loco taco wednesday

SO those Chicken ranch tacos were legit.
I had to take a minute post-eating to pat myself on the back, because I ate two appropriately sized ones and then walked away.
Trust me this was a feat.

Easy as can be:
brown chicken
add pkg of taco mix and a LITTLE bit of water (like a tblspn)
cook chicken through
one BIG squirt of ranch

the end.

I also made a little salsa for myself that I'm pretty geeked about, it's fresh and spicy and SUPER easy.

Chop 2 tomatoes
tsp of garlic
couple of squeezes of lime juice
salt
onion powder
rooster sauce

done. spicy and delicious and no chunks of onion or jalapeno in your bites :)

For the morning used a bit of the chicken, and some egg whites to make breakfast wraps. delicious!

LIES

Anyone who tells you that ground turkey in the slow cooker is a good idea should be facepunched. Immediately... unless they're a cat, in which case it makes total sense, because it ends up looking and tasting like cat food.

gross.

Praise JEeeeeeasus for Trader Joe's Orange Chicken.

Meatball subs!

Bros!

SO. GOOD.

1 lb Turkey
1/2 squash pureed
Panko
Spices

Mix. Ball. Bake 15 mins @ 400
Broil to crisp

Toast sub rolls, add cheese & marinara  

The meatballs. Theeeeee meatballs!

Make em. So good.

sigh

So shocker- I punked out on Pad Thai last night.
We ended up being in MA far longer than planned- a 3hour show and then the furniture store and it was 630 already, so we ate out (bad savers! BAD)

Pretty geeked for meatball subs tonight- though as anyone who knows me is aware, I'm not really a fan of meatballs...

Here's my beef with meatballs (bahahahhaah beef!)
 they're generally dense dry balls of meat. Nothing about that sounds good to me. they're just like dead weight on a plate.

I'll get around this with the recipe I posted the other day which uses summer squash in and panko rather than breadcrumbs- that will give them not only texture, but moisture and lightness which they so desperately need.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Wish me luck.

Week 3

Sunday dinner- Pad thai!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pad-thai-recipe/index.html
Monday lunch- leftovers
Monday Dinner- meatball subs
http://iowagirleats.com/recipes/?recipe_id=6026070
Tuesday Lunch- leftovers
Tues Dinner- turkey stroganoff
http://skinnyms.com/turkey-stroganoff/
Wed lunch- leftovers
Wed Dinner- chicken ranch tacos
http://pedersenfood.blogspot.com/2011/05/chicken-ranch-tacos.html
Thurs Lunch- leftovers
Thurs Dinner- chicken tetrazini
Fri lunch- leftovers






Shopping:
tamarind paste
palm sugar
rice stick noodles
peanut oil
eggs
roasted salted peanuts
bean sprouts
frzn chicken breasts
2 cans cream of mush soup
grnd turkey (2lbs)
panko
sub rolls
taco seasoning
tortillas (x2)
sour cream
egg noodles
chicken broth
egg beaters
1 jalapeno

laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaast night

J made some AWESOME grilled chicken thighs- sometimes I forget how awesome chicken thighs are what with being a tit-man myself... by damn they were good.
I think this is the recipe:
 http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/dirty-ps-garlic-ginger-chicken-thighs-recipe/index.html

Also some CSA corn-on-the-cob, next time you cotc (hahaha) go spray-'butter' onion powder and salt. Change yo life.

Our 1/2 of the CSA haul for the week- tomatoes, Boston lettuce, green onions, cucumbers

Tonight- grilled chicken breasts
they've been in the fridge all day with a bottle of beer (Stellaaaaaaaaaaaaa) and some dressing... I think it was Cesar but it was REALLY early this morning when I put it together, so who knows...

and mashed garlic cauliflower

grill baby grill

2 fun facts:
 1. grilled pizza is DELICIOUS
 2. making it on your own for hte first time is slightly terrifying

I say terrifying b/c there's a moment of total doubt right after you throw raw dough onto the grill where 10 scenarios rapidly flip through your head- it's catching on fire, it doesn't cook, it melts (yep, seriously), it falls through the grates and on and on.

Then it starts to get brown and tasty smelling and you hold your breath and give it a nudge with your fingers crossed praying to a 12 headed god that it worked and you can tell that it did. the underside is crispy and awesome. sigh.

back to the beginning:
I made the dough with the pizza dough recipe that came with my Kitchen aid- it's great, and makes a ton, I used some from months ago that I'd frozen.

roll it out into personal sized pizzas- spices on one side and then a little bit of olive oil- toss it on a really hot grill and panic for about 3 mins- pull it off

ingrediant the cooked side- I like that squeezy pizza sauce amazingly, some sausage and chesse, more spices

Toss it back onthe grill (now you're cooking the other side of hte dough and melting the ingredients)

Give it a few and then eat.

simple and SO GOOD.

Two for Tuesday

So we cleaned the SHIT out of that bathroom last night- if you've never magic erasered your bathroom, you've never cleaned it. Those things are... magic.

In addition to bathroom cleaning (appetizing!) we also fired up the grill for the first time, and- HORRAY!- no death or destruction!

Let's talk about grilled salmon-
1. I love it
2. I really love it

I have the fish guy cut 6 oz cuts, yeah 4 is recommended, but like we've talked about I don't do sides, so the extra ounces aren't gonna kill you. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on. Skin on.

Did I mention skin on?

I find that keeping the skin on, in addition to keeping all the bits and pieces in the right place, gives the fish more flavor- you don't get rid of that delicious layer of fat between the fish and skin, that gets cooked  down and tasty. Plus the flaky fish comes off of the skin so easily when it's cooked right that you never have to see the damned thing anyway.

Anywho- poached salmon on the grill is my favorite, Weird I know!

make a little foil packet, schlap down the fish and spice, veg, flavor to your hearts content (remember some liquid!) and wrap it up and throw it down. 10 minutes later, flaky tasty fish.

Personally I go for chopped garlic, spices, salt and soy sauce. Goddamn soy sauce on salmon is awesome.

Tonight we're grilling pizzas (thanks Jenny for the awesome idea- I even bought the same squeezy sauce, because it really is good!)

non-standard deviation

I just need a place to get organized for some cleaning (gasp!)
Tonight's menu:
The Bathroom

soak shower curtain in bathtub- hot water baking soda, vinegar
Spray down floor- vinegar/water

Magic erase mirror
Organize cupboard/sink/shower area 
Magic erase Sink

Magic erase floor
drain and hang shower curtain
magic erase bathtub

week dos

sunday- seriously finally making beef/broccoli
monday lunch- bb
monday dinner- grilled salmon and fennel
tuesday lunch- sandwiches
tuesday dinner- grilled pizzas
wed lunch- leftover pizzas
wed dinnert- m&js
thurs lunch- grilled chicken salads
thurs dinner- grilled chicken & mashed cauliflower
fri lunch- leftovers

shopping list

salmon
lunch meats
cheese
pizza sauce (that squeezy stuff is surprisingly tasty)
mozzerella shredded
italian sausage
frzn spinach
chicken breasts
cauliflower
half/half

EERIE!

SO remember yesterday when I was internet-dreaming about a grill?

GUESS what was waiting for me at home when I got there!? no joke. My dad sent me a grill for my birthday (almost 3 weeks early, but whateves =p)

So hells yes bitches this next weeks menu will be a grill-a-palooza!

also skipped the beef/broccoli yesrday (sigh) and when to seafood instead- there was grill all over the kitchen!
  In case anyone was wondering Weathervane is FAR FAR FAAAAAAAAR superior to Newicks. Just sayin.

So tonight I portion and freeze some beefs.

and start a planning for grill-a-palooza. Get psyched.

grilling

Why is grilling so awesome?
I mean scientifically I get it everybody loves a quicky with Milliard, but it's also so easy and quick to clean up... sigh. I want a grill.

We made pizzas the other night with M&J- SO GOOD. had em again for leftovers for dinner yesterday.

Thrilling food stuff, eh kiddies?

Tonight is beef/broccoli and I'm going to toss in some CSA-fresh green beans as well.

Now- WTF do I do with this fennel?

Tue Tue Tuesday

SO I swear that I did take and attempt to post an enchilada picture last night, but the Blogger app on my phone kept shitting the bed.
 Bottom line they were delicious, but not pretty. Not pretty at all.

Regardless of some of my recipes, I swear that I'm cooking health consciously- I'm sticking pretty regimental to a 1400 calorie diet (which may not seem like a lot, but when you go from housing an entire order of crab rangoon THEN eating a full meal, it's a big deal... BTW I REALLY like crab rangoons)

The Enchiladas ended up at about 180 calories each, which when you eat two is a pretty kind meal calorie-wise.

Also I've never really been into side dishes, I feel like they just encourage you to eat more not necessarily better. Growing up, when I was learning to cook, I have VERY vivid memories of my mom shouting 'but what are you making with it!?! You can't JUST make chicken!!!' to that I now say 'what the hell not!?!' and that's how I cook. (back then I would brattily take out a can of corn, schlop it into a pan until luke warm and then passively aggressively serve my 'side' with a look that anyone DARE challenge me.... ah childhood)

Now I've just (for the most part) eliminated them. I cook food rather than a meal I guess. But If I make enchiladas and side... let's say rice... you're not eating the rice because your hungry, nor will you necessarily eat less enchiladas... you're just eating rice because it's served to you.

*quick digression, Beef/Broccoli is moved to tomorrow- goign to M&Js tonight

I mean a lot of times I'll make side by side dishes, like chicken breast and veggies, that's cool I think of them as a unit.... ANYWAY

that's, I think all for today.

Tomorrow is lunch out for Pho (delicious delicious Pho) and beef/broccoli for dinner (I think I'm going to skip crab rangoons, NOT because I love them any less, but a. They're time consuming, b. they're shockingly bad for you when eaten in massive quantities)

Cha cha cha

Pulled pork enchiladas
Leftover pulled pork (no bbq sauce)
Can of tomatoes
Tortillas
Shredded Cheese (whatever you like- i had Colby Jack)
Onion
Garlic
Spices (the usual suspects plus some Cajun spice mix and blackened seasoning)
hot sauce (I went with Franks and some siracha)

puree tomatoes with garlic & onions- everybody into the pot & to a simmer
add spices and hot sauce
bring to a little boil
Reserve 1/2 of sauce
Add pork to pan with remaining sauce, heat pork through

microwave individual tortillas for 10 seconds just to make them pliable, fill with cheese and meat mixture and line up in a baking dish- My amount of leftovers made 7 roll-ups

Spray with a bit of cooking oil and bake at 425 for 10 or so minutes until a bit crispy.
Reduce heat to 400, toss on remaining sauce and some cheese i also threw on a handful of feta... cause I dig it
get melty and gooey

eat- I'm probably gonna add some sour cream


Pictures if I don't house them too quickly... otherwise picture an enchilada... they looked like that

Stop. Hammer time.

Two changes (so far) to this week's menu:
1. I made SO. MUCH. Pork yesterday. so the chicken casserole is turning into pulled pork enchiladas (mmm) for tonight
2. Wed- M&J are in Vegas this week so no Wed dinner- Le gasp! BUT we're getting the full set of CSA veggies so I'll figure it out from there.

3. Did you not notice- Pulled. Pork. Enchiladas. Get excited party people. Definitely info to follow on that.

Oink oink

Pulled pork

Pork (shoulder, butt... whatevs)
Beer
Onion
Garlic
Spices (your choice- guess which mine were)
Siracha aka rooster sauce

Cut some slits into the fatty side of the pork. Stuff with garlic (I made 6 slices)

Put pork fatty-garlic side down in a crock pot

Pour on beer

Couple of swirls of rooster sauce

Spice

Refrigerate overnight

In the am cut up and toss in the onion

Cook on low (about 6-7 hours)

Pull and eat

*personally I haaaaate bbq sauce so I made a sandwich with more siracha and ranch. Gold star.

Dinnah

So someday I'll cook thinking about presentation...  for now you'll have to take my word that it's tasty:

Vegetable ESPLOSION!!!

Ingredients
A portabello mushroom
An egg
Some summer squash
Some feta
Spices you like (I went with onion powder,  paprika, garlic,  red pepper flakes, black truffle salt (yeah seriously))

Slice,  season and sautee squash (set aside)

Clean and cut a whole out of the center of the mushroom

Chop the middle part up and set aside

Spice and sautee holey mushroom

Crack egg into the center- cook to your liking. set aside

Toss center of mushroom and some feta into pan and cool high and quick until juicy and melty, spice.

Awe yeah, i splashed in some red wine vinegar

Then everything into the plate- cheesy and crispy and spicy and tangy and juicy. 

Hell yeah.

Week 1 (2.0)

We're gonna try this again... I think I'm going to start the week with Sunday b/c that's when I REALLY like to cook


Sunday
   Dinner- Pulled Pork
Monday
   Lunch- Leftover Pulled Pork
   Dinner- Chicken casserole (that I didn't make last week)
Tuesday
   Lunch- Leftover Chicken Casserole
   Dinner- Beef & Broccoli and Crab Rangoons (one night of unhealthy is ok, right?)
Wed
   Lunch- Leftover B&B and CRs
   Dinner- M&Js!
Thurs
   Lunch- Go out! (I already know I'm going to Pho... Oh Pho, thou art so delicious)
   Dinner- Rooster Chicken Panini's
Friday-
  Lunch- HOPEFULLY leftover dinner from the night before :)


I might take pictures of some of this, I'll probably even come up with recipes.

Rooster Chicken

OK. So it could have been worst!
I think that I was mildly, marginally successful in this week's endeavor.

Last night I made one of my new favorite recipies (a hybrid of about 47 ideas I found) I call it:
Rooster-sauce-oven-fried-chicken (still a working title)

ingredients:
Chicken boobs
ranch
milk (or half/half or cream or whatever you have)
Siracha (aka Rooster Sauce)
Worchestershire sauce
Panko
choice of spices (I like garlic, onion powder and paprika)

*Preheat oven to 475
*Cut your chicken into thin 'tender' or 'nugget' sized pieces. The smaller they are the quicker they cook

*mix liquid ingredients in one bowl- everything is to taste. You want enough final product to dredge all of your chicken that is like a cream consistancy

*mix panko and spices in a seperate bowl

*dredge chicken in liquid mixture, then into panko

*spread out onto cooking sheet

*bake at 475 for apprx 5-8mins until a bit brown/crispy

*turn heat down to 375 and bake until cooked

Delicious, crispy and a LOT healthier than fried!

alright alright

So... SHOCKER- we strayed from plans last night =$
I went to Sam's with a list of 4 items... we ended up dropping two-hundo. woops.
By the time we were done at Sam's the idea of then also going to the grocery store THEN going home to eat sounded like madness, so clearly, we decided to go out to eat.

Sigh... Rome wasn't built in a day, right?

The lack of groceries/cooking have pushed this week's menu back into oblivion- I've decided that the best reason (read: Excuse) is that trying to start a radical new way of meal-ing (it's a word!) in the middle of the week was just setting myself up for failure. SO while if/when it might work I'll try to stick to the plan... Let's be honest.

Next week will start the reboot.


I swear.


No Really...