Mac 'N Cheese 2.0 (the REAL deal)

So, we (aka Tony) (but Betty's coming around) love the Panera Mac 'n Cheese.  Get the Panera Mac 'n Cheese with the Big Kid Grilled Cheese and you are ALMOST meeting the required cheese quota for the day.  (People who actually follow My Food Plate should ignore that last sentence.)    We cannot take credit for the base level of this recipe.  To give credit where credit is due, the original recipe can be found here: VodKitchen

We will say that we have made it into Mac N' Cheese 2.0 though!  We've added broccoli and chicken and went a slightly different way with the cheese.  We also converted the noodles to whole grain.

Mac N' Cheese 2.0
makes 7 one cup servings

1 lb whole grain Barilla pasta shells
4 tablespoons whole wheat flour
5 tablespoons margarine
1 cup 2% milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 oz monterey jack cheese (shredded)
4 oz pepper jack cheese (shredded)
1 bag (12 oz) frozen broccoli
1 bag (6 oz) Tyson fajita chicken breast strips

Cook pasta shells according to the directions on the box.  Really... boil some water and toss 'em til their nice and soft (I really hope your directions say something to that effect).

Meanwhile, in the sauce pan add the butter and flour over medium heat. 

Stir until the butter starts to melt.  When its done, it should look something like the picture above.

After all the butter is melted and mixed into the flour, (Betty said their is a fancy word for this: roux) pour in both the heavy cream and the 2% milk.  Check out the action shot in the above picture.  You want to be as awesome as that.  You want to be sure to pour in both the heavy cream and 2% milk slowly while mixing.  This is to ensure that it mixes well and you don't get lumps of flour.

Shred the cheese.  Don't cut the cheese the though, unless you want to end up like this couple: Breaking the Barrier 

And then slowly add the cheese.  We did it by having Tony drop it in by pinched finger fulls while Betty whisked it away.  In the picture above, you can see bits of cheese falling from the sky Chicken Little style.

After the cheese is all mixed and melted, keep whisking until the cheese sauce thickens.  Here, we show the thickness of the sauce by dipping in a spoon and pulling it out showing that it uniformly covers the back of the spoon. 

 

Mix in the cheese sauce with the noodles.

  

Cook the broccoli and the chicken in the microwave.  If you bought frozen broccoli, you may need to add a little bit of water to help the cooking process.

Mix in the broccoli and the chicken.

Wallah!  Prepare your bowls and enjoy!

We took the effort of determining what the "damage" (or not?) of this recipe would be for a 1 cup serving (a bowl like the above is 2 servings):

Calories: 551
Total fat: 28.4 g
Saturated fat: 15.8
Cholesterol: 105.1 mg
Sodium: 471.6 mg
Potassium: 368.8 mg
Total Carbs: 49.3 g
Protein: 25.1 g
Vitamin A: 25.3%
Vitamin C: 29%
Calcium: 30.4%
Iron: 10.6%

We compared this to the Kraft box, and we win in all areas except total Fat (and calories, but I claim that for the good stuff we beat them in 100 calories is a small price to pay).  Next time we plan on using all 2% milk and no heavy cream and that should change the fat content dramatically.  We will edit this and report the results after we do that.

Enjoy!  And if you do try it out and like it, feel free to leave a comment!  Try changing up the cheese, this is our second time with this recipe and we went a totally different route with the cheese, and may just change it up every time.

Spicy Black Bean Burgers

When I suggested black bean burgers for dinner this week, Tony was a little skeptical. Luckily this spicy variation was able to satisfy both of our tastes. There's some room for variation to add in seasonal veggies. Next time might include shredded zucchini or carrots. There's always room for hidden vegetables

Spicy Black Bean Burgers
makes 4 massive burgers or 6 normal sized burgers

1 can (16 ounces) of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 bell pepper (we used red), finely chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp rooster sauce (Sriracha chili sauce)
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a cookie sheet with vegetable oil.

In a medium bowl, mash the black beans until thick and pasty. It looks kinda gross at this point, but I promise it works out.

Stir in the bell pepper, onion, and garlic.

In a separate bowl, mix the egg, red pepper flakes, cumin, and rooster sauce. Stir into the bean mixture.

Mix in the bread crumbs. The mixture should be sticky, but hold together. Divide the mixture into four patties on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake about 12 minutes on each side, about 25 minutes total. Place on a bun or eat plain. Sriracha on the bun adds a little extra kick. Enjoy!

Tuesday Night Simplicity

Most days are pretty hectic. When you're a grad student, you don't get to "clock-out" at 5pm. You never get to clock out because there's always more studying to be done. I'll stop the pity party there, but you get the idea. Simple (and nutritious) dinners are best for us. And so, tonight we had pasta with Alfredo sauce and broccoli. Don't worry, we didn't cheat and use the jar of sauce (too much sodium). Classically it should be prepared with fettuccine, but that's too messy and there are so many fun pasta shapes available.

Rotini and Broccoli with Alfredo Sauce

16 oz dry pasta
2 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen)
1 clove garlic
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
3 cups milk (I used almond milk, but today we learned that it doesn't thicken up quite like cow dairy)
1 cup grated Parmesan
1/8 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil; add pasta and cook til "al dente" (7-10 minutes). When the pasta is finished cooking, reserve 1/2 cup of starchy pasta water, before draining the pasta in a colander.

While the pasta is cooking, thaw the broccoli in the microwave or blanch in another pot of boiling water.

To begin the sauce, add the minced garlic and butter to a medium sized sauce pan. Cook until the butter has melted and the garlic is softened slightly (about 2 minutes). Add the flour, stir and cook for 2-3 more minutes. Ta da! You've made a roux (the basic starter to most sauces). Whisk in the milk. Increase to medium-high heat. Whisk until it comes to a light simmer. The milk should thicken so it coats the back of a wooden spoon. Make sure you're scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent the roux from clumping at the bottom. Turn off the heat and whisk in the Parmesan cheese. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

Return the cooked pasta to the large bot that it was boiled in (no heat at this point). Add the reserved pasta water and toss gently to loosen up the pasta. Add the broccoli and sauce. Stir everything together to evenly coat with sauce.

I like using rotini and broccoli because they "grab" the sauce well. You could substitute your favorite pasta shape and vegetable to the recipe. Perhaps bow ties and squash is more your style.

Things we love ...

I love pineapple. If I could, I'd live in a pineapple under the sea (and now the theme song is stuck in your head too).

This probably wouldn't work. I'd eat my home and then what would happen to me and my pet snail? I could move to a pineapple plantation, but I don't think there are any within driving distance of school. Oh well, for now I'll have to be satisfied with a weekly grocery trip for "fresh" pineapple.

For Valentine's Day Dinner, we made Thai Chicken and Pineapple Stir Fry. You'll need to assemble:

1 cup brown rice
1 pound boneless, skinless, chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp oil, divided
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger (another favorite ingredient!)
2 cups cubed bell peppers (red and yellow this time)
1 cup fresh pineapple chunks (see Appendix for cutting instructions)
1/2 cup dipping sauce (The original recipe called for Thai Kitchen Pineapple and Chili dipping sauce. I couldn't find it at our local stores, so I bought a generic spring roll dipping sauce instead)

In a medium sized sauce pan, bring 2 cups of water to boil. Add the brown rice, cover, and reduce heat to a low simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes or until water is gone.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the chicken and cornstarch. Toss together to evenly coat the chicken. I wasn't sure about this step, but it helped the chicken brown nicely.

Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons of oil in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add garlic and ginger; stir fry for 30 seconds and enjoy the wonderful aroma in your kitchen. Add bell peppers and pineapple; stir fry 3 to 5 minutes. The peppers should be tender-crisp at this point. Add the dipping sauce; cook and stir until heated through. Remove from skillet. I put it in the glass container that I planned to use for leftovers. I don't like to dirty any extra dishes.

Yummy pineapple and bell peppers!

Heat remaining oil in the skillet. Add chicken; stir fry 5 minutes or until cooked through. The chicken pieces were a little larger, so it took more than 5 minutes. Return pineapple mixture to skillet; stir fry until well blended. Serve over brown rice.

Happy Valentine's Day!

How to prepare a fresh pineapple (pretend it is an apple and it is a lot less intimidating)
1. Remove green leaves by twisting at the base. You'd be surprised how easily they come off when ripe.
2. Place pineapple on a cookie sheet that you don't mind scratching a little bit. You could use a cutting board, but pineapples tend to be juicy, so I'd rather catch the mess before the juice is all over my counter top.
3. Cut of the base and top of the pineapple.
4. Cut off the rind. You'll need to take off about 1/4 inch around the entire pineapple to make sure you get rid of all of the seeds.
5. Cut into quarters, as if you were cutting an apple.
6. Cut out the inner core from each quarter. You should be able to tell the difference between the edible fruit and the tough, fibrous core.
7. Slice into bite size pieces. 
8. Refrigerate in an air-tight container.

Taco Bell Isn't the Only Pizza Man on the Block!

I feel like this meal needs a jingle.  Something catchy and flashy, something reminiscent of super hero wonder days.  Something like...

What happens when you replace Bruce Banner with the Taco Bell Chalupa Dog and the Domino's Noid?  No, you don't get a mean, green, mini, big eared fighting machine!  You get the Taco Pizza!

Little Dogs Dig Pizza (Totally Ripped this Pic from Google Images)

 Apparently, that picture above is what Tony thinks when you cross Taco Bell with Domino's.  Instead of just ordering some 69 cent tacos and dumping them on a pepperoni pizza, consider that both are conveniently available at most Taco Bells nowadays, we went with a healthier alternative.  We aimed to do the usual: (1) make sure Betty's veggie quota was maintained, (2) appease Tony's need for something of substantial meat and protein value (not to mention rock the spicy level), and (3) keep it cost effective with plenty of leftovers, seeing as both of us are in graduate/medical school going for degrees which are leaving us very poor.  Of course, we also wanted to make sure that it tasted good!  To be fair, we ripped the idea from another recipe, but decided to take ownership, throw out some of the ingredients and add in many of our own.

The ingredient list for this particular recipe goes as follows (the prices were just what we found):

1. Two refrigerated pizza crusts (13.8 oz measures) ($2.99 each)
2. One pack of taco seasoning (1.25 oz), we went for low sodium ($0.75)
3. One can of black beans ($0.69)
4. One can of tomato sauce with garlic, basil, and oregano ($.72)
5. One pound of ground chicken ($2.99)
6. Two cups of Mexican blended cheese ($2.29)
7. Two cans of diced tomatoes with chipotle (14.5 oz each) ($1.00 each)
8. One cup of chopped baby broccoli ($1.99)
9. One small can of diced olives ($1.59)
10. Total: $19.00

Just some of the ingredients we used.

The recipe makes 12 servings so that's a mere $1.58 per slice of pizza!  Sure, you could go and order a large pizza for maybe $10-$14 dollars and have that come out to be around $1.20 per slice... but that quarter you are saving results in not as many toppings, not as healthy, and being LOADED with grease.

STEP 1
Preheat the oven to 425 F.

STEP 2

This was the first time either Betty or Tony had used the refrigerated pizza crust.. it was a fun learning experience.  You'll need a cookie/baking sheet that is 15x10 inches.  ACTUALLY... you'll need TWO of them.    Unroll the pizza crust into the two baking sheets.  One trick that we used here was to put a very light layer of olive oil on the baking sheets.  This would help the pizza crust not stick and also add some flavor to the crust!

Betty's first time with the pizza crust was MUCH better than Tony's... which is conveniently not shown here.

STEP 3
Place the two baking sheets with the pizza crusts into the oven.  Bake them for 5 to 7 minutes.  They should start rising during this time and maybe even turn lightly brown.

STEP 4
While the pizza is baking, its time to make the sauce.  Mix the black beans, tomato sauce, and 1 table spoon of the taco seasoning in a small bowl.  One trick Betty used here was after draining the black beans, she ran water into the can and drained them again to help lower the sodium content.  One trick we used here was to add 1 tablespoon of minced garlic and red pepper (always more red pepper!).  This is your chance to really experiment, as it is the sauce-mix stage.

Warning, eating this healthy may make you BUFF (with appropriate accompanying work out plan)

STEP 5
Start cooking the ground chicken.  Its best to break it up into little pieces as if you were making the ground Taco Bell meat.  Then mix in the taco seasoning as per the directions on the package.  Tony used a little less water than directed as one tablespoon of the seasoning had already been used in Step 4.

STEP 6
Remove the pizzas from the oven (keep the oven on!).  Spread the bean-tomato sauce mix over the pizza crusts.  Now split the mixed cheese equally between the two pizzas.  Then add the broccoli to the two pizzas.  Next, add the diced tomato (Drained) with chipotle and mix in the olives.  Finally, layer the chicken meat onto the pizzas.

STEP 7
Put the pizzas back into the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes.  Tony set it for 10 minutes just to be safe then played it up a minute or two.  You'll know its done because the cheese will have melted and the crust will be a gold brown.

So huuuunnnngry

STEP 8
EAT!  Nom nom nom.  Cut each pizza into six slices (so 12 slices in all).

Oh, yeah, we made rice too!  Nom nom nom.

We welcome your comments and any experiments YOU make with this recipe, enjoy!

The (not so) Simple Potato

We love potatoes. Between Tony's Irish heritage and my love of starch, the potato is always welcome on our dinner table. I prefer mine plain with a little pepper. Tony reaches for butter or sour cream or cheese. This recipe found a happy medium for both of us: Spinach and Feta Potatoes.

Here are the basics:
4 potatoes
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup milk
1 (10 ounce) package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained

Make sure you pierce the potatoes before the go in a 350F oven (otherwise they'll explode everywhere). The cooking time depends on the size of the potato, anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes. I've learned that you don't want to rush the process because no one likes a crunchy, raw potato. While the potatoes are baking, you can do something else (laundry, cleaning, studying, Pinterest). Make sure you set a timer to check on the spuds (otherwise, I would forget about them until I smelled them burning).

Let's fast forward a bit ... The potatoes are baked and have cooled for a couple minutes (hot potatoes!). Slice each in half lengthwise. I let them cool for a couple minutes because they were a little too steamy for me to hold them comfortably. While they're cooling, combine the spinach, feta, and milk in a medium sized bowl. I know the milk sounds kind of random, but I think it adds some creaminess. When ready, scoop the inside of the potato into the bowl. Leave about 1/4 inch of potato inside the skin, so you have a sturdy "bowl". Stir in the potatos with the spinach, feta, and milk. Place the potato halves on a cookie sheet, for easier transport. Divide the spinach filling between the eight potato halves. Return to the oven for 5 to 10 minutes, until the cheese is melting. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for another minute or two. If you take a bite now, you'll have "hot potato" voice and look ridiculous and you fan at your mouth and try to cool down the hot spuds.

And there you have it, the simple potato (potassium) adorned with spinach (yay dark leafy greens) and feta cheese (more calcium). Filling enough for dinner and makes great leftovers for lunch the next day.

Where Street Fighter 2 Meets Food Stuffings

Granted, it might be a stretch, but for anyone who can recall the super Nintendo days, you can't help but know the title: Street Fighter 2.  But wait, this isn't a throwback video gaming blog... it's a cooking blog, so what does Street Fighter 2 have to do with filling your belly?  Only that one of the levels takes place in Thailand, and so does the efforts of this night's dinner dish: Thai Basil Chicken.  Hey... but at least the catchy title made you read this far, right?

 

If you're wondering what officially goes into making this dish (minus the veggie rolls, as that is for another time), see the following list:

Ingredients
-----
2 cups jasmine rice
1 quart of water
3/4 cup coconut milk
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons of rice vinegar
red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 white onion, sliced
2 tablespoons ginger root, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 lbs boneless chicken breast
8 chopped green onions
1 cup basil leaves

First make the rice, following Betty's adage (which apparently is a common rule of thumb) using the rule of 2 to 1.  I.e, for every 2 cups of rice, you need 1 quart of water.  While the rice is cooking, do the rest of the following:

1.  Mix coconut milk, soy sauce, and vinegar together in a bowl.  Make sure the coconut milk you've bought for this endeavor is the canned sort, not the kind in the carton next to the Almond and Soy milks at the grocery store.  This is the part when Tony beings to start loading in the red pepper flakes like no tomorrow.

2.  That should reach a tan like color, then you know its done.  Slice up your white onion and toss it into a wok or deep pan with the olive oil.  Cook this until the onion begins to turn a light brown.  Also add in the ginger and garlic, mixing it all together.

3.  Now add in the chicken, which hopefully you've chopped into smaller pieces.  Cook for about 7 minutes, medium heat until its turning that white-brown color.  No need to cook ALL the way brown, as you still have a long way to go.

4.  Once the chicken begins to start turning, add the coconut milk sauce you made at the start.  Just pour it into the cooking pan as if you were adding taco seasoning to a burrito or taco meat mix.  Now stir and mix and chop with your spatula for a while, as the sauce simmers.  Once its all mixed up, only give it attention now and then, sort of like how you treat your beta fish or bamboo plants... too much attention is not a necessarily a good thing, just now and then.

5.  After the milk is down to about 1/3, add in the green onions and basil leaves... Tony slipped in even MORE red peppers flakes at this point.  Now simmer until the milk is all absorbed and mix well.

6.  By this point, the rice should also be done.  All in all, this probably took 30-40 minutes.  You can just dish out yourself some of the rice and plop the chicken basil on top of the rice.

With the ingredients we grabbed from the store, it came out to be about 6 servings around 450 calories per serving or so.

This meal has been approved by the Thai figher, Sagat.