menu planning monday 04.27.09

Life has been a little hectic lately now that we are in the full swing of baseball season.  I don't even remember if I cooked a meal at all last week.  We ate out too much -- I know that much...too many calories!  

So, I asked Chef D (my sweet husband, for those who are new to the blog), to help me out this week.  And, he obliged:) He even did the grocery shopping tonight so that we have everything we need.  I love that man.

Monday:  Alton Brown's Chicken Fried Steak with mashed potatoes (Chef D preparing while I take one child to baseball practice and the other to his school's art fair)

Tuesday:  Grilled pork chops with long-grain/wild rice and a tossed salad

Apprehension-Free Wednesday:  Pork roast, vegetable medley, sweet potato casserole, salad and dessert will be served at church (with pizza for the kiddos).

Thursday:  Grilled portobello mushrooms, grilled pineapple and leftover rice from Tuesday (I always make too much!)

Friday:  Scrapbooking night for me/Boy's night out for 'the boys'!

Check out OrgJunkie for more menu planning ideas!

sauteed shrimp with jasmine rice

Again, I did not follow the recipe I linked to in my menu planning post!!  But, I have a very good excuse -- Chef D filled-in for me tonight.

I made the jasmine rice before I headed out to take einstein to his guitar lesson.  Chef D started on the shrimp and decided to use his sauce for sauteed crab claws instead of the lemon pepper shrimp recipe I had planned.  I am so glad he did because it was fantastic!

First, I will share a little tip I found for making this yummy and fluffy rice.  The key is to soak it for a little while (10-20 minutes) to get those elongated pieces of rice.  After straining the water off the rice, I added the 1/2 cup to 1 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and a shake or two of salt.  After it began to boil, stir then cover tightly and cook for 20 minutes on low.  After it is finished, let it sit for 5 minutes then fluff it up...just lovely.

You can find Chef D's crab claw recipe here if you, too, would like to try it with shrimp (we used the fresh frozen bagged kind from the supermarket and found it to work just as well as the one's sold as 'fresh').  Just follow the directions, omitting the crab claws.  After the sauce is finished, add in your shrimps and cook until they turn pink.  Enjoy!

rotisserie cornish game hen with sauced three-cheese ravioli and sauteed zucchini

I had the privilege again to assist Chef D with a weekend meal.  Tonight he wanted to give our new rotisserie a go with something a little different -- cornish game hens.  He used the Mimi's Sticky Chicken seasoning before putting them to cooking for about 2 1/2 hours on a low rotisserie setting.  We weren't really sure how long it would take, so we probably let them go a wee bit longer than necessary.  In the end, they weren't too overcooked, though.

He picked up some pre-made three-cheese miniature raviolis at the supermarket and used a pre-made spaghetti sauce as a base to which he added additional fresh herbs and seasonings.  

I helped by prepping the zucchini with our favorite julienne peeler.  I sauteed them in a dab of extra virgin olive oil with a bit of Mrs. Dash Table Blend and Emeril's Original Essence.  It only takes about 2 minutes since the zucchini has been cut to such small pieces.  Don't overcook!

This meal ended up being a bit on the spicy side, so we ended our meal with a little 100-calorie treat to cool down our lips.

Total calories for the meal (eating 1/2 of the hen and including the treat at the end): 635

new year's eve celebrating

This year we again decided to invite some friends over to help celebrate the new year's arrival.  We decided to prepare a variety of finger foods and let everyone just 'graze' buffet style through the night as each course was ready.  Chef D picked up a standing rib roast and cut it up, added to some fresh pineapple chunks, whole button mushrooms, sweet grape tomatoes, and sweet vidalia onion chunks to make shish-ke-bobs.  While he prepped for that course, my friend Barb (aka The Southern Dining Diva) helped me cut up some more of the grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and a little extra virgin olive oil for a delicious caprese salad to eat with some french bread rounds.  

Earlier in the day I made the salsa/pico de gallo that would later be eaten with some crispy tortilla chips.  Another finger food favorite we served was Smoked Salmon tartare.  It is such a nice, light, cool, crisp appetizer that always works. Give it a try sometime.

Chef D made his baklava this past Monday so that it would have time to sit for a day or two before we served it.  This time he followed the recommendation of The Food Network's Alton Brown and used blanched almonds and pistachios along with pecans (instead of just pecans like he usually uses).  According to everyone here, it was the best baklava EVER.  You can find Chef D's recipe here.

Our final and ultimate course was wasabi tobiko, better known as flying fish eggs with a KICK!  Most of our guests were willing to give them a try, even if sushi was not their cup of tea. Even our own D2 gave them a shot! 

What a great way to begin a new year -- with good friends and good food!

steaks with sauteed squash, carrots, and asparagus

Tonight was sous-chef Saturday where Chef D prepares the meal.  Most of my sous-chef duties were cleaning up afterwards!

Chef D prepared bacon-wrapped filet's for the ladies and ribeyes for the menfolk.  On the side, we had some perfectly cooked, but crisp, fresh veggies and our favorite Sister Schubert rolls.

We ended the meal with a store-bought tiramisu kicked up a notch by Chef D.

Here are a few remarks from the test kitchen attendees:

Mama S:  Great.  Delicious. Splendid. Superb.

Ms. Diva:  The filets were almost like butter.

Mr. Diva:  Scrumpdeli-icious.

DW: Superb.

weekend update

Chef D made some of his famous smoked ribs to take and share on Saturday when we did a little tailgating before the Auburn-Arkansas game.  The football team did not have a great night, but I know all who tasted those ribs only had great things to say.  His ribs are always great, but these were particularly tasty and I think it was, in part, by his addition of some brown sugar to his rub.  Way to go, Chef D!

This morning I started the crockpot chicken piccata and made the mashed potatoes before we left for church.  The flavor was pretty good, but the chicken was a little dry.  That may have been because I ended up using chicken tenders instead of chicken breasts (one of those surprises when your chicken thaws and it isn't what you thought it was!).  But, I also just don't think boneless chicken does well in a crockpot.  If I try this recipe again, I will use bone-in thighs.  I also realized this morning that I did not have the artichoke hearts, so I did not include them. 

sous-chef saturday -- supper club version

Chef D and I spent the day preparing for the arrival of 6 adults and 2 children to join our 3 adults and 2 children for our turn at hosting church supper club for this quarter.  It was a fun time had by all, as far as I can tell!

Our menu included:

Smoked Beef Brisket

Smoked Beef Ribs

Smoked Sausage

Broccoli Salad with Dried Cranberries

Mashed Potatoes with sour cream and butter

Rolls

Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake (provided by one of our guests)

Berry Sorbet

chef D's version of mimi's sticky chicken

Chef D needed something to contribute for an office luncheon today and these were the resulting yummy morsels. He decided to adjust a recipe I used last week for a whole chicken. He used chicken thighs and legs, although you could easily use wings, as well (boneless breasts would not work as they do not have enough fat content). He took the seasonings from the recipe and coated all the chicken pieces, placed them in large aluminum pans (covered with foil) to sit overnight in the refrigerator. Last night he placed them in the oven on 250 degrees for 5 hours (just like the original recipe). When they finished (around 1 AM), he turned them on low for the rest of the night. He removed them from the pans (by that time, the juices were almost covering them, keeping them oh so moist), placed them on a broiling pan and broiled them for a few minutes to crisp-up the outside. He then placed them in fresh pans to take to the office. I tasted a piece and it was so moist and flavorful. As usual, another great job by Chef D ... your office is blessed to have you!

'dinner with friends' with chef D

Chef D did it again with yet another spectacular and exquisite dinner to share with friends. The menu included:

Tuna Carpaccio
Tomato Bruschetta
Fettucini Alfredo (all from scratch!)
Roast Rack of Lamb
Sauteed Asparagus
Yeast Rolls
Chocolate Creme Brulee

sous-chef saturday

Oh, how I love the weekend -- and not just for the usual reasons. I love the weekend because Chef D usually does the cooking on the weekends! I was happy to serve this night in the role of sous-chef. Chef D pulled it off again as he created his own recipes for a wonderful night of Asian-inspired courses. It all began when he called me on his way back from the market with the information that he had enough food for more than the 3 adults that were currently planned to be here for dinner. So, we made a few calls and found some adventurous and spontaneous friends to help out with the food and provide some good fellowship. The menu for the night included:

Chicken/Pork Fried Eggrolls
Chicken/Pork Fried Wontons with Ginger Sauce
Chicken Ginger Soup
Stir-Fried vegetables with Chef D's version of General Tso's chicken and Kung Pao scallops