Pho Pho What Do You Know

It’s cold and it’s snowing and I want some warm soup to warm my chilly bones. Pho is a Vietnamese stable and it’s a favorite of mine. Actually, I’m craving some now.

I start with this…rice noodles. You can actually find rice noodles of various brands in your local market.

And I also start with this…pho broth cubes. You can’t actually find pho broth cubes in your local market. I was torn as to whether or not to post this since it’s not an ingredient that was commonly available. So I do what everyone does, I go to Amazon.com. They have it! I can’t believe the stuff you can get there.

It’s not this kind, but it’s close enough.

I watched the cubes dissolve and I stand over the stove because I’m chilly…and I’m hungry.

I slice some mushrooms and throw them in the bowling pot. It’s the only thing I had in the refridgerator. Some other veggies that will work are – mushrooms. I normally don’t cook the veggies in the broth, but rather, I put them in after the soup is ready. That way they won’t get soggy. Some good veggies to throw in after are sliced cabbage, Thai basil,  and bean sprouts.

Now I put in my noodles. Notice I didn’t soak this particular kind. Or maybe you didn’t. Anyway, follow the directions on the package.

Hmmm…it’s a little plain.

Throw in some green onions.

Now that’s more like it…spicy, spicy, spicy. This is srachi sauce. We have a gallon of it. I also put in fish sauce, limes and a little bit of sugar.

It warms my stomach on this cold winter day.

I’m playing on Foodie Friday…

La Fungus A La Scampi Gozaimasu

I understand that the title is a total bastardization of three great world languages.

Here’s another culinary question. What kind of mushrooms are these?

Hint: They don’t come from the ocean as their name implies.

I made this dish with these little mushrooms. When we lived in Japan, we drove from our little Japanese town to the next big town over for pasta. We loved Japanese food but it was a nice change every once in a while. However, it was Japan and there was an unusual twist to the scampi. I don’t know what really was in it, but below is my take or as close as I can get.

Japanese Style Scampied Scallops with Pasta

2 lb sea scallops (I used frozen)
3 tbs olive oil
4 tbs butter
3 garlic cloves
a handful of fresh mushrooms – the kind above
3 tbs soy sauce
salt
pepper
wheat pasta – it’s my new favorite thing

Slice the mushrooms into medium sized slivers and set aside.

Heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Put in the crushed garlic and stir until the butter melts. Put in the scallops. Cook the scallops thoroughly in the scampi sauce. Put in the soy sauce. Stir. Now put in the mushrooms. Stir. Eat. Yum.

It’s umami. And it’s Foodie Friday.

January 29, By Any Other Name

Is still a rose.

So my week?

Recently, I felt I needed a change. The urge was very strong at the begining of the week. I couldn’t articulate it. It was just a nagging feeling, no details, no specifics, no direction.

The middle of the week brought more conversation, more counseling, more discussion.

And ahhh…now the end of the week. Nothing’s changed. At least not yet.

And I’m happy about it. For I wouldn’t be able to hang out here as much if it did.

There is still a nagging in me for change but there’s also peace in knowing that I like where I am.

Except…

Though it wasn’t easy, I was successful in eating only salads on Tuesday. I was starting to get grumpy toward the end of the night. The husband reminded me that I told everyone in blogland my frugal diet plan so I was bound to commit to it.  To which I responded from the open refrigerator door, “So what?” Then I slammed it. Perhaps a little too hard. Hey, I was hungry.

But…

I lost TWO pounds this week. Now there’s a change. So that’s “so what” and it’s so satisfying. Two pounds a week is the recommend weight loss rate according to the AMA, AFAA, Congress and me.

And…

That Mediterranean fare from yesterday? It’s a pickled caperberry. Here’s a not-so-good photo of it after I’ve chomped on it. It was delicious. I don’t know why it’s not more mainstream Jodi, people are missing out!  It is not a caper I’ve ever seen before. I’m only familiar with the small-ish kind. My mother bought these, Lord knows how much they cost.

I apologize for my manicured nails. Or rather, lack of…

Here’s a quick lemon and capers dish.

1 lb thinly sliced pork loin
4 tbs fresh lemon juice
2 tbs capers
1 garlic clove
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter
salt
pepper
your choice cooked pasta

Squeeze lemon over the pork. Add salt and pepper. Set aside. Heat olive oil and crushed garlic clove in a sauce pan. Once it’s hot, place pork into the pan. Put in the butter to melt, add in the capers. Turn over the pork and cook on the second side until done.

Serve over your pasta.

You can certainly use the capers that you are familiar with. These are big and pickled and may not be as accessible.

Bon appetite!

I’ll see ya tomorrow bloggie peeps.

January 28, Mediterranean Fare

Are you ready? Do you have your culinary hats on?

What is this?

Here’s a close up.

No prize or anything…sorry. Just some fun guesses…

Posted on Foodie Friday, when it finally rolls around. Come on Friday!

Cody Cooks, Simple Stir Fry Steak & Peppers

My last post of Cody cooking brought so many nice comments and encouragement for Cody. He’s definitely going to make some girl happy with his cooking prowess. And I’m more than happy to help in that category. But not too soon…he’s only 13 years old ladies.

Today, Cody is making stir fry beef and peppers. I wanted to do a meal that is very easy to prep. I also wanted to teach him a few things, like how to chop meat.

I always learned these things by watching my mother and then by doing. It was a little odd to try to articulate it. It’s a good thing that Cody’s a quick study.

I taught him how to peel and chop garlic. I see this chopping technique used a lot on the food network and though I don’t always chop this way, I showed him how. He’s pretty good that kid.

So here’s the stir fry recipe. It’s vewwwy, vewwwy, easy.

Start with:
2 pounds flank steak
3 large green peppers
2 large garlic cloves
2 tbsp vegetable oil

For steak marinade
2 large garlic cloves
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp vegetable oil

For stir fry sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce
2 tbsp mushroom soy sauce (or any dark soy)
2 tbsp rice wine
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
black pepper to taste

Slice the steak thinly, like Cody did. Poor kid, took him forever but he did it! Once the steak is sliced, put in the steak marinade ingredients and set aside. Slice the green peppers in half and take out the seeds. Slice the peppers into think slivers, but not too thin. This was an art but Cody got the hang of it!

Chop up 2 large garlic cloves and place into a heated pan. But the oil in and heat through, stirring the garlic. It should start smelling grand!

Put in the steak on one side and cook. I like it a little bit rare but not too much. Once it’s cooked to your liking, turn it over to the other side. Now mix the stir fry sauce all together and pour it in slowly which the meat is cooking on the second side. Now this is where you have to watch. If you put too much for the sauce in, it will get soupy and I don’t like soupy stir fry. I like a well coated but dry stir fry.

But that’s just me.

In other words, use your discretion here!

Throw in the peppers. And are you ready? Stir, stir, stir. Don’t over cook. I take out a pepper after about 4 minutes and try it. If it’s done but slightly crunchy then it’s perfect.

What a great job that Little Cody did. He made this same dish a month later for his family and it was a hit. Of course, his mother Miss Karen called me once, or twice, or rather five times to get the directions again. That’s precisely why I’m writing them down…

So enjoy! Get your 13 year old in the kitchen today!

See more food and foodies at Design by Gollum.

La Restaurant Depot

There is no better way to start the year than with a trip to Restaurant Depot.

I was very excited about all the bulk things you can get there, but what I was really looking for were dinner plates. Restaurant style dinner plates. The kind that you can put in the dish washer a thousand times and would still wear well. The kind that you can put into a warming drawer and they would be nice and hot when you serve them to your dinner guests. They would be tough and sturdy. I love fine china too but I wanted an every day plate.

Neighbor Bill is my favorite man who is not my husband. I say that because of this…

Neighbor Bill spent a half an hour searching for plates and soup bowls for me. He dug through piles and piles of boxes.

He patiently waited as I spend ten agonizing minutes on trying to decide between the 11 1/4 plates and the 11 1/2 inch plates. Really, they were a quarter inch apart.

Can you tell which is which?

All the while Neighbor Beth and the husband were looking at food. They were talking chicken breasts.

The husband showed me this huge hunk of cheese. I mean big! I made him put it back.

We brought along a few more neighbors as well. While the rest of the world was quietly sleeping, our neighborhood was hanging out in a warehouse full of food. It’s what we do for fun.

We then brought our loot home and had a great dinner…it IS what we do for fun!

See more food fanatics over at Design by Gollum. I’m glad not I’m not the only one.

Thanksgiving Cranberries

From this…

To this…

To this…

48 oz. fresh Dole cranberries
4 cups of water
4 cups of sugar
salt to taste

Boil sugar and water together. Throw in the cranberries and cook.

It’s starting to smell good in here.

Late Breakfast

Hosted by Cecily and Izzy ‘N Emmy

After an “early dinner” we went to a “late breakfast.” We tried to get on the senior’s schedule but it was hard. We have two teenagers. There was only one place to go to breakfast in that area, Steve’s Diner. It’s the kind of place I like, great food and great prices. I wish we could have stayed for dinner too. The country fried steak sounds good.

It was a place run by a first generation American who’s obviously loves what he does. And the food is fantastic, did I say that already?

But part of the charm is that Mr. Steve runs his place like he runs his home. With a tight fist. This patron behind Frank was having a discussion with Mr. Steve about seating arrangements when Mr. Steve finally yelled, “Then sit on the floor!” Which caused the husband to both cringe and laugh at the same time.

This waitress rushed by yelling at Mr. Steve, “You’re killing me!”

I love it. After breakfast the husband takes out his wallet to pay and was told that they only accept cash. Which then forced Frank to break out his wallet too. It’s an authentic atmosphere for sure.

And the food? Lots of it, homemade and delicious.

The husband was praying over the food while I was snapping photos. Lord forgive me.

And my little girl? Well, she can eat. Just like her mamma and her grandma. She ordered two huge (I mean huge) pancakes, a breakfast sandwich on a bagel and some hashbrowns. She also ate some of my steak. Yes, I ordered a sirloin steak with two eggs. I have to step up my cardio workout this week.

When it was all over with,all that was left was this lone breakfast biscuit.

The next time I complain about my weight, I want you to slap me.

Early Dinner

Last weekend the family and I flew to Tampa, FL to spend some time with my in-laws. It was a quick trip, literally an over-nighter. We flew in Saturday night after the boy refereed his game and flew out a short 24 hours later.

We have been meaning to go for so long…but schedules, life, work, and school prevented us from doing it. Grandma Lybrook was not happy about it either. So instead of disappointing her again, we thought a quick trip was in order.

It was really rather fun…the benefits of the husband’s job made it possible. And I’m so grateful.

As a result of the late start, we didn’t get to Florida until late evening and we then made dinner plans. But I forgot that seniors like to eat early. I’m not sure why but they do. We on the other hand, are used to a much later dinner hour, we have to get in all of our commitments before we can sit down and eat. Why is life so crazy?

Anyway, we didn’t arrive to the restaurant until after 7 pm…and by now Grandma Lybrook and Frank were pretty hungry.

In keeping with my penchant to photographing food at restaurants, this was our menu.

Saganaki. A fried Greek cheese dish that is incredibly delicious and way too many calories to count. I ate the whole thing.

Oysters on the half shell. Not for everyone but definitely for me…I love them.

and this dish…shrimp Parmesan. Oh my aching heart and hungry tummy. I loved it so much, I’m going to copy it in my kitchen one day. I swear I will.

And this gourmet masterpiece? It’s what the boy would eat every day, except on Sundays which are  mac and cheese days.

I guess I was hungry too…

And Here’s The Ponzu Sauce…

Update: This is one of my favorite sauces and it’s so easy that I had to post it again. I am making some tomorrow as a matter of fact…with some gyoza. Enjoy.

This is just one of the sauces that I use for the eggrolls and for so much more. I watched my mother make this sauce before I knew what ponzu sauce was. Now I make it all the time.

That’s what I get for living in Japan.

When you google ponzu sauce you see that you’ll need, mirin, sake, dashi, bonito, lemon juice, etc, etc, etc. I like to drink sake (and some of you can attest to how much I like to drink it) but I don’t like the taste in food. Mirin is hard to find, and dashi broth takes too much time to make.

Take it from me, you don’t need all that. You need just three things (can’t deviate from these three) and you will need a spice option, like peppers. And you need pretty bowls. You can’t make ponzu sauce unless you have pretty bowls.

Ok, ok, here’s the ponzu recipe…

You will need:

Soy sauce
Rice vinegar
Sugar
Hot Peppers (optional)

I use reduced sodium soy sauce and now can really tell the difference between that and the full strength. The full strength soy sauce is not a bad thing. It’s just better for your blood pressure to use the reduce sodium. But I don’t want to preach. It’s up to you and up to your circulatory system.

I don’t have quantities, it depends on how much you want to make. I do two part soy sauce to one part rice vinegar. I like a lot of sauce, so I make a lot. Most of the time, we tend to run out.

Put in about 1 teaspoon to sugar to about one quarter cup of soy sauce. Those of you who are persnickity about details like measurement will find this a little frustrating. I’m sorry. Just keep tasting it. If it tastes good to you, stop putting in sugar.

That’s it…except.

There’s this. Hot peppers. I normally use dry peppers to put in sauce. We’ll talk about different kinds of peppers another time…if you can’t take the heat, don’t put it in.

Now that’s really it. You’re done.

Tonight we are putting the ponzu sauce onto pan fried gyoza since the husband and I had a huge – I mean huge – hamburger with Roquefort and bacon for lunch. We shouldn’t even be eating dinner. I’ll show to I make gyoza another time. You won’t believe how easy it is…really you won’t believe it.

I have two other sauces to show you…but I won’t be able to until next week. I have a horsey project for the girl I have to finish by this weekend. And I may actually have to go into work…

Bon appetite.

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