Sun - Salmon w/Mustard Cream; Broccoli; New Potatoes
Mon - Lentil and Rice Pilaf; Lemon-Pepper Roasted Vegetables; Sliced fruit
Tues - Farfalle with Creamy Wild Mushroom Sauce (previously blogged); green salad
Wed - Neighbors over for dinner. Chips and guac; chicken and mushroom fajitas; green rice; chipotle black beans
Thur - Wraps with leftovers from Wed night
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Too busy to cook...
We moved in on the ninth, and we've been really busy. Leo has had a stomach bug...got better...and now he has a fever for some reason. We're hoping to all be healthy soon!
We've been eating lots of frozen dinners and lots of take-out. Not much adventurous cooking here lately.
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We finally got most boxes in the house unpacked. I told Todd we were in the danger zone, because we really could just stop unpacking and be ok...but there were still tons of boxes in the garage. We tackled those yesterday and today, and we've made real progress.
We've also been adding lots of little conveniences and extra storage.
Got this little beauty at the container store...
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This is the handy rubber hammer that I bought at the Container Store for putting together that other thing. I thought Todd would think it was pointless, but he liked it immediately, and we've used it for several other projects. He calls it "The Super Hammer."
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Last weekend, Todd put up more shelving in the laundry, which is right by the kitchen. The pantry is kinda small, so I needed more storage.
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Our bedroom doorknob needed a fix, so we put in a new one (and one on the bathroom door) that matched the bathroom hardware. Actually, I did most of this myself while Todd was working on shelving in the garage! I was pretty proud!
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The broken knob.
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New doorknob.
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Some extra hooks in the bathroom for towels and keeping robes handy.
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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
And my "Sam's Shelves"! I call them that b/c almost everything I buy in bulk at Sam's goes on shelves out in the garage. Todd got them up today, and I feel so much better. Lots of stuff up off the floor now. We got the adjustable kind this time, and we like them much better than the ones we put up in Plano. They are eight feet long and deeper than our old ones.
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We had one of these at our Plano house, and we couldn't live without it. I ordered one the day we moved in!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
We've been eating lots of frozen dinners and lots of take-out. Not much adventurous cooking here lately.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
We finally got most boxes in the house unpacked. I told Todd we were in the danger zone, because we really could just stop unpacking and be ok...but there were still tons of boxes in the garage. We tackled those yesterday and today, and we've made real progress.
We've also been adding lots of little conveniences and extra storage.
Got this little beauty at the container store...
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
This is the handy rubber hammer that I bought at the Container Store for putting together that other thing. I thought Todd would think it was pointless, but he liked it immediately, and we've used it for several other projects. He calls it "The Super Hammer."
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Last weekend, Todd put up more shelving in the laundry, which is right by the kitchen. The pantry is kinda small, so I needed more storage.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Our bedroom doorknob needed a fix, so we put in a new one (and one on the bathroom door) that matched the bathroom hardware. Actually, I did most of this myself while Todd was working on shelving in the garage! I was pretty proud!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
The broken knob.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
New doorknob.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Some extra hooks in the bathroom for towels and keeping robes handy.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
And my "Sam's Shelves"! I call them that b/c almost everything I buy in bulk at Sam's goes on shelves out in the garage. Todd got them up today, and I feel so much better. Lots of stuff up off the floor now. We got the adjustable kind this time, and we like them much better than the ones we put up in Plano. They are eight feet long and deeper than our old ones.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
We had one of these at our Plano house, and we couldn't live without it. I ordered one the day we moved in!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Closed!
We successfully closed on the Plano house today! Hooray! The closing on the new house is next Monday...
Friday, March 28, 2008
Green Onion Pancakes and experimenting at the Asian Market
A few weeks ago, I went to eat at an Asian Dumpling House. Jeng Chi is in Richardson, and I never ate so much food for such a small tab. I ate family style with a group of 7 moms, and my total was $8. I even had enough money left to go down the sidewalk and have a Taiwanese Shaved Ice - what a night.
Since the boys are gone, I wanted to do something easy for dinner on Wed. night, so I thought I'd buy some frozen dumplings at Asia World and steam them. Jeng Chi sells them frozen, too, but I didn't have time to make it down there. I also bought a little container of soup to try.
Well, of course, I dreamed something up to cook for the meal. At Jeng Chi, they had these yummy Green Onion pancakes to go with the dumplings. So, I went googling for a recipe. I decided on this one.
Ingredients
* 2 cups flour
* 1 tablespoon sesame oil
* 1/2 cup boiling water
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup cold water
* Vegetable oil spray
* 1/2 cup minced green onions
Directions
1. Mix together flour and boiling water.
2. Add 1/3 cup cold water and knead until dough is smooth and elastic.
3. Add more water if necessary.
4. Cover and let dough rest for 15 minutes.
5. In a small bowl combine sesame oil, salt and green onions then set aside.
6. Divide dough into 10 pieces then flatten each piece in the palm of your hand.
7. Roll each piece into a 6" circle.
8. Spread each with some of the green onion mixture.
9. Roll up dough into a jellyroll then wind up into a snail shape.
10. Flatten slightly then roll on lightly floured surface to 5" circle.
11. Spray pan with vegetable oil spray then heat over medium high heat.
12. Fry pancake for 2 minutes then turn and cook other side.
13. Serve hot.
I made the dough in the mixer and then let it rest. No yeast involved in this one. I mixed for 10 minutes - I'm thinking maybe that was too long for this. It got really firm.
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While the dough was mixing/resting, I mixed up the green onion filling. Sesame oil, green onions, and salt - it smelled so good!
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I divided into 10 little balls.
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Flattened out the little balls and spread on some filling.
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Rolled up.
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Twisted into a snail.
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Then I flattened them. This is where it got tricky. The filling would try to stay in the dough - the dough almost seemed to have a skin by this point. But while rolling, it would eventually squirt out, and it got so messy. Not to mention that it didn't really want to flatten, so it kept springing back into a fat little snail. I tried flattening by hand instead of with a rolling pin and I tried elongating the jellyroll before rolling it up - it was all still messy and would start to stick to the rolling pin b/c of all the filling everywhere. But I kept going and did the best I could. I think they needed to be flatter.
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Then I pan fried.
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Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
We used these to mix up a dipping sauce in individual bowls. I love, love, love that chili garlic sauce - we have decided it goes with everything...morning (eggs), noon (sandwiches), and night (pizza and everything else). I experiment with other brands, but always come back to this one. The other jars are lite soy sauce and rice vinegar.
I would like to also get Wasabi to go with this - if anyone knows where to buy that at the Asian Market, please comment.
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Here is our feast. Besides the soup and pancakes, we had cabbage/mushroom and seafood with crab buns. The seafood ones were the best, and they were great for leftovers the next day. The soup was delicious, and Todd wants me to get him some for work lunches when we don't have leftovers. The pancakes were good, but not as good as the ones at Jeng Chi. They were so cheap at the restaurant...I don't know if I'll experiment with them anymore. Although I did see a recipe on Weight Watchers that used Egg Roll wraps - that looks easier.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Since the boys are gone, I wanted to do something easy for dinner on Wed. night, so I thought I'd buy some frozen dumplings at Asia World and steam them. Jeng Chi sells them frozen, too, but I didn't have time to make it down there. I also bought a little container of soup to try.
Well, of course, I dreamed something up to cook for the meal. At Jeng Chi, they had these yummy Green Onion pancakes to go with the dumplings. So, I went googling for a recipe. I decided on this one.
Ingredients
* 2 cups flour
* 1 tablespoon sesame oil
* 1/2 cup boiling water
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup cold water
* Vegetable oil spray
* 1/2 cup minced green onions
Directions
1. Mix together flour and boiling water.
2. Add 1/3 cup cold water and knead until dough is smooth and elastic.
3. Add more water if necessary.
4. Cover and let dough rest for 15 minutes.
5. In a small bowl combine sesame oil, salt and green onions then set aside.
6. Divide dough into 10 pieces then flatten each piece in the palm of your hand.
7. Roll each piece into a 6" circle.
8. Spread each with some of the green onion mixture.
9. Roll up dough into a jellyroll then wind up into a snail shape.
10. Flatten slightly then roll on lightly floured surface to 5" circle.
11. Spray pan with vegetable oil spray then heat over medium high heat.
12. Fry pancake for 2 minutes then turn and cook other side.
13. Serve hot.
I made the dough in the mixer and then let it rest. No yeast involved in this one. I mixed for 10 minutes - I'm thinking maybe that was too long for this. It got really firm.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
While the dough was mixing/resting, I mixed up the green onion filling. Sesame oil, green onions, and salt - it smelled so good!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
I divided into 10 little balls.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Flattened out the little balls and spread on some filling.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Rolled up.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Twisted into a snail.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Then I flattened them. This is where it got tricky. The filling would try to stay in the dough - the dough almost seemed to have a skin by this point. But while rolling, it would eventually squirt out, and it got so messy. Not to mention that it didn't really want to flatten, so it kept springing back into a fat little snail. I tried flattening by hand instead of with a rolling pin and I tried elongating the jellyroll before rolling it up - it was all still messy and would start to stick to the rolling pin b/c of all the filling everywhere. But I kept going and did the best I could. I think they needed to be flatter.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Then I pan fried.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
We used these to mix up a dipping sauce in individual bowls. I love, love, love that chili garlic sauce - we have decided it goes with everything...morning (eggs), noon (sandwiches), and night (pizza and everything else). I experiment with other brands, but always come back to this one. The other jars are lite soy sauce and rice vinegar.
I would like to also get Wasabi to go with this - if anyone knows where to buy that at the Asian Market, please comment.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Here is our feast. Besides the soup and pancakes, we had cabbage/mushroom and seafood with crab buns. The seafood ones were the best, and they were great for leftovers the next day. The soup was delicious, and Todd wants me to get him some for work lunches when we don't have leftovers. The pancakes were good, but not as good as the ones at Jeng Chi. They were so cheap at the restaurant...I don't know if I'll experiment with them anymore. Although I did see a recipe on Weight Watchers that used Egg Roll wraps - that looks easier.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Red Beans and Rice
This is a "dump-it-all-in-the-crockpot" recipe that I actually like! But I grew up eating this (cooked on the stovetop), so it is comfort food for me.
I start by...well...just dumping it all in!
I do one bag of rinsed red beans (not soaked overnight), one large chopped onion, 4 or 5 minced garlic cloves (or a big spoonful from the cheater jar), chop one package Healthy Choice sausage, 2 bay leaves, 2 tsp Lawry's seasoning salt, red and black pepper to taste.
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Then I cover with 2 quarts of liquid - some combo of vegetable stock, beef stock, chicken stock, and water. Whatever I have on hand. Cook for 6 or so hours on low. I always check it 1 hour before it's supposed to be done and turn it to high if the beans are still a little crunchy.
I made Alton Brown's Baked Brown Rice (minus the butter) for the base. I served with Spicy Asian Slaw tonight - for some reason, I like these flavors together. Cajun and Asian.
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I start by...well...just dumping it all in!
I do one bag of rinsed red beans (not soaked overnight), one large chopped onion, 4 or 5 minced garlic cloves (or a big spoonful from the cheater jar), chop one package Healthy Choice sausage, 2 bay leaves, 2 tsp Lawry's seasoning salt, red and black pepper to taste.
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Then I cover with 2 quarts of liquid - some combo of vegetable stock, beef stock, chicken stock, and water. Whatever I have on hand. Cook for 6 or so hours on low. I always check it 1 hour before it's supposed to be done and turn it to high if the beans are still a little crunchy.
I made Alton Brown's Baked Brown Rice (minus the butter) for the base. I served with Spicy Asian Slaw tonight - for some reason, I like these flavors together. Cajun and Asian.
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Monday, March 24, 2008
What's on the Menu? 3/24 & 25, New House, New Mixer!
Well, we had a great offer on our house a couple of weeks ago...last week was the inspection...and we are set to close April 2nd on the Plano house. So we found a great new house in Coppell, and we will close on that house on April 9th. Some moving details will be worked out this week, but I imagine we'll be moving soon after April 9th. Busy times! Here is a sneak peak of the new house. The kitchen is a little smaller than I would like, but it is getting all new stainless appliances (double oven, cooktop, dishwasher, microwave) courtesy of the current owner as part of the deal. WooHoo! We are thrilled - it is <20 minutes from Todd's job in Las Colinas.
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In the midst of all this chaos, I had a fabulous new blender arrive! I'm tired of kneading dough by hand, so this was my anniversary present. I got the professional model with a 450W motor for $199 - can you believe it?
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This is my first crust with the new blender. We could really tell a difference when it was kneaded by the mixer - much more pliable and it rose much better. We love it!
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I have only planned meals for Mon and Tues so far this week, and they're nothing too exciting. We're going to have Salmon with Mustard Cream tonight and Red Beans and Brown Rice tomorrow night. I'm taking the boys to LA on Wed. so they can stay with the grandparents during my mom's Spring Break and I can get some packing done. Bear with me for the next few weeks, please!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
In the midst of all this chaos, I had a fabulous new blender arrive! I'm tired of kneading dough by hand, so this was my anniversary present. I got the professional model with a 450W motor for $199 - can you believe it?
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
This is my first crust with the new blender. We could really tell a difference when it was kneaded by the mixer - much more pliable and it rose much better. We love it!
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
I have only planned meals for Mon and Tues so far this week, and they're nothing too exciting. We're going to have Salmon with Mustard Cream tonight and Red Beans and Brown Rice tomorrow night. I'm taking the boys to LA on Wed. so they can stay with the grandparents during my mom's Spring Break and I can get some packing done. Bear with me for the next few weeks, please!
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