Cuban sandwich from leftovers

In my house, we love sandwiches and soup. I also hate to waste food (which we are trying to do better). One constant in our house is Cuban sandwiches after pork roast for dinner. It's a great way to use leftovers for another meal. This week, it was pork and sauerkraut. A few days later, I dug out the griddle.

Cuban sandwiches:

Leftover pork (3 ounces per sandwich)

Chipped or thin sliced deli ham (3 ounces  per sandwich)

Potato rolls (1 per sandwich)

Cheese if choice (1 slice per sandwich)

Mayo

Mustard

Hamburger dill pickles

Butter

Directions: 

Spray electric griddle with Pam and heat to 300-350. Butter both outsides of potato rolls and set aside. Warm ham and pork on griddle. When the meat is warm, place the rolls (butter side down on the griddle). While the outsides are grilling: spread bottom piece of roll with mayo and mustard and top with pickles. Top with pork, ham and cheese (Swiss is traditional I believe) and flip the top. Grill additional time if needed. 

Garden's glory

Even after several years of gardening, I'm still learning what to grow and how much to use without a lot of waste. I feel like I hit the right amount of tomatoes this year. And, they are heavenly. Today, I made Caprese salad. The basil is also from the garden. Yum! 

Cook Ahead

I love to cook, but I never seem to have time during the week. In an attempt to stock up the freezer with some casseroles, etc., I spent Saturday morning in the kitchen. It's really therapeutic for me. Messing up a lot of dishes and cleaning out my cupboards to make something edible makes me feel accomplished.

Nate thinks I am nesting. I think I am just being me and loving to cook and create. My hope is to employ this strategy when I am out of baby mode and back into normal Nicki mode. I'll cook on the weekends and the dishes will be ready to pop into the oven at a moment's notice. I froze my meals (Bottom left going clockwise Lasagna, Mexi Shells and Macaroni and Cheese), but they would probably last in the refrigerator for a few days. I completed the recipe up to the point where it says to cook it. I wrote the directions on a little card and taped them to the top of the foil wrapped casseroles and stacked them in the freezer. Hopefully they will taste yummy when it is time to eat them!

Canning disaster

Ugh. That is how I feel right now. Completely defeated. Although, even with the raging hormones baby Stiger is sending my way, I held it together.
Here is how this scenario went:
Step 1: I planted a garden and picked tomatoes out the wazoo all summer. I stored them in the fridge until I had enough to make a batch.
Step 2: I didn't have enough, so I raided my mom and stepdad's tomato plants.
Step 3: I cleaned and weighed 12 pounds of tomatoes.
Step 4: I roasted 12 pounds of tomatoes on the small grill.
Step 5: I roasted 4 bulbs of garlic in the oven
Step 6: I started the canner water.
Step 7: I washed the jars and lids and put them on the stove in warm water to simmer.
Step 8: I peeled the 12 pounds of tomatoes and attempted to deseed and cube them (nearly impossible because they were too soft). This took forever.
Step 9: Simmer tomatoes on the stove, as I added the roasted garlic.
Step 10: Discovered that the canner never boiled the water. I had been warned that a flat-top stove might not have enough to boil that beast of a pot. That person was right!
Step 11: Turned off all the burners, called my dad and we decided that I should just freeze the tomatoes.
Time of all this was 3 hours.
I am feeling defeated, yet optimistic that I tried, that is more than many people can say. No one learned any of this overnight! I will get it eventually.

Dinner inspiration out of no where

I headed back to school today for a meeting. All summer, I have been slacking on cooking dinner. Poor Nate has been living on frozen pizza, macaroni cheese and lunch meat sandwiches. I don't know if it was getting back into a routine today, but I was inspired to cook a decent dinner. I could see the joy on Nate's face as he said, "I like when you cook dinner, babe."
Before I left in the morning, I pulled two boneless skinless chicken breasts out of the freezer to thaw in the refrigerator. When I returned home, I completed the thaw in the microwave. I cut the chicken into strips and marinated them in Kraft balsamic vinegar salad dressing for a little while. Then I made baked corn. I have NEVER made that before. Before making it, I wasn't even sure that I really liked it. I am never a fan of adding butter, milk, eggs and other fattening ingredients to a vegetable, even if it is a starch. Nate mentioned that we should use the leftover corn on the cob from a few weekends ago for baked corn, a dish he only tried for the first time at my mom's house. So, I did before it spoiled. While the corn was baking, I cooked the chicken on the George Foreman grill, which went very quickly because the piecs were small. I topped off the meal with instant mashed potatoes, well because, we like them and they are easy.

Here is the recipe I used for baked corn from a church cookbook (which contained three recipes for baked corn. This one had the shortest cooking time.)

Baked Corn
2 cups cooked or canned corn
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoon flour
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs, beaten

Mix all ingredients together. Pour into greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Serves 4.

See, quick, easy and absolutely yummy!

Dinner on the quick

There is no challenge that I love more than opening the refrigerator and looking at what I have to pull together a meal. It's much easier when Nate is on night work. I will eat just about anything, so it's a tad easier. Last night, I pulled the last of the pork from my wedding (yes, I know that was more than a year ago, but it's still tastes fine and I haven't died yet) out of freezer. As it was defrosting in the micro, I cracked open a can of black beans. As soon as the pork was done, I warmed it in a pan with the beans and cooked some leftover rice in the micro. In about five minutes, I had a lovely little mixture of pork, beans and rice. I added some bruschetta for that cool, crisp, vegetable taste. YUM. It was a great fusion of flavors that was quick, cheap and used some leftovers.
I threw something similar in my lunch!

Woa...warm weather

I can't believe the temperatures. I am sitting here at my computer at 10:14 p.m. and I am sweating. Can this be? Nate asked, "What happened to Spring?" The weather has been a little wacky.
But I took advantage Saturday of the warm weather to grill. We are not big beef eaters, but have attempted steak before. Whatever crappy cut I chose last time was tough and disgusting. However, this time I splurged on 2 top cut sirloins (Buy one get one free at Giant). I wrapped some raw onions in foil and cooked them in the oven at 425 for 40 minutes. I also tossed some red potatoes in a garlic and herb seasoning and baked those in the oven. With about 20 minutes left on the side dishes, I fired up the grill. Over high heat, I cooked the sirloin for about 5-10 minutes, then cut the heat and let the steak sit in the grill until the sides were done.
It was amazing. I have always been afraid of ruining steaks, but this one turned out great. I think it helped that I put some aluminum foil on the grate before laying down the steak. I also added a little salt and pepper (per my dad's suggestion) to tenderize it!
Thank goodness I am no longer afraid of steak!

At-home Chinese cuisine

I had some time over the weekend to cook. I am pretty proud of the General Tso's with fried rice that I made on Saturday. Nate was pleased, too. Of course, no photo, because we ate it too fast and the leftovers don't do it justice.

Here is the recipe/process I used:

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
1/2 cup corn starch
3 eggs, beaten
Canola, olive or some other healthy variety of oil
General Tso's glaze and sauce (available in the ethnic food aisle at Giant for the low price of $5)

Pour 1-2 inches of oil in a wok or skillet. Mix the corn starch and eggs. Coat the cubed chicken with the batter mixture and fry at a high temperature just until the chicken is cooked through. Drain it on a paper towel. Lower the heat of the pan and toss the chicken and sauce together in a pan until heated through.

For the rice, I purchased a fried rice seasoning packet (also probably available in the ethnic aisle at Giant.) Cook 3 cups of rice (brown or white) and cool. In a skillet, heat about 1-2 tablespoons oil. Add the rice and chopped onion or scallions. Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce and the seasoning packet. Stir fry for 1 minute. Push the rice aside and add 2 beaten eggs. Let them scramble and mix it into the rice. Add cooked peas or carrots and meat if desired.


It really didn't take that long and it was really tasty. Although I can say it wasn't a healthy choice, I bet it had much less calories in it than the store-bought kind. If you want to lower the calories, use egg beaters instead of eggs. No one (by that I mean Nate) will know the difference.

Who says you can't have hot breakfast in a hurry?

I always struggle with what to eat in the morning.

It's usually a granola bar, some jelly toast or the occasional bowl of oatmeal. In just a few more minutes, I can have a hot and healthy breakfast pita like the one you see to the right. I cook my breakfast while I pack my lunch so I am not standing around idle, wasting time. So, I turn on the stove and while the pan heats up, I make a sandwich. Then, I pour in the egg beaters. While they warm up, I grab a few snacks and a drink and throw it into my lunch box. For this pita, I sprinkled real bacon bits and a bit of mozzarella cheese into the cooking eggs for added flavor. And of course, I added some ketchup. On a busy morning, I bet making this is quicker than waiting in the drive-thru at your favorite fast-food restaurant.

Pasta perfect!

Nate and I don't eat a lot of pasta dishes, yet I have accumulated boxes and boxes of pasta in all shapes and sizes. As you learned yesterday, I love cold salads. So, I make pasta salad. It's much cheaper than the store-bought stuff and you can tailor it the way you want it. For the last batch, I boiled tri-color noodles and added a packet of Good Seasonings salad dressing. (SO good on sandwiches, salads, etc.) I added peas and onions.

For the second batch (at left) I used bow ties. I added pepperoni, little pieces of provolone cheese and finely diced onions.

Other add in if you have them are carrots, broccoli, corn and beans.

Asian Rice Salad

I love sushi and the flavor the rice has (which comes from rice vinegar and sugar). I also love cold salads with lots of vinegar. The more, the better. I experimented with this Asian Rice Salad. The photo is a little dark...I definitely need a new camera..but you get the idea.

2 cups cooked brown rice, cooled

1/4 cup chopped water chestnuts

1/4 cup shredded carrots

1/4 cup thinly sliced celery

1/4 cup frozen peas

1/4 cup frozen corn

1 tablespoon chopped peanuts

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

Mix it all together and enjoy!

I think it need a little more vinegar. It's a little plain. But I do like the crunch that the water chenstnuts and peanuts give it.

Chicken Corn Soup

Whole chickens were on sale at Giant Thursday, so I decided it was a good time to make chicken corn soup. I use my mom's recipe. I just sort of wrote it down. There aren't really measurements or any real directions. But, I love making it. It makes the whole house smell good, and I enjoy chopping, dicing and adding ingredients. It was a great way to spend a Saturday. I also made Asian Rice Salad...but that's for another day!

Here's what the directions say:
Cook whole chicken off with diced onions and celery and chicken bouillon cubes. Once cooked, remove chicken to cool and put diced potatoes in the broth. Bring to a boil. Throw in frozen corn, chicken and sliced hard boiled eggs. For dough balls, crack an egg in a bowl. Add flour and water until consistent. Make sure water is boiling when you add the  dough balls. Add parsley, pepper and salt.

I like to let my simmer all day to fill my house with the awesome smell. Enjoy.

Dinner, darnit

I could kick myself at the end of every dinner. This is the conversation I end up having with myself as I am rinsing dishes in the sink.
"Crap."
"I forgot to take a picture."
"Crap."
"These blogs would be much more interesting with photos. Any ideas on remembering? I keep the camera downstairs until I need to take it upstairs to upload it. There is stays.
Anyway.
Tuesday I made chopped salad. I used a fancy tool from Pampered Chef called a salad chopper. It's like a huge pair of scissors. I loved chopped salad. I always serve it with frozen garlic bread sticks that cook in just 4 minutes.
Wednesday, I had leftovers....wait for it.....shredded pork mixed with salsa served over top of rice and a side of turnip greens. Of course, Nate had already eaten because he almost threw up when he saw my plate. I love to mix foods and try new things. Anyone can mix shredded pork with barbecue, but I've tried spaghetti sauce, salsa, pizza sauce and sauerkraut. I find that a combo of new and interesting flavors is better than the same old tired meal.
Tonight, I am making two batches of brownies for the classes that have behaved this week and kept their brownie points. It's been a long week, but I think we all need the reward of brownies and a movie.

Cold weather food

Soup season is almost over. As much as I love winter, I am ready for some warmth and sunshine. I think that my emotions need it.
But since it's here, I took advantage of the cold weather and made some soup in the slow cooker yesterday. I am still learning how to make thick soup. All of my batches are always thin.
I attempted to make corn chowder. I added a can of creamed corn to the crockpot. In a skillet, I cooked some bacon, then added diced potatoes and onions with a little water until the potatoes were cooked to a little soft. I added butter for some flavor. I dumped the skillet's contents into the slow cooker. I added evaporated milk (probably why it's not thick) and a cup of chicken broth. It didn't look chunky enough, so I added some frozen corn. I cooked it on low ALL day. The bacon and chicken broth made for a great flavor, but I wasn't satisfied with the texture. I'll work on that next time.

Dinner ideas made easy

The one thing I miss about living in York is that the Giant supermarkets are more high tech than the one in Shrewsbury. I miss that little machine in the meat department that offers recipes. You can choose a cut of meat, scan the meat and dozens and dozens of recipes are ready for you to print. It's awesome.
For example, pork loin was on sale for buy one get one free. I really only make pork and sauerkraut and roasts before....so I was looking for something new. I scanned the pork and scrolled through the recipes. I ended up choosing Pork Paella. It was basically Cajun-seasoned cubes of pork served over a mixture of rice and beans, wine, clam juice (which I happened to have in the basement...lol) and peas. It was really tasty, filling and not to unhealthy. Pork is a very lean meat (if you trim the fat.)
The scanning machine is just another tool shoppers can use to save time and money. If you are already at the grocery store, you can make sure you have all the ingredients. Some people are intimidated to use new technology, but you will see after the first time you use it...you'll wish you started a long time ago.

Freezing meat

This one is for Jen, because I know she is afraid of freezing meat. I live by it. I am a huge planner, so I buy way ahead at the grocery store. At any given time we have 48 rolls of toilet paper, five bottles of shampoo, eight cans of soup and 50 bottles of water and sports drinks.

When I lived in an apartment, I couldn't buy too much meat ahead because I only had the freezer attached to my fridge. I invested in a freezer when we bought the house, just a small used one that was my grandmothers. When meat is on sale at Giant for buy one get one free, I stock up. You can beat two 2-pound roasts for $10. I always buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts in bulk when they are buy one get one. For about $20, you can get 10 or more large breasts. When I get them home, I divide them into freezer bags, about two to each. I usually trim them down to normal size and freeze the trimmings as chicken tenders. I write what it is and the date on the outside of the chicken and pop it in the freezer. The day before I use it, I put the chicken in the refrigerator to thaw. If it's too much for the recipe I am using it for, I cook it off and save it for casseroles or chicken salad. The thawed chicken/pork/beef is no different than what you buy fresh. Once you add the seasoning, etc, you will never know the difference.
Today, I put a piece of pork that was thawed from the freezer in the slow cooker with beef broth, mushrooms, onions and seasoning. I'll serve it with mashed potatoes and a vegetable. YUM!