In Virginia at last!

We are here in Virginia
and
will be moving into
our new house
tomorrow.
Long story short,
we found a nice house
in Chesapeake.
Hopefully,
our internet will be
set up
by Friday
but
our furniture will only
get here on the 8th.

Will post photos...
later.

Off to Virginia

Everything is packed
and we are ready to move
to
Virginia.
Our 5 year stint in South Florida
has ended
and now,
we are looking forward to
making a new life in
Virginia.
This is the life of
a military family.
We move,
we get settled in,
make friends
and then,
poof,
time to move again.
Sigh..

Oh well.
We are hoping to get our
stuff on July 1st..
so hopefully
my kitchen will be up and running
by the first week of July.
We'll see.

Adios!!

#33. Lemon Yogurt Cake

I have been busy lately,
clearing stuff from my pantry...
baking
and cooking
as much as I could
to get rid of our food items.
The movers are coming in 8 days
to pack up our stuff.
And I still have so many food stuff
to clear.
I'm so not ready to move to
Virginia.

Anyway,
I have been dying to bake
this cake
after reading many rave reviews
about it.
It's really simple to make
and
that's what I like about Ina Garten's
recipes.
They are well written, delicious
and easy to follow.
The cake is pretty good.
It's lighter than a pound cake.
I like that.
Ina never disappoints.
I do find the icing a bit sweet -
and I have a sweet tooth.
The icing recipe yields A LOT.
I didnt use all of it
for my cake.
It does taste better the next day though.


Recipe taken from the Food Network.

#32. BBQ Meatloaf Muffins

Remember me saying
that
I really don't like meatloaf much?
I really don't.
It's all too "beefy"
for me.
However,
there is only 1 meatloaf
that I truly love.
Really truly.
So much so,
that this is the only meatloaf
recipe
that I would ask for seconds.
Even thirds.
And I had to mention
it here.

I've been making this
meatloaf muffin
for a couple of years
now
but it was forgotten
for a long while
eversince
I started testing out different
recipes.
After I made Nigella's mini meatloaves
and wasn't
too happy about its taste,
I knew I had to share
this recipe.
This is not a traditional
meatloaf recipe
especially with its barbeque sauce
but
you gotta try it.
I like my meatloaf with
tons of
flavors.
And this recipe,
yes,
by Rachael Ray,
doesn't disappoint.
Even my hubby
and kids
love it.
That means something, right?
Enjoy!

You can find the recipe
here.
With 504 reviews,
5 star ratings,
you know this is a good thing!

Is it weird to eat meatloaf with rice?
I dunno.
I'm Asian
so to me,
rice goes with everything.
Heh!

#31. Pineapple Ice Cream

For Mother's Day,
my hubby...
darling hubby...
got me an ice cream maker.
I had been bugging him for
months for one.
And he always said
"Why? Haagen Daaz made
good ice cream!"
Well,
as you can tell,
he relented
and bought me one.
I am tireless
when I want something.
Heh!

Anyway,
this is my first ice cream
and let me tell you,
it's so simple to make.
The ice cream maker does all the work
anyway.

I chose a recipe
that requires the eggs to be cooked
instead
of making it with raw eggs.
Reason being,
I have young kids and
I'm not comfortable with
them eating
raw eggs.
It turned out pefect.
Creamy, delicious
and refreshing.
My only complaint with this recipe
is that
there isn't enough pineapple flavor
even though
I pulsed the pineapple in a food processor.
Next time,
I'll add a bit more pineapple.

And oh,
do not attempt to make this with
fresh pineapples.
Fresh pineapples contained enzymes
that might cause the milk to curdle.
Use canned pineapples instead.

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend!


Recipe taken and adapted from Allrecipes.com
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1 3/4 cups whipping cream
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
*I pulse it a few rounds in the food processor
to intensify the flavors.*


DIRECTIONS
In a saucepan, cook the eggs and milk over medium heat for 8 minutes
or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees F and mixture coats a metal spoon.
Stir in sugar until dissolved.
Cool. Stir in the cream and pineapple.
Fill cylinder of ice cream freezer two-thirds full;
freeze according to manufacturer's directions.
Refrigerate remaining mixture until ready to freeze.
Allow ice cream to ripen in refrigerator freezer for 2-4 hours before serving.
May be frozen for up to 2 months.

#30. Dark Cherry Lemonade

It's been so HOT
in South Florida.
You can tell summer is here
because
of the thunderstorms.
Oh yeah..
Hurricane season is around the
corner.
Somehow,
we skipped spring
and
went right into summer.

When I think of
summer,
lemonade came to mind.
I used to work in a hotel
that
serves lemonade and cookies
at 3pm
for snacks.
And every time
I make lemonades,
I think of my days slaving..
I mean, working...
in the hotel industry.
Oh, I LOVE working there
but I dont miss the
long hours.
Oh no!
The hotel industry is
definately not
family friendly in that terms.

Anyway,
make this lemonade!
You can use water
but I suggest making
it with club soda..
It is so refreshing!!

P.S. I couldnt find frozen cherries,
so I made mine with frozen dark cherries.
Delish!

Recipe taken and adapted from
The Deen Family Cookbook.

1 10oz package frozen pitted sweet cherries, thawed
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup sugar
5 cups chilled club soda

In a blender puree the cherries, lemon juice
and sugar.
If you like, strain the mixture with a sieve. *optional*
Pour the mixture into a pitcher.
Add the club soda and stir gently.
Serve.

#29. Beef Stew

My first recollection
of beef stew
was
actually at my cousin's house.
Growing up,
I NEVER had beef stew.
Mom cooks well enough
to have food
that's edible
(and some pretty good)
on the table for dinner.
She worked full time
so she really didnt have the time
to sweat in the kitchen.
She's better at sewing though..
Anyway,
she only cooks Asian food
and
beef stew is out of her
comfort zone.

I remembered going to my cousin's
house one day,
to drop off something -
we were neighbors -
and I saw my aunt serving
beef stew for lunch.
I was AMAZED.
Maybe a bit jealous.
Wow.
They had beef stew?
Lucky them.
Of course, my aunt offered
but
I politely refused.
And to this day,
I remembered that beef stew.
With regret.

Recipe taken from Katie Lee Joel's The Comfort Table.

2 pounds lean beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
Kosher Salt
Black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
4 medium potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 medium yellow onions, quartered
4 large carrots, cut on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces
1 celery stalk, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 quart low-sodium beef broth
1 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup minced flat leaf parsley.


Season the beef generously with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the beef with 2 tablespoons of the flour and toss to evenly coat all sides.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the beef in a single layer (do in two batches if necessary) and cook until just browned on all sides. Remove the beef from the pan, and set aside in a bowl. Pour the vinegar into the pot. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up all the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil and let reduce by half. Return beef to the pot. Add the potatoes, onions, carrots, celery, broth and water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to very low, and simmer, covered until the beef is very tender, about 2 hours.

In a small bowl, mix ¼ cup of the stew liquid with the remaining 2 tablespoons flour until smooth. Stir into the beef stew. Continue to simmer over low heat and allow the broth to thicken, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1 ½ teaspoons salt and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Add the parsley. Ladle into individual bowls and serve.

#28. Chicken Noodle Soup

Growing up in Singapore,
I didnt eat much soup.
Mom never made them.
If she did,
it's usually eaten with rice,
sort of like
a gravy.
I do eat noodle bowls,
but they are not "soups"...
not where I'm from.
They are merely noodle dishes...
just like pasta.
With gravy.
Confusing?

Anyway,
I've been making this chicken noodle
soup
for so many years now.
It's my kids' favorite.
And mine.
They are constantly asking me
for noodle soup,
and I will happily obliged to make it.
Even though it's
time consuming.
Or
heat up the frozen containers of soup
I kept
in the freezer.
The recipe is from Paula Deen
and I did tweaked it a bit
to my liking.
To make a good soup,
you need good homemade stock.
Yeah.
From scratch.
No shortcuts.
If you haven't had soup with parmesan cheese
and
cream,
you should start now.
It's divine.
Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Paula Deen.

1 (2 1/2 to 3-pound) fryer chicken, cut up
3 1/2 quarts water
1 onion, peeled
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 bay leaves
3 chicken bouillon cubes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Soup:
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups sliced celery, with leafy green tops
2 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 cup grated Parmesan, optional
3/4 cup heavy cream, optional
Kosher Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions
For the stock: add all ingredients to a soup pot. Cook until chicken is tender, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Remove and discard bay leaves and onion. You should have approximately 3 quarts of stock. When chicken is cool enough to touch, pick bones clean, discarding bones, skin, and cartilage. Set chicken aside.

For the soup: bring stock back to a boil, add carrots, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add egg noodles and cook according to directions on package. When noodles are done, add chicken and parsley. Add Parmesan and cream, if using. Cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if needed, by adding salt and pepper.

#27. Parmesan Popovers

I've been dying to make this
popovers
because it looked good
on paper.
Well,
let me tell you this...
I just wasted 3 good eggs on this
recipe.
I dont like it.
Sure, it came out
light and airy
but it tasted
too "eggy" for me.
Not too thrilled about that.
Maybe it's just me
but
it seemed a lot of people
agreed online.
Again,
I should've read
the reviews online
before making it.
I didn't.
I opened up my cookbook,
thought it looked good
and went from there.
Not smart.

Anyway,
try it if you like
but I won't waste my time.
Sorry Giada.
This is not a winner.


You can find recipe here.

#26. Lemon Curry Chicken & Almond Raisin Couscous

I made this
last Sunday.
It's absolutely delicious.
My Tyler...
Tyler Florence that is,
did it again.
The lemon curry chicken
is his recipe.
Who would've thought that lemon
and curry makes a great baste
for chicken?
The lemon adds a bit tanginess
-is that a word??-
to the dish.
Even my kids,
who are totally anti-curry,
love it.
Surprise!!!

As for the couscous,
it was inspired by Ina Garten's
Morrocan Couscous recipe.
I didnt have much of the ingredients needed
to make hers,
so I switch it up a bit
and ran with it.
I'm not a raisin kinda girl -
I pick raisins off my cookies-
but somehow,
golden raisins and couscous
go together like bread and butter.



Lemon Curry Chicken
Recipe by Tyler Florence, Tyler's Ultimate.

1 3-4lb chicken, cut into 10 pieces
2 cups plain yogurt
2 tbsp curry powder
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 400F.
Rinse the chicken and pat it dry with paper towels.
Stir together the yogurt, curry powder, lemon zest and juice,
sesame oil, and salt and pepper in a big bowl.
Add the chicken and toss gently to coat with the yogurt marinade.
Put the chicken on a baking sheet and roast,
using the remaining marinade to baste twice as it cooks,
until the chicken is tender and cooked through, about 45 minutes total.


Recipe for Almond and Raisin Couscous.

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 cups low sodium chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cups couscous
1/2 cup almonds, toasted
1/4 cup golden raisins

Directions
Melt the butter in a large saute pan, add the onion and cook for 3 minutes over medium heat. Add the chicken stock, salt and pepper, raise the heat to high and bring the stock to a boil. Off the heat and add the couscous. Cover the pan and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Add the almonds and golden raisins to the couscous, stir and serve.