happy thanksgiving

via martha stewart

today is thanksgiving for us which equals a busy day of cooking!

here is the menu:

brown sugar, mustard-glazed ham

green beans with hollandaise sauce

creamy garlic mashed potatoes with gravy 

stuffing with celery and onions

cranberry sauce (maybe if i have time...)

apple cider

no dessert this year! ill be whipping up pumpkin chocolate pie after our visit to ry's family for a non-traditional thanksgiving (indian food). im bummed that there will be no turkey to eat this year (turkeys are way to big for two people) so we decided to cook a ham instead with the traditional sides. ill be missing my mom's paella, turkey and cranberry salad. YUM. maybe she will freeze some leftovers for me :) a pregnant woman hopes. 

hope you have a wonderful thanksgiving weekend. enjoy your black friday too. will you be participating in some sales? i love cyber monday so much more than black friday- no crowds!

happy thanksgiving friends! hope you enjoy time with your loved ones. 

*and im sure most of you already know the gender of baby but im waiting to post pictures to "officially" reveal it here on ze blog ;) 

**check out martha stewart thanksgiving menus here (super helpful when planning!)

make it a magical martha holiday

a few months ago luckily stumbled upon a free year subscription of martha stewart living magazine

yippeee!!!

magazines are not a need but a want so normally i have zero subscriptions

 (it helps keep the paper monster away from my house too)

i always look forward to the december issue

seriously the best

provides great inspiration for the holidays

a pretty cover page

let's glitter everything!

the glittered deer idea has been around forever but i never tire of it!

pretty silver

a star themed Christmas cookie party

ooh fabulous!

have you received/picked up the December Living issue yet? do you have any other magazines that have amazing Christmas issues too? id love to know about them

here is martha interviewing at google 

presenting her new entertaining book

watch out- she cursed! 

menu for the week

the pioneer woman's chicken tortilla soup

pretty huh?

monday: chicken tortilla soup- its soup season!
tuesday: spaghetti aglio olio and roasted veggies- you must like anchovies for this one, so yum
wednesday: baked rigatoni with bechamel sauce- luscious and indulgent pasta bake
thursday: black beans and rice- first time trying this one out, ill let you know how it goes
friday: chicken carbonara- another recipe im trying out for the first time, looks super good
saturday: meatloaf, peas and rice- not sure if i should try this one or this one
sunday: white chicken chili from our best bites

wish i could tell you one of those days is a "leftover" day but i have had quite the appetite and eating more than i thought i would! yikes! im so grateful that the morning sickness has been slowly ebbing away. its either im sick in the morning or sick in the afternoon/evening, but thankfully not the all day sickness that i have been experiencing for the past couple months. looking forward to rekindling a relationship with food!

my chicken salad

one of my favorites

ingredients:

roasted chicken

real mayo (or veganaise)

mustard

salt and pepper

lemon juice

grapes (optional)

celery 

dill (one of those herbs you either love or hate- i LOVE)

so good! roasted chicken is key- the flavors seemed more developed versus boiling chicken. however, last week my friend S made me some chicken salad with chicken boiled and it was very good too. whatever works for you! i love making this as a leftover to roasted chicken. 

watch this video by barefoot contessa- her chicken salad looks so tasty!

french toast & pancakes together

recipe here

over on tasty kitchen, this recipe caught my eye. 

isn't it lovely?

happy monday to you!

freezable make-ahead recipes

pot sticker dumplings and soy-vinegar sauce

one of my favorite snack/side dish foods

not to say this can't be the star in a meal 

ry loves em

i make mine with pork, but this turkey variation looks good too!

recipe here

savory chicken pocket pies

a great "to-go" food

have not tried it yet 

but im looking forward to it!

recipe here

profiteroles

do i need to explain these?

recipe here

all three are from lucinda scala quinn (mad hungry)

i adore her!

need to get her cookbook...birthday gift?

how-to video for all three here

tender mercies

via

sometimes you just can't cook

its funny coming from me who normally loves to cook!

but when you have a tough day- the last thing you want to see is your oven

thank goodness for caring and attentive visiting teachers

my visiting teacher S came by and delivered me dinner yesterday

yummy sloppy joes, rolls, smashed potatoes, lemon butter broccoli, fresh cherries and zucchini brownies

so delicious 

home-cooked meals are the best

 feeling so blessed

another day that i know that God is looking out for me

the sandwich guy

via

a hello kitty sandwich? i say yes!

via google images

recently i have been addicted to watching the Next Food Network Star and i was surprised to see Jeff the Sandwich King win! i kinda was hoping for Suzy to win but i think Jeff's idea is a little more fun. 

Sandwiches!

for the first time in a LONG time i made my first sandwich during the weekend of my brother-in-law's wedding in Colorado. and i fell in love again. throughout our 3 years of marriage i told myself i would never make an ordinary cold-cut sandwich for ry- maybe a panini or something that takes a little more effort. but after that sandwich in colorado- yum. 

craving sandwiches all over again!

the hunt for good Chinese food

map and more explanations here

there are always pros and cons to where you live and once you do choose a place its how you deal with the cons that make life happier. this might be a very superficial con, but to me its a con nonetheless.

utah= no good Chinese food

 (or most ethnic food for that matter- even typical American chain food is not as good)

even when ry and i have gone out to eat at some chain restaurants the version i ate out-of-state was better. example= a pasta dish at Romano's Macaroni Grill in Cali tasted better than one in Murray, Utah

*although i have noticed the food closer to salt lake was a tad better. 

there have been select places where the food has been okay but never "wow" .  not trying to say that i am a food critic by any means- i just want the good food that i grew up with! 

my parents have happily fed my siblings and i  lots of Chinese food. my dad is obsessed. i am partial to the Cantonese style of  Chinese cooking (probably because my dad is too). when i was attending school in idaho i looked forward to every holiday or break so that i could go home to my parents and eat Chinese food.

its not only a type of food, its a memory that sends me back to my childhood.

luckily, this weekend my family and i had the opportunity to test out two Chinese restaurants- i was surprised!

01. Red Maple Chinese Restaurant- a Cantonese restaurant. my cousin-in-law picked this place out for his wedding rehearsal dinner. it was good! not as good as places in Cali, but definitely not bad. i would come back here again, most likely for dim sum. the sea bass was my fave.

02. Wa Me Chinese Restaurant- a Szechuan restaurant. no ambiance whatsoever (a-hole-in-the-wall). food came in a timely manner. service was okay. i recommend anything spicy- if you love spicy food you would love Szechuan style cooking. the rice cake and spicy beef were great. definitely coming back. another plus? its well priced.

okay so there are only two restaurants i can talk about right now, but im looking forward to tasting more Chinese/Asian restaurants and discovering new places.

any tasty Asian places in Utah you recommend?

*if you do visit Cali (or Vegas) head to Sam Woo my absolute favorite. they have locations peppered throughout Southern California and i believe one location in Nevada. it is Cantonese style cooking.

some favorite dishes of mine:
house special chow mein, shrimp with walnuts, fish mao soup, winter melon soup, duck with spring onion and buns, house special fried rice- and many others that i can't remember off the top of my head right now. maybe i will steal a menu next time :)

grilling on a saturday

photos of us grilling 3 weeks ago

ry really enjoys the grill

i haven't conquered it yet

guess it doesn't come natural for me

the shrimp turned out the best

SO GOOD!

the sauce was a lemon butter sauce

why does butter do magical things for food?

grilling peaches

grilled peaches with blackberries and vanilla ice cream

a nice change from typical desserts

*today i am flying back home to ry*

miami was super fun

pictures to come this week

down home with the neely's cheesy veggie flatbread

a delicious and more importantly simple flatbread recipe

i guess you could call it a "veggie pizza" too

used zucchini, red onion and radish

it was so yummy!

the veggies all in rows

pretty

radish centers are pretty

i love the pattern!

edged the flatbread in radish slices

parmesan cheese, olive oil, red pepper flakes on top

done!

delish

Gina's Cheesy Flat Bread

Recipe courtesy The Neelys 

Prep Time:

15 min

Inactive Prep Time:

--

Cook Time:

25 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

2 to 4 servings

Ingredients

• 4 ounces goat cheese
• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped chives
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Flour, for work surface
• 3/4 pounds store-bought pizza dough
• 1 medium red onion, sliced thin
• 1 zucchini, cut into thin rounds
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl fold together the goat cheese, cream cheese, garlic and herbs. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.

Line a sheet tray with parchment paper and lightly flour a work surface. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into an oval shape that fits a half sheet tray and lay out on the parchment paper.

Spread dough with the goat cheese mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch edge. Arrange the red onion in a row, overlapping slightly. Repeat with the zucchini.

Brush the red onion, zucchini, and crust with olive oil. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, to taste, and the Parmesan. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.

Remove from oven and using a pizza cutter, slice into thin strips for serving.

blueberry craving

lemon blueberry tart

im sure its amazing

recipe here

wishing that i could grow a lemon tree

can't really live without em

i have a bowl of limes and lemons pretty much always

on the dining table

mixed berry salad with mint

perfect for the season

simple and easy

recipe here

blueberry and buttermilk tart

maybe i should take my new tart pan out for a spin

this recipe looks like it could be great

blueberries and raspberries always remind me of summer

and the fourth of july

they are just perfect

all the talk about the superfruits of the world

well i think that the blueberry is a superfruit in its own right

yea for summer!

have a happy fourth of july

today i will be spending it with my family 

shopping, eating, movie watching

i absolutely love when my family comes to visit

all via martha

twisty breadsticks and creamy pasta

to make the breadsticks

you just buy the easy breadsticks in a can

be sure to get the twisty kind

i used rosemary

while twisting i pressed in rosemary leaves and grated parmesean 

then bake!

the pasta recipe that i used was by giada

a favorite fettuccine alfredo recipe

there is a stronger lemon flavor that cuts through the rich cream

one of my comfort foods

pasta from williams-sonoma

a beautiful unique shape

(sorry about all the sideways pics- still figuring out how to rotate pics on google chrome)

i will be blogging in and out till next tuesday

my family comes this afternoon/evening!

flapjacks, pancakes, or waffles?

recently i have been reading more and more in my deceptively delicious book

there are definitely pros and cons to this way of cooking

but i think the pros outweigh the cons

i do love the idea of adding veggie and fruit purees to recipes

but it is a lot of extra work

im sure with a little planning and preparedness

it can become easier

 on a grocery trip i spotted these kodiak cakes

the marionberry syrup looked good too

marionberries remind me of my friend rachelle 

my first roomate- marionberries are her fave

so i decided to give them a try

glad i did 

i really love them

they taste wholesome

not sure how wholesome they actually are for me

but i loved the taste

maybe next time i will try slipping in some fruit puree in the batter

ry doesn't like waffles

gasp!

i know

when i found that out i was a little heartbroken

my dreams of owning a cute waffle-maker flew off into the distance

he says they are too drying for him

so pancakes and flapjacks are the answer

not sure the difference between the two

but they are more cake-like and have more moisture

but maybe in the future i will get a waffle-maker

not for ry

but for me and the kids

because hopefully no kid of mine will turn down yummy homemade waffles

what is your favorite?

pancakes, flapjacks, or waffles?

cheese and bacon soufflé

in hopes of finding culinary happiness through souffles i decided to try one

it was harder than i thought

the top rose the last few minutes in the oven

and as i removed it

ploooff

it fell down

oh well at least it still tasted good

maybe it was the dish i used?

bah- ill try it again 

but maybe a dessert souffle next

do you have any great souffle advice?

would love to hear it!!!

vintage pyrex bowl

i call it my "ramen" bowl 

'cause the shapes on the bowl remind me of ramen noodles

perfect 

another cheese and bacon souffle recipe i will attempt later

easter meal and cherry blossom trees

so so late on posting this easter dinner

better late than never

ry and i had cranberry glazed ham

the ham was soaked in apple cider and then drenched in cranberry sauce 

the side was a mushroom pasta bake

in other words

heaven for people who love mushrooms

thanks nigella 

see videos on how-to here and here

here are some early blossoms on the cherry blossom trees 

and then it snows

i was worried the cherry blossoms would go back into fall mode

thank goodness they perked back up!

pics soon to come 

nigella says:spanish omelette (scrambled eggs)

 a while ago i made spanish omelette via nigella 

this cookbook is pretty fabulous

my omelette did not turn out exactly like nigella's

it became scrambled eggs

but it was still quite yummy!

you need green onions. eggs, roasted red peppers, butter, and red potatoes

chop up the peppers, green onions, and potatoes

add them to the eggs

scramble them up and then cook em in a skillet!

super easy and a nice change to the plain scrambled eggs