Food Lately

Whew!  I feel like the past couple weeks have been a whirlwind!  I haven't had a moment to sit down and write a post.  We had my daughter's fifth birthday party this past Saturday.  It was an "Arielsa" party...because she and I couldn't agree on just Ariel (me) or just Elsa (her)...so we combined the two princesses.  Not sure what it says about me that I am fighting with my 5-year-old over which princess is better...hm, I choose not to think about that too much. Ha!  But the result was lots of fun!

Blue Cupcakes and Blue Whoopie Pies for the party.

Two princesses, one party!

However, amid the busyness, I did cook some interesting and yummy recipes.  I'd like to share them with you!

Veggie Quesadillas with Cilantro Pesto

Recipe:

 1 Zucchini

1/2 Eggplant

1 colored Bell Pepper

1/4 Red Onion

Juice of 1/2 a Lime

1 teaspoon Chilli Powder

1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

Flour Tortillas

Butter for browning/toasting the tortillas

Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Cilantro Pesto (recipe below)

Instructions:  Peel the Eggplant and chop it and the other vegetables into small pieces.  Heat the Olive Oil over medium heat.  Add the chopped veggies to the pan along with the Lime Juice, Chilli Powder and Nutmeg (you're thinking, "Nutmeg? Weird."  It just kind of adds a little texture to the flavors).  Sautee this mix until the veggies are tender and starting to brown.  Transfer to a plate.  Now you're ready to assemble the Quesadillas (pronounced like Napolean Dynamite, of course).  Melt a bit  of butter in your pan.  As it is melting, spread some Cilantro Pesto on one tortilla, top with a handful of cheese, spread some of the veggie mixture and then add more cheese.  Place the other tortilla on top.  Place in the pan and allow the cheese to melt and the tortillas to toast on each side.  Just use your judgment for how many minutes.

 These colors just inspire me!

Cilantro Pesto

I discovered this in a Southern Living book a long time ago.  I usually whip it up any time we have quesadilla night, because it is so ridiculously good on a quesadilla!!

Recipe:

Just throw in the food processor and blend until mostly smooth...

2 bunches of Fresh Cilantro

1-2 Garlic Cloves

Zest and Juice of 1 Lime

1-2 tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

It's always fun to do a movie night with the family.  If you can make dinner fit the theme of the movie, that's even better!  At the library, my kids picked out "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs".  I have a simple meatball recipe that I've used several times: Meatball Recipe   I grabbed a jar of Marinara and Gluten-free noodles from Aldi and there you have it, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" night!

It was my week to bring snack to our church small group meeting.  I recently did a recipe for grape salsa that was soooo good!  It might sound odd, but the mix of sweetness and spiciness with salty chips, just works!  Here's that recipe:  Grape Salsa  So as I was making my usual Black Bean Salsa, (recipe here: The Blog Post with the Black Bean Salsa Recipe), I decided to add in some fresh green grapes.  I put in about a cup, cut into fourths.  It tasted fabulous!  

Black Bean Salsa with Green Grapes

   I served it with Blue Corn Chips, because you know my thing with color.  

The more color, the better!

I can honestly say, from experience, that these recipes are great busy-week recipes.  My family enjoyed them too.  Good luck and good dinners for your busy week!  Love to all!

Improv Curry

My first experience with Indian Curry was years ago in London, England, when I was very young (like 20).  I vividly remember the chunks of tender chicken covered in a thick yellow/red sauce, that had so much wonderful flavor!  It was served with Naan, which is just like Pita Bread.  It was love at first bite!  Now, in my old age (32) ha!...(I know I'm not old, but I feel old thinking back on that time...although at church recently in my daughter's class, when they asked for prayer requests, she said "pray for Granny, she's really really old, she's 32"...yes she said that!), I have discovered that curries can be a delicious weeknight meal.  They are also not time-consuming to make when you do them in the crockpot.

I've done several great recipes from Pinterest.  My family enjoys these and I cook them frequently.  I'll share the links below.  However, none that I've tried have turned out quite like I remembered the one in London tasting.
So I made up my own (that's why I called it Improv, because it's improvised)...

These are the ingredients I used, plus chicken and salt and pepper.

Crockpot Chicken and Sweet Potato Curry 

2 lbs Chicken fillets

2-3 small sweet potatoes 

1/2 Red Onion

1 Shallot

2 cloves fresh Garlic

Zest and Juice of 1 Lime

1 can of Coconut Milk

1 cup Golden Raisins

1 heaping tablespoon Curry Powder

1 tablespoon Turmeric Powder

1 heaping tablespoon Tikka Masala Concentrated Curry Paste

1 teaspoon-ish Corn Starch (to thicken the liquid a bit)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Handful of fresh Cilantro

Instructions:

1. Grab the crockpot and plug it in (very important step)!  

2.  Wash and throw in the chicken.

3.  Peel and cut the potatoes into smallish pieces and throw them in too.

4. Finely chop the onion, shallot and garlic and add to the pot.

5.  Add the coconut milk and the next five ingredients.

6. Put the top on the pot and place the setting on Low.  Cook for 6-8 hours.

7. Add the corn starch about an hour before serving.

8.  Stir in the Cilantro just before serving.  

9. Serve over rice or with warm Pita Bread or Naan.

A very old picture of my husband and myself in London town.  Ah, youth...sigh.

London remains one of my absolute favorite places to travel.  There's just something about the vibe there that I can't quite get out of my heart.  Indian food is very popular in Britain.  No wonder I had my first taste of it there.
I've read parts of this book...

...and there's a whole chapter devoted to the history of Chicken Tikka Masala.  I could devote a whole chapter to Indian food as well, or at least a whole blog post! :)

The spicier curries are great topped with Tzatziki Sauce.  This cucumber sauce is not just for Greek food.  I've seen it called Raita when served with curry, but it's the same idea.  I've mentioned that I make it different every time, but here is a blog post that has a semi-recipe for it: Gyro Bar for Friends


So when you have a long busy week day ahead of you, and you know you won't have time or energy to cook a multi-step dinner for the family...try my improv curry.  And think of places far away for a moment as you take each savory, beautiful bite.  Happy weeknights, friends!

Other great Curry recipes I like to cook: (let me know if you have some for me to try!)

Crockpot Butter Chicken

Crockpot Chicken Tikka Masala

Chickpea and Butternut Squash Curry

Bookie Cookies

The kids and I had a fun and unexpected cooking moment together this morning.  We read the book "A Cow, a Bee, a Cookie and Me" by Meredith Hooper.  We always have a huge stack of books checked out from the Birmingham Public Library System.  This was just one I happened to pick up at some point.  It's about a boy named Ben who is baking with his grandma.  They talk about where each of the ingredients for Honey Cookies come from as they are making them...honey from bees, butter from cows, etc.  At the end, the recipe is included.  So when we reached the end of the book, I thought "why not?"

 Time for a kid-friendly cooking adventure!  Get ready for a mess!

I think their favorite part of cooking was tasting everything!

I've mentioned before that I'm not an excellent baker.  Especially with cookies.  Mine just never turn out looking right.  However, this recipe was baking-impaired-friendly.  It turned out great!  The cookies turned out looking like cookies!!

My husband would say, "That bowl is in a precarious position!" ha!

Some advice I have for you when you make these is to make sure that your butter is at least room temperature.  Foolishly, I put mine straight from the fridge into the mixing bowl.  As I mixed it with the electric mixer, I got pelted with little butter/sugar bullets and made a mess in my kitchen. Ha!  Like I said, not the best baker!  I'm the one who messed the kitchen up, not the kids!

Cold butter mixed with sugar would make a great weapon!  Yikes!

Honey Bookie Cookies

After mixing the batter, form it into small balls and roll in a sugar/cinnamon mixture.  That was my daughter's favorite step

          Before baking...                                                                        ...after.

 

And here's the recipe straight from the book:

A direct quote from my 3-year-old son, "These are the best cookies I ever put in my mouth!  These are the best cookies ever!"  He is a very expressive child.  He inherited that from me.  We get really really excited and enthusiastic about the little things! :)

Kids hard at work in the kitchen!  My dream come true!

Gyro Bar for Friends!

My friend Hannah, and I prepared a Gyro bar for our husbands' work friends! Fun night!

My history with Gyros started a long time ago....Circa 1990-something. Ha!  In a movie that was popular when I was a child, Harrison Ford and Melanie Griffith are walking down the street eating them.  They are talking about a business deal or something and he gets Tzatziki sauce on his face, and she tells him to wipe it off.  Gyros can be messy!  That scene still sticks out in my mind...

I think that was the first time I ever noticed the existence of the gyro.  

I remember my dad getting them from some restaurant.  I thought they were gross back then. Ha!  I didn't really like food as a kid.  Oh how things can change!  After that, I didn't think about them much for the rest of my childhood and so on.  My husband and I moved to Jackson, MS right after we got married.  There, we both became Gyro-lovers because of a little restaurant called Keifer's.  If you don't know, it's a Jackson staple!  Situated in the Belhaven District, it serves up Mediterranean style dishes...the most popular one being the Gyro!

An old old picture, taken by my friend, Natalie.  I was so young. Sigh.

These days, there are not many foods I enjoy more than a lovely gyro!  Also, I have found that when you're having several guests over, a Gyro Bar is easy and fun!

Our Gyro Bar consisted of:

Tomatoes

Red Onion

Lettuce

Tzatziki Sauce

Warmed Pita Bread

Chicken

Tilapia

Cucumbers

Kalamata Olives

Sauteed Fennel

Artichoke Pesto

Aussie Salsa Verde

Preparation (much more fun with a friend) included simply chopping all the veggies, mixing the sauce and dips, preparing the meats and sautéing the Fennel in a pan.  

Gyro meat is usually lamb and sometimes chicken, cooked very slowly on a rotisserie.  I don't own a rotisserie cooker.  I do try to stick with the theme of slow cooking though, because Gyro meat should be tender.  I usually do chicken tenders in a crock pot with seasonings (lemon juice, garlic, oregano, shallots) for several hours.  Fish takes almost no time at all and is tender just after cooking.  So I just throw it in the oven on 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, with a few seasonings.

I also put the pita bread in the oven wrapped in foil and brushed with olive oil.  Do that part right before eating time.

Tzatziki Sauce

I always throw this together in the food processor and I probably make it a little differently every time.  So I do not have an exact recipe.

About a cup of Plain Greek Yogurt

1/2 a peeled Cucumber

1 to 2 cloves Fresh Garlic

handful Fresh Mint Leaves

handful Fresh Dill

Salt and Pepper

Sometimes I even add Feta Cheese (because Feta is awesome!)

-Blend in the food processor until smooth.

Artichoke Pesto

This is a recipe I made up and is in a previous blog.  

Click here for the recipe:  The post with the Artichoke Pesto Recipe

This time, I added in a couple tablespoons of the Tzatziki Sauce.  Yum!

Aussie Salsa Verde

My next door neighbor is from Australia.  I've referred to him before, as the Awesome Aussie. :)  At some point, I will do a full blog post about Australian recipes.  His wife let me borrow some Donna Hay magazines.  She is the Aussie version of Martha Stewart.  This recipe sounded crazy as I was doing it, but the result turned out fabulous!  It works great as a dip or a sauce.

I just took a picture of the magazine page. Ha!  Thanks, Donna Hay!

So the next time you are entertaining multiple guests, I fully recommend this idea.  There is so much you can do with it.  You don't have to do it just like we did.  I serve up different ingredients every time!  If you have any great ideas, please comment below and let me know!  I'm always looking for more inspiration!  Thanks for reading and Happy Gyro Night!!

Make Weeknight Suppers Splendid!

We shoot Webs at boring weeknight meals!

I get really excited about cooking really exciting recipes!...like Whole Fish Cooked in Sea Salt (1cookingchick MediterrItalian Night) and other crazy things like that.  But what about regular old Tuesday nights when I just need to feed my family?  Today I want to share a few ideas with you that make me moderately excited about cooking.  Here they are, straight from a Monday, Tuesday or etc night...

Thai Chicken Pizza

This might sound hard to make, but it's really not.  Our local Publix has ready-made pizza crust dough in the bakery section.  I just grabbed a couple of those, rolled them out and piled the ingredients on top.  I remembered having this pizza at a couple restaurants at  some point in my life...so I searched the recipe on Pinterest.  

Here is the one I use:  Thai Chicken Pizza

*Note: It always helps to bake the pizza crust for about ten minutes before you add the toppings.  This just helps the middle get done.  Also, be sure to slice the Zucchini super thin.

Roasted Chicken Thighs with Sweet Potatoes and Red Onion

I discovered this recipe on Eatingwell.com a couple years ago.  It is SO simple!  It is great for a busy weeknight!  I use Course Grain Dijon Mustard, because it just adds something to it.  The flavors of the marinade are delicious together!  I add a little fresh lemon juice as well.

Here it is:  Roast Chicken and Sweet Potatoes

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy and Parmesan Zucchini Mash

My husband and kids LOVE this recipe!  My kids eat their serving and then ask for "more cow".  Haha!  What can I say, my family members are Cow-Eating Fools!  Yum!  

Here is the recipe for the Salisbury Steak: Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy

The recipe calls for you to serve over mashed potatoes.  I've mentioned several times on this blog that I have issues with beige foods.  I'm always looking for ways to add in color to my food.  So I made up a recipe for semi-green mashed potatoes.  Here it is:

Parmesan Zucchini Mash

5 small potatoes (peeled)

1 medium Zucchini (ends cut off)

1 whole clove Garlic 

1/4 cup Milk

1/4 cup Greek Yogurt

1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese

1 1/2 tablespoons Butter

Salt and Pepper

Fill a large pot about halfway with water and bring to a boil over high heat.  Add the potatoes and boiled for about 15 minutes.  Add the Zucchini and the whole clove of garlic.  Boil until the potatoes are tender and cutable (is that a word? able to cut through easily).  Transfer the potatoes, garlic and zucchini into a large food processor.  Blend with the milk, yogurt, cheese, butter and salt and pepper until smooth.  Serve immediately.  (If it loses warmth, transfer to microwavable bowl and heat until steaming)

I stole an idea from my friend Madison, when I was at her house.  She and her husband worked together to write out a list of weeknight meal ideas they enjoy, and magnetized it to their fridge.  My husband and I have our own running list.  It's not full because we are adding to it all the time.

The Elvis magnet is from my Granny's house (she was a big Elvis fan and this magnet reminds me of her).  Friends are always asking why I have an Elvis magnet on my fridge...no, I'm not an Elvis fanatic. :)  Our weeknight food list is underneath my daughter's artwork.  Hopefully some artistic inspiration will happen there. Ha!

Inspiration, that's what I'm always reaching for...for me and for you.  So let's try to make our week nights special, shall we?  Love to you, friends...and your weeknight dinner times!

The Challenge of Kid Lunches

Turkey and Cheese Sandwiches, PB & J, Carrots and Ranch...these seem to be the lunches we eat most often.  There's not a thing wrong with that.  I just get tired of preparing the same thing every day.

So I wanted to try some other ideas, and I've been feeling a little bit inspired this week.  Here's what happened in our kitchen at lunch time:

An Assortment of Dippables with Honey Dijon Garlic Sauce

There is no right or wrong way to do this.  Serve the foods you like to prepare, or that your kids will eat.  On my plate: Pan-grilled Chicken Tenders, Roasted Zucchini slices, Baked Brussels Sprouts (Muscle Sprouts my son calls them) and Sweet Potato Fries (the last two are from the frozen section at the grocery store-i just threw them in the oven with the Zucchini and baked on 425 degrees).

Honey Dijon Garlic Sauce

1 cup Greek Yogurt

1 heaping tablespoon course grain Dijon Mustard

1 teaspoon Honey

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

*Mix all the ingredients until well-blended and serve.  Just about anything is delicious dipped in this sauce!

Movie and Popcorn Lunch

My kids and I love going to the library.  There are several great ones in the Birmingham area.  Emmet O'Neal in the Mountain Brook area and Avondale Public Library in our community are our favorites. We usually go right before lunchtime and they often pick out a movie or two.  Today, my daughter asked if they could go ahead and watch the movie (Ice Age) as soon as we got home.  My natural response was going to be "No, we have to eat lunch and go down for a nap", as if we were on some sort of military style schedule.  But then I thought, "why am I being so uptight?  they're kids, what would it hurt to watch the movie now?"  So I decided to make their lunch movie-friendly.

Popcorn Platter

This was so simple!  I just popped some popcorn, and threw some other easy-to-eat foods on the plate along with it: Pineapple, Carrots, rolled up Turkey deli meat, and Grapes.  

The idea worked well because, to them, it's a treat to eat popcorn on the couch and I tricked them into eating a few more substantial foods as well.  

 Curry Fish

I don't have a perfect little picture of this dish to include.  I actually just remembered it as I was writing this post.  It works for a quick lunch or a quick dinner.

Recipe:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a roasting pan with aluminum foil.

Drizzle a little olive oil on the foil before you add the thawed fish (however many you want to make).

Top those fishies with the following seasonings (however much you want): Ginger, Curry Powder, Chilli Powder, Turmeric, Lime Juice, Salt and Pepper.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until fish falls apart.

I just use store-bought frozen fish.

As I've mentioned before, these are all my favorite
seasonings.  This photo is from a previous
blog post...something having to do with
Sebastian the Crab.  You'll have to look
it up to find out!

So there you have it, my attack on the Kid Lunch Challenge.  These are only a few ideas.  If you have more, I'd like to hear them.  Let's help each other out!  It is always my intention to help and inspire other food lovers! 

Friends in Fiji

Did you think that "1 Cooking Chick" sounded a little lonely?  This blog started out as "2 Cooking Chicks" with my dear friend Erica Cross, when she and I lived in the same town.  We both moved to new towns and now live hours from each other.  That is why I've continued alone...so sad!  That is also the reason I try to involve as many of my friends and family in this blog as possible.  This weekend though, I had the great pleasure of having her and her husband (also a great friend of mine since forever) as houseguests.  So you know we got busy in the kitchen!  The result of our efforts...Fiji Night.

Why Fijian recipes, you ask?  Erica's husband, Britt and his sister Caitlin are long-time hometown friends of mine.  Caitlin and her husband Robb are currently working for the Peace Corps in Fiji.  Erica and Britt recently went to visit them.  They had interesting and delicious food while they were there.  We decided to imitate those recipes. 

Erica and Britt dining in Fiji.  Yes, that's a pig head! Ha!

First of all, let me say how amazing it was to have my girl (or chick), Erica 

back in the kitchen with me!

I love this person!  We were really excited about some Curry!

The makings of our Fantastic Fijian Food Frenzy!! (again with the alliteration...I can't stop!)

And now for the recipes...You thought I would never get around to the info, right?  Too much love to talk about first!

Fijian Green Bean Curry with Roti

Ingredients:

2 handfuls Fresh Green Beans

1 Eggplant (diced)

1 Zucchini (diced)

3 small White Potatoes (peeled and diced)

1 White Onion (diced)

2 cloves minced Garlic

1/2 can Coconut Milk

Curry

Cumin

Chilli Powder

Turmeric

Ginger

Zest and Juice of 1/2 Lime

Salt and Pepper

 Instructions:  1.  In a large pan or pot, cook down the potatoes for 10 minutes and then add the egg plant.  You want both of these to soften before adding the other veggies.  2.  Add in the Green Beans, Zucchini, Onion, Garlic, Coconut Milk and Spices.  3.  Stir well and cover.  Let it cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  About halfway through, add the Lime Juice and Zest.  4.  Transfer to a serving dish and serve.


How it looks in the pan...yum!!

Roti

Recipe:

Depending on how many people you are serving, start with about a cup of Flour and enough water to make it into a thick dough (mix water in slowly).  Flour a clean surface (keeping extra flour nearby) and roll out dough until it is flat.  Form into a small ball and roll out to the size of a tortilla (about 1/2 inch thick).  Put some vegetable oil in a pan over medium heat.  Once heated, add the dough.  Cook until browned on both sides.  Do one Roti at a time and transfer to a plate. 

                               


Our little Fijian dinner party

Photo by Ava McElwain (my 4-year-old daughter).  She cut Mr. Britt out of the picture.  Sorry Britt.  And as far as my son goes...no shirt no service, right?  Well, it is summer.  Varying levels of nakedness are okay as long as you're under a certain age.


I have to say the results turned out delicious!  I want more recipes and tips from Caitlin and Robb while they are in Fiji.  Here is my plate:

In Fiji, you eat the Curry wrapped in the Roti.  Our Roti turned out a little crunchy (which I liked), so it was more of a flat bread type thing.

One other tidbit on Fijian food...There are two types: Fijian and IndoFijian.  The original Fijian foods are lots of root crops, greens, fish, beef and chicken.  Curries fall under IndoFijian food.  This type came from the British colonialization (is that a word? I'm thinking not...but you know what i'm trying to say...colonizing) of the area in the 1800s.  They brought in Indians as indentured servants to work the sugar plantations.  As a result, we have IndoFijian food.

More on Caitlin and Robb

Here they are with the Prime Minister of Fiji.

Caitlin is working for the Peace Corps as a Public Health Volunteer (maternal and child health) and Robb is an Economic Empowerment Volunteer.  The time frame for their work is 27 months.  They have a very interesting blog about their experiences at www.divingoffthedeepend.com.  Check it out!