CEiMB: Emerald Stir-Fry with Beef

Hi everyone! First of all, thank you to everyone for the sweet comments on my Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 post. I appreciate the feedback!

I’m really trying to get back on track with cooking and posting for CEiMB. I skipped last week for two reasons: 1) I was getting ready for my cooking party, and 2) I knew Scott wouldn’t eat the Five Layer Mexican Dip and I didn’t want a whole pan of it tempting me over the weekend. Looking back, I could have made it for dinner for my friends since we also had tacos. As the infamous “they” say, hindsight is 20/20.

This week, our group was hosted by Alyssa of Alyssa’s Two Bites, who has a lovely blog if you haven’t checked it out.

I was really looking forward to this week’s recipe, Emerald Stir-Fry with Beef. I love green vegetables, and this one included some that I normally do not add to stir fries – specifically asparagus and edamame. However, this ended up being a nice combination that also included broccoli (my favorite!) and snow peas.

I will admit that I did not follow the measurements of the vegetables exactly, but I did mix the mirin-soy-orange sauce exactly according to the recipe. I know some of the other CEiMB members found the sauce to be a little bland, but Scott and I both enjoyed it very much. I thought it was sweet but had a little heat from the addition of crushed red pepper flakes. I do think the recipe would benefit from a small amount of salt, which I am sure Ellie left out of the recipe due to the amount of soy sauce called for, but with the amount of fresh vegetables in the recipe I think it needs some added in.

I do plan on making this dish again. It was quick, easy, and flavorful and a good vehicle to get some fresh veggies into my husband. As he said, “I wasn’t too enthused when I first looked at it, but it is delicious!”

I also loved Alyssa’s idea to make the stir-fry with shrimp and to marinate it in the sauce while the vegetables cook. I will definitely try that next time!

Thanks to Alyssa for a great CEiMB pick!

Stuffed Summer Squash

I have seen many variations of stuffed squash and zucchini popping up around the blog world so I thought I would share my version as well. This is one of my favorite summertime recipes and often make it as a side dish or even as an entree served with a salad. One of the best things about it is that you change easily change the quantity based on the number of squash you have or the number of servings you need to make.

For my stuffing, I start by sweating diced onions, carrots and mushrooms in a little bit of olive oil and butter. Then I toss the vegetables into dried stuffing mix, then add heated chicken or vegetable broth in very small increments until it just comes together without becoming soggy. My favorite stuffing mix is Pepperidge Farms herb stuffing, but I think this would also be nice with a whole grain such as bulgur or quinoa as well. Panko, however, does not work as the pieces are small and become soggy very quickly with the addition of the broth.

To prepare the squash, I cut off the stem end, slice in half, and remove the seeds with a spoon or melon baller. Then, I parboil them for approximately three minutes. I think this is the most important step to ensure the squash and stuffing are both finished baking at the same time without overcooking. Just drain the squash well before stuffing, and use a paper towel to soak up the water if necessary.

Before stuffing, salt and pepper the inside of the squash. This is another important step and guarantees that you have a well-seasoned dish. Sometimes I add pepper to the stuffing, but rarely salt – I don’t think it needs it since it has broth. Finally, stuff the squash and place in a baking dish. Then bake at 375 until the stuffing is heated through and golden brown and crispy on top.

More highlights from the weekend.

The boyfriend's sister and I went to the farmers' market on Saturday. I am so lucky to have one close that is open all of the time - every day from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. I intended to just browse during this trip, but of course I came back with several purchases.

When I got back, I had some goat cheese on a mini whole wheat bagel and an Americano:



This goat cheese is fabulous. They actually had 7-8 different flavors of spreadable goat cheese, as well as come marinated in oil and herbs and several hard cheeses. I'm a sucker for a free sample and bought a whole container:

I also got some veggies. I mentioned a few posts ago that I am trying to incorporate at least one new fruit or veggie per week, whether it is something completely new or just a new variety/color of something I already like.

Clockwise from top left: yellow tomatoes, carnival squash (isn't it festive?), baby eggplants, and Cherokee purple tomatoes

My dad bought some of the Cherokee purple last time we went and gave one to me - it is seriously the best tomato I have ever had.

I also got two Honeycrisp apples, which was amazing because I usually dislike any apple other than Granny Smith. These were very tasty, however, and I will buy more. They are kind of sweet, a little tart, and very crisp (I HATE grainy apples!!).

Also a big chrysanthemum plant. Definitely not a necessity, but pretty. I ♥ orange flowers!

Finally, some pink roses from my sweet boyfriend. Not to take away from the farmers' market theme, but they are too beautiful not to include. I think I'll keep him.

Three weeks later...

I'm back! The whole full time job + full time graduate school schedule took a little longer to adjust to that I expected. Anyway, I'm settled in at the job, and I turned in my first major assignment. I decided to celebrate tonight by doing a little blogging and NO homework!

Since it has been awhile, I'll just hit some highlights from the past couple weeks.

In "Eat a different fruit or vegetable each week" news, I bought a personal seedless watermelon:


Let me start by saying that I have never liked watermelon, but I was willing to give it a another try since I am trying to eat a diet with a lot more water-rich foods. Since watermelon is 92% water, it was the logical choice. Also, it has loads of lycopene! The verdict: I still don't like it.

Question: Has anyone eaten other colors of watermelon? Yellow or orange? Also, has anyone tried watermelon rind in any form (stir-fried or pickled)?



In "Rachel, get off your lazy butt" news, I bought a pedometer:

I was talking to my boyfriend's mother, who wears a pedometer daily and aims for 10,000 steps. She walks her dog twice a day and also tried to get in some extra steps at work. This picture was from my first day, but my numbers have ranged anywhere from 13,000 to 2,000 (bad, but in my defense, I was sick that day). By the way, with my stride length, 11,795 steps = 5.63 miles.

In "comfort food is good for stress" news, I made a childhood favorite for dinner one night:

Spanish Rice

(named this even though I'm fairly sure there is nothing Spanish about it)

1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey

1 large onion, diced

1 large green bell pepper, diced

1 14 oz. can tomato sauce

1 1/2 c. hot water

1 cup raw brown rice (the 10 minute kind)

1 T. yellow mustard (bottled, not the spice)

salt and pepper

Brown the meat, onion, and pepper, then drain. Add all of the remaining ingredients and simmer on medium-low heat until the rice absorbs all of the liquid (approx. 25 minutes).

This makes a huge batch, so I freeze half for another meal. I also serve this with garlic toast and corn, just like my mom did when I was little.

And finally, in "I can't resist a sale" news, I bought some cute square shaped bowls at Target:

And I filled them up with stir-fry. I stir-fried onion, mushroom, broccoli, water chestnuts, and shrimp and put some of that fantastic Garlic sauce and served it with some brown rice. Also, notice my new placemats, which were a gift from my boyfriend's mother. She made them - aren't they pretty?

Anyway, I'll be back again soon!

Dinners

When I went to the Fresh Market for the chicken sausage, the friendly guy behind the meat counter talked me into buying some boneless, skinless chicken breast that was on sale for this week. I think their chicken tastes so much better than what I usually buy, so I got enough for two nights.

I didn't feel like making anything special or new, however, so the first night we had barbecue chicken. Sometimes I have a hard time cooking thick pieces of chicken to the right temperature, so I put this in the oven. I browned the chicken on both sides in a skillet, then stuck the pan into a 350 degree oven for around 10 minutes. After I took it out of the oven, I brushed the chicken with sauce (Kraft Spicy Honey tonight) and let it stay in the hot pan until the sauce thickened.

I also attempted to make a noodle dish with my leftover ricotta salata, but it didn't turn out quite like I wanted it to. My aunt used to make a baked dish with egg noodles and farmer's cheese, which melts and browns in the oven, but the ricotta just stayed the same while the noodles dried out. We ate part of it anyway just so it wouldn't completely go to waste.

Barbecue chicken and noodles with steamed broccoli and 1/2 baked sweet potato:




I was feeling nostalgic on Friday night and wanted some comfort food, so I made one of my favorite dishes from my childhood: Chicken Casserole (and yes, the word casserole does signify that cream of mushroom soup is included).

The good thing is, the amount of this can easily be altered to feed one person or twenty. Just mix the following things in a bowl: boiled chicken (which has been torn into small pieces), mushroom soup, low sodium chicken broth, paprika, salt, and pepper. Put it in a baking dish and top with dry herb seasoned stuffing mix. Bake at 375 until the top is brown and the liquid is bubbling.

Even though this is definitely not a fancy dish, it is one of my favorite things in the world to eat. The boyfriend likes it too, and I think he may have tried to hide the leftovers from me.

With green beans and 1/2 baked potato with light sour cream and lots of pepper:

Monday

I have some catching up to do since I didn't post yesterday. I have been busy getting ready for my new job, and I start on Wednesday!

I wanted oatmeal for breakfast on Monday but didn't feel like standing over the stove, so I pulled out the instant steel cut oats. Monday's cast of characters:



All together:

I need to get another box of that oatmeal to make quick breakfasts. It was fast, easy, and filling. I don't know yet what time I will have a lunch break at work or if I will have an opportunity to eat a morning snack, so I need some breakfasts that are going to keep me full for awhile.

For lunch I had leftover veggie calzone and an orange. Look at all of that spinach stuffed in the calzone!

I was out doing some errands in the afternoon and got very hungry. Luckily I packed a snack and stuck my lunch bag in the car. I had some blackberries and a Fiber One bar.

I tried a new potato recipe for dinner, so look for it in the next post!

I declare Aug. 12 Cilantro Day.

I used to hate cilantro, but a few months ago I gave it another try and have been cooking with it a lot lately. I need to back up, though, because Cilantro Day actually started with some beans that I found at the Farmers' Market:

These are anasazi beans, which are very similar to pintos. I rinsed, picked over, and soaked the beans overnight and cooked them this afternoon. Once they are cooked, they turn pink:

After doing a little research, I found out that anasazis are often used to make refried beans. I was inspired to make a Mexican style meal, and that is where the cilantro comes in. First I made some salsa:

I made this in my food processor. It has two fresh tomatoes (seeded), 1/2 red onion, 1 Anaheim pepper, 1 can of Rotel tomatoes (drained), and a HUGE handful of cilantro.

Then I made some guacamole, which was very similar to the salsa. I started with 1/2 fresh tomato, a chunk of red onion, around 1/4 of an Anaheim pepper, and some cilantro. I pulsed it in the food processor, then added one avocado. I did not put the avocado in the processor, though, because I like guacamole chunky. I just smashed it all together with a fork. I also added a few drops of lime juice to stop it from browning.

Layered all together, with a spoonful of light sour cream:

I ate this with a handful of Scoops baked tortilla chips and a big glass of iced tea. Yum!

I like free stuff.

I had to run some errands this morning, and I knew today was Free Vivanno Tuesday at my Starbucks, so guess what I had for breakfast:

When I got home, I tried out two new recipes. First was Potato and Bacon Soup, which is actually a Weight Watchers recipe. You would never know it though - it was thick and creamy and TASTY. It is made mostly with fat free chicken broth, but there is a little bit of half and half for creaminess. I topped it with one scallion, one strip of bacon, and a little mound of shredded cheese:





I also made some zucchini pancakes. Again, I read several recipes and pieced my own together. They were so good! The amount I had today made three pancakes. I meant to save one for tomorrow but ended up eating all three!

Zucchini Pancakes

1 medium zucchini, shredded with a box grater
diced red onion
chopped Italian parsley
salt & pepper
1 T. bread crumbs
1 T. grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg white

Lay shredded zucchini on a layer of paper towels for approx. 5 minutes to soak up some of the moisture. Then mix all ingredients together with a fork.

Heat oil in a skillet. Drop zucchini mixture into pan in large spoonfuls, then flatten out with a spatula. Cook on both sides until browned.

Dinner

Last week, my boyfriend and I went to a new Hibachi Express restaurant. I was satisfied with the food, but the BF was disappointed in the amount of food/quality of the food for the price. I decided to try making it at home tonight, except with A LOT more veggies. I started with 1/2 onion, baby bella mushrooms, 1 zucchini, and a small broccoli crown, which I stir-fried on high heat with 1 T. oil and salt and pepper:





I also made some fried rice with some diced carrot, diced onion, leftover brown rice, and low sodium soy sauce. For the chicken, I tried to find some kind of sauce that was low calorie and low sodium (since we already had a little soy sauce in the rice). I found the perfect sauce:




Per tablespoon, this garlic sauce has 15 calories and less than half the sodium of light soy sauce. Also, the flavor is really strong, so I only used 2 T. for a little over half a pound of chicken. It got really thick and stuck to the chicken nicely as it heated. I highly recommend it (I found it at Lowe's Foods). Plus, it's organic!

The BF also requested the sweet carrots that they serve at the hibachi restaurant. I was a little short on time, so I used the Green Giant microwaveable honey carrots. They tasted good but had too much butter in the sauce. If anyone has a good recipe for sweet/glazed/honeyed carrots, please send it my way! I plan to make this meal again and would like to make my own carrots next time.

My plate (on a small salad plate):





I ate approximately 1/2 c. rice, 1/4 c. each chicken and carrots, and LOTS of veggies.

By the way, before we ate, the BF said "If this is good, we're never going back to the restaurant." His final verdict: "Better than the restaurant!"

I'll take that.