2010 Food Challenge

A small change is in store for Sunshine and Sarah. Rather than clouding up the sunshine with 100+ cooking blogs, i've started a second blog focusing on my Cooking Challenge. You can find the challenge and all of our Cooking with Sarah Segments at Saute Away. Feel free to follow me on both blogs!

A promise kept

Thursday we had a 'Turkey Trot' at work. I know, you are thinking "Sarah, this is a month late. Thanksgiving was Nov 26th you moron." Really, I do know that.

Since the Brit's stayed at home and didn't need to befriend the Native Americans at Plymouth Rock they celebrate their Turkey Trots as part of the Christmas Season. Our Brittish Liason Officer decided to start out the season with a fun run/walk and mince pies at work the other day. In an impetious moment I told our coworker who was injured earlier in the year in Afganistan that I would bring in dessert if he did the Turkey Trot on his Segway. Webb did it, so I held up my promise... I give you Black Forest Brownie Bites. So rich. so bad for you. so good. plus, they put me into the holiday spirit!

And no, I didn't get to participate because I had a briefing scheduled for the same time as the Turkey Trot :(

You put the rum on the chicken

Tonights cooking with Sarah: Mojito chicken. Yummy.

A couple of months ago I found the Grilled Mojito Chicken at $5 Dollar Dinners. I thought it looked pretty good. I finally gave it a chance with a few mods.

Ingredients

4 Chicken breasts

1/4 cup olive or canola oil

juice of 2 limes

1.5 tbl sugar

1 shot Bacardi

~1 tsp salt

~1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup chopped mint

Mix all items and let chicken marinade for at least 30 min. I pan sauteed the chicken -- it would be equally good if grilled or baked. I served it over couscous with black beans and corn.

Verdict: Easy, quick, healthy, yummy.

Thanks to Jen for sharing her TV as well as some How I Met Your Mother, Accidentally on Purpose, and Big Bang tonight! I miss my DVR :)

Gaaaaarlick daaaaarling

Welcome fall. It isn't really fall, in MS it is still in the 80's... but it sure feels cool. The faux weather drew me in... i had to give the crock pot a whirl. Welcome to cooking with sarah, the beginning of fall

Today was my take on the Crock Pot Lady's 20 to 40 Clove Garlic Chicken.

Ingredients

3-4 lbs chicken

1 onion, sliced

1 tbl oil (olive or canola)

2 tsp salt

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp pepper

2 tsp oregano

2 tbl parsley flakes

20-40 peeled garlic cloves

Directions

I used bone in breast halves. I removed the skin and fat from the chicken. Place chicken in a bowl with oil, spices, and garlic cloves. Crock pot lady didn't suggest the oregano and parsley, i stole them from another recipe. I was out of basil or I would have added it too. Toss to fully coat. Place onions on bottom of crock and lay chicken and garlic on top. Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours.

Verdict

I was amazed at how much moisture there was in the crock when I came home -- the onions were basically gone, however the garlic was still intact. The chicken was a tad dry, however i used the juice to jazz it up. It was probably dry because I was at work for a little longer than 8 days. I felt like the flavor was subtly garlic without being overpowering. The roasted garlic was a little stronger, but not at all bitter.

I ate it with Kate's roasted broccoli son-style. After eating I was reading the comments at Crock Pot Lady's... Tomorrow I'll be eating leftover chicken with mashed potatoes -- made with the leftover garlic.

Two big Thumbs up!

In your second serving of Cooking with Sarah... I made chili this weekend. All the football fun and the rainy sunday afternoon called to me. This was my first stab at chili from scratch. The recipe I followed used Cinnamon. Very different -- I liked what it brought to my beef, tomatoes, and beans. yummy. I <3>

Oatmeal and Rye Biscuits

A spin on cooking with Sarah, we bring you cooking with Sarah for super spoiled puppy dogs.

Ingredients

1 cup oatmeal
1 cup rye flour
2 tbl sugar
1 tbl butter or margerine
1/2 cup milk


Mix all ingredients. Cover with Saran Wrap and chill for 1 hour. Roll dough out to 1/4 in. thickness and cut into your favorite dog themed shape, including bones and fire hydrants. Bake at 350F for 15 min. Turn off the oven and allow to cool in oven prior to storing in an airtight container. Use as bribery for furry creatures that bark in the night.






Verdict: Success, as shown by the eager look of where is treat no. 2 after the devouring of treat no. 1. Not that they are particularly picky so far as these things go... However -- wheat free and corn free for those who have issue with those particular grains. We'll be doing a double batch after I re-stock on oatmeal. After all, the puppy cookie jar is an important part of our kitchen.

RPP -- yeah you know me.

We are back in kitchen mode. Ugh. Doors are being replaced. The final cabinets are being sanded. Painting will be extensive. In preparation for painting I decided we needed to start emptying the pantry (it will be painted) and the fridge (painting will occur behind appliances).

Today's effort: cheese ravioli, peas, and pesto. aka RPP. If I hadn't used all my cannelli beans earlier I would have thrown them in. Perhaps some tomatoes or some green beans next time. Simple, quick, yum (my favorite kind). No real measurements to report for this episode of cooking with sarah -- just throw them together -- more veggies = more yummy!

Cooking with Sarah Returns

So last weekend at Jane's wedding I found out that I had some blog readers I was unaware of -- AND that someone other than me actually enjoys the Cooking with Sarah Segments. In Karen's honor, I bring you another episode!

On the way home from work I stopped by the Kroger to pick up some goodies for dinner. In the spirit of Lent, I went with fish. I've learned to like fish over the last few years. I used to be able to do fish that came fried, but that was about it. Now I've really come to like other fish. This year I've vowed to learn to cook it myself - so here is another attempt. I just threw together a Salmon with a tzatziki. Tzatziki is fun to spell, and it also tastes yummy - a greek cucumber yogurt dip. Mine wasn't a real tzatziki, but close enough for me :)



Ingredients
Salmon
Olive Oil
Pepper
Garlic Salt
Dill Weed
Greek Yogurt
Cucumber

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place Wash and pat dry the salmon. Lightly drizzle with olive oil on both sides.
3. Place in the bottom of a glass pan and lightly season with pepper, garlic salt, and dill. Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through and can be flaked with a fork.
4. Meanwhile, chop up a portion of cucumber. Mix chopped cucumber and dill with greek yogurt. 5. Serve salmon with the tzatziki sauce on the side.

I had made a similar salmon dish during my first ever escapade in cooking fish a few years back... It wasn't nearly as good as this one. This got two big thumbs up - no leftover fish. There was a little leftover tzatziki. I'm planning to eat it as a dip with crackers tomorrow.

Totally EASY to make, very yummy, and healthy. Definitely worth repeating