Tasty Tuesdays

We have tried several recipes lately and they have been delicious:
Jalapeno Dip - if I make it for a party, I have to save some for Tom and this is usually what is left of the party batch (recipe: http://www.simply-gourmet.com/2012/08/183-jalapeno-popper-dip.html)

Pesto Chicken with jalapeno dip topping

Kelly's Surin-Like Coconut Soup (sorry no picture but we absolutely loved it)

Stacy's Beer Can Chicken

America's Test Kitchen Farmhouse Chicken and Corn Chowder, slow cooker

Tasty Tuesday

In this edition of Tasty Tuesday:
for July 4th, I tried a few new recipes but didn't take pictures. I did take this picture, Tom requested this cake, which reminds him of his childhood, so I was much obliged. There was a layer of cheesecake dip in between, the bottom layer was soaked in mango rum, which was also added to the whipped topping.

We had left over frozen berries from a white wine sangria and one Sunday morning I made almond milk berry and mango smoothies. It may or may not have rum in it because it needed something sweet. Since the layers were not of the same density, they create a nice presentation (I could have cleaned the edges but meh, it wasn't a deal breaker) 

Finally last week we started to be more mindful of what we eat and knowing that I was going to have a busy week we had easy prep meals and enjoy seasonal veggies and salads. We also discovered a new Mexican supermarket in our neighborhood, they had really cheap tilapia (in picture below), some fruits/veggies of my childhood (guavas, good looking baby bokchoy), and oddities (prickly pear fruit and leaves).

One night was fajitas, then we had pan-fried fish, then flank steak, and finally chicken enchiladas. Tom did really well about bringing his lunch everyday, while I only ate out once last week.
On Saturday, we settled on pizza. We spent a whole $1 (technically, $1.10) since we had all the ingredients minus pizza sauce. We busted out the bread maker and who knew, yeast in the fridge can keep for a really long time (although it does lose some of its potency, we doubled the amount as a precaution). I'll try to take more pictures of kitchen happenings this week.


 

Tasty Tuesday

In this edition of Tasty Tuesday, I also recap our Thanksgiving getaway.
We were fortunate to be able to go to Gulf Shores with our friend Colm for Thanksgiving, keeping up with the tradition of spending this holiday with friends. The three of us made it to the beach on Wednesday and we couldn't be happier with the condo rental. We had a great view of the beach right from the wrap around balcony. We had three flat screen TVs which meant that I could watch my girly shows while the men watched their shows. But I also made my first roasted turkey and Tom said it was delicious (Colm is vegetarian). We had way too much food but that mean we didn't have to cook for a few days. Days, which were filled with relaxing, eating walking on the beach, watching sunsets, and going to local favorites. We also managed a few snaps for a cute email Christmas card (now if I can only find time to put it together)On the drive home (which took us way longer than it should, oh holiday traffic), we stopped in the outlet mall in Foley and managed to get a a lot of our Christmas shopping done. We will miss you beach, but we will be back!

Here are some pictures:
Left to right (going clockwise), green bean with tomatoes, apple and craisins stuffing, cranberry sauce, broccoli gratin, roasted Brussels sprouts, wild rice salad, artichoke in bread bowl dip; in the oven: roasted potatoes, mushroom, gouda, and broccoli quiche, apple pie, pumpkin pie.

Snowy, the sandman

Sunset

Pool

Kitchen happenings

Turkey bacon and Brussels Sprouts Fried Rice

Crockpot Pumpkin soup with a dollop of sour cream

Asian beef stir fry over rice noodles

Pork sirloin cutlets with asparagus and mushrooms, served with gravy and biscuit

Kitchen happenings

Yea, the blogging hasn't resumed to its usual routine, but there is hope. I'm really enjoying cooking on Sundays (even though it does take time and it is draining) but it makes for easier weekdays and because of that, it's all worth it.
Tom was craving Mediterranean salads for lunch; so one Sunday I made a rosemary chicken - with olives, onions, and cherry tomatoes. This was served with couscous (to which I added almonds for some crunch) and some lettuce. I then took the breast meat and shredded it to go with lettuce, olive, pepperoncini, cucumber and bell peppers for salads for weekday lunches (served with red onion + red wine vinaigrette).

That same Sunday, I made meatless meatballs (vegetable kofta) and turkey meatballs (sorry no pictures here). For the kofta, I followed this recipe (http://sindhirasoi.com/2009/02/16/vegetable-kofta-curry/). I baked the balls and stored them for later use.
I made kofta curry on Monday, using my mom's Mauritian curry recipe to make the sauce, served with garlic naan from Publix and cucumber-carrot raita (veggie in yogurt). Our first meatless Monday.
On Tuesday night, I shredded the dark chicken meat from Sunday and simmered it in a bit of canned red enchilada sauce. I couldn't get the corn tortillas to not tear as I rolled them, so I made my version of Mexican lasagna: corn tortilla, layer with chicken enchilada, cheese, repeat. Serve with sour cream and lettuce.

Wednesday night was leftover night although Tom got home and decided he wanted spaghetti with turkey meatballs. I can't remember what we did for the rest of the week or the beginning of the next. I know that on last Thursday night I made a roast which didn't get done until close to 11 pm - which mean minimal cooking on Friday. I made garlic mashed potatoes, mushrooms, green beans, and asparagus. I also tried zucchini Parmesan crisps and those were very yummy.

Another Sunday came - I shopped for the entire week and tried to stay under budget (we went over but slightly). I cooked up some chicken in the evening and made the Mediterranean salad that Tom loved before. All prepped, ready to pick up and go.

On Monday, we went to my friend's house for Canadian Thanksgiving and it was a blast. Tuesday night was leftover night, with roast and green bean casserole.
On Sunday, I had sliced my peppers and have everything ready for fajitas. I also have stuff ready for fried rice if I want. Decisions decisions. We'll find out in the next post. Thanks for stopping by!

Oh, hi October

Hmm, October, you are here already. I guess time flies when you are having fun, mostly in Mauritius.
We had a lot of fun on the island and celebrated our wedding a third time.
While I was gone, I got two papers accepted and since I came back I've been working on two new ones. I also have several hours of teaching this semester, so in brief I am keeping busy.
We are also trying to get better at eating in, which means better meal planning. Here is a recap of the happenings in our kitchen.
Breakfast Sunday with leftovers: Egg and veggies frittatas with a side of turkey kilbasa and my new favorite drink, pink champagne.

I also decided to try a recipe from my Spark cookbook, caramel popcorn (made out of air-popped corn), only 116 calories for 2/3 cups. Filling and oh so yummy.

Also in the same weekend, Tom made a pot of chilli (he added a 1/4 teaspoon of cocoa and he said it has changed his life or rather the way he makes chilli) and I made a pot of broccoli cheese soup (from Spark People again). This made for 8 meals (lunch or dinner), which meant a few nights when I didn't have to worry about supper.

And finally on Saturday, I had a sweet tooth craving and decided to make my own apple pie, basically one apple cooked in butter, sugar, and Mauritian rum, then topped with graham crackers. Into the oven, and comes out with a dollop of fat free Cool Whip.

Hopefully, we're caught up now and my blogging will be more frequent.

Tasty Tuesday on Wednesday

We did a special celebration (not to call it Valentine's day) on Friday the 15th - Tom had a lab meeting that day so having it on Thursday would not have worked. We had a coq au vin style fondue, with steak, shrimp, lobster, sun-dried tomato and four cheese ravioli, mushrooms, and asparagus. And of course, some red wine :)

Then this past Friday, we had grilled pork chops with fried okra, cheesy biscuits, and cauliflower and broccoli au gratin. The gratin is a recipe from Jacques Pepin but is also a Mauritian favorite. Fried okra is also a Mauritian favorite, except that here we bread the okra, while back home we don't. Notice the grill marks on the chops? I did that using a cast iron grill pan that my parents got us. I'm loving it. We are also using our new Corelle plates.

Tasty Tuesday

Vanilla cupcake with Malibu frosting for our graduate student's birthday

Cheese fondue with wine and champagne for a romantic New Year's eve

Beer and Angry Orchard Cider on Saturday night, love the glasses not the final score

Tom made a very tasty steak on Saturday with asparagus and mashed potatoes

Followed by pork on Sunday (with squash and roasted potatoes)

  And Sitar (groupon) on Monday night

Tasty Tuesday

This past Saturday, Tom and I went for a 3.5 mile long hike at Oak Mountain. It felt good to be outdoors again. We decided to go all out and have a date night in.
We picked yummy cheeses with a crisp white wine (Rhine wine) and white Zinfandel. 

From left to right, goat cheese, Morel mushroom and leek Monterey Jack cheese, and extra sharp cheddar cheese.
Tom made perfectly cooked steaks while I made mashed potatoes, garlic mushrooms, and garlic sourdough grilled bread. We also picked Otter Paws ice cream (with caramel and chocolate covered pecans).

On Sunday, I finally found pectin and used a coupon to buy mason jars. The results: pepper jelly. I wasn't sure whether to strain or not, so I went without. This is very good - sweet and spicy. Would go well as a topping for cream cheese dip or with a creamy cheese on a cracker.

Used all the peppers in the back bowl, one large green pepper and a few more peppers from the garden. Final result:

These are cooked and heat processed and should be good unopened for one year. Maybe Christmas gifts? With a cute red ribbon?

Finally, last night I turned leftover mashed potatoes into creamy potato cheese soup (with mushrooms and bacon). Unfortunately or fortunately? my $10 seven-year old Walmart immersion blender died on me. Tom was powerless against my sad face. I have a feeling that a new immersion blender might magically appear on the wedding registry or the Christmas wishlist.

I added pickled jalapenos to mine, Tom added green onion to both

Tasty Tuesday

We've been busy in the kitchen lately.
After making pickled jalapenos a few weeks back, Tom made jalapeno infused vodka. We still have plenty of peppers, including a variety that we are calling a hybrid. Jelly? Maybe.
Onto the cooking:
I tried an eggplant and chicken lasagna (eggplant slices instead of lasagna noodles).

I've been craving broccoli cheddar soup and decided to make my own. Except that I didn't have potatoes like the recipe called, instead I had one sweet potato. It started with a roux and chicken stock in which I cooked the veggies, and once they were tender, the immersion blender came out. Finished with a small amount of shredded cheese (since it was thick enough), and topped with some grilled chicken and green onions.

And when I didn't want to cook, I finally broke out the Hamburger Helper, Stroganoff, except that I didn't have ground beef. Instead, I used cooked beer brats from our freezer and tomatoes from the garden. Topped with a few basil leaves.

And when I still didn't want to cook, Tom took over and made turkey nachos with refried beans, onions, banana peppers from the garden, and topped with Mexican cheese. Leftover meat went into soft taco shells and onto the Foreman for Quesadillas. 

Onto my sweet tooth Tom's lab meeting treat:
Tom presented lab meeting two Fridays ago. On Thursday night while he was in lab until the late hours of the night, I decided that this mathematical equations looked good: Wine + Pinterest + Tom's lab meeting = Mini Oreo Cheesecakes.

The Pinterest recipe made a little over 24 cheesecakes, one tray for Tom's lab and one for mine :)
One more treat but I can't tell until tomorrow afternoon :)

Tasty Tuesday

I harvested most of our peppers and tomatoes before I left for Alaska and in the fridge they went.

When we got back, Tom picked a few more and we made pickled jalapenos. These are very spicy, so spicy that even I couldn't eat them. Maybe they need to pickle for another week.

It's looking as if we will have at least one more good harvest of peppers. We want to make jalapeno vodka for bloody mary's and if we have enough maybe a pepper jelly.

I also made a basil pesto on Saturday. I used some as the dressing for orzo pasta with almonds and topped with goat cheese crumbles. Served with chicken, mushroom, tomatoes, asparagus, and poblano peppers ragou.

 
For Labor Day, Tom decided that grilled steaks were in order. Served with the usual accompaniments of mashed potatoes, sauteed mushrooms, lettuce and tomatoes.

Disclaimer, I couldn't eat that big serving of meat. Tasty leftovers? yes please!

Finally, we had bananas that were overripe, so I whipped up a batch of banana pancakes last night. After they cooled, I froze them and on a morning of running behind, pop one in the toaster (ours has a frozen setting) and voila, breakfast on the go!