Week in Pictures - May 2, 2014

My current resolution is to stop telling people how busy I am.  Yes, everyone's busy, wah wah.

The Sudra - Portland, OR

Is there a way to print this on wallpaper?  Tien?

Cherry blossoms at work in the courtyard.

The type of rain I don't mind - when it's flower petals.

One of the best parts about being an adult: deciding pumpkin pie in the spring is appropriate.

Serving dishes = more clean-up time for Gabe, always try to serve in pan on table.

I love Portland - Multnomah Falls

Alex would appreciate :)

Trying to feign portion control.

Maple pecan scones, recipe to follow.

I must owe these dogs something from a past life.

Happy May!

Spinach Tofu Soup (gasp, no meat?!)

Imagine if you will, I'm standing in the kitchen chopping, stirring, on autopilot thinking about work stuff, birthday cards, meal planning for lunch tomorrow, etc., while simultaneously trying not to cut my fingertip off (yes, that seriously happened) and someone comes meandering into the kitchen...

Person: Smells good!  Whatcha cookin'?

Me: Dinner.

Person: Is there any meat?

Me: No.

Person:  Aww maaaaaan!

Deja vu, anyone?  Happens to me at least once a week.  This is karmic retribution of course, because I used to run my mom through this very scenario all the time but I've come to enjoy meatless meals (not often enough since I married the quintessential meat-loving carnivore but still, I'm happy if I can get away with it at least once a week.

With rice..Kuen's fave.

A while back I made the mistake of decision to watch this episode of Oprah that featured Michael Pollan (of Food Inc. fame) filling my brain with all these things I almost wish I didn't know about food.  The episode also included a particularly graphic segment where Lisa Ling toured a Cargill cattle processing plant.  It was very, um, enlightening and I turned in to a pescatarian for about 4 months until I got pregnant w/ Kuen (and homegirl wanted MEAT).  I've turned carnivore since but it did leave an impression and I like to participate in Meatless Mondays.

I know we're a meat-heavy culture so I doubt you can get away with it too often but when you're feeling like a light meal and the carnivore(s) isn't/aren't around, make this soup.  It's not completely vegetarian because I like to use chicken stock but it can easily be made with vegetable stock instead and omitting the fish sauce.

This soup was my go-to through the fall and winter.  Surprisingly filling, so quick and easy, literally comes together in 15 min (if you have boiling water on hand) and made with fridge staples I always have on hand.

So du-li-shuus! Ta ta ta ta ta taaystay taystay" (name that song)

Spinach Tofu Soup
serves 2-4 (depending on whether it's a side or main)

3-4 cups baby spinach (arugula always works and I've tried kale too)
14 oz. package firm (or extra firm) tofu, cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
2 whole scallions, sliced
1 tbsp miso paste
2 tsp organic chicken bouillon (I get the jarred stuff but you can sub canned chicken stock or bouillon cubes - enough for about 6 cups of stock, or use vegetable stock)
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp fish sauce (optional, omit for vegetarians)
fresh cilantro, garnish
salt & pepper to taste
6-8 cups boiling water (*if you don't have a hot water kettle, starting this first makes the dish come together more quickly)

Heat stockpot over medium heat with 1 tbsp oil, add minced garlic and ginger - stir/cook for 2 min until softened and fragrant.  Add spinach (or your favorite greens) and wilt, add tofu, stock and remaining ingredients.  Bring to a simmer.

Other optional ingredients:
1 c. frozen or canned corn, drained
1 c. rotisserie chicken, diced (if the carnivores get too restless)
1 c. ground pork, saute w/ fish sauce - lots of flavor, def don't forget the ginger w/ this addition
1 c. mushrooms, slice and saute before you add the garlic/ginger
any short cut pasta, cooked rice or quinoa

With mini shells, also awesome.

Week in Pictures

Finally starting w/ the warm weather - can't wait to soak up some sun this summer!

Food prep for the week..

Somehow we missed getting a picture of the actual cherry blossoms on my phone.
Standing by my favorite magnolia at UW.

I've become my mother - drying clothes outside on a nice day (yes, that's a broom).  
To be fair, I only get to do this for 3 months out of the year in the Northwest.

First time I've used ice cubes this year.  BTW, chopsticks make excellent stir sticks.

That pizza is my new bff.

I heard the Daytona's getting a TJ's distribution center - finally, you'll be able to partake in things like this!

Oscar must see himself more as the large menacing dog his shadow casts instead of his true self.

First batch of preserves this year..love strawberry season!

Pan seared fish w/ garlic and capers fried in lemon butter. Perfect warm spring dinner.

My Updated Pizza Obsession

I have never been much of a bookworm.  Gabe, on the other hand, could live with his nose in a book and be happy.  He once spent a several hundred dollar Amazon gift card he got for Christmas by the following March - all on (you guessed it) books (several of which he still hasn't read - but that's another story for another time).  Oh, and my mother-in-law is literally (see what I did there?) a librarian so it's not really a surprise he has this love of books and reading.  But the man has some sEEEriously dry reading interests..in my most humble opinion, of course.  Topics of most interest include: history, military history, sci-fi, teen fiction, romance, etc.  Ok fine, I added in that last two but of the lot I would choose them over the other three - gun to my head.  Sharing a Kindle w/ him is a kinda hilarious because it looks something like: 

• Lions of Kandahar
• Foreign Devils on the Silk Road
• Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic
• Fifty Shades of Grey
• Hannibal Crosses The Alps
• Bossypants

Would love to see what sort of suggested readings he gets from Amazon.  Yes, you picked out my two books on that list and yes, I like literary junk food.  

Did someone say food?

Carby, carby goodness.

Uhh, right.  I can't say I have the type of attention span to get lost in a military history book about Prussia and forego sleep to do so.  I'm practical.  WHAT is for dinner tonight?  What is the best cooking oil to use for what?  Where did you go in Portland that I can't leave without stopping by for a doughnut?  That is useful information (to me).

Mmmmm, mushrooms..

Anywho - we eat this deeelish pizza for dinner all the time.  A little something like 4 years ago I posted about this pizza and how I love it and wanted to marry it b/c it was all that.  Well, I have a new pizza recipe in my life and I'll never look back. 

This picture is so fake, you know I had like 4 more slices of pizza.

Found this amazing recipe on Smitten Kitchen - another one of my favorite blogs and I've been making it a few months now, life has changed AGAIN.  Sorry PW, I still love you but this pizza is way better and still so easy to make.  It is the closest thing to take-out pizza I've been able to recreate at home.

She even gives all the options on when to start the dough - whether overnight, morning of or afternoon of times to start it.  Yes, it does need to rise but it's really painless, promise.  It's called LAZY Pizza Dough for Pete's sake.

Overnight - 22 hr rise

All-Day - 12 hr rise

Part-Day - 8 hr rise

These rise times are approximate and definitely work +/- a few hours.

Lazy Pizza Dough

from this recipe on Smitten Kitchen

makes a half sheet pan pizza

3 cups AP or bread flour (I use bread)
Slightly heaped 1/8, 1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast (for Overnight, All-Day, or Part-Day Schedules respectively, above)
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/4 cup room temp water, plus an additional tablespoon or two if needed (I almost always need it)

Throw everything in to a mixing bowl and mix until your arm falls off.  Or get a stand mixer and mix w/ the dough hook attachment for about 10 min.  When finished mixing, cover the bowl w/ plastic wrap (I use the same bowl I mixed in because, ya, I'm lazy).  The dough will be very sticky and shaggy.  I always put a ring of olive oil around the bowl for fun.  

I almost always make this with either the all-day or part-day, stick it in a (cold) oven w/ the oven light on to proof (rise).  

When the dough is finished rising, (take the dough out of the oven if you're using it to proof and) preheat the oven to 550 degrees and prepare the pan you'll be baking the pizza on (I don't have a fancy pizza stone so I just use a 1/2 sheet pan) by dusting it with a liberal amount of cornmeal.  Sprinkle the dough (and your hands) with flour and use a spatula to scrape the it out of the bowl.  Stretch the dough to fit the pan (don't roll it out!) and make sure there are no sticky spots underneath by sprinkling with more cornmeal until it moves freely when you shake the pan.  

Bake w/ your favorite pizza toppings for about 10-15 min until the cheese is nice and bubbly, enjoy!

Killing me softly.

Notes:

I've since changed my mind about fresh mozzarella much due to the fact that, after reading the Smitten Kitchen posting about pizza, I agree the aged mozz is much better for pizza.  It comes out nowhere near as soggy and I still get a great flavorful cheesy topping.  I love the Trader Joe's Whole Milk Mozzarella hunk and grate it myself.  Furthermore, I haven't had the patience to add another step to the pizza by doing what she does w/ the canned tomatoes - I just used Trader Joe's jarred pizza sauce.  The sauce is really good but a tad on the salty side so I never need to add any other seasonings to the toppings.  Hope you try it!  And if you do, tell me how it turned out! 

Back in the Saddle Again

I've been dreading this post for about 4 months.  At first it was kinda funny but then the more I put it off, the more I was like, ok, WTH is going to be the excuse this time?  Well, it isn't really anything exciting or flashy.  Life happens.  Work has been nuts.  Wah wah wahhh.

Needless to say, I'm back (for now).

This winter has been so mild, in my opinion.  I kept hearing about the Northeast and midwest getting hit by all those snowstorms and we got a very average 1.5" one day only to be washed away the next day..boring.  I know, I should be counting my blessings since the Seattle area isn't really known for handling snow well, but shoot - I wanted to build a snowman w/ Kuen!  But then again, that day that we did actually get the 1.5" of snow when we went outside to play she was entirely too scared to even touch the fluffy white stuff - much less build a snowman.

Anyhow, I've had some pretty awesome meals between last time I posted and now which I fully endeavor to share at some point, but for now - here's what's been going on...

I've made this like 3 weeks in a row which I'm totally loving (I added walnuts to mine).

I've been trying to do this with my hair (apologies to any co-workers for my appearance on days 3 or 4).  Loving the laziness factor but definitely not loving dry shampoo yet.  This one is the best smelling but I can never go without washing the day after I use it.

Made this a few weeks ago, very underwhelmed.  Maybe I had too much lemon juice coming out of my meyer lemon that time because I got no burnt bits?  Total first world problems.

Was so excited to try this lipstick out and was even MORE excited to pick it up at desolate Target on a Saturday (!) which has pretty much turned in to a ghost town since the whole data breach debacle.  Note to self: you are not white and nude lips look awful on you.

If you're a friend on FB, I recently posted about trying to start this.  Have the journal but can't seem to get anything down on paper yet - too afraid I'll mess it up.  Sigh.

Reading this.  Life changing perspective.

Also started reading this.  So. freaking. hilarious.  The part about the Minnelli/Gest wedding had me in stitches.

Have been eating this (baked in a 9x13 pan instead) with salad (with this dressing) several times this week.

Kuen has been requesting this every morning and prefers hers with dried cranberries, pecans and brown sugar.

Below is dinner from several weeks ago, recipe coming soon (I hope).

All those friends who haven't heard from me - I'm sorry, 2014 has gotten off to a crazy busy start!  I'm looking to surface soon :)

Momma Sally's Brownies

This post is going to be short and sweet - just like Momma Sally, Gabe's wonderful grandmother!  She grew up in the Midwest meaning she's genetically predisposed to having the cooking gene.  She's also a fantastic gardener, brilliant storyteller, devout churchgoer and an all around amazing matriarch to this family.  

Isn't she adorable??

Don't let that sweet exterior fool you though, she's tough as nails and fiercely independent.  Even though we aren't related by blood, I think of her as my own grandmother - the last living grandparent I have.  Thanks for being such a wonderful person and example for the rest of us, Sal.  xoxoxo

These brownies are awesome.  Very simple ingredients and a great brownie comes out of the oven every time.  Excellent basic recipe that I like to throw lots of different things in to and see how badly I can annoy Gabe.

Probably Gabe's biggest annoyance factor - nuts!

Momma Sally's Famous Brownies

makes 1 8x8" or 9x9" pan - could be considered a single serving size if one tries hard enough

2 sq (2 oz) unsweetened baking chocolate (found in the baking aisle)
1 stick butter (1/2 cup)
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.  Melt chocolate and butter together, either in the microwave (for 30 second intervals, stirring between) or over a double boiler until just melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

First add the sugar to the chocolate mixture, then vanilla, salt, eggs, and finally the flour, stirring only enough to incorporate the flour.  Do not over beat.

Bake at 350, for 25-30 minutes. The edges should be pulling away, and the top of the center of the brownies be a little springy then you gently tap with your finger. You can also test by inserting a knife in the middle.

Notes: 

Of course I couldn't leave well enough alone.  Sometimes I knock down the sugar to about 1/2 c if I know I'll be adding in another sweet ingredient.  I've lessened the flour as well to make a more fudgy brownie.  Play with it and make it your own!

You can also try some different combinations of the below.  Most on this list would annoy Gabe.. 

Super Simple One Hour Chicken Soup

Instead of beer, I need to invent some sort of chicken soup tap for my house.  But a beer tap would be nice too, esp. for football season.  

Go Hawks!

I didn't realize this before but now that I have a kid in daycare the beginning of Fall doesn't just mean I get to bust out the boots and sweaters, it also means the start of  cold/flu season complete with snotty-nosed hacking children (mine included, unfortunately).  When Kuen first started, I don't think she made it past her first week before she got her first cold.  Then she just kept getting back to back to back to back colds.  Four colds within the first 5 weeks I think.  


"Oh, their immune systems need it!"  

"They'll rarely get sick after that!!"

I know, but it still sucks.

Kuenie looooves her some chicken soup, especially when she's not feeling well.  With a little bit of prep, this soup takes about an hour from start to finish - like to the table.  I take some super easy shortcuts that allow you to trim some time out of the cooking and you don't even have to skimp on the flavor.  I feel like an infomercial - "it slices, it dices, it juliennes!" 

GENIUS Time Saving Notes (no, seriously): 

Make sure you start a separate pot of boiling water (or chicken stock if you're using it) to add to the soup so you can cut down on time in bringing everything to a boil before simmering.  I have an electric water boiler/warmer so I've always got boiling water on tap, amazing how much it accelerates cooking time.  Plus it's so nice to have when you want a quick cup of coffee in the a.m., tea before bed or whatever you'd need scalding hot water for.

De-bone rotisserie chicken when you get home and pour off the gravy that has accumulated into a separate container.  You can save some time and have the chicken already prepared and skim the fat off after it solidifies in the fridge.

Thyme: Fresh thyme sprigs can be a real pill to strip so if you're in a hurry, just tie a bundle very tightly with some kitchen twine and throw the whole thing into the soup pot to simmer.  Fish the bundle out when you're done simmering.  Or just use dried, jeez.

I use my Vitamix on the lowest setting for minced veggies.  Best thing I found is that if you mince raw cauliflower, it looks like rice in the soup so I can mentally fake myself out to save on the carbs.  Everyone needs a Vitamix.  And a Roomba.

Wash and pare your veggies when you get home from the store.  Makes cooking fresh so much easier than if you had to start from scratch.  I fill up my sink and add about 1 c of white vinegar to wash produce, then rinse w/ cold water.  

Soups generally freeze very well so if you haven't found a way to put chicken soup on tap at your home either, just make a huge pot, portion out and stock your freezer.  You can even used gallon freezer bags - stack and freeze for quick thawing.  Don't forget to write the name and date on the bag BEFORE filling.  So you don't pull out what looks like a science experiment 6 mo. later w/ no idea what the contents are of the bag.

Unless you're planning on eating the entire pot in one meal, I don't recommend boiling pasta or rice directly in the soup.  After a few days, your soup is going to get gummy and thick..not my fave.  Instead, while the soup simmers, in a separate pot you can start rice, egg noodles, any type of short cut pasta, grilled cheese or heat up a baguette to serve alongside.  Mmmmmmmmmm. 

Best picture I could get - sorry the cheese looks gross.
They were pretty curls before melting, trust me.

One Hour Chicken Soup

Makes 4-6 servings, easily scalable

1 yellow onion, diced (baseball size, or 1/2 a large)
2-2 celery stalks
1-2 large carrots
1 tsp fresh thyme, minced (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1 bay leaf
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 rotisserie chicken (store bought)
1 tbsp light cooking oil (I like light olive or canola)
Salt, pepper

optional additions:
2 c minced kale (I throw my kale in the blender and mince it really fine so it just blends into the soup - no picking around that, ha!)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 - 14 oz. canned tomatoes
1 bell pepper, diced
1 c. cauliflower - minced (blender)
2 cans chicken stock
chicken bouillon cubes
fresh flat leaf parsley, garnish
grated parmigiana reggiano, garnish

Heat stock pot over medium high heat.  When the pan is hot, add oil until it shimmers in the pan, add diced onion and sprinkle w/ 1/4 tsp salt - saute 5 min, until slightly wilted.  Add celery, carrots, garlic, bay leaf and thyme, saute another 5-10 min.  While the veggies cook, remove half of the meat from the chicken and dice.  Stir in any other optional veggies at this point as well.  Make sure to stir occasionally so they don't burn.  If the pan is getting too hot, pull the heat back to med or med/low - all pans and stoves will vary.  

When the veggies are sauteed, add any of the juices in the bottom of the rotisserie tray to bump up the flavor.  Add diced chicken, (chicken stock and/or bouillon) and cover with liquid of your choice until it covers the veggies by about 2-3 inches.  Simmer for 30-40 minutes, salt and pepper to taste.