In Honor of a New "Top Chef"...

So, in honor of a new "Top Chef" on tonight, I thought i'd blog about my Top Chef: Emporia experience. And what an experience it was.

First off, it started with me climbing the stairs on a Monday morning to my Mass Comm. class and seeing a flier on the wall, announcing a Quickfire challenge in the Union that afternoon. I think, why the hell not? So I go about my day and was going through the Union a little later in the afternoon. I see the table set up, and I was like, Oh yeah! I'm gonna do that! So the challenge? To smell and identify20 herbs and spices. Just smell and look at herbs and spices. That was a lot of fun. So, I hand my sheet into the people and I wait.

So, a couple of days later, I get this e-mail that says i'm 1 of 6 people in the finals! So a few days later, we meet with the people putting it on, the UAC and Sudexo. We learned that we were doing a pasta challenge, and we have 45 minutes to put together our pasta with one secret ingredient that we can bring. My choice secret ingredient? Tomato Sauce. That's right. Tomato Sauce. My pasta that I made? Pizza Pasta! (See the recipe in one of the first posts).

So, a few days after this is "Game Day". We met up in the Union at like 7 or something like that. We got to walk around the space and see our stations. We had a Bounty table that we could go back and forth to. I ended up using sausage, hamburger, spaghettie, olives, mushrooms, basil, orangeno, garlic, toamotes, and a bunch of cheese. And I think that was it. So we all had 45 minutes to cook. The pasta was all pre-cooked so that was nice, as was the meat. That way we didn't have to worry about that. So basically I cooked my sauce first and then heated up my pasta and then mixed the two together. And then plated and served.

I'm not sure how I ended up against everyone, but I know I had A LOT of fun.

So here's a couple of pictures
And that's my Top Chef experience!

Till the next time,
Happy Eating!

"Chickty China and the Chinese Chicken, Have Drumstick and your Brain Starts Tickin'"

Love that song! And it kind of applies to today's entry, in which we go around the world once again, this time to China!

I present to you: Chicken and Broccoli

So I've made this recipe numerous times now. And it's one of the few ways I get myself to eat broccoli, because broccoli is not my favorite vegetable. But I love this, and I also pair it with fried rice, which I actually took the recipe from foodnetwork.com and adapted it to fit my own needs. And you know those sugar biscuits you get at Chinese buffets? I'll show you how to make those too. So lets get started! And my appologies, I don't have any pictures for this entry, seeing as when I made it last, I didn't know that I would be needing to take pictures of it. So here we go.

Chicken and Broccoli

You Need:
1 bunch of broccoli
1 package of chicken tender breasts
1 bottle of La Choy Garlic Ginger sauce (if there's an off brand avaliable, feel free to use that)
1 tablespoon of peanut butter

1. Bring some water to a boil in a medium sized pot. Cut up your broccoli.
2. Cook your broccoli uncovered for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse.
3. In a medium sized skillet, heat some EVOO over medium heat.
4. Cut up your chicken and cook till it's done.
5. In the same pan, add your broccoli and your sauce (use half the bottle if it's 1-3 people, the whole bottle if it's more than 3) and your peanut butter. Stir together and let simmer on low heat till thick.
6. Serve and ENJOY!

Fried Rice
You Need:

1 package of brown rice
1 bunch of green onions
1 medium sized onion
1 package of frozen peas and carrots (if you can't find it, use a bag of baby carrots and frozen peas)
2 eggs
Garlic
Ginger
Salt
Pepper
Soy Sauce

1. Cook the rice according to the directions on the package, and then stick in the fridge for a couple of hours to overnight. Get it nice and cold. I like to cook my rice with chicken broth, but if you perfer water go right ahead.

2. In a medium sized skillet heat up some oil. Put in your garlic and ginger. I wouldn't recommend putting more than 5 or 6 cloves of garlic in, and just a tablespoon or so of ginger. Cook till they become fragrent, and then transfer to a bowl.

3. Put in more oil and put in your green onions and your onion (if you're making it for just a few people, use 3-4 pieces of your green onion and only half of your onion) cook untill fragrent and put in the bowl with your garlic and ginger.

4. Again, put in oil (I use EVOO) in the pan and cook your carrots and peas (I usually cut my carrots into small rounds, but if you want to go even smaller, go right ahead) untill the frost goes away on the peas and they just barely begin to go soft. Transfer to the bowl with the other ingredients.

5. Crack your eggs into a bowl and wish them together. Add the salt and pepper and add more oil to the pan. Pour into the pan and start scrambling till their cooked, but not set all the way, so there will still be some liquid stuff left. Transfer into the bowl with the other ingredients.

6. Add a little bit more oil and the rice into the pan and then cook till it gets heated through. Add the other ingredients and mix till well combined. Add your soy sauce at this point, don't add too much, otherwise it'll taste like soy sauce.

7. Serve and ENJOY!

And last but not least:
Sugar Buscuits

You Need:
1 can of plain buiscuits
1 cup or so of sugar
Butter

1. Heat a medium sized pan over medium heat, add your butter and wait till its melted.

2. Put a buiscuit in the pan and cook for a few seconds on one side and then flip and cook for a few seconds on the other, continue doing this, with a few seconds on each side, till the buiscuit is cooked.

3. Roll in sugar and put on a plate.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the remaining buiscuits

5. Serve and ENJOY!

And that ladies and gentlefolk, is one tasty Asian meal. You can use a sugar subsitute, like Splenda, if you want for the busicuits, but I reccommend using regular sugar. Hope you guys enjoy this as much as I do! :)

Till the next time,
Happy Eating!

Star Wars Fun!

Hey readers! Sorry it's been forever and a day since i've last updated. LOTS has been going on. Since I last updated, I GRADUATED from college and i've moved back home. At least for now. Who knows where I go from here. We'll see though.

I haven't been doing a whole lot of cooking recently. Haven't came up with too many new recipies. I did make my enchiladas again the otherday. This time for my parents.

So, I originally created these recipes for Star Wars Day on the 4th. But since today is Star Wars Birthday, I find that these recipes are appropriate.

So, I give you:
Chewbacca Furballs
Veggie Lightsabers
Princess Leia Pizza Bagel Buns
Death Star Cookies
Yoda Punch

So For Chewbacca Furballs, you need:

1 lb of hamburger meat
1/3 cup of rice
1/2 an onion
1/2 cup of water
little bit of chili powder
BBQ sauce

1. In a large pot heat water up to a boil, add your chili powder and stir it together.

2. In a large bowl, combine your meat, rice, onion, and water.3. Roll your mixture into balls and place in your boiling water. It'll make about 20 or so, depending on how big you roll 'em.

4. Cover the meatballs and reduce the heat and cook for 1 hour.


5. Once cooked, drain the meatballs and return back to the pot with a little bit of water and the BBQ sauce. Keep on low heat till you're ready to serve.

6. Dish up in a bowl and ENJOY!
They may not look like balls, but they are, and they still taste yummy!

Next Up:
Veggie Lightsabers

This is a fun and easy snack that everyone is sure to enjoy. What's more fun than being able to play with and then eat your food?

You Need:
1 bag of baby carrots
1 bunch of celery
1 tub of your favorite chip dip (I used Sour Cream and Chive, but cream cheese or peanut butter or sour cream or whatever works just fine)

1. Rinse your veggies.

2. Take a piece of celery off the stalk, and cut into about 3 in pieces, should make about 3 pieces per stalk.
(ignore the onions, those are for another thing)


3. Spread some of your dip on one piece of celery. Stick a carrot in it, with the skinny end up. Spread a little more dip on the other piece and place ontop of the carrot.

4. Make appropriate Lightsaber sound effects and ENJOY!


Next Up:
Princess Leia Pizza Bagel Buns

If you're craving pizza, but don't want a whole lot, these are fun to make. And eat.

You Need:
1 package of plain or whole wheat bagels
1 small can of tomato paste
1 small can of tomato sauce
Italian Seasonings
Garlic
Basil
Onion (the other half from the Meatballs)
Cheese
Your other favorite pizza toppings

1. Preheat your oven to 350

2. In a saucepan, heat some EVOO over medium heat.

3. Once your pot is hot, add your onions and garlic, cook till their soft.

4. Add your tomato sauce and paste and your seasonings. Heat over a low simmer.

5. Take a bagel and split it in half.

6. Spread on the sauce and then put your toppings on (I used Pepperionie, Green Pepper, Onion, and Cheese)

7. Put in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or untill the cheese is melted.

8. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes.

9. ENJOY!

Next Up:
Yoda Punch

This is a fun way to toast to the little green guy we all love, and it reminds me of Degaboh. His home planet.

So here's what you need and how to make it:

Lime Sherbet
Lemon Lime Soda (7-Up, Sprite, Serria Mist, Store Brand of Lemon-Lime Soda, whichever brand you like)
Glass

1. Put sherbet in bottom of the glass

2. Pour soda over sherbet

3. ENJOY!

And finally:
Death Star Cookies

Simply, what I did was buy store bought cookie dough and decorated them. But they're still fun. So here's the directions anyways!

What You Need:
Your favorite cookie dough (I used store bought chocolate chip, but sugar works best. I don't reccomend oatmeal)
Black decorating gel
Chocolate Sprinkles

1. If your making your cookie dough, make the cookie dough and bake the cookies, If your buying it, bake the cookie dough according to the directions on the package.

2. Let the cookies cool and then open your decorating gel.

3. Outline the cookie, then draw a line in the middle, and draw one more under it, leaving a small gap.

4. Draw a small circle in the upper left region of the cookie, if you used chocolate chip cookie dough, draw a circle around a chocolate chip. Fill it in.

5. Draw lines horizontally. all the way up the cookie, except where that small gap is. Then draw small vertical lines in between the horizontal lines. Like you're drawing bricks. Except don't draw where the gap is.

6. Now this is where it gets time consuming. Outline all of your lines with sprinkles. Except for the outside one. When you do the little circle, put them in an order like spokes on a bicycle wheel.

7. Now after all of your hard work, ENJOY!
I took a bite out of it and realized that it looked like the half-rebuilt Death Star from "Return of the Jedi".
And theres some fun foods for your next Star Wars Day Party!

Have fun guys, and May the Force Be With You!

Till the next time,
Happy Eating!

Enchiladas A'la Kaitlyn

OK, wow, it's been a week since I last updated. I'm sorry followers. Things have gotten kinda crazy around here what with the school year ending and everything. But, I did make enchiladas (well, kind of) for the first time the other night. And they are SCRUMPTIOUS! I've got a few more meals left out of them. Great stuff. So here's the recipe for enchiladas.

Enchiladas A'la Kaitlyn

You Need:

Software:
1 package of Tortillas (I used the Mission Carb Ballance, really good, you can't taste the difference between the low-carb and the regular)
4 chicken tenders (you can buy them in a package at your meat counter, and i'm not talking about the breaded ones, i'm talking about the boneless-skinless ones)
1 can of green chilies (it's the medium sized can, not sure of the oz size)
1 can of black beans (the regular sized can)
1 tub of sour cream (I used the light kind, cause it was the cheapest)
1 tub of cream cheese (I used the light kind, cause it was the cheapest)
1 can of enchilada sauce (the regular size, I don't know the oz size)
1 package of shredded Mexican cheese blend (regular size)
2 limes
Any other toppings you want (such as tomato and onions, which I just used leftover from my nachos last week (see previous entry.))

Hardware:
Large Baking Dish
Large Mixing Bowl
Wooden spoon
Spoon
Knife
Skillet

Here's all the ingredients laid out.


1. Preheat your oven to 350.

2. Take a baking dish and spray it with non-stick cooking spray. I used my biggest pan, I don't remember the size right off the top of my head.Here's the chicken tenders.

3. Take your chicken tenders and cut them into medium sized chunks. While doing that, heat a skillet over medium heat and put a little bit of EVOO in the pan.
Here's the chicken all cut up, and the EVOO in the pan.
4. Once your chicken is cut and your pan is hot, cook your chicken till it's done.
Uncooked Chicken

Cooked Chicken
5. Once your chicken is cooked. Put it in your mixing bowl.

6. Add your green chilies, black beans, half the can of enchilada sauce, 1/4 of the tub of sour cream, 1/2 the tub of cream cheese, 1/2 the bag of shredded cheese, and the juice of 2 limes. Mix till well combined.

7. Take a tortilla and place it in your baking dish. Put some of the mixture in the tortilla and fold. Keep adding the mixture to the tortillas till all the tortillas and mixture is used up.


8. Once you have all your tortillas filled and folded, add any remaining mixture on top of your tortillas. Add the rest of the enchilada sauce, your toppings and the rest of the cheese.

9. Put in the oven for 30 minutes.All folded up. Yeah...I'm not very good at folding tortillas.

And these are what they look like when you top them.
10. Remove and let cool, serve with sour cream and salsa if you wish.

This is what they look like out of the oven
And these are what they look like all plated up! mmmm!






11. Enjoy!


And that, ladies and gentlefolk, is Enchiladas A'la Kaitlyn! :)

Till the next time,
Happy Eating!