Gastronomic Globetrotting

Hope everyone is enjoying this heat!

Or...not.  I'd rather have heat in my mouth, not heat outside.  Thus, last night we had tacos.  Red Bell actually eats these!  Both she and Thai love to douse their meals in Taco Sauce (generally Ortega), but were appalled to realize we were out save for a drop of this favorite.  What could I possibly do about this?

Make my own!

That's right, I read the ingredients on the bottle (not overly complex) and pulled them out of my pantry with the food processor to attempt to recreate the sauce.

What an awful mess, right?  This is certainly a fun little test to try and reproduce the exact flavor.  A can of tomato paste, about 3/4 cup of water, few dribbles of light corn syrup, some distilled white vinegar, paprika, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and dash of taco seasoning later, I had both girls eating it by the chip-ful. 

Much experimenting (much, much experimenting!) later, I've approximated the flavor.  This is certainly a delightful challenge for an amateur chef (and even the pros) to hone their taste buds.  This is also a 5/5 Napkin Stains achievement for me!

Red Bell will be out of the house this evening, leaving us an opportunity to attempt a cuisine the rest of us enjoy: Indian food.  Thai picked out some recipes a while ago, and I even purchased the ingredients (odd things like garam masala, garlic paste, and ginger paste.)  However, we've been putting the endeavor off for a while.

We're going to use a package of marked-down lamb meat--I absolutely support mark-down meat.  The grocery stores are held to a high standard, and this "mark-down" stuff is close-dated, but perfectly clean, processed, and edible.  My Jalapeno and I will often buy a couple such items, and put them in the freezer to wait until we're ready.  When we stumble across something like a good deal on lamb, we get to flip through our recipe books to find a suitable preparation.

What we're going to try are samosas, which are often an appetizer of rice and peas inside a batter, lamb kebabs with a really kickin' marinade, and some saag in the crock pot (referring to a spinach concoction in which to cook the lamb to a great tender state.)  We often do tandoori chicken because it is simple enough to use tandoori paste and use the grill, but these dishes are more complex because we'll be using some unfamiliar ingredients--and I'll actually have to use measuring cups (my mortal enemy!)

Stay tuned to see how our Indian excursion shapes up!

Recipe Rewind

It seems it's been one catastrophe after another for a few days.  My heart goes out to anyone else in the Mid-Atlantic suffering from storm damage. 

Time to recap the last few days: Tuesday had been meatballs, from the previous post.  Wednesday was steak night--and common misconception states this is an easy meal.  It can be difficult if you don't handle your meat wisely (watch those steaks, people!)  My hubby loves his steak rare (preferably still moo-ing), but Thai and I like more of a flame on ours.  Red Bell won't eat a regular steak, so I use a packaged sirloin wrapped in bacon and marinated in some teriyaki to please her tastes.  Alongside the steak, I made some caramelized onions, fennel (with sugar and sherry), baked potatoes, and I tried a new recipe at the request of my Jalapeno: stuffed zucchini.  Now, I'm not always one for casseroles (which I thought this was), but I was happy to try the recipe on his behalf.

On top of the finished steaks, I put a little butter.  The best thing you can do to ensure you get a juicy steak is to let these sit and rest after you pull them off the grill--this way, the juices reabsorb into the meat rather than oozing out onto your plate and therefore being lost to your taste buds.  That butter will melt away quickly and add a subtle touch of flavor.

The recipe (from a Gilligan's Island novelty cookbook) basically entailed boiling the zucchini for a couple minutes to scoop the insides out and stuff with a mix of mushrooms, monterey jack cheese, and roasted red pepper, which I finished under the broiler.  Surprisingly, these earn an impressive 4/5 Napkin Stains--everyone seemed to enjoy them.  I think I could probably improve on the recipe by using smaller zucchinis.  Ours were a little ungainly for a single serving.

I was worried when I saw how the Parmesan I sprinkled on top browned up, but my faith is restored.  The flavor was just right, the zucchini was tender, and the filling was satisfying.  To me, they look like zucchini boats!

Thursday, we fired up the grill a second time for some BBQ chicken.  I soaked chicken parts in buttermilk, coated them in my favorite paprika rub, and then made my own sweet, sticky BBQ sauce.  Alongside, I made grilled eggplant, but was disappointed with the results this round.  I think I may have slacked on the olive oil, and they came out a little dry.  Then, I decided to whip some scalloped potatoes out of the air (sometimes you just have to follow your muse) and used my mandolin to sliver potatoes, and layer a casserole dish with these slices, jack cheese, some cream, scallions, salt, and pepper.  Every layer got the cheese, scallions, salt and pepper because otherwise you simply won't get any flavor and it'll taste like paste.

Thursday's spread was a nice one.  The leftover eggplant, steak, and other odds and ends went into a frittata: I chopped them, put them into a cast iron skillet, added eggs, and put it in the oven to set up.  You can cut it like a pie--it's almost like a one-stop omelet so everyone can eat at the same time.

I also sliced up tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil from our personal herb plants and drizzled with olive oil to make a simple, light, and fresh type of salad.

Simple, but lovely and delicious!

Friday, we had leftovers from all these goodies!  Also, the power went out around 10pm.

Yesterday, we were slated to have fair food: brats, sauerkraut, pretzel rolls (the recipe for which I'll share eventually!), and peppers all cooked on the griddle we place on top of our grill.  However, with the power crisis, we had other concerns.  The power did come back on by about 7pm, but we were too tired to follow through with the menu plan.  Thus, Red Bell made some macaroni, and Thai made me some surprisingly good pasta using ramen, olive oil, garlic, tomatoes, and basil. 

The fair food was reserved for today, and was nice to have with the power back on and the pool fully functioning.  Thai also helped me put together some deviled eggs, veggies and ranch, and other hors d'oeuvres.  (To make the perfect boiled eggs: put your eggs in the pot, cover with cold water, add a pinch of salt, put a lid on the pot, bring to a steady boil--once it boils, turn off the heat, leave the lid on, set a timer for ten minutes to let them sit, then run them under cold water to peel.  This will prevent the green sheen from forming outside the yolk, and hopefully will make peeling much simpler.)

That catches you up with our feasting, and tomorrow, we are are slated to fix pasta, a personal favorite of mine.

Two types of balls...MEATBALLS!

Two types of balls.... MEATBALLS!!  Well,  I checked the menu board (my Jalapeno and I sit down once a week and plan the week's meals) and it listed meatballs.  I knew exactly the variety I was supposed to make- sweet BBQ, Red Bell's favorite.  This presents a conflict as Thai and myself are more savory folks.  Thai commented as I was adding the flaky butter crackers, "wouldn't mushrooms in a cream sauce be good?"  Of course I agreed and began mentally plotting what ingredients I had and how I could divide the meatballs before adding the BBQ sauce. 

Prepared meatballs are supposed to be the size of walnuts; however, this can vary as to your use--such as an appetizer vs dinner.

SUCCESS! 

It so happens I had a fresh package of mushrooms and cream ( I always try to have this on hand as it enhances many dishes- I know, not good for you- tough!) as well as egg noodles- We were able to satisfy both palates, the sweet and the savory.  All of The Napkin Stains were elated and gave the BBQ meatballs a 5/5 napkin stains and the mushroom cream sauce a 4.5/5 stains (Jalapeno wanted a more beefy flavor which could have been obtained by adding beef broth which I did not have on hand). 

Completed meal with plenty of egg noodles for leftover lunch tomorrow!

The menu board is a great way to help plan grocery shopping and help when coming home from a busy day and are unsure of what to make.  My hubby and I started doing this when I was teaching and I would be exhausted and out of creative ideas at the end of the day.  We discuss the week's schedule including days we know will be difficult for elaborate meals and write a plan accordingly.  This board was the only way I knew what to make for dinner today, as I was very busy and tired.  Thankfully, I had checked the board earlier in the week and placed hamburger in the fridge to defrost.  We were good to go! Now I can check on tomorrow: Steak, reputed to be easy (just throw on the grill), but in actuality, challenging for the novice.

Soup and salad (but not together!!)

The Asian feast was very enjoyable!  In the comments I was asked about my recipe for an Asian-style fish soup. Here are the basics, as every time I create this dish I alter it to accommodate the ingredients I have on hand:  The basis of the soup is chicken broth. The chicken broth is made from discarded pieces of chicken from various previous recipes, such as the Kung Pao chicken.  I just add water and boil.  I typically do not season the broth at this time- I pour it into plastic cups (Ha, Red Solo Cup or the ALDI special work fine!) and place these cups in the  freezer.  It's great!  The plastic cups hold approximately 2 cups of broth and are in easy reach for any need.  I use scissors to cut the cup off if I am using the entire contents. 

I use 6 cups of broth and add a variety of seasonings including but not limited to: ginger, garlic, green onions, thai peppers, soy sauce, sesame oil, black vinegar, sherry, kosher salt, and lime.  Combine ingredients and simmer, tasting the broth to make certain it has the flavor you are after.  In two heat resistant soup bowls place additional green onions, some fresh greens of your choosing; I enjoy Yu Choy, or baby Bok Choy but you can use a leafy green such as spinach.  Add  fish to the bowl (yes raw!) and cut into easy to manage pieces.  For the fish I use individually-wrapped frozen Tilapia fillets. As neither Thai Pepper or Red Bell enjoy this dish the individually-wrapped fish is perfect! I just defrost and cut into bite size pieces.  On top of the fish place a handful of rice noodles (uncooked) and a wedge of lime.  Make sure the broth is boiling and pour over the contents in the bowl.  Place a heat resistant plate on top of the bowl and let steam until the fish is cooked through.  This is such a comfort food dish and though may sound complicated, once you try it and find the flavors you enjoy most it becomes a quick late night delight, especially when the baby peppers are both out for the evening.

Well, The Napkin Stains were tired today of the Asian flavor, although Red Bell could probably just drink the soy dipping sauce daily if I made enough, so I went for simple.  Here is a terrific salad filled with fresh ingredients including Romain lettuce, red bell peppers, tomatoes, carrot shavings, cucumbers, red onion, and fresh ripe avocado. I topped the salad with cilantro and fresh milled pepper.

 My eldest Thai will have to pick out the tomatoes and red pepper- My youngest Red Bell, well, she probably will eat only the cucumbers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just before eating I toss the salad with my Jalapeno's favorite dressing of Dijon mustard, honey, garlic, vinegar, and olive oil.

Taking help in the kitchen whenever offered, Red Bell made amazing grilled cheese sandwiches to accompany the salad (self-serving I'm sure, as she didn't want to eat salad alone).  Each of The Napkin Stains selected their favorite cheese which Red Bell placed on Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Hearty White bread and grilled on low heat in a cast iron skillet- the key to golden brown crust.  A tasty satisfying meal!

A day of rest- they'll actuallly eat these leftovers!

Today it's leftovers!  The benefit to spending five hours creating Kung Pao Chicken and egg rolls one night is the following day off from cooking.  I have a spread of dishes sitting on the counter for all to indulge.

Rice, crispy noodles, Kung Pao Chicken, spring rolls, egg rolls and Red Bell's favorite dipping sauce made from: soy sauce, thai peppers, ginger, garlic and scallions. Hope I made enough!

You'll note in the picture two plates of egg rolls.  I typically use both spring roll wrappers and the traditional egg roll wrappers- both Thai and Red Bell preferring the spring and my hubby, Jalapeno, hoarding the egg roll wrapped variety.  The spring roll wrappers are thinner and tend to fry crispier while egg wrappers are thicker and slightly chewier.  I double the amount of spring rolls made and use the leftover egg wrappers to make those nifty crispy fried noodles that you often receive from the restaurants when you order soup.

In my modified egg roll filling, I assumed I was using Soy bean sprouts, but after having found my Asian market to be out of these familiar sprouts I opted to use the other bag available so I wouldn't have to resort to canned bean sprouts.  Come to find out, the bean sprouts I bought were tougher and had a stronger bean flavor. With some research I determined these were Soy bean sprouts, and what I normally purchase and Red Bell especially prefers are Mung bean sprouts.  Thus, the rating for the spring and egg rolls is not as high as usual and comes to 3.5/5 napkin stains!

Welcome to the Family

We're The Napkin Stains.  Well, we might as well be.  We're a family that likes to cook, and loves to eat.  As the mother of two girls and wife of a hungry husband, I could swear I should be an expensive personal chef.  However, that isn't likely to happen, so I'll settle for sharing our culinary adventures.

My eldest, we'll call her Thai Pepper, (my hubby being a Jalapeno Pepper and youngest being a Red Bell Pepper) isn't too picky--if you don't consider dislike for tomatoes difficult (I do)--and Red Bell, well, I never know what she's going to eat.  Mostly.

One dish I can guarantee zero leftovers for (good thing, my refrigerator seems to shrink daily) is Kung Pao Chicken. We looked into a recipe because Red Bell loves to eat Chinese out, but we got tired of poor chicken quality in take-out dishes.  It always seemed that the take-out would be full of gristle or not as fresh as we'd like to have--so I took the matter into my own hands.  As my dear Jalapeno points out, it's a nice homemade treat that is a little different from our usual dinner fare.

Prepping some ingredients for Kung Pao.  The thing about many Asian dishes is the amount of prep work involved: to make the stir fry filling for, say, egg rolls tonight, I have to finely chop a number of items (a mandolin is an essential tool, at this point) before I even get to the cooking--that part, itself, is quick.  Here, we have black sesame oil, black vinegar, soy sauce, and brown sugar.  There are two steps for Kung Pao--a marinade, and a sticky sauce that goes on the mix after you've done your frying.  This is NOT a healthy dish--but who cares!

I Googled two recipes for Kung Pao, but eventually refined and formulated my own because some of the ingredients (like Black Soy Sauce) are specific and I don't always have them on hand.  We're always in the grocery store, including an ethnic market, so we looked around to find some authentic ingredients and substitutions.  As a retired teacher, I enjoy the research to understand a new dish. 

The best changes I'd suggest making to a Kung Pao recipe involve notes that you should go heavier on the cornstarch, and we like it with a little more vinegar.  It's taken a while to master my wok--I received it for the holidays, but, to our dismay, the little ring it is supposed to sit on does not fit on our gas stove--so we have to put the wok on the burner.  This puts it just a touch too far from the flames, so my wok does not get as blisteringly hot as a traditional system would.  This will cause problems because stir fry dishes can get soggy when the heat drops as you try to make sure meats like chicken are thoroughly cooked.  My advice, if you find your wok attempts are yielding a soggy, less-than-crispy result, is to use smaller batches.  This is more time on my poor feet, but the taste is worth it--I always get a full 5/5 Napkin Stains of approval from my little Peppers.

The marinade stage with my chunks of chicken--I like that I get to trim the gristle and fat off so each bite is satisfying.  On another note, I have a set of those Pyrex glass bowls, and I really love them.  They're strong, the right sizes, and all come with lids.  Perfect.  I linked them below--seriously, given the choice, I'd like another set.

Today, I didn't have all the ingredients I needed, so I had to swap out black vinegar for the black soy sauce; I also didn't have Shaoxing Wine, so I used sherry.  Thank goodness for substitutions.

I'm also making Egg Rolls tonight (because I'm crazy).  I've had to modify that recipe also, because my family just doesn't like the cabbage inside.  Instead, I do bean sprouts, carrots, bamboo shoots, and sometimes water chesnuts to help form the filling.  Of course, I peel and cook shrimp to go inside, add ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, and....well, I wing it, a lot of the time.  Sometimes you just toss in what's next to you.

The finished dish, garnished with a dried Thai pepper that I grew and dried myself and some sliced scallions.  Dinner time!

Well, I've got a hot wok waiting for me!