Cooking for the Rest of Us (original) (raw)

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Below are the 16 most recent journal entries recorded inFusion Cooking: For the scientist and chef in all's LiveJournal:

Tuesday, April 1st, 2008
_4:42 pm_[jewelboxer]	meatloaf does not suck no, seriously, it doesn't. and it's SO EASY! my argument for meatloaf : 1 diced green bell pepper 1 diced large yellow onion 3 cloves diced garlic 2 eggs 1/4 c. bread crumbs 10 dashes italian seasoning 5 dashes black pepper (i like a little more than this, but i'm a spice fiend) 1/8 c. milk 2 pounds ground beef (this also works with lean ground beef or ground turkey) 1 package meatloaf seasoning as many sliced carrots, bell peppers, and onions as you would like to accompany your meatloaf 1 c. milk flour for thickening preheat your oven to 350. mix everything except the sliced veggies, milk, flour, and one tablespoon of the meatloaf seasoning together. make sure it's good and mixed, or you'll have meatloaf bites that aren't uniform (and it won't cook evenly). do this with you hands. it's gross and fun at the same time. in a large casserole dish, form the mixture into a loaf. cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. uncover and drain juice into a sauce pan. add sliced veggies to the caserole dish, on the sides of the meatloaf, and cook, uncovered, for 45-60 minutes longer. remove caserole dish from oven and VERY CAREFULLY (i've burned myself doing this before) drain the rest of the juice into that same sauce pan. seriously, just use a spoon if things look too sloshy. add a cup of milk while heating juices over low and whisk (or fork) in the remaining meatloaf seasoning. i like to add more pepper at this point. when the liquid gets to a low simmer, sprinkle in flour to thicken. keep stirring; it's way too easy to burn gravy, even on low heat. slice the meatloaf, and serve with roasted veggies and gravy. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
_12:22 pm_[aeryn42]	Raise your hand... If you're still in this community. (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, February 10th, 2007
_6:12 pm_[jewelboxer]	ginger mahi 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce1.5 tablespoons olive oil2 tablespoons chopped chives1 tablespoon thinly sliced ginger1 tablespoon thinly sliced garlic8-10 mushrooms (i'm in love with oyster mushrooms at the moment)2 8 oz. mahi-mahi filletsin a large saute pan, whisk together soy sauce, olive oil, chives, ginger, and garlic. heat to medium. cook mahi fillets, about 6-7 minutes on each side, or until flaky. remove and cover mahi fillets, covering and setting in 200 f oven. saute sliced mushrooms in soy mixture, pour over mahi fillets, and serve.-----does anyone else in this community have a serious issue with measuring? i seldom measure ANYTHING. these are totally guestimates...i added more garlic and ginger, because i love garlic more than my life and i love the zing ginger gives the fish. i have recently decided that this is why i cannot bake...i do everything by tasting. (Comment on this)
Friday, December 1st, 2006
_8:46 am_[jewelboxer]	last minute salad dressing 1/4 c. olive oil1/6 c. red wine vinegar1/2 smallish yellow onion1/2 roma tomato4 cloves garlic (i love garlic)oreganobasil1 tsp. crushed red pepper (i use more because i love pain)1 tsp. black pepper1 tsp. saltwhisk together 1/8 c. olive oil and red wine vinegar with a few dashes of oregano and basil. saute diced onion, tomato, and garlic in remaining olive oil, a few more dashes of basil, red pepper, black pepper, and salt. when onions are translucent, add to original whisked mixture, whisk away, and refrigerate. (Comment on this)
Thursday, May 4th, 2006
_3:11 pm_[wenergy]	grilled stuff ( Grilled Zesty Lemon Spareribs, Grilled Smoky Cheddar Potatoes, & Grilled Pineapple Slices with Ginger CreamCollapse ) Current Mood: hungry (Comment on this)
Monday, May 1st, 2006
_6:18 pm_[wenergy]	Knife and Fork OptionalA meal best eaten with your hands. Sage Sausage Bites With Balsamic Apricot Dip; Stovetop Spinach And Artichoke Dip; 4 Minute Spicy Garlic Shrimp. ( from 30 minute mealsCollapse ) Current Mood: feeling unoriginal (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, January 13th, 2006
_9:58 am_[wenergy]	( HONEY-GARLIC SHRIMPCollapse ) Current Mood: hungry (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 18th, 2005
_4:35 pm_[aeryn42]	Enchiladas. I made this last night: Roasted Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas I made one change, though...Instead of serving it with sourcream, I put it in the tomatillo salsa. It cut down on a lot of the spice from the fresh jalapenos (and I left the seeds and membrane in, so it needed a little cooling down).I suggest all tex-mex fans try it out. (Comment on this)
_12:10 pm_[zwee]	Hot Sauce Discovery I just had to share this recent discovery with everyone. This hot sauce has changed the way I look at hot sauce (and devilled eggs).**( Dat'l Do-It Baby!Collapse )**Enjoy the Hot Dat'l Action!Current Mood: blank (Comment on this)
Friday, August 5th, 2005
_12:56 pm_[wenergy]	yup x posted at my lj Crab Stuffed Portobellos and Citrus-Mustard Dressed Greens**( Read more...Collapse )** Current Mood: awake (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2005
_1:50 pm_[jewelboxer]	the great butter debate / dressing up chicken the first part of this post is a question. how picky are you about butter vs. margarine? i love butter. i hate margarine. more specifically, i like to use salted sweet cream butter in dips and usually when cooking, though i totally understand why you need to always use unsalted butter in baking. is this an ocd thing, or does anyone else see the ginormous difference? ----- okay, the second part is recipe time. last week, a friend of mine named angela and i cooked dinner for our dates. angela's boyfriend, alberto, only eats chicken. i'm not kidding. he will not eat a meal if chicken is not involved. so, even though it seemed rather holiday-mealish to me, this was my solution. ( cornish game hens, beer bread, lemon-pepper asparagus, and cheater gravyCollapse ) (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 21st, 2005
_9:41 pm_[jewelboxer]	artichoke spinach dip i make this dip every chance i get! i love the chunky cheesiness, and have been known to skip the toast and eat it with a spoon :) it's also super easy to make and modify to your own taste.1 stick salted sweet cream butter (not margarine)4-5 garlic cloves, finely chopped1 sweet yellow onion, chopped6-8 oz. block parmesean cheese, cubed into 1/4" pieces1 bunch fresh spinach, rinsed, patted dry, and chopped (you can use frozen or canned, but the dip will turn green and the spinach won't have the same texture)1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained2 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese (not that low-fat crap)1 stick french bread, sliced for toastolive oilseasoning (i like to use basil, but mixed italian seasonings work well too)preheat oven 350.over med-high heat, brown the garlic in the stick of butter. keep stirring every 20-30 seconds until just brown, and then add the onion. stir about every 30 seconds, keeping the whole mixture coated so the onions will cook evenly, until the onions are almost translucent. turn the heat down to medium, and add the parmesean cheese. let the parmesean start to melt just a little, about a minute or two, and then add the spinach. it only takes the spinach another couple of minutes to cook down, but keep stirring to keep everything coated with the buttery goodness. turn the heat down to low-medium, and add the artichoke hearts and cream cheese. i tear off chunks of cream cheese as i'm adding it so it will melt down faster, but i suppose if you don't want to be that ghetto, you can cube it up. stir every 30 seconds - 1 minute to keep it all melting evenly.in a bowl, combine olive oil and seasoning. brush mixture onto both sides of individual slices of bread and place slices on a sheet of foil. stick in preheated oven for 5-7 minutes, until toasty around sides but not yet brown. dig in!i think this dip looks really pretty garnished with tiny pieces of roma tomatoes and some basil, but honestly, i usually don't even bother with the garnish :) (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Saturday, June 11th, 2005
_11:53 am_[flaming__duck]	Newbie Hi all. I've been lurking for a while, but haven't introduced myself. My name is Marlena. I'm married and have one son. I love to cook and rarely stick to a recipe. I'm not sure what qualifies as good fusion cook material, but here's a couple of ideas anyway. I'm anxious to hear everyone else's fusion cooking tips/stories.How to skin the KielbasaIf you hate the chewy wrapper on kielbasa like I do, then here's a way to get it off easily without shredding your meat. Cut one side of the kielbasa into three sections. Slice a thin slit on opposite sides of each piece of kielbasa. Place the blade of your knife just under the edge of the slit. Once you have the knife lined up with the slit you can simply peel the skin off and then repeat the other side. Hope that made since. It's not very easy to explain, but is very easy to do. Some people may have already figured out this tip, but I got it out of trial and error. I can say that if I had known this tip from the beginning it would have saved me a lot of trouble.**Kielbasa and Vegetables Yum!**This recipe went through a lot of little changes. It's quite simple really. At first I started out barbecuing slices of kielbasa. Then I added veggies for the heck of it. Once, I was out of sauce, so I used seasoning salt. My hubby declared that he liked that best and could eat it everyday. Sometimes I still add a couple of tbs of bbq sauce or teriyaki which is even better. So anyway, here it is.1 pkg kielbasaWater1 pkg frozen vegetable medley (broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots)1 tsp seasoning saltThis is the rough idea of the recipe ingredients. What you do is slice the kielbasa into little round pieces and fry for about 10 minutes or so on medium heat. Don't use a bunch of oil. Just coat your pan in cooking spray and once the kielbasa looks like it's getting ready to blacken the pan, then that's enough. Immediately pour enough water to cover just the bottom of the pan. Add your vegetable medley and seasoning salt. Stir everything up and cover. Turn heat down to med/low. Cook for about 8 minutes or until tender. Stir occasionally to make sure the veggies are coated with all the yummy flavor. We love this stuff! Please let me know if you try this and what you think.There was something else I wanted to post, but now I can't remember. Oh well, that will make for another post later..assuming that I'm on the right track with this fusion cooking thing. Happy Saturday everyone! (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 29th, 2005
_10:16 pm_[aeryn42]	Swedish Tea Ring Bread Hey Fusion-eers! I just made**( This RecipeCollapse )For a Swedish Tea Ring/Cinnamon bread. I made a few changes, though. I left out the lemon. Instead, I made the topping with two tablespoons of melted real butter, a tablespoon of vanilla and a cup of powdered sugar. I also left out the nuts and made the filling with a cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar and about a tablespoon of cinnamon. I also added a tablespoon of butter to the filling to make a nice paste and spread it all in the middle. This is fun and easy. I love making bread (and kneading bread, and baking bread, and eating bread...) so this was a joy to make. I hope you all try it too! It's cooling now as I type this. (2 Comments** |Comment on this)
_5:38 pm_[aeryn42]	Wine and Cheese Well, since nobody has posted yet, let me start.I just experienced a lovely time at a friend's house where we ate brie and drunken goat cheese and had a variety of wines. I love the pairings of "Wine and Cheese"-- so, would anyone like to share their favorites? What cheeses do you like? What are your favorite wines? What combinations work the best?Thanks! (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, May 28th, 2005
_4:09 pm_[aeryn42]	Welcome! Hello hello!I created this community for people to share anything and everything about cooking. Learn a neat tip? Trick? Combination? Does chocolate pair well with garlic? Learn a new way to spice up boring ol' chicken? Share!Don't be afraid to ask for advice. I'm the moderator and currently learning how to do lots of neat things myself. I aspire to become a chef, a baker, a food critic and a scientist all at once. I'd love to learn from you and I will share any knowledge I can. I love to experiment. Chocolate Chile Almonds? Bring it on!Introduce yourself. Your hobbies, your tastes, your goals, your aspirations. We may eat to live, but we should eat well in the process.Thanks to everyone! Bon Appetit! (2 Comments |Comment on this)