Cooking & Other Randomness was the first blog name that I could think of when I decided to make a cooking blog. After a few months I decided it was pretty boring and the actual link would be hard to remember/find unless it was bookmarked.
So I decided to create a new blog and just export the previous posts over. I'm not sure how the followers part works, it says that you're all there, but just in case you can't see me on the other blog, here is the link to my new one:
http://cookaholicwife.blogspot.com/
Monday, April 19, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Mushroom Mac & Cheese
When I saw this recipe on Annie's Eats I knew that I wanted to try it, but that I would never be able to make the exact recipe. Even though Redner's is great for carrying the non-standard ingredients that I need, they don't always have what I need on the week that I need it. Example: Gruyere cheese. The recipe calls for shredded Gruyere. That would be like finding a winning lottery ticket 5 minutes before the drawing. I also knew that I wouldn't be able to find all of the fresh herbs that the recipe called for either.
So I decided to make do with what I could find and see how it turned out.
Mushroom Mac & Cheese
Adapted from: Annie's Eats
Printer Friendly
Ingredients:
3/4 box elbow macaroni
6 tbs. unsalted butter, divided
1 lb. mushrooms, roughly chopped (baby bella/cremini)
1/2 small onion, diced
2 tbs. minced garlic
1 tbs. white wine
3 tbs. all purpose flour
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. rosemary
1 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. paprika
2 cups milk (I used 2%)
6 oz. Swiss cheese, shredded
6 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tbs. bacon bits (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Annie's recipe calls for a whole box of pasta (which I made but was just too much for the dish), a shallot instead of onion, 2 tbs. of all the fresh herbs, no paprika, white wine vinegar, whole milk, shredded Gruyere and shredded white cheddar. Honestly, I didn't even look for the white cheddar, I just grabbed a bag of the finely shredded cheddar and went with it.
Directions:
1. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to directions for al dente. Drain the pasta and set it to the side.
2. Melt 2 tbs. of butter into a medium sized skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped mushrooms and onion and cook until the mushrooms are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more or until almost all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan.
3. Remove from heat and add in the white wine. Set to the side. Preheat the oven to 350.
4. In a medium saucepan, melt 3 tbs. of butter over medium high heat. Whisk in the flour to form a paste. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly until the mixture is golden. Stir in the herbs and cook for a few more seconds. Whisk in the milk and cook until until the sauce begins to thicken and simmers. Remove from the heat and add in the cheeses. Whisk until completely smooth.
5. Add the mushroom mixture into the cheeses and stir until combined. I found it easier to add the noodles into the pot and stir until they were coated with the cheese. Pour into the greased baking dish.
6. Melt the last tbs. of butter (I used the microwave to save another dish) and add the panko breadcrumbs to it. Toss until coated. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta.
7. Put the baking dish in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is browned. Let sit up to 15 minutes before serving.
So I decided to make do with what I could find and see how it turned out.
Mushroom Mac & Cheese
Adapted from: Annie's Eats
Printer Friendly
Ingredients:
3/4 box elbow macaroni
6 tbs. unsalted butter, divided
1 lb. mushrooms, roughly chopped (baby bella/cremini)
1/2 small onion, diced
2 tbs. minced garlic
1 tbs. white wine
3 tbs. all purpose flour
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. rosemary
1 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. paprika
2 cups milk (I used 2%)
6 oz. Swiss cheese, shredded
6 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tbs. bacon bits (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Annie's recipe calls for a whole box of pasta (which I made but was just too much for the dish), a shallot instead of onion, 2 tbs. of all the fresh herbs, no paprika, white wine vinegar, whole milk, shredded Gruyere and shredded white cheddar. Honestly, I didn't even look for the white cheddar, I just grabbed a bag of the finely shredded cheddar and went with it.
Directions:
1. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to directions for al dente. Drain the pasta and set it to the side.
2. Melt 2 tbs. of butter into a medium sized skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped mushrooms and onion and cook until the mushrooms are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more or until almost all of the liquid has evaporated from the pan.
3. Remove from heat and add in the white wine. Set to the side. Preheat the oven to 350.
4. In a medium saucepan, melt 3 tbs. of butter over medium high heat. Whisk in the flour to form a paste. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly until the mixture is golden. Stir in the herbs and cook for a few more seconds. Whisk in the milk and cook until until the sauce begins to thicken and simmers. Remove from the heat and add in the cheeses. Whisk until completely smooth.
5. Add the mushroom mixture into the cheeses and stir until combined. I found it easier to add the noodles into the pot and stir until they were coated with the cheese. Pour into the greased baking dish.
6. Melt the last tbs. of butter (I used the microwave to save another dish) and add the panko breadcrumbs to it. Toss until coated. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the pasta.
7. Put the baking dish in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is browned. Let sit up to 15 minutes before serving.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution
On a Friday night about three weeks ago I was flipping through the tv channels trying to find something to watch. I stopped on a show where a man was talking to cooks in a school cafeteria. The first words I heard were not pleasant. The cook told the man that they didn't have the time to serve healthier options to the kids. I was instantly hooked.
A few minutes later I realized the man was Jamie Oliver and the show was called Food Revolution. Jamie was in Huntington WV, one of the unhealthiest places in the entire US, and he was trying to change the way that the children ate at school.
When Jamie held up different vegetables and none of those children could identify them, I was shocked, disgusted and saddened all at the same time. What are we teaching and feeding these children if they have absolutely NO IDEA that ketchup comes from tomatoes and french fries from potatoes? How is that even possible?
I remember being a kid and constantly asking what was on my plate and where it came from. Hell, I remember the first time my dad ordered Beef Chow Mein from the local Chinese place and asked me if I wanted some. I made him tell me what each individual piece in the dish was before I would taste it. Isn't this just common curiosity? Since when did children stop being curious?
Listening to the "cook" at the elementary school infuriated me. Never have I wanted to climb through a television screen and smack that attitude right off her face. When that woman said that she did her job just for the money and that they basically didn't care what they were feeding those kids, I almost had to change the channel. Sure lady, lets just kill the youth of America because you are too lazy and stupid to give a shit!
Since that first episode I've become addicted to this show. Earlier today, while blog hopping around I saw that someone had a Food Revolution badge in their blog. I immediately clicked on it and added it to my blog. I also signed the petition. And now I want you to as well.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/jamies-food-revolution/petition
Consider it your good deed for the day/week/whatever. The numbers on that map need to go up. Especially you people out there in Wyoming. We need to care about what kids are eating in schools. How can America have a future if we're setting all of these children up for diabetes, obesity and other health problems? Think about it in basic terms - the food these kids eat is killing them. Slowly, but it is killing them. Do you really want to let that happen?
A few minutes later I realized the man was Jamie Oliver and the show was called Food Revolution. Jamie was in Huntington WV, one of the unhealthiest places in the entire US, and he was trying to change the way that the children ate at school.
When Jamie held up different vegetables and none of those children could identify them, I was shocked, disgusted and saddened all at the same time. What are we teaching and feeding these children if they have absolutely NO IDEA that ketchup comes from tomatoes and french fries from potatoes? How is that even possible?
I remember being a kid and constantly asking what was on my plate and where it came from. Hell, I remember the first time my dad ordered Beef Chow Mein from the local Chinese place and asked me if I wanted some. I made him tell me what each individual piece in the dish was before I would taste it. Isn't this just common curiosity? Since when did children stop being curious?
Listening to the "cook" at the elementary school infuriated me. Never have I wanted to climb through a television screen and smack that attitude right off her face. When that woman said that she did her job just for the money and that they basically didn't care what they were feeding those kids, I almost had to change the channel. Sure lady, lets just kill the youth of America because you are too lazy and stupid to give a shit!
Since that first episode I've become addicted to this show. Earlier today, while blog hopping around I saw that someone had a Food Revolution badge in their blog. I immediately clicked on it and added it to my blog. I also signed the petition. And now I want you to as well.
http://www.jamieoliver.com/campaigns/jamies-food-revolution/petition
Consider it your good deed for the day/week/whatever. The numbers on that map need to go up. Especially you people out there in Wyoming. We need to care about what kids are eating in schools. How can America have a future if we're setting all of these children up for diabetes, obesity and other health problems? Think about it in basic terms - the food these kids eat is killing them. Slowly, but it is killing them. Do you really want to let that happen?
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Cooking for Beginners: Chicken & Zucchini Pasta
Once again, I plan a recipe for Cooking for Beginners (CFB from now on) and it doesn't turn out perfectly, so I decided that it was meant to be that way. How often do you go to cook something and realize your missing an ingredient? (Please tell me I'm not alone!)
Then I realized, even beginner cooks should know what to do when you forget that key ingredient or want to change up a recipe a bit. Ready to get started?
Chicken & Zucchini Pasta
Servings: 4
Adapted from: www.allrecipes.com
Printer Friendly
2. If you forgot to buy chicken broth (which is really weird for me since its a staple in the pantry), you can use bouillon cubes. Add about 1 cup of water per bouillon cube in a small saucepan and heat over medium high heat until boiling and the cube has dissolved. However, if your like me and couldn't manage to find bouillon cubes in the grocery store and had to settle for the packets from the international aisle, then add one packet to 1 1/2 cups of water and heat as instructed above. The picture below would obviously be before it dissolved.
3. In a medium sized saucepan, add 3 cups of water and lightly season with salt. Put over medium high heat. (This is for the pasta.)
4. Cut the zucchini into thin slices, dice up the onion and cut the mushrooms into bite sized pieces.
5. In a large skillet, add a little bit of olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for approximately 10 minutes, flipping over once, or until the chicken is cooked through and browned on all sides.
6. Transfer the chicken to a plate. (I always use paper plates for this, there is no point in dirtying up another dish)
7. Add a little bit more olive oil to the skillet. Turn down the heat to low because the pan should be pretty hot by now. Add the garlic and onion and cook for about a minute or until the the garlic is lightly browned and fragrant.
8. Add the mushrooms and zucchini. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and oregano. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the zucchini is soft. By now the water should be boiling for the pasta. Add in 1/2 box to the salted water and stir to make sure the shells don't stick together. I usually spend the 10 minutes loading the dishwasher with everything that I've used, cleaning off the counters and putting away any ingredients that I'm done with.
9. Pour in the chicken stock and add the cream cheese. Stir until the cream cheese is combined.
10. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes more until everything is heated through.
11. Drain the water from the pasta (the kind I used took 12 minutes). Spoon the pasta onto plates and add the chicken mixture. Season with basil and Parmesan cheese and serve. Enjoy!
Tom wasn't a big fan of this recipe, he thought that the sauce tasted funny. I thought it was pretty good and would definitely add it to my list of things to make again, but I don't think the zucchini did anything amazing for the recipe at all. It kind of just blended in. I wouldn't have had any problems omitting it entirely.
Then I realized, even beginner cooks should know what to do when you forget that key ingredient or want to change up a recipe a bit. Ready to get started?
Chicken & Zucchini Pasta
Servings: 4
Adapted from: www.allrecipes.com
Printer Friendly
Ingredients:
1/2 package pasta (I used Penne)
4 slices of onion (it rolled out of the picture)
2 tsp. garlic
1 zucchini
1/2 tsp. oregano
1 cup mushrooms
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
3 chicken breasts (or tenders or precooked chicken)
2 tbs. cream cheese
parmesan cheese
basil
salt
pepper
olive oil
Directions:
1. Cut the chicken into strips and season with salt and pepper. If you are using precooked chicken then just skip this.
2. If you forgot to buy chicken broth (which is really weird for me since its a staple in the pantry), you can use bouillon cubes. Add about 1 cup of water per bouillon cube in a small saucepan and heat over medium high heat until boiling and the cube has dissolved. However, if your like me and couldn't manage to find bouillon cubes in the grocery store and had to settle for the packets from the international aisle, then add one packet to 1 1/2 cups of water and heat as instructed above. The picture below would obviously be before it dissolved.
3. In a medium sized saucepan, add 3 cups of water and lightly season with salt. Put over medium high heat. (This is for the pasta.)
4. Cut the zucchini into thin slices, dice up the onion and cut the mushrooms into bite sized pieces.
5. In a large skillet, add a little bit of olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for approximately 10 minutes, flipping over once, or until the chicken is cooked through and browned on all sides.
6. Transfer the chicken to a plate. (I always use paper plates for this, there is no point in dirtying up another dish)
7. Add a little bit more olive oil to the skillet. Turn down the heat to low because the pan should be pretty hot by now. Add the garlic and onion and cook for about a minute or until the the garlic is lightly browned and fragrant.
8. Add the mushrooms and zucchini. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and oregano. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until the zucchini is soft. By now the water should be boiling for the pasta. Add in 1/2 box to the salted water and stir to make sure the shells don't stick together. I usually spend the 10 minutes loading the dishwasher with everything that I've used, cleaning off the counters and putting away any ingredients that I'm done with.
9. Pour in the chicken stock and add the cream cheese. Stir until the cream cheese is combined.
10. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes more until everything is heated through.
11. Drain the water from the pasta (the kind I used took 12 minutes). Spoon the pasta onto plates and add the chicken mixture. Season with basil and Parmesan cheese and serve. Enjoy!
Tom wasn't a big fan of this recipe, he thought that the sauce tasted funny. I thought it was pretty good and would definitely add it to my list of things to make again, but I don't think the zucchini did anything amazing for the recipe at all. It kind of just blended in. I wouldn't have had any problems omitting it entirely.
Printer Friendly....finally
I got smart today and asked on the What's Cooking board of TheNest how they make printer friendly posts. In case anyone reading wants to use this (or in case I forget how to do it) I'm going to post the directions.
1. Click on Create New in Google Docs and select Document.
2. Copy and paste or type in the information you want to be printable. (Is that a word?)
3. Click on Share in the upper right corner and select Get the Link to Share.
4. Check off Allow Anyone with the link to view.
5. Copy the link.
6. Save & Close.
7. In your blog click on Link.
8. In Text to Display type Print Friendly
9. In Web Address paste the link to the Google Doc.
10. Click on Test this Link to make sure it works.
11. Click on Publish Post.
All done!
Printer Friendly
Check it out! It works!
1. Click on Create New in Google Docs and select Document.
2. Copy and paste or type in the information you want to be printable. (Is that a word?)
3. Click on Share in the upper right corner and select Get the Link to Share.
4. Check off Allow Anyone with the link to view.
5. Copy the link.
6. Save & Close.
7. In your blog click on Link.
8. In Text to Display type Print Friendly
9. In Web Address paste the link to the Google Doc.
10. Click on Test this Link to make sure it works.
11. Click on Publish Post.
All done!
Printer Friendly
Check it out! It works!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Shrimp Scampi
Friday, April 9, 2010
I've been a bad blogger
Since I added the Foodie Blogroll Widget I knew that there was a pretty good chance that my blog would get more traffic so I had all of these grand plans to update the blog more often and have awesome and cool recipes and yadda yadda.
As you can see, that didn't happen. I'm kind of disappointed about Easter. I made fruit salsa, twice baked potato skins, cheesy jalapenos, a ham and black bottom cupcakes and in the busy-ness of the day I completely forgot to take pictures. Everything I made was even displayed on cool serveware!
When I realized that I forgot to take pictures I said 'ah screw it' I'll just blog a dinner this week....until I realized that this week was clean out the pantry week. Last week Tom pulled some random things out of the pantry and told me I had to use them this week. What were they?
I marinated the chicken, cooked the pasta and sauteed the broccoli, red pepper and mushrooms in chicken stock but it was just gross. Tonight I'm making pancakes and bacon which isn't blog worthy either. I could add blueberries to the pancakes but considering its a box mix, I'm really not doing anything special.
I promise that next week I will be back with another Weekly Meal Breakdown and at least one recipe that is worth blogging. Don't believe me, internet? Well then I internet-pinkie-promise you. | <-- see, that's me holding up my internet-pinkie-finger.
Anyway, I hopped on here today because I wanted to find add one of those cool 'Print' buttons (I still haven't found one I like) and that's when I found all of the comments and followers. My eyes got all big and I thought 'Holy crap I have people reading my blog and I haven't been here all week. That's horrible!.' So, here I am. Making excuses to you. =( Forgive me?
***
In other news, tomorrow is my 25th birthday. I'm not sure how I feel about that. In some ways I can't believe I'm 25 already and in others I feel like I haven't really aged after turning 21. Aside from cheaper car insurance there really isn't much to look forward to age-wise after turning 21. Think about it; at 16 you can get your license, 18 you're an adult and 21 you can drink. 25 is like "Woo hoo! I can rent a rental car, have cheaper car insurance, say that I'm a quarter of a century and prepare for turning 30!". Yeah - it didn't sound that exciting to me either.
So I'm kind of apathetic about turning 25. Its just another day to me. Which brings me to my plans. After a horrendous hair cut a few weeks ago by a new stylist, I am waking up early in the morning hours to travel 1 hour and 15 minutes or so to my old stylist who can hopefully salvage my head and make me look normal. Then I need to drive home, get a pedicure, spend some time with Tom and get ready to go out with some friends at the bar around 7 or 8.
On Sunday Tom and I are going to do something together but I have no idea what. He won't tell me. I get impatient when I know there is a surprise coming. Maybe I can convince him to tell me tonight. Now since I'm trying to eat healthier this is my internet birthday present to myself:
Looks yummy doesn't it? I found it here: http://somethingcakey.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/icecream-cupcake.jpg
As you can see, that didn't happen. I'm kind of disappointed about Easter. I made fruit salsa, twice baked potato skins, cheesy jalapenos, a ham and black bottom cupcakes and in the busy-ness of the day I completely forgot to take pictures. Everything I made was even displayed on cool serveware!
When I realized that I forgot to take pictures I said 'ah screw it' I'll just blog a dinner this week....until I realized that this week was clean out the pantry week. Last week Tom pulled some random things out of the pantry and told me I had to use them this week. What were they?
- 1/2 box pancake mix
- 3 boxes Kraft mac & cheese
- Uncle Ben's Oriental Fried Rice
- Uncle Ben's Mexican Fiesta Rice
- 2 cans of tuna fish
- a box of Barilla rigatoni pasta
I marinated the chicken, cooked the pasta and sauteed the broccoli, red pepper and mushrooms in chicken stock but it was just gross. Tonight I'm making pancakes and bacon which isn't blog worthy either. I could add blueberries to the pancakes but considering its a box mix, I'm really not doing anything special.
I promise that next week I will be back with another Weekly Meal Breakdown and at least one recipe that is worth blogging. Don't believe me, internet? Well then I internet-pinkie-promise you. | <-- see, that's me holding up my internet-pinkie-finger.
Anyway, I hopped on here today because I wanted to find add one of those cool 'Print' buttons (I still haven't found one I like) and that's when I found all of the comments and followers. My eyes got all big and I thought 'Holy crap I have people reading my blog and I haven't been here all week. That's horrible!.' So, here I am. Making excuses to you. =( Forgive me?
***
In other news, tomorrow is my 25th birthday. I'm not sure how I feel about that. In some ways I can't believe I'm 25 already and in others I feel like I haven't really aged after turning 21. Aside from cheaper car insurance there really isn't much to look forward to age-wise after turning 21. Think about it; at 16 you can get your license, 18 you're an adult and 21 you can drink. 25 is like "Woo hoo! I can rent a rental car, have cheaper car insurance, say that I'm a quarter of a century and prepare for turning 30!". Yeah - it didn't sound that exciting to me either.
So I'm kind of apathetic about turning 25. Its just another day to me. Which brings me to my plans. After a horrendous hair cut a few weeks ago by a new stylist, I am waking up early in the morning hours to travel 1 hour and 15 minutes or so to my old stylist who can hopefully salvage my head and make me look normal. Then I need to drive home, get a pedicure, spend some time with Tom and get ready to go out with some friends at the bar around 7 or 8.
On Sunday Tom and I are going to do something together but I have no idea what. He won't tell me. I get impatient when I know there is a surprise coming. Maybe I can convince him to tell me tonight. Now since I'm trying to eat healthier this is my internet birthday present to myself:
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