Friday, April 20, 2012

And I guess Mac & Cheese is now out.

Mister man has been monumentally fussy lately, so I'm thinking it may be something he's eating...which means something I'm eating. Which means, again, I have to alter my diet. About 50% of babies with food issues are sensitive to dairy, so that's where I'm starting. (Full disclosure: I'm an idiot and couldn't figure out what "dairy" consisted of other than milk, cheese, and yogurt. Um, as it turns out, butter. Duh.) So buh-bye, Italian and Mexican (and cookies!!!), and hello Asian.

I'm fine with this, really. You know I'm a big fan of food with an Asian kick, but most of my favorites are also spicy, and I figure spice can't be helping E's stomach much either, so somehow I'm going to have to get used to bland(er) versions. I broke out this recipe for that reason-I started making this stir-fry in my pre-spice (AKA pre-Hubby) days, but haven't in a long time. Cause yeah, it's a little bland. Add some sriracha and it's much better. But that's just my chile-loving bias talking.

I served it with potstickers, so I also made a sauce for those...it is kind of spicy, but so good.


Sesame Chicken Stir-fry
sunflower, peanut or canola oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced thinly
4 small portabellas, cleaned and thinly sliced
1 bunch green onions, cleaned, tops trimmed and sliced thickly
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bell pepper, cleaned, halved and thinly sliced
8oz Asian noodles (your choice), softened according to package directions.
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

Heat small amount of oil in hot wok. Add chicken and stir-fry until white. Add garlic, green onion, bell pepper and mushroom, stir-fry about 5 minutes or until mushroom is soft. Add noodles, combine well, then add soy sauce and sesame oil and toss all to coat. Heat through another minute or two.

Potsticker Sauce
Combine:
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp Sesame oil
1 tbsp oyster sauce
Sweet chili sauce to taste (a few tablespoons)



Friday, April 6, 2012

Someone explain Pintrest to me. And also, my cookie obsession.

I don't really get this whole Pintrest thing. Maybe I'm using it wrong? It just seems to me like a glorified version of Delicious, which saves bookmarks online rather than locally on your computer. But everyone can see and comment on them. Am I wrong? A lot of you are already following me, but I'm mainly just using it as a place to bookmark recipes so it makes it easier to use my phone as a reference in the kitchen, so don't expect too much from me. You will, however, probably find a lot of my tweaked recipes in their original forms, so you know...whatever that means.

As a designer, I totally understand the need to catalog inspiration. It's the public part I don't get. It makes me feel old and crotchety to say this, but unless you're asking me to buy it for your birthday, I don't give a shit what yellow sweater you like. YOU should care, and I appreciate your using one location to organize links to them should you decide to actually buy one, but I certainly don't need to follow as you pin sixteen of them.

That said, feel free to pin any of my posts. It'll do wonders for my self esteem, I imagine.

The original recipe for this Mexican-esque White Chili (which, yes, is on my Pintrest) calls for 5 cups of chicken broth, which is insane—I cut it to 3 cups and it was still far too soupy. So I'm recommending you start with 2 cups and add more as needed. Also, I was out of garlic (AKA hadn't used any in so long it was rotten) and used about a teaspoon of garlic powder instead, and it was fine. I also happen to love cinnamon in chili, but you may not, so maybe start with half the amount if you aren't sure.

Oh, and what are those baked goods in the background, you ask? I'm not supposed to be baking anymore, but they're the best oatmeal cookies pretty much eva, so I'll spill (recipe at bottom...I think it's the almond extract, so don't skip that part unless you have to).


White Bean Chili
Package ground turkey
One small onion, chopped
Couple cloves garlic, minced
7 oz can green chiles, chopped (or two 4 oz cans of pre-chopped)
About 1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne (or to taste)
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
Chicken broth (up to 3 cups)
3 cans cannelloni beans
about 2 cups jack or cheddar cheese ( I used two kinds of cheddar)
Cilantro to serve
Tortillas to serve

In a stock pot or Dutch oven, sauté turkey, onion and garlic over medium high heat until turkey is completely cooked, about 8-10 minutes.

Add cinnamon, cumin, pepper, cayenne and chiles and continue sauteeing another few minutes.

Stir in about 2 cups of broth. Drain two of the cans of beans, and add to meat. Drain about half the liquid from the third can, and then empty contents into a blender or food processor and blend til smooth. Again, here's an example of when it's awesome to have an immersion blender-just stick it right in the can. Add bean "paste" and about 1 1/2 cups cheese to the pot and stir. Let mixture simmer about 15 minutes, adding more broth if desired.

Serve with warm tortillas and top with remaining cheese and chopped cilantro. And sour cream, if it's too spicy for you...


Ridiculous Oatmeal Cookies

1 1/3 c flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp molasses
2/3 cup sugar (softened)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond extract
Handful chocolate and/or butterscotch chips (1/4 to 1/2 cup)
1 1/3 cup ready-to-cook oats (Quaker, etc.)

Heat oven to 350. In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

In large bowl, mix butter, sugar and molasses with a hand blender until smooth. Beat in egg, vanilla and almond. Mix in flour mixture.

When well combined, stir in oats and chips-it will be really thick. Drop smallish globs onto a cookie sheet (12 per sheet) and cook about 12 minutes or until beginning to brown. Let cool a few minutes before transferring to wire rack.

Makes 3 dozen. I can't stop eating them.