Chicken and cowboys

Earlier this week I decided to make a roaster chicken I had been saving, so I decided to go with Engagament Chicken. I read about it long ago in Glamour Magazine, where it is a THING. Now, I made it for my kids so no engagement rings in sight. But! THE KIDS LOVED IT!!! I was shocked too. 

I used Ina Garten's recipe, which was not the original Glamour one, but was very delicious. This is a terrible picture and I was so excited about it I forgot to take another picture when I was finished cooking it. Please again, don't mind my dirty stove. My youngest kid even helped to season it and stuff it with garlic and lemons. It was aawsome. (So awesome it needs two A's. Typo stays). 

 

The next day, Gav also had the job of taking the rest of the chicken off of the carcass because we were making Chicken and Stars soup. 

 

 Those are the onions cooking in olive oil, but then we also put the cold fat from the chicken pan (and onions) into the soup for extra flavor. And it came out EXCELLENTLY.

 

Now. Last night I made Cowboy Casserole. I found the recipe the other day when thinking about what ingredients I had, but also because I remembered Jer told me his mom used to make a casserole with tater tots. DONE. Sooooooo Cowboy Casserole it is. Basically, you brown hamburger with some onion and seasonings, then throw in some "cream of" soup. I had cream of chicken so that's what I used. A little sour cream, a little milk, a can of corn (I used frozen corn) and some cheddar cheese. Mixy mixy mixy. Then put in a pan with tater tots and top with a smidge more cheese, then bake it. Mmmmmm omg tater tots. I couldn't remember the last time I made tater tots. Mmmmmmmm remember when they would have tater tots in the hot lunch? BEST DAY EVER. When I was looking for tater tot casserole recipes I found a bazillion of them, ALL DELICIOUS LOOKING. Hello Pinterest! 

 

For the most part, the kids all liked it. The melted cheese on top seemed to be a deterrent for all of the kids, but other than that, kid approved. Wooohooo. Obvs Jer and I ate a ton of it because DELICIOUS. Mmmmmm. 

I'm attempting a French toast bake as I type this, so fingers crossed! 

Hmmm French Onion Alfredo Quinoa

Tonight I wanted quinoa but I didn't know what kind, so I decided to ransack my cabinets and see what I had. So. Newman's Own Alfredo Sauce, an almost expired French's French Fried Onions, Parmesan cheese and quinoa. Oh and Garlic.

BOOM. Cooked the quinoa in the rice pot, then mixed it with a tablespoon full of garlic and the jar of Alfredo sauce. Then topped it with Parmesan and the fried onions and baked it at 350 for 20 minutes. Or if you are me, I accidentally put it on broil so the onions got a smidge crispy but DAMN IF IT DIDNT MAKE IT BETTER. BEHOLD! 

 

Then I mixed it all up....mmmm

 

The flavor is good, the crunchiness is good. WOULD TOTES MAKE AGAIN. 

Weekend Cooking Spectacular

First of all, I am ridiculous and like to over plan for cooking always. 

Secondly, I decided to talk Jer (aka Big Country) into cooking ahead for the following week so we both had delicious homemade food to eat. So we (slash I, in a slightly bullying fashion-❤️ YOU BC) made a list of dishes to make, divvied up our ingredients and then COOKED. We planned for three meals, but ended up making 2, which I was cool with. We also made a pumpkin pie, which I will share posthaste.

So, we made this Skinnytaste Sausage and Peppers Macaroni bake. We used turkey Italian sausage, a red and yellow bell pepper, and macaroni. Basically, we sautéed the sausage, added in onion, peppers, mushrooms and garlic, then a can of diced tomatoes and a jar of pasta sauce. This recipe is different in that you cook the noodles in th sauce so, extra easy, so extra DONE. I only took this one crappy picture of it but IT IS DELICIOUS. And cuts up easy for portioning out and whatnot. 

 

We also made the crock pot bourbon chicken, which I had made before, but BC wasn't there for that. Turns out though, he knows the lady that runs that blog which is actually pretty cool! 

We also, made this Fireball Whiskey Pumpkin Pie, which, I think we originally saw floating around Facebook, but also, someone had left the EXACT amount of Fireball in my fridge. PERFECT! 

 

So we didn't grill the pies because I was baking. The first pie crust is the one BC rolled out. 

 Obviously th terrible second one is mine. Ha! We pre-baked them. Or Par baked them? LISTEN. We baked them for like 20 min while the sausage macaroni was cooking. Then did the recipe (which, basically, is a pumpkin pie recipe plus fireball.)

 

 

Did I happen to take a picture of the pie when it was finished? That was not in my dirty oven? I did not.Because  eating pie. But here, enjoy this fireball bottle. 

 

Overall, an excellent weekend of cooking. More cooking adventures this week I predict! 

Siempre Te Amare Tacos Al Pastor

A lover of all tacos...keep it clean people...I have never attempted or even knew how al pastor was made. As luck would have it Facebook - or more precisely Tasty- had released another one of those over head cooking videos called "homemade al pastor". As a taco officiendo I felt it was my duty to try that recipe out. Also I believe it was other folks thoughts as well as that video was sent to me by friends. Shout outs to Vicki for posting it to my page. That helped too cause I'm one of those dummies that doesn't remember where I saw something nor thinks to write it down. Pretty much before today I've stuck to three types- chicken, steak, and turkey- for meat choices when cooking tacos at home. All signs and the magic 8 ball pointed to "YES" so had to try it out.

In case you are not familiar and/or have not tried it, Al Pastor is pretty much like a Mexican  pork version of Shawarma and/or a Gyro- at least in how its cooked. Difference being that this is marinaded with spices, pineapple juice, and various other stuff prior to cooking. My go to choice of tacos is usually steak, however depending on where I'm at the alternative is Al Pastor. Just has a lot of flavor to it.

Al Pastor Marinade 

So the video "how to" for the Home made Al Pastor was originally in Spanish and did not include the written out ingredients and directions. I was going to post that however I found a site with the recipe in addition to the video (which is in English) and figured two birds with one stone. You can find that page HERE. So during my lunch break from work (FYI I work from home thus why you see me in ragged clothing), I decided to do the marinade and butchering- as the meat is suppose to marinate for at least 2 hours. Per the recipe it calls for 5 lbs of pork shoulder, but I went with a 3 pounds as there's only 3 of us. I suppose if you don't eat pork, you could probably use chicken instead and adjust the cooking time accordingly. 

Rugged man does rugged butchering

Playing Al Pastor Jenga

Probably the most work of this recipe was cutting up the pork shoulder. Otherwise it would be skewering the meat. I will say the only issue I had was with aligning the skewer into the pineapple. Because I was off center with it ended up tipping over in the oven. As the Macguyver type I am, I just compensated by adding/pouring the marinade into the tray. Figured that would keep it from burning/overcooking. Also halfway through I flipped it over.

Al Pastor resting on its skewers

Finish product: Karen edition as indicated by sour cream

Overall I think- like all those famous cooking shows would say- came out pretty tasty. In this instance I'm not lying cause I really did enjoy it. If it was crap I would say so. #BelieveIt.  Anyway if you're adventurous I say go for it. Just don't forget to invite me cause you know you ain't going to eat all that food.

#FoodieSquadGoals,

Reef

Bon Voyage or Banh Mi

I've been itching for a Banh Mi sandwich, ever since those Nom Nom girls were on the Great Food Truck race. They were totally bitches on that show (and that includes the dude, whose name MAY have been David, I'm too lazy to Google) but made some delicious sandwiches. Reef sometimes brings me a sort of Banh Mi (unless I'm hallucinating, which, I just cleaned my bathroom with Tilex so it's very bleachy in my room and I totes COULD BE hallucinating...) from a sandwich place that's....somewhere.....Unwich? No. I forget the name but it's good. 

Anyways. I saw that Gina the Skinnytaste lady (via the How Sweet Eats lady on Insta) had a Banh Mi bowl. So, obvs I was like YESSSSSS SO MUCH YES. 

First, I marinated the pork in huli-huli sauce with garlic and jalepeño and crock potted it whilst at work. Mmmmmm

 

I know, I'm concerned there isn't enough garlic also. And my jalepeños are red because they were still on the vine as of this morning. 

Then when I got home I broke it all up and made my delicious pickling of radishes and carrots. 

 

Just vinegar and sugar and salt. 

Then I put it all together over rice with some broccoli slaw and sliced cucumber and cilantro. Now, I vaguely used skinnytaste's recipe found here upon which I changed a few things based on what I had. Also, I AM NOT GOING TO BE MATCHSTICKING A RADISH. I can just eat them vaguely sliced. At any rate. THIS WAS DELICIOUS AND YUMMY AND I WOULD TOTALLY MAKE IT AGAIN. It just was a lot of vague chopping. 

 

In other news, I'm trying the buzzfeed hack where you freeze your leftover coffee in an ice cube tray for iced coffee. We shall see buzzfeed. We shall see. 

 

Back to some home cooking

Tonight I needed to go pad my cabinets/fridge a bit since I'm finally back from Vacay and my cupboards are bare. I decided to go to Fresh Thyme and get produce for tomorrow's dinner (which is going to be a skinnytaste Banh Mi Bowl) and I ended up with some Chicken Chipotle Jalepeño sausage made in house. I'm super stoked about it  

I also bought some broccoli slaw for the banh mi bowls and decided to dress it with a Greek dressing that I vaguely followed from this recipe. 

 

I'm also enjoying this delicious Maple Ale. 

 

Jeremy got me a Sam Adams multi-pack with a Bunch of flavors in it. So far I have tried the Toasted Carmel Bock, this Maple Ale and a Fireside Blonde. The Carmel was good and not SUPER carmelly. But overall, delicious. The fireside blonde tasted, literally, like a campfire. Imaging drinking smoke and beer at the same time. Like how your clothes smell post fire....it was a little too smoky for me. The maple ale is crisp and leaves just a aftertaste of maple which I am highly enjoying. 

 

So the sausage has a nice heat which paired well with the broccoli slaw and really went with the Greek dressing. Mmmmmmm overall a hit. The sausage would be too spicy for my kids and Karen. Good for the others. Mmmmmmmmmmm

A Couple of Newbies

Having gone to do "errands" aka shopping aka buying stuff, decided to pick up some groceries. I didn't know we were doing errands until Karen said we were. The recurring theme of "new" and "limited edition" was in full effect yet again. Will I ever not be a sucker for that stuff? Mostly like not. If you haven't been aware its been Pumpkin Spice season for just about everything. While at Target came across this. In case you're keeping tabs under Archer Farms it states *Limited Edition*.

Pumpkin Spice Snack Bites

Pretty sure I never got into the pumpkin spice crazy before but figured this was something Karen would like. This was a oatmeal cookie with pumpkin seeds and a little frosting/yogurt. Don't remember how much I paid for them but Karen was not a fan of them. That's okay cause me and Lily enjoyed them and finished them off. I think they were more trail mix like than cookie overall. Not really sure what constitutes "pumpkin spice" flavor as pretty much was just pumpkins seeds. Does that meet the criteria? I turn over the judgment to the experts. All that being said I would buy them again. Maybe one day I'll learn what "pumpkin spice" is suppose to be like.

The other thing I came across was from good ol' Aunt Jemima. They say do what you know and that lady knows pancakes...well in this instance breakfast food. Every time I see the logo/box for one of their products I instantly think of Tracy Morgan's skit on SNL (back when it was actually hilarious) of Uncle Jemima's Done Home Mash Liquor. "SHUT UP WOMAN!" As I was perusing the frozen section of the grocery store I ran across this item.

Aunt Jemima Apple & Cinnamon Griddle Poppers

Do I even have to point out the "NEW!" on the packaging. It seem pretty interesting when I looked over the box. Health wise? 7 of those poppers (which I keep fighting the urge to type poopers) was 180 calories. Overall verdict? They were pretty good. Clearly they are made mostly for kids or grown ass men who still act like children. Don't really remember the cost of them but I think they were fairly reasonable. On the positive note Karen actually enjoyed these too.

The last newbie was actually a gift from Tina who recently went on a world tour or just a trip to the West Coast. Same difference? Anyway not sure if she's going to write about all that. As part of her adventure she picked up this a gift for yours truly...well I assumed it was for me but you never know could have been for Karen...who loves spicy things...almost...never...yeah I'm 99.8% certain this was for me.

Harry & David Ghost Pepper Relish

I'm not quite sure what my expectations where when I opened it. Maybe that it would be super hot? I mean based on all the youtube videos of folks losing their minds, crying, throwing up, and chugging milk I think that was a reasonable expectation. This did not meet those expectations- which is a good thing I suppose as I don't need to be an internet sensation.  Actually pretty sweet and tasty. Not sure if I just missed all the ghost peppers or what but I didn't find it that spicy. I mean I'll have to dig more into it. Actually wasn't quite sure how you typically eat this type of relish? I just put it on a cracker. Definitely tasty and will have to look up recipes/ways to eat it.

#SuckerForNewStuff,

Reef

The Spaghetti Western...or Spaghetti Squash Cometh

Upon getting back on track from a vacation, Karen insisted that we cook a spaghetti squash. Not sure if she was convinced by Tina talking about spaghetti squash or it was just because we happened to buy one a couple days before I had left for New York. It's a toss up. Either way Karen wanted me to make one of her favorites- Spaghetti Squash Lasagna.  

Spaghetti squash is actually pretty tasty alternative to pasta for you folks looking to eat better. Per a quick google search, you're talking 42 calories/10g of carbs for 1 cup of squash vs. 220 calories/42g of carbs for 1 cup of spaghetti noodles. Pretty much ran across knowing what a spaghetti squash was while perusing Instagram. Among the various quotes and artwork, there was a recipe for spaghetti squash lasagna. Seemed like it would be good so figured why not.  Unfortunately don't have a link/website so here's my ad-lib instructions:

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash

olive oil

Adobo or Salt & Pepper

1 lb (or package which is usually 1.25 lbs) of ground turkey

2 cups pasta sauce (your favorite)

1/2 cup Ricotta cheese

1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese

2 TBSP of basil (fresher is better)

How to Get It Done:

Pre-heat the oven 400 degrees. Usually do this first unless you're me and you forget then you have to wait. Cut the spaghetti squash in half length wise and scoop out the gunk and seeds. Rub/coat the insides of the squash with olive oil and sprinkle your seasoning of choice- in my case Adobo.  Get a baking dish- like 9x13 or bigger and put in squash open side down. Fill pan with about a cup of water. Going to bake this in the oven for 50 minutes.  

In the meantime you can mix up the Ricotta, Mozzarella, and basil in a separate bowl. In a pan cook up the ground turkey. Once browned add the pasta sauce and cook for a couple more minutes. 

Ricotta, Mozzarella, and Basil mixture

Ground Turkey and Pasta Sauce

Once the spaghetti squash is done, take it out, and drain the water. Flip the spaghetti over and using a fork to shred and scoop out the inside. Then you are going to want to layer the squash, cheese mixture, and turkey back into the squash halves.

The set up for the Spaghetti Squash

Then you will put it in the oven to broil it until the cheese melts/browns which I would say is another 10-15 minutes.  I suppose if you don't have a broil option in your oven I would just  bake it some more until the cheese is nice and melted. And that is how you make Spaghetti Squash Lasagna.

Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

This is one of Karen's favorite meals- obviously as she asked me to make it. Further proof is she doesn't add sour cream or let me share leftovers with folks so you know it has to be very decent at the least. Once again not my original recipe so wish I could give credit where it's due.  Pretty simple to make and worth the effort.

#Pastafarian,

Reef

Dining In The Big Apple pt 2

I've been meaning to write more blogs but the jet lag and poor sleep had won the battle these last couple of days. So sorry to be late with this second part but let's get back to the action. The hotel we stayed at was Asiatic Hotel in Flushing, New York. It's located in the 2nd largest Chinatown of New York. Basically my two top choices food wise are typically Mexican and Chinese. Really can't go wrong with either of those...unless you're just a meat and potatoes type then I suppose you could.

As part of the hotel's package we got free breakfast. Now typically that just means you get some little boxes of cereal and like toast. This place was actually pretty good. Had a plethora of options from baked goods, donuts, muffins, cereal, rice pudding, oatmeal, and various drinks. I believe during the first breakfast I got adopted by an Asian family. I miss Grandma even though we didn't understand each other she was a sweetheart.

Asiatic Hotel Breakfast

After a long day at the convention we opted to go for some burgers. All the local/veteran artists hyped up Schnippers. Apparently have have a couple joints but this is the one located by Time Square which is the original one. As a burger joint they have the typical flair - burgers, hot dogs, fries.

Schnippers: classic burgers, sweet potato fries, cheese fries

Place was okay in my opinion. Not really big on burgers/have high standards. I think it reminded me of a less greasy Steak N Shake burger. I would venture to say I still enjoy burgers BBQ'd at hang outs/home/parties more than these. That being said they weren't bad. Just nothing really going out of the way to have. The sweet potatoes fries were interesting as it came with a maple syrup type sauce. Fries themselves were kind of dry without it. Alex got some cheese fries- I felt those weren't very cheesy. Not quite sure what to compare them too.

So that was Day two's dinner. Day Three's dinner would be more in the Chinatown area. Decided to go eat in that area and went with Pho Bang. You know the place is legit when they don't have a website and only take cash. I did find another third party site that has the menu listed for Pho Bang. The restaurant itself is Vietnamese which is different than Chinese food if you've never had it. Had done some quick research on my phone while on the train is how I came across it. I think this one was a winner for sure.

Goi Cuon aka Summer Rolls

Cha Gio aka Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Xe Lua Pho Bo

Com Chien Tom aka Shrimp Fried Rice

My picks were the Summer Rolls and Shrimp Fried Rice.  The Summer Rolls caught my attention because it actually had mint in it. I'm a big mint fan as we grew up growing it in the back yard and using it for tea.  The rolls were very fresh and filling. I went with shrimp fried rice as I don't typically get to eat seafood as 1) most folks I apparently hang with don't like seafood and 2) Karen is part 1 but also allergic to it. The rice was fantastic. I will say it seemed to be short grain which I at first confused with couscous. Still it was fairly light. The Spring Rolls were tasty and not overly greasy. Alex enjoyed his pho (not a euphemism).

Overall everything was delicious and hit the spot. Would definitely recommend this place to anyone in the New York area or visiting it. Its a couple blocks from the Main St. station for the 7 Line.  This pretty much the New York eating experience. There were some places I'd like to go back and try so maybe next year.

#Foodie4Life,
Reef

Dining in the Big Apple Pt. 1

This past weekend was a crazy busy time in New York for the New York Comic Con. Per the latest article I read- they had 180,000 folks in attendance in the 4 days. Having been there I can say it was busy the whole time- which was 10 hours that the floors were open hours. Crazy times but was fun. That being said I highly enjoy New York and as a true foodie committed to having some good food.

First place on the trip after day 1 of work was John Brown Smokehouse located in Long Island City. I'd say its about 1/2 hour train ride from Manhattan on the 7 line. A couple years ago when I first hit up the convention I had booked a room in a new hotel in Long Island City. Walking from the hotel to the train we walked past this place and decided to give it a try. It was and still is GLORIOUS. The funny part about John Brown Smokehouse was at that time we came back to the convention the next day. We told some local guys and they flipped out saying that was the best BBQ place in New York and funny that we found it on our own. Fast forward to this weekend and that was food priority #1.

The feast of hungry folks

Considering it was a long day and the food/drinks are so dang expensive, we didn't do lunch and came ready to eat some BBQ. As you can see from the the above picture it was quite the order. Let's break it down and start with Alex's food choices (not pictured corn bread):

John Brown Smokehouse Beef Brisket Sandwich

John Brown Smokehouse Mac and Cheese

John Brown Smokehouse Coleslaw

Reef's selection:

John Brown Reuben

Side of fries and corn bread

 All that food was fantastic. I went with a Reuben so Karen could be there in spirit. It was pretty fantastic. The corn bread I say is served more as corn pudding but still really good. The fries there also fresh cut/home made. Definitely fell into a food coma once we got to the hotel and called it a day. So if you're in New York City I would say this is one of the places that's well worth the effort to get to.

#Foodie4Life,
Reef

A little lunch a little cooking all on vacay

First off I am still highly enjoying Oregon. It's beautiful and mild and I love it. I love the time I've gotten to spend with my virtual parents. It's lovely to chill and relax and just have fun and no expectations. Plus I love them so much and I never have bad memories ever being with them. 

So. Firstly, brunch at Ye Olde Pancake House. YES.

 

 

 

I mean, Go Ducks!! Now. They don't have a website but you can view their menu here. As you may know, I rarely go out for breakfast or brunch unless it's someone else's idea. I am not sure why. I'm sure it somehow ties into something negative from my past. Or else I just make my own pancakes and whatnot because I don't want get dressed. That does sound more like me. Because of this I never know what I want to eat. This day I chose Potato Pancakes. They came with sour cream (Karen would be jealous at the giant amount they gave me) and strawberry applesauce. Mmmmmm

 

 

Hell yeah I ate them all. I did trade one for one of Jalyn's egg batter pancakes. Those had lingonberry butter and were super thin and slightly crispy (differently than a crepe). Mmmmm. Sorry that picture sucks. I must have been shaky from hunger pains.

 

 

David had chicken fried chicken and pancakes. 

Oh they also had this coffee setup for when you were waiting. 

I was extra off in the photo taking department. I am so sorry. Must be because I keep waking up so early or I'm too in love or something and it's affecting my brain cells. 

 

 But. Leeroy was there so that makes it better. Hiiii Reef!! 

Then last night Jalyn demanded (I mean asked nicely) for me to make stuffed shells. 

So. Boiled some shells!

 

Made a tomato sauce with a few cans of diced tomatoes, oregano and Italian mix. 

 

I mixed up some ricotta, leftover rotisserie chicken, Parmesan, mozz, Italian mix and eventually a package of frozen spinach. This is one of my favorite dishes to make that honestly I forgot about. You can make it extra skinny by using cottage cheese instead of ricotta. Still comes out delicious. Did I mention I also put in like three tablespoons of garlic? Cause I did. Because I love garlic. Mmmmm did I ever mention we used to drive through Gilroy, Ca and everything smelled like garlic, and you could buy giant heads of garlic at the gas station? Ha! 

 

I layered some sauce in the bottom of the pan, then stuffed the shells, sauced them again and then cheesed them. Then baked. 

 

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm 

Until tomorrow friends.