Mmm, Food.

Food for Thought

2011-06-13T09:43:00.000-05:00

If you are committed to staying hydrated, then you already know that drinking 8 cups of water a day helps you fight disease, increase your metabolism, and make you look younger. But did you know that you can also significantly increase your fluid intake with food? Vegetables, for example, range from 85 to 95 percent water by weight. Fruits and veggies are also rich in the healing antioxidants your body needs for cell repair and healthy skin, and they contain trace minerals that your body needs to make new cells.

The vegetables with the most color (think bright oranges, yellows and reds) provide the most nutrients.

(Info courtesy of Shape Up The Nation)

Making Cheese

2011-02-17T23:56:00.000-06:00

I've been so excited to get started making cheese since the class at the SCA event on Jan 29th. The only reason I haven't yet is I've had so much trouble finding cheesecloth! Believe it or not, it's actually not so easy. The stuff you see in all the stores is unfortunately not FOOD grade. It's CRAFT grade. I finally gave up and ordered some online. Hopefully it will be here soon. I have everything else all ready and waiting!

Organic Vegetables & Fruits

2010-12-01T11:16:00.000-06:00

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/11/29/recommended-vegetable-list.aspx

If you were to get all of your vegetables from conventionally farmed sources, this would be better for your health than eating no fresh vegetables at all. However, conventionally farmed vegetables are not your best choice. Organic vegetables are a much better option.

Of the 43 different fruit and vegetable categories tested by the Environmental Working Group and included in their Shoppers' Guide to Pesticides in Produce, these 12 fruits and vegetables had the highest pesticide load, making them the most important to buy or grow organic:

Peaches
Apples
Sweet bell peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Lettuce
Grapes (imported)
Pears
Spinach
Potatoes

In contrast, these foods were found to have the lowest residual pesticide load, making them the safest bet among conventionally grown vegetables:

Broccoli
Eggplant
Cabbage
Banana
Kiwi
Asparagus
Sweet peas (frozen)
Mango
Pineapple
Sweet corn (frozen)
Avocado
Onion

So if you need to work within a certain budget, use this information to help guide you to the best choices when it comes to lowering your overall pesticide exposure.

Why?

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers 60 percent of herbicides, 90 percent of fungicides, and 30 percent of insecticides to be carcinogenic, and most are damaging to your nervous system as well. In fact, these powerful and dangerous chemicals have been linked to numerous health problems such as:

Neurotoxicity
Disruption of your endocrine system
Carcinogenicity
Immune system suppression
Male infertility and reduced reproductive function
Miscarriages
Parkinson's disease

Stuffed

2010-11-25T16:09:00.000-06:00

Well, I only had to send David to the store twice (I thought I had bought it all!), and everything came out as planned... the brined, injected, spice rubbed 12 pound turkey who roasted over the open pan of gravy - in the oven for 2 solid hours with NO opening the oven - turned out maybe even juicier than last year. Definitely more tasty, since the recipe has been improved upon! The oiling and searing at 500 for 30 minutes really locks in the moisture so basting is NOT needed. The gravy in the pan retains humidity in the oven so basting serves no purpose.

So I went with everything linked in the previous blog entry, and I intend to repeat exactly the same again next time.
Om nom nom.

Turkey Time!

2010-11-15T14:21:00.011-06:00

I know, I know, I have to wait 1 more week. But just remember to get all your ducks in a row THIS week, so that NEXT week you won't be stressing and fretting. :-) Get your recipes out, start your shopping list, and all that good stuff, NOW!

As for my holiday cooking plans, well, they're not much different from last year, though the turkey gets a few tweaks:

The Bird:
-Alton Brown's Good Eats: Roast Turkey is the base plan since it has been SO DELICIOUS the past few times now! But I am going to make use of the gravy and wet rub sections from The Ultimate Turkey. I wish I could incorporate the smoking wood but I'm doing it all in the oven. It will still get injected though, bwahaha. I believe I am going to try this Turkey Injection Recipe unless I can come up with anything better. This one sounds good.

-Butternut Squash Casserole - It's so good you won't ever make sweet potato casserole ever again after trying this. Seriously. I have to make a whole casserole separate for my dad every year!

-Cranberry Apple Pear Chutney - A step up from the canned gel glop garbage. So good you can eat it on the side with a spoon! ;D

-Chicken & Dressing - my family has always done the "stuffing" on the side like this. (Here's a decent recipe, minus the apples and raisins, eww.. Plus, you need to use cornbread, not loaf bread! Just a few slices for consistency.)

-Green Bean Casserole - a requested staple.

And for dessert:
-Fat Man's Pie - Another annual prerequisite.
Maybe some of you would prefer the Mystery Pecan Pie. I might save that one for Christmas.

-Maybe I will mull some apple cider, too. Mmm...

Refrigerator thawing. This is the easiest method. Leave the meat in its packaging in a pan deep enough to catch drips. Allow one day for every four pounds, so if you have a 20 pound turkey to cook on Thursday, you need to start thawing it on Sunday.

8-12 lbs. 1-2 days
12-16 lbs. 2-3 days
16-20 lbs. 3-4 days
20-24 lbs 4-5 days

Cooking Time:

At 325°F, a 15-pound bird will be done in about 3 to 3.5 hours. A 20-pound bird should take a total of about 4 to 4.5 hours. The total time depends on how well you control the oven temp, and how often you open the lid.

A Lemony Caper Alfredo Chicken Dinner

2010-10-10T22:43:00.000-05:00

Mix together in bowl:
mushrooms, quartered
capers
artichoke hearts (marinaded; including the sauce)
lemon juice
minced olives

boil:
linguine

Cook until done, in olive oil:
chicken breast chunks
chopped onions
minced garlic
fresh ground pepper
salt, to taste

Reduce sauce.
Reduce heat.

Drain pasta and put on plates.

add butter
alfredo sauce
sour cream

Cook over low heat, until heated.
Serve over pasta.

Mad scientist time

2010-05-15T22:03:00.003-05:00

We decided this one was worth saving some notes on so we can make it again later :)
I don't know what to call it. Chicken a'la Tina?

Boil noodles.

Fry in skillet 2 slices of bacon. [drain when bacon approaches mostly done; return bacon to skillet] Add about a quarter of an onion sliced to skillet and fry, along with about 1 tsp garlic, 1 pat butter. When this has had time to soften, add 4-5 sliced mushrooms, 1 tbsp diced black olives, and about 2 tbsp pesto sauce. If bacon begins to overcook, push to outsides of skillet. Remove it when it's done and cool, and crumble and set aside.
--Do NOT do a taste test at this point. You'll think that I'm crazy and that I have ruined your dinner. LOL Trust me, it will come together in the end. The flavor combination is NOT there yet by this point!--
Add 1 more butter pat. Cut up one large chicken breast into chunks and add to skillet along with fresh ground black pepper; cook until done. Stir in bacon, alfredo sauce, parmesan cheese, and sour cream.

Serve over noodles.

Best. Ramen. Ever.

2010-05-08T23:03:00.005-05:00

At about a buck a pack, they're the best ramen noodles I can find yet.
Get them at the Super Oriental Market!

Lebanese Food Festival

2010-04-05T16:41:00.000-05:00

Twelfth Annual
Lebanese Food & Cultural Festival

(No Admission Charge)

FRIDAY, APRIL 9^th and SATURDAY, APRIL 10^th, 2010

10:00 A.M. - 9:00 P.M.

http://www.stelias.org/festival_2009.htm
http://www.stelias.org/festival_flyer.pdf

Saint Elias
Maronite Catholic Church
836 8th Street South

Mmm, corned beef & taters!

2010-03-17T20:46:00.000-05:00

How To Keep Bananas Fresh

2010-03-10T22:31:00.000-06:00

Want to keep your bananas from getting brown and mushy? Here is how Chiquita does it:

Typically, green bunches of bananas are packaged in temperature-controlled boxes of 58 degrees, which delays ripening.

But once they are in the perfectly ripe yellow state, the single bananas are laid on top of one another in boxes that are covered with a semipermeable membrane that allows oxygen to pass through but controls the flow of carbon dioxide to delay ripening until the box is opened.

Once your bananas are nice and ripe,
Don't store them in a bag that will impede the airflow and trap other gas inside.
Don't store them in the sun.
Don't store them in the refrigerator.

Storing bananas on a banana hanger or hook is the best way to preserve the overall quality of a ripe banana as it avoids "resting bruises."

The Classic Waffle

2010-03-07T18:16:00.001-06:00

The Recipe for a Classic Waffle.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 eggs
3/4 cup warm milk
2 1/2 tablespoons butter melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl; set aside.

Preheat waffle iron to desired temperature.

Beat egg in a separate bowl. Stir in milk, butter and vanilla. Pour mixture into first bowl and beat until blended.

Pour or ladle batter into preheated waffle iron. Cook waffles until golden and crisp.

Serve immediately (serving suggestion: with butter and syrup. Or ice cream. Or whipped cream!)

Only want 2 waffles? Hey, use that extra batter for some cookies!
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/oatmeal-chocolate-chip-waffle.aspx

Mmm, Fried Chicken

2010-03-07T18:07:00.001-06:00

Better than KFC, it's DaveFC!

The recipe, so I won't lose it....

Egg wash:

2 eggs

1/4 cup water

Sauce:

1 tsp each of

paprika

cayenne

parsley

tarragon

cumin

chives

1 egg

1 cup flour

1/2 cup milk

1 *fat* tbsp. garlic

To roll in:

Dry flour

Method:

Egg wash the chicken.

Then sauce it.

Then flour it.

Now, deep-fry it.

Aloe/Collagen

2010-02-23T14:15:00.001-06:00

Finally, I found some aloe juice at the Asian Market

which has collagen written on the label too.

(see previous post regarding the health benefits of Aloe Vera)
http://wisteareia.blogspot.com/2009/10/health-benefits-of-aloe-vera.html

"Through observation and further tests, scientists have proven that the healing effects of Aloe extend beyond merely soothing sunburn."

Japanese women drink collagen, or Toki, for its youthful rejuvenating properties. They believe that collagen is an anti-aging product.

But will ingesting it really help? The secret lies in your body producing it. Though it is proposed to aid in the repair of collagen and elasin, I don't know the answer to this question, but I know those Japanese women sure do look great on into their old age. They can't be doing everything wrong. The Asians eat a much better diet than we Westerners but well, we have to start somewhere, don't we?

http://www.aloe-vera.org/top_10_reasons_to_use_aloe_vera.htm

Top 10 Benefits of drinking aloe vera juice

10. Great for mouth & gums
9. Sooths
8. Benefits digestion
7. Provides immune support & function
6. Aids in weight loss: cleanses digestive system. You'll feel better overall and have higher energy.
5. Benefits collagen and elastin repair.
4. Daily dose of minerals
3. Daily dose of vitamins
2. Anti-inflammatory
1. Body-building amino acid blocks are within it

Get it unflavored and mix it with another juice of your liking.
Or just buy it at the Wal Mart pharmacy; it comes in a very palatable berry flavor. Drink a couple of ounces a day.

Singapore Mai-Fun

2010-02-14T20:07:00.005-06:00

It has been nearly a decade ago, but once upon a time a local Chinese restaurant existed which served Singapore Mai-Fun. I have never seen it in a restaurant since then. Sadly, they closed years ago. I forgot all about this great dish but remembered it and thought I'd try to find a recipe for it.

I'm glad I looked twice because I FINALLY found an authentic recipe!

HERE IT IS

This is a 2-part dish because you also must make the Chinese BBQ pork that goes in it. And you really cannot forgo this; mixing in the BBQ sauce along with the Sing Chow sauce is really what perfected it, at least for my palate. So I also found a recipe for the BBQ:

And, HERE IT IS.

Here they are, together:

Harry Potter inspired Egg on Toast

2009-11-23T23:13:00.002-06:00

I finally made one of my own! XD

click here for a look, in case you missed it in the movie

Taste of Thailand Sushi Menu

2009-10-29T20:32:00.001-05:00

So I'll be able to look it up. Anytime. Anywhere!

Fall Treaties for Work

2009-10-29T12:20:00.003-05:00

Thought I'd post the recipes I used. Also I'm blogging this so I can add my pics later, and so I can link this up to BigOven.

However, it should be noted that on the pumpkin treats A) I did not use pre-made pie filling this time. All they had was a can of pumkin so I added some stuff and made it tasty myself. And B) I iced them with cream cheese/sugar/butter which I smashed/stirred together. 1 12-oz block of cream cheese, about a cup of sugar or maybe a little less, and 1/4 cup butter.

The base recipe:

Harry Potter's Pumpkin Pasties Recipe

1 (18 ounce) package of pre-made cookie dough (like Pillsbury)
1 (28 ounce) can pumpkin pie filling
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (optional)

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- cut cookie dough into 12 equal pieces and press into the cups of a muffin tin making sure to go up the sides.
- Fill with pumpkin pie filling-most likely you will have extra should you wish to make more.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Remove and let cool.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar and pie spice.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Usually I roll the truffles in dark cocoa but this time I had plain. Also I noticed some recipes out there call for adding butter and even sugar. With truffles you really have to make them according to what tastes best to YOU. Some people may like a different liquour in them, or even substitute that with more cream instead. Some people may like more or less bitter/sweet chocolate. I did not use the butter but I'm gonna try that next time.

Bailey’s Irish Cream Truffles

12 ounces Semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1/4 cup Heavy cream
1 tablespoon Sweet Butter
2 Egg yolks
1/4 cup Baileys Irish Cream

Directions:
Melt chocolate over low heat. Add butter. Stir in Baileys and heavy cream together over very low heat, heating just until mixed. Remove from heat. Whisk in yolks, one at a time; mixture will thicken.

Refrigerate for a few hours, or overnight, until firm enough to shape. With spoon, make small balls. Roll in powdered sugar, then cocoa.

Chinese Soup Crunchies

2009-10-11T15:36:00.004-05:00

Seriously, what are those things actually called, anyway? Crunchy noodles?

I thought I'd try out making them, and it was surprisingly easy, once we got the technique right, that is.

1. Take a pack of eggroll wrappers, wonton wrappers, or spring roll wrappers.
2. Cut them into thin strips.
3. Heat a skillet of hot oil to fry them in. Sprinkle in just a bit of salt.
3. Toss them all in and fry them FAST in HOT oil. Make sure to remove PROMPTLY when they start taking on color because they will go from perfect to burnt rapidly.

But cooked just right, they are perfect! And taste just like they came out of a restaurant.

Greek Food Festival 2009

2009-09-27T17:00:00.012-05:00

The Greek food. It has now been had for 2009!

It was raining, nothing special was going on there, AND they were totally out of the red sweet wine, so we had no reason to stay. We got some food and brought it home. :)

Don't forget the desserts!

Mmmm. We split the 2 appetizers & the 2 entrees. Each also came with a salad.

No, all 4 desserts are not all for me, hehehe.

Mmm dessert.

2009-09-14T13:26:00.004-05:00

Yay, dirt pie! Pudding, cookies, whipped cream, repeat.

Ice-cream Peanut Butter pie

2009-07-29T23:02:00.004-05:00

I made one.

Which ridiculous pic do you like best?

Food Tricks

2009-07-24T17:20:00.002-05:00

Put an avocado seed in your guacomole and it won't turn brown.

Add lemon juice to cut potato surfaces to keep them from turning brown.

Lo-Mein

2009-07-24T16:46:00.005-05:00

We did it! We found the perfect Lo-Mein. Based on this information.

Lo-Mein Recipe

]

Combine For Sauce:
1/4 cup of chicken broth
1/4 cup of soy sauce
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sugar

Cook:
8 oz. cooked noodles

Sautee:
in 2-4 tablespoons vegetable, peanut, or stir-fry oil, cook:

6 oz meat - we like Shrimp
8 oz vegetables - whatever you have on hand and/or want to throw in: scallion, water chestnut, mushrooms, or other stir-fri veggies. Napa would be ideal.
also add chopped onion
2-3 teaspoons garlic - we use the kind in the jar
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger - we use the dry powdered kind
1-2 tablespoons soy sauce

add cooked noodles
and sauce
mix well. And you're done.

World's Best Blueberry Pie

2009-07-05T12:02:00.001-05:00

I found this recipe and decided to make use of some of the blueberries I picked when me and Leslie headed out to the country at the end of June.

World's Best Blueberry Pie!

This picture doesn't look nearly as good as the pie tastes!

Blueberries!

2009-07-05T11:59:00.002-05:00

Leslie & I went to pick blueberries! 6/27/09

It was really hot, and I kept eating my pickings,

but yay, in the end it was totally worth it.

Mmm, picked a handful of blackberries, too.

Nothing like fresh blueberry pie!

P. F. Chang Style Lettuce Wraps

2009-07-04T12:27:00.000-05:00

I had to have something Asian to go with the ribs for July 4th, and this seemed like a natural to go along with them. Hah, I was right. This recipe is awesome.

I think I could have done a bit better on cooking the rice noodles. :P They were still tasty, though!

Five Spice Spare Ribs

2009-07-01T14:11:00.001-05:00

Yum! Maybe I will make these for July 4^th, lol!

http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/recipe.cgi?r=102636

700	gm	pork spareribs
570	ml	peanut oil
		marinade
1	tbl	dry sherry or rice wine
1	tbl	light soy sauce
1	tbl	cider vinegar or Chinese white rice vinegar
1/2	tsp	sesame oil
		sauce
1	tbl	garlic finely chopped
1	tbl	five spice powder
1 1/2	tbl	spring onions finely chopped1
1	tbl	sugar
1	tbl	light soy sauce
2	tsp	fresh orange peel finely chopped
70	ml	cider vinegar or Chinese black rice vinegar

Have your butcher cut the spareribs into individual ribs and then into chunks which are approximately 7.5cm long.
Alternatively do this yourself using a heavy sharp cleaver which can cut through the bones.
Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and steep the spareribs in the marinade for about 25 minutes at room temperature.
Heat the oil in a deep fat fryer or large wok.
Slowly brown the marinaded spareribs in several batches until they are brown.
Drain each cooked batch on kitchen paper. (Leave the cooking oil to cool. Strain it through a filter once it has cooled if you want to keep it for re use when cooking pork.)
Put the sauce ingredients into a clean wok or frying pan.
Bring the sauce to the boil and then reduce the heat.
Add the spareribs and simmer them slowly uncovered for about 40 minutes stirring occasionally.
Add a little water to the sauce if necessary to prevent it from drying up.
Skim off any surface fat and serve.

Can be easily re heated and the taste improves if it is cooked the day before it is eaten.

Crispy Chicken in Peanut Sauce

2009-06-14T10:32:00.000-05:00

Crispy chicken with mushrooms, onions, and tomatos in a robust spicy peanut-flavored sauce. Just a hint of sweetness with a flavorful tang.

Greek Style Open-Face Tuna Sandwich

2009-06-14T10:12:00.000-05:00

There's just something about the pepper that makes the tuna fish taste less fishy. People that don't normally like a tuna fish sandwich just might enjoy this one.

1 can tuna fish
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 dash Greek seasoning like Cavendar's
1 sprinkle black pepper
4 slices of bread
1 hot banana pepper pickled

Toast the bread.

Drain one can of tuna fish and mix in the mayo and Greek seasoning. Chop up the banana pepper and stir it in.

Serve mixture, open-faced, on top of the bread slices.

Sprinkle black pepper over the top.

We used sourdough bread and it was really good with this recipe.

You might also opt to eat a pepper alongside your sandwich instead of chopping it and mixing it in.

Brewfest 2009

2009-06-07T18:37:00.000-05:00

So, we went to Brewfest this year.

I thought it would be nice to go and try some beers because I can never seem to find one that I like, and wish I could.

Where better than a sampling festival? Also, this was the perfect time because there were more selections available thanks to Free The Hops.

Now I can indeed say I have a greater appreciation for beers. For the right beers. I definitely do not enjoy a stout one. The hoppiness has too much bite for me. ;) But many which aren't still have plenty of flavor, and are very smooth!

I also finally took the chance to try Sweetwater Blue, and of course loved it. It doesn't *taste* like blueberry, but you can sure smell it!

Some other ones I made note of liking....
Terrapin Sunray Wheat
Leinies Sunset Wheat
Tommyknocker Male Nut Brown Ale

Montreal Steak Seasoning (for Caesar Steak Salad)

2009-06-07T16:33:00.000-05:00

Montreal Steak Seasoning

2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons crushed black pepper
2 tablespoons Kosher salt
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon granulated onion
1 tablespoon ground coriander (dried Cilantro leaves used instead)
1 tablespoon dill
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

Caesar Salad Dressing (for Caesar Steak Salad)

2009-06-07T16:26:00.000-05:00

A post for my reference.

Changes posted in The Cookbook of Death. We could tell you, but we would have to kill you.

Caesar salad dressing. From: don't know, lost link.

1 tsp worsterchire
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 pinch of salt
pepper, ground
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 to 3/4 cup Olive Oil

add: the secret ingredient

Put it in the shaky thing and shake it to combine well. While shaking the bottle and tossing the lettuce, coat the lettuce with the dressing. Top with Parmesan cheese, croutons, and of course, the steak!

Chinese Brown Sauce (for Stir Fry)

2009-06-07T16:21:00.000-05:00

A post for my easy reference.

Chinese Brown Sauce

Changes posted in The Cookbook of Death. We could tell you, but we would have to kill you.

3/4 cup beef broth (beef bouillion cubes can be used)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine the above ingredients in order and bring to a boil, stirring. Yields about 1/3 cup.

Steak with Red Wine Sauce

2009-06-07T16:18:00.001-05:00

Ridiculously good-tasting.

Changes posted in The Cookbook of Death. We could tell you, but we would have to kill you.

Based on Marsala Sauce
which reads as follows

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup onion, diced
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup Marsala wine
1 1/2 cups beef stock
Salt and pepper, to taste

Add olive oil to heavy hot saucepan. Add onions, garlic, mushrooms, saute until mushrooms are tender. Add flour and cook about 1 minute then deglaze pan with Marsala wine. Add beef stock and cook until thick and flavors are blended.

Brownies from scratch

2009-06-07T16:16:00.000-05:00

Wanted brownies. Had no mix. Found/made recipe. Enjoyed. Took picture. Saving link for reference. :P

I didn't use any nuts. I used chocolate chips instead.

"Money back guarantee brownies"

1 c Butter
1 c Sugar
1 c Brown sugar
3/4 c Cocoa
3 lg Eggs
1 c Flour
1 1/2 ts Baking powder
1 1/2 ts Vanilla
1 c Walnuts (or pecans),
Chopped*

Melt butter. In separate bowl, mix together sugars and cocoa. Add melted butter. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add flour and baking powder. Add vanilla and nuts. *DO NOT OMIT NUTS!!!! The brownies are noticeably moister WITH the nuts. The recipe calls for walnuts, but I prefer pecans (must be because Im in Georgia). Bake in 9"x13" pan 30 mins at 350 degrees F.

Miami Beach Birthday Cake

2009-05-17T18:03:00.000-05:00

Miami Beach Birthday Cake

Because this is the only cake for Leslie's birthday!

Joe's Italian

2009-04-19T16:30:00.002-05:00

Looking for Italian? Go to Alabaster, AL! I only ate there once and I can already tell you it's my favorite Italian restaurant: Joe's Italian

Here's the menu, though what I ordered isn't on there: it was one of the day's specials.

Joe and Mamma Bertolone will take good care of you. This is real, homemade, authentic Italian. While you're waiting for a seat, Mamma just might bring around the basket of her delicious bread. If you don't eat enough, she'll tell you ya better get some more, it's good! And she's right!

Lebanese food festival

2009-04-19T16:23:00.000-05:00

4/18/2009

Here it is:

Did not get this year, though there was quite a bit of laughing, some pointing, and of course also the taking of the picture:

Not pictured:

All the dessert I brought home!

Artichoke Chicken

2009-04-16T21:25:00.000-05:00

I wish I could remember what I actually did, but it was loosely based on this recipe.

http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,198,151182-232205,00.html

ARTICHOKE-CHICKEN CASSEROLE

6 boneless chicken breast halves
2 tbsp. oil
4 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. salt
Pinch pepper
3 tbsp. brandy or sherry
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 c. water
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 (8 oz.) tub sour cream
1 can artichoke hearts

Dredge chicken breasts in flour and brown in oil in skillet. Into 9x13 casserole pan, arrange chicken and artichoke hearts.

In small saucepan, melt butter, 2 tbsp. flour, salt, pepper and stir. Add brandy, lemon juice, water and bouillon cubes. Stir until thick, then add sour cream

Tender Coupea

2009-04-09T23:52:00.000-05:00

So I was trying to buy some fungus or something, and I dunno WTF I brought home from the Asian market, hahahaha. The package says Tender Coupea.
Maybe it's a bean.

The Engrish translation is very funny.

Ingredients: Vengetable, eatl
suger, oil, hotpepper and so on

and yes, that's exactly how it's typed on the package.
You can't make this stuff up!!!

Delicious from the Asian Market!

2009-02-24T21:57:00.000-06:00

The best hot and sour soup mix we can find so far. And of course, now they're out of it. ;(

Edited to add: but I did find out who makes it! Harvest 2000

This is good stuff though! Particularly, when mixed together.

Girl Scout Cookies FTW

2009-02-18T22:00:00.000-06:00

I am pretty sure that these things have crack in them. Ya just can't stop eating these little suckers.

Yes, that's alright. You can leave your cookie cart with us. They'll be nice and safe. Mwahahahaha. >:)

Finished the list

2009-01-02T15:39:00.000-06:00

The list still contained a few less-than-common foods that needed to be consumed. Mission: accomplished!

The Red Pearl had snails and bull frogs in stock, so yes, they have been consumed. Correction. Bull FRAGS! XD

Small, but oh so tasty.

This nice eel also needed a purpose in life, and so, it has been consumed.

And boy, was it fresh. The pic is terrible because I was trying to sneak a shot of the guy behind the counter, and digital zoom sucks, LOL. He wrapped it up all nice and then *WHACK!* It was a very, very fresh eel. (That's someone else's giant squid to the left)

But this wasn't quite enough. There was goat to be had.

And these rose Lassi were umm, interesting!

It was a good food night.

NOT delicious from the asian market

2008-12-21T20:03:00.000-06:00

Would NOT recommend this product to a friend. Or a non-friend, lol.

Yes, it tasted as icky as it looks.

I just HAD to find out, though. So bravely, we tried it. Umm, I will not buy this stuff again, that's for sure.

NEXT!

Giving Thanks to the Turkey

2008-11-27T17:43:00.004-06:00

Okay, so there actually wasn't a turkey this year. But... I cooked a small feast, and since this is a food blog, I figured I should post it here... to um, let the blog fulfil its food destiny, or something.

I spent over 5 hours in the kitchen today, straight, and tomorrow we shall feast!!!

Behold.

Potato Salad. No recipe. I couldn't tell you how much of what to put in it, either. It's just one of those instinct things, thanks to my mom for that. :P

Butternut Squash casserole. recipe here:

Chicken & Dressing. I get a little bit better each time I make it... Again, no recipe here...

"Killer Cranberry Chutney" recipe is here:

And, I had some apple cider just sitting in the fridge. It was not the best and so I thought I'd spice it up a bit. Mmm!

Mmm, sushi.

2008-10-28T15:21:00.001-05:00

Okay so Sushi is not strange food to me. At all. Delicious, yes; but strange, no. But it's strange to a lot of people. I was really proud of my friend from work who went out to eat dinner with me on Friday night because she tried the baby squid! And, she liked it!!

I was also particularly impressed with the smoked salmon. I have never seen a sashmi this thick before.

A Cross-Country Conglomeration

2008-10-22T18:52:00.000-05:00

We talk about food at work a lot. So I started thinking about something I wanted to make tonight. It sounds sort-of strange but I was seeking to create something vaguely resemblant of Surin Baskets (appetizer at Surin West thai restaurant).

And you know what? This actually turned out to be pretty darned good.
I would have taken a pic of it, but I devoured it too fast.

Here it is.

- Brown some ground beef - drain it, then add mexican seasoning. ) I had a packet of Taco Bell chipolte so I used that; it had just the right flavor. I didn't use a whole packet)
- Add 1 small can of corn (drained)
- Add duck sauce and peanut sauce and cook for few minutes. (How much depends on your taste preference. Don't taste it until you put both in, though. The duck sauce is sweet so be careful not to overuse it if you don't like a sweet dish. Then again if you don't like at least a bit of a sweet dish you probably won't like this at all.)
- Remove from heat.
- Add fresh cilantro

- Add grated cheese (really doesn't matter what kind. I had colby-jack.)
- Serve over a soft flour tortilla.

- Top with salsa. Salsa??
I was out of sour cream, else I probably would have put that on there, too, or instead. I'm curious how it might have tasted. But the Salsa definitely added to the flavor, without adding the wrong element, somehow.

I'll have to try variations on this theme to see if I can fine tune anything, but for a trial run, I was pleased.

There is one change I will definitely make next time: the addition of minced peanuts. This will add texture, as well as flavor.

Pics

2008-10-11T13:35:00.000-05:00

Since I forgot to take a pic of the baby octopus sushi last time, here are some from Thursday night. Unfortunately this time I forgot the pic of the escargo. hehehehe

Okay so the photo quality sucks, but what do you expect from a camera phone at night in a dimly lit restaurnt? It's the content that counts. And it was delicious.

Upcoming Events

2008-10-08T09:38:00.000-05:00

This weekend: St. George's Middle Eastern Food Festival
Lunch hours are 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. each day and dinner is 4-9 p.m.

Birmingham German Club plans 32nd annual Oktoberfest, a festival of food and culture
this weekend, apparently.

The Annual National Shrimp Festival is held each year during the second full weekend in October on the beautiful beaches of Gulf Shores, Alabama.

Okay not really food related, but also upcoming:

Alabama Renaissance Faire Admission Free. (Wilson Park), downtown Florence, Alabama.
Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.;
Sunday, October 26, Noon – 6 p.m.

Oh yeah and nearly forgot! Tomorrow night!
Video Games Live
Live video game music, LOL! it's supposed to be all cool and interactive and light show and stuff too.

Chicken & Alligator Soup

2008-09-23T19:59:00.000-05:00

So, I decided to try something different today (surprise!!! lol) for lunch. They had "Chicken & Alligator Soup" on the menu at lunch. How could I not try it!? About the most "bizarre" item I've seen on the menu yet. So, I got there and was slightly disappointed: it was actually "Chicken & Alligator Gumbo." So, really it just tasted like gumbo. And I could not discern which meat was alligator and which was chicken since most of it had fallen apart.

All in all, it was still good. Even better left over tonight with my red beans & rice.

Ramen Review

2008-09-22T20:32:00.000-05:00

Leslie wanted me to keep track of all the ramen noodles I try from the Asian market so we'd know what to buy -- and what NOT to buy -- so here it is: my Ramen Review.

1 forgot but it had 5 packets
(I'll update this if I can figure out what it was later)

2 clear noodles; eaten as a soup

Wow, this one was so simple yet so delicious. I love it. To the last drop.

3 the cabbage one from a previous post
It had chilies in it so it was really hot! Tasted great, a little sour like hot & sour soup. Clear glass noodles.
I don't recommend this one to the average noodle eater, though, lol.

4 Peppered Beef flavor that Leslie ate

We figured this one would be the hottest of all 3 but it was not hot at all, she said. Was good.

5 BBQ Chicken flavor that Steve ate

It was incredibly hot and spicy! Almost melted his face off! Suggested serving is to drain noodles, not eat as a soup.

6 Sesame Chicken flavor

Mmm, this one was tasty. Eaten as a soup. Not spicy. Another one I can just drink the whole bowl of.

7 Tom Yum flavor

I do NOT recommend this one, at all.
This doesn't taste anything at all like Tom Yum soup you'd get at a restaurant. Okay so I figured on that, but I couldn't tell if the slick pieces were fish skin or seaweed. The fishy taste comes from the small pieces of meat in the soup and it's actually seaweed, but I swear it was like eating fish skin if you ate a piece alone.
Oh yeah, and it's hella-spicy.

Yay more Asian-inspired food lol

2008-09-14T21:52:00.001-05:00

Okay, so David came over today to hang out. We decided to make lunch (and later, dinner) and well, most of what's in my pantry right now came from the Asian market, LOL. I'm sure that's no surprise if you've read any other posts in this blog. I swear, I am in love with that place...

So, for lunch we made a stir-fry. I forgot to take a pic of it! I bought a bunch of canned veggies at the market because they're cheaper to buy a big can there, than a tiny one at the regular grocery store. So it had bamboo, mushrooms, water chestnuts, and fresh onion. Served with some stir-fry noodles boiled on the side. And for the meat: chicken and pork cooked in hoisen/soy/peanut sauce, with a shot of Sriracha (Thai hot sauce). Very tasty! I don't know what all else he put in it. Hey, the man can cook OK?

I was inspired by the idea of something I made for dinner earlier this week. I wanted something to go with my awesome crazy noodles so I took chicken and coated it in hoisen & soy, and cooked it with bacon. This soy is not like the stuff you get at the regular grocery, either. It's thick. It's black soy sauce (wow, 3.25 online. Cost me $1.69 :D). "Black soy sauce contains caramel and sugar so that it has a slightly sweet taste and is darker and thicker then thin soy sauce." I chose it among the many brands because it had a dragonfly on the label.... XD but also because it looked really authentic. And I made a great choice.

Okay, so for dinner we pulled out one of my many soup packets I bought. This one: Hot and Sour. It smelled like ASS. (I am not exaggerating. It literally did!) We added some other things to it. He cooked some chicken with some stuff in the sauce and it really added to the soup flavor, which was surprisingly tasty despite the smell, ROFL. Among the add-ins were Shitake mushrooms (rather ironic considering what the soup smelled like...).

Yes, I take pictures of like, everything lately... I just love camera phones...

Oh... almost forgot. Those strange looking things floating in the soup are wontons, hehehe. Pork filled. ^_^

Greek Food Festival & more Asian market

2008-09-14T20:40:00.000-05:00

I'm such a dork. I have to have a blog for everything. I like being able to keep different things separated this way though. Anyway: Saturday. It was a good food day.

So, one of the Greek Food festivals was here this weekend. Me, Steve, and Leslie went on Friday night.

We were impressed that there is no dog in their food. *snicker* (Yes, I know, it means no dogs inside. :P)

Mmm, the smell of roast beast was delicious.

We wanted to go early because they usually run out of certain desserts early. So, I just got a gyro, and of course several desserts. And some grape leaves. Oh, and some wine. It was red sweet dessert wine; how could I resist!?

Saturday, Leslie went with me while I went and got a haircut from Peter. Then we met Tameka & Helena for lunch back at the Greek fest. I got the Pasticho. It sounds like ice cream, but it is pasta! Topped with something sweetish like cream cheese, called bechamel sauce. And it came with spank-a-pita. I mean spanakopita.

Oh yeah and we got some donuts, too. Yum! Swimming in hot honey, sprinkled with cinnamon.

Afterwards, I took Leslie to the asian market afterwards because the yarn store was closed. I knew she'd love it, and she likes to buy her ramen noodles there (how do you think I got the idea?) She got a few but decided to leave the more adventurous moves to me. So, of course she dared me to eat the strangest packet we could possibly find on the shelf:

That package reads "Artificial Pickled Cabbage Fish Flavor", LOL. It also had pickled chilies in there so it was incredibly hot! It was really good, though. Those weird looking things are shallots. I just love how many crazy packets come in the noodles, hehe!!

Finished off with a nice cup of green tea with honey. Mmmm. And some of my Greek dessert, hehe.

I just couldn't leave the market without a couple of bags full of stuff again. Among the contents were something we just HAD to try. A Hello Kitty Collagen-infused juice drink. "WTF?!," we wondered? Apparently, Japanese women drink collagen to stay young & beautiful looking!
http://www.gadling.com/2007/10/08/big-in-japan-drinking-collagen-keeps-japanese-women-young-and-b/
I can't think of many old looking Asian women so it can't be bad, right? It was pretty tasty, too. I could drink one every day. It costs a buck a bottle, same price I pay for vitamin water.... oh, and a corn snack this time hehehehe.
And some delicious instant Thai iced tea mix! It needed a shot of cinnamon/sugar powder but was quite nice. Tastes rather like the stuff in the restaurant.

Here's what the "Golden Sweet Corn" looks like out of the bag. (Great use of company assets, eh?) It's good! Tastes & smells just like corn.... go figure!!

Twitter

2008-09-08T20:35:00.000-05:00

Hehe, so I decided to start using Twitter.com last week. Yesterday, I actually had something interesting to post to it - it was about my previous post, our Adventurous Foods day. Thought this was pretty cool: the folks who manage the Bizarre Foods show started tracking me on Twitter after posting that. hehe!

So hey, as a result of that, I discovered this, in case anyone else might be interested:
http://twitter.com/bizarrefoods
Updates from Bizarre Foods about upcoming shows, etc., on Twitter. :D

Strange Food Day

2008-09-08T12:32:00.000-05:00

So, I spent the day yesterday hanging out with David and Sarah, and we watched Bizarre Foods for so long that we decided we had to get out and have our very own food adventure. The place we wanted to eat at was closed for another hour & a half, WAH. But we found in the phone book an Asian market & restaurant. Wow, I've never been to an Asian market, so I was totally in heaven for a while as we browsed before going over to eat! We wanted, of course, to order wacky stuff. They were out of a couple things, including snails! We settled on Crispy Squid, and Clams. Okay squid is just like calamari only bigger pieces so that's not too weird, but oh-so-delicious it was!!! I couldn't believe how delicious the clams were either. Wow!!!!! I want more..... We also ordered their Hot-and-Sour soup and it was soooo much better than you would get at a standard Chinese restaurant. The individual ingredients all had such flavor, especially the pork meat. I bought a basket full of goodies from the store afterwards too, hehe. It was hard to not shop at the Hello Kitty stand....

On to the next! We wanted to go by the Indian restaurant and order the goat, but it was further away than another thought: sushi. Again, not too un-standard fare, but we went for the baby octopus. I've had it once before and it was awful, but theirs was simply scrumptious!!! Evidentially we all have a fond spot for foods that make other people cringe. I ordered pickled bamboo just to see what it was like, and actually really loved it... it tasted great with the Katsuo (bonito). Pieces of fish in its own sauce. Extremely fishy, and they don't often have it in. It would have been a bit much alone but blended so great with the bamboo. We also got a couple other rolls to fill up on: their Super Crunch roll is the best I have ever had. And some martinis to wash it all down with, because they had a most delicious Blueberry, made with puree, and I have a thing for blueberries!

We had to end the adventure there because we were too full, lol. But we went home and after a while, we got snacky again. So we decided to try the Shark Fin soup. NOT delicious. I think the cats would eat it, rofl!!! However the Crab Chips we got to eat with it were really good! ^_^ lol they really are chips with crab meat in them. Potato starch is the main ingredient, so I guess it's a potato chip. The texture made me think of a rice cake at first, but it actually tasted good, rofl.

We ended the day with a nice cup of green tea (from the market of course) with honey and amaretto along with some almond Pocky I got. Mmmm, I like Bizarre Food day.

Recipes

2008-09-01T22:42:00.000-05:00

Maybe eventually I'll list my individual recipes on this blog for my own reference and for sharing with others, but for now, here's a link to them, since after all this is a food blog, haha.

As of this posting, my host's web server is offline due to a power outage resulting from the hurricane. :( But I'm sure it will be back online before too much longer. Hopefully, for Rich's sake!
http://mermaiden.net/Recipes

If anyone's actually reading this, and finds those to be of some use, then please, enjoy! ;)

I'm post-dating this so it sinks to the bottom of the blog, but will still show up in tags...

Homemade Tuna Helper

2005-08-20T15:09:00.000-05:00

Heh, I think I will call this concoction "Tina Helper." I went to make dinner last night and was tired and didn't feel like doing anything fancy so went to grab a box of tuna helper. I happened to be out of both tuna AND helper. Yikes! What to do? Didn't feel like coming up with something else, so I improvised:

- this dish tasted great with a pouch of salmon. Chicken of the Sea brand. Not a can, but a pouch. It breaks up into nice, finely sized pieces.
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of milk
- 2 tbsp of butter
- 1 pouch of - are you ready for this 'cuz it's the secret ingredient: Lipton Cup o' soup, chicken noodle variety. The kind that you are supposed to mix 3 cups of water with.
- a little added pasta. I used shells but you can throw in whatever. I don't know how much, I know how much to use without measuring. Maybe 1-2 cups.
- a little bit of flour, to help it thicken. A couple teaspoons or so.

Cook just like you would regular Helper! Dump it all in a skillet and cook on med, stirring often, til the pasta is soft and it's starting to thicken up.

Blueberries

2005-03-04T17:41:00.000-06:00

Keep An Eye Out for More Blueberry Beverage Launches in 2005!
http://www.ushbc.org/news.htm

Finally!! I have looked for blueberry juice for years now!!

And now I'm glad to know that this off-beat craving was for good reason:
http://www.wral.com/food/3317177/detail.html

Did you know blueberries are considered brain food? Eating more blueberries has been shown to improve memory and reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. It that is not a good enough reason, blueberries are packed with more antioxidants than almost any other fruit.

Enjoy Everything in the right amount of Moderation

2004-07-15T15:08:00.000-05:00

There are a few certain things that, with time, I have developed quite a liking for. Now I can feel good about them, as well as enjoy the taste of them! ^_^

Black Pepper
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=74

Mushrooms
http://www.healthcastle.com/herb_mushroom.shtml

Mustard
http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/egg/egg0796/musthlth.html

Onions
http://ri.essortment.com/garlichealthon_rfzf.htm

Sushi
(don't click this link, lots of ads; I will paste below)
http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/sushi/sushi.html
Contrary to popular belief, sushi does not mean raw seafood; instead, it refers to the vinegared rice that can (but need not) be paired with raw seafood. So even vegetarians and those hell-bent on having their meals cooked can be satisfied by sushi. Some sushi contains only rice and veggies.
Sushi can be easily classified as a health food, being low in fat and calories while high protein. Nori (the seaweed, remember?) is extremely high in vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, Niacin, and C.

And even a little wine/alcohol once in a while.
http://www.medicalfriendsofwine.org/health_wine.html

In reality I think a lot of foods have valuable properties that we overlook. It's just that the scientests or whoever research something long enough and realize something about it they hadn't before. Remember eggs? "They're good for you!" "Oh no wait, they're bad for you!" "No nevermind, they ARE good for you!"

My motto is..... everything, in moderation.

Ribs for the 4th of July

2004-07-03T15:35:00.000-05:00

Usually it's fall that kicks my cooking instincts into gear, but for some weird reason, this year the 4th did it. I'm currently prepping some food to go along with the cheap bag of fireworks I bought for tomorrow.

Oops, out of marinade sauce. Man! That sucks. Due Well, time to make my own concoction. Let's see how this works...

Take 1 slab of pork spareribs out of the package and rinse.
Put them in a pot and boil them, just until the outside of the meat starts to turn that "cooked" looking color. (This is supposed to help cook out a little of the oils and help make the meat more tender.)
Take it out and throw into a big pan.
Salt both sides down with meat tenderizer and rub it in.
Douse both sides with worsterchire sauce and let sit for 5-10 minutes or so, to soak in.
Douse both sides with soy sauce and let sit for 5-10 minutes or so, to soak in.
Cover the entire slab in marinade sauce. (Since I was out of the usual Dale's or Moore's, the "quick marinade" stuff that I use cuz it tastes sooooo good, I used a honey-terryiaki w/ sesame seed marinade sauce I found in the 'fridge!)
Sprinkle on some garlic powder.
Cover, and let sit in 'fridge overnight.

Aw crap! I forgot to buy a can of baked beans.

The next day, I took them out and slapped them on the grill.
Then I slathered them with BBQ sauce, after a while flipped 'em and slathered the other side too. Moved 'em off to one side where there was no heat while 1 of the 3 burners at the opposite side was on to let them slow-cook all nice and done. I put them directly over the heat for a little while to give them that pretty grillmark, hehe.

It was my first rack of ribs. I have the right to be a little happy, right? :)

------------------------

I didn't have the baked beans, but I had the potato salad. And yes, I'm that big of a dork - I took a picture of it. ;) (what else is a digital camera for, if not to take pictures of random stupid stuff??)

Yes, yes, I know. The plates wreak of the 70's, or something. What can I say? My mom gave me her old set of dishes.