The other day, child number 1 asked (pleaded?) for some of that stuff that comes in a box - you know, with the big smiling hand? Now I just don't do boxes as a general rule, so I told her that we'd come up with something. Knowing basically what I wanted to do, I searched for recipes to see what others in my situation had done. I found some awesome sounding recipes that just didn't measure up to her expectations (I plan to try a few of them later, when she's not watching). Most of those involved some sort of spice or tomatoes, both of which are generally not in her diet. Several recipes went something like this: 1 pound ground beef, 1 box cheeseburger macaroni mix . . . wait, really? You call that a recipe?
Here's what we came up with, and believe it or not, it ended up smelling and tasting very much like the end product of that boxed mix - exactly what she was looking for.
1 pound ground beef
Garlic powder to taste
1 tablespoon dried minced onion (or use the real thing)
1/3 cup milk
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
and (yeah, I know)
1 box mac and cheese - prepared according to package instructions
Crumble the ground beef in a large skillet over medium high heat. Sprinkle the garlic powder over the beef as it browns. Rehydrate the onions with very hot water and dump them in with the beef. Stir and break up the chunks. When the beef is cooked through, stir it into the prepared mac & cheese. Over low heat, stir in the milk and shredded cheese. When the cheese is melted, the dish is ready. Add more cheese if your dish is not sufficiently cheesy. Serve it up with something green and enjoy!
Now, how did I end up with a kid that LOVES that smiling hand stuff? Maybe it's because I never buy it . . .
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
What can I do with these oranges?
Recently I was looking for something to do with a couple of oranges. These oranges had been sitting on the counter waiting for someone to eat them, and they were approaching the end of their useful lives. I didn't want them to go in the trash so I searched for recipes. I weeded out all those that used the orange in pieces, since obviously nobody was interested in actually eating them, then I stumbled across a marinade recipe that sounded promising. I put my own spin on it and this is what we ended up with:
Orange Salmon
4 salmon filets
juice of 2 oranges (about 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon tarragon leaves
1 tablespoon basil leaves
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
Place the salmon filets in a quart size zipper bag.
Mix the next six ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk in the oil, then pour the marinade into the bag with the salmon. Make sure the bag is tightly sealed, then massage the bag so that all surfaces of the salmon are coated. Do this carefully so that you don't break up your filets. Put the bag in the fridge, and let the flavors meld for at least two hours. (You could put this in the freezer at this point to prepare at a later date.)
Now, I do these in the oven so that I can spoon the pan liquids over my rice, but you could pan-fry or grill the filets. If you choose to bake them, put them in a pan large enough to lay them out in a single layer and bake at 375 degrees F for 10-20 minutes, depending on the thickness of your filets.
This recipe works equally well using regular orange juice if you don't have oranges sitting around. Oh, and the herbs are measured dry. If you choose to use fresh, chop them finely and don't use quite as much since the flavor of fresh herbs is much stronger.
Serve these babies up hot with Basmati rice and asparagus or a salad. Yum!
And for those who shy away from rice that actually has to be cooked, here's how I make perfect Basmati every time:
You will need a two-quart saucepan with lid, butter, rice, salt and water. And a timer - this is important. Place the pan on the stove over high heat. Put one tablespoon of butter into the pan. When the butter has melted, pour one cup of rice into the pan. Add salt (a generous sprinkle) and stir. When the rice starts to toast (don't let it brown), pour in 2 cups hot water. Stir the rice and wait for the water to come to a boil - this should happen pretty quickly. When the water boils, put the lid on the pan and turn the heat down to low. Allow to cook for ten minutes (remember that timer?) WITHOUT lifting the lid. When the timer goes off, stir the rice. It will be a bit wet. Place the lid back on the pan, but allow it to vent. Continue to cook the rice for another 2-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until it reaches the proper consistency. The grains should be moist, but dry enough that they don't stick together.
Enjoy!
Orange Salmon
4 salmon filets
juice of 2 oranges (about 1/4 cup)
1 tablespoon tarragon leaves
1 tablespoon basil leaves
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
Place the salmon filets in a quart size zipper bag.
Mix the next six ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk in the oil, then pour the marinade into the bag with the salmon. Make sure the bag is tightly sealed, then massage the bag so that all surfaces of the salmon are coated. Do this carefully so that you don't break up your filets. Put the bag in the fridge, and let the flavors meld for at least two hours. (You could put this in the freezer at this point to prepare at a later date.)
Now, I do these in the oven so that I can spoon the pan liquids over my rice, but you could pan-fry or grill the filets. If you choose to bake them, put them in a pan large enough to lay them out in a single layer and bake at 375 degrees F for 10-20 minutes, depending on the thickness of your filets.
This recipe works equally well using regular orange juice if you don't have oranges sitting around. Oh, and the herbs are measured dry. If you choose to use fresh, chop them finely and don't use quite as much since the flavor of fresh herbs is much stronger.
Serve these babies up hot with Basmati rice and asparagus or a salad. Yum!
And for those who shy away from rice that actually has to be cooked, here's how I make perfect Basmati every time:
You will need a two-quart saucepan with lid, butter, rice, salt and water. And a timer - this is important. Place the pan on the stove over high heat. Put one tablespoon of butter into the pan. When the butter has melted, pour one cup of rice into the pan. Add salt (a generous sprinkle) and stir. When the rice starts to toast (don't let it brown), pour in 2 cups hot water. Stir the rice and wait for the water to come to a boil - this should happen pretty quickly. When the water boils, put the lid on the pan and turn the heat down to low. Allow to cook for ten minutes (remember that timer?) WITHOUT lifting the lid. When the timer goes off, stir the rice. It will be a bit wet. Place the lid back on the pan, but allow it to vent. Continue to cook the rice for another 2-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until it reaches the proper consistency. The grains should be moist, but dry enough that they don't stick together.
Enjoy!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Sometimes I Just Can't Believe . . .
I have the pleasure of being a leader to a wonderful group of 6th-9th grade girls. I do this because I enjoy teaching, and I wanted to have some input in my daughter's scouting experience. Now, perhaps I'm expecting too much, but I'm often surprised at the things they don't know. Most recent: Where do eggs come from? Did you know if you drown in water you can die? Potatoes grow underground? I am glad they're asking the questions, because that enables me to teach them things; things that they evidently aren't learning elsewhere.
Of course, it's not just the girls. I encounter similar things from seemingly intelligent adults, and adults are more difficult. One wants to be able to share knowledge without making others feel that you're a know-it-all or that you find them stupid, ignorant, or otherwise lacking. One time during my employment at a pet shop, I had a customer who was interested in buying a large snail for his aquarium. The snails were on sale that week, and I spent a fair amount of time answering his questions about care and feeding, etc. I thought I had the sale wrapped up when the customer blew me away with his next question: "Where do I get a new shell for it when it grows out of the one it's in now?" So I explained how this actually worked, bagged him a snail and sent him on his way. I found this funny, and decided to share the laugh with my fellow employees. They didn't see the humor in it. I had to explain to them where the shells come from. Oooohhhh! they said. I asked where they thought they came from. "Well, from the ocean, like rocks." Obviously!
And then there's retail sales. "Buy one, get one free" does not mean that if you only buy one it will be half price. Those deals are priced "2 for $x". And if you buy 5 pounds of apples priced at $1.79/pound, you're going to pay almost $10. Oh, and those salad bars where you pay by the pound? Listen up people - if your salad is heavy, it's going to be expensive! Because they're priced by the pound . . . get it? Here's another thing - $4.99 is not $4, it's $5. Because we do understand that 99 cents is only a penny away from a dollar, right? I'm amazed at the number of people who are surprised to find that a five isn't enough money to pay for their $4.99 item after tax.
OK, I'm ranting, I think. But here's my point - let's all try to think a bit more. And as parents, our job is to teach our children to think. They aren't all the same, and they don't all enjoy the same things, or have the same abilities, but if we teach them to think, they will have a skill they can use anywhere for the rest of their lives.
Of course, it's not just the girls. I encounter similar things from seemingly intelligent adults, and adults are more difficult. One wants to be able to share knowledge without making others feel that you're a know-it-all or that you find them stupid, ignorant, or otherwise lacking. One time during my employment at a pet shop, I had a customer who was interested in buying a large snail for his aquarium. The snails were on sale that week, and I spent a fair amount of time answering his questions about care and feeding, etc. I thought I had the sale wrapped up when the customer blew me away with his next question: "Where do I get a new shell for it when it grows out of the one it's in now?" So I explained how this actually worked, bagged him a snail and sent him on his way. I found this funny, and decided to share the laugh with my fellow employees. They didn't see the humor in it. I had to explain to them where the shells come from. Oooohhhh! they said. I asked where they thought they came from. "Well, from the ocean, like rocks." Obviously!
And then there's retail sales. "Buy one, get one free" does not mean that if you only buy one it will be half price. Those deals are priced "2 for $x". And if you buy 5 pounds of apples priced at $1.79/pound, you're going to pay almost $10. Oh, and those salad bars where you pay by the pound? Listen up people - if your salad is heavy, it's going to be expensive! Because they're priced by the pound . . . get it? Here's another thing - $4.99 is not $4, it's $5. Because we do understand that 99 cents is only a penny away from a dollar, right? I'm amazed at the number of people who are surprised to find that a five isn't enough money to pay for their $4.99 item after tax.
OK, I'm ranting, I think. But here's my point - let's all try to think a bit more. And as parents, our job is to teach our children to think. They aren't all the same, and they don't all enjoy the same things, or have the same abilities, but if we teach them to think, they will have a skill they can use anywhere for the rest of their lives.
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