ramblings, discoveries

I haven't been posting because I've been sick. I've lost about three pounds as of today because of the flu/cold/funky virus thing I've had and am still sort of unable to eat certain solid foods, so I've been sticking to soups and chazuke just to play it safe. Anyway, this is going to be a mega post to sort of cover the last week (or so?) in terms of food.

I've been shopping at Safeway a lot lately because the amazing variety/cheap prices. Have decided to take baby steps, so bought a few things I've really really wanted. New obsession: meat rubs.

Also new old obsession: flan. I have a great espresso creme brulee recipe that I can't wait to try out, but instead I did the instant version via Jello. It was alright, at best. Won't be doing it again.

Also, Poore Brother's chips. So amazing. Addicted to the salt and peppered ones. Why didn't these exist when I was a kid?

I used the rub on the ribs (mentioned in the previous post). They came out disasterous, but it's because of the meat I bought and not the cooking technique. Next time, I'm going to buy a full rack and get it from a reputable super market/deli (fuck you, Kaimuki Times, and your shitty beef section).

Step 1, after peeling the membrane off the ribs I rubbed them down with olive oil and the rub mix. They sat like this for about eight hours in the fridge.

Step 2, on a greased pan I placed them and put them in the oven at 250F for about two hours, occasionally opening and oiling them with a paint brush.

There was so little meat on the bones to begin with but what WAS there was tasty. I probably didn't have to bake it as long as I did, which caused it to get tough and a bit dry. Hopefully the next time will be a bit more successful!

omg ice cream

SO FREAKING AMAZING. Cappuccino ice cream sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies then dipped in dark chocolate! New obsession. Half wanting to move to San Francisco just to eat these in an assortment of flavors. Such a shame that one sandwich is 49% of my daily recommended value of saturated fat. But sometimes it's the price you have to pay for sweet (edible) salvation.

i made a cassarole!!

Improvising is slowly becoming second nature. I was totally one of those anal-retentive cooks that HAD to have everything on the recipe list and would immediately blame my failure on lack of some minor thing, like not fresh spices, or using the wrong baking pan. I realize now that it's really technique and intuition. It might say it'll be done in twenty minutes but sometimes it's done in ten. Feeling my way through some terrible kitchen disasters I'm starting to figure out what to look out for (undercooking=bad, smoke? you should probably pull it out, taste test everything!).

Yesterday I made my first attempt at a rice casserole and it came out amazing. Here's the scoops. It's a chicken and barley bake, but I didn't have pearl barley so I just substituted rice. Turned out better than I had anticipated.

Ingredients
4 Chicken thighs (I used with bone and skin, but you can do boneless skinless)
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrots
3/4 cup water
1 cup rice
Half a block of chicken bouillon (like a teaspoons worth?)
Clove of garlic, minced
Parsley for garnishing

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Rinse the chicken and pat it dry. Season with salt and pepper and fry in a skillet with olive oil, five minutes on each side or until brown evenly. Set aside, and in the same skillet fry the onions and garlic. Add carrots, water, bouillon, rice. Bring to a boil. Pour the mixture into a casserole dish.

Now I did something wrong here; I put them in casserole dishes I could not cover. I moved them immediately after this photo into a larger casserole dish with a lid. Otherwise, the rice won't steam. Make sure the rice mixture is moist with a bit of excess water; it has to steam in the oven. Place pieces of chicken atop the rice mixture.

Bake it covered for at least an hour or until the chicken is no longer pink and the rice is soft. You don't want to disturb it too much because you'll release the steam (thus disrupting the rice cooking process). After it's done, let it sit, covered, for ten minutes before serving. Garnish with parsley.

My mom was really pleased! The veggies in the corner were a complete bust so I won't even go into any details. But as you can tell, the parsley I used was dried and not fresh. I don't think it affected the flavor so much so, but it didn't make it look as appealing as I had hoped. Lesson learned! The rice was a little worrying, too. If it comes out a bit dry, just add a little water and mix it around. It'll fix itself.

I'm making ribs and flan now, so I'll post about that a little later!

Look what I made!

Because I'm slacking, here you go.

Scallops and Feta Cheese Pasta

Ingredients!
Olive oil
Scallops
Garlic (3-5 cloves)
White wine
Linguine
Tomatoes, chopped
Spinach
Oregano
Basil
Feta cheese

Directions!
Heat the olive oil, garlic, and scallops over medium heat. Add some white wine (I kind of eyeballed it?) and let it simmer for about five minutes. Meanwhile, boil the linguine with a pinch of salt for about 10 minutes. While the pasta is going, mix the chopped tomatoes, spinach, oregano, and basil until everything is kind of tender. Toss the pasta in the sauce and feta cheese and serve!

So originally the recipe called for shrimp. I bet it'll taste a lot better with that, too. But because I have a shellfish allergy I substituted and it came out fine! It's pretty much the only dish I've made to date that my mom has absolutely approved of.

As for the white wine, I say choose one you like to drink (as everyone says). I used Rodney Strong Sauvignon Blanc. Speaking of! I suppose this is sort of a wine revolution, so to speak, because corks are out and screw on tops are in. Yes! It actually keeps the wine for much longer and is easier to use! I hope that all wine companies jump on that. But back on topic, I like to cook with chablis as well! Both are fantastic to drink.

I think I'm going to try and stray from tomato/wine based sauces and try something simpler. So next up? Maybe a tobiko spaghetti with olive oil? We'll see!