confession and a "recipe"

let's face it. i have an eight week old and a 2.5 year old and i have no idea how to parent two children. not a clue. i love to big cook and my goal is to stay true but even more true is that i am probably hit or miss for awhile here so you can't count on me for a full week of preplanned meals. instead i'll try to share what i am learning as i go. that is that easy is good, using what you already have is good, making extra so you cook once and eat twice (or three times) is really good.

last week i made enough tofu/napa/chicken to have three meals. we ate two last week and i'll pull one out this week. when i made my tomato sauce i made enough for about five meals so we can count on that for a night a few more weeks yet. and there are always more veggies from the farm. so, last night the big meal was roasted veggies and crazy rice. i'll explain:

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roasted veggies
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summer squash
onion
garlic
peppers
kohlrabi
eggplant
cherry tomatoes
lime
olive oil
sesame oil
soy sauce
white wine

1. cut up veggies & garlic and throw in a roasting pan
2. season with oils, soy sauce, wine and lime juice
3. throw lime rind in too
4. roast at 375 for about 45 mins

note: i used the veggies i had on hand from the farm pick up. you can use whatever veggies you have. woo woo dada likes to eat the lime rind i only eat rind if it's pickled. you decide...

another note: if you are using the kohlrabi and you are not familiar with it i will tell you what i think. peel it and cut it up small. the pieces i left bigger where a little tough. the smaller pieces were scrumptious.


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crazy rice
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crazy rice can be rice with almost anything mixed in but i'll tell you a few of my favorites. i always cook the rice following the package instructions and add the "crazy" once it is done. the heat of the rice tends to be enough to heat whatever i add. i chop up the add-in's to make it easy to eat.

brown rice
chick peas
artichoke hearts
parmesan


brown rice pilaf (near east again)
kidney beans
asiago


brown rice
black beans
corn
tomato
scallion

brown rice
white beans
feta cheese
olives


ok, you get the idea. the nice thing is that crazy rice tends to include a protein and sometimes a veggies so it can almost be a meal. also, my two year old who is picky as all picky currently likes rice. go figure. last night we had the roasted veggies atop the crazy rice (pilaf, kidney, asiago) and it was a super last minute meal. the tot ate just the crazy rice, i hid the beans under the rice...

now go get crazy with your rice.

west coast 3

Big Cook:  Chicken Rice Soup w. Veggies and Franks n' Beans n' Rice

So, life has been a little busy on the west coast.  Which means less time devoted to our big cook.  Thus, the less glamorous meals like the ones posted here.  Who needs glamour!?  Here are a couple of the meals that can be made in bulk before your week begins.  

The first is the:

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Chicken Rice Soup w. Veggies.  

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Chicken Bones

Rice

Assorted Veggies

Remember that chicken carcass you saved from roasting?  Well, bust it out, put it in a big stock pot, cover it with water, throw in a couple onions (skin on!, yes, skin on!), big chunk of skinned ginger and bring to a boil.  

Meanwhile work on the following:

a)  boil up some chicken thighs or breasts and when they are done, shred them up to put in your soup later.

b) cut up carrots, celery, potatoes, and whatever else you want in your soup.

After the soup comes to a boil, let it simmer for a few hours until it is reduced some.  

Strain and then add your rice (cup or cup and a half), boil again and then simmer and cover for 45 minutes or so.

Add veggies and shredded chicken.

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Franks 'n Beans 'n Rice

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Dried Beans

Vegetable Stock

Spices

*Bacon (optional)

Rocky Chicken Dogs (new discovery*  so tasty!)

Rice

To prepare the beans, I used my crock pot and used the following recipe:

www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1621,148161-228195,00.html

Add chopped up dogs to beans

Serve over rice.

lemon veggie soup

it was in the freezer because i made up a batch while i was pregnant but i wanted to share the recipe in case you feel so inspired.

lemon
chick broth
garlic
cilantro
zucchini
carrots
onion
white beans
red pepper
tomato

1. saute onion and garlic.
2. add carrots.
3. add broth and bring to a boil.
4. add all the other veggies, squeeze in the juice from your lemon, add beans and cilantro and simmer for awhile.
5. i like to serve it over rice.

*you can switch it up to use whatever veggies you like. i go heavy on the garlic and lemon cause that is how i like it best.*

my baby won't sleep

i know it is hard to believe when you see a picture as sweet as this but it is true. her timing is all off, she wakes up as soon as the bean is sleeping and she simply won't sleep. and how can i cook if my baby won't sleep?

well, i have to take a look in the freezer. and also the fridge. there are meals in there i just know it. so i have decided to take stock and then i can figure out what we are eating this week. you see, there was no big cook this weekend. shame shame i know. (if you want to know why i will explain it at the end of this taking stock moment.) i got a napa from the farm so i am planning a tofu/napa/turk night even though it was not precooked. maybe i'll find a morning i can cook. although, before that i have to find a time to get to the grocery store. note to self, go shopping you have nothing in the fridge but your farm pick up!

ok, so what is in my freezer. monday night = chili. gohan made it when she was here and i have enough left frozen for one dinner. it is super yummy on the parmesan couscous made by near east (http://neareast.com/#products/parmesanpilaf). my grocery store sells these on special for a dollar a few times a year and i always stock up. yum.

tuesday = veggie soup. i made it with farm veggies when i was still pregnant. it is healthy which scores points in my book these days as i am trying to drop some of the crazy poundage i layered on while i was growing this latest babe.

wednesday = quesadillas! i bought the cheese and tortillas for these last week and never used them cause i had so much niku jaga. i can sautee some fresh veggies from the farm to throw in or if i am really together i can boil some of the chicken to shred for them too. yay for a second night with a reason to use sour cream. my all time favorite food.

thursday = napa/tofu/chicken. i better have made it to the store by thursday! and maybe gran gran woo woo can help out with the kids one day this week freeing my hands for some mid week cooking. especially if i cook for her too. better call her and arrange this help.

friday = um...it is only monday. i seriously am surprised i made it this far in the planning. i am going to live on the edge and leave friday open. i might even ask woo woo dada to pick us up some take out (gasp). shhhhhhhh, don't tell gohan. i don't want to let her down.

now, the dish on the lack of cooking this weekend. you see, woo woo gramps (phew calling him that makes me laugh) is the head honcho of a local event that takes place each september. he does a great job with it and i even enjoy the event myself but he steals woo woo dada all weekend long! to help him! that means i am in charge of the bean and the chick pea with out another set of hands to make the big cooking easier. and lets face it, i was looking for an excuse to take a weekend off. also, i was very very busy getting myself ready to go to the event which involved packing an all day diaper bag for two kids. all day + two kids = big ol' bag. so you see, it is really not my fault.

this week i am bound and determined to use my farm veggies up before the next pick up and get my bottom organized for a big cook this coming weekend.

go team!

~woo woo mama~ coming to you live from the east coast...

east coast 2

when the smoke cleared from the friday breakdown i did manage to get some cooking done. here is what it looked like:

roasted sauce (2) + niku jaga (2) + roasted chicken and veggies

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roasted sauce

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a spin off of the west coast sauce

tomatoes

onion

garlic

baby bella mushrooms

sweet italian sausage

olive oil

1. cut up tomatoes and onions and throw them in a roasting pan

2. smoosh the garlic to get skin of and break piece open and throw it in the pan

3. drizzle with olive oil and roast at 425 for about 25 or 30 minutes

4. puree all that

5. saute sausage and mushrooms

6. combine puree and sauteed foods in the slow cooker for a few hours or overnight

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niku jaga

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see west coast 2

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chicken and veggies

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chicken breast bone in

summer squash

eggplant

peppers (red, green, italian)

lemon

soy sauce

olive oil

sesame oil

big cook prep = cut up all veggies

night of

1. put chicken and veggies in separate pans

2. on each squeeze one lemon

3. add sesame oil, olive oil, and soy sauce

4. roast at 375 for a bit

5. reduce heat if needed and roast until chicken is fully cooked.

(yummy hint, for another nights dinner simmer down the carcass of your bone in breast to make a soup base and add the left over veggies once it is cooked.)

that's all for now folks.

happy cooking

~woo woo~

west coast 2

Here we are in week two of the big cook.

It has entered "Fall-ish" type weather here in L.A., which means gray mornings and the fact that I might actually have to wear socks. I hate wearing socks.

Well, to kick the gray away, I'm cooking up some soup and stew for the week to come.

Big Cook: Niku Jaga (Japanese Style), Corn Soup (Alice Waters Style), Veggie Quesadillas and Zaru Soba Stir Fry

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Niku Jaga

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Found a good recipe with some twists on it from Iron Chef Morimoto himself.

Here's the link:

www.community.learnsushi.org/2007/11/iron-chefs-niku-jaga/

*also, there's a high effort portion to the prep which calls for dipping the beef one by one. You can also do as gohan/woo woo mamas do. dump it all in. at once. you're still an iron chef! just smarter!

*if you can't find certain ingredients, such as yam noodles or even thinly sliced beef--> just use regular cubes of meat (longer cook on low heat and omit the noodles).

*i had a ton of shiitake mushrooms in the house, so i added that too.

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Corn Soup

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Large White Onion

6tbs butter

salt/pepper

5 ears of white corn

optional: half a pigs foot (it's a very good option)

1. Dice onion w. butter

2. Add half pigs foot. The tasty option.

3. Add salt/pepper

4. Stew until onions are soft

5. If onions dry out, add a little water

6. While the onions are cooking, slice corn kernels from cobs

7. When the onions are ready, add a quart of water, bring to a boil, add corn and simmer for 3-5 minutes.

8. Take the pot off fire, remove pig's foot and puree

9. Strain through sieve.

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Veggie Quesadilla/Zaru Soba Stir Fry

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Veggies (Napa/Peppers/Onions/Asparagus/Leeks...whatever)

1. Stir fry with tons of garlic/season

2. Save for sticking in veggie quesadillas and Stir Fry w. Soba

west coast 1

The only real difference between woo woo mamas big cook 1 and my big cook 1 is that I did a roasted tomato sauce instead of the yummy stir fry she cooked up.

A quick and tasty fix for all those end of summer tomatoes out there:

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Roasted Tomato Sauce:

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Bunch of Tomatoes

Garlic

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

(basil, oregano etc.)

1. Half your tomatoes

2. Spread chopped garlic over the top

3. Sprinkle Salt, Pepper and any other dry herbs you have and like!

4. Dribble olive oil around the tomatoes

5. Roast them until very soft (25-35 min.) at 450 degree oven

6. Mash or Food Process the cooked tomatoes

7. *optional :add browned meat and onions, but just plain is super good too.