Monday, December 29, 2008

Happiness, Health, Peace, & Love !





I was busy with the holidays, Mom's stuff so blogging was off my radar... I hope you all missed me!!! If it's not too late we would like to wish you a Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!
From the Gabby's Goodies Crew to all of you!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Love My Lettuce Wraps



Hope this post finds everyone enjoying their holiday shopping! Did you buy your slow cooker,(AKA crock pot), yet? I hope so! As I have mentioned before it really is a great appliance for people with a schedule from hell! It is also great for entertaining....give it a try!
This is a great dish...a lot of fun and inexpensive.
Asian Lettuce Wraps
1 package of your Ground Beef of choice (the package that runs just under 2 pounds)
1/2 cup of Low Sodium Soy Sauce
1 Tbls Oyster Sauce
2 Tbls Honey
1/2 Tsp Toasted Sesame Oil
1 Tsp Garlic Powder
1 heaping Tbls freshly grated Ginger
2 Green Onions thinly diced saving some for garnish
1 package of Rice Noodles cooked and cooled according to package
1 head of Romaine or Boston Lettuce leaves cleaned and dried
Brown beef and drain.
Set slow cooker on low for 4 hours.
Put Beef, Soy, Honey, Sesame Oil,Garlic Powder, Ginger, and Green Onion all in the slow cooker.
Give a good stir.
Cover and let her go.
Arrange the lettuce and noodles on a platter.
Take the meat out of the slow cooker with a slotted spoon and put on the platter.
Sprinkle with the reserve Green Onions.
Admire and enjoy!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Light Lunch, A Spring Roll in Winter



You will really enjoy this...it takes a few tries handling the rice paper wrapper, but it is so worth it!
A note about ingredients, you can find most of them in the Asian section at the regular market and the Spring Roll Wrapper, (the package is in the first picture),you will need to go to an Asian market. One package has a lot of wrappers so it is worth the trip.
As far as the filling goes, for the protein, (I used imitation crab sticks), you can use any leftover chicken, fish, or meat.
The only "cooking " involved in this is warm water for softening the wrapper and very hot water for the Mung Bean Threads (or also referred to as noodles).
Set yourself up in an assembly line.
This recipe will make 3 rolls:
3 Spring Roll Wrappers
Big bowl filled with warm water
1 good handful Mung Bean Threads ( you can break it off in a bunch)
Bowl of hot water
1/2 Seedless Cucumber cut into matchsticks
1 Carrot cut into thin matchsticks
2 whole Scallions cut into a small dice
Big handful of shredded lettuce
4 0r 5 imitation Crab Sticks broken up into shreds
Ponzu Sauce
Set aside a plate with a damp paper towel on it and another damp paper towel for covering each roll as you work on the others or the rolls will get gummy.
Start by soaking the Mung Bean Threads in the bowl with the very hot water for about 5 minutes or till soft, then drain.
Now begin to soak your wrapper in the warm water until it is soft (this will happen fast)
Carefully lift it out of the water and lay it out on your board.
Layer toward the top of the circle some of the lettuce, carrot, cucumber, crab, and threads
Then sprinkle with the Ponzu sauce.
Bring both sides of the wrapper in then roll down from the top as tight as you can, it will seal itself.
Place it in the damp paper towels.
Continue to complete the next two.
To serve I cut them in half on an angle for a pretty presentation.
Put out some Ponzu in a bowl for extra dipping.
Very low in calories!
Enjoy!

Monday, December 15, 2008

A Man With A Pan!




Usually, I like to do my thing in the kitchen without anyone helping me except Mom...she is a great sous chef. Michael will normally sit in the family room that is open to the kitchen and start the inquisition...
What are ya makin'?
How are ya makin' it?
What time are ya makin' it?
Then he proceeds to peek in the oven and drive me nuts! We call him the "micro manager"! So in the spirit of marital harmony I let him cook with me on the weekends in the beautiful kitchen he built me.
I went to Costco to see what looked good as far as proteins go...we didn't want beef and the fish was not killin' me...but the Talapia looked good the price was right so I took it home...
We decided with much debate to pan fry it with a seasoned flour batter. It was so good! We also made balsamic roasted broccoli with grape tomatoes
The best part was when he cleaned up the whole kitchen and scrubbed the pans, spic and span!
What a man! What a man! What a mighty good man! (Remember that song? En Vogue in the 90's)
So here we go...
Use about 1 to 1 1/2 pcs of Talapia blot it dry with paper towels (very important for crispiness)
2 Eggs beaten
1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
1/4 Tsp Fresh Ground Pepper
1 Tsp Granulated Garlic Powder
1/2 Tsp Paprika
Canola, Veggie, Peanut Oil for frying
Very easy operation ...heat up 1/2 of oil in a high sided fry pan...you will know when it's ready when you put the handle of a wooden spoon in the oil and bubble form around it.
In one bowl put the beaten eggs and in the other bowl put flour, salt, pepper,garlic powder, & paprika.
Give the flour mixture a good mix.
Dredge the fish in the egg then the flour shaking off the excess.
Fry in oil till golden brown on each side. You really need to do this by eye.***Do not crowd the pan...Do it in batches.
Drain on paper towels.
Serve...crispy...yummy!
Balsamic Roasted Broccoli and Tomatoes
A bunch of Broccoli Florets (I used a whole head)
Pint of Grape Tomatoes
5 cloves of Garlic cut in half
Kosher Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil
Cooking Spray
Preheat oven to 400
Cover a roasting pan with foil and Spray pan (easy cleanup)
Put Broccoli ,Tomatoes,Garlic in pan.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper
Drizzle with Olive Oil and Balsamic vinegar.
Roast at 400 till Broccoli is a little charred and tomatoes are bursting and wrinkling.
About 20 minutes...just keep an eye on it.
Crispy delicious!
Enjoy!



Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Gift Wrapping Idea...So Cute!



Scrapbooking is an addiction I cannot afford to have right now...I really try to stay away from it, because I would become obsessed and then end up going broke while working off the debt by sweeping up scrapbook scrap at the scrapbook store...oh boy did I just drift off or what?! Anyway... I satisfy this strange need of paper craft by adding it in to things like gift wrap or party decor.
What you see in this picture is a present I gave to my baby sister and her hubby for their anniversary. It is a throw that comes in this great chocolate brown box with ribbon...when I got it home I noticed the box was a little beat up...what to do??? I got out my limited stash of scrapbooking supplies and decided to go to work on my battered box. I used a large flower punch on a selection of paper that color coordinated with the brown and glued them on in bunches with a glue stick! Wa-la! So pretty! I even made a card...it was so satisfying....ahhhh. I then put the supplies back into their box out of my sight as not to taunt me!
I hope this idea is helpful in a pinch!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Simple Dinner Pasta Bake and Crunchy Salad


Sorry it's been so long, but health issues prevailed and we are hangin' in.
This is a very satisfying dinner, easy, and you can do it ahead (even the night before).
You will need:
1 Pound of Macaroni cooked to Al Dente
3 Tbls of Sun Dried Tomato Pesto ( I use Classico brand...you should keep this as a pantry staple it has so many uses)
1 Cup of your favorite Marinara sauce
1 Tbls Dried Oregano
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese (Grated)
1 1/2 Cups shredded Mozzarella divided
Cooking Spray
Cool Pasta.
In a large bowl put the Pesto, Marinara sauce, Oregano, Parmesan, & 1 cup of Mozzarella.
Give it a good stir, then add the pasta and again give this all a good mix so that the pasta is coated.
Spray your baking dish. *This will make clean up easy.
Pour the pasta mixture into baking dish. Top with the 1/2 cup of Mozzarella.
Spray a sheet of foil and cover.
Now you can put it in the fridge and cook when ready....or cook right away @ 400 for 25-30 minutes. Take foil off and broil for 3 minutes till cheese on top gets brown and crunchy.
***You can always mix in any meat into the pasta...like precooked turkey sausage or broken up precooked meatballs!
The salad is so simple...Olive oil vinaigrette of your choice, crunchy Romaine lettuce, and Pumpernickel croutons.
For the croutons spray with a margarine spray, sprinkle with a little Garlic Salt and toast.
Cut into cubes...Yum... everyone fights for the croutons.


Monday, December 1, 2008

Shari Robin's Easy Chicken

This chicken is for Shari Robin...(you know who you are!) She requested a very easy weeknight entree to get on the table quickly and has few ingredients...
Shari Robin's Easy Chicken
2 Pounds thin sliced skinless boneless Chicken Breasts
1 Packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning and Dressing Packet
3 Tbls of Canola or Veggie Oil
1/2 cup White Wine
Before work/school put all ingredients in a large ziplock bag seal and mush it all around so it's all coated.
Then open the bag a little and squeeze out as much air as possible.
When you get home take the chicken out of the bag, throw it on the grill.
Mikee says 4 minutes each side, medium direct heat.
Love ya Sha!