White Clam Pizza

I really liked the flavors to this pizza. They were tangy and nice. My only problem was with the pizza dough. I used the Pillsbury thick crust. First off, I don't like thick crust or deep dish pizza, there is just way too much bread. Thin crust is the way to go for me. And I later found out that the Pillsbury pre-made pizza dough has partially hydrogenated oils, which means trans fats! Horrible. I would never purchase that particular dough again. I would have liked to make the dough myself in my breadmaker but I was just short on time. Also, the Pillsbury dough didn't need kneading, which I also didn't read before I started to kneed it, because I was rushing and being careless.

White Clam Pizza
Serves 4

3 large cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 lb. refrigerated pizza dough
All-purpose flour, for kneading
Cornmeal, for dusting
Kosher salt
1/2 cup thinly slice mozzarella cheese (4-oz.)
2 6.5-oz cans chopped clams, juice drained and reserved
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
2 tbs. grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups baby arugula
Juice of 1 lemon
Red pepper flakes for topping (I love this stuff on all my pizzas!)

1. Preheat oven to 500F. Place a pizza stone or upside down rimmed baking sheet (what I used) on the bottom rack.
2. In a small bowl, mix the garlic and 1/4 cup olive oil. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough about 6 times. Roll and stretch into a 12-in round. Place dough on a baking sheet dusted with cornmeal.
3. Brush half the garlic oil over the dough and season with salt. Spread mozzarella and clams over the crust. Drizzle 2 tbs. clam juice and remaining olive oil on top. Sprinkle oregano, Parmesan, and salt to taste.
4. Slide the pizza onto the preheated pizza stone or upside down baking sheet. Bake 13-15 minutes or until the crust is light brown.
5. Right before the pizza is done, mix the arugula with olive oil and lemon juice. 
6. Slice the pizza and top each piece with arugula and season with red pepper flakes.

 

Adapted from Great Easy Meals

Christmas Tree

My phone was glitching out all day yesterday. It only let me upload half the posts that I wanted to. And I finally got it to upload the rest today. That thing runs out of battery so fast, so annoying. This happens every time Apple releases a new Iphone and iOS. The new iOS sucks the battery life out of the old Iphone.

By the way, it looks like there's a huge gap in posts from September to November. That's where basically all those posts I just uploaded these past two days came from. I just got too lazy to upload. I can usually manage 1 or 2 posts a day. Plus after I make the food I'm all tired and just wanna veg out for a bit.

We set up the Christmas tree at the office today. Usually I try and take a long time doing it, putting care in to make the tree look good, balance the amount of red with silver/white. But today I just kinda threw it all together. Plus Bo helped so it went by pretty fast. The tree looks pretty nice though. I want to put up the one for our house, but I think we'll wait til my sister gets back from college. I think her finals are next week. So she ends pretty early compared to other colleges I know of.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I got this recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies off of the Quaker Oats can lid. They are my mom's favorite cookies, so I make them for her every once in a while. They are nice, soft, and chewy. Sometimes they look a little underdone when I first pull them out of the oven, but let them sit a cool for a bit and they come out pretty.

 

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Makes 48 cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 6 tbs. butter, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 cups old fashioned Quaker oats

1 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Beat together butter and sugars in a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy.

2. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

3. In another bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt. Mix well.

4. Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and beat to combine. 

5. Mix in oats and raisins.

6. Spoon dough onto ungreased cookie sheets, dividing the dough so you end up with 48 equally sized cookies. 

7. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The cookies should be a light golden brown. Cool for a minute on the cookie sheets then store in an airtight container.

Mac and Cheese, Roast Beef Sandwich, French Bread

I made this meal a while ago. I can't remember where I found the macaroni and cheese recipe or the french bread recipe. But I remember the mac and cheese wasn't that good. The family didn't like it, said it tasted too much like herbs, which is something I'd have to agree with. And the cheese was too bitter tasting for the kids. The kids did, however, like the sandwich. My brother liked it enough to ask for seconds, which never happens! So I was pretty stoked!

Roast Beef Sandwich with Watercress and Horseradish Sauce
Serves 4

Sauce
1/4 cup plain Greek nonfat yogurt
1/4 cup prepared horseradish
2 tbs. mayonnaise
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Sandwich
1 bunch watercress, thick stems removed
4 small french baguettes, or (two large-ish ones cut in half)
3/4 lb. lean roast beef, thinly sliced
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced

1. Sauce: combine yogurt, horseradish, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and stir.
2. Sandwich: spread sauce on the bottom and top halves of the bread. Start building the sandwich by layering the bottom piece of bread, then 1/4 cup watercress, a few slices of roast beef, tomato, and onion to your desire. Top with the top half of the bread. You're good to go.

Happy Halloween

I carved my first pumpkin this Halloween with some friends. It was pretty fun. I think I want to do a pumpkin next year too! I tried to pick a design that wasn't too intricate because I thought it would be easier to carve. I think my pumpkin turned out pretty well. It molded by the end of the weekend though :[ There's special pumpkin carving knives that we used. I had to scoop out all the pumpkin guts beforehand too.

My pumpkin! It's supposed to be a cute bat cartoon character.

Natalie cleaning out her pumpkin.

Splash Cafe's Clam Chowder

My sister took me to Splash Cafe when I went to visit her a few weekends ago. Let me just say I was freezing cold in SLO. She warned me that it would be cold but I definitely was not prepared for how terribly cold it was. I needed multiple layers, a thick jacket, scarf, gloves... it still wasn't enough. I tell you, when I move I know I'm going to miss SoCal weather. I love the warmth and sunshine.

The clam chowder at Splash was supposed to be really good. But to be honest I liked the chowder I had at this fish market my sister took me to better. Splash Cafe's had a much higher amount of cream in their chowder I believe. I can't taste cream very well, so it doesn't do much for me flavor wise. So overall it wasn't anything special for me.

 

Clam Chowder

Porto's Cheese Rolls

A drug rep brought these cheese rolls from Porto's in to the office. I've been wanting to go to Porto's bakery for a while now. I really hope I get to go before I move. I don't have that many weekends left but since winter break is coming up, I hope that will mean more time to spend with people before I leave.

The cheese rolls were good. Nice and sweet, they taste like a cheese danish to me. I ate two, which is one more than I originally intended to eat. They contain too many calories for me to want to think about.

Cheese rolls

Flaky crust topped with sugar, creamy cheese filling.

Slow Cooker Texas Chili

For some reason, the meat in this chili came out dry. And I was really sad because it seemed like it would've taste really good. I don't know what happened. Maybe I just picked a bad batch of meat? It was too old or something? Would that affect it? I don't even know. I was also surprised at the gigantic amount of chili powder the recipe called for, and it wasn't even spicy. I made the chili with a side of boxed cornbread mix, which I decided I don't like because it tastes like chemicals. I'd rather make my cornbread from scratch.

Slow Cooker Texas Chili
Serves 6

2 1/2 lbs. beef chuck, cut into 2-in. cubes
2 tbs. packed light brown sugar
Kosher salt
2 tbs. vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, smashed
2 4.5-oz cans chopped green chiles, drained
1 tbs. ground cumin
3/4 cup chili powder
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes with chiles
2 tbs. green hot sauce
Sliced scallions, fresh cilantro, sour cream for toppings

1. Toss the beef with 1 tbs. each of brown sugar and salt in a large bowl. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the beef in batches for 4-5 minutes until browned. Transfer to 5 to 6 quart slow cooker.
2. Reduce heat to medium, add onion to skillet and cook for 5 minutes until soft. Stir in garlic, chiles, cumin, chili powder, and cook for 3 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups water and tomatoes. Simmer for 3 minutes, scraping bits from the bottom. Transfer to slow cooker, cover, and cook on low for 7 hours.
3. Add 1 tbs. brown sugar and hot sauce to the chili. Add desired toppings.

 

Adapted from Great Easy Meals

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Made this pumpkin gooey butter cake because I was getting into the fall mood. Fall and winter have got some of the best dishes. The cake part is extremely dense, so much so that my friend thought it was a pie crust. The taste is good but I think my pan was too small. The pumpkin topping overflowed. I used the correct size as specified by the recipe. However, I think next time I'll use one of those clear glass dishes because they have higher sides. All the better to hold in the pumpkin-y goodness!

Greek Salad Pitas

Greek Salad Pitas from Ellie Krieger's So Easy. The pita bread I used started to fall apart. But the taste was really good. I'd make this again. It's pretty quick as well. Just make the sauce then assemble.

 

Spread

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (4 oz.)

3 tbs. nonfat plain yogurt (I used greek yogurt)

1 tbs. fresh lemon juice

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

Sandwich 

4 whole wheat pitas

4 large pieces of romaine lettuce, torn in halves

1 English cucumber, sliced in half moons

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves

3/4 lb. thin sliced turkey breast

1.  Combine the feta cheese and yogurt in a medium sized bowl. Mash with a fork. Add lemon juice, oregano, lemon zest, and pepper. Stir.
2. Cut the pitas in half. Stuff each half with lettuce. Add the spread, then fill with cucumber, mint leaves, and turkey. Dividing the ingredients evenly among the pita pockets.

Ravioli

I got these ravioli from a package in the store. I was attempting to try the Ravioli Toss recipe in Ellie Krieger's So Easy book. But I didn't like this recipe and I don't think the kids really liked it that much either. So I'm not gonna post it up. I'm gonna try and post only things that I think came out well. Partly because I'm lazy and partly because what's the point in posting a recipe that doesn't taste good?

Poached Ginger Chicken

I'm going to start off by saying I didn't really like this salad at all. I didn't like the vegetables in it, I didn't like the flavor (too gingery), and making the chicken was a pain. I thought poached chicken was supposed to be easy, but for me it was just messy (water getting everywhere). I wouldn't make this again but I'll post the recipe for your enjoyment.

Poached Ginger Chicken
Serves 4

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 3/4 to 2 lbs)
Kosher salt
1 2-in. piece ginger, peeled
1 large shallot
4 tbs. peanut oil
1 tbs. toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 seedless cucumber, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced
1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced
1 tsp. Asian chili sauce (I used sriracha)
1 bunch watercress, trimmed
Juice of 1 lime

1.  Place the chicken in a medium pot and add just enough water to cover it. Add salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook 15 minutes until chicken is firm. In the meantime, prepare a bowl of salted iced water. Drain the chicken and put it in the ice water for 30 seconds to stop the cooking and drain again.
2. Grate the ginger and shallot into a small bowl. Stir 3 tbs. peanut oil, the sesame oil, and 1/4 tsp. sugar in a large bowl. Add watercress and toss.
3. Divide salad on 4 separate dishes. Slice the chicken and add to plates, topping with ginger mixture. Sprinkle with lime juice.

 

Adapted from Great Easy Meals

Whole Grain Pasta with Chickpeas and Escarole

I love capers. They're salty and sour and tangy. I typically have them with a bagel, cream cheese, and salmon. So this was my first time with pasta. I liked this recipe but the kids didn't. I think it's more for adults. The original recipe calls for whole tomatoes which you then crush and reserve the liquid. I just used canned crushed tomatoes because I'm much too lazy to crush them myself.

Whole Grain Pasta with Chickpeas and Escarole
Serves 4

2 cups whole grain penne
1 head escarole, roughly chopped
4 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup capers, drained and patted dry
5 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 15.5-oz can chickpeas, drained, rinsed, patted dry
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Prepare pasta according to the box it comes in but add the escarole the last 2 minutes, cover, and don't stir. Use tongs to remove the escarole and set aside. Drain pasta; save 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
2. Heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add capers and fry 2 minutes. Move to a paper towel lined plate.
3. Add 3 tbs. oil to skillet. Cook garlic, parsley, and red pepper flakes for 1 minute until the garlic is slightly toasted. Add tomatoes, chickpeas, pinch of salt, and bay leaves. Cook for 6 minutes until tomatoes and chickpeas brown. Add escarole and cook 4 more minutes until sauce thickens. Remove and throw away bay leaves.
4. Add cooked pasta to the skillet and toss with sauce. Season with salt and pepper. If the sauce is too thick, add some of the reserved pasta water. Stir in cheese, top with fried capers, and sprinkle some more cheese on top.

 

Adapted from Great Easy Meals

Panzanella with Italian Sausage

Panzanella with Italian Sausage

This is a favorite of mine. From Ellie Krieger's So Easy. Really simple to make and tastes fabulous. So it's perfect for days when you don't have a lot of time. I buy usually buy the bread pre-sliced so I don't have to do it myself. I used white bread here instead of whole grain since that's all that was in stock at the store at the time.

 

8 medium ripe tomatoes, cut in wedges

1 small English cucumber, cut in half lengthwise then sliced

1/2 medium red onion, cut in half then thinly sliced

3 tbs. olive oil

1 tbs. red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1 small baguette, cut into 3/4 in. chunks (I buy mine pre-sliced then cut the slices in half)

1/3 cup basil leaves, chopped

1 12-oz. package Italian sausage (I use Aidells Italian Sausage)

1. Toss the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add bread and basil, toss well.
2. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium heat. Cook the sausage for 8 minutes, turning halfway through, until grill marks form. Serve sausage with panzanella.

Class 302: Hot Grass Jelly

Went with my mom, sis, and sis's friend to Class 302 again.We ordered plenty of food. I really should take more pictures when I go. But I'm embarrassed, the whole "pictures of Asians taking pictures of food" thing. I shouldn't care but I do feel a little self conscious.

Anyways, this review is for the hot grass jelly. I typically like it with rice balls, condensed milk, and peanuts. But for some reason, the last few times I've come here, they don't have any of the sweet peanuts! So lame! I asked for double rice balls then, but they ended up bringing double condensed milk? I'm too lazy to change it so I just ate it. I always feel like when I go to a restaurant, if I speak that restaurants language (ex: Korean at a Korean place) I get better service. Too bad I only speak English. Back on topic now, the rice balls are nice and chewy. The condensed milk isn't the sticky sweet kind, but more of a liquid cream kind of thing. Overall pretty satisfying and very filling. This whole weekend has been a bunch of good eats. I'm gaining a lot of weight.

The winter's cold weather doesn't help either. It's harder to get motivated to work out because it's so cold, I don't like changing into my workout clothes. I'd rather stay cuddled up in bed watching Netflix all day. Then there's all the fattening food available that's normally associated with the holidays. I'm getting back into cooking again. I find that happens with me a lot. I'll go through periods were I really like cooking and then other times where I just hate it. And it annoys me whenever someone asks me to cook. I just don't like thinking of it as a chore. When it's a chore it's not any fun anymore.

After this weekend though, I'm anticipating doing a fruit and vegetable flush. I feel like I need to clean out all this gunk and toxins from my body. I've been breaking out like CRAZY and it's annoying me to no end. So sad. My forehead is sprouting little zits everywhere. I've got a particularly bad one right between the eyebrows too. I'm also in major need of a haircut. I'm going to call the salon this week to make an appointment. The dry ends are killing me.

cookingwithdog: Black Sesame Drink

I've been making this drink for a while now. I've just forgotten to take pictures and post it up every time that I've had it.

Today I used a really ripe banana so the drink was sweeter than I'm used to. It probably didn't need the touch of honey. I omitted the ice today because I'd rather have a drink than a smoothie; plus it's already cold here. I make the drink in single servings. Here's my version.

Black Sesame Drink
1 banana
3/4 cup milk
1 tbs. black sesame powder
A touch of honey
2-3 ice cubes (optional)

Add banana, milk, black sesame powder, and honey into a blender and blend until integrated. Add the ice cubes and blend until smooth.

Here's the link to the original video, I also posted it below.

Black Sesame Drink

The original video

Thanksgiving Dinner

My mom and I spent the whole day today making Thanksgiving dinner. It was pretty fun actually but tiring at the same time. It tasted good. But when I ate so much during the day that when it was finally time to have dinner I wasn't hungry much anymore. So I only had one plate of food and some pie.

R&D Kitchen

First I want to say, I like the improvements made to the blogger iPhone app. It looks much nicer and it easier to use. I don't like how you can't change the date posted or the location, you can only use the current location.

Anyways, my mom and I went to R&D Kitchen in Newport Beach, CA last week. It wasn't too busy for lunch on a weekday, we waited about 10-15 minutes for our table.

We ordered:

The fish of the day - a white flakey fish fried in butter, served with cole slaw. I forgot if there was another little side or not. But the fish was delicious.

French dip - the bread was soft and the meat was yummy. But the horseradish sauce needed more kick. I couldn't really taste it even though I was dousing my sandwich in the stuff.

Carrot cake - huge slice of cake. My mom and I could only eat half after all the food we had before. It has walnuts in it which give it a nice crunch. The frosting is decent, it doesn't taste like plastic but it wasn't amazing either.

I wish I had remembered to take more pcs. But I only got one of the cake.

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