did they eat it?

The Four O Clock

The Four O'Clock, by Logan.

A variation on the classic cocktail, the Sidecar. Inspired by a drink I had at clarklewis in Portland, OR. This is a helluva good drink...

You'll need brandy, Cointreau, lemon juice and Pear nectar. Cointreau is similar to triple sec -- but in the same way that Budweiser is similar to Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, so splurge and get the good stuff. Use a cocktail shaker and mix 2 parts brandy, 1 part Cointreau, 3/4 part lemon juice and 1 1/2 parts pear nectar.

Shake vigorously and pour into a frosted double old fashioned glass. Liss likes a sugared rim on the glass for this drink and I agree that it's a good addition to the recipe (many bars will add a sugared rim on the glass if you order a Sidecar).

Don't even bother making anything less than a double. You'll just be making another in a short while anyway...

Chicken Casserole

This is a casserole my friend Jean used to make for me to serve when I babysat for her kids or for dinner when I lived in their basement in my early 20's. ("Hi, I'm Melissa....I live in the basement.") I love it and, when Max was a baby I used to make it for he and I to share because he loved it too.

Logan does not like it, you see it contains 1/4 cup of mayonnaise. If you divide a 1/4 cup of mayo into an 8 serving dish, that means you're eating like 1/2 a tablespoon of mayonnaise and that is enough to kill a man.

Logan is out of town though, ha ha! So I decided to mix it up for the kids and I. I thought, given Max's babyhood love of this dish I'd get at least a 2 out of 3.

This is the sort of dish which would be easiest to make if you had extra chicken from another dish and 2 cups of rice leftover as well. I had neither of these things so I made the rice and used cooked diced chicken I purchase from our school's fund raising food place, Market Day.

2 C. cooked rice
1/4 C. The Devil's Sandwich Spread AKA Mayonnaise
1/2 C. chopped onion
1 T butter (if sauteing your onion first)
1 pack frozen spinach
Cream of something soup (chicken, mushroom, celery...it's a wild card!)
1/2 t. curry
Cooked diced chicken (what ever you have)
Cheddar cheese (to sprinkle on top)
Salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp - 1 tsp)

Cook and drain spinach. Combine rice, onions, soup, mayo, a little salt, curry, chicken and spinach in a bowl. Put in casserole and sprinkle cheese on top. Cook to warm through at 350 for about 20 minutes.

Here is a picture of it before I put the cheese on top. It tastes better than it looks in the lackluster light of my kitchen.

DID THEY EAT IT!?

Me: "I love this. I love this. I love this. I'm going to bath in it. I love curry. I need iron. I love this."

Madison: "What (fake gag) is (fake gag) this (fake gag)?" She ends up eating 4 bites of chicken after I separate it from the rest of the casserole. She gags it down drinking a 1/4 of her milk in between each bite.

Maxwell: Our conversation: Me: "You used to love this when you were a baby. I'd make it for you and I and Daddy and Maddie would have boring peanut butter sandwiches for dinner." Him: "Ha! So I liked this when I was a baby? I can't wait to try it."
At dinner: "What is this green stuff on it? Bleh (flick) Bleh (flick) (Spinach flies every where.) I'm not eating anything but the chicken but first I'm going to wipe all this gross green stuff off it with a napkin.

Verdict: 1 out of 3 people at our table enjoyed this. Which means I better enjoy it since I'm going to be eating it for lunch and dinner for the next 3-4 days until it's gone.

I used cream of chicken soup this time and I think I'd go back to cream of celery to give it an extra flavor. I also sauteed the onion this time and enh. It didn't add much so I'd probably skip that step as I always have in the past.

Black Bean Stoup

My mom bought me this cookbook for Christmas. Do other people do this? I eat something really boring and unsatisfying but I read cookbooks while I do it and think of how good something really good would taste.

I don't quite get the rage Rachael Ray elicits, (seriously?) (Whoa.) I'll admit she's a little over saturated perhaps, see this 5ives list. But overall she cooks in a way I can cook, well at least close to the a way I could strive to cook. Simple, fast with not so many dishes to clean up.

I realize I haven't done very well with the Did They Eat It feature I promised months ago. But there's a good reason for that. I suck at cooking for my family! I want to be better, I truly do. But I just can't seem to create the ever elusive Meal Plan System I keep thinking will make me able to plan meals each week with little effort. Also I get bored making the same meals over and over. I start to feel like there's no point in cooking unless I'm trying something new. Trying something new each time I cook is annoying because I'm always the equivalent of a newborn in the kitchen.

Instead we eat a lot of pasta and jarred sauce. I don't recommend this approach in general. 

I decided to make this soup from Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats on Friday night because I have not cooked a meal for my family in about four weeks. Nice. I wish the recipe was on line because what I hate more than planning meals is typing recipes into the computer.

Chicken, Corn, and Black Bean Stoup

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil (twice around the pan)
2 Pounds chicken tenders, cut into bite-sized pieces
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Tablespoon ground cumin (a palmful)
1.5 Tablespoons ground coriander (a heaping palmful)
1 Chipotle Chili pepper in adobo sauce (chopped)***
1 large onion
4 ears of fresh corn, kernels cut from the cob
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
3 Tablespoons all purpose flour
1 quart chicken stock
1 15oz can chicken stock or broth
[edit to add] 1 15oz can black beans
juice of one lime
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Hot Sauce, tabasco
Sour Cream, for garnish

Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat with the vegetable oil. Add the chicken and season with salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, and chipotle chili pepper. Cook the chicken until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes. Add the onions, corn kernels and red bell peppers. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 3 minutes. Dust the chicken with and veggies with the flour, stir, and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Turn the heat up to high and add the chicken stock. Bring the stew up to a simmer and then add the black beans. Simmer the stew for 15 minutes. Add the lime juice and cilantro and stir to combine. Taste and check for seasoning; adjust with salt and pepper and a little hot sauce of you like the heat. Serve the stoup garnished with a sour cream and a little bit of chopped cilantro.

***It is important to remember this for later.

Here is our final product.

So, did they eat it?

Logan: You could serve me a heaping pile of moose crap and I'd eat it and love it and wonder how you mingled the flavors so daintily. Please, please, cook for us! Please.

Maddie: [Tongue waves over a spoonful of the soup.] "There I tried a bite! I hate it. I knew I would."

Max: [Wiping sweat from his forehead.] "I really like this. It's, uhm...a little spicy. But I really like the taste so I'm eating it anyway. Washing it down with milk to keep my mouth from flaming."

Me: "Holy Crap you're right. This soup tastes like someone figured out how to bottle an open flame and dumped it in my soup. What the hell Rachael Ray? Are you trying to kill us? I can't even eat this, seriously my mouth is hurting. My lips are turning bright red. My God."

Maddie: "Oh right, yeah....I would have liked it you know. But that's what I meant, it's way too spicy. Right. Can I have dessert since the soup is too spicy to eat?" [LIE]

I couldn't figure out why Rachael Ray would invent such a spicy recipe and as I tried to fall asleep the next night I realized the recipe called for ONE chipotle chili in adobo sauce.

I put an entire 5 ounce can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce into the soup.

Like a newborn baby in the kitchen. Seriously.