Egg Fried Rice.

My first real date with Chris was to a school dance. We went on a double date with mutual friends, and we left the pre-dance dining choice up to them. They chose a local Chinese restaurant that I enjoyed and had been to many times with my family. Unbeknownst to me, at this time, Chris hated Chinese food. He was, (and still sometimes is), a notoriously picky eater, and didn't know of a single dish he enjoyed there. He wanted to impress me though, and didn't protest the restaurant choice (especially after I made known that I enjoyed going there). If I remember correctly, he discovered he liked beef fried rice that night. I ordered the chicken fried rice, which was my favorite dish there, and is my go to dish to order at any new Chinese restaurant we're trying out. Since that night, Chris has found many Chinese dishes he enjoys, as have I, but we keep coming back to our mutual favorite — fried rice.

I usually halve this recipe (it's huge!) and it barely fits in my wok. I also tend to throw in whatever vegetables I have on hand. In fact, I don't think I've actually followed this recipe to the letter yet! It's very flexible, and forgiving if you accidentally put too much soy sauce or too little ginger, or any other adjustment you may find yourself making. Fresh ginger is a wonderful thing in this, and completely worth buying if you don't keep it on hand, but ground ginger can be substituted in a pinch. Make sure to precook any larger/thicker veggies you want to use, otherwise they will end up undercooked. 

Egg Fried Rice, from Simple Chinese Cooking by Kylie Kwong

Ingredients:

6 eggs

2/3 cup finely sliced spring onions (scallions)

2 T light soy sauce

1 T finely diced ginger

2 T vegetable oil (I use peanut oil)

1 small red onion, finely diced

4 cups steamed rice

1 T light soy sauce

1 1/3 c. finely shredded chinese cabbage leaves

optional other vegetables: peas, broccoli (precook), corn, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, etc.

Directions:

Place eggs in a bowl with spring onions, soy sauce, and ginger, and beat lightly with a fork.

Heat oil in a hot wok until the surface of the oil seems to shimmer slightly. Add onion and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Pour in egg mixture and leave to cook for 10 seconds before folding egg mixture onto itself with a spatula and lightly scrambling for about 1 1/2 minutes or until mostly cooked through. Add rice and extra soy sauce and stir-fry for about 1 1/2 minutes, using the spatula to break the egg up into smaller pieces. Lastly toss in cabbage and any other veggies you choose and stir-fry about 20 seconds, or until vegetables are combined and heated through. Enjoy!

Peanutty Chicken and Pasta.

Lately on my son's and my regular date to the library, I pick up a couple cookbooks to browse though. Usually I find one, maybe two recipes I'm truly interested in making, and I usually don't get around to making those. This cookbook, though, the Southern Living Kids Cookbook, has so many post-its sticking out of it now I hardly know where to begin. Jonathan even helped me choose which recipes to make, though I suspect he was just having fun sticking on the post-its to as many pages as possible. I know for a fact he wouldn't eat the chicken salad he picked out.

This recipe stood out to me, as I love ordering the chicken with peanut sauce at the asian restaurants we occasionally frequent. The lovely thing is that my husband liked it too, and he's not usually a fan of peanut sauces. The other thing I love about this recipe is that you don't cook the vegetables, and you can't tell. Until I told him, Chris had no idea I'd not cooked the vegetables, and he hates uncooked veggies.

All in all, an simple, quick recipe that works great for lunch or dinner. Now, please excuse me while I go add this cookbook to my christmas list.

Peanutty Chicken and Pasta, from Southern Living Kids Cookbook

Ingredients:

1/4 c. low-sodium soy sauce

2 T. coconut milk

2 T. creamy peanut butter

1/4 t. dark sesame oil (This adds so much to the sauce! Worth getting if its not in your pantry already.)

8 oz. uncooked corkscrew pasta (I just used the full 16 oz bag and counted on having leftovers.)

2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast

1/2 c. preshredded carrot (or, you know, you can shred it yourself...it'll just take a bit longer.)

2 green onions, sliced thinly

1/4 c. chopped red bell pepper

1/3 c. unsalted peanuts, chopped

Directions:

Whisk together first 4 ingredients in a small bowl, set aside.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and place in a big bowl. Add sauce, chicken, carrot, green onions, and bell pepper, toss gently to coat. Top with chopped peanuts. Enjoy!

Cowboy Steak with Coffee and Ancho Rub.

This is yet another recipe from the lovely and talented Ellie Krieger, from the book The Food You Crave. I knew when I saw this recipe that the combination of the espresso, chile powder, brown sugar and other seasonings would be a hit with my husband. The flavor was amazing, though the texture was a bit strange to me, as the coffee grounds, though finely espresso ground, are still very present. Still, this is definitely a recipe we'll make often through grilling season.

Cowboy Steak with Coffee and Ancho Rub, from The Food You Crave, by Ellie Krieger

Ingredients:

Cooking Spray

1 1/2 t. ground ancho chile or regular chile powder

1 1/2 t. finely ground espresso coffee

1/2 t. dark brown sugar

1/4 t. dry mustard

1/4 t. ground coriander

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. ground black pepper

1 1/4 lb. ranch steak or top sirloin, about 1 1/4 in. thick

Directions:

Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray over medium high heat or preheat the grill.

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except the steak. Rub it well into both sides of the steak.

Cook the steak five minutes per side, turning once, for medium rare, or cook to your prefered doneness.

Allow the steak to rest for five minutes before slicing thinly. Enjoy!

Cheddar Chive Biscuits.

(Bacon) Cheddar Chive Biscuits

I love these biscuits.  My husband asked me to make these this week, and, as my chive plant was getting out of control, and I do love to make yummy food for my husband, I happily obliged.

Of course, I had intended to simply whip these up on my own, as I have many times in the past. When my son learned that I was baking, however, he ran out of his room, leaving behind a half-built tower of lego duplo blocks, begging to help. And 'help' he did. First, he picked out which measuring spoon he wanted to use (the 1/8 teaspoon measure), then he proceeded to shove both hands deep into the flour and try to drop fistfuls into my outstretched cup measure. The flour exploded in a fine mist over everything sitting on the counter, coated both him and the chair he was standing on, and then finally settled in a small heap on the floor.

After we finished measuring the flour and moved on to grown-up parts of the recipe (chopping the chives,) he played 'drums' with measuring spoons and cups next to me while I worked. He also put all the dirty dishes in the sink, which included the measuring tools, ALL of them, the empty baking powder tin, and a few bowls and cups, not all of which needed washing prior to this. All in all, not the quickest of helpers, but still the most lovable, by far. :)

Originally, these were bacon cheddar chive biscuits, but my family doesn't eat bacon, so I leave that out. It affects the outcome not one bit, I think. In addition to leaving out the bacon, I also used colby jack cheese instead of cheddar, because that's what I had on hand, and also because I like it better. :) Enjoy!

Crock Pot Pulled Chicken & Honey Whole Wheat Buns.

I LOVE this chicken recipe. It is so delicious, so simple, so quick (for a crock pot recipe), and did I mention, SO DELICIOUS!! I didn't modify the recipe at all, (well, other than halve it, as I don't need to feed 8-10 people...) so I'm going to send you to the original site for the recipe. Stay tuned for the buns recipe though!!

The buns are delicious in and of themselves. I've used this recipe for burger buns, hot dog buns, simple rolls, and now for this.

Honey Whole Wheat Rolls, originally from Celecia Stoup of Hobart, Oklahoma

Ingredients:

2 packages active dry yeast (or 1/2 oz total, or 4 1/2 t. total)

1 c. warm water

1/4 c. butter or margarine, melted (I used butter)

1/4 c. honey

1 egg

3/4 c. whole wheat flour (I've been using rye flour, as I'm out of whole wheat and want to use up the rye)

1/2 c. old-fashioned oats

1 t. salt

2 1/4 - 2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour

Additional melted butter or margarine (opt.)

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in the water. Stir in the butter, honey, egg, whole wheat flour, oats, salt, and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour; beat until smooth. Add enough all-purpose flour to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured surface, knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Shape into 15 rolls, (or whatever shape you need...I can get about 10 hot dog buns...) Place on a greased sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 375°F for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with butter. Enjoy!