I got some nice comments after the last time we spoke about how Bubbleland made a couple folks hungry. A nicer compliment could not be made! Well, unless that was said in an angry “Hey ya jerk store, stop making me hungry” type of way. You know what though, either way. I’ll take what I can get. No bad press and all that. Which isn’t true, Lindsay Lohan, but not the point.
A lot has been going on in the Johnson Kitchen! And because I like to look at the food. I like to eat the food. And then I want to hold onto the memories forever. I will now jump right in...
Have you ever had a mushroom bourbon cream sauce pork chop? I, personally, was a first-timer. Now, I try to cook pretty clean and healthy during the week. Lots of veggie roasting is still going on. Olive oil and garlic everywhere. But on Sunday, SUNDAY, the rules are off. (Well. Unless Friday or Saturday involved anything fried. FYI, wings are not included in the fried categories due to special exception by a technicality of my own definition which I don’t have to explain to anyone.)
I love pork chops. Big FAT pork chops on the bone. Now, I know the meat on the bone isn’t everyone’s thing. But the meat’s more moist that way and I’m my mama’s girl and I’ll just leave it at that.
The mushrooms were cooked down so lovely. With the cream sauce, it all just melted in the mouth. And if you’re like me and lose perception of time, the electronic oven temperature measuring thingy is wonderful. Cooked to perfection of science...
Wonderful. And I won’t go on much more because it seems rude if you’re not eating this as you read.
Moving on, have no fear, I won’t expound on everything as much as this pork chop. Well, until we get to the tart and my synopis of Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix* which I just recently completed.
*Ummm, can we talk HP for a sec? Harry Potter is the most magical series in the world and I’m late on the band wagon. I’m so disappointed that I’m not going to be able to finish the last 2 books in the next 5 minutes before I go see the final movie. I can’t wait for DVD because I’ve seen all the movies in the theater so obviously, I have to see this one as well. You know, being a Husband-Declared-Cat-Lady as well as an HP fan, I’ve entered a weird in-between-place where I can have absorbing conversations with both tweens and the elderly.
Next, I tried this Cooking Light recipe next for Black Pepper & Molasses Pulled Chicken. For a quick meal, it actually had a pretty decent BBQ taste. Also, I had some molasses I’d been looking to use so double-bonus in the waste not/want not category.
And now for a deceptively massive fail...
The picture looks pretty, right? I’m always a fan of melty things.
Blech, blech, blech. Creamy pork chop it was NOT. I’m not sure if it’s completely my fault but I didn’t follow the recipe so I can’t really cast stones at it. It was supposed to use elbow pasta and The Stank Kroger next to my house didn’t have it with wheat. So I got a thicker pasta that they did have with wheat. In retrospect, I should have taken the enriched flour bullet because the pasta was thick and the sauce was weird. (So I don’t take allll the blame. I came appropriately correct with that sauce.)
Nicest tomatoes I've had all summer at least
I should say, I love that Kroger is, like, two streets down from my house for convenience. But it has issues with both produce quality and lack of cheese selection. Oh, and not to forget the wheat deficient pasta section. Sigh. I’m coming to accept its faults and appreciate the neighborhood Kroger for what positives it does have. Look at me, I’m growing as a person!
*Since originally writing this, I have switched to Schnuck’s. MUCH better. Little pricier and the aisles are suffocatingly small. But they have fantastical cheeses, produce, and Cajun crab dip. Tons of freshness! So much for accepting Kroger's faults. Whatevs. They don’t carry mascarpone. And that’s ridiculous.
I’m including this next one in case you’re in need a good turkey taco meat recipe. I was and I really liked this one.
Now for a guest appearance by a special Bubbleland friend, T, that’s been featured here before. In her honor, we will give her a key to the city and rename Bubble Boulevard with her name.
A little background, my friend T’s mom lives in Japan and visits once a year. When her visit drew to its inevitable close, T (being a girl after my own heart) invited people over for a goodbye cookout and made a feast in her mom’s honor.
Now T knows I’m not the most confident fish monger around. In fact, I’m not so much monger as meager. I’ve made tilapia and catfish with relative success. But I just haven’t cooked a lot of fish in general because it raises too many questions.
Do you have to descale it? Is descale a word? What’s up with people leaving the heads on sometimes? Am I going to have to pick out bones? Little fish bones seem like they’d take forever? Is the fish head as good as Anthony Bourdain says? Why should l trust Anthony Bourdain’s fish head opinion? And what’s up with swordfish? Is that the fish with the crazy blue vein they talk about on Top Chef? Why wasn’t I scared of that chef on the Little Mermaid that wanted to chop all the little fishies and make Les Poissons?
Knowing my inner angst, T gave me a little verbal tutorial on salmon. Look at those great big salmons, aren’t they pretty!? It was some sort of soy sauce marinade. Self-esteem boosted, I may have to buy some pretty salmon fillets to try myself soon. They’re gorgeous at the store and the color is fantastic. (There’s a reason they make capris that shade.)
It really was a feast. Here’s a shot where you can sort see the spread. Cous-cous salad. Salmon behind it. Homemade mac & cheese behind that. You can just sorta see some hot dogs and there are tons of appetizers out of camera range.
We were also treated to some spicy drummies. I love that somewhat black grill sear you get.
Everything was absolutely delish and many compliments to the chef. I was able to enjoy the next day as well because T hooked us up with some take-home drummies, mac, cous-cous, and watermelon.
Have you had cous-cous salad? This is somewhat new to me having had it for the first time at the Fourth of July party we went to. My fellow book clubber made it and I instantly loved it. And then I ate myself silly on it for 2 days after T’s cookout.
Now what did I make for the cookout, you may be wondering? For stuff like that I usually make my dad’s 7-layer dip or maybe something sausage-y. But I knew this crowd would be a bit more foodie and I could try something outside my usual cookout comfort classifications. (Alliteration!) Something... That takes advantage of my VIKING COOKING CLASS PIE CRUST!!!! Which is a terrific flaky, buttery crust that is completely deserved of the all caps I just gave it.
I settled upon a cauliflower & caramelized onion tart.
The reasons I picked it are obvious. The recipe contained mascarpone, gruyere, and parmesan cheese. (Which The Stank Kroger had of the three... Parm.) I slowwwwwwly caramelized the onions for about an hour. Rolled out some of the pie dough. And it. Was. FANTASTIC. And rich. And beautiful. (For the msot part. I need to allow more dough for the crust.)
Cauliflower & caramelized onions... Whodda thunk?
Next up was spicy honey brushed chicken thighs with corn fritters and asparagus with a hollandaise. So I finally got a picture of the chicken recipe that I LOVE and made for my parents visit. I think the color turned out really lovely. They should make some capri pants THAT color.
Did you know that corn fritters are very violent? It makes sense because you know popcorn and stuff. But at the time, they caught me by surprise. They were popping all over my arms.
One note, if you try this recipe and buy the cilantro in the tubes, hold back a little on it. They were a tad sweet for my taste so the spicy dipping sauce really made it for me. The Hubs ate 3 though so if you’re into sweets, this might be your jam.
And a special thanks to Miss H (of our friends, Hanndy) for helping me - or should I say, letting me help her? - with my first hollandaise. I thought it turned out pretty well as a sauce. But alas, I belatedly realized that I prefer my asparagus hollandaise-less. Oh, well.
Next up was steak night. I did a Steak Diane and dedicated the night to Shelley Long. It was good but there was a little too much Worcestershire in the butter compound. But they were cooked perfectly which is a victory within itself.
As you can see, I went a little crazy with the mushrooms here and just put them on everything. And why not, I say!
T & I were having brunch a Sunday or so ago. After which she brought the dogs over to play. Obviously, while the dogs played, we needed to play too. So we decided to go homemade pizza - round 2.
Now last time, the circular pizza shape got a little wonky because I had trouble getting the dough to the stone. I read something online about shaping it on the parchment paper and then just moving it to the stone. It’s still a delicate maneuver but, with time, I think I’ll get it. I noticed improvement from last time anyways.
Pepperoni with fresh parm sprinkled on top. Almost a circle. Sorta a heart.
Mushroom, Red Onion, Green Olive, and Garlic
Tomato, Zucchini, Garlic, & Basil
Last but not least. Slightly oblong. But I think this one gave me the best feel for what I need to do next time to get a good circle. But I’ll keep that theory to myself until I’ve tried it out.
All in all, a fun playtime. (For both us and the dogs.) Although the kitchen was much, much worse for the wear.
Last, but not least, was another Steak Night. This was actually not as close to the last Steak Night as it may appear. I don’t post pics of repeat recipes so think me not a decadent red meat eater who’s all “let them eat steak”. Nay, I say. Nayyyyy.
This time I decided to go with a friend’s tried & true marinade. And, thinking it would be fabulous, I marinaded the steaks for 3 days in bourbon. By the time I grilled them, they’d soaked up wayyyyy to much booze. They smelled like Otis the town drunk. (Dad, that one’s for you!) I should have just stove top grilled them. They didn’t get the crispy skin I was looking for so I threw them for just a sec on the cast iron and that overcooked them. They were edible but I was incredibly disappointed. Definitely a learning curve on that one!
And yes, I know you’re mocking my foolish mistakes in your mind right now. And yes, I know I deserve it.
On the plus side, I did a cauliflower puree instead of mashed potatoes that was surprisingly comfort foodie tasting. Some thinly sliced grilled zucchini and onions and some grilled figs from the fig tree in the backyard. Grilled figs tasted like sweet potatoes. Is that just me?
OK. I believe we’re caught up for the most part here on a Wednesday! Like I mentioned, I’ll be back soon now that I’m caught up and blogging doesn’t seem like an insurmountable task. Chicago AND fancy birthday dinner for next time! Oh, AND my first time cooking the salmon!
Phew. I’m tired from reliving all that eatin’. I feel like this...
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