Experimental Hors D'oeuvres

Since I'm house sitting at a friend's, I went rummaging through the fridge to see what I could throw together for dinner.  This is what I found:

4 large mushrooms
1 small onion
1 slice ham
1 tube crescent roll dough
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
garlic salt
chili powder

1.  Pre-heat oven to 350° F.
2.  Wipe mushrooms clean with a towel, instead of washing them -- it's a trick I learned from Julia Child.  Cut off hard stems and dice.
3.  Heat pan over med heat.  Dice the onion. To be healthy I browned the mushrooms and onion dry.  Stir occasionally.
4.  Cut slice of ham to small squares and add to mushrooms and onions.
5.  Sprinkle with chili and garlic salt and keep stirring occasionally.
6.  Pop open the tube of crescent dough.  Roll out the dough and cut the triangles in half -- pizza cutter makes it easy.
7.  Press the smaller triangles into the mini muffin pan -- alternative: use regular sized triangles for regular muffin pan. I started with a dowel, but found it easier to do with my fingers.

8.  Spoon 1/2 teaspoon shredded mozzarella into bottom of dough "cups"

 9.  Spoon a teaspoon amount of the mushroom mixture into each cup and sprinkle some parmesan over the top.

10.  Bake for 12 min.  Crust should be golden brown.
11.  Remove from oven and let cool in pan for no more than 5 min and remove to plate to finish cooling -- if you leave them in longer the moisture will make the bottoms soggy.

12.  Plate up and serve.  Goes great with some ranch dressing on the side (but then, what doesn't?).

Things I would try differently:
1.  I think some mild sausage would be great in lieu of the ham, but then I used what I had.
2.  Use some oregano and basil seasoning instead of the chili powder.
3.  Forget reducing fat and use a teaspoon of butter to saute onions and mushrooms.  Also, add a splash of white wine.
4.  Use more cheese and mix it into mushroom mixture to melt before adding it to the dough.
5.  Forget the pre-perforated triangles.  Roll out dough with pin to be thinner and cut into 2 - 2 1/2 inch squares.  You'll get more out of it, so up the amount of ingredients.
6.  Egg-lovers -- I don't include myself among you -- feel free to scramble an egg or two to the mushroom mixture.
7.  Add a clove or two of garlic, pressed, of course.

Almond Chicken Asparagus

On my last visit, my dear friend Tiffany took me Blue Koi on trendy 39th St. in KC. There, I fell in love with pan-friend dumplings and this rice dish. The menu description: Fresh asparagus in harmony with sautéed chicken breast marinated in garlic mayonnaise with sun dried tomatoes. It was so good, I got home and figured out the recipe. (I was also impressed that the take home containers are compostable.) Voila!

Almond Chicken Asparagus (serves 4)
¼ c mayonnaise
4 cloves garlic
½ tsp salt
Ground pepper to taste
4 boneless chicken breasts
Small bunch of tender green asparagus (aprox 8-10 spears)
8 oz mushrooms
¼ c sun dried tomatoes (in oil or dry)
¼ - ½ c toasted slivered almonds (according to taste)
2 cups rice

The night before:
In a large bowl, add garlic cloves (mince with a knife or use a garlic press) into mayonnaise and mix with salt and pepper. Set aside. Cut chicken into 1inch pieces. Cut asparagus into 1 ½ inch. Slice mushrooms into thick slices. Make sure sun dried tomatoes are cut in strips and add to mayonnaise. Mix all together so everything is coated with mayonnaise and refrigerate overnight.

20 minute preparation:
Prepare rice according to preference. I use a rice cooker; add rice, 4 c hot water and 1 tsp salt. Button pops up when done!

Heat large pan over medium-hot heat. Add chicken mixture all at once pressing chicken pieces into the bottom of the hot pan. After a couple of minutes – once bottom of chicken is golden – stir around, turning chicken over - tongs work great for this! Cover and lower heat to medium for 2 minutes. When the white mayonnaise is gone, sprinkle almonds over top and remove from heat. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Notes:
The restaurant’s version did not include mushrooms, but you should be catching on that I’m addicted to them.

The picture above is from Blue Koi’s website and, no your eyes aren’t playing tricks, that’s the shrimp version.

Mayonnaise makes a great marinade base. It's basically eggs and oil, so you don't need to add oil and it cooks up golden. Also, it coats food better than a liquid marinade and it doesn't break down food like usual acidy or vinegary marinades.

Rice cooker -If you like rice, I highly suggest you invest in a rice cooker. You don't have to get a high-end one, but make sure it's big enough for your family size.

Toast Almonds - as your pan is heating dump in the almonds and stir them around until they are golden brown.

Erin's Ramen Soup

I'm not a big fan of ramen, but I am a big fan of easy quick preparations. I don't often plan meals ahead. When I get hungry I want to eat, not watch something cook. Besides, sometimes I just crave that ramen flavor that takes me back to college days. So, I always have a couple of packets on hand.


Another couple items I like to keep on hand are mushrooms and zucchini. You can add them to just about anything.


Here's what I came up with one cold day when I was craving french fries. It's a "healthier" alternative to fries since my true craving is salt*. Also, this is a great recipe for when you have a cold. And it only takes as long as it takes to boil the water... almost.


Erin's Ramen Soup (1 adult serving, 2 kid servings)


1 pkg ramen (any flavor - I like chicken)
2 cups water
1/2 small zucchini, sliced
3 mushrooms, sliced
1 green onion, sliced

1/2 lemon or lime

1. Boil the 2 cups of water - electric kettles are great for this.
2. While water is heating and before opening the ramen package, crumble the noodles with a heavy mug or rolling pin. Don't crumble too small, but really, it's up to you.
3. Empty the crumbled noodles into the biggest bowl or mug you can find. Remove the flavor packet.
4. Throw in your sliced zuchini, mushrooms, and onion.
5. Sprinkle the flavor packet contents on top.
6. Squeeze juice from the lemon or lime over the top, removing any seeds or use a strainer if you're averse to the pulp.
7. Pour boiling water over the top until noodles are covered.
8. Cover bowl/mug with a plate for 3-5 min.
9. Stir and enjoy!

I knew a girl in jr high that had hair like this.

Traditional (mushy) preparation (less steps, but takes longer)

1. Boil water in saucepan.
2. Once water boils, add noodles and all other ingredients.
3. Cook for 3 minutes.
4. Serve.

*Craving salt is usually an indicator that you are de-hydrated. Drink up!