Drunken Chicken

* Dinner is Served *

~ Drunk Chicken with Potatoes and Brown Rice ~ 

Yumminess

Welcoming 2016 ~

We are ready to welcome the Year 2016.

* Food is ready ✅

* Hot chocolate bar is replenished for the last time ✅

* 12 kinds of fruits are present ✅

* Rice bin is filled ✅

* Salt dish container is filled✅

* House is cleaned✅

* Coins in everyone's pocket✅

* Wearing polka dot clothes ✅

* All lights are on ✅

* Ready to play board games until the midnight strike ✅

Cookies Extravaganza 2015

One of my favorite Christmas family traditions is our yearly Christmas  Cookies Extravaganza, where the kids and I make batches and batches of delicious cookies.  This year, we added two goodies (triple chocolate covered strawberries and Christmas triple chocolate covered pretzels) to the bunch.  Why so much?  Well, there are lots of parties to go to; neighbors who became friends; and teachers who needed that extra yumminess to enjoy their holiday break.  And these homemade cookies and goodies are just the perfect gifts for special people that took care of my family and I this year.  We spent 3 days of baking, starting on December 15 every year,  then we packaged it beautifully, and ready to be delivered on the 18th, which is our twin boys' birthday. So today, we delivered to our family doctors, dentists, hairdresser and barber, our sweet mailman, my mani-pedi ladies, Soup Kitchen Co-Volunteers, Catholic Women’s Group ladies, town Firemen, post office workers, and of course, our Soldiers guarding the gates of Fort Stewart Military Base.  For some, these might just be a bunch of cookies and goodies, but NOT THESE…..these are long family traditions made by KitchenElla’s and her kids...these are homemade Christmas cookies and goodies ~ made with LOVE and GRATITUDE!

Freshly Baked

          

Yummy  M O N D A Y  morning 

Cookie

Fancy a  L O V E  cookie?

Have a great Valentines Day!

Thanksgiving Feast

Main Course

Turkey

Potato Au Gratin

Grilled Asparagus

Mixed Veges

Cranberry Sauce

Eggrolls (Lumpia)

Empanadas

Desserts

Flan Cake

Ginger Pumpkin Tart

Coconut Macaroons

Baked Lemony Salmon Steak

Baked Lemony Salmon Steak7 March 2011

Growing up in the Philippines for the first 18 years of my life, I’ve grown to love fish, even more so now that I am older. I also try to eat fish at least 2-3 times per week. It's not only easy to cook (normally minutes) and it’s very healthy too. And the best part, I love going to the Korean Seomun Fish and Seafood Market almost every weekend since I moved here in Dague. Not only do I enjoy seeing all the different types of fish and seafood, my mind also goes raising in coming up with some recipe ideas. Almost 90% of my fish recipes are grilled, baked, or blacken in an iron skillet. I just think that it is healthier than fried, and the cleanup is so much easier.

So last night, I made my Baked Lemony Salmon Steak. It only took 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook the salmon steak. And the best part, salmon steak was moist and perfect. You don’t want to keep the salmon steak in the oven too long because it will dry up and the flesh will get tougher. I don’t know about you, but I love it when the fish is cooked lightly and the flesh is soft and totally moist.

I first marinated the salmon steak for an hour using the spices listed below. I love fresh herbs and spices, but for this particular dish, I used dried spices and combined them to make a rub-like mixture and then poured a little of extra virgin olive oil and covered the dish with a plastic wrap to seal in all the good spices with the salmon steak. Then I preheated the oven, set the temperature to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, 15 minutes prior to taking the marinated salmon steak out. When I finally unsealed the cover, all I could smell was the good refreshing scent that was infused completely on the salmon steak. My mouth started watering. HaHaHa... Then I put the salmon steak on the center of a lined and uncovered baking dish (I always use aluminum foil to line my baking dish, and once your salmon steak is done, easy clean up).


Ingredients for Marinate:
1/4 tsp coarse salt (I used Kosher salt of course in all of my cooking)
2 tsp dried lemon powder or juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
2 tsp dried thyme leaves
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp ground rosemary
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (this is optional, I like a little heat)
1 tsp light brown sugar (it gives the salmon a little crust on the outside)
1/4 cup of good extra virgin olive oil


To make it even better, I chose to serve my Baked Lemony Salmon Steak with brown rice and blanched asparagus. (I like the crunchiness of the asparagus and the brown rice goes very well with the salmon steak.)


Of course, it was a very lovely dinner! ….Burp Burp….


I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did. I will definitely make this again.


Bon Appétit!

Rosemary Balsamic Chicken

I always appreciate a good balsamic reduction, which is basically a sauce of aged balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, and any leftover red wine. It does have a strong smell while cooking but in the end…it’s all worth it. Tonight, I made a lovely and easy Rosemary Balsamic Chicken & steamed potatoes. It was easy to make, especially with my portable indoor grill George Foreman. Oh yeah, never ever ever opt to just use dried herbs. There is nothing better than the smell of fresh rosemary (my favorite herb). I highly suggest buying the living herbs that you can just keep in water in your window sill. They last forever and make your kitchen smell good, not to mention fresh basil (my second favorite herb) keeps those little bugs away that always seem to eventually be flying around your bananas.

Ingredients:

4 boneless chicken breast halves
8 cloves of minced garlic
2 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
4 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbs chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Directions: In small bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken; beat with wire whisk until well blended. Place chicken in single layer in shallow glass baking dish. Spoon marinade evenly over chicken. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes to marinate. Meanwhile, heat grill. When ready to grill, remove chicken from marinade. Place chicken on the grill over medium heat. Cover grill and cook 10-12 minutes or until chicken is fork-tender and juices run clear.

Sauce:

1/2 cup of good aged balsamic vinegar
4 tbs of brown sugar
1/4 cup of leftover red wine

• Combine all sauce ingredients in a small saucepan. Let it simmer and reduce. Pour over grilled chicken before serving.

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Bread

Okay, I finally got my automatic bread machine maker out of the box this weekend (after moving 3 months ago). ** LOL** So I decided to start making homemade breads again instead of buying them. Think you don’t have time to bake homemade bread? Think again! With an automatic bread machine to make the dough unattended, all the hands-on time needed is 5-10 minutes to dump a few ingredients into the machine, and 5-10 minutes to shape the dough into traditional loaves. The smell of homemade bread is amazing while baking, and the taste of the finished product is even better.

This is my own classic recipe of Whole Wheat Oatmeal Bread. I have been making this bread for over 10 years now. It is nutritious and supplies much needed fiber, along with some vitamins and minerals. It is also low in fat and calories until, of course, it’s slathered with lots of real butter. For those who are trying to get family members to switch to whole wheat bread over white, this is definitely the recipe that will win them over. Many recipes for whole wheat bread produce heavy compact loaves. This recipe, however, produces light airy loaves with a crisp crust. In the event there are leftovers, the bread keeps well in an airtight bag for several days; it makes incredible toast and sandwiches.

I hope you enjoy as much as I have over the years!




Dough1 2/3 cups water
1/2 cup dry milk
2/3 cup rolled oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/3 cups white flour
1/3 cup honey
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon yeast

Topping1 egg
Oatmeal, for sprinkling
1. Place the dough ingredients in the order given in the pan of the automatic bread machine.
2. Turn the machine to the dough cycle.
3. After 10 minutes, check the dough to make sure it is forming a soft ball.
4. If it is too soft, add a little more whole wheat flour; if it is too stiff, add a little more water and start the cycle over.
5. When the cycle is finished, transfer the dough to a lightly floured pastry cloth.
6. Divide dough in half.
7. Roll each half into a square about 9 x 9".
8. Roll up tightly and pinch the seam together.
9. Pinch the seam on both sides and place in two standard bread pans that have been sprayed with non-stick spray.
10. Let rise in a warm place until almost doubled in bulk.
11. When the loaves are almost risen, preheat the oven to 375°.
12. Beat the egg until frothy; brush the tops of the loaves with the egg.
13. Sprinkle with a little oatmeal.
14. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until hollow sounding when tapped.
15. Remove from the oven to cooling racks.
Makes 2 regular size loaves

Stuffed Avocado Salad

Makes: 4 servings
Prep time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:
 2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
 1 medium tomato, chopped
 1/2 medium red onion, chopped
 2 T fresh parsley, chopped
 2 T olive oil
 1 T red wine vinegar
 1 t dried oregano
 2 large avocados, halved and pitted

DIRECTION:

Mix all ingredients except the avocados in a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into avocado halves. Refrigerate until ready to eat.

Veggie Juice

Ingredients:• 3 tomatoes
• 4-5 romaine lettuce leaves
• 1/3 English cucumber
• 1 stalk celery
• 1/3 of a small beet
• 2 medium carrots
• 1 clove garlic (optional)
• 1 pinch of sea salt

Directions: Juice the vegetables and pour into a large glass. Add a pinch of sea salt and stir well. Serves 1.