orange chicken a l’Harris… sorta

This is my best friend, Harris:

(I stole that from his Facebook, but have seen him be a yoga freak in person as well.)

Long over a year ago, he passed a recipe for his mom’s Chicken a l’Orange to me and I’ve had it on an electronic sticky note on my computer’s desktop for all this time.

I haven’t seen Harris in far too long as he’s been busy galavanting all over Europe for the past 2 years (I’m not jealous at all) and our Skype availability never seems to match up. Staring at this recipe really made me miss him!

Since I haven’t cooked in forever, or so it seemed, it finally felt like the right time to use that recipe since I couldn’t come up with anything better in my useless brain. By the time I got to the grocery store with the recipe in my hand, I decided to change it to a more Asian-inspired Orange Chicken recipe. The original recipe isn’t much different from what I did, but I merely switched out American chili sauce (like fancy ketchup) for Asian garlic chili so-spicy-it-makes-you-die sauce, added a vegetable, and used chicken chunks (appetizing) instead of whole, bone-in pieces. And I sauteed instead of baked the chicken in the sauce.

I’m by no means an authentic Asian cook. I consider myself an aficionada of Asian cooking but this is in no ways super authentic. However it did taste mighty good and satisfied an unhealthy Chinese food craving.

Orange Chicken (serves 3-4)
1.5-2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 6 thighs)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
salt & pepper
3 T vegetable oil
1 cup orange juice
2 T soy sauce
1-2 T garlic chili paste (spicy! be careful!)
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 T blackstrap molasses
1 red bell pepper, chopped
Cut the chicken into small pieces and set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine flour with a dash of salt and pepper. Lightly toss the chicken pieces in the flour, covering most of the exposed surfaces. Heat vegetable oil to medium high — ideally you’ll do this in a large wok but I used a Dutch oven since that’s all I had and it worked fine. When the oil is hot, it will glisten. Carefully (!!) drop the floured chicken into the oil in small batches and let it sizzle for a minute or two before stirring it and letting it brown for a few minutes longer. Remove and repeat until all chicken is brown — it will not be fully cooked at this point. Turn the heat down on your oil once the chicken is all removed. Carefully pour in the orange juice, using a spatula/other utencil to gently scrape the chicken goodness off the bottom of the pan with the help of the OJ. Add in the garlic chili paste, soy sauce, mustard, and molasses, stirring well to combine. Add in the chopped peppers, letting them simmer for a few minutes before adding the chicken back to the wok/pot/vessel. Stir everything well and bring the heat up until the mixture is at a low boil. Allow the mixture to cook, uncovered and gently boiling for 10-20 minutes or until the sauce has reduced by half. The chicken should be cooked through and the peppers soft. Serve hot with rice and broccoli, just like the Chinese restaurants!

The Color Run Austin recap

It was your typical Saturday morning in Austin that started like this…

And quickly turned into this…

3 of my friends and I decided a couple months ago to participate in the Austin Color Run. It basically takes the concept from the Hindu holiday, Holi (March 8th this year), and combines it with a 5k and fundraising for Habitat for Humanity. The concept of Holi, in the least amount of words possible, is to cover everyone in pigment so we all look the same and no one can see our differences.

So we came up with a great team name, The Violent Lovers (thanks to a Wu Tang Clan name generator…) and bought awesome tube socks from Target for $1.50. I ran with my friends Marcy, Mary, and Cliff and while it was a harrowing experience, I couldn’t have chosen better teammates.

Because of the random drought-busting storms we’ve been having lately, Austin is muddy. But we were prepared and everyone had a towel and some extra shoes and we figured we’d be fine. We were happy and hopeful. We’d gotten emails from The Color Run, who does a great job of communicating pre-race, about a change in location because of the overwhelming interest. Well, despite changing the location, it still caused a 5 mile back up on the road leading to the park. We were on track to get to the park by 8:15am for the 9am start when we hit the traffic. It was horrible. I went 1 mile in 40 minutes. We ended up pulling into a nearby neighborhood around 9am and walking over a mile to the race.

We finally got to the venue and even though we were a little chilly and bitter about the traffic situation, we found out that nothing was on time because of the traffic and other planning failures. I admit I am a little upset about the lack of organization at this point. If the logistics of the race caused them to move venues, perhaps they should have been more prepared for the huge amount of people they were expecting… But we got in line, about 3/4 of the way back, and waited for the staggered start of our “wave”.

We did not cross the start line until 10am (an hour after projected) but we tried to smile and jog to warm ourselves up. But the congestion was awful. People were stopping at every person who had a bucket of the color (an eco-friendly pigment powder) and we walked the first 5 minutes. There were spectators with color, but at every kilometer (of the 5-kilometer race) there was a “color zone” so we figured we’d get color there and dodged our way through the crowd, color-less. The course started to get muddy, but nothing a little washing wouldn’t fix later, so we stayed together and trekked on.

Unfortunately we got to the first color zone to find out they had run out of color. We were all cold, muddy, and not covered in yellow powder yet so the 4 of us started to get a little grouchy. At this point the mud had gotten so bad we could not even attempt to run. Our shoes got stuck and Cliff and Marcy had to physically pull my leg out several times. We started slipping and sliding (see above picture) and people left and right were cursing, losing shoes, and complaining about how there was no color left.

We found a quick cut-through and decided to knock off about .5 miles of the course. At this point I looked at my Garmin watch to find out we had only gone .75 miles total, in over 20 minutes. There was no way I was going 3.1 in those conditions. We start hearing from the chit-chat happening around us that none of the zones have any color left at this point, that it was all used up in the first few waves. People were getting angry. I was getting upset. At some point, Mary and Cliff got separated from us and Marcy and I grumbled and climbed our way through mud. We ended up taking another huge short cut and rounded the bend, seeing the finish line ahead of us. In 38 minutes, we traveled 1.48 miles and I think I used the phrase “They should have rescheduled” about 38 times.

We ended the race with no color on our bodies and found a tent where they were giving 1 bag of color to every participant in exchange for a wrist bracelet. This was the first color we’d seen all morning! We grabbed our bags, miraculously found Cliff and Mary, and we all covered each other in powder.

At the end of it, our shoes were ruined. We ended up throwing them in a box that subsequently went into the dumpster at my apartment (coincidentally, the same dumpster that had to be stepped into when we realized, hours later, that Cliff’s camera — where all these pictures are from — was also in that box.)

We were cold, in terrible moods about the lack of organization from the Color Run and full of complaints. With our shoes quite wet and heavy, we trekked back to my car, tried our best to rinse our hands and feet with water from water bottles, and sat on towels. Bloody Marys and mimosas followed and our moods lightened up a bit. We ended up having brunch at Austin Java and cleaning ourselves up a bit in their bathroom.

All in all, I have mixed feelings about the race. It was an adventure in many ways and it was great to spend my morning with friends, but because of the horrible mud situation and the poor organization at the race itself, I felt like I wasted a morning and $40. If the Color Run is coming to a city near you, I would recommend signing up because I think it could be a really great experience. I think they’re learning from their mistakes and hopefully there won’t be a giant rainstorm for the 10 days prior to your race. I honestly think I want to do the September event in DC, since I’ll be living there by then, so I can give it another chance. It has great potential, but Saturday stunk.

my contribution to the holidays

I’m very iffy on Christmas spirit this year. One second I’m loving Christmas and the time I finally have to relax and visit some family. I’m known for sneaking looks at my presents and not sleeping the night before Christmas. But another second, I’m ready for it to be over. There’s so much drama related to Christmas and I don’t have the energy to assign dishes, wrap presents, and figure out the ever-changing plan for when everyone is showing up at everyone else’s house.

Too much work.

Plus, my mom is verbally not looking forward to the holidays since my brother Hunter is deployed. Last year he was deployed in Korea, this year in Afghanistan. And apparently I’m chopped liver. I kid, I kid.

Well yesterday I made an attempt at being spirited and finally made the sugar cookies my mom had been begging me to make. The pictures are a little sparse because a) I forgot to take them and b) I got distracted and went skiing halfway through making them (no joke).

I’d like to thank my best friend Tiffany’s husband, Johnny, for lending me an extra jacket!

But here they are, in all of their sorta holiday glory! Get out your butter!

Peppermint Sugar Cookies (makes 15-20 cookies)
For cookies:
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 egg
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/3 cup flour
For icing:
1 stick butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1-2 T heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring (optional)
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. When well combined, mix in the vanilla, peppermint, and egg. In another mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mixing slowly, incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until a dough has formed. Roll the dough into balls (smaller or larger to suit your taste, but I recommend ping-pong size) and place onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes until edges are just brown. Remove from oven and cool on a cookie sheet. They will be nice a chewy! After the cookies have completely cooled, beat together butter, powdered sugar, and peppermint extract for the icing, drizzling in heavy whipping cream to give it the perfect icing consistency. Once satisfied with the texture, add in the food coloring (optional) and mix well. Spread icing on cookies — lay it on thick! Enjoy!

a soup I actually like

It isn’t a secret that I don’t really care for soup. I have very few recipes for soup and its very rare that I order it at a restaurant. It’s a texture thing. Aside from heavy chowders and chilis, I really only like thick, puree type soups like tomato.

Well I had been staring at a big butternut squash that I bought and was quite unsure about what to do with it since I’ve had a lot of roasted squash these days. I had a flashback to the days when I lived with Mona and Jeff, the parents of my two best friends, Harris and Jeremy — Mona used to make a butternut squash soup that was really yummy!

I had no idea what went in hers but decided to follow my instinct and just make a simple puree soup with minimal ingredients (my new favorite concept) and lots of pure, vegetable flavor.

My only complaint about this whole venture? The mess! I had to blend the soup in my blender in 3 different batches because the blender wasn’t big enough and it just caused a huge mess. But, this mess was well worth it because the soup was great! I packed it up and took a small batch over to my friend’s house for girl’s night of low cal cooking, wine, and Sex and the City!

Butternut Squash Soup (serves 8)
1-1 lb. butternut squash, peeled and roughly chopped into large chunks
1/2 medium white onion, roughly chopped
1 large, sweet apple (I used Pink Lady), peeled and roughly chopped
6 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
pepper
Prepare the squash, onion, and apple. In a stock pot, combine all of the produce and cover with 6 cups of stock. Cover and bring to a rolling boil. When the liquid is boiling, reduce the heat slightly for a more gentle boil. Allow the produce to boil for about 20 minutes. When you press on the squash with a spoon or spatula, it should be tender and easily break. When the squash is tender, remove from the heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Use an immersion blender or a standard blender and blend the soup, adding pepper to taste at this point — if using a standard blender do it in batches and put a dish towel over the lid because it will still be HOT! Combine the batches of blended, pureed soup and eat up!

race recap: Uptown Classic 5k

Wow it has been quite a while since I wrote a race recap! In fact, my last race was in May 2010!

Yesterday I woke up bright and early and headed out to a popular local race here in Austin, the Uptown Classic. Typically this has been a 10k race on a flat and fast course but this year they added a 5k to the event. Not feeling quite ready to tackle a 10k yet (but soon!) I wrangled my friend Mary and another Asha Strides of Hope teammate and dear friend, Vaishno, to run it with me!

While the rest of the country is experiencing a phenomenon known as “fall”, Austin has yet to see this. Well, perhaps we are seeing fall as our average temperature is now 93* as opposed to 105*. The morning started out a bit chilly, but by the 2nd mile I was getting quite warm!

The race was great. It was small, despite its popularity, and it allowed me a chance to explore a part of Austin I’m not familiar with (The Domain). In my half marathon training we’re running intervals with walking breaks but I told myself not to walk if I could help it and I only walked twice: through a water station and for about 30 seconds towards the end until I saw the finish line! I was quite proud of myself for not stopping, despite being pretty out of shape.

About halfway through, a quadruple amputee ran past me on prosthetic legs. I started to cry. I cried not because this man was faster than me, but because he was that awesome. He was a military veteran and everyone whispered about him to their running partner as he ran through the crowd. And I just cried. He, unbeknownst to him, became my hero in that moment and I pushed through the urge to walk and finished the race as strong as I could.

As I crossed the finish line, I saw some Team Asha teammates cheering me on (thanks!) and in a complete daze almost didn’t recognize Mary who was standing at the end of the finish line cheering me on!

I grabbed some water and walked up to the finish line to cheer on other friends and we all headed over to the post-race expo for results and so much free stuff! As we were looking for our results, they started to announce age group prizes in the 5k. Imagine my surprise when we suddenly heard my name being called out. 

I actually said, “Wait, did they just say my name? What do I do?” and some stranger who heard us talking said “Go up and get your prize, silly!”

I ended up getting a respectable 3rd place in my age group (20-24) and Mary actually got 1st place in her age group (25-29) and 3rd overall for the females in the 5k! Granted it was a small race, but I’m still proud! All my friends did so well!

Thanks to everyone for supporting me — y’all are amazing!

recipe shout-out!

Lately I haven’t been feeling super creative in the kitchen, but I have been trying a lot of recipes from the interwebs… mainly from bloggers or popular magazines.

So, I’ve decided to start a “recipe shout-out” chain of posts where I’ll occasionally share a successful, delicious dish that I’ve found elsewhere so that you too can share in the love.

Today’s shout-out goes to Cooking Light’s Fresh Salmon Cilantro Burgers which I made for my friend Mary the other night. I had been craving salmon and, while still expensive, it was cheaper to buy my own fresh salmon and make my own burgers than to buy the pre-made ones from the seafood counter at my grocer. One suggestion: add 1 egg white to the salmon mixture — it wasn’t forming patties for me with just the bread crumbs.

I definitely recommend these burgers, they were delicious! I did make the cilanto mayonnaise (and topped it with fresh avocado slices!) but when I enjoyed the leftovers, I did it with hoisin sauce and hot sauce. Truly wonderful! They’re great without a bun, too!

make this tonight

Do me a favor and stop by the grocery store on your way home to make these Beef & Goat Cheese Enchiladas.

I had a dish of the same name at a restaurant recently and, while I was satisfied, I felt that I could improve upon the dish. By using steak instead of ground beef and by using more goat cheese — because who doesn’t want more goat cheese? — I exceeded even my own expectations.

The other night, my friend Emilie texted me that she had some steak she needed to use and invited me over for dinner. I knew that it was the perfect opportunity to make my dish! I swung by the grocery store and made an impromptu dish that was spicy, comforting, cheesy, and satisfying.

That picture may not be the prettiest, but I promise they’re delicious — even if you’re spatula-impaired.

Beef & Goat Cheese Enchiladas (serves 2-3)
1 cup tomato sauce, canned
3 T sauce from can of chipotle peppers (add the peppers for more spice)
1 tsp garlic powder
6 tortilla shells (I prefer flour!)
1/2 medium white onion
2 sirloin steaks (approximately .75-1 lb in total weight)
salt & pepper
1 T chili powder
1 T olive oil
4 oz fresh goat cheese
Thirty minutes to an hour before cooking, slice steak into bite-sized pieces and marinate with salt, pepper, chili powder, and olive oil. To make the enchilada sauce, mix together canned tomato, sauce from chipotle peppers, and garlic powder. Set aside. Slice the onion into strips. Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the onion, stirring occasionally for about 4 minutes or until the onions begin to become tender and more transparent. Add in the marinated steak and stir occasionally, allowing the meat to brown and cook mostly through — it is okay if meat is not all the way cooked as it will finish in the oven. When the onion and meat mixture is done, turn off the heat and set aside. In a baking dish, spread some of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of the dish. laying the tortillas out, spoon out a portion of meat and onions onto the tortillas. Divide the goat cheese among the tortillas, reserving a portion to put on top if desired. Once each tortilla has meat and goat cheese, roll up and place seam-side down onto the enchilada sauce. Repeat with each tortilla. Coat each enchilada with the sauce made earlier. Divide the remaining goat cheese and spread on top of the enchiladas. Bake for 20 minutes at 350* and enjoy!

bacon at the end of the world

So apparently Saturday was supposed to be the apocalypse. Well, I’m still here so either Heaven is exactly like earth, complete with rainstorms and cupcakes, or the world didn’t end.

But Saturday night, just in case, I made preparations for the end of the world the best way I know how: wrapping something in bacon.

Previously, I’ve had dates stuffed with goat cheese. And recently, Emilie had dates wrapped in bacon. Saturday, I was inspired to combine them all into one delicious appetizer. Because really, anything stuffed with goat cheese AND wrapped in bacon has to be good. And signify the end of days. Or any diet.

My friend Emilie and her new beau came over to hang out with me and Rahul and make these yummy appetizers. And then, in the event that the world didn’t end (which, clearly, it didn’t), we had plans to eat dinner at Buenos Aires Café Este (which was fabulous!). The night turned out to be great, despite the continuance of human existence.

Bacon-Wrapped Dates with Goat Cheese (serves 4-6)
16-20 medjool dates, pitted and sliced to open
2-3 ounces soft goat cheese
4-5 slices of bacon, cut into quarter strips
If the dates are not pre-pitted, slice them open to remove the pit. If they come without pits, make a small slice into one side of the date to create a pocket. Using a spoon, scoop a small amount of the soft goat cheese and put it in the pocket created in the date (should be about a teaspoon worth of cheese). Repeat until all of the dates are filled. Next, slice bacon strips into 4 pieces. (Tip: Put the bacon in the freezer for 20 minutes before slicing so it is a bit easier & less slippery!). Wrap each date with a piece of the bacon and place on a cooking sheet. Once all dates are wrapped, bake at 400* for 10 minutes then set to broil for another 4-5 minutes until the tops are crispy but not over-done. Remove dates from the sheet and place on paper towels to absorb some of the grease. Allow to cool 5-10 minutes, then serve!

a date night dinner

As you may have noticed in my post about these delicious brownies, I have a gentleman friend in my life. Being the good girlfriend that I am I decided to make him sit down and relax after a busy day at work so I could cook him dinner.

Also, I needed blog material. Two birds, one stone y’all.

So I thought I would make a romantic, impressive French dish, Coq au Vin (“Rooster with Wine”). This dish is almost like a stew with a thick red wine sauce. I made it once before for a crowd but this time I decided to make it a bit smaller and lighter, but equally delicious. The traditional recipes serve 4-6, so I worked to change it to a perfect date night dinner for two.

This is a great dish to prepare ahead of time so you can wipe the onion skins and excess flour off your clothes before going over to impress your significant other with your effortless cooking. (I did all the prep work at my place and took it over to his when it was ready for the oven)

But even though this is a lighter version of a classic, men will still love it because bacon and bacon fat are involved. Y’all would disappoint me if you didn’t have a jar of extra bacon fat in your fridge. You do, right? Right.

Date Night Coq au Vin (serves 2)
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 slices bacon
1 T olive oil or bacon grease
2 cups mushroom caps, halved
12 small pearl onions, peeled
1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 T tomato paste
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 T rosemary
1 tsp dried parsley
salt & pepper
2 cups egg noodles, cooked
In a bowl, combine flour with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Toss chicken breasts in the flour and set aside. Chop bacon into small pieces (hint: this is easiest done if the bacon has been in the freezer for about an hour). In a heavy bottomed or cast iron skillet, fry the bacon until crispy. Remove bacon pieces with a slotted spoon and set aside; leave the grease in the skillet. Add 1 T bacon grease or a drizzle of olive oil so the skillet is not dry. Place floured chicken into the hot skillet and allow it to brown on both sides (3-4 minutes/side). When the chicken is browned, remove from skillet and set in the bottom of a cooking dish. To the skillet, add the red wine and chicken stock to deglaze the skillet. Stir in tomato paste, garlic, parsley, and rosemary. Place the mushroom caps, pearl onions, and the cooked bacon in the skillet and stir well. Allow the mixture to reduce for a few minutes where it will become more sauce-like. After about 5 minutes, pour everything on top of the chicken in the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. With the oven set to 375*, bake covered for 35 minutes, remove the foil, and bake for an additional 10 minutes. In the last 10 minutes of baking, boil some egg noodles, drain them, and set them aside. When the chicken is ready, serve over the hot egg noodles, spooning extra sauce from the dish.

homemade oreo cookies

My friend Emilie made these a couple of weekends back when I went to a cookout with her family. She has been making these cookies for a while and decided to experiment with a gluten-free variety for her cousin who is on a restricted diet. She was concerned they weren’t quite as crispy as real Oreos, but let me tell you: it is as if an Oreo met an Oatmeal Cream Pie and they had a love child.

And I have the recipe.

I could eat about a million of these things. I think I had 3 or 4 at the cookout and lapsed into a food coma shortly after. They are seriously delicious!

Emilie’s Gluten Free Oreos (makes about 18 cookie sandwiches)
Basic g-f flour mix (makes 3 cups so you’ll have extra):
1 cup Brown rice flour

1 cup white rice flour

2/3 cup potato starch

1/3 cup tapioca starch

Cookies:

1 1/4 cups basic mix g-f flour (see above)

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup plus 2 T butter, room temperature

2 eggs

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl until well incorporated. Then add the butter cut into pieces and mix until butter pieces are pea sized. Once butter is mixed in, add in the eggs and mix until well incorporated. Drop batter onto a buttered baking dish in small teaspoonfuls, leaving plenty of room for spreading. Bake for 6-8 minutes at 375*, watching closely to prevent burning.

Oreo filling:

1/2 stick butter, room temperature

1/4 cup vegetable shortening

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl with a hand mixer or a stand mixer (use the whip attachment at a fast speed to achieve a frosting consistency). When the frosting has come together, use a knife and frost the bottom of one cookie. Match it up with another cookie according to size and make a sandwich. Continue with all the cookies until you have a giant plate of cookies!
*Note: this recipe can be made with regular, all-purpose flour. The consistency of the batter will be a bit thicker and harder so you may have to roll the cookies and press them in your hands before baking them, but the rest of the steps are the same!