a throw-together

what do you get when you mix together mushrooms, bok choy, and tilapia?
well, i imagine if you actually mixed them, it wouldn't be THAT great.

however, if you cook them like i did, you get a winning dish!
and it's good for you!! seeing a trend? yes. it's the new year.




mushrooms:
baby bella, sliced, drizzled with olive oil. sprinkle with salt and rosemary, then roast at 450 for about 20 minutes.



bok choy:
(wash it first, of course)
tear the leaves off, and cut into large chunks. chop the stems at an angle, about 1/2" thick. get a pot REALLY hot with just a touch of oil, and stir fry the stems. add ginger and salt. after 3 minutes, add the leaves, and stir fry for another 2 minutes, just until the leaves get bright green and wilted.



fish:
i'm lazy. it was frozen tilapia. not fresh.
i didn't even thaw it.
put two lemon coins on each piece (or one, if that's what you prefer), and top each with the smallest sliver of butter. sprinkle with salt and fresh ground pepper. bake in the 450 oven with the mushrooms, 20-25 minutes.

christmas eve dinner

i'm sharing old family recipes with you tonight. well, sort of. it's less about the recipes and more about the love that is in all of it. for my family, christmas eve was always the most important day, not christmas day. we have family traditions that date back to old ukraine. there's so many things you have to follow, like the number of foods offered. if you want to go real traditional, there's certain ways to make those foods. i adjusted a bit, because i didn't feel like making 12 dishes for just chris and me. i'll get WAY into the traditions next year, so stick around because that's going to be fun!

 pierogies. pasta pockets filled with mashed potatoes and onions. sure, you can make them homemade. or buy the handmade ones at your local ukranian church. or pick up a box of frozen ones at the grocery store. i melted a stick(plus) of butter, and diced an onion and a half. saute the onion on about a medium heat, until the butter gets clear-yellow instead of cloudy. boil the pierogies as it says on the box, then top with the onion/butter mixture. delicious.

so i didn't mention that this dish is vegetarian. we had fish and shrimp though. i just thawed some frozen shrimp , served with lemon wedges and garnished with (a lot of) olives-- i like olives.

also had a relish tray. carrots, broccoli, celery, pickles, more olives. and a ranch veggie dip. husband put this together. it was nice to have his help with that.

mmmmm. slimy mushrooms. well, they have another name, but this is what i've been used to calling them. when i was growing up, i'm pretty sure my daddy convinced me that i didn't like them, so he could have them all. it's a lot of mushrooms sauteed with a touch of oil, then heated through with a can of cream of celery soup and a little milk. this is nice to cook ahead of time, so i made it first thing in the morning and transferred it to this corningware to just heat in the oven before dinner. very convenient.
**you can also see an empty plate here. it's left for the deceased family members, as tradition**

and one of my favorites. simple. frozen tilapia, sprinkled with lemon pepper seasoning and lemon coins. then put a small chunk of butter on top of each wedge, and some fresh ground pepper. bake at 400-450 "until done" (about 15 minutes?). it is so flavorful and flaky. delicious.

also, you see some crescent rolls. confession: those are leftovers from dinner on dec 23rd, a bertoli frozen past meal.

so, since i'm supposed to have 12 dishes, let's get creative and try to find them.

1. pierogies
2. onions in butter
3. shrimp
4. celery
5. pickles
6. olives
7. broccoli
8. carrots
9. slimy mushrooms
10. crescent rolls
11. fish
12. white wine

i did it! 12 "dishes" for my first married christmas. even if it's a stretch, it's 12 when i count :-)

busy weekend

i had a super busy weekend. starting friday, i was in "homemade" mode. i made so many baked and cooked items, and took hardly any photos. and i won't really post recipes with this post either. i'm just going to tell you of the awesomeness that i created and let you drool a little.

homemade pizza (store bought crust, for time's sake)
his: pepperoni and cheese. (yawn)
mine: summer sausage, homemade roasted red peppers, fresh parsley, black beans, mozzarella cheese.

pancakes (well, the mister made it. not me).

barbecue beef brisket in the crock pot.
giant brisket, in crock pot with beer and bbq sauce. cook on low all day, then remove and shred, and return to the crock pot. stir. serve on toasted buns with homemade potato wedges.

potato wedges.
cut potatoes into wedges. toss with olive oil, rosemary, and kosher salt. bake at 400 for 40 minutes, flipping halfway through. make extras. these go fast.

pie! i made homemade pie crust for apple pie. i still need practice in rolling out the pie crust and making it pretty, but it has to be one of the most flavorful, flaky crusts i've ever tasted. pretty good for a first try.

cake (boxed funfetti). dude. we had a birthday and i had a special request for making funfetti cake. so no, i did not make this from scratch.

bread loaves. instead of my usually boule bread, i made loaves. i just used a recipe from the kitchenaid cook book for cool-rise white bread, and demolished that recipe. i accidentally doubled the butter, and didn't use enough flour (because it was all together and didn't need any more). so i was really nervous, but it worked. the outside crust tasted a little... funny... but it was still delicious. next time i'll try reading the recipe a little better.

you too can make grilled lobster tails...

seriously. it's SO easy.

i buy lobster tails when they are on sale and freeze them (note: crustacean are the only seafood i will buy/eat frozen). these are rock lobster tails, but i think any will do. i've made all kinds of lobster tails, and they all taste the same to me.

lobster prep: after thawing (i run cold water over them in a strainer) butterfly each tail by using kitchen shears to cut lengthwise down the middle of each side of the shell.

cut down scaled side

cut down feet side



after cutting, you will want to gently pull them apart to expose the meat.

scale side

feet side

 

lay prepared lobster tails in baking pan for marinating; pour SOME marinade over each tail and let sit for about 10 minutes (in or out of fridge, whatev). keep the rest of the marinade for the grill.

i bet you want the marinade recipe, huh? oh, ok.......

whisk together the following: (these are approximate. i add til i like the taste)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice (i use fresh)
however much chopped fresh garlic you fancy
1/4 cup melted butter
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
a few squirts of honey-maybe 3 tbsp (i add honey to like, everything)

method:

pre oil grill grate 
pre heat grill to med-high.
place lobster tails feet down on grill. squirt some marinade on meat, close cover and grill for about 7 minutes.

after 7 minutes or so, the tails should be turning red. flip them over and squirt more marinade over. grill for an additional 3 minutes or so.

the lobster tails are done when flesh is opaque and scales are bright red.



voila! THAT easy!


on the side, i steamed some broccoli and grilled some potatoes. these potatoes are one of the first things i ever learned how to make. i have to say, i make them A LOT. probably more than i should, but they are simple and quite good. you can make them however you want, here's what i do:

quarter about 8 redskin potatoes
chop 1/2 red onion
put in bowl and add:
my favorite spice mix miracle blend
my favorite italian herb blend
chopped garlic
a bit of olive oil.. 2 tbsp maybe, NOT TOO MUCH.

mix together with your hands
pour potatoes onto foil sheet

then, use the foil to make a tent and roll up the ends to trap the steam:

place on grill over medium heat about 15 minutes before putting lobster on. potatoes take a total of 20-25 minutes to be done.

and again....





VOILA!

chow!