Balsamic-Roasted Red Pepper Sauce with Shrimp and Chicken

 The aforementioned balsamic-roasted red pepper sauce with chicken and shrimp, 

garlic couscous, and a spinach salad with a cranberry-balsamic vinaigrette.

In January, I was given a free ticket to go visit my fantastic friend Michael in St. Paul, Minnesota. I've never been there, hadn't seen him in aaaaages, and was super excited. As always, it was a fantastic couple of days of mocking each other, watching ridiculous movies, and going on exciting thrift store hunts. Micheal's prize-find was a couch for his office, super cheap! Mine was a pair raspberry Doc Martins, also for super cheap. We were pleased.

Pleased and hungry.

Now, we ate out once and had pizza another night. But! I also made pumpkin-ginger cupcakes (which I NEED to post on here, they are my most requested cupcakes, and he had informed me from the first time I said I was visiting that I would, in fact, be making them) and Michael made a balsamic roasted red pepper sauce for some chicken.

Holy deliciousness, Batman. I demanded the recipe.

Then, promptly, I altered it. Because that's what you do. He did it too! It's the delicious way.

Seriously, nom. Make lots of variations. It was originally based on a recipe from About.com for Spicy Cornish Hens. I do quite a lot of variation, as you can see. It is spicy, it has some sweetness to it, and it goes deliciously with chicken and/or shrimp. I also like to add couscous as a grain. I prefer them to be whole wheat, but it is up to you.

My Ingredients!

- 10 oz roasted red peppers (I have also done roasted red-and-yellow peppers)
- 3 tablespoons seedless, all-natural, blackberry jam
 - 2 teaspoons French mustard
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2/3 teaspoon rosemary
- 2 -3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- dash sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or less or more, depending on how spicy you would prefer)

Put all the ingredients in a food processor/blender/silver-bullet style zoom-machine. Whizz until smooth, taste, and adjust seasonings as you prefer.

On the stove, have a deep skillet and spray a non-fat cooking spray (actual oil would also work...) and cook your protein and/or veg. When partially cooked, pour sauce over it and let finish cooking - the sauce will reduce somewhat.

Enjoy with a glass of wine! 

Or any beverage. Or none, but this is a chance to get your eight glasses of water a day. 

No joke, this smells and tastes amazing. It has received rave reviews and I can not encourage you enough to try this. Lock it down - it's delicious.

Crunchy Garlic Chicken or Why I Love Jamie Oliver

 Dear god. 

Lock. It. Down.

I don't want to exaggerate anything, but oh my god I completely love Jamie Oliver. The man is amazing and seems like the sweetest guy. I will genuinely be crushed if there is any scandal about him - but I will still love his food. (also, there will never be any scandal, he is a peach). If I could meet any one chef, I'd want to meet him. Of course, if I could meet any handful of chefs, that'd be even better.

Basically, as much as I detest Bobby Flay, King of Tools, I love Jamie Oliver. That, my friends, is saying something as I have broken into the conversations of strangers when Flay is mentioned.

In Jamie's Food Revolution there is a recipe for Crunchy Garlic Chicken. I can not sing the praises of this recipe enough, seriously, I died. DIED. Then came back to eat more because this is so amazing. If you aren't new to the blog, then you'll know about my quest for the perfect chicken strips. I've found them in panko, yes, but this might actually blow that out of the water. At the first go, I'm going to go ahead and say that - yes, once again - this is a Lock It Down recipe. I made a few minor changes to the original recipe, but essentially let it be.

I suggest serving this with a salad or some simple veggies, but if you'd like to go for full-blown comfort then try some mashed potatoes (to make it healthier, make it a mashed cauliflower or cauliflower-potato blend). Jamie suggests using a cream cracker, such as Jacob's, but my Jewel doesn't carry them and I didn't really feel like hunting them down. Anyway, he'd said the same thing for the meatballs, and saltines were pretty much the bomb in that.

Without further ado...

Crunchy Garlic Chicken

INGREDIENTS

- two cloves of garlic
- seven to eight saltines
- two TBS butter
- a few shakes of parsley (or four fresh sprigs)
- salt and pepper
- two TBS flour
- one egg
- two boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- olive oil
- the zest of one lemon OR Garlic-Lemon Trinidad Seasoning
- OPTIONAL -Orange-Pepper (a fantastic change from lemon pepper, if you use this nix on the black pepper above)

WHAT TO DO

Peel the garlic and zest the lemon. If you have a food processor, zoom the crackers with the butter, garlic, parsley, lemon zest, and salt/pepper. You'll want to make the mixture very fine, then pour the crumbs on a plate. If you do NOT have a food processor (clearly, I do not) then mince the garlic very, very finely. Bash the crackers up and mix with the parsley, lemon zest, pepper, garlic, and salt. The butter should be softened and then stir it in with crumb mixture. Put that on a plate.

Helloooooo, crumbs.

Sprinkle the flour onto a second plate. Be thankful that you have so many saucers in your ramshackle apartment.

Beat the egg in a small bowl with a fork.

Cut the fatty bits out of the chicken. If you want more of a strip type of thing, cut them into strips. I cut my chicken breasts in half to make them thin, then lightly score the bottom of the chicken breasts. Smack them with a pan a few times (in plastic wrap, of course) to flatten them out a bit - unless, of course, you already cut them in half because it's a little late and maybe you don't want to whack things.

Dip the chicken in the flour, getting it totally coated, then dip it into the egg, then coat with the flavored crumbs. Pat the crumbs onto the chicken so it sticks.

sizzle sizzle sizzle

"Oh, that delicious smell? It's nothing...but awesomeness."

I fried mine in some olive oil for about five minutes on each side, until cooked through and delightfully golden and crisp. You can also bake them, however. Preheat your oven until it is hot as blazes (475 F yikes!) and put your chicken on a cookie sheet and bake for about fifteen minutes.

Now. You can serve them whole as they are, cut them up into strips or bits or whatever you like. Squeeze a bit of lemon on them if you'd like. Serve with the sides of your choosing. Swoon.

Poor picture, unbelievable food.

The only flaw in this is keeping the breading crisp for the next day, I chucked some in a plastic container and it didn't really keep up. It was still delicious, though. Really, I think this is much more meant to be eaten the night of, which will be fantastically easy as this stuff is killer.

Chicken ala King. Should that be Dethroned King?

Mmmm...creamy, peppery, chickeny goodness!

Takes me back, oh yes indeed.

I have a pretty strong memory of the first time I ever ate this dish. Or, anyway, the first time I remember eating it. I was both annoyed and baffled by this not-at-all-a-potpie that my dad had whipped up. I'm sure there were loads of veggies and I'm pretty sure he made drop biscuits. I remember standing in the kitchen and being somehow very confused by the whole sequence of events. I liked it. I did not daydream about it. I was Team Potpie.

Since then, of course, I've really enjoyed the goodness that is chicken ala king. It's just so pleasing and warming! I still tend to make potpie as my creamy-chickeny vehicle (or a pasta) but the other day, I really could just not get this out of my mind. I wanted it. I craved it. I was having A Very Bad Day and I knew this would make everything better.

I swung by Jewel, gathered maybe three or four items, came home and ate some pasta that my roommate had made and went to sleep.

THE END. IT IS SO EXCITING.

Actually, that is how the night went, but the next day I embarked on a huge bake-a-thon and this was my dinner afterwards. Chicken ala Dethroned King. Dethroned because, well, I was broke and the lack of bell peppers and peas and everything clues you in on that. I also took the easy way out and used insta-biscuits from a can.

Still. It was delicious.

- two chicken breasts, cut up into bite-size bits (you can also steam or poach or whichen and shred it)
- four carrots, sliced
- handful of mushrooms, sliced
- splash of white wine
- garlic, minced
- onion, chopped
- paprika, salt, pepper, basil
- one cup heavy cream
- half cup chicken broth
(more or less as desired or needed, I'm pretty sure these were my measurements)
- approx. a tablespoon of tapioca starch to thicken the sauce

Boozey veg! My favorite.

 Now, what you want to do is cook the chicken in some olive oil and butter - unless, of course, you've steamed or poached it. Season with pepper and basil and salt. Add in the onion, garlic, and veg. Splash in some white wine and let cook down. Season to taste, then add the chicken broth and the cream (or half and half or even milk!). After about ten minutes, sprinkle in the starch while stirring swiftly the whole time. Go slowly until you've reached the desired thickness. Season with paprika and any additional flavors you may want.


Serve on a biscuit! May I suggest cheese? :) 

Taquitos!

I'm not even kidding.

This is the only picture I was able to take, so it is by default the best.

I apologize. Picture something delicious.

THERE. That is now "how tasty my taquitos are". 

Effortless would almost be the word best used to describe this recipe, except for the fact that I accidentally left the broiler on and burnt up my first batch. This did not stop anyone from devouring them, though, which I took as a note of confidence as I made sure to guard over the next batch.

Um, about the broiler. It's how we pre-heat our oven. It isn't even on the list of things to fix about this place - rather, "awesome oven" is on the list for Things For Next Apartment. If I told you what else was on that list, you'd shake your heads, so instead I'll say: if you, too, have an oven like this - wanna start a support group?

Anyway.

I made these easy taquitos! There were both chicken and vegetarian (black refried beans, with extra veg) options. So simple. See how easy?

Ingredients:

- flour tortillas
- two chicken breasts
- one can of vegetarian refried black beans
- four cloves garlic
- diced onion
- diced tomato
- diced bell pepper
- salsa
- sour cream
- guacamole
- basil, salt, pepper, etc etc
- olive oil
- shredded cheese

You'll want to steam the chicken, so shake some basil, salt, and pepper over the breasts and then steam away. While your kitchen starts to smell amazing, heat up the beans in a pan, using a bit of oil, about half the garlic, and season as you wish. You'll just be cooking it up a bit so it is hot.

Shred the cooked-through chicken. Add garlic, a little salsa (a few tbs), some of the onion, and anything else you'd like. Now. Take a tortilla. Rub a little oil onto each side and then, fill the inside with some shredded chicken mixture and cheese. Roll up tightly then place in a baking dish (or on a cookie sheet). Repeat.

For the vegetarian ones, you'll want to put the bean mixture in the inside, with some onion and tomato and cheese, then roll up.

Bake for fifteen minutes at 350 F, or until the tops are crisp and golden-brown and the insides are hot and melty. If you want to broil briefly at the end to get a golden-brownier top, please do.

Serve with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, and anything else you want. I imagine that "serve" usually involves plates.

Ours didn't make it farther from the baking dish than our mouths. OH THE LIFE.

Enchiladas of deliciousness: made in Jan, posted in March.

 A few years ago, we went to a gay prom hosted by Stoli downtown.

This happiness? This is sort of what it feels like to eat these enchiladas.

Or maybe what it feels like to be a boy band at the height of their fame. 

Tomato, tomahto.

You know what makes you feel good? 

Making enchilidas - another Kelly Recipe - and nailing it on the first try, according to the ravenous boys who are the reason there is no photo of said enchiladas. 

Which means, I suppose, I will have to make more. Many, many more at the same time. So we can eat and have leftovers, which didn't reeeeeally work out so well this time. 

Talk about simple! Check this out.

The ants go marching one by one: 

- two chicken breasts
- basil
- pepper (or, even better, lemon-pepper!) 
- any other seasoning you like, I used a garlicky one from The Spice House
- one package of fluffy flour tortillas  (mine were a twelve count, I used eleven)
- two jar of green salsa (optional: you may use green enchilada sauce. my store was out.) 
- one package of Mexican cheese blend, shredded (or just go get all the delicious cheeses you want! this was budget night. and easy, I-just-worked-a-shift-from-hell night)
- sliced black olives. one can. 
- avocado, sour cream, whatever you like.



Rub the spices on the chicken breasts, then toss those babies in a steamer. Woosh! Steam until cooked through. Use two forks and shred the chicken, then dump in most of a jar of salsa. Make sure all the chicken is coated. 


Now, what you need to do is get a pan, feel free to pour a little salsa on the bottom. Take a tortilla and put some of the salsa-fied chicken with a sprinkle of cheese in it. Roll up tightly, like a cigar, and then place it in the pan. Continue until you have gone through them all or, you know, you're sick of it. You should tightly pack them in together and pour more salsa on top, then coat with cheese.


This isn't what I'd call "healthy". 


Sprinkle the olives on top and then tent some foil over it. Cook in the oven for about twenty minutes, then remove foil and cook for maybe ten more. The cheese will be all melty and browned. Your kitchen will smell amazing. It will probably smell amazing during the steaming-chicken-phase, but that's to be expected.


Dodge those who are about to shove you out the window by the stove in order to get to this. 

Then, enjoy your share. I hope you got it first.

Spring is coming! Lemony Creamy Chickeny Pasta. Y.

M

The delicious Amish noodles, all nice and spinached.

You probably don't know this or, you know, maybe you do - who am I to say what you do or don't know - but I have a soft spot for Amish things. I mean, who doesn't, but I did exist in a world where Amish things weren't exactly an unknown as a smaller version of myself. So it was no wonder when I came across Amish Homestyle Noodles the other day at the store that I leapt at it. Especially since I had just been a little let down by the Chicago French Market.

Sorry, CFM. You were pretty cool, I had fun, but you lied to me. I'll forgive you, but only begrudgingly. And maybe only if you get that freakin' pasta stand in there that I was so excited for. I had some pretty big dreams for that pasta I hadn't seen yet and, well, I didn't let those dreams die. Oh no. I just snapped up those Amish noodles and trekked on home to see what I could do with my dreams and noodles.

As it turned out, I could make a pretty insanely delicious Lemony Chicken Pasta with Cream Sauce.

Seriously, I was really pleased with myself and may or may not have advertised the left overs.
As in, I did not say "oh, there is pasta in the fridge" because I wanted it for lunch the next day.

This was another of my standard "let's see what happens" things where, I mean, clearly I kind of knew what would happen but there was certainly room for error and improvement so I'm only going to give really rough measurements because, honestly, that's how I was doing it.

I plan on making more, though, and then will pay more attention. See, gentle readers, what I do for you?

Oh man I just want to eat this so badly. 

Aaaaaah the deliciousness! 

The Items:
- two chicken breasts (or whatever, it's your chicken), cut into bite sized chunks
- handful of mushrooms, sliced (or quartered, if you like bigger bits)
- cherry tomato, as many as you please! (mine were sliced in half)
- one courgette, sliced
- spinach, rinsed and torn up
- half an onion, chopped
- a lemon, halved
- two-three cloves of garlic, diced nice'n'small
- about half a cup of white wine (I used much of a single-serving bottle)
- 3/4 cup (maybe? I'm really just guessing) heavy cream (or half and half, we just happened to have the cream)
- butter, pepper, salt, basil, etc, olive oil

- pasta. Amish! Or any other kind at all!  I'd wanted a basil pasta for this, I'll be honest.

The Instructions:

Boil the water for the pasta, follow directions. When the pasta is finished, drain and add spinach and stir with a touch of butter. It'll wilt the spinach a bit.

Put a bit of olive oil and butter in a pan and let heat up, then add the onion and garlic, cook for a minute. Add in the chicken and season with pepper, a little salt, and plenty of basil. If you'd like to use another seasoning, then you ought to do so. Squeeze in half of a lemon - watch out for seeds! When the chicken is just cooked through (five minutes, probs), then chuck in the veg (save the tomato) and cook up. Add some of the wine, stir, let cook. Add tomato, the rest of your wine, the cream, and the rest of the lemon (still watching out for seeds).

Check flavors, let reduce, add to pasta. All in all this can be done in I'd say under an hour. It's super easy and super delicious and seriously I love it. I wish I'd had fresh basil or some bell peppers, but did not have those things. I ate mine with some french bread because, damn it, I love me some sauced-up bread. This tastes like spring, I'm not even kidding.

Stress and Limited Options = Delicious Dinner Time!

Not an awesome picture, but totally awesome food. 

Does anyone know where one can get a dirt cheap, not sucky camera?

Sigh. Nom. Nom. 

Oops. Got distracted by delicious food. 

It's probably because I am fantastically creative and clever, but I'd like to point out that my brain has been on the verge of exploding lately and that today - while a good day - involved nearly no sleep, insane amounts of coffee, and, around the time I was making dinner, a headache that was not helped even by Torchwood. 

Whilst I was staring into the abyss known as my post-rent, pre-payday fridge, debating on what to make and if I really wanted anything anyway and just how many poached eggs can one eat before, in fact, becoming an egg themselves...I decided to go a dinner-route that occasionally works wonderfully. I just start chopping things and figure eventually, inspiration will strike. Does it alway work? Oh, god no. 

This time, though, it did. 


I hadn't really gotten into the idea even when I began slicing the chicken, but then a bag of whole wheat flour caught my eye and I realized I had some chopped potato already boiling and...well...I went with it. The boys were stealing bits from the get go and I've been mightily praised and even though I don't have a decent camera at the moment, I camera-phoned it to share. 

This is the first on what I hope to be several attempts at finding my perfect chicken tender ability. I'm really looking forward to locking this recipe down.

I'm giving the recipe as I made it, which means that it isn't enough. Ha. I was fine, I actually feel too full, but then again - I did have some bread and such and am just not feeling at my peak today. 


Ultra Delicious Chicken Tenders 


- one large chicken breast, cut into thin strips or bits, however you prefer. Fat and gross bits removed.
- a small cup of milk
- a few tablespoons whole wheat flour
- pepper, Lawry's Seasoning Salt (and when did that get in the kitchen? I couldn't find my actual salt at first.), a teaspoon or two of Gateway to the North Seasoning or, alternatively, a lemony-garlicky seasoning (see - Trinidad Lemon-Garlic Seasoning) Use any spice you like! I'd suggest things with a touch of spice, but then again, I really peppered mine up to make up for the slight hit of sweetness from the maple flavor of Gateway to the North.
- oil, tablespoonish? Not loads.


I soaked the chicken in the milk and then dredged it through my coating of flour and seasoning. After getting a nice amount of flour on, I chucked them in batches into a frying pan I'd heated up some oil in.


Cook on both side, until cooked through, and then scowl at the people trying to eat your food before you can. I had this alongside a mushroom-and-onion-filled mashed potato, but a salad would be killer or fries or anything. It's quite delicious, cooks in a flash, and thrills everyone. I find that pan frying it gets a nice bit of snap to it but also is better than deep fried. 


Not that I don't love me some fried.


I'm excited to try other ways to do this - oven bake! Different crusts! Oh, the dreams I have! 

Lock It Down Red Curry

Matt's arm, holding his massive Boy Dish of Curry.

This is the first in, hopefully, a line of recipes that make someone want to "lock it down". As in, Jamie Oliver or Nigella Lawson (who, I confess, was the basis for this curry until I completely went off the road with it) would swoon a bit. Gordon Ramsay would say "Well done, my darling". Bourdain would tell me I didn't suck and, well, what else could any one else desire?

Seriously. I've finally gotten down the spicy level down to a T and think it's all swimmingly delicious.

CAST OF CHARACTERSplease ignore the two handles of whiskey in the background. and the ashtray.
and yes, there are missing items.
this picture is just too funny to NOT post.

- (i had white, but have also used yellow and come on, play with it!) onion, chopped up
- as many cloves of garlic as your little heart desires, diced
- basil
- chicken breast, sliced into long thin bits
- mushrooms, sliced
- sweet potatoes, chopped (i peeled mine, do as you like)
- potatoes, chopped (i mostly peeled them, again, do as you like)
- garbanzo beans, one can, drained
- coconut milk, one can
- fish sauce
- toasted sesame oil
- red curry paste (mine was made from a powder blend i purchased at the spice house, then made with the fish sauce and a little water) - a few tbs, as desired for spiciness.
- pepper
- Trinidad-style lemon-garlic marinade seasoning (also from the spice house - it's a blend of lemon peel, garlic, cloves, ginger, and kosher salt according to the website. i am addicted to this and love love love it in just about everything, ever. god i love the spice house.)
- wide rice noodles
- about a cup of chicken broth
- the green bits of scallions, chopped roughly, for the top.

(note: you can also use mangoes, if desired, or replace the beans with butternut squash. rice instead of noodles or change out the broth, any of the veg, etc etc. who says it has to be chicken? i've made it with shrimp when i found some on sale frozen shrimps. do what you will.)

Throw the onion, garlic, and basil in a pan and stir with some oil and a bit of butter until softened a bit. Add chicken, season with pepper and the trinidad seasoning. Add a little sesame oil. Cook until tender and delicious, even if not totally cooked through. Add the curry paste and stir. I then add the broth, the coconut milk, and a few dashes of fish sauce. Stir, throw in veg, the beans, let cook.

Try not to eat the screen, but really, I understand if you forget and reach out to steal a bite.

When nearly done, cook your noodles as per the directions on the packet.

Clearly, taste and season as you desire. More garlic? Less pepper? More salt? Whichever! Fresh ginger, sliced or grated, is also an amazing addition - put it in the start, with the onion and garlic.

You can mix the noodles and the curry together at the start or pour the curry over, then mix them for leftovers. There is no wrong way. Sprinkle the dish with the scallions, if you are using it. Then watch your roommates profess their undying love and make demands.

Ali, sprinkiling her food with scallion bits.

It's hard to demand with your mouth full, though. So you can pretend to ignore it.

The whole thing, after prep, takes about half hour or so, it's terribly fast. And depending on how much you are hanging out, drinking, doing by yourself...the prep could take no time at all!

ENJOY. And let me know if this nets you any action.

NOM NOM NOM

Easy, easy, easy quesadillas. Belatedly Posted.

Yes, it was Cinco de Mayo and yes, that was sort of why I did it, but honestly? I love quesadillas. It's practically the only thing I order at any Mexican resturant, it's why I sometimes go to Qdoba, it's just delicious. Crisp tortilla, melty cheese, delicious fillings...oh, man, I want one right now just thinking about it. To be sure, part of the reason I order it so much is the ease of dealing with my allergies and the fact that so many different things can go in it. I recently had one that had shrimp, mushrooms, and green peppers. MELT.

So, bored and thrilled with how beautiful the day was and appreciative of the fact that a busy few days was about to kick off, I wandered off and gathered up some ingredients and then, somewhere around ten at night, got to cooking. No sooner did a tasty 'dilla come of the pan was it eaten, happily, with the guacomole I made (with help, sort of, as I got one of my roommates to smash up the avocado and mix in the tomato and onion, so I will give some props) and some sour cream. No photos! I will later post photos of hanging out and eating cake or something - so you can get the idea of fun, happy, delicious times.

The fun part of picking flour tortillas is a) there are less options, so I have to obsess over the ingredients less and b) the store sometimes has locally made ones so I can hunt for them! I'm so partial to Chicago produced things.

Clearly, you can do whatever you want to a quesadilla. I recommend getting the actual delicious quesadilla cheese, but I was pressed for time and ended up just getting the packet of cheese at Jewel that said "Mexican Cheese! Four-cheese-style!" (as opposed to the various other kinds. at least I tried.). More on cheese I like to get at the tienda later though. Another post later, not later on here. Sorry! Hopes dashed!

My cleverly prepared counter contained...

- tomato, chopped
- onion, diced
- garlic, minced
- orange bell pepper, sliced and then chopped
- chicken, cut into smallish pieces
- mushrooms, chopped
- butter, knob of
- oil
- dill, salt, pepper

- flour tortillas
- avocado, turned guacamole by being mashed with some more chopped tomato and some diced onion. then one or two dashes of salt.
- sour cream
- the aforementioned cheese

Now. Ordinarily, I would cook up the meat and veg and everything and then set about making the food. However. I have picky roommates. One is a vegetarian (which is cool) and one doesn't eat mushrooms (or courgettes, actually) and so since I like all these things (and so does the third roommate), I just opted to cook everything seperately and put them in their own dishes. So in the end, it was sort of a quesadilla bar.

At any rate, some garlic and onion and chicken go in with some oil and a bit of butter, seasoned happily and when pretty much still deliciously tender put in dish. Salt, pepper, dill. I then cooked up the yellow peppers with a little onion and garlic and pepper, salt. Follow with mushrooms! More butter, more pepper and salt, the last bit of the onion and garlic. (I just divided what I would want in the whole thing, so as to not have overpowering things. not that there is "too much" garlic)

Now, in a now-clean pan, I drop a tortilla and sprinkle cheese. Then I sprinkle some more cheese! Add whichever fillings that particular person wants, put in more cheese. This is a quesadilla, people! Cheese is key! And after topping it with another tortilla (my flour tortillas are smallish) and pressing for a second to help it stick, carefully flip it over. Continue waiting and flipping until satisfied with melty-state and crispy-state.

Serve with sour cream and guac, rejoice in deliciousness. Accept praise and presents, as surely one must follow the other?

I really, really, really love quesadillas.

Being broke doesn't mean you don't eat.

Club Kitchen was well underway yesterday when I realized that I was going to need dinner, not just cupcakes. I'm not sure why I thought I would need something else, but I did and oh man, was it ever as delicious as I'd hoped it would be.

Since being unemployed, I've been finding ways to try and make every penny count. Now, I've always tried to live cheaply, but these days it isn't as easy as it used to be. Or maybe it is, but I'm just more stressed out about it. That tends to get in the way. Then I caught a lucky break.

Lentils. A delicious bean that was only a dollar per bag at the grocery store. A dollar! I swear, I was filled with a great joy when I saw the orange price tag. I can't even remember the last time I cooked lentils, but they were cheaper than the pinto beans I had originally gone to buy. So, I'm standing there in the grocery store and I realize - lentils! I have a carrot at home! I have some chicken! Mushrooms!

LENTIL SOUP! For under five dollars! (or maybe just over? the lady didn't charge me for the onions.)

- chopped onion
- sliced mushrooms
- thinly sliced carrot
- minced garlic cloves
- one and half chicken breasts, cut into bits
- chicken broth (rather, i chucked a bullion cube into the water)
- lentils, not quite a cup
- seasonings of my delicious choice
- drizzle of vanilla

I cooked the lentils according to the packet instructions, using the chicken broth instead of plain water. Towards the end of the beans cooking, I sauteed the onion and garlic with a little butter and oil - then cooked the chicken bits, then added the veg. Seasoned with salt, some dill, a quick dash of cayenne, and the barest hint of honey.

I added the veg/chicken to the lentils and let everything rest while I made very quick drop biscuits.

Super delicious. Super affordable. Super happy supper.

And since yesterday was a blustery, rainy, awfully grey Chicago day? It was exactly what was needed.

My First Wok, My Latest Stir-fry.

The wok you see in the picture is the first wok I ever purchased. I was a junior in college and had my very own studio apartment, complete with a separate, real-sized kitchen. The majority of my kitchen supplies came from a previous roommate (he had far too many pots and pans, thus I got the battered ones) and a run to Ikea for things like knives and silverware and dishes. It wasn't until several months later that I decided I wanted a wok and I bundled myself up and went down the street to the local Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Once there, I agonized over which one I wanted, did I want a steamer, was a bamboo spatula really a good idea, did I plan on frying things... My first real kitchen purchase, not done because I needed the item, persay, but because I wanted it.

I made a selection. Sort of a My First Wok kit, but I think I actually giggled when I paid for it and hustled it back to my studio.

I loved that wok.

I didn't just stir-fry my food with it. I used it as if all the skillets and pots I had previous used had suddenly vanished, as if I didn't have a perfectly good microwave - I'd reheat my leftover Thai food, I made soup, and I vividly remember using my new wok to make a grilled cheese sandwich. At the time, I swore it was the best grilled cheese I had ever had, but that was really just the novelty.

Also, I really enjoyed saying "wok wok wok" under my breath whenever I used it.

Inventive (or strangeness, but who is to say which?) aside, I did use that wok to work on stir-frying meals for myself and, later, others. This was not the first time I set about to cook something, this was not the first time I fell for my kitchen, but this did really kick-start a passion in me to work on my cooking skills. Like many poor college students, sometimes my "gourmet cuisine" was actually a packet of ramen noodles with added peas and a quickly scrambled egg. And, really, there is nothing wrong with that fast (delicious) lunch.

I love stir-fry, love having crisp veg and tender chicken, love figuring out sauces and flavors and how easy it feels to accomplish a pretty healthy meal. I ditched (read: gave to a friend) my wok when I moved across the country, but didn't reclaim it when I returned to Chicago. I had gotten over the joy of a wok and just started using pans, but about a week ago I moved in with a friend of mine.

She has a wonderfully sized kitchen - better than my last two apartments. She has a wok. She (now, we, I suppose) also happen to live very close to Thai Nam and a host of other amazing places and restaurants. So, when I decided that I wanted to cook a stir-fry, I scoped out some produce places nearby and gathered chicken and the veg that I wanted and then dropped by Thai Nam to pick up noodles. Then, enjoying some white wine, I put together this dish.


Tipsy Chicken and Wide Rice Noodles

- rice flake noodles
- extra virgin sesame oil
- grapeseed oil
- soy sauce
- white wine
- boneless, skinless chicken breast (cut into chunks)
- half a large onion (roughly chopped)
- mushrooms (sliced)
- red bell pepper (sliced) (you can also add any other color peppers as well)
- snow peas (although, I forgot them, so I used regular frozen)
- celery (sliced thin)
- garlic (however many cloves you want, sliced thin or diced)
- basil
- water chestnuts or bamboo shoots (or both or none)

First off, boil some water and pour it over the noodles in a large bowl. Follow the directions on the packet (for however many noodles you want), but I tend to let them soak around seven minutes. I generally forget that I've got them waiting for me, but when they are done they will be white, opaque, and, well, it's cooked noodles. Sticky to touch, but still cooked noodles. You'll drain them, then ignore them.

Now, add your cooking oil (I used grapeseed, but peanut or canola are also fine) to the wok. Add garlic, basil, and onion. Stir for a few minutes, then add chicken. Season a little, stirring plenty, and pour in a small amount of wine (a few tablespoons, though you can more if you prefer. you could leave the whole thing out if you wanted.). As the wine cooks off, you should add some soy sauce and sesame oil, then cook chicken through. Add veg and cook until most are quite tender - the celery and water chestnuts will still be crisp. Drizzle some honey onto the mixture and keep stirring. You'll likely want a little more seasoning and soy sauce/sesame oil.

Add in the now-cooked and drained noodles. Continue to stir-fry until the noodles are heated and seasoned. You may need to add more oil at any point during this process, as you do not want anything sticking to the pan. When everything is cooked and seasoned to your satisfaction, simply remove from heat and serve still warm.


There are a lot of variations on this dish and I know there are things I wanted to have done differently (some changes I already made to this recipe), but I threw this together just a few nights ago and was pretty pleased with it. And, anyway, I haven't had the time to perfect it like my Mango-Chicken Stir-fry.