I highly recommend this one. I'm craving seafood for some reason this week, and so last night I picked up some Dover sole from the store as well as fresh green beans, cremini mushrooms, and a red onion. It was so easy to put together, and everything cooked really fast, which was also a plus given how late I'd gotten home.

Season the fish with a little olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, making sure to cover both sides. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 12-15 minutes.

Mince two cloves of garlic. Wash the green beans and put them into boiling water for a couple minutes. Remove from boiling water and dunk into bowl of ice water. Heat olive oil in a wok or skillet. Saute onions until they get a little brown and tender then add green beans and mushrooms. Add the garlic a few minutes later and toss the vegetables together. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until green beans are tender.

Wednesday Night Dinner: Teriyaki Ginger Chicken and Soy Sauce Green Beans

This was one part of Wednesday night dinner this week. I also made my Iron Chef Blogger Challenge recipe of the week, but I'm putting that in a different post. Everybody's got a few go-to dinner recipes, right? Teriyaki sauce is rapidly becoming the star of my go-to dinners. I purchased this teriyaki ginger sauce at Sunflower Market, and I love it on pork and chicken. Then I always serve it with green beans and steamed rice. It's really quite a great dinner.

Green Beans and Chicken Sausage with Farfalle

So I'm beginning to learn that the fun part of cooking is seeing what I can throw together without a recipe. I needed to make something for dinner tonight and so here's what I threw together using ingredients in my fridge and pantry.

Green Beans and Chicken Sausage with Farfalle

green beans
two chicken sausages, sliced
8 ounces of farfalle
one small tomato, diced
Parmesan
basil
oregano
three cloves of garlic, minced
olive oil
salt

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Set a pot of water to boil for the green beans. When the water is rapidly boiling, add in a pinch of salt and drop in the green beans. Boil the beans until tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain.

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in large skillet. When skillet's hot, drop in the sliced sausages. Cook a couple minutes on one side, then flip. Brown the sausages and then pull them off the heat and place into a separate dish. Add another tablespoon of olive oil and drop in the green beans and garlic. Toss together and saute. After a couple minutes, return sausage to pan and then add pasta. Season with basil and oregano. Toss with another tablespoon or two of olive oil if needed. Turn off heat and sprinkle liberally with Parmesan cheese and top with diced tomatoes. Toss together and serve.

Serves 2 to 3 people.

Wednesday Night Dinner: Angelhair with Garlic and Tomato and Shrimp

Maybe eventually I'll remember to work on my presentation, but for now, just be glad I remembered to take a picture. I wasn't supposed to make dinner this week so I had to come up with something in a day, instead of normally spending days mulling over what I want to make. I also didn't want to have to go grocery shopping and spend loads of money so I had to come up with something using ingredients in my house. So I prepared basically a Caesar salad (hearts of romaine and spinach with Parmesan and Caesar dressing), garlic bread and angelhair tossed with olive oil, minced garlic, and a can of diced tomatoes with grilled chicken and shrimp. It was a really delicious meal and easy preparation.

I kind of made this up as I went along (as I generally do a lot of my homemade recipes), but the general idea is mince up some garlic cloves, prepare the pasta, heat a skillet or saute pan with a few tablespoons of olive oil, throw in your minced garlic and let it cook for a couple minutes, then throw in your pasta, toss it around, add a couple more tablespoons of olive oil if necessary, and then add in some diced tomatoes and let it cook for a couple more minutes to warm the tomatoes. I prepared the chicken and shrimp on the side so that each person could add which protein they wanted, but you could probably just as easy also toss in already cooked chicken or shrimp in order to serve it all together in one dish. And then throw some Parmesan on top because everything's better with a little bit of cheese.

Soy Sauce & Garlic Green Beans

Fresh green beans are the best. I love my mom's green beans and here's my own spin on them. It's pretty delicious and I had them for dinner tonight with some steamed rice and leftover chicken.

Ingredients
fresh green beans
soy sauce
minced garlic
olive oil
water

Wash and prep the green beans. Heat a skillet or wok on medium-high heat. Add a little bit of water and the green beans and cover. Let the water help steam them and cook until tender. Add a splash of olive oil and garlic to saute them in. Then add soy sauce and flavor to taste.

Grilled Green Chile and Cheese Sandwich

My sister moved into my house and I'm thinking it means I might cook more often now that there's someone else around. I had leftover green chiles from last week's Wednesday night dinner, and some leftover havarti cheese, and the perfect recipe came to mind—Pioneer Woman's favorite sandwich. The sandwich consists of green chiles, tomatoes, red onions, and cheese with a sauce made of dijon and mayo. It was pretty delicious. On the side I roasted some sweet potatoes and threw together a salad. For the sweet potatoes, just toss them in olive oil, add a little salt and pepper, and roast for 35 minutes at 375 degrees. Delish!

Wednesday Night Dinners: Shrimp with Shallot-Tarragon Sauce

I've been taking a break from cooking the last couple Wednesday night dinners and finally jumped back in this week to test out a recipe from my new cookbook. As a birthday present, Vanessa gave me Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook. I served a Shrimp with Shallot-Tarragon Sauce on Wilted Spinach and a side of Grilled Brie and Tomato on Crusty Bread. Two thumbs up on both recipes and I was impressed with how quickly the shrimp dish came together. It looks really fancy but cooked really quickly.



Shrimp with Shallot-Tarragon Sauce on Wilted Spinach
(from Bon Appetit's Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook, page 350)

10 uncooked large shrimp, peeled, deveined
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
5 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon, divided
2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger, divided
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots (about 2 large)
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 6-ounce package fresh baby spinach

Toss shrimp, parsley, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3 teaspoons tarragon, and 1 teaspoon ginger in medium bowl. Sprinkle mixture with salt and pepper.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallots, saute 5 minutes. Add shrimp mixture; saute until shrimp are almost cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add butter and cream; bring just to simmer. Add remaining 1 teaspoon ginger. Season with salt and pepper. Set shrimp aside.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in another large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add spinach and remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss until just wilted, about 25 seconds. Mound spinach in center of plates; surround with shrimp and sauce. Sprinkle shrimp with remaining 2 tablespoons tarragon.

Serves 2.

Grilled Brie and Tomato on Crusty Bread
(from Food Network)
1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
6 (1/2 inch thick) slices of crusty bread
1/2 pound brie, sliced thin

Heat the broiler. Put the cherry tomatoes on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Broil them until they burst; set aside.

Butter the bread on both sides and top each with several slices of brie. Broil until the cheese is bubbling and slightly browned. Top with the tomatoes. Serve immediately.

Vegetable Quesadillas

One of my favorite fast, easy and healthy meals are vegetable quesadillas. It's a simple, tasty meal that just can't go wrong. And they're quite tasty with this homemade salsa.

Recipe:
flour tortillas
shredded cheese
sliced brown mushrooms
sliced yellow onions
sliced bell peppers
black beans
olive oil
salt & pepper

Heat olive oil in skillet to saute veggies. Warm can of black beans in small saucepot on stove. Toss onions first, then bell peppers, then mushrooms till veggies are tender in skillet. Season with salt and pepper. Take off heat and set aside.

Keep skillet on low to medium heat to warm tortilla. Add veggies, black beans, and cheese on half of tortilla, being careful to not overstuff. Fold tortilla over filling and lightly press with spatula. The goal is to get the tortilla just crispy with light golden brown spots on each side and melt the cheese.

Serve by cutting into fourths with optional sides of salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.