Beef and Broccoli and Deliciousness

In reality, this is just a stir-fry that incorporates the veggies that I like. Just empty out your crisper and enjoy!

First, I sliced a steak really, really thin. (This can also be made with chicken.) I marinated it for a couple of hours before cooking. Today, my marinade was a mixture of:
-VH1 garlic spare-rib sauce (extra garlic-y)
-soy sauce
-chili powder
-garlic powder
-white vinegar
It was mostly the VH1 sauce, and the rest of the volume was soy sauce. On the days when I don't have the VH1 sauce, my marinades are usually made up mostly of soy sauce, and I add a bit on honey.

Next, I sliced my veggies. Today's wok held:
-broccoli
-carrots
-lots of mushrooms
-an onion
-garlic

To serve along side my stir-fry I made rice. The standard operating procedure for rice is stupid-simple: Rice is cooked in a ratio of 2:1 (two parts water to one part rice). For a single serving, 1/3 of a cup of raw rice is good; for a really hungry single serving, 1/2 a cup of rice is good. Add a pinch of water to the pot when the water boils, then cut the heat to the lowest setting, add the rice, cover, and let sit for 30 minutes. No fail rice, every time.

When I started my main, I began by frying the beef. Because it was cut thinly, it cooked really fast. Once it was done, I emptied the wok and added all the veggies. They were all cut thinly so they would cook quickly. I added some of the left-over marinade and covered the wok to let the veggies steam. After 10 minutes, I took off the lid and let it cook for another 5 minutes to evaporate the liquid.

When it was ready, I put a bed of rice on the plate, then smothered with the veggies, pouring over some of the cooking liquid to moisten the rice.

Enjoy!

My Philosophy

So here's my rational for starting this blog: I love to cook, I've watched far too much Food Network, I don't own cookbooks, and find recipies to fussy. The result? A lot of cooking that tastes good, but comes from ideas/methods gleaned from cooking shows and that results in no set recipie(s).

I think that when it comes to food, you need to just roll with it. What do you like to eat, what do you have time to cook, and what is currently in your fridge or pantry? The answers to these questions dictate what we put on our plates, and then in our bodies.

My cooking often follows the methodology of throw everything in the pot, maybe even the kitchen sink. I learnt that from my dad who can (and does) make 'stews' out of whatever leftovers can be stirred into some gravy. Now, I'm not a fan of these dishes, but the method is sound: throw together what you've got and hunker down for a steaming bowl of yum.

So, that's why I started this blog. I wanted to share some of the dishes I make as well as the methodology behind them. You don't have to be a chef to get what I'm doing (I'm no chef myself), you just have to be the kind of person who needs to get dinner on the table and can't be bothered with recipies.

Enjoy!

Raspberry White Chocolate scones

So, one of my favorite treats is Second Cup's white chocolate raspberry scones. But obtaining one for breakfast on this beautiful Saturday morning would require getting dressed and that's no good. Instead, I decided to jerry-rig my own version.

What you'll need:
-Bisquick
-raspberry jam
-white chocolate
-milk

I started off my chopping up some white chocolate wafers that I had left over from my Christmas baking. I then put one cup of Bisquick and a quarter of a cup of milk into a mixing bowl with the chocolate. I added about a quarter of a cup of Smuckers Raspberry Jam. When I mixed it up, it was loose for scones, so I added more Bisquick (about a half a cup) until I got a really dry mix.

I then packed it into the quarter cup measuring cup I had used for the milk and banged it out into a Pam-sprayed Pyrex baking dish. This method of measuring/shaping meant I got the avoid rolling out/kneading the scones and it gave me uniform sizes. All told, I ended up with 5 scones.

I baked them for 10 minutes at 450 degrees (as per the Bisquick box's directions) but it wasn't long enough. I think the jam added extra moisture that required more time. No worries! I just popped them back in the oven at 450 for another 10 minutes or so.

In the end, they were a little burnt around the edges and on the bottom, but delicious!