Playing Chef

Happy St. Patty's Day: Corned Beef & Cabbage (in a crock pot w/ a can of Guinness)

2012-03-18T21:57:00.001-07:00

I made corned beef for the first time. It was 1. super easy 2. super yummy. Yay, me!!! I used this recipe and changed the serving size to 4 and also threw it in a crock pot because I like to use my crock pot. Although the spice measurements were different, I upped everything to 1/4 teaspoon to make it easy for myself.

Ingredients:
beef brisket (I used a 2.85 lb. brisket because it was the smallest I could find at the grocery store)
1/4 teaspoon each: cinnamon, ground cloves, all spice, black pepper)
3 carrots
2 medium potatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 green cabbage cut into wedges
1 can of Guinness draught (if you read the instructions, the person was firm about getting draught and NOT stout)

The ingredients:

1. Brown the brisket

2. Rub the brisket with the spices
3. Throw the brisket in the crock pot.
4. Empty the can of Guinness. Add vegetables (minus the cabbage) and water to cover the meat.

5. Set on low for 8 hours.
6. Flip the meat over halfway (this could be optional)
7. Add the cabbage and set for another hour.
8. Remove meat from crock pot and slice across the grain. Serve with veggies and some dijon mustard.
9. Enjoy with an Irish brew!

After dinner, J said to me "You should try the corned beef in a can to taste the difference." And my reply was "No. Who would want to do that?" This guy was in the US Army for six years - and let's just say - lived like one before I met him. So...there ya go!

For dessert, we had mint chocolate chip ice-cream.

We had leftovers, so I added the corned beef and some bell peppers to our scrambled eggs for breakfast the next morning. Yum! Happy St. Patrick's Day ;D

Cold, Wet Friday Soup: Oxtail

2012-03-17T21:29:00.000-07:00

While the rest of the country is enjoying record setting temperatures, sunshine and an early Spring, it's super "cold" and wet in Northern California. (I put cold in quotes because I grew up on the East coast and it gets cold there. I've acclimated to the weather here, so I'm kind of a wimp and really dislike being cold.)

So, it's been a long week with the time shift, things have been a little off. It rained really hard on Friday and I thought it would be nice for J to come home to a nice warm comfort soup for dinner. I braised the oxtails for hours (pretty much all day) with the vegetables and it really turned out great. I tried to replicate my mom's oxtail soup and it was pretty darn close :) I served it with a small bowl of rice and fish sauce with chili peppers for dipping.

Ingredients:
Oxtail
Veggies: carrots, potato, celery
Garlic cloves
Onion
Herbs: I used what I had, some thyme but you can use pho seasoning if you have it, star anise, peppercorns, etc.

The most critical step is to rinse and then parboil the oxtail. Parboiling is basically boiling the meat in rapid water for 10-15 to remove the impurities. Rinse and then you can start the soup. I simmer the oxtail for about 2 hours with the herbs and then add the veggies in for the rest of the day.

The end result is some really tender fall-off-the-bone meat. The broth is very light, so we usually eat this with a small bowl of rice and a side of fish sauce with crushed chili peppers.

Flat Iron Steak With Red Wine Sauce

2012-03-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Even though I had a glass of wine with the lamb I still had some red wine left over. I didn't want it to go to waste, so I made another great meal. This one is from my girl Giada De Laurentiis. She's not really "my girl" but I met her at a book signing a few years ago (the pic is somewhere) and she (said she) liked my name and asked if I was Vietnamese. Anyway, the recipe can be found here, from Food Network.

So, I followed the directions, because why mess with something if all the reviews says it great? Plus, why wouldn't you follow a recipe if you're making it for the first time? That could just be me. Anyway... here is Thursday's dinner. Oh, and the sauce really was great!

Some meat shots:

I served it with a side of greans and the left over garlic & chive mashed potatoes from the previous night. Still good.

Red Wine Braised Lamb Shanks

2012-03-15T20:52:00.000-07:00

Meh - I'm not really happy with my plating or this photo.

While at the grocery store, I got all kinds of protein. I picked up this rack of lamb. Thinking I'd like to add rack of lamb to my "Things I've cooked" list.

I only used half of this rack because I'm only cooking for two. Which turned out to be these three pieces here. As you can see, one piece is significantly larger than the other two.

I used this recipe submitted to Food & Wine.com and followed the instructions (I'm good at that). It actually turned out really good and now I can say I made lamb shanks. Yay, me! I served this with mashed garlic potatoes & chives, some green beans and carrots - because I love veggies.

Veggies for braising. I was upset the grocery store didn't have fresh bay leaves, WTF? So I had to settle for dried ones.

Here it is with the wine and all.

Baby carrots, green beans and potatoes.

Chives (as if you don't know what chives look like). I think they're pretty.

Garlic mashed potatoes & chives.

Taco Night: Barbacoa Tacos

2012-03-14T21:12:00.000-07:00

Since we had a bunch of tortillas, I decided to thaw the leftover barbacoa I made once in the crock pot. I did a copy cat recipe of Chipotle's and boy, it was delish! We had a little left, so I froze it and now was the perfect time to use it up. I made a corn salsa and a salad (as usual).

J gets two tacos and an extra serving of meat because he's a guy and eats more than I do.

Breakfast Burritos

2012-03-14T21:03:00.000-07:00

I needed something different. Every morning I make a breakfast sandwich. It's on a whole grain english muffin toasted, has a slice of 2% American cheese, a slice of turkey bacon and an egg and we garnish it with sugar free grape jelly. Every. Single. Morning. J is perfectly happy with this - he really likes it. I like it too, but sometimes I forgo the english muffin and make cheese eggs and eat it with the turkey bacon. Sometimes I have oatmeal. I just get bored. So, I got us some healthy tortillas and made breakfast burritos. The ingredients are pretty much the same. except I added chopped baby bell peppers to the mix. Just a small change, but it was what I needed.

Ingredients (makes 2 = 1 serving):
1 egg
baby bell peppers
1 slice of turkey bacon
salsa
hot sauce
2 tortillas

A Taste of Home: Maryland Crab Cakes

2012-03-13T20:15:00.000-07:00

It was Monday night, the first work day after the time change. It was a hectic day - I was running late for a lot of things. It was 7:30pm and I had no idea what to make for dinner. Luckily, I had just bought some fresh crab meat at the grocery store earlier.

I threw together a salad with crab cakes and called it dinner. So...what makes this Maryland crab cakes? The Old Bay. Yeah, we always have Old Bay with our seafood back home.

Ingredients:
1 lb. Fresth Crabmeat
1 beaten egg,
1 tablesppon mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I used whole grain)
1 teaspoon Worcesteershire sauce
2 tablespoons butter
Old Bay Seasoning
Panko or bread crumbs

Mix all these ingredients together and form into patties (I was able to get 6 patties out of this batch). Fry for about 4 minutes on each side.

I served it on top of a bowl of greens.

Mango & Kiwi

2012-02-20T14:28:00.000-08:00

I was leaving town for 4 days and had two large mangoes and 4 kiwi fruits. I cut them up and mixed them together for a quick snack. The sweetness of the mango and tartness of the kiwi fruit was actually very balanced and went well together...and also very pretty!

Heart Pastries 4 My Valentine

2012-02-15T18:26:00.000-08:00

We typically don't do much on Valentine's Day. I usually make dinner and this year I made a pepper-crusted filet mignon with veggies for dinner. And for dessert...I made these heart pastries because it's obligatory to make something heart-shaped on this "holiday." I filled them with peaches and brown sugar, popped them in the oven until they were golden and he ate them up. I have to admit, I did also cut his apples into heart shapes for breakfast - and yes, he enjoys these things...that's why I do them!

* These photos were taken on my phone because I'm not using the DSLR when I'm working with flour!

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

2012-02-14T14:32:00.000-08:00

I made some awesome pulled pork sandwiches last week in the crock pot. This is the kind of meal I can appreciate while busy working from home. Unfortunately, I don't have any photos to share with you. But, you have to trust me that they were delicious and simple and effortless! You can even ask my brother and his girlfriend who came over unexpectedly, hence the reason why I didn't take photos.

Ingredients (just four if you count salt & pepper!):
- Pork butt (I used the smallest piece available at the store - about 3 lbs.) - you can also use shoulder
- Salt & Pepper
- A can of Coke (not Diet Coke - regular Coke)

1. Generously salt & pepper the meat.
2. Place in your slow cooker.
3. Pour the can of Coke into the slow cooker.
4. Cook on low for 8 hours
5. After 8 hours, remove the meat and dump the remaining juices (save about 3/4 cup of the juice to keep the meat from drying out.
6. Place the meat back in the slow cooker and shred with forks, pour some of the remaining juice back in to moisten.
7. Toast buns (I used dinner rolls, so they were more like sliders), top with your favorite barbeque sauce.

Serve with coleslaw, cornbread, mac & cheese, potato fries - whatever you like. Yum yum and so EASY!

Leek & Gruyere Pastries

2012-01-30T23:32:00.000-08:00

I made these pastries twice this week. I made it twice because it was delicious. J really liked it and sent me this email while he was at work today:

Subject: Thinking about...
Message: ..my breakfast pastry w/ bacon thingy. Can't wait to eat it tonight. Haha.. ;)

Yeah. He already had breakfast with his mom when I pulled these out of the oven this morning. Needless to say he had two after work today.

This recipe is also from Food & Wine Fast. Which, I love - because the recipes really are fast and don't take much effort and will turn out delicious.

Ingredients:
Frozen Puff Pastry (thawed)
1 Leek
Shredded Gruyere cheese
3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto (in my case, cubed ham - it's what I had in the fridge)
1 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry puff. Cut into 4 equal squares. Fold the corners and edges.
2. In a skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the leeks and thyme, season with salt & pepper and cook over moderate heat, stirring until softened (about 5 minutes).
3. Sprinkle half the gruyere cheese over the pastry, spread the leeks over the cheese. Cover with proscuitto (or ham, whatever); sprinkle the remaining cheese. Season with s&p.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden or bubbling. Blot any excess fat with a paper towel. Enjoy!

Quick & Easy Salad

2012-01-30T23:12:00.000-08:00

I've been eating lots of salad for lunch. My favorite and it's so easy:

Baby Spinach
Heart of Palm
Roasted Beets
Sweet Corn Kernals
Cherry Tomatoes
Blackberries
Almonds

I just throw what I have on top of a handful of spinach in a bowl. I love beets so I usually roast 2-3 beets slice them up and keep them in the fridge.

Fully Loaded Bloody Mary

2012-01-30T23:06:00.001-08:00

I had a craving for a Bloody Mary this weekend. So, I made one and it was delicious.

Ingredients:
Tomato Juice
Vodka
Celery Stalk
Beef Jerky (spicy)
Olives
Tabasco Sauce
Worcheshire Sauce
Cayenne Pepper
Salt
Freshly grounded pepper
Ice

Chicken & Bulgur Salad With Avocado

2012-01-30T23:00:00.000-08:00

This salad is healthy, filling and easy. You can pretty much use any veggies you have on hand/like to eat.
Ingredients:
1 cup bulgar
1 cup boiling water
2 pieces of boneless chicken breasts (I used thighs) with skin removed
1/4 cup + 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil
Salt & freshly grounded pepper
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup shredded basil
5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 avocados
1 fennel bulb
1 cup cherry tomatoes

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
2. Cook bulgur. In a heatproof bowl, cover the bulgur with boiling water. Cover the bowl with a plate and let stand until the water has been absorbed and the bulgur is tender (about 30 minutes).
3. Roast the chicken. Coat the chicken with the grapeseed oil. Season with salt & pepper. Roast for 15 minutes, until golden; let cool. Slice the chicken into 1/4 inch thick pieces.
4. Make the vinaigrette. In a small bowl, whisk the orange juice with the basil, lemon juice, scallions and the remaining grapeseed oil season the vinaigrette with salt & pepper.
5. Toss it all up. In a bowl, toss the bulgur, chicken, avocados, fennel and tomatoes in the vinagrette. Season with with salt & pepper. Plate it up and serve.

From Food & Wine Fast

Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Stuffed Chicken

2012-01-07T19:05:00.000-08:00

This was a cheaper version of the stuffed beef tenderloin dinner I made for Christmas (sorry, no photos). Stuffing is caramelized onion & mushrooms cooked in a sweet red wine. Let the stuffing cool down to room temperature and lay on a butterflied piece of chicken and top with spinach. Roll it up and tie everything together with butcher's twine. The sauce was a dijon herbed butter sauce.

Mango Chicken Curry

2012-01-06T19:11:00.000-08:00

I had some chicken thawed in the fridge, but I really didn't know what to make. I had some coconut milk and mango, so I made mango chicken curry. It's a basic recipe I found online. I added more pepper to it because we like things spicy around here. It was a satisfying meal :)

Quick & Easy Shrimp Scampi

2012-01-02T19:14:00.000-08:00

My Oversized Whoopie Pies

2012-01-01T19:18:00.000-08:00

I made these red velvet whoopie pies to ring in the new year. J and I went out to a nice NYE dinner and then celebrated the new year by stuffing our face with these.

Christmas Eve Dinner @ Lazy Bear

2011-12-27T19:19:00.000-08:00

Lazy Bear is an underground restaurant. They do dinners every so often at an undisclosed location. Seats are limited so we were thrilled when we landed Christmas Eve reservations. We found out about Lazy Bear from another underground foodie event we attended in October, called 25SF. Dinner this evening was held at Chez Poulet in the Mission, which was an old warehouse (location is revealed after you confirm your reservations by making your online payment for dinner). I loved the setting - it was basically a large loft, like ours :) Chef David Barzaley did a great job explaining each dish and the preferred method to eat it. (Sorry the photos are dark - they were taken with my phone)

I forget to bring my bottle of wine, so we ended up grabbing a bottle from the liquor store around the corner. Fat Cat at Lazy Bear, hehee.

Smoked Beets - we licked our plates (literally).

Swordfish Belly

Dungeness Crab

Steelhead Roe

Steelhead

Goose Confit

Potato Puree

Goose Breast

Grapes

Pastry

Treats

...which included Spiced Rum

Holiday Gifts

2011-12-21T18:21:00.000-08:00

I didn't have time to make holiday cookies like I did last year. So, I decided to make and send drink mixes in mason jars to my friends and family. I ended up making at least 15 jars of Mexican Cocoa, Peppermint Stick Cocoa, Mocha Hot Cocoa and Orange Creamsicle.

I also made Peppermint Marshmallow Sticks:

You would be AMAZED at how simple and easy these were to make. Just melt chocolate chips in the microwave (for 30 seconds, stir, 30 seconds, stir - until completely melted). Then dip marshmallows in melted chocolate and then in crushed peppermints.

This isn't food related, but I'm really proud of myself because I MADE ALL THIS for all the babies born in 2011/late 2010. Thanks to Chez Beeper Bebe for the tutorials! What's extra cool about the bunnies is that they were re-purposed from old t-shirts (except the polka-dot bunny - I used leftover fabric from E's dress). Cool, right?

for babies M, E, E, and A.

A First: Cake Pops (+ J's Bday Dinner)

2011-12-21T17:53:00.000-08:00

Party for two!

It was J's birthday a couple weeks ago and I wanted to do something special. I made a steak dinner and those cake pops/cupcakes for dessert! It was my first time making cake pops, and you know how ambitious I am...I decided to go all out and borrowed Bakerella's Cake Pops book from my friend Robin With An I.

Here's a closer look at the cake pops:

They turned out well, for my first attempt. I have to say, it was pretty frustrating to get the technique down. I did lose five cake pops due to my FAILS:

Overall, I was happy with the seven I was able to make. (I planned to make a dozen). The lions were my favorite and way easier to do than the pandas. Birthday boy was super impressed with my work. He didn't want to eat them (but he did). So, that was dessert!

Here's what I made for dinner: Rosemary Rubbed Filet Mignon served with roasted brussel sprouts & bacon and garlic primavera risotto

My little jar of minced garlic always comes in handy. I do this to save time and it really does save a lot of time! I basically mince 2 heads of garlic and combine with oil. Store this jar in the fridge and use it for almost anything. One of the best tips I picked up from TV.

Brussel sprouts! Before and after:

Our Thanksgiving Menu 2011

2011-11-23T13:05:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving Menu 2011

ENTRÉES

POMEGRANATE-GLAZED ROAST TURKEY

12-hour brined Organic Free-Range Turkey (me)

HAM (my cousin)

ACCOMPANIMENTS

COLLARD GREENS

(SIL #3)

CASSEROLES Green Bean, Potato Cheese & Sweet Potato (SIL #1)

MASHED POTATO & GRAVY

SALAD (SIL #2)

CORNBREAD with Whipped Honey Butter

7-CHEESE MAC & CHEESE featuring Sharp Yellow Cheddar, Extra-Sharp White Cheddar, Mozzarella, Asiago, Gruyere, Monterey Jack, Muenster

CRANBERRY-ORANGE SAUCE

(me)

DESSERTS

PUMPKIN CAKE (my cousin)

PIES: APPLE, PUMPKIN (SIL #2)

Ancho-Marinated Skirt Steak With Warm Black Bean Salad

2011-11-03T09:57:00.000-07:00

I made this delicious dish from Sunset's October 2011 issue. And enjoyed it with the rest of the bottle of Syrah used in the marinade. It was really, really, yummy! You can find the recipe from Sunset here. But I've also included it here (in case).

Ingredients

1/2 cup Syrah or other dry red wine

1/2 cup red wine vinegar, divided

About 6 tbsp. olive oil, divided

2 tablespoons minced garlic, divided

1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp. pepper

2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided

2 teaspoons ground cumin, divided

2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves

1 tablespoon ground dried ancho chiles or chili powder

1 skirt steak (about 1 1/2 lbs.)

2 fresh poblano chiles (sometimes labeled pasilla)

1 large sweet onion, chopped

3 cans black beans (15 oz. each), drained and rinsed

1 large red pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2-in. chunks

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

About 3 green onions, sliced (including green tops)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

1. Combine wine, 1/4 cup each vinegar and oil, 1 tbsp. each garlic and pepper, 1 tsp. each salt and cumin, the oregano, and ground chiles in a large, plastic food bag. If steak is in 1 long piece, cut in half crosswise; rinse, add to bag, seal, and turn to coat. Chill at least 4 hours or up to 1 day.

2. Preheat broiler. Halve, stem, and seed the poblanos. Lay skin side up on a baking sheet and broil 4 inches from heat until well charred, 6 to 7 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, then peel and coarsely chop.

3. Heat grill to high (450° to 550°). In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, sauté onion and remaining 1 tbsp. garlic in 2 tbsp. oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in beans and remaining 1/4 cup vinegar and 1 tsp. each pepper, salt, and cumin; turn heat to low.

4. Oil cooking grate well. Lift steak from marinade (discard marinade) and grill, turning once, until browned on both sides but still pink in the center (cut to test), 7 to 10 minutes total. Transfer to a board and let rest at least 5 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, add poblanos, red pepper, tomatoes, 3 green onions, and cilantro to bean mixture, and stir occasionally until warm. Slice steak on the diagonal across the grain and serve on warm bean salad. Garnish with more green onions if you like.

Poblanos:

Bean Salad (I used golden cherry tomatoes instead of red ones. I like the colors)

And here's dinner for two:

I thought the flavors in the dish were really good and actually had a lot of the bean salad left over, which I loved. I added the bean salad the next day for breakfast in an omelet and as a salad for lunch. Success!

Pumpkin Gingersnap Ice Cream

2011-11-03T09:39:00.000-07:00

Who knew Tuesday would be such a culinary delight-ful day!

Again, this recipe is from the October 2011 Sunset issue. You can find the recipe here.

Do you see those little speckles? They are speckles of goodness (gingersnap cookies).

Ingredients
1 pt. whipping cream
1/2 cup milk
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup Homemade Pumpkin Purée
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup coarsely crushed gingersnaps
2 tablespoons bourbon (optional)

Preparation
1. Whisk all ingredients except gingersnaps and bourbon in a bowl to blend. Strain into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions. (I actually skipped this part...oops. Hey, working from home and cooking at the same time can be distracting...but luckily it wasn't too much of an error. I'll be sure to strain it next time I make this, and I *will* make this again)
2. Scrape ice cream into a bowl and stir in gingersnaps and bourbon. Freeze, covered, until scoopable, 2 1/2 hours and up to 1 week (gingersnaps soften somewhat after 1 day).

Ingredients:

Added to the milk & cream:

All blended together:

The ice cream maker does it's magic, and into the freezer for a couple hours:

And then, this goodness can be enjoyed!

Turkey Bacon Wrapped Dates w/ Balsamic Reduction

2011-10-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, J & I attended an underground foodie event called 25SF. It was a lot of fun and one of the items served was bacon wrapped dates. It was good, and so I decided to make some tonight. I used turkey bacon because 1. it's what I have 2. it's healthier. I try to be as healthy as I can regularly, so I can splurge when I'm out and not feel bad about it when I do.

Ingredients
Pitted dates
Turkey bacon, or bacon bacon (cut into thirds)
Toothpicks
1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 cup Light Brown Sugar

Make the Balsamic Reduction
1. Boil the balsamic vinegar. Simmer until reduced to half.
2. Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Continue stirring until sticky and thick.
3. Let cool.

Cook the Bacon Wrapped Dates
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Wrap the dates in the bacon and seal with a toothpick (edges on the bottom)
3. Place on a baking sheet lined with foil
4. Bake for 20-30 minutes (until crisp and edges are brown)
5. Let cool for about 10-15 minutes and serve

Plate the dates and drizzle the balsamic reduction over to taste. Enjoy!

This is a great appetizer and I'll be making this for my bestie's baby shower in January!