Sunday, February 28, 2010

it's kitchen time!

Really, when is it not kitchen time?

Dinner Friday Night:

Shredded cabbage and onions sauteed in butter, seasoned with salt, pepper, and loads of paprika, served over egg noodles, and alongside homemade applesauce and rye bread. Cabbage has to be the cheapest vegetable ever, and it's pretty versatile, I'm learning!

WHY DOES BLOGGER HATE ME?????

Sorry you have to turn your head to see my beautiful homemade pho. I used this recipe as a guide, subbing vegetarian-friendly ingredients where appropriate. I also didn't have any star anise in the house, so I subbed 1 tsp anise seed. This was kind of a lot of work for a Sunday lunch, but it was SO worth it! Pho is Dan's all-time favorite soup, and now that I can enjoy a non-fishy version, it might be mine, too!

Ms. Jackie's perfect black beans:

My coteacher, Jackie, brought me a small container of home-cooked black beans the other week, and they were SO DAMN GOOD that I hid them from Dan and ate them all myself. :) Have no fear, though, I learned Jackie's secret -- dried onion, dried garlic, and epazote cooked with the beans. HEAVEN. Here's a loose recipe, requiring a 5-quart crock pot (or large pot -- I'm sure you could simmer these on the stovetop just fine, too):
2 1/2 pounds dried black beans
1 tbsp each dried garlic (not garlic powder,) dried onion (again, not onion powder,) and dried epazote
plenty of water (I filled my crock pot almost up to the top)
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt added once the beans have cooked fully

More granola:

We never tire of it! Dan has a huge bowl for breakfast every day, and I can't complain -- all of those flax seeds help keep his cholesterol down!

Those awesome black beans mostly went into the freezer, but a small pan became part of a large burrito buffet for dinner:

Black beans, brown rice tossed with lime juice, cilantro, and salt, whole-wheat tortillas, peppers and onions, queso fresco, homemade guac, salsa, and lettuce. YUM. Here's the finished product:

I exclaimed more than once during this meal, "I'm a really good cook!" :) At least I don't have any confidence issues. :)

Hope you enjoyed your weekend!

2 comments:

Emily said...

Yum, I have been wanting to make pho lately! The meat versions had me a little freaked out though, I may just have to try this!

Victoria said...

That pho looks amazing! Ha, I definitely toot my own horn when we're eating occasionaly.