Memorial Day Eats

When you get a big girl job that takes up your life 8+ hours a day for 5 days a week, with all those Christmas and Spring and Summer breaks taken away, you really appreciate the 3-day weekends when they come. I had been visiting Kevin several weeks in a row for various things -- an interview, Kevin's birthday, Kevin's USC graduation, helping him move -- so I made him promise to visit me for the long weekend.

The weather was finally nice (oh right it is almost June!), though we didn't make that much use of it -- the pool would have been great, but every family of 3 with a screeching toddler beat us to the punch. I didn't even want to think about the traffic over 17, either. We did go to the Tech Museum in downtown San Jose to use the Groupons I got several weeks back for the admission + IMAX for $5 (half off). We ended up parking far away (pretty much where I parked when I went to high school!) because there was an anime convention in downtown SJ as well and all the garages were full; so we did have a nice walk in the sun afterall. The Tech really is looking worse for wear these days. Hubble on IMAX Dome was worth the $5, though.

Of course, Kevin loves visiting me because it means I cook for him. Saturday I made Asparagus Risotto (recipe coming soon):


Sunday I took him to IKEA to browse the showroom for furniture to fill his empty studio. Mostly he wanted to pick out what he wanted, since his tiny coupe wouldn't be able to haul any of it back with him (another U-Haul rental is in his future), though he did get a new laundry hamper and two bar stools. I got replacement bulbs (finally) for my desk lamp; it lit my studies for 4 years before finally burning out the morning of my last final at USC, and I've been meaning to get a new bulb in the year since. That night (after a long nap -- walking around IKEA is tiring business!) we faced the usual, "what do you want to do tonight?"/"I dunno, what do you wanna do?" conversation. I brought up pool, since we hadn't played in a while and he had been teaching me some strategy. He thought it would be nice to make some food together. Somehow, he decided on hamburgers. So I browsed around foodgawker for a fun salad recipe to adapt and accompany our meal, and we made a grocery list.

Kevin thinks I give him the crappy jobs because I always make him cut the veggies (namely, the onions, though he always wears my swim goggles to save his eyes anyway), but I make everything delicious anyway so I don't think he minds too much. In the end, we had delicious cheeseburgers topped with caramelized mushrooms and onions, along with a tangy orzo salad (recipes coming soon) for a late dinner and an easy Memorial Day lunch:

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Give them a Twist, a Flick of the Wrist!

So a week or two ago, while browsing my Facebook news feed, I noticed some commotion on Sarah Michelle's wall about hunting down rhubarb. It sounded like a fun little scavenger hunt/pot luck, so I voiced interest. Apparently she and a few friends started a weekly event called the Iron Chef Blogger Challenge, where every Saturday night, someone announces an ingredient (and, optionally, a rule; for example: "no pies" for the first week's ingredient of rhubarb) and everyone has 1 week to cook something using that ingredient and then post a blog about it. The ingredient for this week is coconut milk, and it is my first week participating.

I browsed the nets at work earlier this week looking for what to make. I decided on Sugar Snap Pea & Shrimp Curry [cooking.com]. I also decided to make risotto to go with it, a modification of a chicken risotto Kevin and I made the weekend he came up for my birthday. I know it's mixing genres a little bit, but I don't see why not -- it is so tasty!

~Sugar Snap Pea & Shrimp Curry~

• heat 2 Tablespoons of canola oil in a large skillet [let me stress large!]
• add 2 Tablespoons of curry powder and cook for 2 minutes
• add 1.5 lbs raw shrimp [I cheated and used cooked shrimp]
• add 1 lb sugar snap peas, trimmed [I don't know how much 1 lb is, so I used about 2 cups]
• cook for 4 minutes
• add 1 cup coconut milk
• add 1/4 cup lemon juice
• add 1/2 teaspoon salt [I just grinded some over top]
• bring to a boil and cook for ~2 minutes

[1/160 sec, f/5.0, ISO 400, 63mm, with flash]
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~Chicken Risotto Sans Chicken~

• melt 2 Tablespoons of butter in a skillet [I used margarine this time around, and it tastes fine]
  
• add 1 clove of garlic, minced
• add 1 cup rice [you're supposed to use a special kind but I just use sushi rice]
• saute until the rice is browned
• add 1 teaspoon basil [or whatever looks right]
• add 2 cups chicken broth
• bring to a boil
• reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes [or until the rice is tender and moist and delicious looking]
• top with sharp cheddar cheese and stir in so it melts
• add sliced mushrooms [this was my addition since I removed the chicken part]

[1/160 sec, f/5.0, ISO 400, 105mm, with flash]~*~

This recipe was really fun for me, because I am not a very experienced cook. It was really easy, too! I botched the planning of the simultaneous cooking, even though I knew the risotto would take much longer. Sauteing the rice was a cook time I neglected when planning when to start the curry. This wasn't too big of a deal, except the curry was meant to be served and eaten immediately "to keep the snap peas crisp." Honestly, it just made the snap peas lose color by the time I was ready to serve and eat, but it still tasted good! Overall a very filling and tasty meal =)

[1/160 sec, f/5.0, ISO 400, 105mm, with flash]
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Here is what everyone else made:

• Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce and Cilantro Rice
• Coconut Scones
• Indonesian Coconut Chicken
• Thai Coconut Soup
• Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, Leek and Coconut Milk Soup
• Brazilian Soup and Pan de Coco
• Basil Chicken in Coconut-Curry Sauce

Next Week's Ingredient: Cranberries!
How festive! The rule is: no making cranberry sauce. Hmmmm, I'm not the biggest fan of cranberries, so I'll have to look around for something to like.

~*~