Sunday, February 20

Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe is a huge pain to make.  And takes about two and a half hours.  But it turns out really good. 

The green sauce is made from tomatillos (those things that look like wrapped up green tomatoes) and poblano peppers, which are broiled and mixed in the food processor.  The chicken is simmered with onions and garlic and then mixed with cilantro and Monterey jack.

After warming the corn tortillas to make them pliable, you put the filling inside, roll it up, cover it with the sauce and cheese and bake for 20 minutes.  Sounds simple, right.  Well, it is.  It's just time consuming and uses nearly every kitchen implement.  It took two runs of the dishwasher to clean up everything.

Saturday, February 19

Homemade Linguine with red sauce, served with garlic bread. 

Michael made homemade pasta using our Kitchen Aid mixer and the pasta attachment.  This was his first time making linguine and it turned out nicely.  Soft, but not mushy.  He doctored up some canned pasta sauce with additional spices and served the pasta with frozen garlic bread.

February 15, 16, and 17

No pictures, but it was chili, chili, and more chili.  The problem with making a nice big pot of chili when you're only cooking for two people is the leftovers.

Wednesday, February 9

My night to cook since Michael has a standing appointment on Wednesday afternoons.  Since after picking Baxter up at daycare it's pretty late, Wednesday dinner is always quick.  I did chicken on the George Forman grill (seasoned with Bicentennial Rub from Penzey's), boxed mashed potatoes, and edamame.   I overcooked the chicken a bit.  Oops.

But while we're on the subject of the chicken...  We buy the huge packs of boneless skinless chicken breasts from Costco and I got to tell you, I am impressed by the size of today's chicken's breasts.  I cut one breast into three pieces and Michael and I split it.  Amazing.

Tuesday, February 8

Michael's night to cook and he decided to go all out.  He served salad as a starter and then fillet, twice baked potatoes, and mushrooms. 

 
The fillet was excellent -- I think he used his dry curing method for preparing.  I don't know much about it, but it involves having the steak sitting in the refrigerator for a few days drying out.  The twice baked potatoes were also excellent.  I ate two of them -- skins and all. 

Monday, February 7

Michael's night to cook.  Despite the feet smell that permeated from the kitchen, dinner actually tasted pretty good.  (No idea what caused the smell -- I'm thinking it might have been the anchovies on Michael's salad).

Michael prepared salad for the first course and crabcakes and rice for the second.  He served the crabcakes with a homemade tartar/crabcake sauce that was pretty yummy.

Sunday, February 6

Super Bowl Sunday.  I had originally planned sloppy joes -- I figured they would be easy to make (and to eat) during the game.  Michael found out about my plans and objected.  Apparently the Super Bowl is a holiday and should be treated "like Christmas" with a special meal.  I renamed them Super Sloppy Joes and served them with football themed plates and napkins and that seemed to satisfy him.  The chips are blue corn chips.

Super Sloppy Joes
Buy can of Manwich at grocery story (original, not bold flavor).  Follow directions on back of can.  Don't try to rush the cooking, the flavors need to develop completely.  Serve with dill pickles, chips, and large hamburger buns sesame seed tops.  (I don' t know why, they just taste better that way).

Saturday, February 5

Yes.  Again, it has been a very long time since I've updated the food blog.  Since there have been some complaints, I figured I should probably at least make an effort.  Last night was fondue.  Michael has perfected cheese fondue. 

Our receipe:

Cheese Fondue

3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
3/4 cup beer
2 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

In separate mix cheeses and a small handful of flour.  The flour helps to prevent the cheese from clumping when it melts.  In a fondue pot (or sauce pan if you don't have one), bring the beer to steaming, but not boiling.

Slowly mix in cheese, stirring constantly.  Add garlic, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and salt and pepper. Serve with cubed bread, granny smith apple slices, and/or chopped veggies.