Well Greetings Everyone,
I hope this update finds you well and having fun in your kitchen. This past while has been off its rocker with fun and good times. There is minimal BS to report, and even though I have not been posting, we have eaten well at the 825.
This is that time of year when we return from Burning Man and life gets odd. Not odd like things are falling apart, but odd like we have little energy for the mundane part of life. This year was especially difficult as I was in Pennsylvania 4 days before departure for a seminar. I learned a ton and it was worth every moment, however compliments of US Airways, my 4 days became 3. Safe to say it was a fast pack, but a wonderful burn that we did, on our own, and on our own terms. We learned some time ago that often the best way for us to have a great time is to do it on our own terms. This time around was no exception.
The past couple of weeks have been filled with clean-up and a bit of preparation for the winter ahead. My peach tree did produce this year and I was able to put up 3 small jars of peach preserves. I'm sure they'll be enjoyed in the dead of winter.
We enjoyed some great take-out, order in, and eat out over the past couple of weeks. Among them have been The Pie Hole, The Med, Copper Bowl, and a few other local favorites. I love the Pie Hole for their unique and tasty pies and The Med really does the trick when I need a Mediterranean fix. I can't say enough good things about the Copper Bowl. There are some round about connections with them via a co-worker. Their drink menu is inventive and tasty, dishes are exactly what I expect for Indian cuisine, and who doesn't love Gulab Jamun?
Since eating out has been a bit on the spendy end and I've been missing my kitchen, it was time to make a time investment and have easy to prepare meals for the week ahead. It started with keeping an eye out on social media for all those recipes that sound good and I should try. I also keep a list of meal ideas on the fridge in case I hit a mental block. I also found a recipe for Wild Rice Soup that I love. Having two recipes in mind, it was time to hit the markets.
Shopping is always a challenge for me. I HATE spending money, but love to find a good deal. The NPS Gods were not as kind as usual this week, but I did find what I needed at a price that didn't make me cry.
With the shopping done, and work to be done, I started about 3 hours ago to get it all together for the week ahead.
First up, Stuffed Green Peppers. Everyone has their favorite way of doing these. Lots of trial and error and I've finally got a "recipe" I can live with. To do these for the week ahead, I clean the peppers and make the filling. I like my filling to have a bit more of an Italian flair than the Mexican type I grew up with. I do still add a bit of cumin to keep the flavor interesting, but its mostly ground beef, onion, oregano, thyme, and since I have been pleasantly surprised with the nice late season weather, a large tomato cut up. I fried that all together with some salt added a bit of rice, stuffed the peppers and put them in the fridge for an easy, pull it out and bake it meal. I also go light on the rice. I'm not a huge fan of mushy filling and have learned that going lighter on the rice keeps for a less mushy filling.
Avacados were also on sale and shrimp was reasonably priced, so tomorrow night will be Anaheim Shrimp Scampi. I love this recipe, but usually do it with traditional spaghetti and always add a bit of tomato. This will likely be the hardest meal of the week to prepare.
Social media is a great place to find meal ideas and "Hawaiian Chicken" caught my eye. This looks like a really straightforward recipe that I'll have vaccuum sealed up and ready to pour into a crock pot when it is time.
Hawaiian Chicken
2lb chicken (I used boneless skinless thighs), cut into cubes
1 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
Mix together and cook in a low crock pot for 6-8 hours. It is recommended to be served with rice. I'm thinking I'll do a vegetable pilaf, just to add a bit more texture and variety than sticky meat with plain rice.
I love sandwich thins and they were also on sale and grapes were reasonable, since chicken salad is always a favorite of mine, it went on this week's menu. I'm willing to eat chicken salad ranging from chicken and mayo to more extravagant things. The bounty of the fall garden has made this one extra enjoyable.
While I'm cooking boneless skinless chicken breasts on the grill, I gather all the other things I need. I like breasts for this because they tend to be a bit drier and soak up all the great flavors if I'm making it ahead. This version has almonds, tarragon (yum, anise type flavor), savory, chives, quartered cherry tomatoes, halved grapes, salt, and sour cream as the binder. I'm not fond of mayo only salads, so I tend to use sour cream and/or yogurt. If it needs the bit of fatty flavor from the mayo, I'll go half and half, but this is very rare.
I also learned the secret to good German style cole slaw at Burning Man this year, and cabbage was at a nice price again. Onion, salt, and celery seed. No other seasonings are needed. The recipe that was shared to me calls for apple cider vinegar, but I didn't have any in the pantry so I used half white rice vinegar and half distilled vinegar and a matching amount of olive oil. I also added a bit of sugar as I like my slaws to be sweet. I'm hoping the person who shared the recipe with me isn't offended that I have done odd things to it, but the preliminary taste tells me it will be delicious in a couple of days. This will be served with the chicken salad sandwiches. It should be a tasty European meal :)
Thursday will be the Wild Rice Soup. The story behind this one is another one of those, "Its a great deal, I think I'll try it and see what comes..." sort of things. The first time I made this, I had scored a box of wild rice for $0.25. Having no idea what to do with it, I made the soup recipe on the label and have never looked back. Its supposed to rain on Thursday, so this with slices of mild sourdough should be wonderful.
Wild Rice Soup
1/3 cup wild rice
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup finely chopped celery
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper (who uses this stuff? I always use black, the flecks aren't that important to me)
1/4 cup flour
5 cups milk
In a saucepan, bring water, rice, and salt to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes or until the rice is tender. It will rupture in the middle when it is done.
To make the soup: In a large pot melt butter and add onions and celery. Cover and cook 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender. The recipe says to avoid browning the vegetables, but I always do, I think it adds more flavor. Stir in salt, pepper, and flour. I make sure it forms a roux. Remove from heat and slowly stir in milk until the flour is well blended. Return to low heat and cook until the soup thickens. Add the cooked rice and simmer until the flavors are blended. Serve immediately or chill and reheat. Serve with chopped chives.
So in 3 hours, I've made my week ahead super easy and my fridge very full :P
I also started the morning craving a real breakfast, preferably with leftovers for the week ahead. Apricots were plentiful this spring so I had plenty of dried ones. A quick scour of the internet and I found this: Dried Apricot and Sage Scones. I should mention, I'm not a huge fan of Martha Stewart, but I have noticed she's toned down the "you must do it this way" since her time in prison and has become, at least in my eyes, empowering with a bit more of a "you can do this" to the home cook. I took lots of liberties with this recipe and didn't do the sugar crust thing, but they were still delicious with peach yogurt. Better yet, I've got leftovers for the work week ahead.
I hope you are all well. Since I am likely to pick up huge writing projects in the off season, don't be alarmed if you see more of me practicing!
3 Day
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