Dinner Time - Pork & Hominy Stew

This was another one of those recipes I consistently flipped past in one of my favorite cookbooks. It didn't have a picture. Plus it had words like "Hominy" in it. I had used Hominy once before but overall I was just never drawn to make this recipe. Something changed this week....and I thought I'd give it a whirl. Maybe it was the word "Stew" and the looming weather reports threatening clouds and rain. (which by the way, I saw the clouds, but no rain, and um...it was kind of warm...?) Didn't turn out to be stew weather. Getting done with a work out, being hot, tired and sweaty....the thought of making and eating stew was the last thing I wanted. But I had to do it! The 2 lb pork loin was already fully defrosted so I had no choice.... (some of you cooks out there understand the dilema of the already thawed meat that you just have to use....don't you? I know I'm not alone....) 

So, I'll start with the recipe. Then I'll tell you what I added to make it my own. ;)

INGREDIENTS

1 large onion, chopped

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves

1/2 cup water

4 garlic cloves, peeled

1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 lbs boneless pork loin, trimmed & cut into 1 inch pieces
3/4 teaspoon salt

3 carrots cut into 1 inch pieces

1 (14 1/2 oz) can reduced sodium chicken broth

1 (15 oz) can white or yellow hominy, rinsed and drained (So Hominy, if you aren't familiar with it, is almost like a corn kernel. It's a bit more dense but it's almost like a starch in a way, like a bean texture? It adds a mild but delicious flavor and texture. You can find it in most mexican food isles. You just rinse and drain it like a can of beans. Don't be afraid to try "Strange" ingredients!) Below is a pic of it draining after I rinsed. You can see that it does look like little corn - but it does not taste like corn so don't let that fool you!

OKAY: So here's the thing. I forgot to buy cilantro at the store this weekend! I was very disapointed because I love cilantro. So, I had to leave it out. It ended up being just fine though!

Also - I was itching for a way to use my fresh zuchini from my garden so I cut up 2 medium sized green zuchini into chunks and put it in after the carrots were soft (see recipe steps further down). It was yummy!

Last - I also added a can of drained and rinsed black beans at the simmer step (YUM) and another 1/2 to 3/4 of a can of chicken broth for extra liquid since I was adding more veg with the beans and zuchini. Turned out perfect I dare say. :)

COOK

1. Puree onion, cilantro, water, garlic, oregano and cumin in a blender; set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a nonstick dutch oven (or large stock pot), add pork and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned. About 4 minutes. Add carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften. About 2 minutes. (here is where I added zuchini)

3. Add reserved onion mixture and the broth, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer (added beans here and also extra broth), partially covered, until poark and carrots are fork tender. About 30-40 minutes. Stir in the hominy and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.

~~I decided to slice up some corn tortillas and toss them in olive oil, salt, garlic powder, a pinch of chili powder and pinch of cumin and put them on a baking sheet in the oven at 350 degree heat for about 20 minutes (check every so often) until crispy. Whala! Instant tortilla crisps for topping.

~~I topped my soup with the tortilla crisps, some avocado and that was all I needed. I suspect when Caleb comes home he will probably add sour cream. You could also add some chopped tomatoes or green onions. The cilantro would sure come in handy. I did miss it personally but I don't think the recipe lacked without it at all. It was very filling, full of protein, low in fat, easy and fast to make. I was very surprised at how good it was, and the pork in a stew was a nice change from the usual suspects of beef or chicken.

Here are some pics, I know the one below of it simmering doesn't look terribly appetizing....but I put it up there anyways so that ... a) you can see I actually do make this stuff and b) to use as a guide in case you do make this, you can see if yours looks like mine or not. Maybe that's good or maybe that's bad, who knows.... :)

Turkey Burgers & Sweet Potato Fries

Last night was home made turkey burgers & home made sweet potato fries for dinner. Super easy, healthy, and yummy. :) I put Caleb in charge of mixing up the meat. No specific recipe for this one - I always change it up with whatever I have in my pantry or fridge. Any flavors I feel like, but I just make sure to put enough flavor since it's very lean ground Turkey .... and I always put an egg in to mix up. It acts as a great binding agent to hold the burgers together while cooking. You can also add a little bit of bread crumbs with the egg for extra umph. So, this is what Caleb came up with, for the most part.

Salt

Pepper

Dried Cranberries

Trader Joes "Soyaki" sauce

Egg

"21 Seasoning" (See pic)

And I'm not sure what else. Seems so simple, if that really was it then that's awesome. I wasn't home to watch him do it either...so we'll just take his word for it.

Mix it up really well, then form into patties. I got 5 patties out of about 1 lb of ground meat. I cook them on the stove top in a skillet but if you want to BBQ then go ahead! :) Roughly 4-5 minutes per side, I can tell when they are done by pushing slightly with my spatula on the top of the patty and when the juices run clear that's a good sign it's done.

We topped our patties with fresh spinach leaves, tomatoes, and I put ketchup/mayo and Caleb used BBQ and Dijon Mustard. The burgers were really juicy though! And as odd as the dried cranberries may seem.....just add them. They add a great slightly sweet little pop of flavor and you're not even sure what it's coming from until you remember what's in them. For buns, we are big fans of the super thin "orowheat" brand, or I think I bought another brand that was on sale (check out the picture) .... less bread so I know it seems like you're getting jipped. But it's a bit healthier and you still get the feeling of eating bread with a burger. Just our preference :)

NOW - for the sweet potato fries. I LOVE LOVE LOVE sweet potatoes. A lot of people get confused. Sweet potato. Yam. Sweet potato. Yam. They are different! Very different! A yam for instance, dark skin and bright orange flesh. This is that thing that you get served sliced open with butter and brown sugar dripping from it.(yummmy by the way) It's also the thing that people bake with marshmallows on top for Thanksgiving meals. HOWEVER.....a sweet potato is actually with the consistancy of a potato. Skin looks like a regular potato skin. The shape is normally longer than a normal baking potato shape and it tends to be irregular and funky looking. Here is a great article on sweet potatoes http://www.sheknows.com/articles/803254/sweet-potato-nutrition-cooking-sweet-potatoes

So what I like to do is peel the sweet potato then slice it in a way that it resembles french fry shape. Personally, we prefer the thicker "steak cut" fry shape. Then you can kind of season how you like, be creative! I like to mix them up with olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder. Play around with dried herbs too though, I have had these fries with herbs in restaurants and it was good!  Then I bake at a very high heat, 400 or so, for about 40 minutes until they are good and crispy. Or less time if you like them a bit softer. Anyways, they are tasty, and good for you! A great substitute for regular potato fries. Try it :)

Dinner Time - is Breakfast Time! :-)

Well....not much in the grocery budget this week so I ran short on groceries by today. Good thing pay day is tomorrow! That meant that tonight was breakfast for dinner! Which by the way I love anyways, not just because my fridge was empty.

Caleb was home, which was nice, and he helped me out..... 1) because I burnt the pancakes last time I made them (I think that it's kind of like doing garlic bread. I seem to just burn it each time!) and 2) I'm sick....or getting sick. What the heck? But that's another story I suppose. So either way I was just happy to have company in the kitchen.

Caleb gets into cooking and kind of "goes all in". So.....how can you do that for breakfast consisting of the standard bacon, eggs and pancakes? Well, make a berry reduction sauce....duh! Right....LoL. Well it was very yummy. We had some frozed mixed berries in the freezer that we mixed with water, sugar and some cornstartch and boiled away 'till it was nice and thick. That topped off our pancakes.

As for the pancakes, well I just used boxed baking mix....gotta love it! I had exactly 1 cup of it left, thankfully just enough for the minimal serving. We baked the bacon instead of frying it....nice alternative. The bacon, which I don't normally have on hand....happened to be buy 1 get 1 free at Vons a few weeks ago so I figured it would come in handy.

At the end of all of that....this is our dinner.... =)

Gotta love the nights where you just eat everything that's left in your pantry! ;-)

We'll see what next week holds.....depends on what is on sale at the grocery store....

I'm going to take night time cold medicine and pass out in bed now. Goodnight.....

The Verdict...

So....over all the "Hunter Chicken" was a win-win. Some comments/adjustments though: 1) a bit too saucy. my addition of the can of chicken broth was too much, so I'd suggest either cut that in 1/2 or leave it out. 2) it was still lacking in a little bit of flavor though I'm not sure why. Caleb added some additional pizza tomato sauce to his which he said was great, I left mine as-is just added the fresh thyme and some additional salt/pepper.

Some plus sides: chicken is very moist! Also, this is a recipe you can play with and exchange veggies out for ones that you particularly enjoy, etc. If you find something that works well, let me know!

Tomorrow is "breakfast for dinner" at our house. AKA, out of groceries 'till the weekend so eat whatever we have left around the house. :-) I think I will skip the dinner blog about my pancakes and eggs.....

Gnite!

Wednesday Dinner @ The Tammars: Hunter-Style Chicken. "Aka Chicken Cacciatore"

Okay so tonight's dinner was called "Hunter-Sytle Chicken". Then of course I see at the bottom of the page a note that says .... "Hunter-Style refers to a dish cooked with onions, peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes. You might be more familiar with its Italian name - cacciatore, which means Hunter."

So, there you go! You learn something new every day. Or, at least I did today.

I am posting this prior to actually eating, however I'm fairly confident it will be good. I altered the recipe a bit because of my strong dislike for red bell peppers, or any bell peppers for that matter. And this recipe happens to call for 2 of them seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. No thanks. Also....because of my husband's fondness for every combo of startch and protein I can fit into a meal, I figured I'd add in some red potatoes, can't go wrong with that!

Tonight I broke my pattern of somewhat Asian themed meals that involve a seemingly long list of ingredients that you might not have on hand. This recipe, however, is stuff that I am pretty sure you have in your kitchen, making it a budget friendly meal that is easy to make for just 2 people or for a family of 4 or more.

INGREDIENTS

1 (roughly 3-lb) chicken, cut into 8 pieces and skinned.  (okay - I ended up buying a 'picnic pack' of chicken at the store. Pretty darn cheap, and it included a bunch of drumsticks, breasts and thighs. I did NOT skin them. 1) it's a pain and 2) it adds flavor!) 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

3 teaspoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 assorted color bell peppers seeded and cut. (use at your own will!)  :) 
1/4 lb white mushrooms, sliced (I bought pre-sliced 8 oz package)
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 container tomato pasta sauce
Fresh thyme (optional) (though I was so happy to go snip some from my garden!)

COOK

Sprinkle chicken with salt/pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in skillet and add chicken. Cook until browned, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in same skillet and add onion and garlic. Cook, stirring until softened, about 3 minutes. Add bell peppers, mushrooms and celery. (I only added mushrooms and celery at this point) Cook until softened. Add chicken back into skillet and add pasta sauce and stir to coat. Bring mixture to boil and cover at reduced heat, simmer for 20 minutes till chicken is cooked and veggies are tender. Garnish with thyme if using.

BECKY'S NOTE

After adding mushrooms and celery, for a few minutes of cooking time, I added some chopped up red potatoes. Then a few minutes after that I added in a can of chicken broth and some more salt and pepper to "flavor every layer". I let that simmer together for about 6 or 7 minutes. THEN I added the chicken back and put DICED tomatoes (From a can) and a can of tomato sauce on top. I put the lid on for about 20 minutes.

We're about to go serve up so we'll see what the verdict is!

Dinner Time - Asian Pork & Broccoli

Tuesday Night Dinner @ the Tammar House was Asian Pork & Broccoli......

INGREDIENTS

3 tablespoons dry sherry
(Sherry is not something you have on hand, typically. It is alcohol, though it's more of a cookin alcohol than drinking. A few years ago I bought a bottle, it was not expensive, and it's lasted me forever because most of the time you only use 1 tbl at a time, or so. So if you can, then I'd suggest to buy it because you never know when it pops up in recipes. It's good to have as a pantry item. However....Google Sherry substitutes if you need to, and you'll find there's a lot of options involving vinager and broth, etc it just depends....)

2 tablespoons soy sauce (reduced sodium)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup chicken broth (um....by the way.....I used vegetable broth because oops! I was out of chicken broth...the substitution was just fine in my opinion)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 lb. pork tenderloin trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. (I found a pork loin roast at Food Maxx that was reasonable when it came to price. It was in a rectangle shape. No bones or anything. Easy!)
3 teaspoons dark seasame oil (again another great pantry item, lasts forever because a tiny bit goes a long way!)
3 cups (give or take) fresh broccoli florets (chop it up yourself, it's cheaper than buying them already chopped!)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
3 scallions, chopped

COOK

Whisk together 2 tlb of sherry, 1 tbl of soy sauce, 1 tbl of cornstarch, all of the broth, and the sugar in a bowl until smooth. Set aside.

Combine the pork, the remaining 1 tbl sherry, 1 tbl soy sauce and 1 tbl cornstarch in another bowl. Set aside.

Heat 1 1/2 tsp of the sesame oil in large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add pork mixture, cook stirring occasionally until browned, 4-5 minutes or so. Transfer out of skillet.

Heat remaining 1 1/2 tsp of sesame oil in the same skillet. Add broccoli and cook a couple of minutes until darker green. Add garlic and ginger....cook until fragrant and it starts to brown....about 1 minute. Then add pork back into skillet and cook until all flavors are blended, about 1 minute. Add reserved broth (from step 1) and bring to a boil and cook until sauce thickens and coats pork & broccoli, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in scallions and serve.

~~~~~

I made some brown rice to serve with this (put the pork & broccoli/sauce over the rice....makes the food stretch longer... for left overs!) and we also put some chopped up salted peanuts to add a salty crunch. It was still in need of a bit more salt, but TASTE first. Sesame oil tends to be salty so your pallet might taste it differently.

Enjoy!
:-)

Tomorrow is "Hunter Style Chicken" with mushrooms & a tomato sauce. We'll see how it goes....

Gnite! It's American Idol Time!

Adventures in Gardening

Growing up, I always watched my dad do yard work. But not just yard work as in mowing the lawn. I mean, yard work because he really cared about his yard. Plus it was a stress releiver. Even though he has a bad back he still spends time devoted to sprucing up his yard and now (lucky him...) helping me with my yard! I never thought I would enjoy this kind of thing. And I admit, there are some days where I really don't feel like going out to water my veggie planters or flowers. And some weeks I let the weeds get a bit more out of control than I would care to admit. However, once I get my butt outside and start on whatever project it is, I find myself enjoying it and it actually becomes relaxing. A bit of a stress releiver. Almost in the same twisted way that I find peace in cleaning after an argument or a stressful day. It's probably connected to some sort of control issue, and enjoying the fact that I can control something and have an immediate (or almost immediate) result from something I've done. However, that's another issue...

My yard and my garden is now my pride & joy, my little project. I get so excited each day when I see how things are growing! My roses are beautiful and so fragrant. Going through the garden department at stores just makes me excited and I have to restrain myself to NOT spend money on more plants or garden decor. So much fun. =) Mock me if you will.....but if you are a garden lover then you will understand.

Take a look at my "babies" and how they've grown this year....


So here is a look at one of my two raised planters in my backyard. (They came with the house, how awesome is that?) This picture was taken the weekend before Easter. The plants around the perimeter are my tomato plants. A variety of cherry, roma, and more of a robust variety.



This is a close up of ..... peek a boo! A tomato, first of the season. This was taken last night, May 17th. Though this particular plant surprised me. It came out of "nowhere", or more specifically, from a seed that dropped from a plant from last season! And surprise! A huge tomato plant! :-)



This is from last night as well, just 1/2 of that same planter but you get the idea. Everything is growing so big! Except my poor little basil plant in the front there. Snails and birds were attacking it.... so I think I saved it on time. I'm paying special attention to it so that I can hopefully nurse it back to health.....I LOVE basil. It's so darn expensive in the store!



Oh! And this is my cucumber plant. It's in the front/center of the planter with the tomatoes in it. I've never grown cucumbers before but it seems to be doing well. I hear they can take over the space they're in, so....bring it on ..... I'm ready!



This is what my other planter looked like the week before Easter. These are zuchini, yellow squash and yellow onion plants.



Now, look at them! Getting so big! The ones in the front with the different colored leaves, they are my yellow squash plants.
In the middle are my yellow onions. I know they look like scallions, or green onions. But the round yellow onion is actually under ground to be harvested later.
On the other side are my zuchini plants. . . getting rather large as well!


Peeking inside my zuchini plant......I've always wanted to try a recipe with squash blossoms, you can stuff them and fry them....we shall see....


And here are my yellow squash getting bigger each day!


I just had to throw this in here, a beautiful rose from one of my plants :)


And I love this plant, I have two of them but I forgot the name. They are floppy and kind of do their own thing but I like it! The only thing is I have to make sure to cut off the dead ones when they are dead that way it makes room for new blossoms, but overall it's low maintance. Adds nice color :)

Yum.

Dinner was d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s.

:-)

Just had to share. I did the plate so cute with lemon & orange garnish all pretty to take a picture but my camera was charging and we were hungry and wanting to start the season finale of Desperate Housewives, so, we ate it before any picture taking could take place.

You'll just have to make it and see for yourself.


p.s. don't be afraid to alter the recipe. for instance, I just pan cooked the chicken then didn't even roast it in the oven. . . totally worked fine. :)

Gnite.....

Dinner Time - Citrus Chicken Breasts

This is delicious. I've only made it 2 times....but I have had the recipe for years. I kept flipping past it because 1) it had too many ingredients and 2) the blend of ingredients seemed odd and I just never actually felt inspired to give it a shot. However the thing with me and cooking is I'll always at least TRY to make something. The the "TRY" isn't emphasized because of the actual skill in cooking necessarily (though some recipes are intimidating for that fact) but it's more because of flavors. You never know though until you do TRY it. So, that's my encouragement for the day. Don't be intimidated by a recipe because of uncommon flavors or seemingly odd techniques. Just go for it and you never know....it may turn out to be a favorite in your house!

Level: Simple.
Prep time: 15 minutes. (Plus 1 hour chilled marinade time)
Cook time: 35 minutes. (give or take)
Serves: 4.

INGREDIENTS

4 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger (TIP: use either the back of a spoon to 'peel' the skin off the ginger or use a small pearing knife...don't try to use an actual veg. peeler which is way too cumbersome for this task.) (also, keep leftover ginger in a baggie, freezer safe, in the freezer. Fresh ginger tends to spoil quickly)
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel (We thankfully received one of those huge spice racks for our wedding ... and fennel seeds (unground) were included. Well last Christmas my mother in law gave me a mini mortar-pestol to grind my own spices. This came in handy for the fennel here. See pics below)
4 (1/4 lb) bone-in chicken breast halves, skinned. (I just use whatever type of chicken I have on hand or that is on sale .... and it turned out fine)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
4 teaspoons e.v olive oil
1 small shallot finely chopped
1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil.

MARINADE

Combine 1/2 of the garlic, the soy sauce, ginger, 1 teaspoon lemon zest and 1/2 teaspoon orange zest and fennel in medium bowl. Mix well and coat chicken. Cover and refigerate 1 hour.

COOK

Preheat oven to 450º and spray a roasting pan with nonstick spray. Remove chicken from marinade; sprinkle with salt and pepper (just a pinch). Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken (skinned side down, if you used that kind of chicken) and cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Turn chicken and cook 2 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to the roasting pan and cook until instant read thermometer reads 170ºF, about 20-23 minutes. (me personally, I use smaller portions of chicken so that it lasts longer for left overs so my cooking time varies and is often shorter than they say).

Meanwhile, heat remaining oil in skillet (same skillet) and add remaining garlic and shallot, stirring frequently until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Cook until mixture reduces to about 3/4 cup, about 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and stir in remaining orange and lemon zest, salt, pepper, and basil. Serve chicken with sauce.

~~~~~
I made couscous (super easy whole wheat couscous from Trader Joes in a box, takes about 5 minutes to make) and put the sauce/chicken over the couscous and it soaked up all the flavor, it was so delicous.

So give it a try if you like! Just thought I'd share :)


All mixed and in the marinade. Looks funky I know, but will be so good!

Fennel and mortar/pestol all ready to go...

Grinding away...

There we go! Not bad!


Oh and P.S., I couldn't resist a bite or two of my leftover blueberry crumb cake I made over the weekend. Is it against the rules to take bites of left over dessert while making dinner? I think not! :) Recipe for the cake coming next...

Mother's Day 2010

Let me start by saying, my mom is pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. Though, those of you who have the pleasure of knowing her, I would think you'd agree. She is a wife, a mother, a full-time employee (make that business operations manager at Comcast which is technically way more than just standard 40 hr full time status by the way), women's ministries leader at church, and most importantly a friend not just to others but to me. She's had a pretty straining year by anyone's standard so I decided to make mother's day extra special.

My plan started off being massages, pedicures and lunch in Solvang. Most of this was covered by my super awesome radio contest winning skills, meaning I had a massage and a lunch certificate in my pocket at the Hadsten House Inn & Spa in Solvang. If you have never been there, by the way, this is a shameless plug saying you must try it. Pricey? Yes. Worth it? Double Yes. Though, you could always listen to Krazy Country 105.9 on weekday mornings at about 8am for "Family Fued" question of the day to win a 3 course dinner for two at the restaurant, which is how I prefer to do it. But anyways, I digress.... =)

My plan slightly changed to be just pedicures and lunch at the Hadsten House. Between massage and pedicure my mom chose pedicure to have "cute toes" (to quote mother) for Hawaii...(she left a few days later for her 30th anniversary trip with my dad) I made the appointment at Enchante Spa in Solvang, which is another place that you MUST visit if you are in need of some pampering. It is owned by a woman named Debbie and she has owned it for 10 years. It's on Alisal road in Solvang and it's the most adorable cottage you've ever seen, which happens to be a spa!

So, pedicures were all set. Now on to plan lunch. Well, the day before the day,I realized that the Hadsten House isn't open for lunch! Um, DUH. Darn it....so, on to plan B! That would have been great, had I actually made a plan B. So, I made an executive decision that we'd eat at Los Olivos Cafe. No coupon for my plan B, but it's okay cause mommy dearest is worth every penny ;-)

I picked up my mom in a private chauffeured car that morning (okay okay,that was more in my 'dream' plan.....I'll start over.)So I picked her up in my newly washed sparkling white 2004 Toyota Corolla. I know, I know, with such a cool car, why would I even want to hire a privately chauffeured car anyways? I don't know what I was thinking.

And, we were off! It was a lovely day!


Being greeted by a beautiful rose and flower garden, nothing beats that. So pretty!

Mom....sipping her iced tea and munching on her freshly baked rasberry scone. So delicious! And at no extra cost by the way. And yes that is a lavendar scented warm neck wrap she has on. These ladies at Enchante don't mess around when it comes to pampering you!

How could you not relax in a spa that looks like this? Adorable!!!

Me and Mom, freshly done toes and ready to enjoy lunch. Which was yummy by the way. No pictures though darn it I forgot to take my camera out of my purse, we were too busy gabbing away.... ;-)

Love you Mom!