I'd like to try something new!

I'm just inserting a small note here to try this out and see if it
flies, so to speak.

I want my followers to feel free to email me with questions, ideas
for the blog, cooking suggestions or disasters. I will answer all questions
and try to incorporate new ideas, hopefully come up with new dishes
from your suggestions and hopefully help you fix your disasters
(although I've had a few of my own).

Let's see if this sparks more interest. It will be fun, don't you think?
Pass on my blog address to people you think will be interested
and we'll see if we can't make dinner a more adventurous meal!

Pork Vinda-gou

This is something I call vinda-gou as it is a combo of
vindaloo and goulash. Only because it uses curry and papricka
and also includes veggies. Fusion cuisine can be any two flavors.
Have fun with your two favorite dishes by combining them together.

I had some left over pork tenderloin pieces; you know, the ones that
are not big enough for a chop, but not small enough to consider stew meat.
I made a thick marinade with olive oil, a bit of vinegar, paprika,
tumeric, corriander, cardamom, salt, pepper, garlic, cumin, a bit of
clove and cinnamon, coated the pork pieces and let sit for a few hours.

I then made some brown rice when it was time for dinner. Browned the pork
pieces, added some sliced bell and hot peppers and some sliced onion.
Covered it with tomato sauce and some dry vermouth. Put the lid on it
and let it simmer till the rice was done. I served it over my rice
with a sprinkling of chives and parsley. It was yummy! Again, this
could stand as a meal alone, but you can add some more greens or a
salad as a side dish to round it out. You aren't limited to serving
over rice either, noodles would be fine.

Good luck with your fusion cooking!

Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo

Hello all-
Again, it's been a while since I posted. I wish I had time to cook everyday,
and post every evening, but life keeps getting in the way! HaHaHa...
So, last night neither of us knew what we wanted, so I just took a peek around
the store to see what looked good. Well, I happened to be in Trouts Market, and
they are not a large store by any means, so I basically took what I could get
and that looked good. We ended up with chicken and broccoli alfredo.

I got bow tie pasta just for a difference.
I got chicken tenders and chopped them up into bite size pieces.
I got a head (bunch) of broccoli and lightly steamed it(once it was broken
into bite size pieces). I sauted the chicken in olive oil with salt,
pepper and garlic. Added some chopped onion and a package of sliced
white button mushrooms. Poured in a little white wine(I used a Sauv Blanc)
and let it cook down. I then sprinkeld it with white flour and stired
until thick then added cream, and yes I used heavy cream. Then I melted
in various cheeses; mozzarella, provelone, parmesan and even a little asiago.
You may feel free to use whatever cheese you have on hand, and exchange the
cream for whole milk or half and half. Stirred in the steamed broccoli
pieces. Then sprinkeld everything with fresh chopped parsley and served.
It was delish! Protien, veg and carb all in one pot....who could ask
for anything more?

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Serve it with a nice citrus salad, your
Sauv Blanc and an angel food or sponge cake topped with berries and you can
entertain the in-laws!

Pollo enchiladas verdes with Roasted Veggie and Rice

I found some canned roasted tomatillos and fire roasted green chilles
in the store today, so had to call my sis for dinner tonight. I also
happened to know she was alone, so she was happy to come. Of course,
we had mexican....haven't ya'll noticed that's one of my faves?

So I took the tomatillas and chilles, processed them with some cubanelle
peppers, cumin, garlic, salt, pepper, corriander and heated through.
I added some shredded rotisserie chicken.

Then I just warmed flour tortillas (you can use corn; I'm just allergic)
and filled with the chicken and cheese. I rolled them up in a roasting pan,
covered with cheese and canned salsa verde and popped them in the oven.

Before all that, I started my rice. It is a brown and wild rice mix and
takes a good 40 min to cook. So I put it on with chicken stock and
a can of rotell tomatoes with some salt sprinkled in with the zest
of one lime.

Then I also roasted some baby asparagus, halved grape tomatoes, pumpkin
seeds, pepper and lemon zest. Tossed with a little olive oil.

I topped my rice with my garden grown cilantro....and Mmm Mmm Mmm!
We were all in glutton heaven. Although this was very figure friendly.
You can cut even more cals and fat by using reduced cheese- I splurged
though, because there wasn't that much cheese to begin with.
Everything else was fresh and low-cal/fat.

Hope you enjoy this trip south of the border!

Crispy Orange Beef with Red Hot Beans

We had this a few days ago, but I'm finally writing it down.
It's one of those quick recipes that are good to make with staples
in your cupboard and frige.

Slice your beef in very thin strips. I added yellow and red pepper
sliced in thin strips too. Marinate the beef in a mix of garlic, ginger,
sesame oil, orange juice, orange zest or marmelade, soy sauce, chinese
5 spice and a bit of hot pepper flakes if you want.

When you are ready to cook, heat your oil to very hot in a wok
or large pan. First saute the peppers for a couple of minutes, then
add the beef. It will cook very hot and fast. Serve over rice.

For your beans, they will take longer than the beef. So get some
green beans(fresh or frozen) prepared. Toss with plenty of garlic,
oil, salt & pepper and hot pepper flakes. Lay out in a shallow roasting
pan to form a single layer. Roast in a 425 oven till done to the
tenderness you desire.

Yumsters! Enjoy your night in Asia.

Chipotle Chicken Lettuce Boats

Hello everyone!

Mark has been out of town for a couple of days and I haven't
eaten well, so I rectified that tonight with these lovely lettuce tacos-

I took pre-cooked chicken, red onion, tomato, garlic, roasted red pepper,
jalapeno, chipotle with adobo sauce, avacado, lime and it's zest,
cilantro, parsley, cumin and a little bit of honey. Chopped it all up
finely and let it rest for 15 minutes or so.

Then I just put it in an assortment of washed lettuce leaves
and ate it!

Very good, very healthy and very easy!! Can't beat that.
Buenos Noches!