Sorry for the late post everyone. I know it seems as though the narrative arc of my cooking adventure is in a stage of decline, but never fear. I am as committed as ever.
After getting home from the Texas School Leadership Summit (which was absolutely amazing), I had more desire to fire up my teaching than to fire up the stove. So sue me. But I've returned today with something TRULY magnificent and uber-easy.
It is... my mom's grilled cheese. DON'T LAUGH. It's gourmet grilled cheese and absolutely melty-delicious. Recipe below. One important note: Choose bread that you can toast like a panini, so bread with thick crusts on the outside are not ideal. You can pair this amazing sandwich with any of your favorite tomato bisque recipes. If you lived in a city, you could pick up delicious tomato soup from your favorite restaurant. I might have done that if I lived in a city. Or you could have cooked your own. That would have been my chosen option if I had my mom's accompanying creamy tomato soup recipe, but alas it is missing from the adorable recipe book she made for me when I moved into my own place (a truly lovely Dalton tradition). A lot of the tomato bisque recipes online look hard, and you have to make a roux which is another one of my epic weaknesses (see 2010 attempt to make Beer Cheese Soup, a total disaster that ended in a pile of 6 cups of hardened cheese on the bottom of some beer-broth). So I bought Campbell's. Yep. I did it. And you know what I made for lunch? Just a salad. I ADMIT I AM TAKING SHORTCUTS. But I added some delicious balsamic grilled onions. For those, just put some balsamic and sugar in a pan, and cook red onions in the mixture until the balsamic is reduced and onions are nice and dark.
So, long story short... there's some good stuff in here but I'm a little disappointed and it's okay if you are too. Next week, I'm really going to outdo myself and impress the pants off of you. Just you wait. Maybe it'll be Beer Cheese Soup.
OMGC (Oh My Grilled Cheese)
1 package (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
3/4 c. mayonnaise
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. seasoned salt (that's a real thing, you can buy it)
10 slices Italian bread, 1/2 inch think
2 tbsp. butter or margarine, softened
In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth. Stir in cheeses, garlic powder, and seasoned salt. Spread 5 slices of bread with the cheese mixture, about 1/3 cup on each. Top with remaining bread. Butter the outside of sandwiches; cook in a large skillet over medium heat until golden brown on both sides. Serves 5.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
In Honor of Kieley & Lydie Running a Half Marathon...
I eat a lot of Greek food and run exactly one mile.
I am slightly better at working out than I am at cooking. By that I mean, I have never cooked a decent meal in my life before now, but at least I ran the mile once in 4th grade. So in honor of Kieley and Lydie (two of my closest Valley friends) completing the Philadelphia Half Marathon this weekend, I cooked myself up some UBER fattening spinokopita and ran exactly one mile extremely slowly. Then almost threw it all up, which would have been a horrible waste.
On the plus side, the spinokopita turned out very delicious, my first true success since starting this blog. I don't have a bad thing to say about it. Thanks to my friend Hannah for suggesting Greek food, although cooking moussaka (Greek lasagna) probably would have put me in the ground. I found this easy recipe from Emeril http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/spanakopita-recipe/index.html and BAM! There it was (did you like my joke?). I also made this balsamic braised chicken http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/braised-balsamic-chicken/detail.aspx, which is one of my old favorites. You can't beat balsamic vinegar for taste. Or vinegar in general. I'd put it on everything if I could, which is what I used to do before I started "cooking."
For dinners this week, I made some fideo (Mexican noodles) and stir fry. I bought Kikkoman stir fry sauce at HEB, but honestly sauces are my weakness so we'll see how it goes. I'm guessing it'll be pretty dicey so make sure you read next week to hear all about my stir fry adventures.
BIG DECISION UPDATE: Turns out, these recipes are written to feed families and not just Ashley Dalton. Thus two full shelves in my fridge were full of leftover macaroni and cheese, lasagna, and various unrecognizable substances in Tupperware containers. On Saturday night, I cleaned out the fridge and promised my roommate Emily that I would start halving the recipes. Word to the wise, there's no shame in cooking smaller portions. It doesn't make you less professional.
I am slightly better at working out than I am at cooking. By that I mean, I have never cooked a decent meal in my life before now, but at least I ran the mile once in 4th grade. So in honor of Kieley and Lydie (two of my closest Valley friends) completing the Philadelphia Half Marathon this weekend, I cooked myself up some UBER fattening spinokopita and ran exactly one mile extremely slowly. Then almost threw it all up, which would have been a horrible waste.
On the plus side, the spinokopita turned out very delicious, my first true success since starting this blog. I don't have a bad thing to say about it. Thanks to my friend Hannah for suggesting Greek food, although cooking moussaka (Greek lasagna) probably would have put me in the ground. I found this easy recipe from Emeril http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/spanakopita-recipe/index.html and BAM! There it was (did you like my joke?). I also made this balsamic braised chicken http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/braised-balsamic-chicken/detail.aspx, which is one of my old favorites. You can't beat balsamic vinegar for taste. Or vinegar in general. I'd put it on everything if I could, which is what I used to do before I started "cooking."
For dinners this week, I made some fideo (Mexican noodles) and stir fry. I bought Kikkoman stir fry sauce at HEB, but honestly sauces are my weakness so we'll see how it goes. I'm guessing it'll be pretty dicey so make sure you read next week to hear all about my stir fry adventures.
BIG DECISION UPDATE: Turns out, these recipes are written to feed families and not just Ashley Dalton. Thus two full shelves in my fridge were full of leftover macaroni and cheese, lasagna, and various unrecognizable substances in Tupperware containers. On Saturday night, I cleaned out the fridge and promised my roommate Emily that I would start halving the recipes. Word to the wise, there's no shame in cooking smaller portions. It doesn't make you less professional.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Exhaustion Sets In
First, a word about the day because not to mention anything would seem negligent to me. I told my homeroom full of 9th graders on Friday that on September 11th ten years ago, I was sitting in my own 9th grade World Geography class. Strange how things have come full circle for me. My thoughts go out to all those whose lives were changed more significantly that day, those who lost loved ones on 9/11 or in Iraq and Afghanistan since.
Now on to the business of cooking. I have to admit to all of you that I cheated this week. YES I FALTERED IN MY QUEST FOR CULINARY EXCELLENCE. All I cooked today was my mother's recipe for Curried Chicken and Potatoes. For my second weekly meal, I got all the ingredients for tostadas (tortillas, beans, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream) and will be eating those for dinner. The tostadas were a recommendation from a fellow teacher because, honestly, I'm running out of ideas guys. So if you have any great meals that you cook all at once (so no roasted chicken with asparagus on the side, that's just too much responsibility) and can last you a week, please let me know.
The curried chicken and potatoes turned out amazing despite a few setbacks, mostly caused by HEB and not by my own blundering incompetence at all. The lines at HEB are INCREDIBLY LONG, like 30 minutes long. While I was waiting in line, eating corn-in-a-cup, sipping on an aguas frescas and reading Glamour, I must have lost my mind and thrown the ranch dressing and curry out of my cart onto the floor where they were picked up by a band of thieves. That or the teller forgot to bag those two critical items. One of those two versions actually happened; I will leave it up to your imagination. Anyway, I got home and was 75% done cooking when I realized that the KEY INGREDIENTS WERE MISSING. Disaster, but have no fear. I rustled up some "Texas Twist" ranch dressing from the fridge and found some red curry powder on a back shelf (thank goodness for roommates, right? and for themed ranch dressing), and everything turned out just fine, if a little runny. I've posted the recipe below. Love and miss you all.
Curried Chicken & Potatoes
2 tbs. butter or margarine
1lb. boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch strips
1 lb. new potatoes (about 7) cut into 6 wedges each
1/2 c. sliced green onions
1/4 tsp. pepper
Dash of salt
1/2 c. ranch dressing
2 tbs. milk
1 tsp. curry powder
Melt margarine in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken, potatoes, and half of onions; cover and cook about 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until chicken is no longer pink in center and potatoes are brown on both sides. Sprinkle with pepper and salt. Mix dressing, milk and curry powder. Stir into chicken mixture. Add remaining onions. Cook and stir until heated through. Serves 4.
Now on to the business of cooking. I have to admit to all of you that I cheated this week. YES I FALTERED IN MY QUEST FOR CULINARY EXCELLENCE. All I cooked today was my mother's recipe for Curried Chicken and Potatoes. For my second weekly meal, I got all the ingredients for tostadas (tortillas, beans, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream) and will be eating those for dinner. The tostadas were a recommendation from a fellow teacher because, honestly, I'm running out of ideas guys. So if you have any great meals that you cook all at once (so no roasted chicken with asparagus on the side, that's just too much responsibility) and can last you a week, please let me know.
The curried chicken and potatoes turned out amazing despite a few setbacks, mostly caused by HEB and not by my own blundering incompetence at all. The lines at HEB are INCREDIBLY LONG, like 30 minutes long. While I was waiting in line, eating corn-in-a-cup, sipping on an aguas frescas and reading Glamour, I must have lost my mind and thrown the ranch dressing and curry out of my cart onto the floor where they were picked up by a band of thieves. That or the teller forgot to bag those two critical items. One of those two versions actually happened; I will leave it up to your imagination. Anyway, I got home and was 75% done cooking when I realized that the KEY INGREDIENTS WERE MISSING. Disaster, but have no fear. I rustled up some "Texas Twist" ranch dressing from the fridge and found some red curry powder on a back shelf (thank goodness for roommates, right? and for themed ranch dressing), and everything turned out just fine, if a little runny. I've posted the recipe below. Love and miss you all.
Curried Chicken & Potatoes
2 tbs. butter or margarine
1lb. boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch strips
1 lb. new potatoes (about 7) cut into 6 wedges each
1/2 c. sliced green onions
1/4 tsp. pepper
Dash of salt
1/2 c. ranch dressing
2 tbs. milk
1 tsp. curry powder
Melt margarine in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken, potatoes, and half of onions; cover and cook about 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until chicken is no longer pink in center and potatoes are brown on both sides. Sprinkle with pepper and salt. Mix dressing, milk and curry powder. Stir into chicken mixture. Add remaining onions. Cook and stir until heated through. Serves 4.
Monday, September 5, 2011
The One Where I Finally Cook with Janet
My blog has become a big hit, you guys! And by that I mean that my friends ask me about it all the time but don't actually read it. Which is fine! Because it leads to golden opportunities like being able to cook with my friend Janet.
Last night, Janet invited me to cook and eat with her (in an obvious attempt to become peripherally famous by being mentioned on this blog). Lasagna was the chosen meal, which I have made exactly one time so I'm an old pro. Janet invited me over at 6:15 and I arrived... to a freshly-awoken Kieley but sadly no Janet. Janet was still at the store with her other roommate Caitlin. They were delayed because Janet had forgotten the ricotta and had to go back while Caitlin held down the self checkout line for 25 minutes. After she found the cheese and was on her way back to Caitlin, Janet had bumped into another woman, spilled ricotta all over the floor, found two older men to help her clean it up, and gotten a replacement; all the while, Caitlin bought and bagged $200 worth of groceries and made BFFs with the HEB guy who oversees self checkout.
When they finally arrived home, Janet set Kieley and I to chopping and dicing. The lasagna Janet made last night had squash in it, which apparently you can't chop without it being warmed up first. While Kieley was microwaving the squash, Janet's spice grinder accidentally broke and the ENTIRE jar of spices was dumped into the ricotta cheese blend. Janet tried to brush some out, but gave up in the end because, as she says, "Who needs to measure?" Kieley brought the squash back, tried to cube it by scooping it out with a melon baller, and Caitlin and I ended up burning our fingers cubing and peeling squash. Janet layered the lasagna and it was on its way to the oven when ALAS, we had no tin foil to put on the top of the pan. Janet decided to seek assistance from her neighbors, one of whom had been drywalling in their house earlier that day due to an enormous hole put in their wall during a party last weekend (he arrived later to because the gray paint he bought did not actually match their white wall, he had missed a spot in his patchwork, and he'd forgotten his $30 payment). Janet arrived back at the house just as Caitlin and I were about to report her abducted WITHOUT TINFOIL. She had got to chatting with a different neighbor and just couldn't ask him for tinfoil after telling him she just wanted to say hello. We ended up putting a cookie sheet on top of the lasagna which turned out absolutely delicious. There's nothing better than cooking adventures with your closest friends.
In other news, I made my mother's award-winning sausage bean soup this week (no joke, she has an engraved silver ladle), along with some southern-style macaroni and cheese. Sometimes, you just need comfort food and comfort people.
Last night, Janet invited me to cook and eat with her (in an obvious attempt to become peripherally famous by being mentioned on this blog). Lasagna was the chosen meal, which I have made exactly one time so I'm an old pro. Janet invited me over at 6:15 and I arrived... to a freshly-awoken Kieley but sadly no Janet. Janet was still at the store with her other roommate Caitlin. They were delayed because Janet had forgotten the ricotta and had to go back while Caitlin held down the self checkout line for 25 minutes. After she found the cheese and was on her way back to Caitlin, Janet had bumped into another woman, spilled ricotta all over the floor, found two older men to help her clean it up, and gotten a replacement; all the while, Caitlin bought and bagged $200 worth of groceries and made BFFs with the HEB guy who oversees self checkout.
When they finally arrived home, Janet set Kieley and I to chopping and dicing. The lasagna Janet made last night had squash in it, which apparently you can't chop without it being warmed up first. While Kieley was microwaving the squash, Janet's spice grinder accidentally broke and the ENTIRE jar of spices was dumped into the ricotta cheese blend. Janet tried to brush some out, but gave up in the end because, as she says, "Who needs to measure?" Kieley brought the squash back, tried to cube it by scooping it out with a melon baller, and Caitlin and I ended up burning our fingers cubing and peeling squash. Janet layered the lasagna and it was on its way to the oven when ALAS, we had no tin foil to put on the top of the pan. Janet decided to seek assistance from her neighbors, one of whom had been drywalling in their house earlier that day due to an enormous hole put in their wall during a party last weekend (he arrived later to because the gray paint he bought did not actually match their white wall, he had missed a spot in his patchwork, and he'd forgotten his $30 payment). Janet arrived back at the house just as Caitlin and I were about to report her abducted WITHOUT TINFOIL. She had got to chatting with a different neighbor and just couldn't ask him for tinfoil after telling him she just wanted to say hello. We ended up putting a cookie sheet on top of the lasagna which turned out absolutely delicious. There's nothing better than cooking adventures with your closest friends.
In other news, I made my mother's award-winning sausage bean soup this week (no joke, she has an engraved silver ladle), along with some southern-style macaroni and cheese. Sometimes, you just need comfort food and comfort people.
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