I am obsessed with salad. Not just any salad, but in the past few years it has been all about spinach salad.
I don't like romaine or iceberg, give me some iron and I'm good to go.
Recently though, I have been learning about ways to make my salads unique. I have learned about some not as popular greens that I am very excited about.
Instead of rambling on and on about greens, I'll just lay them out for you, one by one:
Butter lettuce: Now I will admit, I have known about butter lettuce for some time, but not to the extent as I do now. This green is so delicious, my mouth waters just thinking about it. I have also found that it holds up much longer than other greens.
Fennel: I think that this is the green I am most excited about. Unlike most people, I LOVE black licorice (hence my love for Jager, but that's another post...) Fennel has a licorice flavor that I am very excited about. I can't wait to chop this into a salad with Butter lettuce and dig in!
Today I went to Vons. I had a long shopping list, and was very excited (I love to grocery shop, more than clothes. Sometimes I worry about myself.) I looked and looked for the Fennel. Finally I asked one of the associates and they said they carried it but couldn't find it. To make a long story short, he found it, found me and we both learned that it was also called Anise. I didn't know! Anyway, we found it, and I bought it! I'm so excited to use this veggie!!
Chard: This is described as having a spinach like flavor. I LOVE spinach, so I am excited to try this green out.
Collard Greens: We all have heard of these in Southern cooking, but I have not personally cooked with them. They are in the same family as cabbage and Kale, 2 of which I am not opposed to, but collards tend to be more rough. With watching more of the show staring the Neelys, I should check these out.
Kale: After bringing up Collard Greens, it's important to talk about Kale. Kale just has a bunch of vitamins and nutrients, so it's going to go high up on my list of greens to try. I'm excited.
Greens will be the future, and I'm happy with it!!! Bring on the greens!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
Birthday/Touchdown Treats
Yesterday was my husband's birthday as well, as we all know, Superbowl 5800, or something.
I wanted to make some tasty treats for the events. I decided on spicy baked chicken and spicy deviled eggs (do you see a theme here?) I promise, I'll try to deviate from the spice... someday :D
Before I tell you about the tasty recipes, I have to introduce you to my new obsession:
If you have not met this beauty, it's Frank's Red Hot sauce, and it's AWESOME!
I like spicy stuff, I will admit, and it's my husband's fault. I have tried all types of spice, but now I know that Cayenne is the winner. I seriously want to put this on EVERYTHING!
With that being said, this delicious find was the centerpiece to my chicken. Vons was completely out of wings (really, the day OF Superbowl??) so I opted for legs. I baked these for what seemed like forever, as they smelled like heaven, and finally they were done. They were juicy and delicious. I will admit though, next time I will add more Frank's :D
The Pièce de résistance:
Doesn't that look tasty? I thought so. If you want juicy and spicy/sweet chicken, try this tasty dish.
Moving on to more protein. I haven't had a lot of eggs lately, especially some delicious deviled ones, so I decided to make some for the party. I couldn't imagine making some everyday ordinary eggs, so I spiced them up, and can I say they were super delicious?!?!?!?! Don't take my word for it, listen to these testimonials:
...well, I guess I don't have written testimonials, but I promise you there were some. Take a look at the small image of deliciousness and decide for yourself:
Yum, right? I don't have the best picture, but you get the idea!
In the end all was a success. The cheese team won (I love cheese) and the day was a success.
:)
http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/sweet-and-spicy-chicken-wings/
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/sunnys-deviled-eggs-recipe/index.html
I wanted to make some tasty treats for the events. I decided on spicy baked chicken and spicy deviled eggs (do you see a theme here?) I promise, I'll try to deviate from the spice... someday :D
Before I tell you about the tasty recipes, I have to introduce you to my new obsession:
If you have not met this beauty, it's Frank's Red Hot sauce, and it's AWESOME!
I like spicy stuff, I will admit, and it's my husband's fault. I have tried all types of spice, but now I know that Cayenne is the winner. I seriously want to put this on EVERYTHING!
With that being said, this delicious find was the centerpiece to my chicken. Vons was completely out of wings (really, the day OF Superbowl??) so I opted for legs. I baked these for what seemed like forever, as they smelled like heaven, and finally they were done. They were juicy and delicious. I will admit though, next time I will add more Frank's :D
The Pièce de résistance:
Doesn't that look tasty? I thought so. If you want juicy and spicy/sweet chicken, try this tasty dish.
Moving on to more protein. I haven't had a lot of eggs lately, especially some delicious deviled ones, so I decided to make some for the party. I couldn't imagine making some everyday ordinary eggs, so I spiced them up, and can I say they were super delicious?!?!?!?! Don't take my word for it, listen to these testimonials:
...well, I guess I don't have written testimonials, but I promise you there were some. Take a look at the small image of deliciousness and decide for yourself:
Yum, right? I don't have the best picture, but you get the idea!
In the end all was a success. The cheese team won (I love cheese) and the day was a success.
:)
http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/sweet-and-spicy-chicken-wings/
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/sunnys-deviled-eggs-recipe/index.html
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Birthday Jambalaya
I wanted to make a special dinner for my husband for his birthday, and he LOVES spicy food. I hadn't attempted a Jambalaya yet, so I thought what better time like the present.
I wanted this to be the best of the best, no shortcuts! I looked at a lot of recipes, and most of them called for a simple store bought chicken broth.
Just then I came across something I thought was very interesting. Instead of just using the shrimp in the recipe, take off the shells and use them to make a shrimp broth. I hunted all over the seafood section of Vons for shrimp without their shells, and had to settle on frozen shrimp. All the fresh shrimp had NO shells!?!?!?!?!
Nonetheless, I got my shrimp, I got my Cajun sausage and all the veggies.
This was surprisingly a pretty quick dish to make. The stock only took about 20 minutes and the rest was done within the hour.
Of course, I had to have a little snacking treat while cooking, and here you have it:
When I was at the store I saw (and smelled) the fresh baked French bread. I am a sucker for this, so I grabbed some. I also made a quick honey butter to spread all over it! I washed it down with a white chocolate covered cherry martini! (or 2, or 3...)
Anyway, back to the delicious dish that was being born in my dutch oven. The house smelled so good, and I couldn't wait to have a bite of my first ever Jambalaya!!
Ready???????
Do you see the steam??? ahhhhhhh
Seriously, how good does that look????? Doesn't that make you want to go to your store, search for shrimp and make this RIGHT NOW!??? I don't blame you if it does.
This recipe claims it yields 6-8 servings, but I swear my dutch oven was full of this good stuff. We will be enjoying (and sharing) this stuff for days. As a matter of fact, my husband asked for this just moments ago for his birthday brunch :)
In the end the meal was a hit, and I will certainly make it again!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/gulf-shrimp-jambalaya-recipe/index.html
I wanted this to be the best of the best, no shortcuts! I looked at a lot of recipes, and most of them called for a simple store bought chicken broth.
Just then I came across something I thought was very interesting. Instead of just using the shrimp in the recipe, take off the shells and use them to make a shrimp broth. I hunted all over the seafood section of Vons for shrimp without their shells, and had to settle on frozen shrimp. All the fresh shrimp had NO shells!?!?!?!?!
Nonetheless, I got my shrimp, I got my Cajun sausage and all the veggies.
This was surprisingly a pretty quick dish to make. The stock only took about 20 minutes and the rest was done within the hour.
Of course, I had to have a little snacking treat while cooking, and here you have it:
When I was at the store I saw (and smelled) the fresh baked French bread. I am a sucker for this, so I grabbed some. I also made a quick honey butter to spread all over it! I washed it down with a white chocolate covered cherry martini! (or 2, or 3...)
Anyway, back to the delicious dish that was being born in my dutch oven. The house smelled so good, and I couldn't wait to have a bite of my first ever Jambalaya!!
Ready???????
Do you see the steam??? ahhhhhhh
Seriously, how good does that look????? Doesn't that make you want to go to your store, search for shrimp and make this RIGHT NOW!??? I don't blame you if it does.
This recipe claims it yields 6-8 servings, but I swear my dutch oven was full of this good stuff. We will be enjoying (and sharing) this stuff for days. As a matter of fact, my husband asked for this just moments ago for his birthday brunch :)
In the end the meal was a hit, and I will certainly make it again!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/gulf-shrimp-jambalaya-recipe/index.html
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Retro Cooking
So, I was at the $5 bookstore here in Simi today and found this little gem:
The first thing I thought was "neat", then I said to myself "this is going to be full of fattening food and not one vegetarian recipe!"
I was right, but it's still an awesome book. It has pages dedicated just to casseroles (mostly tuna), mac n cheeses and dumplings (to name a few.)
Also, after talking to an older volunteer at work, I come to find out that veal and lamb were much cheaper in the 1950's, and there are more recipes featuring these than you would think.
I am going to try out some of the more interesting recipes, and of course talk about them here. I just have to let my arteries rest in between :P
More to come...
The first thing I thought was "neat", then I said to myself "this is going to be full of fattening food and not one vegetarian recipe!"
I was right, but it's still an awesome book. It has pages dedicated just to casseroles (mostly tuna), mac n cheeses and dumplings (to name a few.)
Also, after talking to an older volunteer at work, I come to find out that veal and lamb were much cheaper in the 1950's, and there are more recipes featuring these than you would think.
I am going to try out some of the more interesting recipes, and of course talk about them here. I just have to let my arteries rest in between :P
More to come...
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