What's on the Home Menu Tonight?

• Pork Chop (fat trimmed off, seasoned with pepper, garlic salt & onion salt)
• Fried Potato (medium size, some skin left on, seasoned with salt & pepper)
• Spinach & Onions (about a cup, seasoned with salt)

Pan-fried everything with heart-healthy olive oil. 

What's on your home menu?

Another Food Blog!!

Who doesn't love food?  It's one of the few things in life that brings us happiness, so why not enjoy it?  I like to blog about things I make, but also things I eat when I travel.  In fact, just last week, I pulled my camera out of my handbag in a dimly lit restaurant and blinded everyone with the flash just so I could capture a memory...a memory of steak and shrimp that I ate while looking upon the Pacific Ocean.  My dad rolled his eyes and told me I was strange, but he just doesn't understand the power of blogging.  At least that's my theory.  Anyway, my memory is below, along with a beautiful ocean pic! 

Quite honestly, it wasn't the best steak I've ever had, and when I saw that it came with shrimp for a price of $25, I was really excited.  Unfortunately, I was disappointed when there were only 3 on my plate :(.  And, it didn't taste any fresher than the shrimp I get when I'm 1,500 miles away from an ocean.


Another one of my food love affairs is Asian food.  I sometimes have a hard time eating Asian in restaurants because of the old myths about it being cat or dog.  But, I absolutely LOVE cooking Asian food at home (at least then I know what meat I'm putting into it).   A couple weeks ago, my Aunt asked me to teach her how to make crispy pork wontons and spicy beef stir-fry. 

Here's the end product of all our hard work, along with a quick run down of how we made em!

  

Wontons

I found this recipe online.  However, I didn't completely follow it.  I tend to use recipes more as suggestions and then mix it up in a way I think would taste good.

So, I used ground pork instead of pork loin.  I omitted the lime juice and sesame oil.  And, I substituted vegetable oil for the peanut oil it called for. 

I also decided to brown the pork mixture in a pan before wrapping it in the wonton wrappers.  In theory, the hot oil you fry them in should thoroughly cook the pork, but I don't trust that it will (and I'm afraid of getting worms). 

Sweet & Sour Sauce

You can buy some in the stores, or find a recipe online.  I couldn't remember the recipe I used last, so I just through some ketchup, rice vinegar, sugar and red chile flakes in a bowl until it tasted good to me.  

Stir-Fry

First, prep work is a good idea.  Cut up all the veggies and meat prior to getting started.  You can add whichever veggies you like and you also have the option of using frozen veggies if you're in more of a time crunch.  I usually like lots of broccoli, sugar snap peas, green peppers, and carrots.  But, feel free to add or delete from that list. 

Once the prep work is done, I heat some oil in a frying pan or wok and add the meat to get it browned and cooked all the way.  Then, remove the meat and drain any grease.  Set the meat aside.  Heat some more oil and then add your veggies and some onions (I use green onions).  Cook that til they become a little more flexible.  Then, reintroduce your meat.  

While those cook together, get a small bowl or a measuring cup and make your stir-fry sauce.  There are numerous recipes online, but I've made my own:

Equal parts soy sauce & rice vinegar (about 1/4 C each)

About 1/2 C water

Fresh ginger (or ground will work also)

Red chile flakes (more or less depending on your spice tolerance)

A couple cloves of garlic, minced

Couple tbs cornstarch to thicken sauce

Poor this concoction over your stir-fry and let it thicken before serving over brown or white steamed rice.  It would also be good over noodles or quinoa as alternatives to rice.  

Enjoy!

Today's Healthy Eats

After having stuffed my face with a 6-piece chicken tender kid's meal AND a cheeseburger from Burger King last night, I thought today it would be best to eat healthy.  I generally try to make healthy choices any way, but today was not just about making healthy choices - it was about redeeming myself for last night.  It was about negating the poor choice I made yesterday by making better choices today. 

This rationale is absurd, and I know it, but it's just how my brain justifies my actions.  And, it occurs not just when it comes to food choices, but pretty much any other choice I make in my life.  For every bad, there must be a good I can do to counteract it's effect, right?

Anyway, on the point of this blog.  I wanted to share my menu today.  Perhaps it will provide ideas for making better choices while still enjoying food.  Too often we think healthy means boring or bland.  Food is one of my greatest pleasures in life so I'd never advocate for restricting yourself in way that robs you of this happiness!  Read on for my meals today. 

Breakfast

• Giant mug of coffee (is it possible to start your day without this?)
• Small bag of almonds
• Some baby carrots

I know this random combination of food doesn't scream breakfast, but who says you have to have oatmeal?  Eat whatever healthy items you enjoy.

Lunch

• Large salad (no egg or cheese) - half the salad I used raspberry vinaigrette  and the other half I used french.  I couldn't decide between the two, so why not have both?
• Marinated grilled chicken sandwich (no mayo) - I hesitantly skipped the fries, but it was filling without the guilt of eating those too.  I also didn't finish the entire bun.  Mostly, I only ate the parts of the bun that were toasted and still maintained some crunch.  
• Serving of fruit - pineapple, cantaloupe and honey dew.

Dinner
After grocery shopping on an empty-stomach (not recommended), I came home and made:

• Brown rice (with soy sauce)
• Spinach & onions 

Dessert
This isn't really dessert, but it's sweet and I like it.  It's an amaretto liqueur and orange juice in an 8 oz glass. 

Please drink responsibly and do not drink and drive!

Homemade Tacos!!

Menu tonight?  Homemade tacos - one of my favorite meals.  I don't actually follow recipes, but I'll try to detail how I made them.

Since this was a meal for one, the quantities aren't large so when making for a larger group of people, you'd want to at least double everything.


First, I boiled a medium size potato.  While I waited for the that to boil, I played

scrabble online.

When the potato was done I emptied the pot and reused it to fry 1/2lb of ground beef.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Once the beef is cooked, use a paring knife to peel your potato and cut thin slices into your pot of meat.



Mix the potatoes with the hamburger, mashing it a bit so it all sticks together well.  Add a little season salt and mix.  Set aside on a back burner set on low.

Next, I made flour tortillas (yummy).  I get a mixing bowl and fill it with a cup of flour.  I also add a little salt and baking powder (not too much, maybe a teaspoon or so).  Then, place a small amount of canola or vegetable oil in your palm and mix into the flour.  Pour a little hot water over your mixture and begin kneading.  Add small amounts of water as needed to make the tortilla dough.

Roll your tortillas with a cookie dough roller and begin cooking in a medium-high heat flat or shallow pan (you can also use a flat cast iron griddle).

Once the tortillas are done, you heat some oil in a shallow pan and fold the tortilla in half before frying.

Fill the shell with your meat & potato mixture, top with cheddar cheese, salsa and lettuce & tomato, and enjoy!

You can also make your own salsa!

What I do:

Mince 2 green onions, small clove of garlic, 1/4 to 1/2 large jalapeno, and one small tomato.  Pan fry them with a small amount of oil, adding crushed red pepper to the mix.   Add a small can of tomato sauce and some salt.  Let simmer, stirring occasionally.   Turn heat down to low and cover until ready to use.

I hope you enjoy!