Dirty brown rice with shrimp

Tonight's meal was one I found while looking for something to do with shrimp. I haven't had shrimp for a while and I have to say I'm very pleased I found this. I will be cooking this often as it has become one of my new favorite meals. The recipe is another one Gina Homolka put on her website, Skinnytaste, and it can be found here.

Review: This meal is extremely healthy, which is a plus, and doesn't take that long to cook. If you were to precut the vegetables it'd take about 20-30 minutes. If you wait to cut the vegetables until you are ready to fix the meal it might take closer to 30-45 minutes. Still, not too long either way. I'm proud of myself because it's the first time I've successfully cooked brown rice. All the other times I've attempted brown rice it's stayed kind of hard. I think the trick was cooking it a little longer. Generally with white rice you boil the water, pour in the rice then remove it from the heat to finish cooking. With brown rice you boil the water, then cook it for another 5 minutes or so and then remove it from the heat. The flavor combinations also worked extremely well together but know that the meal is quite hot. There is quite a bit of cayenne pepper in it so that makes it spicy. If you don't like spicy foods you could leave the cayenne pepper out but if you don't mind it this is the dish for you. No joke, I was sweating a bit as I was eating this meal. I also had never used bay leaves before so it was nice to use a new ingredient and one that tasted pretty good. Now, the picture on the website shows and the recipe calls for two whole bay leaves, divided, but when they are whole I don't see a big use for them because they don't really mix in the meal. They just stay on top and remain whole even as you stir everything together. When I make this again I will probably just do a couple shakes of crushed bay leaves so it spreads throughout the meal more. I also forgot to get an onion so I used dried minced onion but had I used fresh onion it would have given it additional flavor. On top of that, even though the recipe calls for the ingredients it does, you could add more color by including other vegetables such as red pepper and carrots. You also could throw in some broccoli if you wanted. To be honest, the vegetables don't matter that much and I might even double what the recipe calls for. The ingredients listed, though, are just darker so it gives it more of that "dirty" feel. Finally, in case you don't know, the recipe calls for two scallions, which are another name for green onions. Oh, also, before I cooked anything I cut the vegetables and mixed the onion, celery, green pepper and garlic in a bowl. That way they were already mixed together in one dish and I could just empty the bowl in the saucepan instead of having multiple dishes with the different vegetables. This meal is definitely a keeper though and had I not wanted to save some for later, one I would have had a couple bowls of for dinner.

Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice (I made 3 cups of rice because I was serving three people and wanted extras for other meals)
• chicken bouillon cube (Knorr) (I was able to find the Knorr brand but if you can't any chicken bouillon cube will work)
• 2 bay leaves, divided (or use crushed if you want)
• 1/8 + 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, divided
• 1/8 + 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/8 + 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 onion, diced (minced onion is fine if you don't have any fresh onion or don't want/forget to buy some like I did)
• 2 celery, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 lb 96% lean ground beef (Laura's lean beef or whatever brand you can find)
• salt and fresh pepper, to taste
• 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 scallions, chopped

Cook the brown rice according to the package directions in water. As the rice is cooking and simmering in the water, add the chicken bouillon cube, 1 bay leaf (or some shakes of the crushed bay leaves), 1/4 tsp and 1/8 tsp salt, cayenne, paprika and thyme (I used the 1/8 tsp amounts in the rice).

When the rice is almost finished cooking, heat a large, heavy saucepan on medium-low heat. Add the oil, onions, green pepper, celery, remaining bay leaf (or a couple more shakes of the crushed bay leaves) and garlic. Saute on medium-low heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beef, salt, black pepper, remaining 1/4 tsp of cayenne and 1/2 tsp of paprika and thyme. Saute until browned, about 10-15 minutes. Add the shrimp, cover and cook for 5 more minutes (I didn't cover but instead mixed the ingredients sporadically during the 5 minutes).

Spicy baked chicken

I had some chicken breasts to use so I just threw some herbs and spices on them and came up with this spicy baked chicken meal.

Review: While I call it spicy baked chicken it wasn't overly spicy. Had I added my cayenne pepper or even had some chili powder on it as well it would have been spicier than what it was but you could still taste the heat from the cayenne pepper. I also didn't measure the ingredients I just sprinkled some on top of the chicken so it was enough to coat. It also was really moist (probably the most moist chicken I've had); however, I'm not sure if it was because it was so moist I wasn't used to it or because it might have needed to be cooked a tad bit longer, but because I was concerned it wasn't totally cooked in some places I stuck it in the microwave for 1 minute. Unfortunately, that overcooked it because then it became dry. But seeing how that's a cooking time issue and not a flavor issue I wasn't too concerned about it. All-in-all I liked the flavor. It gave it a nice kick beyond just plain chicken and one I will cook again, especially if I don't know what else I want because it only took 20 minutes to cook. I served it with the oven-roasted garlic green beans I've cooked many times but you can eat it with whatever.

Recipe:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 
• salt
• pepper
• olive oil
• paprika
• cayenne pepper
• onion powder
• parsley
• thyme
• rosemary
• cumin
• chili powder, optional
• chicken broth, optional

Drizzle olive oil over the chicken breasts then cover with the spices and herbs. Mix together. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Stick the chicken in a baking pan lined with aluminum foil* and cook for 20-25 minutes.

*I put aluminum foil on the bottom of the pan because I did not have chicken broth to pour at the bottom to help with the moisture. If I had chicken broth I would have poured that at the bottom of the pan instead of putting the aluminum foil.

Obama addresses Hurricane Sandy recovery, rebuilding efforts in weekly address

President Barack Obama used his weekly address on Saturday not to talk about the economy or one of the policy issues he wants to highlight, but to talk about Hurricane Sandy. In his address he thanked the first responders and National Guardsmen for the work after one of the worst storms in the history of the country hit the East Coast. He also wanted to let the millions of Americans who lost their homes, jobs, businesses and communities that while the recovery would take a while, their country would not abandon them.

Chicken salad with cabbage and crisp pear

I was on Twitter one day and one of the people I follow retweeted a picture of some food with a link to the recipe. The food looked good so I clicked on the link to make sure it was something I'd actually like and sure enough it was. So, I decided to make it and overall I was pretty pleased with the result. Chef Frank Giglio created the recipe and it can be found on his website here.

 

Review: As I said, all-in-all this was a pretty good meal. It took a few bites to get used to but after a while it started to grow on me. I'm not a big fan of cabbage but I really couldn't taste the cabbage at all. It also has pears, which I do like, but I didn't taste them much either. Next time I think I will add more pear than what the recipe calls for. Giglio did say, though, that if you don't have or don't like pears you could use apples and I personally feel as if you could make it more of a citrus dish if you used oranges. To me, the fruit you use doesn't really matter and would change the flavor of the meal just enough to make it something a little different each time if you did try making it with different fruits. You also could add some nuts such as chopped walnuts or peanuts to it if you wanted. As far as the ingredients go, with the mayo you might want to use what it says (although I think you could use 1/2 cup neutral flavored oil instead of 3/4 cups) Ultimately, the flavor of the dish comes from the homemade rosemary mayo you make with it. The rosemary mayo on its own might be better chilled but with this meal I had a couple bites chilled and then heated the rest, and I liked it heated better. It takes some time getting used to though because unlike miracle whip or mayonnaise you would buy in the store, homemade mayo uses a lot of oil that comes through in the flavor. It's a little overpowering at first especially if you can't get your head around the fact that it won't taste like mayo or miracle whip but if you consider this is much healthier you eventually will be able to get around the oily taste. Still, because of the oil I don't think this is a meal I will make often but I certainly will make it here and there. By the way, the recipe says it serves two people, which is true, but I think I could easily get at least four servings out of it and while I had it in a bowl this time, I might try it on bread next time and have a chicken salad sandwich.

Recipe:

Chicken salad with cabbage and pear:

• 2 cups cooked chicken meat, chunked (I used boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut them in cubes)
• 1 cup thinly sliced cabbage
• 1 medium sized pear, cut into matchsticks
• sea salt to taste

Rosemary mayo:

• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp wholegrain mustard (this will be with the rest of the mustard but might be difficult to find and it's kind of expensive)
• a few splashes of lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• about 3/4 cup neutral flavored oil such as avocado, grapeseed or sunflower (I used grapeseed)
• 2 tsp fresh chopped rosemary (I just used dried rosemary)
• pinch of fresh black pepper
• sea salt to taste

To make the mayo, place the yolk, mustard and lemon in a large bowl. Vigorously whisk the ingredients while SLOWLY adding in the olive oil and the neutral oil. As you add the oil drop by drop, it will begin to emulsify with the other ingredients and your mayo will be formed (it will go from liquid to solid). This process can also be done in a food processor and is rather easy, it just takes some patience.

If the chicken meat is straight out of the fridge, cook it in a pan on the stove. If it's a leftover from another meal, heat it up slightly.

Cut the cabbage and the pear. Once the veggies, mayo and chicken are prepped, gently toss them together in a bowl. You will have extra mayo so add enough to coat the ingredients to your liking. Taste the salad and season with sea salt and lemon as you desire. Serve as is or over your favorite seasonal greens. It also would make for a wonderful wrap or sandwich.

Garlic lime marinated pork chops

It's been a while since I have cooked anything new and I realized I haven't posted on here lately either. So, I went to the store a couple days ago and bought different meats so I could start cooking again. Tonight's meal was a quick and easy one that I will certainly make again when I don't really know what I want but know I want something fairly soon. The original recipe can be found at the Skinnytaste website here.

Review: This meal, as I said, was really quick to make. It took 20 minutes to marinate and then another 10 minutes to actually cook. It also helped that I had all (or could find a good substitute for) the ingredients. While I got center cut pork chops any pork chop would work. I would say though that you might want to find a medium-cut piece of meat (not too thick but not too thin). My pieces were kind of thin so they were a little dry. You also could taste the lime so if you don't like lime you could leave it out and just use the garlic and herbs. I didn't think it was overpowering but some people might not like that sweet/sour taste. Other than that, though, it was quite good. It wasn't too spicy but just spicy enough to have some heat. I also didn't use lime zest because I didn't have fresh lime and used lime juice instead of the juice from a freshly squeezed lime. Finally, I did not do the cilantro lime white rice that accompanies the recipe. Instead, I used brown rice to make it slightly healthier. This meal also would be good with steamed vegetables but I did not have any for tonight's meal. You also could use the herbs on any meat, but I'd say the flavor combos do work best with pork or even chicken would have a nice flavor with them.

Recipe:

• 4 (6 oz each) lean boneless pork chops
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed (I used minced garlic)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder (I substituted with some cayenne pepper)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 lime, juice of (or just use lime juice)
• lime zest (optional)
• salt and fresh pepper

Trim any fat off the pork if you don't want it as fatty. In a large bowl season the pork with the garlic, cumin, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Squeeze the lime juice and some zest from the lime into the bowl. Mix all together and let it marinade at least 20 minutes (don't wait too long though because you don't want the acid from the lime juice to start "cooking" the pork). Line the broiler pan with foil for easy clean up. Place the pork chops on the broiler pan and broil each side for 4-5 minutes or until nicely browned (the recipe doesn't say but I turned the broiler on to 400 degrees).

Obama touts auto industry comeback in weekly address

With three weeks until the 2012 presidential election, President Barack Obama used his weekly address to tout the successes the auto industry has had since it was bailed out at the beginning of his first term in office. He said auto sales were at the highest they've been in more than four years and the industry has created nearly 250,000 new jobs. He has said nearly 1 million jobs have been saved or created in total because of saving the auto industry.

Cajun chicken pasta

I wanted to find something new with chicken breasts instead of just spicing the breasts and cooking them. I was getting a little tired of that so I found a new recipe that gave a new use for the breasts. It still was spicing them but at least it wasn't eating them whole. Instead it was using them as one of a few ingredients in a dish. I got it from The Pioneer Woman website here.

Review: This is one of my new favorite meals. It's been a couple hours since I ate it and my mouth is still watering thinking about it and I want nothing more than to get myself another bowl (it's late though so I won't). I reused the spice I made with yesterday's salmon dish (Emeril's ESSENCE seasoning), so it was pretty spicy but I liked it. The flavoring from the peppers, onion and garlic really made the dish and give it the extra taste that kept it from just being a pasta and chicken meal. It's also a recipe that while I used chicken, you could use -- or include -- other meats to it as well such as sausage or pork, or include seafood such as shrimp. To make it healthier than the recipe calls for I did not include the butter. I just used olive oil. I also used 100% whole wheat spaghetti and instead of the heavy cream I used a couple tablespoons of cornstarch to thicken the sauce. I used a whole medium red onion, two Roma tomatoes and next time might use two green and two red peppers to help balance the amount of ingredients. I also did not use fresh parsley flakes on the top I used dried parsley flakes (mostly because I didn't want to have all that extra fresh parsley to try and find a use for later). If you aren't on a healthy diet like I am you could still use the butter and heavy cream but if you want it to be healthier leave them out. Their absence won't affect the flavor. Again though, this is now one of my favorite meals that I will be cooking again soon and because of the heat, is a good one for the winter to help warm the throat and clean out the sinuses.

Recipe:

• 3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes
• 3 teaspoons Cajun spice mix, more to taste (if you make your own make sure you include at the very least cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic, onion powder and white pepper for the flavors)
• 1 pound of fettuccine (or whatever type of pasta you want to use)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter (optional)
• 1 whole green bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 1 whole red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 1/2 whole large red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 whole Roma tomatoes, diced
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup heavy cream (can substitute with cornstarch)
• cayenne pepper to taste (use your cajun spice if you have extra)
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• salt to taste
• chopped fresh parsley to taste (dried parsley works fine too)

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain when pasta is still al dente. Sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons Cajun spice over chicken pieces. Toss around to coat. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter (optional) in a heavy skillet over high heat. Add half the chicken in a single layer but do not stir. Allow chicken to brown on one side about 1 minute. Flip to the other side and cook an additional minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a clean plate then repeat with the remaining chicken (times can depend on how cooked the chicken gets and it's OK to cook all the chicken at once -- I did).

After removing the chicken, leave the pan on high heat and add the remaining olive oil and butter (butter is optional). When heated, add peppers, onions and garlic. Sprinkle on the remaining Cajun spice and add salt if needed. Cook over very high heat for 1 minute, stirring gently and trying to get the vegetables as dark/black as possible. Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 30 seconds. Remove all vegetables from the pan (again, cooking times vary but I just cooked everything until the vegetables were soft).

With the pan over high heat, pour in the wine and chicken broth. Cook on high for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in the cream, stirring/whisking constantly (this is where you can substitute the cream for cornstarch to thicken the sauce). Cook sauce over medium-low heat for a few minutes until the cream starts to thicken the mixture. Taste and add freshly ground black pepper, cayenne pepper (or the cajun spice) and/or salt to taste. The sauce should be spicy.

Finally, add the chicken and vegetables to the sauce, making sure to include all the juices that have drained onto the plate. Stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until the mixture is bubbly and hot. Add the drained fettuccine and toss to combine. Top with chopped fresh parsley and enjoy.