Category: Dinner

Jan182013

Soba with Sesame Sauce

Soba with Sesame Sauce

Long time, no see! The holidays always leave me feeling like I have to play catch-up with everything for weeks afterward, and, unfortunately, finding new meals to make tends to take a back seat!

Anyway, over Christmas break we took the girls to a local Las Vegas restaurant called Anime Ramen, and being the teen and pre-teens that they are, they absolutely loved it. The food was good, too, and we decided that once things calmed down we were going to try playing with some homemade Japanese food ourselves. So last week we ordered soba noodles on Amazon and I got to work.

Soba with Sesame Sauce

This recipe for Soba with Sesame Sauce originally came from AllRecipes, but I’ve adapted it a bit below.

The original recipe called for raw broccoli, but not everyone likes it raw, so I blanched it first: put it in a pot of boiling water for just a couple of minutes and then dunk it in ice water to stop the cooking. It gets rid of the rawness without losing all of the crunch. You can also use a bag of frozen broccoli, boiled for just a few minutes. I scooped the broccoli out with a spider so I could use the same boiling water for the noodles.

I also added chicken breast to make it a bit more substantial for dinner. Make sure you cook it all the way through since it’s not going back into the heat (unlike a stir-fry, for example). If you want to make this vegetarian, just leave out the chicken.

We were a little wary about eating it at room temperature (it felt like it should be piping hot!) but it was good, and this will be perfect for summer!

Soba with Sesame Sauce

Soba with Sesame Sauce
serves 5

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/3 cup toasted sesame seeds
1 package (9.5 oz) dried soba noodles
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons white sugar
4 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
8 green onions, chopped
3 cups broccoli florets, blanched

Cut chicken breasts in one-inch strips and saute in 1 tablespoon of olive oil until cooked through. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook them for 4 minutes, or until just tender. Drain and rinse with cold water, and drain them again.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, green onions, and chicken. Add the noodles, and the toasted sesame seeds. Toss well and stir in the broccoli. Let the dish sit for 30 minutes at room temperature before serving.

Nov232012

Black Friday Pot Pies

Black Friday Pot Pie

The day after Thanksgiving is never as low-key or relaxing as I hope it’ll be, and I don’t even go shopping!

Though it’d be nice to have a day of vegging in front of the TV after the all day cook-a-thon, family tradition (ie: the kids) dictates that the Christmas tree and decorations MUST. GO. UP. RIGHT. NOW. And over the years (and the accumulation of a lot of crap– er, decor) it’s become a longer and longer process.

Black Friday Pot Pie

Thankfully, Black Friday dinner is low-key. I take advantage of all the leftovers in the fridge, but instead of serving the same meal we just had yesterday, I created a one-dish meal that everyone loves.

As you can see, it’s as easy as can be. Using ramekins (mine hold 14 ounces) or a 13×9 casserole dish, line the bottom with a layer of mashed potatoes.

Black Friday Pot Pie

On top of the potatoes, put a layer of chopped turkey.

Black Friday Pot Pie

Drizzle some delicious leftover gravy on top of the turkey.

Black Friday Pot Pie

Top off the whole thing with stuffing.

Black Friday Pot Pie

Bake uncovered in a 350° oven for about 40-45 minutes.

For the last ten minutes, I drizzle about a tablespoon of melted butter per ramekin (or half a stick for a casserole dish) on top of the stuffing, which gets it really nice and crispy.

Black Friday Pot Pie

Serve it with leftover rolls, cranberry sauce and a nice salad. It doesn’t get any easier!

Nov212012

Busy Days

I know everyone hates it when bloggers come back after some time away and say “I’ve been gone so long! I’m so sorry! Wow, I’ve been so busy! I need to get things rolling again!” so I won’t 🙂 (but it’s true!).

We haven’t actually been so much busy as we have been contaminated with plague.

Someone who may or may not work at Mike’s place of business may or may not have decided to head into work sick a couple of weeks ago, and it’s ripped through our household like wildfire. We’ve had two separate rounds of antibiotics, prescriptions for coughs and sore throats, and as many over-the-counter pills available for sneezing and runny noses. And we’ve been dealing with this alongside a pretty sick 13-year-old dog as well.

In other words, it’s been loads of fun around here.

Doctor Who Birthday Cake

Anyway, I had meant to do this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie (brownies!) but just didn’t have the stamina to stay upright in the kitchen over the weekend, so I had to give it a pass.

And today has taken any energy I’ve had in reserve since it’s my oldest daughter’s 14th birthday. It’s been a caffeine-filled day as I’ve not only been baking for Thanksgiving tomorrow, but juggling the above birthday cake and birthday preparations as well.

Can you tell what she (we) is currently into? It’s an interest I am trying to encourage since I’ve wondered if any of the girls would be bitten with the science fiction bug (they all have!). The cake was heavily inspired by this picture, and as you can see I’ve got a little bit of temporal distortion happening along the bottom there. That blue is strong willed.

Anyway, I just made a basic old pumpkin pie alongside the cake (but I did get my spiced pumpkin cheesecake fix a couple of weeks ago),

pumpkin pie

And we’ve got the turkey prepped and ready to be lowered into some Alton Brown brine,

turekey brining

And tomorrow I get to wrestle with stuffing, potatoes and all the rest of it.

I hope all my American friends have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!