In the Kitchen

[thartley]

I found this link on the GreatNewsNetwork.org link on Isara...  Hilarious!  I want to grow up to BE just like them!

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZNvjhrzDctA&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/ZNvjhrzDctA&rel=1</a>

[PK]

I just saw the photo of your dinner, with the side-dish of Isara. lol That's very cool!

[thartley]

I just saw the photo of your dinner, with the side-dish of Isara. lol That's very cool!

Isara Man lives in my kitchen and keeps me company when I cook.  So whenever something actually turns out RIGHT, he climbs on the rim of the plate to give his signature celebratory cheer for a job well-done. 

[KitKat]

Isara Man lives in my kitchen and keeps me company when I cook.  So whenever something actually turns out RIGHT, he climbs on the rim of the plate to give his signature celebratory cheer for a job well-done. 

Sweet! A kitchen Isara man, how cool!

Loved the video, they're funny! Their meatballs sound yummy!

[KitKat]

  thartley, photos of your delightful meals are a real inspiration to me!
Keep'um coming. Maybe, I'll try to add some of my own. 

[Ginafish]

That vid was hilarious! I worked for some Greeks for a couple of months, they didn't get along as well as those two...  Makes me hungry!!

[thartley]

KitKat, its funny you would use that particular smiley thingy because it looks like its making pasta and sauce.  Today I am going to try to make my own homemade tomato and basil sauce.  I usually go for the jar or canned variety, but I'm going to make my own today.  I am using roma tomatoes and fresh basil.  I've never done it, so we'll see.    I bought some very small pasta shells to serve it with since the recipe I found says you should use a pasta that is shaped to hold sauce.  yummy...  Not sure what the side will be. Maybe just a salad.

 

[KitKat]

thartley, it does look like pasta cooking! 

Your meal sounds delicious! A salad would be very nice, another side dish could be fresh asparagus or green beans, also adding green to your Italian plate. 
 
Good luck with your tomato and basil sauce. Pass your receipe on. I just love basil, I should've planted some this spring. Oooops, another something I forgot to do. I've bought it at our grocery store, but it doesn't stay fresh long, growing it is always better. I just bet the deer would love basil! 

[thartley]

The sauce turned out GREAT!  I think I would rather have had it on angel hair instead of the shells, though.  And I totally ad-libbed on the recipe.  Since I am only cooking for one, I took liberties with attempting to reduce the amount I was making.

chopped onion
garlic
extra virgin olive oil
@2 lbs of roma or plum tomatoes (peeled, seeded, and chopped)
fresh basil chopped (or torn)
sugar (to taste)

I sauteed the onion and garlic in a fairly generous amount of olive oil.  Once the onions were translucent, I added the chopped tomatoes and basil.  Let it simmer for a while until the tomaotes released a good amount of juice.  Then I added a little sugar, just a pinch at a time, until it was just slightly sweet.  (If the tomatoes had been riper to begin with, the sugar may not have been necessary.)  Then just let it simmer and reduce down to whatever consistency you prefer.

Picture will have to come later as I didnt stop to take one earlier. heh!  The fresh basil smelled insanely good!  Not sure exactly how much tomato I was working with, but once the sauce cooked and reduced down, it didnt make as much as I thought it was going to. 

[KitKat]

Your recipe sounds great. Made with real tomatoes, I've never made it that way!
I'll try your recipe later in the week.
 
Guess what I had for dinner tonight? Yes, thin Spaghetti with meat sauce, not as special as yours, mine had to be quick and easy tonight. I didn't even have a side dish tonight. I know, sigh, I didn't have my veggies today. I'll drink a V-8. hehehe.
 

[thartley]

Your recipe sounds great. Made with real tomatoes, I've never made it that way!
I'll try your recipe later in the week.
 

Just remember to use more tomatoes than I have listed.  I didnt weigh mine at the store when I bought them.  And make sure you peel and seed them. 

[Ginafish]

Terri- I bet your Italian food was delicious! Next time, change that basil to cilantro, don't cook the tomatoes or cilantro, add a chopped jalepeno, and tada! Fresh salsa! Yum!!

I have bought lots of fresh cilantro, but haven't bought basil. Fresh herbs come in huge bundles that I can't use fast enough it seems. I've always thought of doing an indoor herb garden.

We bought a book on cheese making this weekend, and for our first trick, we are going to try to make our own yogurt. How's that for trying something new? 

[thartley]

The "potting soil" I got was horrible. Tons of small wood peaces, no pearlite, and looks like gray silt.

Wow, that almost sounds more like what we used to call "fill dirt" than "potting soil".   

[KitKat]

You're not stupid, just doing a lot of multi-tasking over the weekend.

[thartley]

We bought a book on cheese making this weekend, and for our first trick, we are going to try to make our own yogurt. How's that for trying something new? 

Are ya'll going to do this soon?  Please oh please take pictures to share. 

[thartley]

I had lunch this past weekend with a friend at a little cafe and I ordered a very delicious vegetable wrap.  It cost a whopping $6.95, so I decided to try and make one at home.  It is very easy and very quick, so KitKat might want to try it out when she needs something quick and easy. 

Its made on a spinach wrap and this is what you fill it with:
honey mustard dressing
julienned carrots (I bought them already prepared)
romaine lettuce
alphalpha sprouts
freshly shredded mozzarella cheese (the bag variety isnt as tasty or moist to me)
sliced black olives
unsalted sunflower seeds

roll it up and enjoy.  I still have trouble with the rolling it up part, so mine turned out too ugly to photograph, but I'll practice again tomorrow.    Also, you could put sliced roma tomatoes on it, or substitute pepperjack cheese for the mozzarella.  I'll do my best to make a nice-looking one this weekend to post.

[KitKat]

  Your vegetable wrap sounds very good. It has everything on it that Gwiz and I both love, except the bean sprouts. Thanks for tip about the mozzarella cheese. I'll definitely try the wrap. We're both definitely trying to eat less meat and more veggies.  Thanks, T.

[thartley]

Can ya'll post a pic of the meal up here?  Whenever I cook things without pictures I always wonder if what I end up with even remotely resembles the intended product.   



Look what I saw in the grocery store yesterday... 

[KitKat]

  T. that's really cool!!  Nongkhai Mountain, I wonder if PK has seen it in the markets in Nongkhai?  

BTW, Getamanda's recipe for Spaetzle is delicious. She prepared some for Gwiz and me right after Graham was born.  Yummm, I think everyone will love it. Thanks for the recipe Amanda. I haven't seen any Spaetzle makers in the stores, but I'll keep looking.

[thartley]

T. that's really cool!!  Nongkhai Mountain, I wonder if PK has seen it in the markets in Nongkhai?  

Well, when I looked at the side of the bottle, it said "Made in the U.S.A." and the address was somewhere in Maine. LOL!  Go figure....

[KitKat]

Maine?? Oh, shucks!  Oh, well, life goes on. hehehe

[thartley]

Okay, here's today's dealie-doo.... I found a very pretty summery plate at the thrift store yesterday and the daisy drinking glass as well as the salsa bowl. I thought the colors would go nicely with the sandwich.  (Too bad I am still very bad at dressing the shot)


The Wrap:
Spinach wrap
honey mustard dressing
shredded mozzarella
julienned carrots
romaine lettuce
alfalpha sprouts
sliced black olives
unsalted sunflower seeds

The Salsa:
2 cans milder rotel
chopped garlic
1/2 medium chopped onion
fresh chopped cilantro
salt/pepper to taste (optional)
*Even though the milder rotel is used, this is still quite spicy-hot


Oh, and the poor blue man was so upset he missed out on his photo-op, he was in tears.... 

[KitKat]

  thartley, your plate looks good enough to eat! hehehe  I'm definitely going to  try your spinach wrap this week.  With the first photo, I did miss blue man, but you surprised us all by putting him at the end.  Your hilarious!

Note to self:  Learn how to take photos and post them quickly. Maybe this should be my "try something different" for this week.

Gwiz and I went out to dinner last night, so we're having leftovers we
brought home. I'll make a salad as a side dish.    Since I work Sundays, I usually don't cook a big meal after I come home.

   
 

[thartley]

thartley, your plate looks good enough to eat! hehehe 

Thanks! 

I've been thinking about Getamanda's recipe up there the last couple days.  If that recipe makes enough for her family meal, I will have to invite people over for dinner if I make it.    It sure sounds good, though.  I can try, then post a pic of my end result and ya'll can tell me how far off the mark I am!  haha!

[KitKat]

I'm off to the grocery store this morning and I have my list of ingredients for thartley's spinach wrap. We're going to have it for dinner tonight. I'm also going to try and take a photo, just like thartley did. Wish me luck!
One question, for the salsa, Gwiz doesn't enjoy anything hot/spicy, so could I use canned tomatoes as a substitute? I think it could work.