{Frugal Friday} Second Go Around - Stir Fry

Fridays are going to have to be a quick and easy post.....because

because...the hubs is home on Fridays, and even if we don't have an agenda for the day....I need to be his....call...

I mean beck and call girl.....that's how we roll!

And as I type this I am still feeling a little guilty that he was on his hands and knees...belly really....

scrapping the floor with a knife at the kunk that collects at the baseboards...because that is where the kids push it when they mope....and well...it is on my to do list.....but I hadn't gotten quite there and.... a quiet lunch today with my friend without having to corral little twinners or canoodle the baby....sounded wonderful....so I ran...and I mean ran out the door and came home to the hubs offering up some love.  I'll take it, I'll do the floor next time the overnight visitors come..

or in another year or two.....or after the hubs decides to do it again.

But I will get over the guilt real quick...like right now and share with you a quick recipe for a second go around dinner.

Doesn't that sound better then left overs?

Remember this yummy recipe? This to die for Marinated and Bacon Wrapped Venison (or other meat) steak. Yes, so do I, my mouth waters all over again thinking about it. Well I still had several left over steaks from Sunday dinner...because I hid them from the man child. But there were only a couple so I needed to make the dinner stretch for all ten of us...

What would you make? YES...that is what I did....I made Stir Fry!! Is there anything better? Other then Marinated and Bacon Wrapped Steak courtesy of Jill over at The Prairie Homestead?

So we (I) sliced up carrots, broccoli, onions, a little celery and red peppers and threw them in the cast iron skillet with hot sesame oil, in the order that I typed as carrots take the most time to cook. After a good couple of minutes, add in 1/3 cup hot water and let the veggies steam until the water is boiled out. 

During this time you can slice the meat nice and thin, once the water is out, toss in the meat and give it a good shake. And then add in the following...

• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (from the mother)
• 1/8 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

These need be in no special order, but I always put the liquid in last, stir around and then thicken.

I served with rice and had to stop myself from eating more then my share. I make stir fry whenever I need to stretch the meat...and it is healthier....and most the family will eat it..unless their is seafood somewhere hidden in it. Silly children.

Second go arounds are always the best in my book but I also made these the other night that were oh. so. finger. lickin. good.

But that is another conversation as I am still getting over my guilt of eating the little devils because of all the msg laden broth pumped into them...and a slight headache to go with it. But they were good, hopefully you can get your hands on pastured chicken drummettes. But we'll talk later.

Happy Friday!

Afghan Chicken.......you won't be sorry!

Hello....Hello....

Anyone out there.....

No...I didn't think so.....my little unplanned hiatus...was longer then I planned....

And even now...half of me would rather be napping....something I have been doing a lot...

Something my body has required...or it refuses to function....

Incubating is more work then anyone knows...unless you have sat on the nest!!!

But here I sit, and must, must, MUST share a few of these recipes with you!

Our li'l family has decided...or rather, I have....that to eat healthier we need to explore other cultures and other ways of cooking......

Thank goodness!!!!  Boy have we found some simple and delicious ones!!!

AND..I have realized that often we over process, over cook and even over think our food....

but if it is good.....I will eat it!  HA!

The below recipes are from Afghanistan cuisine that I tweaked just  a little. When Mackdaddy was over in Helmand, he learned the simple goodness of their food and their hospitality....and my mouth waters just thinking of the first time he made it for our family.And it was so good I ate it today for lunch today! Along with yummy homemade pita bread (which my kiddos and hubs took for lunch today...stuffed with turkey and cheese) and yogurt dip!  Enjoy!!

YELLOW RICE with Carrots and Raisins

• 1 lb long grain rice, preferably basmati
• 4 fl oz olive oil
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 1/2 diced onion
• 4 oz black seedless raisins
• 2 tsp char marsala or cumin
• 1/4 tsp saffron (optional)
• 2 Cups Chicken Broth 
• 1 cup water
• salt and pepper

Directions

Dice carrots  and onions, or like I had to do...rehydrate some dried carrots from your food storage. Saute carrots and onions in  1 tsp sugar in about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Cook until they are lightly browned (not semi- burnt like mine...since I stepped over to the neighbors!). Add  raisins (I prefer golden..sweeter) to the oil and cook until they swell up. Pour in Chicken broth and water, add rice long with spices. 

Boil the rice mixture until the water comes down, just past the rice, turn to low, adjust the lid and continue to cook for about 30 minutes. (Follow the directions of the basmati rice!  Best rice ever!!)

Mourgh (Afghan Chicken)

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 lg Cloves garlic
• 1/2 ts Salt
• 1 1/2 c Plain, whole-milk yogurt 
• 1 c whole milk
• Juice and pulp of 1 large lemon, 3 to 4 tablespoons
• 1/2 ts Cracked black pepper
• 2 lg Whole chicken breasts, about 2 pounds

Directions

Long, slow marinating in garlicky yogurt tenderizes, moistens and adds deep flavor, so you end up with skinless grilled chicken that's as delicious as it is nutritionally correct. Serve with soft pita or Arab flatbread and fresh yogurt. Put the salt in a wide, shallow non-reactive bowl with the garlic and mash them together until you have paste. Add yogurt, lemon and pepper.Skin the chicken breasts, remove all visible fat and separate the halves. Bend each backward to break the bones so the pieces win lie flat.Add to the yogurt and turn so all surfaces are well-coated. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate. Allow to marinate at least overnight, up to a day and a half. Turn when you think of it.



To cook, remove breasts from marinade and wipe off all but a thin film. Broil or grill about 6 inches from the heat for 6 to 8 minutes a side, or until thoroughly cooked. Meat will brown somewhat but should not char. Serve at once.I ended up putting ti in the oven at 350 for an hour and then placing it under the broiler for a few minutes on each side since my grill was busy meting the pita bread!  The FAM loved it...even though they were skeptical!!!



If you would like more recipes, go here and if you would like more info on why basmati rice is better for you then brown rice, visit Sara's blog.


This post has been shared onThe Healthy Home Economist, which has fabulous posts on healthy eating!

Down home cookin meets the world!

It used to be, that on the farm...that you ate what you could grow, cultivate, herd, milk, wrangle, gather and scavenge off the land....

I know, it doesn't sound very fun...or does it.  It does to me...Eating that which came from your own land, but then again I have fallen off my stool a few times and bumped my head!  I like to get my hands dirty and play in the dirt, pick my own fruit...and long, long ago...I helped my cousins with the chickens when I visited her for the summer.  It was my kind of heaven....it still is....

but I digress.

But, I am also thankful for modern technology that has opened our eyes and taste buds to the flavors of the world....

I love me some good sushi, Chinese, Mexican, Iraqi......and now Thai food.  And they are all relatively easy to make....a few delectable foods and a few spices...and wah-laa...magic from the other side of the world!

So combine that with homegrown food and spices from around the globe and you, my friend, will feel like a world class traveler!

Thai Curry Carrot Soup, well, is right at the top of my list for being mmmm, mmmm, good! Not to mention the fact that I had an over abundance of carrots.  Tomato Miso is still my favorite of the minute! and most likely the decade.  Since we have stopped buying soup in a can....I have loved soup even more....and I have tried it out on my neighbors to make sure that I am passing along a winner!

And as a side note...I have to tell you that my hubs sometimes is frustrated by what he finds in the fridge that he says is not food.....serachi chili sauce, fish sauce, green curry paste, Sweet chili sauce, five spice, hoisen sauce...but they are staples when cooking from scratch and making healthy and edible food from around the world!

In the coming weeks, I hope to add several more made from, scratch, no additives, fill your tummy soups to my repertoire....(That's a french word!...see what eating global foods will do to your vocab!)

And did you hear that grown.....that was is Mr Macdaddy.......he is not a soup fan...unless it is cream of Broccoli or Chili...is chili even a soup?

He will be getting over it though....soup is good for you! As Julia Childs would say, Bon Apetit!

Thai Curry Carrot Soup
(adapted from Nourishing Traditions recipe)

2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
1 pound carrots, peeled and sliced
4 T butter
2 t Green Curry Paste (I use Thai Kitchen)
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock (homemade, most canned stock is loaded with msg!)
1/2 t grated lemon rind *
1/2 t grated ginger *
sea salt or fish sauce and pepper
all natural sour cream
Saute onions and carrots gently in butter for about 45 minutes or until tender (mine was on medium low with a lid for about an hour, and then I took the lid off and cooked off any liquid and let the onions caramelize a bit). Add curry until well mixed, and add stock, bring to a boil.  Add lemon rind and ginger. Simmer, covered for about 15 minutes. Puree soup with a hand held blender, or add half of the carrot mixture to your blender and puree slowly.   Season to taste and ladle into bowls, add a dollop of all natural cream!

*I used dried lemon rind and fresh ground ginger from Spice world that I keep in my fridge!) AND I just read the ingredients more diligently for the ground ginger...it has soybean oil in it.....WON'T be using that stuff anymore....fresh ginger it will be!

And since we are talkin' Thai...here's another recipe that really won me over to curry!

Thai Green Curry Chicken (From Thai Kitchen Green Curry Paste bottle)

In a large saucepan simmer one 14 oz. can of Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk (no additives!) with 1 t Green Curry Paste ( start with a small amount and add more if you want more heat!) over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add two skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut up in bite size pieces. Add 1 t 2 t of fish sauce, 2 t brown sugar, 1/4 c bamboo shoots, 1/2 c frozen peas and 1/3 c chicken stock. Simmer ten minutes stirring occasionally. garnish with fresh basil and serve hot! with rice.

And I have to admit, that we ate most of the chicken that night, but I saved the broth and ate it the next day for lunch....it was soooo tasty! And don't forget...healthy!!!


Lover yer guts!

and eat from the farm...and around the world!

I have included this post in:

Ultimate Recipe Swap - Life as a Mom
Monday Mania - The Healthy Home Economist
Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays  - At the Well