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Friday, November 13th, 2009

his & hers lunches

lunch from late last week but i was too lazy to post until now. i don't remember why, but i was craving the massive and delicious plate lunch we'd had in epcot's morocco. lucky for me, the recipe for their couscous is pretty easy to find in multiple places on the net. i would've gone so far as to even make the hummus myself, but resources are a tad limited so i just bought a container of one i know i like.




taste of morocco
couscous salad, grilled chicken, cucumber slices, roasted red pepper hummus, and pita triangles (huge grape halves in the box on the right)
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Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

not winning any awards for pretty here

when i went home this past weekend, mom had included a can of sauerkraut in my goody bag she always has ready. i have no clue why she gave me something so random (maybe she remembers how i'd bemoaned the sad excuse for sauerkraut at disney?) but i sure as hell knew immediately what i'd do with it. i love me my pork chops and sauerkraut and haven't had it in awhile. works perfectly in the crockpot, too, so it's easy to throw together and put in the fridge until morning, when i can start it before i leave for work.




pork chops & sauerkraut
pork chops cooked in sauerkraut and caraway seeds. mashed potatoes mixed with butter, milk, sour cream, sliced green onions, and a dash of salt and pepper.
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Monday, October 26th, 2009

all for nothing

not much to really say about this as i had a feeling while making all this last night that i wouldn't really eat it and i didn't. ate one piece of the vegetable roll and a few bites of everything else--brought the remainder home and it doesn't really even look like i ate anything other than the candy and the miso ball is gone. i apparently reeeeally have to be in the mood for sushi and, even then, i'm incredibly picky and likely really only want my godzilla and buddha rolls from sushi-x. -__-;;




first "real" bento
(t to b, l to r)
ball of miso paste with green onion and shiitake bits, tiny soy sauce bottle, two pieces of candy, and a packet of mayo.

diced peaches from a fruit cup, cold soba noodles with black sesame seeds and green onion.

vegetable roll (carrots, avocado, green onion, shiitake mushrooms, and a smidge of flying fish roe) and spicy tuna inside-out roll (canned tuna, sesame and chili oil, mayo, green onions, and panko crumbs)
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Monday, October 12th, 2009

lunchtime post cuz i'm lame like that!



build-it-yourself tacos
taco meat stretched with black beans (made from dried beans and not a can this time!), romaine lettuce bits, mozzarella & cheddar cheese, homemade pico de gallo, taco shells, packet of toy story candy, and an apple.

* * *

so this is the meal that kinda fueled my desire for a nice bento box. something i could stash all my ingredients in so things wouldn't mingle and get soggy. i love me my tacos, but i've learned they're just not good made up the night before.

sure, i bought that one cute little box on ebay, but it was exactly that--little. it's too small for me to use for lunch so it's been a glorified candy dish/junk box sitting on my computer desk at home ever since. thought about using it for snacks, but i just don't usually need a whole other separate container for that kind of thing; all my snacks i keep in my desk here are pre-packaged or i bring whole pieces of fruit, which also come in their own "packaging".

instead, i wound up with this great little stackable box from jewel--not even $4 and it was on sale when i got it. it's big enough for my appetite (actually too much depending what/how much i fill it with) and it has a built-in divider in one of the boxes--something i just couldn't find in the cutesy stuff. while i've had it for awhile, this is the first time i've been able to use it for tacos since i typically use a different container i bought at the same time. wasn't able to find the silicon baking cups in stores so i just gave up for the time being and use plain old foil/paper baking cups. as for the cuteness, i guess i just have to settle with my chococat tumbler for now. found more chococat goodies where i got it (and in disney world), but didn't really need what was available.
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Saturday, October 10th, 2009

when the gales of november come early




butternut squash bisque
pureed butternut squash, onion, carrot, celery and apples in chicken stock, apple juice and chipotle tabasco sauce. finished with sour cream and smoked cheddar cheese.
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Saturday, August 22nd, 2009

a piece of french bread with which to wipe my bowl, good for the body, good for the soul...

a few weeks ago we ended an incredibly busy day running around up north with dinner at cheeseburger in paradise, since we just so happened to be in the area. i was sorely tempted by the chicken and sausage gumbo on the menu, but i was unsure of it thinking it would be super spicy, as much cajun food is. he ordered a bowl of it as an appetizer and i was hooked after the first bite. yes, it was spicy, but it wasn't the lingering painful heat of hot peppers. i ate as much of my popcorn shrimp and onion six-strings as i could, but by the time i was "done" it was more because of nausea from all the grease and less from simply being full. despite my upset stomach, i ordered a bowl of gumbo all to myself; it actually settled my stomach surprisingly enough. i swear that gumbo was the stuff dreams are made of--i vowed to replicate it.



the "holy trinity" of cajun cooking: onion, bell pepper, and celery


the roux is the absolute worst/hardest part of making this. it's a cup of cooking oil and a cup of flour whisked in once the oil is hot. and you cannot stop stirring it. gumbo recipes using a roux as the thickener say to cook the mixture until it's anywhere from a peanut butter color (new orleans style) or more of a reddish, dark chocolate color. cooking estimates vary and after about 10 minutes, mine had definitely acquired the peanut buttery color. everything to add must be at hand and ready to toss in to stop the cooking of the roux.



what all's in there? black beans, shredded chicken and smoked sausage, parsley, and a variety of veggies: the trinity as well as okra and lots of chopped garlic.


i don't think adding cilantro to the rice you serve with it is "traditional" but i swear that's what was in it at cheeseburger. if i'm mistaken and it was really just parsley, oh well, cilantro's always good. but they called it "island rice" so i highly doubt that consists of just rice and parsley. then again, just rice and cilantro doesn't really sound all that fancy either... not sure if black beans are used either but again, that's what was in theirs. i had to use brown rice as we somehow plowed through the giant 20lb.+ bag of rice we got a few months ago. i'm still under the impression there's some hiding somewhere; it's just not possible we ate it all already--or did we?





worth every damn bit of sacrifice
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Thursday, July 30th, 2009

much too young to feel this damn old

so my birthday is saturday (trying not to think how old i'll be...) and, as per standard behavior in the workplace, i have to bring goodies. i was going to go the easy route and get stuff at starbucks, like i did last year, but then i got the great idea to make blueberry scones. and so the adventure begins.




it first started with a trip to the grocery store after work. i needed a bunch of things to make the scones and picked up a rotisserie chicken for dinner (just sounded so good to go with ravioli). i questioned that the bagger put my 5lb. bag of flour on top of the chicken, but tied the bag tightly and figured it'd be too heavy to do much but maybe slide around--there's a reason i would've failed physics if not for the labs...

got home, opened the trunk and tada! my trunk has been marinated with chicken juice--as had the entire bag of flour. quickly open the bag and assess the damage. paper bag the flour is packaged in is completely damp but ok, still in one piece. gently lift it out and set it on the floor of the trunk. somehow a little hole opens on the top, probably from my finger. check the bag for any more damage and find an entire corner ripping open. shuffle things around and get the flour into a clean bag by itself.

once upstairs, i tear open the bag and scoop out as much as i possibly can. i probably lost at least a cup or so from avoiding flour right against the packaging (on the off chance it may somehow taste/smell like chicken) and any that may possibly have cross contaminated things from touching the floor of the trunk.




and i thought the pecan pies i made for my birthday two years ago was hell--turns out this task wasn't as easy as i thought it'd be. followed the directions to the letter and, well, frozen blueberries add a whole extra level of difficulty by adding even more moisture to the dough so it sticks to freakin' everything. supposed to cut the shaped dough into wedges and place them on the baking sheet separately--not happening... sooo now they take like double the time to cook completely through being one big circle of dough. burned my thumb on the oven rack. and i'm roasting in here and still have one more batch to make so i can make sure everybody can have a whole one if they want. *sigh*



after all that work and using a brand new recipe, i think they turned out perfectly. they taste great and are light and cakey (the perfect density because, after all, they are scones). and now i'm kinda nauseous from eating one of the casualties... XP
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Thursday, July 2nd, 2009

don't you love how bipolar my posts are?

i didn't know what to get for dinner last night. by the time i finally decided on yummy yummy's incredibly awesome mongolian beef, it was past 8pm. while within walking distance, i didn't feel like going out that late for a roughly 10 minute walk over there. thought about the frozen pizza in the freezer but, eh, it was covered in pepperoni i'd have to peel off. instead, i wound up making something found on yummy yummy's menu that i order quite often.




chicken teriyaki and fried egg over rice
chicken, sliced onions, and green onions in a packaged sesame teriyaki sauce (not quite the same flavor, but it works). topped with a fried egg, yolk still a bit runny inside.
mood: calm
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Thursday, June 18th, 2009

the jokes translate so poorly from planet to planet

the man's away and i was hungry and lazy--this is what happens! i was so lazy i didn't really want to go out but it's just so nice right now and i could always use the "exercise". it was a bit on the pricey side, but i can guarantee you this will feed me at least three times so i'm ok with that. plus it tastes so great. shame i can't get like a gallon of that smoothie though...




coconut smoothie, pad thai, crab rangoon, and fried gyoza
music: Ron White - The Town Stinks
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Thursday, May 28th, 2009

at it again

i am so happy with myself right now. i'm not sure how or why i was suddenly struck by a craving for lemongrass ginger soup of some kind, but i decided to try making it myself. really wasn't that hard to do, just time consuming--which is usually what happens when i cook. and i think it tastes absolutely fantastic given i just made this up. and seeing as how the weather has been cold and damp lately, soup was just the thing to warm me up.

as i had no clue how to make this beyond steeping chopped ginger and chunks of lemongrass in chicken broth, i did a bit of research on this kind of thing earlier today. i couldn't decide on an exact recipe as all either sounded too bland or had ingredients i didn't want to use/couldn't acquire on such short notice. probably the closest comparison, in terms of ingredients, i could find is an indonesian soup called "soto ayam". beyond kaffir leaves (which i have no clue where to get), turmeric (used for color), coriander seeds and cumin, mine has pretty much the same ingredients. and in terms of coriander seeds, i used fresh cilantro leaves (aka coriander) so i figure it's pretty darn close.

as i said before, it really wasn't hard to make--even guessing what to do the entire way. i brought a large pan of store-bought chicken broth and water to a boil and added the chopped ginger and lemongrass. just kept tasting it until it was flavored enough for me and pulled all the pieces out with a straining spoon...thing... threw in two chicken breasts and let them poach. while they did so, i got into my calming groove of washing and chopping up all the vegetables. by the time i was done with that, the chicken was done; pulled it out and went to work flavoring the broth further. added in my garlic, rice wine, and salt. once satisfied i tossed in the vegetables and shredded the chicken, which was also added. brought it all down to a simmer and added the lime juice and ground pepper. once everything had cooked down, i ladled it over a bowl of cold, leftover wheat fettuccine.




lemongrass ginger chicken soup
shredded poached chicken, bok choy, shiitake mushrooms, green onions, bean sprouts and wheat pasta in a broth infused with lemongrass and ginger, garlic, lime juice, splash of rice wine, salt & pepper and cilantro.
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Saturday, October 25th, 2008

eating late, but so worth it




loaded baked potato soup
incredibly thick, creamy soup made with chicken stock, cream, potatoes, bacon, carrots, onions, and celery.


( recipe here! )
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Saturday, August 23rd, 2008

linguine love




lemon linguine with spinach and crispy prosciutto
linguine in a light sauce of lemon juice and olive oil. tossed with chopped tomatoes, onions, garlic, prosciutto, and wilted baby spinach. garnished with grated mozzarella cheese instead of parmesan.
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Wednesday, August 6th, 2008

cleaning out the fridge




mix plate #2
leftover chicken, tomato, and zucchini stirfry from mom; i added onions and soy sauce.
scrambled egg with bacon and sweet bing cherries.
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Monday, August 4th, 2008

yay for box mixes!




sesame teriyaki noodles
noodles and peas, carrots, and onions in a sesame teriyaki sauce.
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Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

feel the burn




yellow curry soup
rice noodles, broccoli, onions, garlic, and cilantro in a broth made from yellow curry paste, coconut water, and milk.
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Monday, July 28th, 2008

branching out




noodles with pork & vegetables
somen noodles with pork, cabbage, carrot, and garlic. in a sauce of soy sauce, honey, and a little water.
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Thursday, July 17th, 2008

i didn't have hamburger so i just had "helper"




confetti mac
box of hamburger helper's cheeseburger macaroni (sans meat), onion, peas, can of diced tomatoes, ketchup, chopped garlic and ground pepper.
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Tuesday, July 8th, 2008

tastes better than it looks

when all else fails, throw together whatever you've got in a frying pan. pasta leftover from mac & cheese i made yesterday; i set aside some plain macaroni since i never eat all the mac & cheese anyways. stir-fried vegetables left over from dinner last night and little container of mcdonald's sweet & sour sauce from lunch two weeks ago.




leftover remix
macaroni, zucchini, wax beans, onions, soy sauce, mcdonald's sweet & sour sauce, and chili powder.
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Friday, June 13th, 2008

most work i've done all day




broiled miso chicken
chicken marinated in soy sauce, ginger, green onions, garlic, and lime juice.
soba and vegetables lightly tossed with hoisin sauce and a touch of more lime juice.
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Wednesday, June 11th, 2008

2 nights of bliss




gyoza dumplings
wrappers stuffed with ground turkey, green onions, napa cabbage, soy sauce, and sesame oil.




blueberry pancakes
bisquik mix with a touch of melted butter added to the batter and fresh blueberries added during cooking.
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