Tonight was taco night. I was tired of trying a bunch of new things and wanted to fall back on an old favorite. Tacos. I've got a recipe for the mix that I'm sure I found somewhere, but through tweaks and tweaks I can probably call it my own. Works great for Chicken or Beef Tacos, but as I said, we were going for an old favorite. So beef it is. This is the meal that got us on the 93/7 ratio beef. When using a fattier ratio, Aly mentioned it tasting off, and so I switched over. Didn't change the mix and next time she pointed out how it tasted better.
Step 1 is brown the meat. Pretty standard and not a lot going on. While thats going, I mix everything up in a glass bowl, once browned I dump it in with a bit of water. Mix it up, and let it cook till water is mostly boiled off and you are good to go. It takes about 10 min total to make which is really nice.
What I like about the taco mix is that the whole time you are cooking with it, you get that "Taco" smell. Gets you raring to go. Then when you eat it, its got a little kick to it, but not too much that Aly won't eat it. To up the kick add more chili powder. I'm also thinking that next time I might reduce the salt and pepper. I think they get thrown in a lot of recipes simply because "Well you can't cook without them" and I'd rather let people add it themselves if they want.
For this meal in particular, we forgot to start the refried beans which Aly loves. Thats just out of a can though, and took 2 min to cook up in the microwave. We also had some Mexican cheese mix, sour cream, salsa and I found some jalapeños from a previous meal. I thought about chopping onions but didn't feel like it.
-Mix-
1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Onion Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1/4 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
1/2 Teaspoon Paprika
1 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Pepper
-Jeff
Friday, March 30, 2012
Chicken Marsala
Last night T came over. We had decided on chicken marsala because it sounded neat and why not. Had to go get cooking sherry and marsala wine, which really upped the price of this meal. We used so little that we will have plenty if we need it again.
It was a lot simpler than I thought it was going to be. Melt some butter and oil, coat the chicken in flour, cook it, and then simmer in the booze. I thought it turned out pretty good, and Aly, who said she doesn't like chicken marsala, said she liked it. Apparently Romano's Macaroni Grille just does it wrong.
At the last min, T mentioned that its supposed to be served over pasta, which is probably true. We happened to have some spaghetti in the pantry, and made that. I can never make spaghetti for whatever reason so that was a little bit of an adventure. I always make it soggy, or hard. We got the water boiling, threw it in, and as we were guessing time to cook for, Aly came by and told us 10 min. We estimated remaining time, and it turned out pretty good. One thing to note, the marsala sauce makes the spaghetti impossible to eat with a fork unless you are Italian like T.
Chicken recipe from all recipes. Spaghetti is just noodles, olive oil, and water.
- Jeff
It was a lot simpler than I thought it was going to be. Melt some butter and oil, coat the chicken in flour, cook it, and then simmer in the booze. I thought it turned out pretty good, and Aly, who said she doesn't like chicken marsala, said she liked it. Apparently Romano's Macaroni Grille just does it wrong.
At the last min, T mentioned that its supposed to be served over pasta, which is probably true. We happened to have some spaghetti in the pantry, and made that. I can never make spaghetti for whatever reason so that was a little bit of an adventure. I always make it soggy, or hard. We got the water boiling, threw it in, and as we were guessing time to cook for, Aly came by and told us 10 min. We estimated remaining time, and it turned out pretty good. One thing to note, the marsala sauce makes the spaghetti impossible to eat with a fork unless you are Italian like T.
Chicken recipe from all recipes. Spaghetti is just noodles, olive oil, and water.
- Jeff
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
French Toast
I'm kind of running out of ideas for breakfast night. Once we did waffles and pancakes, I figured I'll also do French Toast, and then I may have to get creative...
Anyway, I just looked up a quick recipe online. I went through a few because I know I had a friend who claimed to make the best french toast and said "the secret is using vanilla!" I didn't think it was such a big secret, but we were both drunk and making breakfast at about 2 am, so what did I know?
It turns out vanilla may be more secret than I thought, but it's not completely unheard of. I just made sure to use a recipe that did include it. I was intrigued, though, that my recipe listed the cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla as "optional." If you don't use them, you dip the bread in milk, eggs, and salt (to taste). That sounds gross; please use at least some of these spices.
It turned out pretty tasty. I think this is a quick, easy recipe to hold on to for the future if friends stay over or I have extra bread to get rid of before it turns green.
-Aly
I absolutely can't find my recipe again online, so I'll just post it here without a link. If you recognize it, let me know and I'll include a link. I know I found it online and didn't make it up myself.
Ingredients
6 thick slices bread
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
salt to taste
Directions
Beat together egg, milk, salt, desired spices and vanilla.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle of skillet over medium-high flame.
Dunk each slice of bread in egg mixture, soaking both sides. Place in pan, and cook on both sides until golden. Serve hot.
Anyway, I just looked up a quick recipe online. I went through a few because I know I had a friend who claimed to make the best french toast and said "the secret is using vanilla!" I didn't think it was such a big secret, but we were both drunk and making breakfast at about 2 am, so what did I know?
It turns out vanilla may be more secret than I thought, but it's not completely unheard of. I just made sure to use a recipe that did include it. I was intrigued, though, that my recipe listed the cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla as "optional." If you don't use them, you dip the bread in milk, eggs, and salt (to taste). That sounds gross; please use at least some of these spices.
It turned out pretty tasty. I think this is a quick, easy recipe to hold on to for the future if friends stay over or I have extra bread to get rid of before it turns green.
-Aly
I absolutely can't find my recipe again online, so I'll just post it here without a link. If you recognize it, let me know and I'll include a link. I know I found it online and didn't make it up myself.
Ingredients
6 thick slices bread
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
salt to taste
Directions
Beat together egg, milk, salt, desired spices and vanilla.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle of skillet over medium-high flame.
Dunk each slice of bread in egg mixture, soaking both sides. Place in pan, and cook on both sides until golden. Serve hot.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Lunch Feature: Egg Salad
I saw an article on Lifehacker the other day about hard boiling eggs in the oven rather than in water, and, with Easter coming up, I wanted to try it out. I figured that with the eggs I tested, I could make egg salad. I know I've made it once before, but that was with a friend in middle school, so I hardly think it counts. I looked up a couple recipes and picked one I liked. I knew I wanted to use mustard, and the first few recipes I found didn't. They seemed like fancy people egg salad with spices I haven't heard of and celery and crap.
Cooking the eggs in the oven worked pretty well. I'd say the only down side was that they were harder to peel afterwards, but with the ease of just having them sit in the oven for 30 minutes, I didn't mind.
The egg salad turned out pretty good, too. I added just a tad more mayo and mustard than it called for, but only a touch.
Recipe from All recipes.com
-Aly
Cooking the eggs in the oven worked pretty well. I'd say the only down side was that they were harder to peel afterwards, but with the ease of just having them sit in the oven for 30 minutes, I didn't mind.
The egg salad turned out pretty good, too. I added just a tad more mayo and mustard than it called for, but only a touch.
Recipe from All recipes.com
-Aly
Monday, March 26, 2012
Burgers
So, apparently all my entries start with so. Didn't want to break the cycle.
Tonight I grilled burgers. We had some leftover bacon, so we went for bacon swiss burgers. Fairly standard fair on the burgers, throw them on the grill. Take them off when finished. The interesting part of this meal came from the bacon.
A weekend or two ago we had Aly's friend and her husband over and we grilled some burgers. At that time I decided why not throw some bacon on the grill. Its already going, and I know he is a big bacon fan. It worked great and I looked really impressive with my culinary knowledge and techniques. Since it worked last time, I did it again. Did not work so hot. The bacon grease dripped down onto the flames of the grill, and when I opened it up to check the bacon itself had caught fire. I quickly put that out, and managed to save most of it, but it was all charred way past what Aly likes. I was alright with it, but I like my bacon crispy anyway. She likes hers still able to flop around, and this did not happen.
So outside my little grease fire in the grill, this meal turned out alright. I know T had mentioned buying some nice meat at some point, and having it ground for nice burgers so there might be a part 2 soonish. This meat was the simple cardboard/low grade preformed patties that were "the cheapest they sold in a big box". Not bad, but nothing to write home about.
-Jeff
Tonight I grilled burgers. We had some leftover bacon, so we went for bacon swiss burgers. Fairly standard fair on the burgers, throw them on the grill. Take them off when finished. The interesting part of this meal came from the bacon.
A weekend or two ago we had Aly's friend and her husband over and we grilled some burgers. At that time I decided why not throw some bacon on the grill. Its already going, and I know he is a big bacon fan. It worked great and I looked really impressive with my culinary knowledge and techniques. Since it worked last time, I did it again. Did not work so hot. The bacon grease dripped down onto the flames of the grill, and when I opened it up to check the bacon itself had caught fire. I quickly put that out, and managed to save most of it, but it was all charred way past what Aly likes. I was alright with it, but I like my bacon crispy anyway. She likes hers still able to flop around, and this did not happen.
So outside my little grease fire in the grill, this meal turned out alright. I know T had mentioned buying some nice meat at some point, and having it ground for nice burgers so there might be a part 2 soonish. This meat was the simple cardboard/low grade preformed patties that were "the cheapest they sold in a big box". Not bad, but nothing to write home about.
-Jeff
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Taco Pie
When I told a coworker about our schedule change and need for more meal ideas, she responded with "Ooh, you should make taco pie! The recipe's actually called 'Impossibly Easy Taco Pie,' and trust me, if I can make it, you can make it!"
I admit I was at least slightly insulted because I'd only said "I need ideas for what to eat," not "I need to eat, but food is hard!" However, I got over it because "taco pie" sounds delicious.
I found it on the Betty Crocker website and, when I saw the ingredients, I had to categorize this in my group of "foods I have no problem serving my family and enjoy myself, but would not ever make to impress anyone." It is definitely impossibly easy; it is seasoned ground beef, Bisquick, and some tomatoes and chiles, but the result is not going to make your snooty mother-in-law believe you have become a domestic goddess.
First off, I completely removed the tomatoes and chiles for ours because eeeeew. Jeff made up for this by topping his servings with salsa which I consider a completely satisfying compromise, but I don't like these things in my food, so I don't know if people who do would still find it lacking. I also cut all of the cooking times down by a minute or two because our oven cooks hot, but I haven't figured out by how much, so rather than decreasing the temp I've usually just made a point to decrease cook time. I think it was still in a little too long for the first time (before adding cheese) but it wasn't burnt, so that's fine.
The end result was very tasty. I added a dollop of sour cream to mine and, as I said, Jeff put salsa on his. We only had two small slices leftover even though it said it was supposed to feed six, so I think if you were feeding a group you'd need two pies, or some side dishes so they could handle smaller portions. I also am not totally sold on pouring Bisquick over ground beef as a meal. I guess I'd rather take a page out of Jeff's book and have more "from scratch" steps because the Bisquick definitely feels like a cop out. Maybe I'll try a variety next time that uses Jeff's biscuit recipe and his homemade taco seasoning.
Recipe from the Betty Crocker website
-Aly
I admit I was at least slightly insulted because I'd only said "I need ideas for what to eat," not "I need to eat, but food is hard!" However, I got over it because "taco pie" sounds delicious.
I found it on the Betty Crocker website and, when I saw the ingredients, I had to categorize this in my group of "foods I have no problem serving my family and enjoy myself, but would not ever make to impress anyone." It is definitely impossibly easy; it is seasoned ground beef, Bisquick, and some tomatoes and chiles, but the result is not going to make your snooty mother-in-law believe you have become a domestic goddess.
First off, I completely removed the tomatoes and chiles for ours because eeeeew. Jeff made up for this by topping his servings with salsa which I consider a completely satisfying compromise, but I don't like these things in my food, so I don't know if people who do would still find it lacking. I also cut all of the cooking times down by a minute or two because our oven cooks hot, but I haven't figured out by how much, so rather than decreasing the temp I've usually just made a point to decrease cook time. I think it was still in a little too long for the first time (before adding cheese) but it wasn't burnt, so that's fine.
The end result was very tasty. I added a dollop of sour cream to mine and, as I said, Jeff put salsa on his. We only had two small slices leftover even though it said it was supposed to feed six, so I think if you were feeding a group you'd need two pies, or some side dishes so they could handle smaller portions. I also am not totally sold on pouring Bisquick over ground beef as a meal. I guess I'd rather take a page out of Jeff's book and have more "from scratch" steps because the Bisquick definitely feels like a cop out. Maybe I'll try a variety next time that uses Jeff's biscuit recipe and his homemade taco seasoning.
Recipe from the Betty Crocker website
-Aly
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Biscuits and Gravy
Tonight I tried my hand at biscuits and gravy. I hadn't made either before and its always pretty satisfying. We threw some bacon in as well, because we happen to have tons of it.
Bacon turned out alright, I probably should have cooked it longer, but I think I like it crispier than most people anyway.
Biscuits were a new adventure. I don't really bake much, but figured I'd give it a shot. I got covered with flour which was neat. They weren't particularly hard. Mix the stuff in bowl, roll it flat and cut them into circles. They turned out really good I thought.
The gravy was another story. We got the Jimmy Dean sausage and broke it down, but I think we really ought to have gotten ground sausage. The JD was hard to break into small chucks, and I sort of gave up halfway through. The gravy didn't thicken like the recipe said it would, and while decent, it wasn't as thick as I'd want. In the end the sausage should have been smaller, and the gravy thicker.
-Jeff
Biscuit recipe from Allrecipes.com
Sausage Gravy recipe from Allrecipes.com
Bacon turned out alright, I probably should have cooked it longer, but I think I like it crispier than most people anyway.
Biscuits were a new adventure. I don't really bake much, but figured I'd give it a shot. I got covered with flour which was neat. They weren't particularly hard. Mix the stuff in bowl, roll it flat and cut them into circles. They turned out really good I thought.
The gravy was another story. We got the Jimmy Dean sausage and broke it down, but I think we really ought to have gotten ground sausage. The JD was hard to break into small chucks, and I sort of gave up halfway through. The gravy didn't thicken like the recipe said it would, and while decent, it wasn't as thick as I'd want. In the end the sausage should have been smaller, and the gravy thicker.
-Jeff
Biscuit recipe from Allrecipes.com
Sausage Gravy recipe from Allrecipes.com
Monday, March 19, 2012
Sloppy Joes
Tonight I made some sloppy joes. I like to go as from scratch as I can for things, and so looked up a recipe online.
We made some basic changes to it, for a few reasons. 1/2lb ground beef isn't sold anywhere near us, and that really didn't seem like enough. We know we have leftovers with a full pound but we can deal with that. We also doubled most of the rest of ingredients. We dropped "prepared mustard" because I think it may mean yellow mustard which I don't like. If it doesn't mean that we simply didn't know what it was. Instead we gave "A dash" of mustard powder figuring it was close enough. It took all of 5 min. to make which was really nice. Aly said she would like less worcestershire sauce in hers, more ketchup and added some to hers. I liked mine as is.
Was a really quick easy recipe and I think was pretty good. We didn't simmer as indicated, but I think it was fine in the end.
recipe from allrecipes.com
-Jeff
We made some basic changes to it, for a few reasons. 1/2lb ground beef isn't sold anywhere near us, and that really didn't seem like enough. We know we have leftovers with a full pound but we can deal with that. We also doubled most of the rest of ingredients. We dropped "prepared mustard" because I think it may mean yellow mustard which I don't like. If it doesn't mean that we simply didn't know what it was. Instead we gave "A dash" of mustard powder figuring it was close enough. It took all of 5 min. to make which was really nice. Aly said she would like less worcestershire sauce in hers, more ketchup and added some to hers. I liked mine as is.
Was a really quick easy recipe and I think was pretty good. We didn't simmer as indicated, but I think it was fine in the end.
recipe from allrecipes.com
-Jeff
Friday, March 16, 2012
Baking Feature: Double Chocolate Brownies
Tonight I baked my mother’s specialty: Double Chocolate brownies. These things are amazing, and to say that they’re delicious is almost silly in its lack of understanding. These transcend delicious; they take you to a secret place made of sunshine and happiness where you are enveloped in warm gooiness and cradled lovingly; your taste buds will begin to shun other food for its disappointing inability to compare.
And they’re not pot brownies. I want to make that clear.
I wanted to celebrate Friday with my coworkers, and my criteria for what to make were simple: I had to already have the ingredients because I had to take the rabbit to the vet and I’m wasn’t stopping at a grocery store and leaving him in the car. Since my mother and I both bake relatively regularly, there were probably a ton of things that I could have made with what we had on hand (since anything I lacked she probably had upstairs. We live in the in-law suite in the basement which is convenient when you run out of butter). Somehow I just felt that it was a brownie kind of Friday, so that’s what I decided to make.
I admit that lately I’ve been making box mix brownies which, if I didn’t know this recipe, would be acceptable (they’ve all been delicious). But I did not have my box mix in my pantry to tempt me into taking the easy way out, and my coworkers were very glad about that. Making them from scratch is definitely slower since it takes several bowls and a little time on the stove rather than throwing everything in one big bowl and pouring it into a pan; in the end, though, I think it was worth the extra effort and dirty dishes.
Unfortunately, since these are my mother’s specialty and the closest I think we have to a family recipe, I will not post it here. The pictures show you a good bit of what’s in them, and below I’ve linked to a recipe that is similar and will probably give you an acceptable close result (and apparently is safe to send to troops in the desert, so you could do that). For me, the biggest key is to reduce the cooking time by about 10 minutes. I don’t like cakey brownies- we already have a dessert that is cakey; it’s called cake. A brownie should be gooey and sticky and fudgy, and if you bake these for the full time, you’ll bake them past that ooey-gooey perfection. Obviously make sure you bake them long enough to remove any salmonella risks, though. But just barely.
This time around, I was doing dishes and not paying attention to my timer, so I baked them about 3 minutes longer than I intended to, and they suffered a little for it (but don’t tell my coworkers, because they had no idea what they almost had).
Recipe from VeryBestBaking.com
-Aly
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Cheesesteaks
So tonight was cheesesteaks. T came over and we set to work. Aly had to take a rabbit to the vet for routine maintenance, and so it was just the two of us. T sliced a flank steak thin into strips while I chopped red/green peppers, onions, and mushrooms. Threw them all together and cooked until onions were clear. Really all there was to it. We set some meat aside for Aly for later with no veggies.
Served the mix on some sandwich rolls, and it was pretty good. I went with pepper jack cheese, and T did swiss. When Aly got home I quickly cooked hers, and as she had no veggies it took minimal time. She went swiss as well.
Thoughts about the ordeal. Next time we will get much smaller rolls. These things were huge, and I actually ended up picking a lot of my bread off. Aly cut hers into thirds and didn't eat the middle third. We would also go 2lbs meat instead of 1.Xish. Once chopped and diced it really didn't go 3 ways. We would also do veggies first, let them get good and cooked, then throw the meat on. The veggies were still a little crispy. I also would like to find some way to melt the cheese, that isn't just "Microwave it" which was all I could think of. Thats seemed wrong, so I didn't do it.
We had some extra bread at the end so I whipped up some garlic bread real quick improvising a recipe based off memory and best guess. Toasted the bread on the pan from the cheesesteaks. Then melted some butter and dripped that over top and dashed some garlic powder on them. Aly grated some mozzarella and we covered them in that. Then, I put them back in the pan on low heat with the glass lid on it. I had picked this up when making grilled cheese. The glass lid helps keep heat in, and makes the whole thing crispy and lightly toasted, instead of burning the side touching the pan while not cooking the other at all like normal. I can make a pretty mean grilled cheese.
-Jeff
Served the mix on some sandwich rolls, and it was pretty good. I went with pepper jack cheese, and T did swiss. When Aly got home I quickly cooked hers, and as she had no veggies it took minimal time. She went swiss as well.
Thoughts about the ordeal. Next time we will get much smaller rolls. These things were huge, and I actually ended up picking a lot of my bread off. Aly cut hers into thirds and didn't eat the middle third. We would also go 2lbs meat instead of 1.Xish. Once chopped and diced it really didn't go 3 ways. We would also do veggies first, let them get good and cooked, then throw the meat on. The veggies were still a little crispy. I also would like to find some way to melt the cheese, that isn't just "Microwave it" which was all I could think of. Thats seemed wrong, so I didn't do it.
We had some extra bread at the end so I whipped up some garlic bread real quick improvising a recipe based off memory and best guess. Toasted the bread on the pan from the cheesesteaks. Then melted some butter and dripped that over top and dashed some garlic powder on them. Aly grated some mozzarella and we covered them in that. Then, I put them back in the pan on low heat with the glass lid on it. I had picked this up when making grilled cheese. The glass lid helps keep heat in, and makes the whole thing crispy and lightly toasted, instead of burning the side touching the pan while not cooking the other at all like normal. I can make a pretty mean grilled cheese.
-Jeff
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Blueberry Pancakes
Tonight we opted for Blueberry pancakes for Breakfast night. I've made pancakes before, so I wasn't worried about it. Jeff looked up a basic pancake recipe online and we just added blueberries. I even got a little creative and added some white chocolate chips to two of them as an experiment. My famous muffins that have pleased many coworkers in the past involve blueberries and white chocolate chips, so I thought I'd try the combo again.
I mixed up the batter and started pouring it on the skillet. I found that the pancakes were burning around the edges of the pan very quickly while the parts closer to the center weren't ready to flip. After the trouble this pan gave us with Steak 2 on Monday, we might be done trying to use this pan. To combat the inconsistency from the pan, I started just making one pancake at a time in the center. I even indulged in every kid's dream and made one giant pancake with the last of the batter (mostly because I was sick of making pancakes and just dumped it all out). Jeff got that one.
In the end, they were very tasty and I will definitely save the recipe for future experiments. If I made any changes, I'd lower the heat (medium high made for some very quickly-cooked and at time a little burnt pancakes) and possibly add some vanilla or cinnamon to the recipe.
-Aly
Recipe from All Recipes.com
Ingredients:
-1 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
-3 12/ tsp baking powder
-1 tsp salt
-1 Tbsp granulated sugar
-1 1/4 Cups milk
-1 egg
-3 Tbsp butter, melted
Directions:
-In a large bowl sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, and melted butter. Mix well until smooth
-Heat a lightly oiled frying pan or griddle over medium high heat. Pour or scoop batter onto the griddle using approx. 1/4 cup per pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot
I mixed up the batter and started pouring it on the skillet. I found that the pancakes were burning around the edges of the pan very quickly while the parts closer to the center weren't ready to flip. After the trouble this pan gave us with Steak 2 on Monday, we might be done trying to use this pan. To combat the inconsistency from the pan, I started just making one pancake at a time in the center. I even indulged in every kid's dream and made one giant pancake with the last of the batter (mostly because I was sick of making pancakes and just dumped it all out). Jeff got that one.
In the end, they were very tasty and I will definitely save the recipe for future experiments. If I made any changes, I'd lower the heat (medium high made for some very quickly-cooked and at time a little burnt pancakes) and possibly add some vanilla or cinnamon to the recipe.
-Aly
Recipe from All Recipes.com
Ingredients:
-1 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
-3 12/ tsp baking powder
-1 tsp salt
-1 Tbsp granulated sugar
-1 1/4 Cups milk
-1 egg
-3 Tbsp butter, melted
Directions:
-In a large bowl sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, and melted butter. Mix well until smooth
-Heat a lightly oiled frying pan or griddle over medium high heat. Pour or scoop batter onto the griddle using approx. 1/4 cup per pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot
Date Night: The Melting Pot
Last night we went to The Melting Pot (a fondue restaurant) for date night. Neither of us had been before, so it was fun to both be experiencing it for the first time. It wasn't a special occasion or anything; we just decided to go because I saw a fondue kit at the grocery store the week before and said "I've never been to The Melting Pot." Jeff said "Me either," so I said, "we should go." That's really it.
The building was uninspiring from the outside, and the parking lot was at the back with awkward sidewalk layouts and no clear route to the entrance. However, once you get around to the front and go in it was more appealing.
The lighting was very low to enhance the intimate atmosphere. It wasn't enough, though, to conflict with the two small children at a table near ours who, for reasons beyond my comprehension, had been brought by their parents. I imagine this is probably a regular occurrence because The Melting Pot locations tend to be in yuppy areas where parents will buy their 3 and 5-year-olds $80 dinners. Jeff and I overheard the mother say "Do you want your iPad? Sit in your booster seat!" which we just didn't know how to process. If the girls had been quiet we wouldn't have noticed they were even there (because of the high booths -again- to increase the intimate atmosphere), but they needed everything on the menu explained to them very loudly multiple times, and the younger one was prone to crying outbursts. But I digress...
We had four courses based off of their current "Big Night Out" special which has an American Barbecue theme. The cheese course was a cheddar mix with bacon in it swirled around with a Samuel Adams lager (and some other spices). It was delicious and we finished it off.
For the salad course, we chose individually; Jeff had a ceasar and I had the California (with no tomatoes). They were salads... which are hard to mess up.
For our entree we ordered the Fondue Feast from the Big Night Out menu. It was a plate of Buffalo chicken, angus steak, bbq pork tenderloin, and Old Bay shrimp that we prepared with the "Mojo" cooking style (carribean/citrus flavors). It was very good, but everything on the plate was spicy (we probably should have guessed that, but a little warning in the menu or from our server would have been nice). I struggle with spicy food, so I only had one piece of steak and one shrimp since they were a little strong for me. I still ate my fill, so I wasn't upset.
Oh Dessert. For dessert we chose the Flaming Turtle mix which is milk chocolate, caramel, and pecans. I don't have to tell you that dipping things in melted chocolate and caramel is delicious. It was absolutely wonderful and I was pleased to see Jeff eagerly choosing new dippers to try because he's not usually very big on dessert.
At the end of the meal we were both absolutely stuffed. As far as price/value it was definitely more expensive than our typical date nights, and I can see why people reserve it for anniversaries. Still, the experience is definitely unique and it was a lot of fun. I would definitely like to go again, even if it's not for a while.
-Aly
The building was uninspiring from the outside, and the parking lot was at the back with awkward sidewalk layouts and no clear route to the entrance. However, once you get around to the front and go in it was more appealing.
The lighting was very low to enhance the intimate atmosphere. It wasn't enough, though, to conflict with the two small children at a table near ours who, for reasons beyond my comprehension, had been brought by their parents. I imagine this is probably a regular occurrence because The Melting Pot locations tend to be in yuppy areas where parents will buy their 3 and 5-year-olds $80 dinners. Jeff and I overheard the mother say "Do you want your iPad? Sit in your booster seat!" which we just didn't know how to process. If the girls had been quiet we wouldn't have noticed they were even there (because of the high booths -again- to increase the intimate atmosphere), but they needed everything on the menu explained to them very loudly multiple times, and the younger one was prone to crying outbursts. But I digress...
We had four courses based off of their current "Big Night Out" special which has an American Barbecue theme. The cheese course was a cheddar mix with bacon in it swirled around with a Samuel Adams lager (and some other spices). It was delicious and we finished it off.
For the salad course, we chose individually; Jeff had a ceasar and I had the California (with no tomatoes). They were salads... which are hard to mess up.
For our entree we ordered the Fondue Feast from the Big Night Out menu. It was a plate of Buffalo chicken, angus steak, bbq pork tenderloin, and Old Bay shrimp that we prepared with the "Mojo" cooking style (carribean/citrus flavors). It was very good, but everything on the plate was spicy (we probably should have guessed that, but a little warning in the menu or from our server would have been nice). I struggle with spicy food, so I only had one piece of steak and one shrimp since they were a little strong for me. I still ate my fill, so I wasn't upset.
Oh Dessert. For dessert we chose the Flaming Turtle mix which is milk chocolate, caramel, and pecans. I don't have to tell you that dipping things in melted chocolate and caramel is delicious. It was absolutely wonderful and I was pleased to see Jeff eagerly choosing new dippers to try because he's not usually very big on dessert.
At the end of the meal we were both absolutely stuffed. As far as price/value it was definitely more expensive than our typical date nights, and I can see why people reserve it for anniversaries. Still, the experience is definitely unique and it was a lot of fun. I would definitely like to go again, even if it's not for a while.
-Aly
Monday, March 12, 2012
Steak Night. Slight Hiccups.
So we tried steaks again tonight. Still getting closer to the idea. This time we got porterhouses from the Safeway, and was a little disappointed with the store. The only steaks they had were out and in the fridge zone pre-wrapped. I usually like to get them from the "butcher" meat counter guy. Feel like they are probably more fresh that way. They also only had one cut of steak, which seemed lacking for a meat counter.
We got the steaks Saturday, and kept them in the fridge till this afternoon when I got home. When Aly got home I started on them. While prepping I turn the stove top to highest and get the frying pan very hot. I typically try for 2 min on each side, flip once. This time however, as I put the first on, I realized the second wouldn't fit. Not even close. So while the first was going, I started my mental clock on it. Broke out a second, smaller, frying pan, and cranked the heat on the second burner. While dropping the second steak on, I notice it has that stupid piece of paper they put to separate it from the foam. I did not see one for the first (and the meat counter guy doesn't usually include it). Took a quick look, and realized it was under the steak (on the pan). Snagged it out, and we were good to go. Steak 1 is on its first min, Steak 2 is just started. I apply salt and pepper to both steaks. Steak 1 flips no problem. Steak 2 time to flip. I flip and the steak is still beat red. Typically at this point it should be nicely done and darkened. I flip anyway. Steak 1 comes off and is good to go. Steak 2 still has that red side, so I break my rule and flip again.
In the end both came out fine, Alys (steak 2) was a little raw for her, but still good. She got that one because it was smaller, not because I messed it up. From now on I might let her opt for a more well done one. While figuring stuff out I took away choice. Despite it all, they were still better than the other steaks I've done, even if this had more complications.
Some methods I have used in the past (through googling) are very similar, but include added steps like "Add lots of olive oil to the pan" or "Add lots of butter to the pan". Adding the olive oil gave it a weird taste. Wasn't bad, but wasn't steak. Adding lots of butter gave it a strong "movie theater popcorn" taste. Which was kind of weird. I then tried adding even just a little butter and it still has that popcorn taste.
To go with the steaks, Aly microwaved some frozen broccoli we had in the fridge. You can figure that out.
Ingredients:
-2 Steaks
-Salt
-Pepper
Instructions:
-Heat pan to hottest
-Place Steak on pan
-Cook 2 min (3 will give medium well)
-While cooking, salt and pepper heavilY
-Flip Steak
-Cook 2 min (3 for MW)
We got the steaks Saturday, and kept them in the fridge till this afternoon when I got home. When Aly got home I started on them. While prepping I turn the stove top to highest and get the frying pan very hot. I typically try for 2 min on each side, flip once. This time however, as I put the first on, I realized the second wouldn't fit. Not even close. So while the first was going, I started my mental clock on it. Broke out a second, smaller, frying pan, and cranked the heat on the second burner. While dropping the second steak on, I notice it has that stupid piece of paper they put to separate it from the foam. I did not see one for the first (and the meat counter guy doesn't usually include it). Took a quick look, and realized it was under the steak (on the pan). Snagged it out, and we were good to go. Steak 1 is on its first min, Steak 2 is just started. I apply salt and pepper to both steaks. Steak 1 flips no problem. Steak 2 time to flip. I flip and the steak is still beat red. Typically at this point it should be nicely done and darkened. I flip anyway. Steak 1 comes off and is good to go. Steak 2 still has that red side, so I break my rule and flip again.
In the end both came out fine, Alys (steak 2) was a little raw for her, but still good. She got that one because it was smaller, not because I messed it up. From now on I might let her opt for a more well done one. While figuring stuff out I took away choice. Despite it all, they were still better than the other steaks I've done, even if this had more complications.
Some methods I have used in the past (through googling) are very similar, but include added steps like "Add lots of olive oil to the pan" or "Add lots of butter to the pan". Adding the olive oil gave it a weird taste. Wasn't bad, but wasn't steak. Adding lots of butter gave it a strong "movie theater popcorn" taste. Which was kind of weird. I then tried adding even just a little butter and it still has that popcorn taste.
To go with the steaks, Aly microwaved some frozen broccoli we had in the fridge. You can figure that out.
Ingredients:
-2 Steaks
-Salt
-Pepper
Instructions:
-Heat pan to hottest
-Place Steak on pan
-Cook 2 min (3 will give medium well)
-While cooking, salt and pepper heavilY
-Flip Steak
-Cook 2 min (3 for MW)
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Expectations and Updates
You will notice the layout has been changing. I am trying to find a way to share our weekly calendar with the blog in a way that still keeps it looking nice. The calender is shared out and you can use it to see upcoming meal plans, and then get excited for future blogs about those topics. (I know you will)
One thing you will probably note quickly is that our pasta night for the past few weeks has consisted of "Steak". Thats because I have been trying to figure out a decent method to cook one for a few weeks now. I get closer every week. We decided pasta could get bumped off the list until we were able to get a steak we were satisfied with. Normally pasta night consists of "Lasagna" or "Spaghetti".
One other thing we do is a weekly grocery shopping trip. On this trip we buy what we need for that week, and in an effort to help shrink the budget, if it isn't used during the weeks planned meals, it does not get bought (generally). This means our fridge is often times missing things others considered essential, but by going every week we can keep a fresh stock of new food rotating in, while minimizing what gets thrown away.Usually just some moldy bread on occasion.
For blog topics to expect, we intend to post about any notable dishes for the planned meal days. If we go to a new grocery store we may post a review or any thought about that. We also have my buddy T over on Thursdays for "Crockpot" night, so you may get an extended entry for that night. We also are people and have set some lofty goals with that.
-Jeff
One thing you will probably note quickly is that our pasta night for the past few weeks has consisted of "Steak". Thats because I have been trying to figure out a decent method to cook one for a few weeks now. I get closer every week. We decided pasta could get bumped off the list until we were able to get a steak we were satisfied with. Normally pasta night consists of "Lasagna" or "Spaghetti".
One other thing we do is a weekly grocery shopping trip. On this trip we buy what we need for that week, and in an effort to help shrink the budget, if it isn't used during the weeks planned meals, it does not get bought (generally). This means our fridge is often times missing things others considered essential, but by going every week we can keep a fresh stock of new food rotating in, while minimizing what gets thrown away.Usually just some moldy bread on occasion.
For blog topics to expect, we intend to post about any notable dishes for the planned meal days. If we go to a new grocery store we may post a review or any thought about that. We also have my buddy T over on Thursdays for "Crockpot" night, so you may get an extended entry for that night. We also are people and have set some lofty goals with that.
-Jeff
Friday, March 9, 2012
The Beginning
Hello! We are Jeff and Aly and we are teaching ourselves to cook! Well, at least that's the plan...
We've been together for several years, but between living with our parents, then living in college dorms, then having conflicting work schedules, we've not had a lot of need or even opportunities to learn how to cook decent meals. However, due to a recent (and long awaited, and much celebrated) change to Jeff's work schedule, we are now both home at dinner time six out of seven nights a week!
Almost immediately with the change in schedule we agreed that we wanted to cook our own meals as often as possible; to make this less daunting, we created a Dinner Menu that assigned a different kind of dish to each night of the week. It is:
Monday: Pasta night
Tuesday: Date night
Wednesday: Breakfast night
Thursday: Crockpot/Casserole night
Friday: Mexican night
Saturday: Leftovers day
Sunday: Jeff works, Aly is on her own (usually more leftovers)
This is just a jumping-off point and if we want to try a recipe that doesn't necessarily suit any of these nights, we simply swap it out. Also, as you probably guessed, Date night is the night each week that we go out to eat; it started when we only shared one weeknight and we decided to carry it over to our new weekly routine.
Just to clarify, we're not completely incompetent in the kitchen. Here's a little breakdown of our experiences and tastes:
Jeff
Specialty: Stovetop (with a concentration in skillets). While earning his Eagle Scout he learned to cook meals on a frying pan over a campfire, and he still turns to this method regularly, only with a burner.
Tastes: Willing to try most things at least once (so long as it "looks like it's supposed to be food." I asked for clarification once and the example he gave was "I'd eat guinea pig. You know, if it looked like the people who made it were eating it for real").
Dislikes: Yellow Mustard, "Green Melon" (honeydew), Uni (sea urchin), Cranberries, Green Olives. Not a lot, which is nice.
Favorite foods: Crab, Mushrooms, Fish, Beef, Lima Beans, Pears
Aly
Specialty: Baking. I've always enjoyed making desserts and goodies and decided about 5 years ago to start really experimenting and getting better at it, which is still a work in progress.
Tastes: I regularly tell people that I have the palate of a 4-year-old. I don't like frilly things, and I find a lot of food to be too buried in "fancy" stuff that the rest of the population seemingly likes.
Dislikes: Onions and Tomatoes are the worst offenders. They are in everything and everyone is annoyed when I pick them out and leave them in a pile on the side of my plate. Also dislike most crunchy vegetables, but have recently become able to eat and enjoy salads.
Favorite foods: Tacos, Chicken, Pineapple, Muffins, and yes, Chocolate
With our combined experience and strength of will, we decided that we are capable of learning how to cook, and now we simply have to start practicing!
-Aly
We've been together for several years, but between living with our parents, then living in college dorms, then having conflicting work schedules, we've not had a lot of need or even opportunities to learn how to cook decent meals. However, due to a recent (and long awaited, and much celebrated) change to Jeff's work schedule, we are now both home at dinner time six out of seven nights a week!
Almost immediately with the change in schedule we agreed that we wanted to cook our own meals as often as possible; to make this less daunting, we created a Dinner Menu that assigned a different kind of dish to each night of the week. It is:
Monday: Pasta night
Tuesday: Date night
Wednesday: Breakfast night
Thursday: Crockpot/Casserole night
Friday: Mexican night
Saturday: Leftovers day
Sunday: Jeff works, Aly is on her own (usually more leftovers)
This is just a jumping-off point and if we want to try a recipe that doesn't necessarily suit any of these nights, we simply swap it out. Also, as you probably guessed, Date night is the night each week that we go out to eat; it started when we only shared one weeknight and we decided to carry it over to our new weekly routine.
Just to clarify, we're not completely incompetent in the kitchen. Here's a little breakdown of our experiences and tastes:
Jeff
Specialty: Stovetop (with a concentration in skillets). While earning his Eagle Scout he learned to cook meals on a frying pan over a campfire, and he still turns to this method regularly, only with a burner.
Tastes: Willing to try most things at least once (so long as it "looks like it's supposed to be food." I asked for clarification once and the example he gave was "I'd eat guinea pig. You know, if it looked like the people who made it were eating it for real").
Dislikes: Yellow Mustard, "Green Melon" (honeydew), Uni (sea urchin), Cranberries, Green Olives. Not a lot, which is nice.
Favorite foods: Crab, Mushrooms, Fish, Beef, Lima Beans, Pears
Aly
Specialty: Baking. I've always enjoyed making desserts and goodies and decided about 5 years ago to start really experimenting and getting better at it, which is still a work in progress.
Tastes: I regularly tell people that I have the palate of a 4-year-old. I don't like frilly things, and I find a lot of food to be too buried in "fancy" stuff that the rest of the population seemingly likes.
Dislikes: Onions and Tomatoes are the worst offenders. They are in everything and everyone is annoyed when I pick them out and leave them in a pile on the side of my plate. Also dislike most crunchy vegetables, but have recently become able to eat and enjoy salads.
Favorite foods: Tacos, Chicken, Pineapple, Muffins, and yes, Chocolate
With our combined experience and strength of will, we decided that we are capable of learning how to cook, and now we simply have to start practicing!
-Aly
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