Korean Beef

I love Asian food.  Each country has their own specialties and flavors.  I've dabbled in trying to make Asian dishes only in the past few years.  I have a feeling most recipes we eat aren't truly authentic, but are still enjoyed by the family!

I recently stumbled upon this Korean Beef creation.  It's non-traditional in that it uses ground beef.  Which also makes it come together faster.  I added peppers & cabbage to the original recipe, contributing nutrients and color.  The flavor is simple and was a hit!  

Next time I will double the recipe so we have lunch leftovers. 

Adapted from here

Korean Beef
Printable Copy
 
1 lb lean ground beef
1 T sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c pepper, diced (any color)
3/4 c shredded cabbage
1/4 c brown sugar 
1/4 c soy sauce
1/2 t fresh ginger, minced 
1/2 t red pepper flakes (more if like spicier)
salt and pepper to taste
5 green onions, diced

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat and brown hamburger with garlic and pepper. Drain.

Add cabbage, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, salt and pepper and pepper flakes. Simmer at least 5 minutes to blend the flavors. 

Garnish with green onions and serve over brown rice (or raw cabbage if you're watching carbs).

*Thanks for bearing with the photo quality; can only get better from here!

  

Prep Ahead: Proteins

Planning ahead makes me feel accomplished, including in the kitchen.  When I'm at work and know that upon arriving home, dinner will come together quickly, well, that's worth a lot.  
 
My tip: Cook up your proteins ahead of time.  Then freeze them.

I find it a huge time (& money) saver to cook in bulk and freeze.  This includes shredded chicken breasts, ground beef or turkey and all kinds of beans.  Bonus: Stock up when meat's on sale.  Upfront, you invest some preparation time, but you will not regret your efforts when future dinners are made easier.  

If you've never cooked your own beans, you're in for a treat.  They not only taste fresher, but you avoid the preservatives in most canned beans and, you save money.  I always have the canned variety in the pantry and we eat those too; it's hard to keep up with consumption sometimes.  
 
Follow the steps below to cook in batches and freeze. 

Shredded Chicken

1. Buy a large package of fresh chicken breasts, 8-10 total.  Trim.
2. Prepare your larger crockpot with cooking spray and place chicken inside.
3. Pour 2-3 cups of chicken broth in pot.  Not all chicken will be covered. 
4. Cover and cook on HI for 3-3 1/2 hrs or LO for 6-7 hours.
5. Drain the broth.  Shred chicken on plate with two forks.  
6. Place back in pot and allow to cool.*

Ground Beef or Turkey
1. Buy 7-10 pounds of lean beef, turkey or a mixture.  I use about half of each.  
2. Finely dice 1 medium onion.  
3. Place meat and onion in large fry pan.  Heat to med and cook until browned, breaking into small pieces.  If your pan isn't large enough, you may have to go two rounds.  
4. Drain meat and discard liquid in sealed container in garbage when cool.  (Did you know putting dripping down the kitchen drain/disposal can attract unwanted visitors in the insect form?)  I save peanut and coffee cans for this.
5. Place meat back in pan to cool.*

Beans (pinto, navy, black, cannelloni, lentils, etc)

1. Rinse 2 lbs of beans and place in larger crock pot.  Fill pot almost full with water.  Let sit overnight (unplugged).
2. In morning, drain beans.  Fill pot back up with water.  Add 2-3 chicken bouillon cubes.  Cook on LO for 5-7 hours.  Some beans will cook less time so keep an eye out.
3. Drain and let cool.*

*After cooling, spoon into sandwich size Ziploc bags and seal.  I put about 1 cup in each bag.  Make sure you squeeze out as much air as possible. 

Next, place several filled sandwich bags into a gallon size freezer Ziploc bag and seal (you are double-bagging).  Label and freeze.

Then pull out what you need for dinner from the freezer.  i.e. if we're having chicken tacos, I use 2-3 bags.  If I'm adding chicken to a pasta dish, I might just use one.

Warning: when you use the last package of any of the above, a bit of sadness will set in because you have to start over... 

What are your kitchen shortcuts?


Note 1: For shredded beef or pork - add beef or preferred broth flavor and follow shredded chicken instructions.
Note 2: I have many friends who purchase rotisserie chicken to shred and freeze and this works well too.  I personally prefer chicken breasts, so cook myself.
Note 3: Some kinds of darker beans may stain a white crock pot.  I soak in water with a couple teaspoons of bleach until the stain is gone and then wash in soapy water.
Note 4: For best results, don't use store brand zipped bags.

Recipe Night - Healthy Chicken Fajitas

Need Dinner Ideas?  Host a Recipe Night!

Recently, Recipe Night was at my home.  This is when a bunch of busy gals gather for dinner ideas and much-needed social time.  This was the summer finale of Moms Night Out evenings planned by our ABF.*

How it works: each person brought a main dish and several copies of the recipe.  Before partaking, each introduced her dish and provided any allergy info (nuts, etc).  We got to try a few bites of each entrée and take home the recipes we want to make.

While not a prerequisite, I asked attenders to lean on options that were quick to prepare. 

There were fourteen of us and, WHAT A SPREAD!  Can you even believe I didn't take a photo of either my guests or the array of dishes?  Major regret. Movin' on...

A few hours later, guests departed with arrows in their quivers to attack this daily beast of getting dinner on the table.  And with warmed hearts; the natural result of time with girlfriends. 

Oh, and one friend substituted a peanut butter/chocolate dessert.  Like anyone complained about that.

My contribution was Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas, one of my now-staples since I discovered the recipe a couple of years ago.  I found it here (and used her photo since hers is prettier). 

There’s a bit of prep work, but you should be sitting down to eat 25 minutes after putting these in the oven.  Of course, prepping can be done ahead of time and in this case, you could save prep time by substituting frozen peppers/onions and purchasing pre-trimmed chicken.

Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas
Printable Copy

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
2 T vegetable oil
2 t chili powder
2 t cumin
½ t garlic powder
½ t dried oregano
¼ t salt
1 (15 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, sliced
1 large bell pepper, seeded and sliced (I use half a green and half a red)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken strips in a greased 13×9 baking dish.

In a small bowl combine the oil, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, dried oregano, and salt.

Drizzle the spice mixture over the chicken and stir to coat.

Add the tomatoes, peppers, and onions to the dish and stir to combine.

Bake uncovered for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender.

Serve on tortillas and desired toppings like avocado chunks, sour cream and shredded cheese.

*ABF: Adult Bible Fellowship.  A couples “Sunday School” type class that meets on Sunday mornings at our church.  Our church within a larger church.

Need a good book to read?

Crime mysteries are generally not what I gravitate to when selecting a book to curl up with.  However, I discovered this previously downloaded novel one on my Kindle carousel. 

Back on Murder, by J. Mark Bertrand, features Roland March, a middle-aged member of the Houston Police Department..  Despite some successes in his career, he's hit a patch of under-performance, being assigned to "special projects," and on his way out.  He's considered by many colleagues to be washed up. 

I found myself cheering for the underdog and wanting him to do the right thing.

Make sure you have time to read this in a shorter amount of time; there are many well-developed characters around March, but also many other ancillary names to keep track of. 

What I did not expect from this was a bit of police education.  I mean, I know real-life murders don't get solved in an hour episode of CSI.  But I appreciated how the author described police breaking down a door the "extreme sport" of police work, with the adrenaline rush of not knowing what they'll find behind it. 

If I piqued your interest, I also have good news.  The Kindle version of this book is FREE right now on Amazon.  Download now and read when you have time.  If you don't have a Kindle, download the Kindle app to read books on your PC, Blackberry, iPad, iPhone or Mac.

Quick Dinner: Spaghetti Carbonara

Two of my husband's favorite foods are eggs and cheese.  He is a smart man with refined taste buds. 

Spaghetti Carbonara is really just bacon & egg pasta. My first taste of it was in England, 24 years ago, at a friend's home. I loved it. But that was just post-college, when my culinary interests were minimal and it didn't cross my mind to ask for the recipe. It was only a few years ago that I remembered this dish and have since tried a few carbonara variations. 

This one emerged as the keeper. It comes together quickly and is cost effective. I have vowed to not ever make this when I'm home alone because I wouldn't be responsible for how much I'd eat. My advice is to put a green salad on 3/4 of your plate to help with portion control. 

Adapted from a find on allrecipes.com.  

Spaghetti Carbonara
Printable Copy

1 lb whole wheat spaghetti 

2 T olive oil 

4 slices pork bacon*

4 slices turkey bacon*

1 onion, finely chopped 

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 c white wine (optional - I add if I have) **

4 eggs

1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

salt & pepper to taste 

In a large pot of boiling water, cook spaghetti pasta. Drain well. Toss with 1 T of olive oil, and set aside. 

Meanwhile in a large skillet, cook bacon until slightly crisp; remove and set on paper towels to drain excess grease.  To the bit of bacon fat remaining in the pan, add 1 T olive oil, and heat in reused large skillet. Add chopped onion, and cook over medium heat until onion is translucent. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add wine and cook one more minute. 

Return cooked bacon to pan; add cooked and drained spaghetti. Toss to coat and heat through, adding more olive oil if it seems dry or is sticking together. Push spaghetti to sides of pan; add beaten eggs and cook in middle, tossing constantly with tongs or large fork until eggs are barely set. Add Parmesan cheese and toss again. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with extra Parmesan cheese.  And lots of green salad.  Might even be better as a leftover, for breakfast, lunch or dinner. 

*You may use 8 slices of just one type of bacon, or substitute ham, panchetta or prosciutto.  

*We're not huge white wine fans.  When we do open a bottle, I freeze the leftovers in ice cube trays.  When frozen, I pop and and put into Ziploc bag to store in the freezer.  They don't completely harden, but I can easily take out what I need for a recipe. 

Back to School

A new school year.

New school supplies.

A few new clothes.  New tennies.

Finding out who's in your classes and processing the results.

The first day: apprehension and excitement all mixed together.

Learning new teachers' rules.

Settling into new schedule.

Tell-about-yourself homework.

Math review homework.

Week One is over.

Homework increases in level and in duration.

After school activities start.

Week Two is over.

Buried 'til Fall Break.