Home Cooked Take-Out

We have always loved having Chinese food take-out. Through the years, it all tastes the same and looks the same. To order take-out has lost it's appeal. A few years back, my husband found a recipe for Stir-Fry Chicken with Garlic Sauce Recipe; by epicurean.com. We have tweaked it to our own version. Adding Broccoli has made it even better. Of course adding Sprouts or even Water Chestnuts would be delicious, too.

We have doubled the sauce recipe because we like more sauce. And we serve it over organic brown rice. Brown rice was one food we always had trouble cooking. Well, rice in general. It always came out gooey and sticky.

We read that rice can be boiled like pasta. I measure out 1 cup of rice, rinse and put it in a pot. It is then covered with water and brought to a boil. Let the brown rice boil for 23 minutes.

After the time, drain the brown rice in a fine strainer. Then place the strainer over the pot and cover.

Swirl some oil in a heating Wok or frying pan. Heat over high heat. Add just the chicken without the sauce and move constantly.

When the chicken is just about cooked, add the broccoli or your choice of vegetable.

Let the Broccoli cook and then add the sauce. Cook until the sauce is thickened.

In a bowl, put some brown rice and then spoon the Garlic Chicken over it.

Garlic Chicken with Broccoli

• 4 garlic cloves; chopped
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup honey
• 4 tablespoons corn starch
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast; cut into strips or cubed

Combine soy sauce, water, honey, oil, cornstarch, garlic and peppers. Put the prepared chicken in a container and cover with the marinade. Stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

(Follow directions pictured above) Enjoy!

 

Farm To Table E-Book

Recently I have had the pleasure of being a Co-Author in an E-Book named Farm To Table Through the Year. There are 12 involved in putting this wonderful book together hosted by Gretchen Stuppy Carlson. Gretchen is the owner and writer for The Backyard Farming Connection.

You will be taken through each month of the year with great information on how to grow, harvest and cook/bake crops grown or raised in your own backyard. You will also learn about each author.

Here is how you can receive your free E-Book:

First sign up to receive Radishgirl Thymes in your email. A confirmation link will be sent with instructions to get the book. If you are already subscribed to Radishgirl Thymes, resubmit your email address to get your free copy.

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Irish Soda Bread

This recipe was given to me by my mother years ago. It was given to her by her cousin way before that. It's not your traditional Irish Soda Bread. It has a slighty sweet side to it. It's not dry but moist, too. I know a lot of people who don't eat soda bread because of the dryness. But they always go for more than one slice when I dish up this delicious bread.

Served along side Corned Beef and Cabbage, this is one bread everyone will love. And now I am proud to share this recipe with you.

Irish Soda Bread

• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1cup raisins
• Zest of 1 orange
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg; for the egg wash

Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a loaf pan. Set aside.

The recipe calls for 1 cup of buttermilk. I keep powdered buttermilk in my pantry. It's very convenient and so easy to make.

In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry. Mix well to incorporate.

Fold in the raisins and orange zest.

Once all the ingredients are well mixed, pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.

Spread the batter evenly in the pan.

Place the pan in the preheated oven. Bake the bread for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and lightly brush with the egg wash. Return the bread to the oven for 10 minutes. After the time, insert a toothpick for doneness. If still wet, bake for an additional 5 minutes.

When the bread is fully baked, remove from the oven. Place on a wire rack for about 5 minutes.

Remove the bread from the pan. Let cool completely before cutting.

Be sure to serve this delicious Irish Soda Bread with a bit of butter. Enjoy!

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

 

A Childhood Meal Revised

It was getting close to lunch time and the aroma of food cooking was making us hungry. Our mother was cooking one of our favorites; Potatoes, Eggs and Hot Dogs. My brothers and I would top this meal with ketchup. It was delicious. When I got married, I made this for lunch for my husband. He was not too sure how the combination would taste. Well, it became one of our favorite lunches; sometimes dinner, too. As time went on, we stopped eating hot dogs and of course stopped having this meal.

Recently at a local Mexican restaurant, I had Chicken/Chorizo Fajitas with peppers and onions. The combination was out of this world. We love to cook Mexican cuisine at home and figured we can duplicate this meal. Success! The meat market where we buy our chicken makes their own Chorizo. They use chicken instead of pork. We also buy Italian Sausage made from chicken. We decided to buy the Chorizo. The chicken and chorizo were grilled and the peppers and onions fried. When the chicken and chorizo were cooked and cut up, they were added to the pepper/onion mixture. Needless to say it was delicious.

There was a problem. The chorizo was packaged with 3 links. We cooked all 3 but couldn't decide what to do with the 3rd link. Then I remembered that favorite meal of years ago. I figured why not, why not use the chorizo in place of the hot dogs.

I started the preparation of the potatoes. I cut up a couple of good sized red potatoes and put them in a pot of cold water. The potatoes came to boil and I set the timer for 7 minutes. After the time, I drained the pot and ran cold water over the potatoes. I laid a cotton cloth in a bowl and placed the potatoes in the bowl. After a couple minutes, I put the bowl of potatoes in the refrigerator. After about 1/2 hour, I put oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. You need the oil hot so when the potatoes are added to the pan, they don't absorb the oil but instead brown and crisp. To check if the oil is hot enough, I place one potato in the pan. If it starts to sizzle, the oil is hot and the potatoes are ready for frying.

The potatoes are carefully put into the pan and not touched. Let them fry. The less you touch the potatoes, the crisper they get and hold their shape. I add a bit of salt and pepper.

Since the chorizo was cooked ahead of time, I let the potatoes fry until just about done. I then added the chorizo and a bit of chopped onion.

The chorizo browned nicely and the onion softened. I added a bit more salt and pepper. I then decided to sprinkle some Cajun spice over this delicious mixture. Chorizo already has some spice but I wanted everything to blend better.

I then added eggs. I used 10 eggs but only 5 yolks. I cooked the eggs like scrambled eggs. Added a bit more salt, pepper and parsley.

Just like that childhood lunch of years ago, we topped our revised meal with ketchup and had toast on the side. So next time you have a left-over ingredient, think of a childhood meal and revise it to an adult version. Enjoy!

 

Homemade Apple Sauce and Potato Pancakes

There were six apples in the refrigerator. Whenever apples get to that place that you really don't want to just bite into one, I usually use them in some kind of dish. One of our favorites is Apples, Onions and Chicken baked in the oven. This time I wanted something different. I decided to make Homemade Apple Sauce.

I took the apples, peeled, cored and chopped them. I placed the apples in a pot with 1 cup of water and 3/4 teaspoons of cinnamon. I set the timer for 20 minutes over a medium heat, covered. Stir the apples and keep watch for when the mixture starts to boil. Uncover the pot and allow the apples to soften. After the time, turn off the heat and cover the pot. Let cool slightly and then mash with a potato masher. The consistency is up to you. We like our Apple Sauce a bit chunky and unsweetened. I suppose you can add sugar to taste.

We eat the Apple Sauce as a dessert or for a topping. We chose to make Potato Pancakes. The combination was delicious.

Potato Pancakes was a dish my mother would make when I was growing up. The traditional way is to grate the potatoes, with a box grater and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Another thing about Potato Pancakes is the ingredients are items you have in the pantry. I didn't have to run to the store for fancy ingredients.

Potato Pancakes

• 4 medium potatoes; peeled and grated
• 1 onion; sliced or grated
• 1 egg
• 2-4 tablespoons flour (start with 2, then add one at a time but no more than 4 total)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Black pepper to taste

I used 8 small potatoes probably equal to the 4 medium. As I peeled the potatoes, I kept them in a bowl with water. This helps prevent from browning.

With a box grater over a cotton cloth, I grated the potatoes.

When the grating was finished, I took the potatoes in the cloth to the sink. I squeezed out as much liquid as possible. Then I put the potatoes in a bowl and incorporated the rest of the ingredients.

I then heated a large frying pan with Canola oil over medium-high heat. I dropped a spoonful of the potato mixture into the pan and flattened slightly. Fry the pancakes until golden brown on each side.

Here you have the Potato Pancakes with Homemade Apple Sauce, served with a salad wrap. It was a light and very delicious lunch. Enjoy!

 

Chickens: How It All Began

Since I was a young girl, I have always collected something. Whether it was rocks, ants, frogs, stuffed animals, etc, the list can go on. When I got married and started keeping house, I needed to decorate. I had some knick knacks and put them around the house. At one point I had an interest in decorating "the country style". Around that time, I was given 2 ceramic chickens; they belonged to my grandmother. They are plain, nothing fancy. I am not a very fancy, girlie girl; I never was. I grew up the youngest with 5 older brothers. Anyway, the chickens are old. I'm not sure just how old when I received them. They sure are beautiful. I've had them for over 20 years and not sure how long my grandmother had them.

They hold a spot on the hutch in the dining room. Every time we moved, I carefully wrapped them for packing. I am very proud to be the owner of these 2 chickens.
At the time of receiving these 2 chickens, I was given another chicken. I can remember this particular chicken displayed on a metal cabinet door. It's a cute little magnet. This, too, was in my grandmother's kitchen for many years. I would go for a visit and always look at it. I thought it was the cutest thing. This little beauty is now resident on my refrigerator.

As the years went on, my collection became bigger and bigger. Between buying chickens and people giving me chickens, I was running out of places to put them. We lived in our previous house for 14 years. So you can imagine all the chickens I had. When we sold the house, unfortunately I had to downsize. One piece I absolutely did not part with is the board I purchased in Ireland. Oh yes, even in a different country, I saw something chicken. This is one of my favorite pieces. Again, it's plain and not fancy. It shows a bit of "old country look". This now hangs proudly on the wall in my kitchen.

Back at the previous house, I always wanted "live chickens". We lived within city limits and the houses were too close for comfort. The neighbor behind us was, well, a bit nosy so we decided that was not the property for chickens. I would tell my husband, we can keep them in the house. Of course I was joking. So, we waited and after the first winter where we live now, we bought our chickens. They are awesome. We started with 4. I decided not to give them names because I didn't want to get attached. Like that wasn't going to happen. So, I named them #'s 1-4. They were pretty nervous on the ride home; probably as much as I was. They were given an awesome home. We took all the precautions. We made sure to dig down a couple feet, put the poultry netting curled up and lay rocks on top. Then we back filled with the dirt.

The girls are fed organic layer feed and organic greens from the garden. Everything was fine until October. We were hit with a freak snow storm. A few days before, #3 didn't seem to be doing so well. It was suggested to treat her for parasites. We took her away from the flock and kept her in a cage in the garage. We kept her warm and did what we thought was correct. Well, a few days later, she expired. It was very upsetting but it all happened quick. Now we have #'s 1, 2 and 4. Their personalities have developed and boy are they spoiled. I love raising chickens. It was well worth the wait. They have an awesome life and we get some really delicious eggs in return.

Chicken Cacciatore

The word Cacciatore means "hunter" in Italian. There are many varieties of recipes that can be used. In Northern Italy, chefs use white wine while in Southern Italy, red wine is used. Cacciatore is basically seared chicken with onions, green bell peppers and any other vegetable. Whole tomatoes, drained of their juices, then chopped are added. The dish is done usually after simmering for an hour.

Through the years, I have tried different recipes. From my mother's, to Lidia's and now I use Rachael Ray's. I have Rachael Ray's cookbook, "30 Minute Meals - Comfort Food". I have found it takes longer than 30 minutes and I adjusted the recipe a bit. In Rachael's recipe, after all the ingredients have been cooked, everything goes into the pan. No simmering. I simmer the Cacciatore for 1/2 hour. This gives the flavors a chance to fully incorporate. I added salt and doubled the recipe.

Chicken Cacciatore (single recipe)

• 2-3 pinches crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite sized chunks
• 4-6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced then chopped
• 1 medium onion
• 1 red or green bell pepper
• 6-7 oz beef or veggie broth
• 1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• A handful of fresh flat leaf parsley

Over medium high heat, add olive oil to heat. Brown the chicken, garlic and red pepper flakes. Remove from the pan and put aside.

Turn the heat to medium. Place the mushrooms in the pan, cover and cook until dark and tender.

Add the peppers and onions. Cook 1-2 more minutes.

After the vegetables are soft, add the broth, crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Put the chicken back in the pan and add the parsley.

Simmer for 1/2 hour until desired thickness. While the Cacciatore is simmering, cook the pasta.

Enjoy the Chicken Cacciatore with Pecorino Romano cheese over pasta. Serve with a salad and crusty bread.