soba with tofu and cucumber

(serves 3, no leftovers)

soba with tofu and cucumber

4 bunches of soba (8-10 oz)
1 package tofu (14 oz)
1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced

2 tbsp shoyu (soy sauce)
1 tbsp mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/4 tsp salt

toasted sesame seeds

Boil water and add the soba; cook according to the instructions on the package. Meanwhile, mix the shoyu, mirin, rice vinegar, and salt in a serving dish. If you have time, slice the cucumber now.

Once the soba is cooked, put it in a colander to drain, and rinse it with cold water in order to stop the cooking process.

Add the soba to the serving dish and coat well. Fold in the tofu and cucumber.

Serve on the dinner table. Once served, sprinkle toasted sesame seeds over the soba (this last step is not shown in the photograph).

vegetarian stew with garbanzo beans, yellow lentils, chili peppers, and yoghurt

(serves 4, with leftovers if you're not too hungry)

vegetarian stew with garbanzo beans, yellow lentils, chili peppers, and yogurt

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
5 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

dried chili peppers
3 cups vegetable broth (or any broth)

1 pound yellow lentils (about 2 1/4 cups)
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained
1 can diced tomatoes

3 handfuls of spinach
Plain yogurt

In a heavy large pot over medium heat, add the oil. Once hot, add the onion and stir until it's golden and translucent (about 10 minutes, you can skip this step if you're in a hurry).

Add the spices to the pot, then slowly add the broth and the dried chili peppers. Mix in the lentils, tomatoes, and garbanzos. Cook for another 10 minutes (until the lentils are soft and falling apart). Add the spinach and stir.

Serve with white rice, and top it with yogurt.

chicken tacos

10/29/2008

(serves 3)

chicken tacos

For some reason, when I sent Erk to buy tortillas last time, he came back with a pack of 12 corn tortillas. This was an attempt to finish the rest of the tortillas off, and the rest of the chicken leftovers.

shredded left over roast chicken
corn tortillas

1 sliced avocado
1/2 sliced onion
1 cooked onion (in a skillet with salt, pepper, and a couple drops of olive oil)
lime wedges

white rice

cheddar cheese

Make your own tortilla, as you like. Erk likes adding the chipotle chili sauce.

spicy roast chicken with mashed potato

(serves 3, with lots of leftovers)

spicy roast chicken with mashed potato

More blurry photos! >_<

1 whole chicken
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne chili pepper
1 tsp chipotle chili pepper
1 tsp ancho chili pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 - 4 tbsp olive oil

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

The chicken should be as dry as possible. Use paper towels to dry the skin and the inside of the chicken.

Mix the spices and olive oil together and rub all over the chicken. Place the chicken in a roasting pan.

Put the chicken in the oven for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 F until chicken is cooked (another 20 minutes or so). After a couple experiments, I found that only by cooking the chicken initially at the high temperature does the chicken skin get crispy enough for Erk to eat it, while keeping the meat inside moist and delicious.


mashed potatoes with olive oil and garlic

3 potatoes, boiled
olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced and lightly roasted in a pan

Put the potatoes through a potato ricer. Season with the garlic and olive oil.

I finally bought a potato ricer, because mashing the potatoes by hand for gnocchi was way too much trouble.

penne pasta baked with cheese, corn, and peas

I was traveling last weekend, so no updates for the last three days.

(serves 3, no leftovers)

penne pasta baked with cheese, corn, and peas

3/4 box penne pasta
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup frozen peas
lots and lots of cheese (I recommend using white cheddar): this roughly translates to somewhere between 6 to 8 oz, depending on how cheesy you like it
1 cup soy milk
salt
pepper

Boil water, and cook the penne pasta according to instructions on the box.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Melt the cheese in the soy milk, adding salt and pepper to taste (I added approximately 1/2 tsp of each).

Place the pasta, mixing in with the cheese in an 8-inch pyrex square dish.

Put in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or so, to make the cheese thick and gooey. Broil the top on low for a couple minutes, until it's nicely browned.

Serve with a spinach salad.

chicken, sausage, and shrimp paella

(serves five)

chicken, sausage, and shrimp paella

3 tbsp olive oil

4 andouille sausages, sliced thickly
1 red onion, diced
2 cups rice
2 cups chicken stock (up to 4 cups)
1 can of diced tomatos
a pinch of saffron threads
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 red pepper, cut into thin slices

5 chicken thighs
1/2 lb shrimp

1 lemon, cut into eighths

Add the olive oil to the paella pan, on the stove, over medium heat. Once hot, brown the sausages and onion. Add the rice, and cook until slightly golden and translucent. Add the chicken stock and the can of diced tomatoes, and dissolve the spices into the stock. Add the red pepper and corn. Cook, adding more liquid when necessary (I've had to add up to 4 cups).

The rice should take around 45 minutes to cook. When the rice is almost ready, add the shrimp, and mix.

Meanwhile, in a separate skillet, brown the chicken thighs in a little bit of olive oil, adding salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the paella pan with the chicken and lemon wedges. (If desired, you can sprinkle extra paprika on top).

Serve with salad and a good red wine.

Note: The blurry photo is terrible.

shrimp tacos

(serves three)

shrimp tacos

corn tortillas
leftover shrimp, cut into small pieces
1 bowl of white rice with cilantro, olive oil, and salt
1 red onion, sliced
1 avocado, sliced
1 bowl of baby spinach
chipotle chili sauce
shredded monterey jack cheese

Put the ingredients out, and everyone can make their own shrimp tacos.

shrimp with avocado, onion, and lime

(serves 3, with leftovers)

shrimp with avocado, onion, and lime

1 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 red onion, diced
1 1/2 lbs shrimp
1 avocado
1 lime
1 1/2 tsp lime juice
chipotle chili sauce
salt
pepper

In a saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the minced garlic and the cayenne pepper. Add the onion and stir until the onion is translucent. Add the shrimp and cook.

Mix with the avocado and lime juice, and place the lime wedges on the side as garnish. Add chipotle chili sauce, salt, and pepper to taste.

Serve with white rice.

Note: the lime was left over from the miracle berry dinner a couple days ago. This would also go well with chopped cilantro.

molten chocolate cakes

Since we had leftover milanesa today, I wanted to extol a dessert that's never failed me.

I learned about these from my good friend Nick, and I've used them whenever I've been in a hurry, or when friends come over and I want to make a quick dessert. I use pretty small ramekins (since the cakes are dense).

As soon as the spoon cuts the surface of the chocolate cakes, gooey chocolatey-goodness oozes out and coats the spoon. It's wonderful.

4 tbsp butter, melted in the microwave
8 oz bittersweet chocolate
1/3 cup sugar (more if you like sweeter desserts, Erk likes his very chocolatey)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup flour
4 small ramekins

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Start melting the chocolate on the stove over low heat. Meanwhile, beat the butter and sugar together, slowly adding the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour, then follow up by folding in the chocolate. Pour into the four small ramekins
.
Cook for 10-12 minutes.

If you like them really decadent, you can whip some heavy cream flavored with kahlua or amaretto.

milanesa, white rice, fried egg, roasted red onion

(serves 4, with leftovers if you're not too hungry)

milanesa, white rice, fried egg, roasted red onion

8 thin veal scallops
1 cup bread crumbs
1 egg (use an extra egg if one egg isn't enough)
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
salt
pepper
olive oil

1 fried egg

roasted red onion (or any kind of cooked onion): I made this by slicing an onion or two, coating the slices with olive oil, salt, and pepper (on both sides), and putting it

in a baking dish in the overn for 30 minutes or so.

Beat the egg with the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Put the bread crumbs on a plate.

Coat the veal first with the egg, then pass it through the bread crumbs, pressing down lightly.

Heat two or three tablespoons of olive oil in a saute pan, over medium heat. Lightly fry the milanesas.

Serve with roasted red onion, white rice, and a fried egg.

Some people also serve the cooked onions on top of the meat, and the onion pile is topped with the fried egg.

kitchen staples: the freezer

For some reason, I can't recall what I ate this day. We might've gone out, or maybe friends came over and I didn't have a chance to take a picture...

I forget.

Regardless, I've been meaning to write about what I keep in the freezer, since this, I believe, is key to keeping the monthly food costs to around 60 or 70 a person, even when we eat things like roast lamb, duck, and fancy desserts (around once a month).

Chicken stock: I make this every time I need boneless chicken, or I buy a whole chicken to roast. From the bones, I boil water with a few vegetables for a little while.

Fish stock: Whenever the fish counter fillets a fish for me (or I buy a whole fish), I boil the bones with a little bit of parsley (or whatever vegetables I have in the fridge -- carrots, celery, and so on).

Vegetable stock: This is a last resort for vegetables, when there's a chance they'll go bad if I don't use them, I use them to make vegetable stock.

I keep the different stocks in labeled tupperware in the freezer.

Chicken thighs: Every once in a while, Safeway will have a sale for chicken thighs, for 99 cents a pound. I usually buy the chicken in bulk, and put three thighs in small ziplock bags, and all the small ziplock bags in a giant freezer bag. By the time Safeway has another sale, I'm usually almost through all the chicken thighs in the freezer.

Frozen scallops or frozen shrimp: If Safeway has a sale on these, I buy 'em and keep them in the fridge. They're good for quick meals.

Frozen corn: Always useful for paellas or other quick meals.
Frozen peas: Ditto.

salami and goat cheese sandwich on walnut whole wheat bread

(serves 3, with leftovers)

salami and goat cheese sandwich on walnut whole wheat bread
a.k.a. miracle berry tasting day

walnut whole wheat bread
miracle berries
1 lime
1 lemon
1 orange
1 grapefruit
1 piece of goat cheese
1 wedge of soft goat cheese
1 dark beer, capuccino stout
3/4 salami, sliced
1 bowl of spinach
balsamic vinegar
chipotle chili pepper sauce

This was a combination of a make-your-own sandwich and a miracle berry tasting day!

I sliced the bread and laid it out with the cheese, salami, and spinach, for everyone to make their own salad.

On every plate, there were also two miracle berries! Erk and I started off with the miracle berries. For those who don't know, miracle berries are little red fruits that make sour foods taste extremely sweet.

You can see the extent of the effect when people are happily glomping down lime and lemon wedges.

The lemons tasted like lemonade, and the dark beer tasted like mocha.

Other items on the table:
Grapefruit tasted mostly like cough syrup -- sweet in a gross, artificial-flavor sort of way
Goat cheese -- I had heard it tasted like "cheesecake", but unfortunately, it merely tasted like less sour goat cheese to me
Chipotle chili pepper sauce -- I wanted to buy tabasco, as this tends to be among the more vinegary of the hot sauces. There was a sweet tanginess to it, whihc was neat, as usually I cannot stand any type of hot or spicy food.
Balsamic vinegar -- The vinegar flavor was almost gone, leaving just a dark sweetness that's hard to describe.
Orange -- like candy! This and the lemon were my favorites.

I realized I might've made a mistake in buying miracle berries as a birthday present when the shopping cart was full of Erk's favorite foods (without taste-tampering): whole wheat bread, dark beer, lemon, salami...

canned mackerel and grape tomatoes

(serves two, not very hungry people)

canned mackerel and grape tomatoes

white rice
1 can of mackerel
grape tomatoes
salt
pepper

I served some canned mackerel with grape tomatoes that were sliced in half over a bowl of rice. I was full after two bowls -- not too fancy, but good in a hurry.

pork with black beans and rice

(serves two, with leftovers for lunch)

pork with black beans

olive oil
1/2 red onion, diced
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp chipotle
1/2 tsp cayenne

1 can black beans
2 pork chops, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 handfuls of spinach

In a medium pot over similar (medium) heat, drop a little bit of olive oil. Once hot, add the onions and spices, and stir until the onions are soft. Add the can of black beans and wait until the mixture heats up. Add the pork and spinach, and remove once the pork is just cooked (so that it doesn't become chewy).

Serve with white rice.

mashed sweet potatoes

mashed sweet potatoes

1 1/2 medium sized sweet potatoes (using the leftovers from what I bought for the chicken tagine meal)
butter
brown sugar

Boil the sweet potatoes. Mash with a fork, adding butter and brown sugar to taste (I added 1/2 tbsp of butter and 1 tsp brown sugar, because Erk doesn't like sweet yumminess).

muscat orange grape cake

(serves around 8 people. this recipe was based on epicurious' Beames de Venise Cake with Grapes)

muscat orange grape cake

olive oil

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup brown sugar (plus a little more to sprinkle over the cake)
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Muscat wine
1 1/2 cups red seedless grapes

Line the bottom of a 9 inch pan with parchment, brush all over with olive oil.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In a bowl, whisk the sugar, butter, and olive oil together until smooth (you can melt the butter in the microwave to make it easier.) Whisk in the eggs, orange peel, and vanilla.

Add 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to the bowl, and whisk until smooth. Add a 1/3 the wine, then 1/2 cup flour, and so on, until there's no more wine and flour. Whisk until smooth after each addition.

Pour the batter over the pan, and sprinkle 1 cup of grapes over the cake. Place it into the oven.

After 20 minutes, sprinkle the rest of the grapes and a bit of brown sugar all over the cake. Bake until golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 more minutes.

spinach salad with grape tomatoes

spinach salad with grape tomatoes

a bowl of spinach
a handful of grape tomatoes, cut in half
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Mix and enjoy!

chicken with pears and almonds

(serves four, but no seconds)

chicken with pears and almonds

olive oil
4 chicken thighs, skin removed
1 pear
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
salt
pepper
chicken stock (or water)

sliced almonds

In a large pot over medium heat, add a tablespoon or two of olive oil. Once hot, add the chicken and brown for a couple minutes on each side. Add the chicken stock and spices, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 20 - 30 minutes (after 10 minutes or so, add the pear), until the chicken is cooked, but still moist.

Sprinkle the almonds on top just before serving.

apricot chicken tagine with almonds and sweet potatoes

(serves 4. leftovers depends on how hungry you are.)

apricot chicken tagine with almonds and sweet potatoes

1 1/4 cup dried apricots, cut in half
2 tablespoons honey
1 cinnamon stick
3 cups water

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cilantro
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil

6 chicken thighs, skin removed

1/2 medium red onion, quartered and sliced thinly
5 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 medium sized sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds


On the stove, boil 3 cups of water, adding the apricots as the water heats up. Add the honey and cinnamon sticks. Simmer for 20 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, cut up the red onion, mince the garlic cloves, and cube the sweet potato.

Mix the spices, minced garlic, and olive oil in the tagine. Coat the chicken with the spices and olive oil and place around the tagine (if you can, form a flower-shape for presentation).

Scatter the sweet potatoes on the border of the tagine, and the red onions in the middle. Remove the apricots from the heat and add the water and apricots to the tagine.

Add the tagine to the oven, setting the temperature to 350 F. The tagine should warm up in the oven, as a drastic change in temperature could cause it to break.

Sprinkle the almonds over the dish right before serving.

angel hair pasta with scallops, garlic, and tomato sauce

(serves 3)

1 can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups baby scallops
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
vegetable broth or water
olive oil
salt
pepper

parmigiano-reggiano

3/4 box of angel hair pasta (~8 oz)

Start boiling the water for the pasta in a large pot. In a large saute pan, add a bit of olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic. After a couple minutes, add the diced tomatoes and bay leaves to the pan.

Hopefully, by now, the water should be boiling. Add the pasta and set a timer.

At the same time you add pasta, also add scallops to the other pan. Season with salt and pepper. If the sauce is looking dry, add vegetable broth or water.

Sprinkle cheese over the pasta, and enjoy!

curried potatos and chicken

(serves 3.)

curried potatoes and chicken

2 small onions, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
5 potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch squares
5 chicken thighs (skin removed)
2 cups chicken broth
3 tbsp curry
1 1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Start peeling and chopping the onions and potatoes. In a large pot*, heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil at medium heat. Add the chicken and brown it a couple minutes on each side. Remove the chicken from the stove, and throw the onions into the pot.

After a couple minutes, add the spices, potatoes, and chicken. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the chicken broth, and cook for 20 minutes, until the potatoes are soft and the chicken is fully cooked.

Serve with white rice.

* I only have this T-fal set that I use for everything, so I'll use the word pot often. In this case, pot means the 5 3/4 quart dutch oven.


T-45: Put the white rice in the rice cooker. Start the onions and potatoes.
T-30: Brown the chicken. Add onions.
T-25: Add the potatoes, spices, and chicken back into the pan. Cook for 20 minutes or so.
Dinner-time: Enjoy!

walnut, avocado, and spinach salad.

(serves 2)

walnut, avocado, and spinach salad

I love salads made from fruit, nuts, and spinach.

1 handful walnuts
1/2 avocado, sliced
1 bowl of spinach

Add spinach to a bowl, together with the sliced avocado. Crush the handful of walnuts by hand and add them to the bowl. Season with salt, pepper, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.

rotini with squash, tomato, and sage

(serves 2)

3/4 box of rotini
1/2 small butternut squash
2 handfuls spinach, shredded by hand
1 can diced tomatoes
2 tsp chopped sage
Parmigiano-Reggiano

The squash, sage, and cheese are left-overs from a night of steel cut oat risotto with butternut squash.

In a pan, heat a little bit of olive oil over medium heat. Add the squash, sage, and tomato sauce. Start the water to boil.

When the water boils, add the pasta. Cook the rotini according to the instructions on the box. Add the spinach at around this time to the pasta sauce.

By the time the rotini is done, the squash should be cooked. Serve sprinkled with cheese.

Serve with walnut, avocado, and spinach salad.

steel cut oat risotto with butternut squash

(serves 3, with leftovers enough for one lunch)

steel cut oat risotto with butternut squash

I didn't come up with this strange idea. Erk found this recipe here and somehow convinced me to cook it.

I accompanied it with a pork chop, but the meal would've been good without any meat at all.

We had the risotto with another Chilean carmenere, this one Anakena's 2005. The wine wasn't as good as the other one (notice that it doesn't get its own blog post). However, it complemented the oat risotto well, with a dry aftertaste a good follow up to the cheese and creaminess of the risotto.

couscous with honey, raisins, chicken, and kabocha squash

Rather than pack the kabocha squash leftovers, I used them in a separate dinner meal.

(serves 2, no leftovers)

couscous with honey, raisins, chicken, and kabocha squash

1 cup couscous

3 chicken thighs
1 handful raisins
1 1/4 cup leftover kabocha squash with cumin and cinnamon
2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cumin
salt
pepper

Cook the couscous by boiling 1 cup of water and adding it to a bowl with the couscous. Cover the couscous and let sit.

Cut the chicken thighs into small, bite-sized pieces. In a pan, over medium-low heat, heat a splash of olive oil. Add the chicken, raisins, honey. Cook for ten minutes, until the chicken is almost cooked through, but still moist. Add the kabocha squash. Add the spices, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for five more minutes until the kabocha squash heats up.

(Note: Mindless tag denotes food that takes 15 minutes or less and does not require much thinking. These recipes are good for dinners after long days at work.)

october 6: soba with spinach, salmon onigiri on the side

(This dinner takes around 60 minutes, but with only 20 minutes of active time.)

I'm trying out a new layout, where the recipes are separate from the time required to make them. Basically, since the time required depends on all the dishes in a meal, it doesn't make sense to put it together with the main dish.

Here are the recipe links: soba with spinach, salmon onigiri

T-60: Put the rice in the rice cooker.
T-58: Play video games, catch up on work, read a book, or talk to Erk (or whomever you live with) for the next 40 minutes
T-20: Get all the ingredients out and ready, prepare the pot for soba
T-15: Mix the sushinoko with the rice. Start boiling the water.
T-13: Make onigiri.
T-10: Put the soba in. Continue making onigiri.
Dinner time: Eat and enjoy!

soba with spinach

 

(serves two people, no leftovers.)

soba with spinach

2 bunches of soba
1 handful of spinach
1 tsp sesame oil
1 cup soba tsuyu (dipping sauce) -- if you don't find it in an asian market, you can substitute with the dipping sauce recipe below.

Boil water with salt and sesame oil. Add the soba and cook according to package direction (usually 6-10 minutes). Meanwhile, shred the handful of spinach.

Eat by dipping the soba into the tsuyu. Enjoy!

soba dipping sauce

1/2 cup dashi stock
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp mirin
2 tsp rice vinegar
bonito flakes, to taste

Mix all together. If available, add sliced green onions.

salmon onigiri

(makes four medium onigiri)

salmon onigiri

4 sheets of nori
1 1/2 cup rice
1 cup salmon (leftover from two nights ago)
1 tbsp sushinoko

Mix the rice and sushinoko. Put a bowl of cold water nearby, as well as a salt shaker. Dip your hands in cold water and shake a tsp or so of salt on them. Take half a handful of rice and shape into a flat circular shape. Put a tablespoon (a little more, depending on how much salmon you have) on the rice, and add another half handful on top of the salmon, ensuring that the salmon is completely enclosed by rice.

Here's a video about how to make onigiri -- if the rice is too hot for you, or you have trouble with it sticking, notice how the girl in the video uses plastic wrap. Also, make a note of how her hands are positioned in order to make triangular rice onigiri.

Note: the salmon was left over from October 4's dinner of salmon, butternut squash with cumin, pear-spinach-pecan salad, and rice.

october 4: autumn delicious with squash, salmon, pear and spinach, brown rice

Just to reiterate, by "fast food", I usually try for half an hour of active time (I estimate it would take me around 15 minutes to drive to a restaurant, find parking, and sit at a table -- so it's definitely worth making it at home for less). Worst case, dinner should take from the time the rice is put into the cooker, to the time the cooker beeps that the rice is ready (~45 minutes).

Entree: Simple salmon met a pan

Sides: Brown rice; pear, walnut, and spinach salad (this uses up 1/2 pear); roasted kabocha squash with cumin and cinnamon

Dessert: Upside down pear cake (this uses up the other pair half)

T-45: Put the brown rice to cook. Chop, chop, chop! Peel and cube the kabocha squash.
T-30: It took me around 15 minutes for the squash. At this point, mix the spices for the squash and grind them for a couple minutes. Don't forget to preheat the oven!
T-25: Put the squash into the oven. Start cutting up the pear (for both salad and dessert).
T-20: Make the rest of salad, minus the dressing.
T-15: Ah! Time's running out. Put olive oil in a pan and start heating it on the stove for the salmon. Meanwhile, start making the cake.
T-12: Put the salmon in the pan. Continue making the cake.
Dinner-time! Put the cake in the oven. Call everyone for dinner. Don't forget to season the salad!

Sometime during dinner: Take the cake out, make sure it's cooked. It shouldn't interrupt dinner conversation if you live in a small apartment like I do.

upside down pear cake

Note: this recipe still needs a bit of work. Trying to make a 4-inch cake from a real cake recipe takes a lot of iteration.

(serves 2-3)

upside down pear cake

1/2 pear, sliced
1/2 tsp butter
1 tbsp brown sugar

3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ginger
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp soy milk
1 small egg

Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a skillet, brown the pear slices with butter and brown sugar.

In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, ginger, and brown sugar. Add the milk and egg, and beat to form a batter.

In a 4 1/2 inch springform pan, position the slices one over another. Add the batter. Bake for 20 minutes, or until fully cooked.

pear, walnut, and spinach salad

(serves 2, no leftovers, especially if you have a salad eating fiend called erk.)

pear, walnut, and spinach salad

1/2 pear, diced
1 handful of walnut
1 bowl full of spinach

Put spinach in the bowl. Crush the walnuts by hand and add them to the salad. Place the pear cubes on top, and artfully season the salad with salt, pepper, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.

simple salmon met a pan

(serves 2, with leftovers for a lunch.)

simple salmon met a pan

1 piece of salmon (~1 1/2 lbs)
salt
pepper
olive oil

Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Heat a pan with around 2 tbsp olive oil on medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the salmon, skin side first (this will give the skin a crispy, golden color). Flip after 5-6 minutes on each side.

roasted kabocha squash with cumin and cinnamon

 

(serves 2, with enough for a hearty lunch leftover.)

roasted kabocha squash with cumin and cinammon

1 kabocha squash, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cinammon
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp sea salt
1 small bay leaf, crushed
1 tbsp + 2 tsp olive oil

First, peel the squash and chop into 1-inch chunks. Put the chunks into a bowl. (Reserve the seeds separately).

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Add the spices and the bay leaf into a mortar and grind for a few minutes (basically, until the bay leaf is reduced to small pieces). Don't worry if the cumin seeds are still whole, they look pretty spread randomly across the squash.

Shake the spices onto the squash. Add the olive oil, making sure the oil is well distributed, coating all the pieces of squash.



Spread the squash in a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, until fully cooked.

hearty brown and wild rice lunch

 

(serves 2)

hearty brown and wild rice lunch

1/3 cup wild rice
2/3 cup brown rice
1 can of diced tomatoes (or a little less, I used the leftover from the morning omelet)
1 1/2 cups water (or more)
1 small potato, diced
1 handful spinach, shredded
2 eggs, hard boiled

Add a small amount of olive oil (a teaspoon or two) to a large sauce pan, with the heat on medium. Add the rice and the tomatoes. Add 1 1/2 cups of water. While it heats up, dice the small potato and start boiling water for the eggs. Add the diced potato to the rice and mix. In ten minutes remove the eggs from the pot and place in a bowl filled with cold water.

It'll take anywhere between half an hour to an hour to cook the rice. Add water as needed (when it's looking dry and is still uncooked). Add the spinach once the rice is cooked, and stir. The potato will gain a lovely purple color from the wild rice.

Serve with the hard boiled eggs quartered on top (see image on top).

breakfast omelet: tomatoes, avocado, and spinach

 

(This makes one omelet. It can serve two people, or one very hungry person).

breakfast omelet: tomatoes, avocado, and spinach

1/4 avocado, sliced
1/4 cup tomatoes (from a can of diced tomatoes, save the rest in a tupperware)
1/2 handful of spinach
3 eggs

Heat a small skillet on medium heat, with a small amount of olive oil. Beat the eggs and add salt and pepper to taste. When the eggs are half cooked (see photograph below), add spinach, tomatoes, and avocado.



Cook until eggs are 3/4 done, and then fold in half. Finish cooking the omelet. Ta-da!



Note: Don't pay attention to the quantity of ingredients in the first photograph -- that was before I realized how much would actually fit into an omelet.

october 3: carrot soup, mustard herb chicken, salad, quail eggs, brown rice

Today was fairly involved, but dinner was still ready by the time the rice cooker beeped. The whole dinner serves 2.

Appetizer: Carrot Soup

Entree: Mustard and Herb Chicken

Sides: Brown rice, Quail eggs, Spinach, red pepper, and avocado salad

No dessert, unfortunately.

T-45: Put the brown rice to cook. Start cutting the carrots up for the soup.
T-37: Put the carrots in a pot with water to cook for 30 minutes.
T-35: Start making the salad (don't season it until the very end!)
T-20: Mix the mustard and lemon juice in a bowl for the chicken.
T-15: Start heating the pan for the chicken on medium, put the chicken in.
T-10: Soup-time! Blend and season. Rinse the pot and put the 4 quail eggs to boil for 5 minutes.
T-05: Remove the chicken (make sure it's cooked). Season the salad. Remove the quail eggs once you've done the above.
Dinner time! Listen the beep of the rice-cooker. Serve everything (don't forget to season the quail eggs with salt and pepper).


The Korean market nearby had quail eggs for 99 cents for 12, and these were the last ones left. For some reason, though, when I look back at the recipes, I can't recall what I used the rest of the quail eggs for...

spinach, red pepper, and avocado salad

(serves 2.)

spinach, red pepper, and avocado salad

1 bowl spinach
1/2 red pepper, cut into strips
1/2 avocado, sliced

Mix all, and season with olive oil, salt, pepper, and (a bit of) sherry vinegar.

mustard and herb chicken

 

(serves 2, no leftovers)

mustard and herb chicken breasts

2 boneless chicken breasts
1/8 cup mustard
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp herbs de provence
1 tsp crushed garlic and red pepper
2 tsp olive oil
salt
pepper

Mix the mustard, lemon juice, and crushed garlic and red pepper in a bowl. Coat the chicken well.

Heat the olive oil in a pan on the stove, on medium high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook 4-5 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of the chicken. Add the herbs the provence while the chicken cooks. Season, too, with salt and pepper to taste.

carrot soup

 

I had a lot of carrots left over from the chocolate stout stew a couple days ago, so I made carrot soup for today.

(serves 2, no leftovers)

carrot soup

1 lb carrots, peeled and sliced
2 cups water (or vegetable broth)
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt (more to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper (to taste)
1/4 tsp ground cloves
chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Add the carrots and water to a pot. Simmer over medium heat, around 30 minutes. Once the carrots are very soft, puree the soup in a blender, adding the lemon juice, salt, pepper, and cloves. Garnish with fresh parsley.

frugal wines: in praise of tempranillo

We had leftovers again. However, instead of posting about a particular wine, I'd like to share an ode to tempranillo.

There are several bottles of tempranillo between $8 and $15 (around $11-$13 seems to be the sweet spot). I don't think I've found one yet that wow'ed me in the same way the Calina Carmenere and Blackstone's Malvasia Bianca did, but this grape varietal definitely has the potential to do so.

Tempranillo makes a full-bodied red wine. It tends to have the smells of dark fruits and berries: blackberries, cherrries, plums, and prunes. It has a slight hint of chocolate in its taste, but predominantly a complex, fruity flavor. It tends to be less acidic than other red wines I've tried.

When I think of tempranillo, I think of a slab of manchego cheese, beef, and crusty artisan bread.

Random trivia: the word "tempranillo" is derived from the Spanish word "temprano", meaning early, since the grape ripens around two weeks before other common varietals in Spain.

frugal wines: calina carmenere 2007

Today we had leftovers (gnocchi), so here comes another wine recommendation.

Calina's Carmenere 2007 ($9) combines a smoky taste, bordering on leathery, with dark fruit and persuasive hints of coffee. The color's a deep burgundy, almost purple hue.

The Carmenere vines are almost extinct in France today, having been wiped out by a plague hundreds of years ago by a Philloxera plague. The devastating damage led many to believe the grape extinct. However, vines had been taken to Chile over the years and vineyards had inadvertently led to a healthy flourish of Carmenere grapes (part of this was caused by mistaking the Carmenere grapes for Merlot).

And the piece of random trivia for this wine: Chilean growers used the Carmenere in Merlot wines, up to a concentration fo 50%. It was not until 1998 that the Chilean Department of Agriculture recognized the Carmenere vines as a distinct varietal.

This wine is most excellent with practically any type of food, due to low levels of tannins and vivid hints of fruit.