Baked Onions with A Sour Cream Herb Dip

Another baked goodie of deliciousness. The onion ring. In this case, the onion wedge? Looked like a wedge when I cut it. Or onion petal? Whatever the shape may be, I think these are a little easier to eat than a ring. Scoops up the dip or sauce better, too. But I like both. I would have done rings, but at the risk of cutting off one of my fingers with old and slightly dull knives is not a good idea. A mandolin cutter is what I need. Or sharper knives. So wedges/petals it was.

To go along with the baked goods, I also made a sour cream herb dip. Looks like thousand island dressing but a little thicker. Recipe follows the baked onion section. The pinkish color comes from ketchup. Yes, ketchup. You read right. That red stuff kids love to cover their hotdogs with. The condiment that some wanted to qualify as a vegetable back in the 80's. (What were they thinking?) Anyway, it's good with chips, too. Maybe some Roasted Garlic Tortilla Chips.

:-)


Bake Onions

1 small sweet onion (quartered and separated)
1 egg (beaten)
1/2 c milk
1 c flour
2 c panko crumbs

Preheat oven to 350˚F

Breading method: 3 containers 1-flour, 2-egg with milk beaten and season with a little salt, 3-Panko crumbs.

Dip and coat each piece of onion in the flour, then egg mixture, then panko in that order.

Place on a lightly greased baking sheet.

Bake for 20-25min until lightly browned. Flip half way through.



Sour Cream Herb Dip

2 Tbsp Sour Cream
2 Tbsp Ketchup
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Dry Oregano
1 tsp Dry Basil
1 tsp Dry Thyme

Combine all ingredients together.

Green Beans A Chance

I figured sauteed green beans was a boring title. I like to play with words. It's fun. Keep me occupied for 10 seconds. Anyway...a simple, yet delicious meal satisfying on every level, at least for me.

Sauteed green beans with a slight Asian flavor. I had eaten quite a big meal the other day with that pasta, so I wanted to go for something relatively light and on the healthy side. But I didn't want a salad. That was last thing on my mind. I remember I had gotten some green beans from the farmer's market. So I made a quick saute with them and mixed it with some fresh tomatoes a some grated cheese. A semi-saute salad in a way. I had this with a small cheese sammie on homemade wheat french bread.



Sauteed Green Beans

1 lbs Green bean
2 small tomatoes (chopped and deseeded)
Grated Cheese of your choice
3 Tbsp Soy sauce
2 garlic cloves (minced)
salt & pepper to season
olive oil


In a small bowl season the tomato with a pinch of salt and mix.

In a pan, coat the bottom with oil and heat. Saute the garlic until brown. Add in the green beans and stir to combine for a couple of minutes. Season with a little salt and pepper. Add in the soy sauce. Toss a few more times. Until beans are tender.

Remove the beans from the heat and toss in with the tomatoes. Serve with helping cheese on top.

Caramelized Pineapple

A little dessert topping for the slightly health conscious. Fruit and ice cream. What could be better, right? Rather than sprinkles and chocolate chips, although wonderful choices (I would have gone for them also), why not some fruit?

My choice of ice cream is butter pecan or vanilla. No, I didn't make the ice cream from scratch. That's one process I'm definitely not going to try until I get my hands on an ice cream machine. I got my pint from my local Baskin & Robbins.

The pineapple brings a tasty balance between sweet and tart. It's a rewarding dessert.


Caramelized Pineapple

1 small can pineapple bits or 1 c fresh pineapple (no juice)
1/3c brown sugar

In a pan heat the pineapple on a medium to high flame. Sprinkle the brown sugar over. Stir occasionally.

The natural juices of the pineapple will seep out. Don't worry. As you cook it will evaporate. Once the juices are almost done keep an eye on them as the caramel tend to burn easily. Once they look of a medium brown color turn off heat and serve over a couple scoops of ice cream. Or you can eat it alone, too.

Wheat Pasta

For my next attempt, I dared to make pasta. The upside to this is that it is homemade and delicious. But the down side out-weighed the upside. I don't have a pasta machine of any kind and had to roll the dough by hand using a rolling pin. Major chore! It was literally a workout. My arms still feel sore from excessive rolling. I literally had sweat falling down my forehead and neck. Trying to get the thickness of the pasta just right. I kept thinking...is this thick enough? And when will I be done because I had some writing to do.

Once I got all the rolling and cutting done, I hung the pasta to dry on the back of two dining chairs overnight, so that way all I had to do was cook it the next day. I had to cook them a little longer than usual because I had made them a little too thick. Note to self: roll dough thinner.



I had gotten the original recipe many years ago. I don't remember who gave it to me or where I had gotten it. It was a recipe for regular white pasta. I modified it a bit to make into a wheat pasta. It was a good experience, but I think I'll stick to the "ready made" version until I get my own little pasta maker.

I served this with some Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto that I had bought from Domenico's Artisanal Foods at Gigi's Farmer's Market the other day. They were the ones that I had mentioned a few weeks ago, who were featured in Bon Appetit Magazine. It was so good! I mixed it with some pan-fried shrimp, liberally seasoned with salt and pepper. Topped it with some shredded Manchego Cheese.



Wheat Pasta

1 c All Purpose Flour
1 c Wheat Flour
3 eggs (beaten)
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp olive oil

By food processor: combine all ingredients until it forms a dough.

By hand: Combine the flours and salt. Place on flat surface and create a little well in between. Kind of like a volcano. Place eggs and oil in the well and mix well until a dough forms.

-----

Knead the dough into a ball then wrap in some plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 min.

Roll out the dough into the desired thickness using a rolling pin. Cut into strips or make into ravioli.

Hang the pasta to dry at least 15 min.

Homemade pasta generally will cook in half the time as store bought.

A Mother's Day Fun Food Fact

I'd like to wish all the wonderful mommies out there a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!! And in honor of them, here's a little fun food fact for the day.


The ancient Greeks celebrated Mother's Day by honoring Rhea, "Mother of the Gods" with honey-cakes and fine drinks and flowers at dawn during the time of spring.


Breakfast in bed, anyone?



Source:
http://www.agirlsworld.com/amy/pajama/mothersday/momtrivia.html

Mmmmm...Cookies are Awe-Summm

Childhood nostalgia. I remember eating these cookies when I was younger. Ripping open the bag and devouring them in almost one sitting. Sometimes, I'd have the temptation to buy a bag as a walk passed them in the cookie aisle in the grocery. I had no idea that Mother's Cookies had ceased production on these classics last year until Foodbuzz sent an announcement to Featured Publishers that they were being made once again by the Kellogg Company.

I've been nibbling on these for the past couple of days. Sugar rush...yes! It's a big bag and someone's got to eat it. :-p Thanks, Foodbuzz!



Early this week, Dar from Girlichef was kind enough to pass this Awe-Summm award to me. Special shout out to her today. For this award, we're supposed to share 7 Awe-Summm things about our self.


Alright, as if you didn't think last week was enough. LOL. Here's another 7 things that make me Awe-Summm. (Even though, I don't think I'm awesome in any sense. I'm just a regular ol' plain Jane trying to do what I can.) It took me a few days just to think of these 7 because talking about myself isn't one of the most comfortable thing I like to do. I'm the one who prefers to take the picture rather than be in the picture. But if helps to let me be better known to my readers then I gratefully oblige. So here it goes:


1 I'm humble. I credit my mom for raising me the way she did. Being an only child, I've come to appreciate all the things I already have rather than the things I wish I had.

2 I'm pretty knowledgeable in a lot of things from pop-culture to science, even though 95% of the time I may not look the part.

3 I pretty much knew what I wanted to do career-wise since I was little. When people asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said I wanted to me a movie director. many years later, here I am trying to do just that. It hasn't changed since. You can check out my website (here) if you want to preview some of my work. =)

4 I started my own production company (Five Foot Filmworks) when I was 21, which was in 2005.

5 I have been mistaken for a high school student a few times. Oddly enough, I don't really get carded at bars and restaurants even though I want them to.

6 I try to be as charitable as I can, when I can.

7 I would love to one do some humanitarian work abroad.


Now I shall pass this along to a few wonderful foodies.

Rebecca at Chow and Chatter
Daily Spud at The Daily Spud
Diana at Diana Takes A Bite

Check these lovely ladies out as well as other fabulous foodie blogs over on the blog roll on the sidebar.

Ciao!

Mushroom Casserole

Every writer's worst nightmare is having writer's block. I've felt my groove had been misplaced for quite a while. That's what happens when life kicks you in the behind. Luckily, I've recently gotten my groove back and have crazily been trying to hammer out the ideas I have in my head before it loses its luster. In my immense concentration in trying to get this get a script written, I lose track of time. Before I know it, it's dinner time. I scramble for an idea for a meal.

To add on to it, the inside of my fridge is a sad sight. It was yelling out at me to "feed it" with stuff. Poor fridge. How I neglect it sometimes. But I do reward it with luscious produce every week from the farmer's market. It all works out.

I took stock with what I had around the kitchen. Some ramen packets, sliced portabello mushrooms, a can of cream of mushroom soup. Poof...Pow...Dinner! (Just imagine that in those comic book graphics)

With a full stomach, I happily went back to my writing.


Mushroom Casserole

2 ramen packets (minus seasoning packets)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 large portabello mushroom caps (diced)
salt & pepper to season
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1 Tbsp Olive Oil

Preheat oven 350˚F

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, season liberally with salt and place in the ramen noodles. Cook for 5-10 min and drain.

In a pan, heat the oil and butter together. Saute the mushroom until they are tender and slightly darker. Season with some salt and pepper. Add in the cream of mushroom soup and mix well for 2 min. Turn off the heat, then mix in the ramen noodles.

Place the mixture into a casserole and bake for 20-25 min. Sprinkle some dry parsley for garnish.

Poof...Pow...Dinner!