Journal

2016 - Week 12 Cooking Results

Thai Celery Salad with Peanuts

I picked this meal, specifically to be quick and also to allow my wife and I to share some ice cream.  Since there is a generally stated carb limit, I try to make sure that I stay within that range, Ice cream isn't often allowed.  This was ok, not bad, not great, maybe better as a side then a main?

Cacio E Pepe Potatoes

These certainly tasted good, but really it's just a convoluted name to justify putting a crap ton of cheese (I used Pecorino Riserva) on potatoes.  I did use the last of my good fingerling potatoes.

Tamale Pie With Mint Yogurt

A pretty nice corn bread on top of a bunch of meat and some vegetables?  Yes please.  Though I don't necessarily believe in the nutrition make up that the app I am currently using came up with, it still was within my dietary segment (though maybe a bit heavy on the fat).  I'm coming to see the inherent problem with doing dishes like this.  So normally I'd take a healthy portion and have that as leftovers, so they would disappear out of the fridge.  However, limiting myself to what is with in the carb limit or the caloric limit, I've been eating quite a bit less.  So there is still leftovers of this...days after...

It's still good though, maybe would be better with something long stewed (like an actual mole), but then that wouldn't fit into an extended evening of cooking, I suppose.

Lamb Pitas

I had diced lamb shoulder, some things to go with it, good stuffs.  Flatbread from Wild Yeast Bakery.  Very quick to make (since the lamb was frozen leftover from shepherds pie a few weeks back).

Spanish Breakfast Casserole with Eggs and Bacon

I think the cooking directions were a bit wrong on this.  Eggs, turned out fine, but the either there wasn't enough liquid, or it cooked at to high of a temperature.  I'm going to lean on the latter.  Even so, overall, this was still pretty good, even if some of the onions had a bit of extra char on them.

Pizza...lets find out if I can eat this.

So when planning I was putting together the items to this and saying, well based on the crust I can only have 1/8th of the pizza (yes, under normal conditions this would seem like a lot, since it is a pretty big pizza, but it is half of what I normally have).  And there's nothing quite a sad as a fat man (although a little less fat) not able to just take all the pizza he wants.  Then also have to be careful about drinking beer with it (carbs).

In my current state of less then ideal health, I'm relatively forced to participate in a healthy living program.  Instead of taking having to go to these classes that I have to drive to, I chose to take this pre-programmed class online (doesn't merit a mention).  Other then the fact that I feel like I'm being advertised to for their orange flavoring that I'm supposed to add to my water (I like my water cold and clean, thank you very much), it did have one redeeming item.  When I go out dining, I often turn on the big brain that I have and analyze all the flavors and textures of the various parts and items together.  Can I do that when I'm at home, sure, and sometimes it makes sense, but I certainly disagree with the conclusion that paying attention and waiting will necessarily reduce the desire to eat.  Anyways, so far it's been more of a waste of time, then not, though I'm sure they'll take credit for the weight I've been losing...

2016 - Week 11 Cooking Results

Spanish Breakfast Casserole with Eggs and Bacon

Delayed…until today.  I did make the croutons and then I made the dish this morning, for tonights dinner.

Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque

This turned out pretty good.  using some locally sourced (well stored) carrots, and some other of the ingredients, I was able to make this in good time.  Though I skipped the part where they said to leave part of it unblended, to create a more rustic mouth feel, I suppose, however, I blended it all.  This did lead to a minor flub on my part where for some reason I pressed blend after I had taken the blender lid off.

Luckily, it was on pulse mode and didn’t spray everywhere, though I did make a bit of a mess and may have had a minor burn where it got on my arm.

Instead of using croutons, I made some grilled cheese sandwiches.  it fit very well with the weather of the day.

Macaroni and Beef Casserole (Macaroni replaced and reduced)

Using the Dreamfields pasta, and less then the recipe calls for, I was able to pull this off.  It turned out quite well, though I substituted the Panko for some sourdough breadcrumbs I had stashed away in the freezer.

Ground Goat Burgers

A little salt and pepper, some of Joseph’s sourdough buns and some stone ground dijon mustard.  Good things.  Instead of going with a single serving fries (kind of silly), went with a reasonable carb limit.  Then had a salad on the side.

Corned Beef Hash

Tis the time of year where Brett at the Cheese Shop tends to make a cured meat of some sort.  This year it was Pastrami.  So I adjusted the Corned beef has, to be Pastrami Hash, and was quite happy with the results.  Not to mention I got to eat a couple of pastrami sandwiches out of the deal.  This turned out quite good.

Quick Turkey Chili

It was quick…but also not the best.

This morning I also made some Blood Cake (Cheese Shop) over eggs on toast.  This was a quite good breakfast.  Now I sip some coffee with some leftover cream and am enjoying my morning.

We also made a trip out to Reed's Hollow (the night that I discovered how long the casserole would take), and had a fantastic meal.  This is a great addition to the Beaverdale neighborhood.  And I'm glad to see the Hole in the Wall to get transformed into this.

We also made an early dinner trip to the Cheese Shop for their St Patrick's Day specials.  This was also delicious.  And certainly not the first time I've wanted all the things, but had to settle for one or two.

2016 - Week 10 Cooking Results

Black Bean and Pepper Jack Burgers

No pepper jack, but these are pretty good, like always.  Toasted some thawed out Wild Yeast Bakery buns and had a nice meal

Pasta with Smoky Pumpkin Cream Sauce

This was gross.  Often times if something doesn't quite work, I'll struggle through the leftovers...I did not do that here.  I don't like food waste, but in the trash it went, that's how bad it was.

Chana Masala

So you think hey, healthy (ish) dish, using chickpeas instead of chicken...woo!  Except chickpeas will have added carbs, so that, with rice, suddenly I'm eating a lower portion to keep everything in check.  So then I have a pile of spinach next to it to make me feel as if it is a full meal.  On the other hand, I did figure out that rice serving was 3/4th a cup after cooking as opposed to doing 1/4th cup after serving to keep that in check.  So that was good, seems far more reasonable.  Anyways, it was pretty good, It needed a bit more salt.

Shanghai Chicken Salad

I got a freshly picked, gigantic (literally huge) head of Napa Cabbage from Blue Gate Farm.  And made a nice salad.  I had the, once upon a time, addictive chow mein noodles (not as good as I remember) to top it off.  The chicken did not absorb a lot of the flavor from the boiling liquid, which was...disappointing.  Since it was boiled in a very salty used it threw off the sodium content for the recipe as a whole, since clearly there was no way that it could've absorbed all that salt.  Maybe it would've been better to brine it first, then sear it for the better flavor.

2016 - Week 9 Cooking Results (late)

I didn't so much want to write on Sunday when I was fasting, nor yesterday when I was covering from anesthetic, so we are to Today, where I'm taking an extra day off for the purpose of fully recovering and getting through this and have a bit of time to myself (also my PTO bank is getting high again, so it is time to just start whittling away at it again).

Split Pea and Ham Soup

Made this for the Slow Food Des Moines Winter Soup Potluck.  I have made this before and it is good.  But to do this and then trade for the many many many other delicious soups that were there (Carrot and Rabbit, etc etc).  It was a good time.

Mall Chicken (p192 Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes)

This is a lot like the chicken you would get at the mall.  And the ingredient set to get to there, is just kind of surprising.  Yes it tastes good, and is ok in small portions.

Curried Chicken with Couscous

Quick, simple and delicious.  Also kind of healthy.

Black Bean and Pepper Jack Burgers

Delayed!  We went to A Dong (we tried to go to the Iowa Tap Room First, but they were to busy...at 5).  This was our first visit since they had reopened after the  fire.  I was excited to be there again,  It was familiar but seemed to be missing a few pieces of the art work that I remember (to be expected, I suppose).  Food was very good as expected.  The only thing that made me sad, as I walked out was that I had decided adding a treat on the way out was no longer compatible with the way I am eating.

Quick Tomato-Basil Pasta with Fresh Mozzarella

This was good, quick ,and had lots of leftovers.  The problem is that because it is pasta, the portion size is under what one would want (paying attention to the carbs).  I've started investigating other noodles, and we'll see what I come up with, but at this time, pasta seems to be something that will be a small portion with a large salad...

Bratwurst Reuben

This was delicious.  Not so good for you, but delicious none the less.

 

2016 - Week 8 Cooking Results

Shepherd's Pie (Cooking for Chris & Holly & Heath)

It was kind of funny.  We're sitting there eating dinner having a quiet conversation.  I start talking about dessert and the bar of chocolate that I brought.  Instantly Heath is up and in the conversation.  So how do you wake up a 3 year old?  Chocolate apparently.  We did give him a sample or two, and he didn't like it (completely understandable).  It was still quite funny.  Anyways The pie turned out really well and was a nice time to catch up with Chirs & Holly before they are in the wading through the needs of baby #2.

The Pie itself, I may have added a bit to much thyme, which I counteracted a bit with pepper, which seemed to work.  I did diverge from the recipe by using dried instead of fresh and didn't have rosemary.  Good stuffs overall.

Chorizo and Black Beans Tacos (have shells left)

Good as always.  Starting off the week of pork goodness.

Pork Burgers

Om nom nom nom.

Sichuanese Chopped Celery With Beef (p138 Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes)

That's a lot of celery.  But since celery can be quite good, it made for a delicious meal.  I did have problems finding one of the ingredients, but ended up using something that had that ingredient in it.

Com Tam Breakfast (p68 Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes)

Simple to put together and make.  Quick and good.  This cookbook is proving to be quite good.

One-Pot Baked Ziti with Sausage and Spinach

Quicker then I thought.  I did miss the step to chop the spinach, but it still worked.  I was only sad that Shannon grabbed the last leftover dish before I did.

Spicy Carrot Sandwiches

Good as always.