Mirepoix? huh?

My favorite combination of veggies to make will always be the holy trinity of onions,celery, and carrots. This trinity is also called a mirepoix. Honestly it's a jazzy way of saying carrots, celery and onion.  This combination can be used in many different recipes. On occasion, I will chop a few cups of these veggies and store them in the fridge for later use. In this case, I made a chicken bake. Quick, easy and delicious!


Chicken bake

1 Large chicken breast, or 2 medium- cubed or shredded
2 large carrots, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 cup green peas
1c water
1Tblspoon corn starch or flour
1 chicken bouillon cube or 1 tsp of chicken base
1c bisquick baking mix
1/2c milk
1 egg

 Preheat oven to 375.

Cook chicken breast over medium heat in a large skillet. Either shred chicken breast or cube in to small pieces. Remove chicken from pan and add carrots, onion, and celery. Saute until slightly softened. Add peas.
In a small bowl mix the water and cornstarch or flour. Mix until dissolved. The flour or cornstarch will act as a thickener.  Add mixture, along with bouillon to veggie mixture. Add cooked chicken back to pan and mix until combined. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the mix seems to be too thick and lacks any liquid, add more water. If it seems to watery, cook on medium low until mixture thickens.
Add chicken mixture to an 11 by 13 pan.

In a medium bowl mix bisquick, egg, and milk.  Use this mixture to top the chicken mixture and then bake for about 30 minutes or until bisquick mix is golden brown. Serve and enjoy!

Sometimes I will add shredded cheese to the bisquick for extra flavor. Or even chives..YUM!

Busy miss Lizzy

When I started this blog I felt I had SO much time to post a recipe every night. Somehow, a few weeks ago, life got REALLY busy. In the past few weeks, Blake and I have gone on vacation, worked countless hours, attended the most beautiful wedding and welcomed a beautiful new sister in law in to our family.  I have been making a list of most of the recipes we have made in the past 2 weeks. Most of them are quick and very easy. Most of the nights I had little or no time to snap some shots of the meal, so shame on me. Here are a few of the recipes we cooked this week..

Bolognese and polenta

On nights where pasta just doesn't sound good but a hearty bolognese sounds delicious, I make this dish.  The polenta is a great counterpart to the bolognese. This makes for a quick meal when you have fast cooking polenta and the meat sauce is already made. I use this bolognese recipe for not only this dish but also for pasta, lasagna and many other Italian dishes. It's excellent in stuffed peppers and a great base to add veggies to make a hearty pasta sauce. It's somewhat time consuming but the end product can be frozen for up to 6 weeks in freezer bags and removed the morning or night before you plan to eat it.

Bolognese
2 medium carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 medium to large onion
1 lb ground beef
1 beef bouillon cube(optional)
2c. red wine
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
fresh herbs. I used oregano, about 2 TBSP and 2 TBSP of fresh basil. I am sure you could use dried. make sure to cut it down to 1TBSP each if dried.
salt and pepper

Add a few TBSP of oil to a large pot. Heat to medium heat.

In a blender or food processor mix carrots, onion, and celery until blended to a paste. Add to the pot and cook until liquid has dissolved and the paste begins to brown.

Add the ground beef, salt and pepper and brown until fully cooked.(browning means flavor so don't forget this step or the meat with be steamed in the sauce.)

Add the bouillon cube and red wine. Sometimes I will leave out the bouillon cube if the wine is really hearty. Reduce the wine by about half and then add the tomato sauce and stewed tomatoes. Turn heat to medium low and cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sometimes I will cook this sauce for longer than 45 minutes.It can really simmer for up to an hour.

While the sauce is simmering, I cook the polenta according to the package directions. Try using quick cook polenta. It's great for those nights where cooking sounds awful.

Remove the lid after about 45 minutes of cooking the bolognese and stir. If most of the liquid is absorb, then the sauce is finished.

Place a dollop of polenta on a plate and then top with a scoop of bolognese.

Sprinkle with Romano or Parmesan cheese and serve.

I also topped ours with a splash of basil infused olive oil that I got from  Mountain Town Olive Oil Company on my recent trip to Park City, Utah.

*As you can see, I was too excited to eat. I didn't wait for the liquid to absorb fully in to the bolognese. It just gave me an excuse to have a big slice of crusty french bread.

Chicken and mayonnaise?

Every time I see the commercial where the woman puts a dab of mayonnaise on her chicken I am always slightly disgusted. It sounds pretty gross to top chicken with mayonnaise. Tonight, with hesitation I tried this recipe. In all honesty, it was pretty delicious.

Parmesan crusted chicken

4 boneless chicken breast. If the breasts are too large(no giggling), slice them in half or butterfly them
1/3c shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2c mayonnaise(I used low fat)
1/4c Italian breadcrumbs (I used panko)
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425
Mix the shredded cheese and mayonnaise in a bowl. Spread this mixture on the chicken breast in a thin layer. Then sprinkle with breadcrumbs and bake for about 20 minutes. I also broiled the chicken on the middle rack for about 5 minutes afterwards. I served this with smashed potatoes and salad.

Recipes from a tired chef.

This week was quite an uneventful cooking week. A large majority of what I cooked this week were meals either from a bag or meals thrown together with ingredients from the fridge. One of those recipes being yet another version of pasta. Truth be told, if you asked me to name what I made last week for dinner the only thing I can remember is buying a Costco chicken and having salad on the side. Lazy? yes.  Every cook at some point has a day where they just don't want to cook. And for me that was an entire week.  This is usually the time of the year where I begin to dream about soup and stew weather where a meal can last 2 days. Ahh.... If only....

The one eventful part of my week was a cooking class Blake and I took with some friends. It was at an Italian restaurant downtown Seattle. It was taught by an eccentric, yet drunk, Italian man named Luigi. He is the owner and a few times a month puts on a cooking class for a few couples. We were all crammed in a small HOT room while we watched him and a few guests prepare a 4 course meal.

The first course was a bruschetta composed of grilled bread topped with a puree of carrots, lemon, olive oil, capers, salt and pepper. It was amazing!! I did not anticipate how delicious it would be and it was so simple to make. Grill bread, blend all other ingredients until smooth. For only two steps, it was superb.

The next course was a pasta dish which I have made at home many times. His version had chopped onions, chopped pancetta and baby peas. First he sauteed the onions and pancetta in olive oil. Then added the peas. deglaze with some vegetable stock and then add to your favorite pasta. Top with Parmesan cheese. Again, simple yet amazing. I will post my version at a later date.

The next course was my favorite course and the most odd recipe. It only contained a few ingredients but everything worked in harmony and made the dish so delicious. TRY IT OUT!! Seriously, it sounds so awful when you read the ingredients but tasted so good!  Good quality Italian sausage links and green grapes. Heat a pan on medium heat. Add a few TBP of olive oil. Add sausage and sear on both sides. Add grapes and turn heat to medium low and cover. Cook until sausage is cooked and grapes have "browned" Remove from heat and serve. I, along with Blake and out friends, did not think this dish would be very good. I am so glad we were mistaken.

The next course was dessert. Simply mix a cup of heavy cream, 1/4c of nutella, 1 TBSP of sugar and a touch of espresso powder. I imagine one of those starbucks via packages would do the trick too. If you want to ensure the espresso is mixed in, mix a small amount of cream and the powder together before adding it to the recipe. Mix on low until slightly thickened and continue to increase speed until the cream has thickened completely to the consistency of whipped cream. serve with chopped hazelnuts. This recipe will not disappoint.

Cheesy chicken macaroni

First off, Thank you Melissa for inspiring this dish! Your macarnoi and cheese looked so deliciious last week I had to adapt my own recipe...
Chefs beware! This is not a beginner recipe. If you're feeling EXTRA adventurous, dive in a try it out!

Cheesy chicken macaroni
2 chicken breasts, chopped in to bite size pieces
1 large onion, chopped
16 oz macaroni, penne or rigatoni
 2T butter
1/8c flour
2 cups milk (any % works)
2 eggs
1 1/2c shredded cheddar cheese (or more if you want it REALLY cheesy)
salt and pepper
1/2 panko bread crumbs


Preheat broil on oven

Cook onion and chicken over medium heat in a large skillet. Add salt and pepper, about a teaspoon of each.
Set aside

Cook macaroni according to package directions, drain and then add back to the pot you boiled the noodles in (You will use this pot to mix all the ingredients later in the recipe. I used a large dutch oven to cook the chicken mixture so I could use this pan to combine everything.) DONT FORGET TO SALT THE WATER!

To make cheese sauce, melt butter over low heat in a saucepan.

Add flour and mix to make a roux. It should resemble tiny crumbles or a paste like consistency of peanut butter

Add milk and heat over medium low. Mixing occasionally. The mix will gradually thicken. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In a small bowl beat eggs. Add about a tablespoon of the warm milk mixture to the egg mixture to temper the eggs. Add another tablespoon and mix until incorporated. Add egg mixture to milk mixture and reduce heat to low.

The mixture will thicken almost instantly. Once thickened, remove from heat and add shredded cheese. mix until cheese is melted.

Pour cheese mixture over noodles and then add chicken mixture. Mix and then add to baking dish or to large dutch oven.

Sprinkle panko breadcrumbs on top of the mixture and broil for about 8-10 minutes on the middle rack until breadcrumbs are golden and cheese is bubbly

Easy egg noodle lasagna

After my visit to SLC I came home craving a recipe that Shannon told me about. It was a recipe her mother in law uses and this is my interpretation of that recipe. I didn't have a pen and paper so this was the recipe to the best of my memory. It's similar to a lasagna but MUCH easier and tastes exactly the same. Prep time is also cut down.

Easy egg noodle lasagna

16 oz egg noodles (I used the wider egg noodles. Not the one you would use for chicken noodle soup. The wider noodles hold up better in this dish)
1 lb Italian sausage
1 jar of marinara sauce (any kind will do.)
2 cups of ricotta or cottage cheese (If you use cottage cheese, by the smallest curd or pulse in a food processor for a few seconds)
1/2c Romano and/or Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 chopped basil, fresh only (optional)

Heat oven to broil (top broil only)
Grease an 11x13 baking dish
Brown Italian sausage in a sauce pan over medium heat( make sure the pan is big enough to hold the sausage AND marinara)
After the sausage is cooked, turn heat to low and add marinara. Simmer for about 5 minutes until sauce is heated through.
Cook noodles according to package directions. drain and pour in to baking dish
Pour meat and marinara mixture on top of the noodles.
Place dollops of ricotta or cottage cheese on top of marinara and then top with grated cheese
Broil on middle shelf for about 10 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.
Add basil  right before serving

What I love about this recipe is how easy it is to make. Also how the noodles cook under the broiler. The noodles that are exposed end up becoming crispy on the edges. That's usually my favorite part of the lasagna. This may not look like lasagna but it sure tastes like it!

Lemon poppy seed cake

This is my go-to cake recipe for the summer time. On occasion I will add blueberries but the recipe is fantastic on its own. I recently made this for a dear friend for her birthday and felt somewhat bad for not making one to keep at home. 3 days later, I made another one for Blake and me...


Lemon Cake

For the Cake
1 3/4c white flour
3/4 c sugar
2t baking powder
1/4t salt
1 egg, room temp
1c milk
1/4c oil (canola or vegetable)
2T lemon juice (fresh or squeeze bottle)
1-2t lemon peel
2T poppy seeds

For the glaze 
2T lemon juice
1/4+ powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350

Lightly grease or spray a bread pan (I'm sure you could use a 8 inch round pan but I have always used a bread pan. If you use an 8 inch pan, make sure to change the baking time. It will likely be a shorter bake time)
In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a different bowl, mix egg, milk, oil and lemon juice. Add wet mixture to dry mixture. Add lemon peel and poppy seed and mix until large lumps are incorporated.
Pour mixture into baking pan and light tap pan on the counter. This will cause the bubbles to agitate to the top of the mix
Bake in preheated oven for about 40-50 (remember! If you use a different pan, check after 30 minutes or so)
To check to see if cake is done, puncture center with a butter knife or toothpick. If it comes out clean, it's finished. If it's still runny and sticks tot he knife, it needs more time.

While the cake is baking, mix glaze ingredients. I NEVER measure how much powdered sugar I put in. If the consistency resembles the glaze you see on a glazed donuts then it should be finished. Add a little powdered sugar at a time.

After the cake comes out of the oven, poke a few holes with a knife and then pour glaze over the cake. The holes help the glaze absorb in to the cake.

Fajitas! Ole'!

This recipe was requested by a dear friend of mine. I hate to use packaged taco seasoning so I usually make my own mix of spices to use in this recipe. I made beef and pork



Beef, pork, or chicken Fajitas

1/2 pound flank steak, 2 chicken breast, or 2 boneless pork chops
 3 peppers (I used two green and an orange)
1 large onion
2T sage, fresh or dried
1t chili powder
1/2t cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
1T olive oil

Slice meat thinly and set aside.
On a different cutting board, slice vegetable in 1/4 inch slices.

Heat olive oil on medium heat in a large skillet. Add meat,and all spices to the pan and cook until meat is fully cooked

Remove meat from pan and add sliced vegetables. Cook until vegetables have softened but are not completely limp. They should still have a little bit of bite.

To serve, I push the veggies aside and put the meat back in the hot pan.  I serve these fajitas with Don Poncho corn and flour blend tortillas.

Smashed potatoes

I've seen many variations of this recipe from Martha Stewart to Giada. The recipe is basic but the outcome is pretty amazing. This is my fallback side recipe for nights where I'm short on time.

Smashed potatoes
Red potatoes, mixed small potatoes or Yukon gold. (Russet potatoes just don't work in this recipe)
Salt and pepper to taste
3T Olive oil
1/8c Parmesan cheese

Puncture potatoes a few times with a knife or fork and place in a microwave safe bowl or plate. Cook on the 'baked potato' setting in the microwave. I usually estimate 5 small potatoes for every large potato. For example:  for five small potatoes, program your microwave for 1 baked potato.

After potatoes have cooked, place in an oven safe bowl or baking sheet and smash the potatoes with the back of a spoon.

Salt and pepper an then drizzle with olive oil

Place in an oven on the middle rack and turn the oven to broil. Cook until the top of the potatoes have browned. Putting the potatoes in the oven before the broil is hot helps give me time to prepare the rest of the meal. I've left them in for anywhere between 10-20 minutes.

When the tops have browned, remove from oven and add cheese. The heat of the potatoes will melt the cheese.

Serve with your favorite protein. I BBQd some chicken that I marinated in a Caribbean Jerk marinade I bought from Fred Meyer. I began marinating the chicken before I started the potatoes so it gave it even more time to absorb the flavor of the marinade. I'm super lazy so I bought a Costco spinach salad

Beef and Broccoli

This recipe for beef and broccoli is not only simple, but very delicious. Any recipe where you use the same pan for everything gets two thumbs up from this gal.



Beef and Broccoli
2  servings

1/2lb flank steak, sliced in to VERY thin slices, against the grain. Partially freezing the meat will make it a little easier to slice thinly. I use flank steak because it's relatively cheap and very easy to cut.
2 shallots or 1 small onion, chopped
1T sesame seeds, and some extra for topping
small bag of frozen broccoli, 8-10oz (this makes the recipe even easier since you don't have to prep the broccoli)
1/2 cup Soyaki sauce from trader joes or any variety of teriyaki sauce, and 2T extra

After slicing the beef add to a small bowl with salt, pepper and 1/2 c soyaki and set aside to marinate while all other ingredients are prepped. Do this ahead of time if you want the meat to absorb a lot of the flavor in the marinade.

Heat a skillet to medium heat with a tablespoon of canola oil or vegetable oil. Add beef and brown, about 2 minutes.

Remove beef from pan and add bag of broccoli, shallots and sesame seeds. Cook until broccoli is thawed and then add meat back to the pan. Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of soyaki and serve.
Sprinkle with extra sesame seeds.

Serve alone or with white rice.

Chili in July

Sometimes nights in the PNW can be pretty chilly. Even in July. On nights like this, I usually crave soup, stew or chili.  This is my standby chili recipe. No fuss, and no beans.  If you don't like the taste of stout beer, don't make this chili. You'll hate it. If you do like beer, crack one open, take a sip and then dump the rest of the bottle in the pot.

Mocha Death Chili

1lb ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1T tomato paste(optional)

2T chili powder

1t salt

1t pepper

Heat 1T of oil in a pot on medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until translucent. Add ground beef and brown ground beef. Make sure the beef is broken apart in to small pieces. The smaller the bits of beef, the better. Add salt and pepper and chili powder

Add 1 can or bottle of dark beer. I used the ENTIRE 16oz bottle of Iron Horse brewery: Mocha Death. Add can of diced tomatoes and paste.

Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until almost all the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes

I use this chili to top hot dogs, cornbread or even Frito's. Top with diced raw onion or cheddar cheese.

 

Pantry Pasta #2

First off, sorry for the lack of pictures on this one. It must be a sign that this pasta is not only extremely fast to make but very very simple. Every ingredient in this pasta is a pantry staple in my house.

Easy tomato pasta with basil
2 chicken breast, cut in to bite size pieces
8 oz of pasta of any type.( I like how the tube pastas work in this recipe because the sauce gets all up in the crevices. ie macaroni, rigatoni, etc.)
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
6 basil leaves, torn. DO NOT CHOP! I heard this bruises the basil so tearing it with your fingers might be the better approach.
1T Oregano, fresh or dried. Fresh is fantastic in this recipe
1 can of diced tomatoes in their own juice
1 can of tomato sauce
salt and pepper

Begin by boiling water for pasta

Heat a heavy bottomed skillet (large enough to hold the pasta and sauce, I used a 12 inch cast iron skillet) to medium heat and cook the chicken in a tablespoon of oil. Olive oil or canola. Add salt and pepper. About a 1/2 tsp of each.

Once the chicken is cooked,about 10 minutes, remove chicken from the pan and reduce to medium low. Add onion and garlic and saute until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add  can of tomato sauce and diced tomatoes and heat on medium heat. Simmer sauce on medium low.

When water begins to boil, add a few tablespoons of salt to the water and add pasta. Cook according to package directions and then drain. DON'T RUN COLD WATER OVER PASTA! This process removes the starch from the outside of the pasta and prevents the sauce from sticking.

Add chicken back to sauce and then add pasta to sauce. Mix together and then add basil and oregano.
More salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with grated Parmesan and bread

Kiss my grits!

Many of you may already know that I love to cook but making a decision on WHAT to cook is always a struggle. Luckily I am hoping people spread the word on this blog and then begin requesting dishes for me to make. That way, it's a win/win. I don't have to pick and they get to learn how to make some amazing dishes. If you have any ideas for dishes, feel free to let me know

This one's for you Daniel and you will be happy to know, I did NOT use fruit in my sauce....

Pan roasted pork chops with vegetables and cheesy grits (this name is terrible)

3 Pork chops- about 1 inch thick (I prefer boneless because they take less time to cook), You can also use thin chops just make sure to cut down the cooking time. No one likes over cooked pork.
3-4 carrots, diced
1 onion, sliced
1 granny smith apple, peeled and diced
salt and pepper
Grits (Trader joes has great grits near their oatmeal and breakfast cereal. I like to buy the stone ground white corn grits. Just follow the package direction on how to cook. Very simple and very yummy)
1/2 shredded cheese of your choice. I think cheddar would be the best to use, I only had mozzarella so I used that.
1/4 maple syrup
Red pepper flakes

Turn the oven to 350 degrees.

Preheat a skillet over medium high heat with about a tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil. Use either cast iron or stainless steel (I'm not a big believer in nonstick skillets based solely on their sucky searing abilities) If you don't own a pan other than nonstick, that's fine, just crank the heat a little bit higher.

Dry off the pork chops with a paper towel. This ensures an even a good sear.  Generously salt and pepper both sides.  Add to preheated skillet. Hear the sizzle?! Cook on one side for about 5 minutes. Turn heat to medium,Flip and cook on other side for about 5 minutes. If the pork chop does not release from the pan, DO NOT FORCE IT! It will let you know when it's ready to be flipped. Just wait a minute or so and try to pick it up again.

After the chop is cooked on both sides, remove from pan and transfer to a smaller pan. Put in preheated oven for about 12 minutes or so.

While the chops are in the oven, put carrots in the skillet the pork was seared in for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Make sure heat is still on medium.  Add onions to carrots and cook until onions are tender. About 10 more minutes. Reduce to lowest setting. Add chopped apple to mixture. Make sure to add these in the last step so they are heated through but still have a little bit of bite. They don't taste very good in this recipe if you overcook them.

Cook grits according to package directions. They should only take about 20 minutes. In fact, I started these when I was searing off the pork chops. They can sit on the stove with no heat for a while and will stay warm. Don't forget to add cheese when they are finished cooking.

By this point, the pork should be done. Remove from oven and transfer to a plate and let rest. Put smaller pan on the stove and add maple syrup and red pepper flakes. Only about a pinch. A little goes a long way. Turn heat to low and simmer the maple syrup for a few minutes (about 3) until it has reduced a bit.

To assemble: Place grits on bottom of plate and place pork on top of grits. Put vegetable and apple mix on top of the chop and top with sauce.

I didn't have high hopes for this dish but it was pretty delicious and has instantly become one of my favorites. The sweetness of the maple syrup along with the spicy from the red pepper flakes makes this dish an all around hit. I say that because Blake told me he enjoyed it.

Name that Dish!

For the first time in my life I am at a loss for words. I have never had a hard time thinking of names for recipes that I have created yet I was at a loss for naming this dish. (My secret obsession is actually writing food related jingles. Many of you may know my most famous hit, "Ham skillet, you're so delicious") Calling this dish "ham skillet" sounded so boring. The only other name I came up with was "toads on the rocks".  I thought the eggs looked like toads. This is probably a sign I need an eye exam. For now, I  will call it the unnamed dish.


At this point I am sure you realized by most of my pictures that my cast iron skillet gets a lot of use. If you have not yet invested in one, GO BUY ONE! Once you learn to cook out of one, your cooking techniques will be so much easier and your food will taste so much better! (I'm bias)

5 potatoes of any sort. Red, yukon gold or russet. Diced in to bite size pieces of similar size. It doesn't have to be exact but you want to ensure the cook time is relatively the same.
1 C of diced ham. We buy ham steaks from Costco an I used about half a ham steak.
6-7 eggs. you can mix the eggs like you would to begin scrambled eggs or leave them whole
1/2 C cheese. I used mozzarella but I usually use cheddar
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400
Dice the potatoes and add to a preheated skillet with 1T vegetable oil over medium heat. Stir occasionally. Add salt and pepper.  Letting the potatoes fry in the oil will ensure they get a crispy crust. Cook until tender. About 10 minutes. Add diced ham and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Crack the eggs on top of the ham and potato mixture, add salt and pepper and place in the oven for about 6 minutes.

Remove from oven and add cheese and place back in the oven for an additional 3 minutes until the cheese is melted. Remove from oven and either slice and serve or mix and serve. I prefer to mix up the skillet and serve. It looks more rustic that way instead of looking like a crustless hillbilly quiche.

The main thing I love about this dish is the simplicity. Its basically a combination of breakfast staples.  It doesn't contain an exciting or exotic flavors but on Sunday morning all I want to do is enjoy a meal I can us only one pan to make. This is breakfast at its most simple. Plain Jane skillet sounds about right:)

Salt Lake City, Oregon?

Before arriving to Salt Lake City, I had anticipated most of the city to be dominated by people of a certain religion. After my first meal I realized this was not the case. Many of the restaurant goers were covered in tattoos wearing trendy hats and Toms. I was shocked at first until Shannon told me this was a regular sight in SLC. It reminded me a lot of Portland. A blend of eccentric hippies and alternative personalities. I instantly felt at home on not only the clean neighborhood streets but also the quirky diners and restaurants we happily stuffed out faces at. If you ever get a chance to visit SLC, make sure to stop by these gems.

Breakfast Friday morning: Eggs in the City
Huevos rancheros. Two perfectly cooked eggs stacked on top of two corn tortillas and smothered in red spicy sauce. Melty cheddar cheese finished by perfectly cold sour cream and avocado made this meal exactly what I needed. Pure bliss.
Served with black beans and fried potatoes. Probably my most favorite meal of the trip.



Dinner Friday night: Per Noi Italian Restaurant
House made gnocchi in a bolognese sauce. Clearly homemade pockets of potato goodness. At first glance I thought the portion sizes were relatively small. After eating about a third of the meal, I got REALLY full. Like burst a button on your pants full. And of course like the true fat kid I am, I continued to eat. I finished out the dish scraping every last bit of meaty bolognese from the plate. Shannon saved the rest of her dish and I was a bit jealous at the thought of her getting to eat this gnocchi twice.


Breakfast Saturday morning: Casa de la Shannon.
A very exclusive place to eat. Reservations not taken. In fact, Shannon made us breakfast at home on Saturday morning. In all honesty, what she made for us was absolutely fantastic and very simple. Be open minded; This dish sounds a little different but you must try it! Fried egg on top of a toasted English muffin with 1/2 a pack of a "Wholly guacamole-100 calorie pack". I came home from SLC, ran to Costco and bought these 100 calorie packs of delicious guacamole.  I don't know what it was about this breakfast combination but I probably could had downed about 6 of these sandwiches.

Saturday lunch we ate at a brewery in park city and like the little piggy I am, I completely forgot to snap a picture of my meal. I had a black bean burger. Sounds exciting, tasted like black beans.

Saturday night we stopped by The Sweet Tooth Fairy Bake Shop for cupcakes. This small shop was featured on Cupcake Wars on Food Network. These cupcakes were worth every calorie. Shannon and I split a Salted Caramel (nothing too special) and a chocolate PB(Ah-may-zing). This shop is  was stellar and while we only selected two, I could had eaten a dozen.



Sunday morning was bittersweet. While I was very excited to see Blake and Shannon was very excited to see Jeff, I was very sad to leave behind the greatest friend I have ever had. I
am the luckiest girl in the world to have a friend in my life I can share everything with and who understand every food quirk I have. Many visit will be made back out to SLC. And every visit will include a trip to the Blue Plate Diner. A quirky diner with about 30 tables decorated with USA themed antiques. The place mats were made of paper with a list and picture of our past and future presidents. To top it off, just about every server had on coke bottle glasses and had at least one tattoo sleeve. I felt like I was in Portland. It made the meal even more amazing.
Benedict Omelet. A fluffy golden omelet containing sharp Cheddar cheese and pepper bacon smothered in hollandaise sauce and served with fried potatoes. This omelet was by far the best omlet I have ever had. Their hollandaise sauce was clearly homemade and had just enough acidity to balance out the freshness of the eggs and peppery bacon. Fantasmo.

All in all it was a fantastic visit and a beautiful city. I look forward to many more trips to SLC for good food and amazing friends.

While the cat is away the mice will.... eat enchiladas.

As I packed for a trip to visit an amazing friend in SLC, I realized I made a promise to Blake that I would leave him with some food to eat before I left.  For the first time in my life, I am scrambling to pack a bag and make a dish of something to leave behind. For someone with self diagnosed OCD, I successfully waited until the last minute to do everything. After dropping Blake off at work, I came home, walked the dogs, fed them, stuffed clothes in a bag and got started on the easiest and quickest dish of enchiladas I have ever made. I apologize for the lack of pictures. I really was in a hurry.....

Last minute enchiladas

1-1.5 lbs of cooked shredded meat** (I used pork I had made in the slow cooker 2 days ago).
1 diced onion
1 small can of green chiles
1/2t sage
1 large can of enchilada sauce.(Green or red)
8-10 or so corn, wheat or flour tortillas. (preferably the medium size, I have found that the fajita size is too small) Also, I used whole wheat corn tortillas I bought from trader joes.
1/2c each of shredded cheddar cheese and a white cheese (I think I used mozzarella based on how well it melts)
1 can of olives (optional)

Preheat oven to 350

Mix shredded meat, diced onion and green chiles in a large bowl. add salt, pepper and sage to the bowl and mix again.

Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray and pour half the can of enchilada sauce in to a baking dish. I use an 11 by 13 dish for just about everything. It ensures leftovers for a few days.

Assemble the enchiladas by holding the tortilla with one hand and scooping the meat mixture in to the tortilla. Don't overload the tortilla or it won't close when you put it in the pan. Put about 1/4c in each tortilla (maybe a little bit less. I never measure) Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and roll the tortilla and place in the baking dish. Repeat this step until all of the meat mixture is gone. Pour the rest of the can of enchilada sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with the white cheese.

Wrap in foil and place in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the foil and put back in the oven for an additional 10 minutes. The cheese and sauce should be all bubbly by this point.
It takes a while to bake this dish but the prep time is very minimal if all of the ingredients are already cooked or prepped.

**To make the slow cooker pork, I placed a pork blade roast (I think it's also called the rump roast) of about 2 lbs in the slow cooker with a half cup of water. Add salt, pepper and 1/2t chili powder and cover and cook on low for about 7 hours.

Make nice with your slow cooker. It will be the best tool in your kitchen if you know how to use it. More on slow cooker recipes in the future!

Greek-ish meatballs with lemon and dill rice

Nothing says comfort food quite like meatballs. Most people think meatballs are strictly Italian and only belong in spaghetti. But I say NAY! Why discriminate and only make Italian meatballs? These Greek-ish meatballs will spice up your life just as much as a John Stamos poster.


Greek meatballs with lemon and dill rice

For the Meatballs
1lb of ground beef (I use the organic Costco pack so under cooking them won't kill me)
1t coriander
1/2 t each of cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cumin
1/4 t each of pepper and ground mustard
2T parsley flakes (again, I used dry)
The juice of one lemon
1/4 c breadcrumbs (I used panko)
1 egg
For the rice
White rice or jasmine rice
Rind of the lemon used for the meatballs (I will discuss this later)
2 T of dill
1/4 T salt
For the sauce
1 C White wine
1/2 a lemon (optional)

Combine all the meatball ingredients and mix well. Save the lemon after juicing it and set aside.

Roll the meatballs into golf ball sized balls.

Heat an oven safe skillet with one tablespoon of canola oil on medium high. (don't use olive oil, it has a really low burning temp)
Brown the meatballs on one side for about 3 minutes. Brown the other side for 2 minutes and then bake in the oven safe pan for about 7 minutes at 350

 

Remove meatballs from pan and dump out excess oil. Place the pan over medium heat and add the white wine. Reduce by 1/2 and then pour into a separate bowl.

Cook rice according to package directions. I have a rice cooker so I put the rind of the lemon in the rice cooker so it would steam in some of the lemon flavor.

After it is finished cooking, add the dill and salt. Mix well and remove the lemon rind.

Compile your ingredients and then pour the white wine reduction over the meatballs and rice.

****Like an idiot, I forgot to drain off the fat so most of my sauce was lost to the sink when I poured out the excess fat.

Kona was a fantastic helper!

Refrigerator Pasta

On nights where I am feeling particularly lazy, I make pasta. Most of the time I make pasta with hodgepodge ingredients I have in the fridge. Tonight we are having spicy chicken pasta with peppers and onions. I rarely write down recipes so bare with me.

Spicy chicken pasta with peppers and onions
Serves 4

2 bell peppers,  roughly chopped (I used one red and one yellow)
1 small onion, roughly chopped
1 large chicken breast, chopped in bite-sized pieces
1/2 c heavy cream (I seriously always have this on hand)
The juice of one lemon
2T of parsley. I used dry parsley today but fresh would also work
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
6-8oz of pasta (Any kind will do. I used Trader Joes egg pappardelle) 
Salt and pepper to taste

Start a pot of boiling water for your pasta of choice
Saute onion and peppers over medium heat with a tablespoon or so of olive oil in a heavy bottomed pan. ( I swear by cast iron. If you have a pan that is seasoned correctly it will last forever and will eventually become nonstick)

Saute until onions are translucent but peppers still have a bit of bite. No one likes soggy peppers. Then set aside in a separate bowl.

Brown chicken until completely cooked and then add the pepper and onion mixture to the chicken.Add parsley, red pepper flakes, lemon juice and heavy cream. Reduce heat to low.

At this point your water should be boiling. Generously salt your water then add pasta

Cook pasta until al dente then add the pasta to the chicken mixture. I reserve about 1/4 of the pasta water to add to the sauce. Stir until combined and increase heat to medium. Add pasta water and mix to ensure the noodles don't stick to the bottom of the pan. The pasta water will help the sauce thicken. This step will take about 5 minutes or so. When the sauce is clinging to the pasta, it should be finished.

More salt...(to taste of course)

Easy green salad and voila!

After taking all but the last picture with my iphone, it's seeming like I need to use the digital SLR for most of my pictures.
I eat really fast. This dinner was gone in no time.