hawaiian bbq beef and mac salad

A big thanks to Micah and Brittney for this entire meal. We learned how to make perfect sticky rice from them as newlyweds, and the meat marinade and mac salad are Micah and Brittney staples. I cannot count the times we ate this with them at parties or family get togethers (we aren’t actually family but were close enough friends to be adopted as such). Missing them today and so grateful for their friendship throughout the years. Love you, friends. And hey, thanks for the good eats. Xx

Recipe: Hawaiian BBQ (Teriyaki) Beef

Ingredients:
1.5-2 c soy sauce
1/2 c sugar
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
Oil, a splash
Vinegar, a splash
2 lb. (ish) Thinly sliced beef (sirloin tip etc)

Directions:
Mix all ingredients well then combine with beef. Marinate for 3+ hours. Then grill. Enjoy.



Recipe: Hawaiian Mac Salad

Ingredients:
16 oz large macaroni noodles, cooked & chilled
6 boiled eggs, chilled & diced
8 mini dill pickles, diced
4 Tbsp dill pickle juice
1/3 - 1/2 c mayonnaise
2 tsp mustard
Garlic powder, to taste
Salt, to taste

Directions:
Cook pasta and eggs. Chill. Dice all you need. Toss together and mix well. Serve cold.



Serve with CalRose rice. 

butter chicken

You guys! This stuff is like a miracle in a packet! I stumbled across it in the grocery store the other day (international isle) and thought I'd give it a try. And boy, am I glad I did! It's spectacular!! So easy and so, so delicious. The whole family gobbled it up, and it makes a ton! It's a bit on the spicy side (I'd call it "medium" heat; nothing extreme, but I didn't feed it to my one-year-old), but you can up the cream a bit to knock down the spice. Anyway, it's fantastic. You can be sure we'll be making this again!

RECIPE: Butter Chicken

Yield: 8 generous servings 

Calories: 224 each (w/o rice)

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp oil

1 lb chicken breast, diced

2 Tbsp butter

1 med onion, finely diced 

1 (15oz) can tomato sauce

1 packet Butter Chicken Seasoning Mix

1 c cream (more if needed to de-spice)

Basmati rice

(Opt) fresh cilantro 

Directions: 

Cook according to packet directions. 

** Serve over basmati rice (with cilantro mixed in if you have it). Add a side of naan if you think to snag some. And enjoy!!

chicken and broccoli soup

Derek and I kind of just threw this together today based on things we had available and some leftover rice we wanted to use up. We also wanted to put something in the crock pot so that we would have something warm and ready when we got home from church. Luckily, this tossed-together concoction turned out super yummy! I love it when that happens! Let's see if I can remember how we made it...

RECIPE: Chicken and Broccoli Soup

Serves: 6
Calories: 394

Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken breast
1/2 large onion, diced
1 tsp garlic powder
salt + pepper
1 bag broccoli spears
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 c parmesan cheese, grated
2 tsp chicken bullion
2 c cooked rice
3 Tbsp cheddar cheese, grated

Directions:
Defrost chicken breast if frozen. Place in crock pot, along with onions, and pour a bit of water (1/3 c -ish) over it all. Season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook in the crock pot (covered, obviously) over low heat for 2 hrs. Add broccoli spears, cream of mushroom soup, and parm cheese. Add a bit more water mixed with the bullion. Set the heat to high, cover and cook for 2 more hours. Then add the rice, cheddar cheese and more water (1-2 c, hot water). Stir it all, breaking up the broccoli and shredding the chicken. Season more to taste (it won't likely need it, but check). Then serve and enjoy!

dinner in a pumpkin

Every fall, our little family has dinner in a pumpkin. It's a tradition and became one without real intent, which is pretty cool- as our family is young, and traditions are mostly ideas we have. This meal is so, so yummy (if I do say so myself) and very cozy. Something about it feels like comfort food to me. Maybe it's just the fact that my whole family is gathered around a table, eating warm and wonderful food- while outside, the world is wet and cold. Or maybe it's just some awesome grub! :) Either way, we love it. A lot.

I got the idea and original recipe from my friend, Brittney. This version is pretty much hers, with a few twists. Hers is really great, but I quite liked my version, too. It turned out great. I think we'll be having dinner in a pumpkin AGAIN this year! {The audacity, I know!}

RECIPE: Dinner in a Pumpkin

Ingredients:

1 medium pumpkin*

1 lb. ground beef

1 large onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 c. celery, sliced

1 bell pepper, seeded and diced

2 c. cooked rice

2 Tbsp. soy sauce (or to taste)

salt/pepper, to taste

{*Note: Choose a smaller medium... Also, the night/day before making this, bring your pumpkin in from outside. You don't want to start with a freezing cold pumpkin. It only makes the cooking time longer. Trust me.}

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Wash the pumpkin. Carve a lid from the top; remove it, and scoop out the seeds and "goop." Replace the lid, place the pumpkin on a cookie sheet (foil lined = easier cleanup), and pop it in the oven. Let it warm up and start to cook a bit while you get everything else ready. {You'll appreciate the head start; cooking a whole pumpkin takes a while...}

Prepare the veggies if you haven't already. Then in a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the ground beef and onion until the meat is browned. (I like to add much of my seasoning here, too...) Add the garlic, celery and bell pepper. Cook until veggies are al dente {Can you use that term with veggies??}. Add the rice, and add (or add more of) the soy sauce, and salt/pepper. Taste as you go, and adjust seasonings accordingly. {Note: I like to season a little on the heavy side, since the pumpkin will be unseasoned and sharing.} Mix well and cook until warmed through.

Once the meat/veggies/rice mix is done, bring your pumpkin out of the oven for a minute. Fill the pumpkin with the innards mix. Replace the pumpkin's lid and return it to the oven. Bake at 350F for 1 hour, or until the pumpkin squash is tender {poke with a fork}. Also, the outside will start to "sag" a bit.

To serve, scoop out some pumpkin flesh along with the meat/veggies/rice mix and eat it all together, casserole style. Add a bit more soy sauce if desired. Enjoy!

ham fried rice

I was craving something Asian and was too unambitious to make manapuas (which is the Hawaiian name for them, I suppose, making them not-so-Asian... if you're curious as to what they are, stay tuned. I intend to make them sometime in the near future). So I made ham fried rice. Easy. Quick. And it used up several ingredients we had around from the holidays. I hadn't really made this before, but I think it turned out pretty yummy. We were going to have this accompany pot stickers, but it made a ton and we wanted to eat ASAP. So this was our meal. Hey, at least we had grain, protein and veggies. It's a relatively balanced meal. :) Either way, it was good. And hey- a little Asian good luck to start of the new year is never a bad thing, right?

RECIPE: Ham Fried Rice

Ingredients:

1/4 c. diced onion

1 c. diced ham

2 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, divided

2 tsp. vegetable oil {or canola or whatever, but probably not EVOO}

1 c. frozen peas

1 c. shredded carrots

3 eggs {I'd probably do 4 next time}

4 c. cooked, cool white rice

soy sauce, to taste

sesame seed oil

ginger powder

salt/pepper

Directions:

If you have leftover rice, use that. Otherwise {I didn't} cook 2 c. rice according to package directions (it will double once cooked) and throw in the freezer for at least 30 min. or so, preferably with the lid off. You want it cold and slightly dried out... leftover-like, if you will.

Over medium-high heat, fry onion, ham and 1/2 tsp. garlic powder in 1 tsp. vegetable oil in a large skillet/frying pan. Fry/cook for about 2 minutes or so, or until the onion is soft and the whole thing's a little browned. Reduce to medium heat and add 1 tsp. oil, peas and carrots. Fry for another couple of minutes, until peas are thawed and all is warmed and cooked a bit. Add eggs and stir to scramble. Once eggs are cooked, add the rice. Mix well to combine, then add the remaining seasonings to taste.

{Note: I put in about 7 glug-glug-glug turns around the pan of soy sauce (sorry for the crumby terminology), about 1/8 tsp. sesame seed oil (be careful with this guy; a little goes a very long way), 2 tsp.-ish garlic powder and oh... 1 tsp. ginger powder, along with a decent amount of ground pepper and a bit of salt (you don't need much; the soy sauce is pretty salty). Just add a bit, taste it, add a bit, taste it... that sort of thing. Ultimately YOU will eat it, so make it taste good to you.}

Serve warm... alone or otherwise. And enjoy!

sweet and sour meatballs with sticky rice

This recipe actually belongs to my friend, Brittney. She made it for us all the time, and we devoured it without fail. It's really easy and really good! I altered it a little bit {ie. bought pre-made meatballs {sue me} and upped the amounts of onion and garlic}, but pretty much it's the same. Don't worry if you think the sauce will in no way coat the meatballs. It will; I promise. It goes a ton further than you'd think. This meal is really yum. Try it out, and let me know what you think.

RECIPE: Sweet and Sour Meatballs with Rice

Ingredients:

white rice

40ish frozen meatballs

2/3 c. ketchup

1/2 c. brown sugar

2/3 c. chopped onion

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

Directions:

Cook rice according to package directions or your preferred method {we use our rice cooker, throw in some rice, cover it with water, drain, cover it with water, drain, then cover it with water as deep as your first finger joint-- i.e. 1cm-1/2in... it makes it sticky and wonderful}. Also cook meatballs according to package directions.

While the rice and meatballs are cooking, combine all other ingredients in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil and keep it comin' for about a minute. You want the sugar to dissolve and the onions to soften- seeping out their yummo flavor. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes.

Once the meatballs are done, toss them with the sauce in a medium-sized bowl. The sauce should coat the meatballs. Serve this combination over rice. Enjoy!

broccoli cheese risotto

I'm not sure if this qualifies as a risotto, but it's what I'm going to call it- for lack of a better name. It would also make a good casserole... just sprinkle some cheese on top and pop the whole thing in the oven for a bit, until the cheese is browned and bubbly. It's a great meal (or side dish) to make when you don't have much time and want to use up your leftover cooked rice from a previous dish. It's also great if you have a scrawny kid that you need to fatten up. ;)

RECIPE: Broccoli Cheese Risotto

Ingredients:

2 c. broccoli

1/2 med. onion

3/4 c. water

1 Tbs. olive oil

2 c. rice, cooked

1 can cream of chicken/mushroom soup

1-2 c. chicken stock/broth

1/2-1/3 lb. sharp cheddar cheese

salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

Dice broccoli and onion, toss into a saucepan with water and a bit of oil, over high heat*. Bring to a boil and reduce heat slightly. Cover and boil until soft. Add more water (or chicken stock) if needed. *{You could also roast the veggies, but I was short on time.}

Once veggies are soft, add in cooked rice, cream of chicken/mushroom soup, chicken stock and cheese. Stir frequently, mixing and melting over medium heat. Add salt/pepper to taste {I like lots of pepper... freshly ground, of course}. Serve warm and enjoy!