Experimentation Day

Tonight was one of what will be many nights of Tyler working the day shift and thus not being home for supper.  Or I guess he'll be home soonish, as he works until 730. But whatever, he has no say in what supper is.

That being said, I didn't really decide on anything specifically. I took out some ground turkey, thinking of pasta. And then the more I thought about it, the more I didn't want pasta. I was actually contemplating a supper of Cheetos. Instead, I did the right thing and started browning the meat. Then I though "Hmm, I have these Udon noodles in the fridge". And so, an idea was formed.

I have no idea what to call it.

So even though I don't know what I'm calling this dish, nor do I know actual measurements of what I added, I will give you the rundown. 

1 pkg ground turkey - I had ground turkey thigh, but I think they sell ground turkey breast too. 

2-200g pkg Udon noodles - Found in the refrigerated produce section

about a half cup-ish of frozen vegebles. Could probably use fresh too, if you had those (we haven't been grocery shopping oops)

2-3 tbsp Teriyaki sauce

1-2 tbsp Hoisin sauce

1-2 tbsp Soya sauce 

(Obviously, this is to taste. If you're not a saucy person, then don't put as much in)

1-2 tsp lime juice (this is actually pretty crucial to this recipe)

Spices:

Seasoning salt, minced garlic (freeze dried FTW!), chives (again, freeze dried), ground thyme, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper

1. Brown your meat. No, that's not a euphemism. Turkey is pretty lean, thus there isn't as much fatty grease to rinse off the meat or the pan. What I did was dump it into a sieve, and then just left the pan as is. Having that little bit of grease on there helps to cook the noodles. 

2. As the meat is, uh, meating in the sieve, throw the noodles into your turkey-grease pan. You basically want them to warm up so that they separate. I'm sure there's a better way to do it, I just followed the directions on the back of the package. Actually that's a lie. I tossed them in the pan, got impatient, so I picked them up with my fingers and broke them apart. There were some small noodles in that there pan.

3. I put the meat into a smaller frying pan (above) so I could spice it. I added seasoning salt, thyme, and maybe a quarter teaspoon of minced garlic. As that was happening, I add the frozen vegetables, another half teaspoon of minced garlic, and a half teaspoon of chives. Kind of just let things chill for a little bit. 

4. After the noodles were warm and floppy, I added the meat to it and then the sauces. Of course, I just threw things in. I didn't measure, I did it all by "Hmm, that looks about right". As per usual, actually. When I'm not following a recipe, I just throw things in for good measure. That's how the lime juice got itself added! 

5. Let everything kind of sit and soak up the sauce. Allow them to become deliciously tasty friends. When you deem it done, sprinkle with sesame seeds. 

6. Serve it. Yeah, I don't have anything witty for that. 

I was apprehensive, if I'm being honest. Extremely apprehensive. I've had failures before and they were absolutely gross. Either I've gotten to be a better cook, or I've just gotten better at learning what goes together. Whatever it was, it was lip smackingly delicious. In an Italian way. Only with an Asian recipe.

Post-Easter Eatocolypse

As it's Easter Monday right now, at least in Canada, I figured I can put forth the recipes used for the Easter meals that I took part in. Well, my family ate them too.

We decided to go non-traditional this year. Friday was lunch with the in-laws, and we had barbecue. Hot dogs, hamburgers, and a buttload of salads. I contributed BLT Pasta Salad and a 5-Layer Taco Dip. Both were a rousing success, even with the alterations that I made and the fact that I didn't do a taste test before serving them. I'm  horrible that way, in that I kind of just serve things blind. Especially at family gatherings. Maybe my subconscious thinks that because there are so many people and so many different options, if one isn't so good it'll just be overlooked? Who knows.  Unfortunately, I was more focused on getting everything together and visiting with family to take pictures, but both of these recipes turned out picturesque. And delicious...esque.

BLT Pasta Salad - The way that I made it.
1 (16 oz) package seashell pasta. I ended up using an entire box, as the shells didn't want to be in a package
1 pound sliced bacon - We Canadians don't believe in this form of measure. So, again, 1 package of bacon
1 (475 mL) bottle Ranch salad dressing - Definitely used Kraft Bacon Ranch, as was suggested in the comments. 
4 green onions, chopped
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped

1. Using that Foreman grill that everyone should have by now, cook the bacon.  As your batches are ready, let them de-grease on paper towel.  I lined a cookie sheet with a double layer of paper-towel and it worked great.
2. As the bacon's going, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. I like to dump in about a quarter teaspoon of sea salt - unground. Maybe even less. Either way, throw some salt in there. Add pasta to boiling water and cook until JUST al dente, so make sure that you're checking. I do the chewing test, because it's just easiest.
3. In a large bowl, combine the dressing, green onion, and tomatoes. Mix in with the cooled pasta, and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.  Crumble bacon over the top just before serving.

Now, many comments on the AllRecipes site said that there wasn't enough dressing and that they felt the need to add more. I have no idea how much fricken Ranch dressing they bought, as one bottle is a cup and a half (what the recipe calls for). So, if you're noticing that the pasta absorbed all the dressing when you let it sit, feel free to add some more to make it your desired consistency.

The salad was a pretty big hit, but then again it made a pretty big batch.  I also added in some freeze-dried dill, and that made it much better. My brother-in-law's girlfriend, who absolutely HATES anything will dill in it, LOVED the salad. I don't think she knew there was dill in there, to which I chuckle evilly, Mr. Burns style.

5-Layer Taco Dip
Four score and seven moons ago, I belonged to LA Weightloss. Their program worked while I was on it, but once I stopped following their extremely strict rules and coming in to get weighed like 3 times a week, I gained it back with vengeance. But that is beside the point. I bought their recipe book, in hopes of being able to stick to everything. To my surprise, their recipes were are pretty good! Downside is that sometimes they're a bit bland, but now that I don't have to follow their rules, I just add spices willy nilly! So here is my doctored up version of their 5-layer dip.

8 green onions, chopped
4 tsp oil
2 cups cooked kidney beans - I used one can
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
shredded cheddar cheese
salsa
sour cream

1. I had never cooked kidney beans before, I usually just added them to tacos or whatever, so I got to enjoy figuring it out. Why don't they put the instructions on the cans? Anyway, I just put them in a pot and let them warm up until I thought I could mash them.
2. Mash your beans, some of the onions, and oil to make a paste. To make this a taco-licious dip, add cumin and garlic salt. Maybe about a quarter teaspoon of each, or to taste.
3. Spread bean paste on the bottom of a square dish. I used a Pyrex 8x8 glass one.
4. Layers are as follows:
Bean paste
Sour cream
Salsa
Tomatoes
Cheese
Green onions
5. Serve with taco chips, crackers, pita bread, whatever you feel like! It's just a tasty tasty dish.

So that was Friday's menu.

Saturday, we went to my parent's place for taco supper. Yes, that's right, we had tacos for Easter dinner. And now you're all jealous.

Again, I consulted the LA Lite cook book because I knew that they had a section dedicated to making your own spice mixes. The husband and I enjoy making things with ground chicken or turkey in place of ground beef, which therefore requires more spices.

So without further ado, here is the LA Lite Taco Seasoning, with some of my own additions :)
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Okay, so first things first... I continually forget to purchase onion powder. Why would I purchase it when the husband hates onions? So I always omit that. Secondly, I use garlic salt in place of garlic powder, because I usually only have the salt on hand. I also usually double it to 1 tsp. Thirdly, I add in crushed red pepper flakes. Adds a bit more heat, but in a tasty way. Combine it all together and store it in an air-tight container, or an old spice shaker like I do. If you make it as a single batch, it only makes a small bottle. Double batch, makes the bigger bottle.

And because every meal deserves dessert, and even though I didn't bring these to any gathering, I'm going to give you the best Rice Krispie-type square known to man. I bring you... well shit, there isn't an actual name coined for them. So I just labeled them as

Delicious Peanut Butter Squares
1 300g package butterscotch chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 cups mini coloured marshmallows
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal or similar

1. Melt chips and peanut butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix fast. Hint : add marshmallows last so they maintain their shape :D
3. Pack into a greased 8 x 8 pan, allow to set in the fridge.

Two tips: I tend to allow the squares to remain in the fridge for the rest of their life before they're killed by chewing and swallowing. This way, they maintain their molecular integrity or something like that.
Secondly, if you have the option to use Kraft Whipped peanut butter, DO IT. That stuff is a freaking God-send to bakers. It doesn't stick to your measuring cups or spatulas, therefore allowing you to actually have the entire 1/2 cup in the mix.

That's all that I'm going to offer up today. I'm not going to guarantee any recipes for tomorrow, but maybe I'll sneak a couple in!

Ooh Yeah

I am apparently really awesome at updating blogs. In case it isn't apparent, sarcasm is the special ingredient of the day.

I'm going to dedicate today to red things. Namely, tomato sauce and Red Velvet cake. 

I don't have any pictures of the tomato sauce, but I have plenty of the cake!

I really like to make my own pasta sauce. Biggest reason is Tyler's general dislike of tomato sauce, and secondly because I'm not a huge fan of chunky sauces. So this way it's made exactly how we like it :)

Paige's Tomato Sauce
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 small can garlic tomato paste
2 tsp minced garlic - I like to use the freeze-dried stuff. Freeze-dried spices are my new favourite thing.
2 tsp seasoning salt
1 tsp basil
2 tsp freeze-dried oregano
sprinkle of red pepper flakes
sprinkle of thyme
sprinkle of celery salt
sprinkle of cinnamon
4 bay leaves

1. In a medium sized saucepan, combine the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Allow to warm up slightly before adding the spices in whatever order you see fit.
2. Add the bay leaves last, making sure that you remember where they are or that you choose big enough ones to be spotted easily.
3. Allow to simmer for as long as you need it to (for example, if you're making the meat and pasta as the sauce is going). Remove bay leaves and add about a quarter cup of water. This makes it more of a pasta sauce consistency. If you want to have the leftovers as a pizza sauce, omit the water in the batch and just add it to whatever you're going to use.
4. Add to whatever meat you want, or go meatless. I've also done little fun things every so often, for example adding a couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice. That made it definitely interesting.

Red Velvet Cake

Okay. This cake had always intrigued me. I saw it once on Throwdown with Bobby Flay
I was so intrigued by it that I decided to make Nick this cake for his birthday. I searched AllRecipes and tried to find the correct recipe, because I thought I remembered that on Throwdown they mentioned that a Red Velvet cake SHOULDN'T have a cream cheese icing. And, well, Nick hates cream cheese icing. So I sought out a recipe without. Turns out, that recipe was really weird so I went with the McCormick spice brand sponsored one.

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 (1 oz) bottle red food colouring
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.  Mix in sour cream, milk, food colouring, and vanilla.  Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Pour into cake pan OR spoon batter into paper-lined muffin cups, 2/3 cups full*.
3. For cupcakes, bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. For a cake, it was like 40 minutes. Allow cakes and cupcakes to cool completely before icing.

* This recipe makes a buttload of batter.  I mean I made a double layer cake AND a dozen cupcakes. Full sized ones, even.

The icing I made was some sort of cooked icing that REALLY didn't turn out. I mean really. And I followed the directions to a T. So here's the recipe that I followed

1 cup milk
5 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a saucepan, combine the milk and flour. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Set aside to cool completely. Cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy, then stir in cooled milk and flour mixture. Beat until icing reaches spreading consistency.

I beat the crap out of that icing. I mean, I've got a professional grade KitchenAid mixer, and I let it fly. And it just didn't taste good. SO, I added icing sugar and vanilla until it got to the taste and consistency that I wanted it at. I'm going to say 2 cups of icing sugar and about another teaspoon of vanilla. Maybe I added some almond too? Either way, I really wish that I had been measuring and remembering what I added because it was the most delicious icing ever. AND it had the best spreading consistency! I was so super proud of myself that I thought "Man, all those cooking shows have really paid off" despite the fact that I hadn't watched any in months. Residual knowledge? Who knows.

Either way, the cake was delicious and everyone said so. Nick, the pickiest person of all time (not for food, but just for life in general) even enjoyed it. So Paige won.