30 S – Roast Chicken, Biscuits, Carrots, Green Beans
1 U – Black Bean Chicken Tacos, Mexican Couscous
2 M – Pasta with Pesto and Sausage, Salad, Garlic Bread
3 T – BBQ Steak with Dale Seasoning, Mac and Cheese, Green Peas
4 W – church dinner
5 R – Spaghetti, Garlic Bread, Carrot Sticks
6 F – Teriyaki Chicken, Jasmine Rice, Carrots
7 S – Beef Fajitas, Grilled Veggies, Refried Beans
8 U – L.O. Spaghetti, Garlic Bread, Carrot Sticks
9 M - Hot Wings, Sweet Potato Fries
10 T – Corn Dogs
11 W – church dinner
12 R – Eat with Family
13 F – "Ethnic" Food
No links this week. All this food is the sort of stuff you don't need a recipe for - except the Mexican Couscous and I got that recipe from a grocery store flyer. If you would like the recipe, please leave a comment and I will be happy to provide it.
The first two meals on this list are a combination meal called Rubber Chicken (scroll to the bottom of the page from this link). Basically you roast a whole chicken one day, serve it with a multitude of side dishes and pick off all the left over chicken for a 2nd chicken dish the next night. If one chicken won't feed your family, you might do the same thing with 2 chickens.
I'll be out of town after the 9th, so the 9th and 10th are "Bachelor Foods" Rob really likes! (He eats the Sweet Potato fries with italian dressing.) He'll be joining us on Thursday night at my parents house.
Friday night we're going out with my family for real country food - a bonafide fish farm in Leola, Arkansas - Dorey's Catfish Resturant. This place is located in the middle of nowhere (if I remember correctly, directions include "Turn off the Paved Road..."), but is a local smash-hit. It is packed out regularly and has real South Arkansas food. They even have a pet deer. I classified it as "Ethnic Food" - celebrate your own heritage by going out to a resturant that celebrates food the way your grandma would make it.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Hold the Food Coloring
Looking for a unique party game? Try, guess the secret icing igredient! What brings the green to the party in this turtle cake? Avocado!
Avocado has many applications beyond guacamole. And if you think you don't like the chunky green stuff, think of this - it has all the funky flavor of a butter bean, the taste is so mild that it can really only contribute texture and color. Need to ice a cake golf course green? Either buy two big bottles of food dye and start squirting or try this easy recipe:
Avocado Buttercream Icing *
2 small to medium avocados - diced
2 teaspoons freshly squeeze lemon juice
1 lb sifted powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
Combine avocado and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and mix on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Slowly add the sugar until completely combined. Add extract and mix well. Icing will be sticky. If it's too thick add a little milk until you get the consistency you need.
The taste is lemony and not too sweet. It's not suitable for decorating, just icing the cake. Be sure to not cut the avocados until right before you are ready to make the icing. The avocado will turn brown unless it is combined with lemon juice.
*Alton Brown, Good Eats, Food Network, as posted on www.foodtv.com
Avocado has many applications beyond guacamole. And if you think you don't like the chunky green stuff, think of this - it has all the funky flavor of a butter bean, the taste is so mild that it can really only contribute texture and color. Need to ice a cake golf course green? Either buy two big bottles of food dye and start squirting or try this easy recipe:
Avocado Buttercream Icing *
2 small to medium avocados - diced
2 teaspoons freshly squeeze lemon juice
1 lb sifted powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
Combine avocado and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and mix on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Slowly add the sugar until completely combined. Add extract and mix well. Icing will be sticky. If it's too thick add a little milk until you get the consistency you need.
The taste is lemony and not too sweet. It's not suitable for decorating, just icing the cake. Be sure to not cut the avocados until right before you are ready to make the icing. The avocado will turn brown unless it is combined with lemon juice.
*Alton Brown, Good Eats, Food Network, as posted on www.foodtv.com
Thursday, September 14, 2006
The Skinny on Fat
Fat in foods is bad right? Well not always. A few years ago the battle was between saturated and unsaturated fats, now the drum beats loudest against trans-fats, but what's what and how do you know the difference? It's easy:
Unsaturated fats are fats that are liquid at room temperature - for example olive oil is an unsaturated fat.
Saturated fats are fats that are solid at room temperature - butter is a saturated fat.
Trans-fats are unsaturated fats that have been chemically changed so that they are solid at room temperature - shortening, for example, is a trans-fat. The trans-fat you hear a lot of ire towards is partially-hydrogenated soy-bean oil - if an ingredient list of a packaged food includes this trans-fat, it means that regular vegetable oil was chemically changed to a solid before being added so that the product would have a longer shelf life. Trans-fats are a little tricky. Margarine is an unsaturated fat - because it is made with vegetable oils, but it is solid, so it is a trans-fat.
We don't have to run scared from all fats. Our bodies need some fat. I think it helps to know how they work so that you know when you can use a healthier fat (like olive oil) in place of a less healthy fat. Sometimes only butter will do to achieve the results you want. Different fats melt at different temperatures and speeds. Shortening makes for a tender cookie, but butter adds taste. Mixing the two can give you both postive attributes. When frying using different kinds of fats can affect cooking speed because some fats can get hotter than others without burning.
Unsaturated fats are fats that are liquid at room temperature - for example olive oil is an unsaturated fat.
Saturated fats are fats that are solid at room temperature - butter is a saturated fat.
Trans-fats are unsaturated fats that have been chemically changed so that they are solid at room temperature - shortening, for example, is a trans-fat. The trans-fat you hear a lot of ire towards is partially-hydrogenated soy-bean oil - if an ingredient list of a packaged food includes this trans-fat, it means that regular vegetable oil was chemically changed to a solid before being added so that the product would have a longer shelf life. Trans-fats are a little tricky. Margarine is an unsaturated fat - because it is made with vegetable oils, but it is solid, so it is a trans-fat.
We don't have to run scared from all fats. Our bodies need some fat. I think it helps to know how they work so that you know when you can use a healthier fat (like olive oil) in place of a less healthy fat. Sometimes only butter will do to achieve the results you want. Different fats melt at different temperatures and speeds. Shortening makes for a tender cookie, but butter adds taste. Mixing the two can give you both postive attributes. When frying using different kinds of fats can affect cooking speed because some fats can get hotter than others without burning.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
September 16 - 29, 2006
16 S – Spicy BBQ Chicken, Southwestern Rice Salad, Deviled Eggs
17 U – L.O. Spaghetti, Garlic Bread
18 M – Simple Unfried Chicken, Baked Beans, Carrots, Biscuits
19 T – Taco in a Pan, Tortilla Chips
20 W – church dinner
21 R – Grilled Chicken, Shells with Tomato and Basil, Carrot Sticks
22 F – Roast Turkey, Sweet Potatoes, Corn, Green Peas, Biscuits
23 S – Prairie Land Pot Roast
24 U – L.O. Prairie Land Pot Roast
25 M – Chicken Fried Steak, Green Peas, Carrots
26 T – 40 Cloves and a Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Green Beans
27 W – church dinner
28 R – Creamy Chicken Curry, Basmati Rice
29 F – Crispy Onion Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Green Beans
Making most of your food from scratch is not only a money saver, it's also a calorie cutter - or it can be! When you make your own foods you control what type of fats are used, how much salt is added, etc. You also can eliminate unnecessary and potentially unhealthy preservatives many convience foods contain.
I can't seem to make the hyperlinks work this week. If you would like the recipe to any of these meals, please leave a comment and I will help you out.
17 U – L.O. Spaghetti, Garlic Bread
18 M – Simple Unfried Chicken, Baked Beans, Carrots, Biscuits
19 T – Taco in a Pan, Tortilla Chips
20 W – church dinner
21 R – Grilled Chicken, Shells with Tomato and Basil, Carrot Sticks
22 F – Roast Turkey, Sweet Potatoes, Corn, Green Peas, Biscuits
23 S – Prairie Land Pot Roast
24 U – L.O. Prairie Land Pot Roast
25 M – Chicken Fried Steak, Green Peas, Carrots
26 T – 40 Cloves and a Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Green Beans
27 W – church dinner
28 R – Creamy Chicken Curry, Basmati Rice
29 F – Crispy Onion Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Green Beans
Making most of your food from scratch is not only a money saver, it's also a calorie cutter - or it can be! When you make your own foods you control what type of fats are used, how much salt is added, etc. You also can eliminate unnecessary and potentially unhealthy preservatives many convience foods contain.
I can't seem to make the hyperlinks work this week. If you would like the recipe to any of these meals, please leave a comment and I will help you out.
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