Posts Tagged ‘peas’
Pass the Cook Book Club: Guy Fieri’s Asian Fried Quinoa
March 28, 2013 | 
Author 
Pass the Cook Book Club returns with round two! This month Kita chose Guy Fieri’s cook book titled Guy Fieri Food: Cookin’ It, Livin’ It, Lovin’ It. From the recipe selection, I decided to make his Asian Fried Quinoa. I’ve used quinoa in many different dishes, so I was excited to see how it would turn out as a substitute in fried rice. Obviously the texture was much different from rice, but the flavors were spot on and the mix of vegetables was wonderful (it was my first experience with baby bok choy as well). This dish was a great healthier alternative to traditional fried rice but it’s not a permanent substitution. Sometimes a girl just needs some rice!
Two years ago: Black Forest Stuffed Cupcakes
ASIAN FRIED QUINOA
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups quinoa
3 cups water or vegetable stock
3 Tbsp grape or olive oil
2 cups diced onions, about 1 ½ med onion
1/4 cup chopped shallot
1/4 cup minced garlic
1/2 cup minced ginger
1 cup finely chopped green onions
1 cup diced carrots
2 cups shredded baby bok choy
1 cup finely diced celery
2 cups shredded Napa cabbage
1 cup diced sugar snap peas
3 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Directions:
- In a large, dry, heavy bottomed skillet, toast the quinoa until lightly golden, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring often. Add the water and reduce the heat to medium. Cover and cook until quinoa opens and the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
- Wipe out the skillet and heat 1 ½ tbs of the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook until well browned and soft, stirring occasionally. Stir in the shallots, and cook for 2 minutes, then the garlic, ginger, and green onion, cooking for 3 to 4 minutes more. Add the carrots, bok choy, celery, cabbage, and snap peas and stir until just wilted. Pour in the soy sauce and combine. Transfer mixture to a bowl and cover.
- Heat remaining oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa. When heated through, pour the eggs over the quinoa until eggs have cooked. Return the vegetables to the pan. Adjust the seasoning with additional soy sauce if needed.
Source: Guy Fieri Food: Cookin’ It, Livin’ It, Lovin’ It, page 310.
Pork Chops with Pineapple Fried Rice
Fried rice is one of my favorites although I’ve only made it myself a handful of times. It is likely due to Qing bringing in fresh homemade fried rice for us at work sometimes, and I am convinced I cannot make it any better. One of these days I need to watch her make it. She uses Asian BBQ pork which you can only buy at the Asian grocery store – another place I need to check out evidently.
Meanwhile while planning to invade her kitchen, I took a stab at fried rice again with this pineapple and pork chop version. Granted there is no competition when it comes to Qing’s fried rice, but it was still quite good. Next time I would use less onion, but that may just be my preference. But I really thought the grilled pineapple was a must for the flavor of this dish. Start up your grill!
Be sure to check out the original post by The Pioneer Woman for great step-by-step photos.
One year ago: White Chocolate Coconut Chili Macadamia Nut Cookies
PORK CHOPS WITH PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE
Serves 6
Ingredients:
1/2 whole pineapple, cut into spears and skewered
2 cups cooked white or brown rice
6 whole pork chops
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 large onion, sliced
8 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce (more to taste), divided
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp Sriracha, or other hot sauce
Salt to taste
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggs
1 cup chopped carrots
1-1/2 cup frozen peas
Directions:
- Grill (or saute) pineapple spears until they have good marks/color on the outside. Slice, then set aside.
- Heat butter and oil over medium high heat, then add the pork chops to the pan. Saute on both sides until they have nice color.
- Throw in the sliced onions and work them into the crevices between the chops. Shake the pan and move the onions around and let them cook for a good couple of minutes.
- When the onions are starting to soften, add 6 tablespoons pf the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, honey, and hot sauce. Shake the pan, stir it around, and let it cook and bubble up for a good couple of minutes until the pork chops are completely cooked and the sauce is thicker. Remove the pork chops to a bowl, then let the sauce bubble up and cook for another 30 to 45 seconds. Pour it over the pork chops. Set aside.
- Add a small amount of oil to the same pan (without cleaning it) and return it to the stove top over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir it around, then crack in the eggs and immediately stir them to scramble them a bit. Add carrots, peas, and remaining 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Add cooked rice and stir it around to cook for a couple of minutes.
- To serve, pile rice on a plate, then top with pineapple chunks, pork chops and onions from the sauce. Drizzle a little bit of sauce over the top.
Source: Adapted slightly from The Pioneer Woman.
Spicy Basil Chicken
I picked up Brady from the vet yesterday and was none too pleased to be stuffed back into his cat carrier, but upon his release back home he was happy as a clam! I was sent home with two weeks worth of antibiotics and hopefully it will be smooth sailing after that. Definitely do not like that I will be leaving town again soon, but he will have a good cat-sitter who has been given advanced approval to take him to the vet at the first sign of any new flare-ups. But for now, hooray happy kitty! Totally enjoyed reading on the couch with him snuggled up next to me again last night.
Now that all is well let’s talk about dinner. I am guilty of being subscribed to several cooking magazines, yet rarely do I cook from them. I will fold over pages and drool over everything in sight but for some reason I easily forget even the most tantalizing images. I have this problem with many of the amazing cookbooks I own as well. Although while we are at it, I probably only ever make a fraction of the number of recipes I bookmark online. Alas.
Thankfully for me, I managed to make this stir-fry from a recent issue of Cooking Light. This meal satisfies the taste buds with all the great flavors going on. A spicy basil sauce coats the chicken which is served with sautéed snow peas and peppers and brown rice with sesame seeds. But if you are looking to cut back on time, you can use instant brown rice and some steamed vegetables instead. The chicken holds the spotlight anyway.
One year ago: Buttermilk Ranch Mac & Cheese
SPICY BASIL CHICKEN
Serves 4
Ingredients:
CHICKEN
2 tsp canola oil
1/4 cup minced shallots
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
6 (4-oz.) skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 Tbsp fish sauce (I used additional soy sauce instead)
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
1-1/4 tsp chile sauce with garlic
1 tsp water
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup sliced basil leaves
VEGETABLES
2 tsp dark sesame oil, divided
2-1/2 cups fresh snow peas, trimmed
1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
RICE
1 cup uncooked brown rice
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Directions:
- For the chicken, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add shallots and garlic to pan; cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add chicken to pan; cook 13 minutes or until chicken is done.
- Meanwhile, heat another large skillet over medium-high heat for the vegetables. Add 1 teaspoon sesame oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add snow peas and bell pepper to pan; sauté for 4 minutes or until the vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat. Drizzle vegetable mixture with remaining 1 teaspoon sesame oil. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper, and toss well to combine. Set aside.
- Cook rice according to package directions, omitting fat. Stir in juice and salt. Sprinkle with seeds. Set aside.
- Combine fish sauce and the next 6 ingredients (through salt) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add fish sauce mixture to pan with the chicken, and cook for 1 minute or until mixture thickens, stirring to coat chicken. Remove from heat. Stir in basil and stir with rice and sautéed vegetables.
Source: Cooking Light, April 2012
Posted in Chicken, Entree | 
Tags: basil, chicken, lime juice, peas, red bell pepper, shallot, soy sauce | 
10 Comments »
Split-Pea Soup
Before I dive into the St. Patrick’s Day themed Holiday Recipe Club post today, I suppose I should tell you how my mom’s surgery went after the dramatic story I told yesterday. Agreed? I feel like I am dangling something tantalizing in front of you.
The pre-op business took all of the morning and then the balloon test to make sure they could proceed with the real surgery took a little while longer. Surgery didn’t truly begin until mid-afternoon. Originally the plan was to cut off the carotid artery as she had enough blood flow without it due to a precious surgery, but the process was causing her to become sick (vagal response) despite all of their efforts. Being a life-threatening situation, they went ahead and tried something else which only had a 1% chance of being completed…
They got it to work! The doctor was ecstatic (myself and family included) and said the carotid artery was saved via stent and the aneurysm itself was now filled 95% with coils. He may have to go back in to fill the remaining 5%, but we shall see how things go. Of course I didn’t have a clue how these coils worked so after my aunt explaining to me what she was told by a nurse, and a little research on the web, it is a platinum coil that causes a clotting reaction to occur within the aneurysm itself and will hopefully eliminate it! I even found a little video if you care to watch on YouTube.
I didn’t get to speak with my mom but she is feeling well despite the nausea from the anesthetic. She will be held in the ICU overnight and will likely be in the hospital for another 2-3 days. I am very much relieved for it to be over. (Update: if the MRI results today look good she’s going home tomorrow!)
As for the bouquet of cake balls, being that the hospital is 2 hours from their home they have not made their presence known yet. Wish I had gotten them in the mail sooner so that they could have arrived on Tuesday instead. I wasn’t thinking it through and just wanted them to be there when she was done with surgery so I went for Wednesday. Hopefully their neighbor was able to scoop up the package so that it won’t be sitting outside the entire time they are gone.
But now I must redirect you into thinking about the upcoming holiday, St. Patrick’s Day. For today’s post we had to choose between pistachios, potatoes, and beer. My mind immediately went to soup. And a green one such as split-pea, with potatoes and beer. Little did I know that split-pea is an acceptable Irish food item with which to celebrate the holiday. Learning stuff is cool!
This was my first time ever making split-pea soup. In fact the last time I witnessed it being homemade by anyone was decades ago by my grandmother. I don’t recall how she makes it (and I doubt she does either because she’s from the generation that doesn’t need recipes), but I kind of like my split-pea soup a bit thicker. With the chunks of potato and carrot it ended up stew-y, and it was awesome. Especially when served with asiago biscuit twists. If you like a thinner split-pea, then simply stop cooking it when it reaches your preferred consistency.
Want to get in on the HRC fun? Sign up and get more information HERE. Also, don’t forget to check out all the other bloggers’ recipes at the bottom of this post.
One year ago: Creamy Baked Chicken Taquitos
SPLIT-PEA SOUP
Serves 8-10
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups dried split peas, rinsed
9 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/2″ thick
4 large russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
1-1/2 tsp dried thyme
3 quarts reduced sodium chicken broth
1-12 oz. bottle of ale
Salt and pepper
Directions:
- In a large stock pot or French oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Combine the remaining ingredients, except salt and pepper, in the pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and cover slightly with the lid. Allow to cook for 1-1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper to taste and continue to cook until it reaches a desired consistency (I cooked mine a little on the thicker side). If it cooks down too much, simply add more chicken broth or water.
Source: Adapted from Teenie Cakes
Posted in Entree, Holidays, Soup Stew Chili, St. Patrick's Day | Tags: beer, carrots, onions, peas, potatoes | 20 Comments »
Gluten-Free Bacon-Swiss Penne
One night while in Columbus, my friends and I decided to stay in one night and cook dinner together. I just so happened to have brought some recipes along with me (surprise surprise!) and we picked something out of a Taste of Home magazine. What sold all of us was the word bacon and the mention of cheese. Doesn’t take much to interest our taste buds!
The most time consuming part was cooking the bacon. Maybe that was our fault for picking thick-cut bacon but it was totally worth it. This pasta dish reminds me of an grown-up version of macaroni and cheese, but would definitely please all ages. I would like the note that the gluten-free bread crumbs did not get as crispy and brown and regular bread crumbs would, even after turning the broiler on for a couple minutes. But this did not take away from the texture or overall enjoyment of the meal. Definitely going to make this again, especially since I wasn’t smart enough to claim leftovers.
This is my last gluten-free recipe for awhile so for all the gluten-free readers out there, enjoy!
Oh and tomorrow is my 1 year blogoversary!!
GLUTEN-FREE BACON-SWISS PENNE
Serves 10
Ingredients:
12 0z. uncooked gluten-free penne pasta
13 bacon strips
1-1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 Tbsp butter
6 green onions, chopped (forgot to buy at the grocery so I used some onion powder instead)
3 Tbsp gluten-free all-purpose flour
4 cups 2% milk
3 cups (12 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese
1-1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1-1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
3/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
TOPPING
3/4 cup dry gluten-free bread crumbs
2 Tbsp butter, melted
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 x 9″ baking dish; set aside.
- Cook penne according to the package directions.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook bacon in batches oven medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 4 tsp drippings. Crumble bacon and set aside.
- Saute chicken in butter and drippings until no longer pink. Add onion; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil, cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cheeses, peas, pepper, thyme and bacon.
- Drain penne; add to chicken mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to prepared baking dish. In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs and butter, sprinkle over top. Bake, uncovered, for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
Source: Adapted slightly from Taste of Home Magazine September 2011
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of the September issue of Taste of Home magazine. I have not been compensated for posting about this recipe and opinions are my own.
Posted in Chicken, Entree, Pasta | Tags: bacon, cheddar, chicken, gluten free, peas, Swiss cheese | 3 Comments »
Velveeta Chicken & Veggie Mac
It’s snowing again in Memphis, TN. Which means people are hysterical driving on the roads – always a frustrating experience for me, since I grew up in upstate NY. As a result the grocery stores are also filled with people preparing for the apocalypse. Although I cannot avoid the roads (click for my reason), I can keep my distance from the food hoarders using my kitchen staples (and it saves money!).
This is one of my favorite quick weeknight dinners. And it varies every time I make it depending on the veggies and cheese that I have stocked. Sometimes I even add bacon, YUM! Definitely a great way to incorporate veggies if you have any picky eaters. It’s hard to hate any vegetable when it is covered in cheese!
Ingredients:
1 pkg Velveeta Shells & Cheese Dinner
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded fontina cheese
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- Cook shells according to package. Stir in Velveeta sauce, and two cheeses.
- Cook chicken in large skillet with olive oil on medium heat 5 min, or until done. Stir in frozen veggies and cook until heated through, 5 min. Remove from heat.
- Mix chicken and veggies into the shells and cheese. Serve immediately.
Source: The Spiffy Cookie original
Leftover Turkey Tetrazzini
Leftover thanksgiving sandwiches are my favorite. Slathering on the cranberry sauce as the condiment and loading up on turkey, stuffing and whatever else I feel so inclined to add. Today I am trying out something different with my leftovers.
Ingredients:
1/4 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
1/2-12 oz package uncooked whole wheat spaghetti
1/4 cup butter + 2 Tbsp
1/4 cup flour
1-1/2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsp white wine
1 cup milk
3/4 cup italian cheeses (mozzarella, provolone, romano, asiago, parmesan)
Salt and pepper
6 oz frozen green peas
2 cups chopped cooked turkey
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a medium baking dish.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add spaghetti and cook until al dente. Drain and place in the prepared dish.
- Saute onion and garlic with olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt 1/4 cup butter and stir in flour.
- Mix in chicken broth, white wine, and milk. Cook and stir until it comes to a boil.
- Stir in the cheese, season with salt and pepper, and remove from heat.
- Mix in the turkey and green peas, and combine with spaghetti. Top with melted butter and bread crumbs.
- Bake for 30 minutes in the oven, or until lightly browned.
I halved the original recipe which I found on Allrecipes, and followed some of the reviewers suggestions. Although I do not believe that even after halving it that the servings are only for four – probably six. Unless you are not serving this with anything else. Personally I am gonna throw some of the other leftovers on my plate, MmmMmm!
Also, I thought while eating this dish that I could’ve substituted leftover gravy for the base of the sauce. Next time…
What are your leftover ideas??
Source: Allrecipes, with minor adjustments
