Pizza faster than ordering and far better

I do this often, and will keep posting.  STOP buying the awful unhealthy garbage when you need something fast easy and that you like!!!!

1 Crust from dough I keep in the frig.
1 Tomato
Mozzarella cheese
Feta cheese
Banana Peppers
Olives
canned mushrooms
Fresh out of the garden basil
1/4 thin cut onions
EVVO
Red pepper flakes and oregano
and whatever else you like.

15 minutes prep
5 minutes cook time @ 450 or higher if you can (and I cleaned up the kitchen in that time)

BTW I cooked this on my pizza stone on the grill outside to keep the heat down in the house!

there are no pictures of it finished because it was devoured in 10 minutes....Sorry

Mise en Place  Always makes cooking better!!!!

OK so it's not round.  I'll bet it was way better tasting than your machined round one!!!!

Phil's Guacamole

OK, Ok.  I get a lot of folks asking me for this.  It's pretty easy and fast.  I just got tired of buying the little packages of chemicals to flavor it, so I combined a few recipes and some of my touches until I came up with this recipe that I always get compliments on and it's always gone even with a small group.  I even have people who have all but sworn off guacamole gorging on this.

Good ingredients always make great food.  So avocados being the primary ingredient, be picky.  Avocados are any where from $1-$2 each.  I go to COSTCO and all most always get their bag of 5 and they are almost always very nice in size and clean, but always not ripe.  So they always need to be bought ahead of time and dropped into a brown bag for a couple of days.

Recipe;

5 Ripe (not rotten) Avocados
1/2 finally chopped red onion.  After chopping rinse in cold water.  This makes a difference int he strength of the flavor!!
1/4-1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped medium to fine.  I like fine.
Juice of 1 lime
1 teaspoon of oregano
1 Jalapeno or Serrano.  If you don't want hot remove seeds and membranes.  If you like with a bite leave.
2 Roasted Garlic.  Just throw in a pan on high with skin on.  It will bun the skin some.  Let cool, should be soft and very aromatic.  You can skip the roasting, but it does make a difference.
Salt and pepper usually about 1-2 teaspoons, just taste.


Put in a bowl and stir until you get the amount of chunk vs smooth you like.  DO NOT PUT IN BLENDER OR FOOD PROCESSOR.  This does something to the flavor.  I also believe this is what makes guac haters not like it, ya know the green baby p@@p syndrome.  It's not always the flavor...

Refrigerating it for a while and keeping it on ice makes it taste better as well.

IF there are any left overs I store in an air tight Mason jar and use for all kinds of healthy meals and snacks for a week.  Remember this is a super food and has great health values as long as you don't sit and eat the whole batch, because then you will be fat and healthy.  Which I guess is better than just fat :).

Enjoy!

I said I was going to try it!!

Mexican stir fry

So when I was writing about stir-fry, I was thinking you can pretty much any kind of fast healthy and in any ethnicity you are in the mood for.  I'm sure there a few few foodies out there turning there nose up, but that's not what this blog is about.

So here is what I did.


1 Green pepper chopped
1 Jalapeno deseeded unless you want the heat
1 onion rough cut
2 garlics chopped
2 fire roasted pablanos (or one can green chile peppers) chopped
1/4 cu fresh cilantro chopped
2 cups of beans (drained and rinsed) or any other protein
2 roma tomatos chopped and de jellied
2 table spoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
S & P

1/2 feta or other fresh cheese

Add cheese after it's cooked.

This was a great first try, I did put a little sour cream in, but made it a bit runny so just use as topping.

I will be doing this again.  I may spice it up a bit more with some chipotle or a couple other variations.

We ate this on tostados. It was light, filling, easy, fast and very healthy.

Mise en Place (everything PREpared)

Maybe not so easy...or quick

I know I haven't updated much, but I have been eating.  So I was at the Peterson Commissary and saw a whole pork shoulder for $11 and couldn't resist. So that weekend I smoked it for 10 hours to end up with pulled pork ambrosia....  Great smoke penetration, I had injected it with sweet and spicy flavors, coated in a wonderful rub all resulting in a juice inside with a fantastic and crunchy outside all mixed together for something I have never had at any BBQ restaurant. Tragically, I couldn't find anyone who was free to come over and share.  Weird...  This was done in the most traditional of North Carolina (western) style.  I made an awesome cole slaw and homemade BBQ sauce to go with it.  Needless to say, I ate too much at dinner and the lunch the next day and the next....well you see.

Ya... It was that good!!!!

Stir Fry

I have never really done a lot of this kind of food.  But I had so many people ask me to figure it out and teach it.  Well this is like super easy Asian fast food. Healthy fast food.  But very delicious fast food.  Did I say easy as well?

This of course is best with fresh vegetables, however for those in a hurry during the week you can choose from some great choices of frozen veggies.  Just make sure it has no "seasonings" or other ingredients other than vegetables. I like a combination of fresh and frozen. A note on frozen, you want to thaw them out a bit in the microwave, not COOK, thaw. Or maybe just measure out what you need in the morning and put in the frig.  The frozen stuff tends to cool your process down while cooking way to fast.  It can be done though, you just end up cooking a little longer and you want to avoid that.

This is as fast as pizza and has the same effect, you can use items you just need to clean out of the frig before they go bad and you end up throwing out.

The stir fry is a protein (optional but you should have), vegetables, a bit of vegetable oil (EVOO is best), and some seasoning and sauce.  There are no rules, have fun and eat a healthy dinner. Rice is the norm, preferable brown as it is much healthier, just a bit harder to cook. You can leave it out and just have a super healthy, fast meal.

Now of course having a Wok really helps.  I bought a super nice one for $9 at Goodwill. Otherwise a largest deepest frying pan you have will work.

Proteins
chicken, beef, pork, seafood, tofu.  It is cooked  before you put it all together and set aside.  I would try different seasonings on your favorite meats to help bring some flavor bursts to the meal.

Note this is the one thing you MUST cook first, and only about 90% done.  Then you add it back in later to the stir.....  Do Not thrown raw chicken in or you will have to cook everything so long it will become stew..... :(

One more note.  Meat should not be the main ingredient. It should considered more of an ingredient, or I like to refer to it as a seasoning and the center piece. You will save many and be healthier.

Veggies
Onion, Bell Peppers, Broccoli, green beans, sweet peas, mushrooms, carrots, bok choy, baby corn, spinach, watercress, celery, chives, all kinds of squash, whatever you love.  One of the tricks to this part is that some veggies cook faster than others, frozen vs fresh.  You setup your preparation and cook things like onion and celery first, unless you want crunchy celery.  Broccoli is much better if not added first, it is better just heated.

We are told we don't eat enough fruits and veggies. Well truth be told we don't.  Most "diets" say veggies are "free", so throw another handful of green beans in there

Seasoning
This is the make or break if your going to love or just like this.  It doesn't take a lot, you don't want to over power the meal here, but ad some good flavor bursts.  I use mostly garlic, ginger (fresh) and soy sauce.  No salt if you are using soy.  You will kill it.  You bind the stir fry together at the end with 3/4 to 1 cup of chicken broth and 3 tbls of soy sauce and some flour, the recipes call for corn starch but I stay away from as much corn by products as can.  You move all the veggies and meat aside, pour the liquid in heat a bit and then add a teaspoon at a time stirring until you get it to thicken and the lumps are out.  This is how you get that nice brown sauce that you are familiar with getting at restaurants.  Stir all that up and serve.  If you like a bite, add a little red pepper flake.

Adding the seasoning at the end really helps keep their flavors more...vibrant.

So the key to any great meal that is fast is to learn to use the process known as "Mise en Place" That means being prepared.  I'll talk more about this is a separate post.  I was never really taught this nor had the discipline to do it, but now that I practice it more it has really changed the way I cook. The cooking is lighting fast, so your real success in this meal is having every-single ingredient 100% PREpared.  Then you just oil the pan get-er hot and start tossing in the goods, serve and enjoy.

Here is thoughts on where you can go with this.  Don't be a purest when you are trying to eat better.  What do I mean?  If you can take an Italian dish like pizza and make the toppings all mexican and call it a mexican pizza then why can't you do the same with stir-fry.  Stick the basic first, then venture out.  The only rule is to stay with stuff that is good for you.

So what would a mexican stir fry look like?  I think I'm going to try that next!!!!  Stand by!!! Or maybe a Mediterranean stir fry!!! Oh man I'm getting hungry just thinking about it......


This is what "Mise en Place" looks like.....

Chicken Stir Fry

• 1 Chicken Breasts, cut into thin strips
• 1 large Onion, cut into thin strips
• 1 teaspoon Garlic, minced
• 1 Red Pepper, cut into thin strips
• ½ bag Pea Pods, trimmed, and cut up
• 1 cup Mushrooms, sliced
• 2 Stalks Celery, chopped
• 1 cup Broccoli Florets
• 1 Can (15 oz.) Canned (Or fresh would be better) Bean Sprouts
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Sesame Seed Oil
• 1 teaspoon Soy Sauce
• ½ cup Chicken Broth
• 1 Tbsp. Cornstarch (use flour!!) mixed with 1/2 Tbsp. Water

In a large skillet heat olive oil until hot. Stir fry chicken strips. Remove from pan. Add Onions, broccoli, celery and mushrooms. Stir fry until water from mushrooms have evaporated, and celery and broccoli are crisp tender. Add sesame oil to skillet. When hot, add Red pepper, garlic, pea pods, and bean sprouts. Add chicken back into skillet. Add the stir-fry sauce. Add 1/2 cup Chicken broth to skillet, bring to a boil. Add cornstarch mixture, and cook and stir until thickened. Serve at once over rice.

Super easy night

Puttanesca.  This is super fast, super easy, cheap and very very delicious.  It looks pretty simple and it is.

Really all you do is cook some pasta, set a side.  Then do the onions, then garlic then a little bit of tomato paste.  Move all of the onions a side and get a little caramelizing going in the oil with the paste.  It really busts out the flavor.  I was forced to be innovative, I was out of paste so I took some sun dried tomatoes in olive oil and ran them through my little food processor and made paste out that.  I may do that from now on, added tons of flavor.  The rest is just thrown in and simmered a bit.  For tomatoes I use 1 28oz (the large can) of diced or pureed.

This is about a $4 meal and is full of flavor and totally satisfying. Of course I made some of my super easy fast fresh baguettes to go with it as well.

By the way, don't leave the anchovies out, just like the fish sauce in the Pad Thia, not so good alone, but adds to the over all finished product.  It's just a fish anyhow.

This old world recipe has a bit of a history, if your curious, just look up the definition of the name of the recipe. :) Must be 18 or older, make that 21.......

Puttanesca

• 8 ounces pasta
• ½ cup olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups chopped tomatoes, pushed through a sieve
• 4 anchovy filets, rinsed and chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 20 Greek olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

2. Heat oil in a skillet over low heat; cook garlic in oil until golden. Add sieved tomatoes, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in anchovies, tomato paste, capers, olives, and red pepper flakes. Cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Toss pasta with sauce, and serve.

Yesterday

I can't pass on sharing this.  Totally cool shot in front of our house.  Looks like an opening for a spaceship. ooohhhhhh

Because my daughter said I should try this.

So I've had a couple of folks ask me to do stir fry and Holly said I should try PAD THAI.  This is a Thai version of stir fry.  A bit more work than what one cooked referred to as a Chinese version.  I've done normal stir fry, pretty easy, but this just sounded good so Margene and I went to the Asian market and got all the special items we needed.  Yummy things like fish sauce, Tamarind paste, bean sprouts, tofu and rice noodles.  Now the biggest milestone for me was I allowed tofu in my house and in my kitchen. After marinating it, it wasn't half bad.

So other than preparing the sauce everything was pretty easy.  Just make sure you do a full prep of all ingredients.  That pretty much is the rule of thumb for stir fry. What I learned was get the bigger noodles and make sure there is plenty of sauce.  My first try seemed just a tad on the dry side.

There were a couple of ingredients that are not on the top of my list of things I like and some I almost never use.  Don't let this stop you because once they were all combined it was pretty darn good. namley, Fish Sauce... It's marinated anchovy juice......

Oh I almost forgot, I made Key Lime Cup cakes for desert.  Wow!!  Who needs pie when you have these little beauties.... Check out the recipe.....

Pad Thai

1-ounc e tamarind paste ¾ cup boiling water 2 tablespoons fish sauce 2 tablespoons palm sugar 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar 4 ounces rice stick noodles 6 ounces Marinated Tofu, recipe follows 1 to 2 tablespoons peanut oil 1 cup chopped scallions, divided 2 teaspoons minced garlic 2 whole eggs, beaten 2 teaspoons salted cabbage 1 tablespoon dried shrimp 3 ounces bean sprouts, divided ½ cup roasted salted peanuts, chopped, divided Freshly ground dried red chile peppers, to taste 1 lime, cut into wedges

Place the tamarind paste in the boiling water and set aside while preparing the other ingredients. Combine the fish sauce, palm sugar, and rice wine vinegar in a small bowl and set aside. Place the rice stick noodles in a mixing bowl and cover with hot water. Set aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Once the other ingredients are measured out into separate bowls, drain the water from the noodles and set them aside. Cut the tofu into 1/2-inch wide strips, similar to French fries. Press the tamarind paste through a fine mesh strainer and add to the sauce. Stir to combine. Place a wok over high heat. Once hot, add 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil. Heat until it shimmers, then add the tofu. Cook the tofu until golden brown, moving constantly, for no longer than 1 minute. Remove the tofu from the pan to a small bowl and set aside. If necessary, add some more peanut oil to the pan and heat until shimmering. Add 2/3 of the scallions and then the garlic, cook for 10 to 15 seconds. Add the eggs to the pan; once the eggs begin to set up, about 15 to 20 seconds, stir to scramble. Add the remaining ingredients in the following order and toss after each addition: noodles, sauce, cabbage, shrimp, and 2/3 of the bean sprouts and peanuts. Toss everything until heated through, but no longer than 1 to 2 minutes total. Transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with the remaining scallions, bean sprouts, and peanuts. Serve immediately with the ground chile peppers and lime wedges. Marinated Tofu: 6 ounces extra-firm tofu, not silken 1 1/2 cups soy sauce 1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder Wrap the tofu firmly in a tea towel. Place the wrapped tofu into an 8-inch cake pan. Top with another cake pan and weigh down with a 5-pound weight. (Bags of dried beans or grains work well.) Place in refrigerator and press for 12 to 15 hours. Place pressed tofu in a 2-cup container. Combine soy sauce and five-spice powder and pour over tofu. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes, turning once. Remove the tofu from the marinade and use immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 2 to 3 days. Yield: 6 ounces tofu Source: Good Eats

Key Lime Pie Cupcake

BATTER ½ cup butter (room temperature) 1 cup sugar 3 eggs 1 cup milk 1 cup flour 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs (I used my homemade graham crackers.) 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder ⅛ teaspoon salt 5 egg yolks 1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk ½ cup lime or key lime juice FROSTING 1 8oz package of cream cheese (room temperature) ¼ cup butter (room temperature) 4 cups powdered sugar (I recommend that you sift it.) 1 teaspoon lime extract (I couldn't fine lime extract at Whole Foods so I bought it here.)

Beat the butter for about 30 seconds until creamed. Add the sugar and mix for 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, being sure to beat for 30 seconds for each egg. Use food processor or a potato masher or whatever you have on hand to grind the graham crackers into tiny crumbs and powder. Sift the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking soda and powder, and salt. (I didn't actually sift the graham cracker crumbs. While mine were small, I don't think they would have fit through the sifter.) Add about 1/4 of the mixture to the butter mixture. Add some of the milk. Continue to add the ingredients in a dry - wet - dry method, ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lime juice. (FYI - If you want to make an amazing key lime pie, just mix the ingredients in this step, dump it into a pie shell and bake at 375 for 15 minutes. It's the easiest recipe ever! The pie won't be green and it shouldn't be. Lime juice isn't green.) Dump the key lime mixture into the graham batter and lightly stir. Do NOT fully integrate the key lime and graham batter. You should have clumps of batter in a key lime soup. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Make sure each liner has a nice distribution of key lime liquid and graham clumps. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until top bounces back when touched. FROSTING Mix the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar and lime extract. Source: -- | (Servings: 24)

Farmers Markets

So we went out on an adventure to check out some the "local" foods.  This is a big deal now-a-days as it is important to get back to eating fresh, safe and better food.  So the buzz for these kinds of markets is that it has been picked recently (like the night or day before) it came from a local and truly organic market.  Well there were some, others were clearly not, while some were just down right questionable.  For instance we bought what looked some very nice lettuces, I had an ice chest pre cooled just for this, bought them and put them in there, got home went straight to the frig, the next morning they were so wilted they were completely un-edible. Super disappointed.  We overhear people ask where something was from and they would responses like Texas, California, etc..... ?? I thought the point was to buy produce that didn't travel in truck burning tons of fuel to get here, I can get this stuff at King Soopers!

The selection was pretty minimal, tomatoes, peppers, beets, and radishes.  Some fruit, and plants.  There were a few locals with other items like honey, bakeries etc.  All ways a bit overpriced.  Pampered Chef, vitamin supplements(juice plus), a tamale lady, local milk distributors (not local organic dairy products) meat growers that admitted that they feed their cattle corn (no thanks) and a few other folks that in my opinion just don't belong there.

There were a few very nice things there, but you really had to pick over them.  I'm confident and hopeful that it will get better as we go further into the season.

I'll post a few pics.  If you want a list of the dates and locations of the markets, let me know.  I would still recommend going, It can only get better.

If you would please post your experience with the markets I would appreciate it, even if it counters what my experience.

Fathers Day. Kept it simple, we were out playing

Fresh grilled potato, tomato, basil, feta and corn(grilled and cut off the cob) with a balsamic and dijon dressing, grilled bell's and mushroom, brats and a little chipotle mayo (feel the burn)!  Oh ya and beer of course.

1 hour.  $10. Great left over salad for lunch