Scallopy Ballopy Boo!

So... not sure what the deal is... but my FireFox is having HUGE issues loading this blog. This will be the third time I have written this blog, and no... I didn't write it in word to ensure that I didn't lose my post once again. ALAS!

:) At least it gets better and better each time.. right... right... RIGHT!?!?! :)

Ha ha... we had a GREAT time this week cooking scallops. I originally picked this recipe because I have never made scallops before, though I have had them a few times at restaurants. I love them, and am very happy to now add them to my cooking repertoire!

For our main dish we made Seared Scallops in Mint Broth with Peas and Roasted Tomatoes. I also loved the fact that I had a bunch of these fresh herbs in my patio garden. The only thing that I run into problems with is having solid mint to chop. I tend to water my herbs/plants every other day, and sometimes my mint gets a little 'soft' unless I water it a few hours in advance. When this happens I like to throw it in the sink with some ice water and it normally hardens up enough to mince or chop easily.

For my side dish I decided to grill some bell peppers and stuff them with grilled zucchini, onions and mushrooms. I love grilled peppers and it's even more fun to stuff them with other yummy ingredients because they display so beautifully!

This week Shannon paired her scallops with an avocado and orange side salad. I need to start making more salads. Hers always look so refreshing and delicious! I can't wait till she comes back to CO and I get to eat them without making them!

NOTE TO OUR FOLLOWERS: We are VERY excited to let you know that we are not cooking next week because we will be getting ready to partake in our 3rd trip to the Gorge Amphitheater in Washington State to see the Dave Matthews Band Caravan Tour, this time with 4 others in tow this time. Thursday morning I will be meeting up with Shannon, Robert and Bobert's friend Chris at DIA, where we will then fly to WA to meet Sharon and Jody, pick up our RV and drive about 3 hours East to George Washington to 'set up shop' and prepare for three days of concerts, camping and friends. We promise to take lots of pictures and cant wait to start cooking again once we get back!

Happy cooking to you all!

Lots of love,

Chef Steph

It's my turn and I'll Thai if I want to...

It's official:  It takes us just as long to make a salad as it does a full-blown entree!  Mathematically this actually makes sense... it would take us half the time making it on our own, but when you throw Shannon and Stephanie together it takes us twice as long.  1+1 = 2.  Even I know that and math has never been my friend.  If it were a race or competition it would be no problem - you'd be eating your dinner before you even realized you were hungry.  But we like to linger over these cooking sessions, catching up on everything that has happened over the past week... so you'll get your dinner when we're good and ready to serve it to ya!  (Can you tell I've had to explain this equation once or twice to my husband?)

This week's starring dish:  Fiery Thai Beef Salad  
This salad is a winner!  All you have to do is mix together your salad dressing in the bottom of a big bowl, grill your flank steak then let it sit while you assemble the rest of your salad.  Then thinly slice your steak, toss it all together, and you'll find yourself eating a really flavorful, impressive salad!  Warning: this salad has a real kick so if you don't care for spice then cut back on the serrano chiles, garlic and don't add in crushed red pepper flakes like Steph and I did.  Also, you should get your grill very hot and *only* sear your flank steak for 2-3 minutes per side.  Just trust us on this one.

The hardest part of this meal was figuring out what side dish to make!  So I decided to go with dessert instead:
Mandarin Oranges with Grand Marnier and Marscarpone
OMG was this good!  So simple to make but very fancy and was a really nice way to cool off the mouth after the fiery salad.

Steph made a side of kale and served it up beautifully!

Until next week... cheers!
Chef Shannon

Talkie with Shiitaki

Yikes, it's been forever since we blogged on here! So sorry for the slacking!

I realized today that I had neglected to post on our meal last week too, so I am SOOO fired!

I decided a few weeks ago to really bite the bullet (where does that term come from?) and join Weight Watchers to focus on and keep track of all the food I am eating. Not to worry though, the new program that they have is super flexible, so the recipes that we make won't be affected at all (unless we cook something with half a pound of lard, etc... but we never did that type of cooking anyways).

The main recipe of last week was Shiitake-Chicken Stir-Fry, and it actually turned out pretty good.   There weren't any fresh shiitake mushrooms at the grocery store I went to, so I bought dried mushrooms and let them sit in water for a few hours and compensated with extra mushrooms as well. Honestly I wasn't crazy about the 're-hydrated' mushrooms, so in the future I would substitue other mushrooms in there instead of dried ones.

My side was also a WW recipe, it was a Asparagus with Shallot Mustard Cream:

 

Shannon made a side of Kimchee to go with her stirfry:

 

Happy Cooking!


Chef Steph