the latest dishes

What I've been making:

Chicken and Pork Adobo from a recipe cobbled together with my parents' offhand instructions and two Filipino cookbooks (adobo is one of those recipes where everyone's version is very individual and everyone is very attached to their version of the dish). This wasn't a new recipe but I haven't made adobo in a long, long, long time so I thought it worth noting. While what I made wasn't quite like my parents (too much sauce!), the flavors were right and the father-in-law and husband were very happy with it. My mom also told me that adobo is very freezer friendly so it can be made in huge batches but leftovers of adobo never last long.... Served with rice and sliced tomatoes on the side.

Butternut Squash Risotto from the Pioneer Woman - This was delicious. I haven't made risotto in a long time - maybe 3 years? - and this was my first time making butternut squash risotto. Will definitely make again but not too often since it does require standing by the stove for a little while to add the broth in 1 cup increments and stir the rice. Served with roasted asparagus.

Mushroom Stroganoff with Goat Cheese from Alton Brown - This was the first mushroom stroganoff recipe that I've tried and liked. Definitely a keeper although more of a once in blue moon dish rather than one to put in the regular meal rotation.

I almost forgot to mention that I made potstickers for Lunar New Year. Mine were filled with ground pork, water chestnut, and chives. mmmm.

Also, old standby recipes such as chicken cilantro burgers, turkey tacos, pasta, and breakfast for dinner.

Up next:

Seven Vegetable Couscous with Spicy Harissa
Chicken and Pork Adobo (again)

The baby also started solids! She's been eating bananas, pears, avocado, and rice cereal (okay, well, maybe the avocado hasn't really made it in to her mouth but she was very good at mushing it with her hand....) Next up for baby are roast yams.

comfort food recipes

I have been lousy at meal planning this year but here are a few recipes that I've tried which have worked out well. Pretty much all of these are kid friendly recipes and mostly from the Food Network. I've been in the mood for comfort food since the new year began.

The Lady's Chicken Noodle Soup from Paula Deen. When I got back from Ohio on New Year's Eve, the entire family was sick with a cold. As far as making chicken noodle soup from scratch goes, this was very easy and quick and quite good. Definitely a recipe I'll try again. Unfortunately, the preschooler refused to taste it but hopefully she'll be more willing to try it out next time. I left out the heavy cream.

Big Chocolate Birthday Cake from Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman. The preschooler's birthday was Christmas but we celebrated in January. This makes a huge cake! It's meant to be 4 layers but I separated it into two cakes each with 2 layers and one cake was enough to feed a party of 30 people. I thought the cake was a little bitter the first day but that it mellowed out and was much better the next day. It was also a nice moist, dense chocolate cake, which I prefer over drier, airier cakes. I also used a different frosting recipe since I needed something simple and quick but while the frosting was simple and quick, I wasn't a big fan of the frosting recipe so I'm not going to add that link here.

For some reason, I was unable to bake a decent cake in 2012, even with tried and true recipes. Every time I tried to bake a cake, it was disastrous, so I'm happy that I'm starting off with better luck in 2013.

Mac and Cheese from Ina Garten. I made this for the preschooler's birthday party and didn't get a chance to taste it while it was still warm. It seemed to heat up okay. I may try this one again.

Crunchy Parmesan Chicken Tenders from Giada de Laurentis. A big hit with my husband. Not so much with the preschooler. They're baked so slightly more healthy, and the breading on the top of the chicken tender was crunchy. My only changes were to use panko bread crumbs and add my own seasonings plus I left out the garlic vinaigrette that Giada devices as the dipping sauce.

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits. I had extra buttermilk from baking the preschooler's birthday cake, so I made the chicken tenders mentioned above and these buttermilk biscuits. I always thought biscuits were labor intensive but was pleased to find out that they're very easy to make. Definitely a keeper. I want to make more and the recipe says you can shape the biscuits and store in the freezer for a month so I may make another batch if I don't think of another use for the rest of the buttermilk.

As far as food resolutions, my big project for the year is trying to get the preschooler to eat a wider variety of foods, particularly vegetables, and for me not to become a short order cook for her. I also want to get the baby off to a good start on solids. I can't believe she's almost 6 months already!

A belated happy 2013!

pork and udon soup recipe and this week's meals

I haven't posted lately but I have been cooking - although nothing worth writing about, mostly old standbys like spaghetti, breakfast for dinner, or turkey tacos, etc. However, this weekend, I did manage to make a new recipe: pork and udon soup.

It's a meal that you need to make in two steps. I did it over two days.

Day one: I roasted the pork. Very easy but it required about 3.5 hours in the oven.
Day two: I chopped the veggies and threw the veggies and pork in broth to simmer for a half hour to make the soup. I also boiled the noodles separately. I didn't have any udon so I used somen and that worked fine.

Overall, I would say that the broth is not as rich or complex as ones made from scratch but the soup was very filling and good for about 40 minutes cooking time - much of that time was made up of leaving the soup to simmer on the stove rather than active time.  The soup seemed much less Japanese as the udon in the recipe would suggest but tasted more like pho especially since the recipe recommends garnishing with bean sprouts, cilantro, and lime. The toddler picked at it since she didn't like the look of the shitake, cabbage, or carrots, but she ate the noodles. The husband gave the soup an "A."

This week's meal plan (although I'm not sure I'll get around to cooking the sinigang):

• spinach and cheese lasagna rolls
• matzoh ball soup, latkes, and smoked salmon and mache salad (I made the soup last week but never got around to making the latkes during Hannukah)
• slow cooker beef and black bean chili
• sinigang na baboy (a pork and tamarind soup with napa cabbage, taro root, green beans, tomatoes, and onions)

this week's meal plan

I'm back in the kitchen after having been away so long. I didn't make a formal meal plan this week and am winging it, but this is what I decided to make while food shopping:

• Ginger Teriyaki Chicken, Roasted Asparagus, and Steamed Rice (the toddler was served dumplings)
• Steak (not sure yet what seasonings), Roasted Squash and Assorted Veggies
• Spaghetti with Meatballs
• Leftover Veggie Lasagna from last week and taco fixings to go into a taco salad
• Sandwiches, Pumpkin Bolani, Orzo salad, and assorted fruit for lunch and snacks

Friday, the husband and I dine out (hurray for babysitters!) so the toddler may get mac and cheese that night.

Meal Plan/Freezer Friendly Meals

I'm finally getting back into the rhythm of cooking again now that we don't have any guests to entertain, but I seem only to be able to plan three meals in advance or I stray from the plan.

The next few meals on our list:

• Chicken Enchiladas
• Three Cheese and Italian Sausage Lasagna
• Chicken Tenders with Corn on the Cob and Baked Beans for sides

These are all pretty hearty, meat heavy dishes, which is what crops up when I search the web for "freezer friendly meals" but I figure they're a good start for loading up the fridge with meals I can just stick in the oven. I'm stocking the freezer since the baby is due to arrive in the next 4 weeks, so half the portions will be frozen for consumption post-birth. I'm also hoping that we'll have our act together enough to make it to the grocery store (or use Safeway delivery) to get ingredients for simple veggie sides since I remember craving a lot of vegetables after the birth of my first baby.

A neighbor was also kind enough to drop by yesterday with a crate of strawberries. We've been eating as many as we can but I'm also washing, cutting and freezing them. Strawberry smoothies!

If I get these three dishes done this weekend, I plan to make brisket, spinach pie, and empanadas next. If anyone has freezer friendly recipes to share, I would love them!

Spaghetti with Lemon and Olive Oil

I haven't posted in quite awhile. Mostly, we've been surviving on quick meals like spaghetti and meatballs or breakfast for dinner type dishes. However, I did stumble on one pasta dish that I thought I would share because it was very easy and a nice simple dish if you're in the mood for carbs.

Spaghetti with Lemon and Olive Oil.

I thought it was a little bland although the lemon flavor came through but the husband and toddler approved so I'll probably make it again since it was so easy. The toddler asked for seconds then thirds. I served the pasta with chili lime roasted chicken and roasted asparagus.