van.nurse@gmail.com – Page 75 – The Adventures of a Calamari Queen

mexican and japanese buffet!

Earlier today we went to a Japanese buffet and were kinda disappointed with the food! This is our third time to visit this place so I was really looking forward to it and didn’t expect it would turn out like this. I was not happy with their sushi selection and the dessert part was limited to fresh fruits (helloooooo where are the chocolate cakes and fondue here, Im sure Japanese people loves chocolates too!). I included some of the pictures of our mexican dinner a couple of weeks ago, I had carne asada my fave mexican dish..I’ve never ordered anything else whenever we go out to a mexican resto, Hubby has been encouraging me to try other stuff but I’m not yet ready to let go of my carne asada obsession! LOL..

Baked Manicotti with sausage and peas

This is a recipe of one of my fave celebrity chefs Giada de Laurentii. I was inspired to prepare this after watching her show and how easy the whole cooking process was. My husband liked it a lot and said he would love to have this again, but for me it’s OK. I find it similar to a Lasagna, however, instead of being layered its stuffed pasta..here’s the recipe if you want to make this at home and if you’re into pasta dishes. Giada’s Recipe

Cheese Quesadillas

I didn’t plan to make this when I realized that I have lots of leftovers from our taco night. I wanted to use the rest of the flour tortilla and shredded cheese. Perfect for a quick lunch for my home based hard working hubby!

mexican appetizer and thai iced tea drink = happy filipino tummy!LOL

Red velvet cupcakes, the easy way!

I Love Ina Garten! I’ve seen all of her shows/episodes on her Food Network show Barefoot Contessa! Aside from the fact that her recipes are easy and she’s so in love with Jeffrey! I think she has the best kitchen on any food network show!! How I adore her kitchen and her 8 burner stove, 2 dishwashers! LOL..Im feeling lucky that we have a little specialty store here in Issaquah where I can easily buy some of Ina Garten’s products, although I’ve checked it online and found that you can also buy her products on the Barefoot Contessa website (I’ve never done this yet).

I made a not so yummy corned beef dish the other day, so I wanted to compensate with a yummy dessert to make up for it. I especially love the frosting of this cupcake recipe, creamy and sweet! You can check the recipe on the food network of this Red velvet recipe if ever you’re up for making cupcakes from scratch!

seattle symphony

Few pictures my hubby took when we went to seattle and watched the Seattle symphony (Songs of Cleopatra)..

Chicken Satay

I love anything “cute” and on a skewer, just like this Tyler Florence chicken satay with peanut sauce… This is another simple dish that I’ve made a couple of times already because it’s quick, simple and delicous! If you want the recipe, you can check Food Network and search “chicken satay” under Tyler florence.

: marinating chicken

crepes

This crepe recipe is the easiest we’ve ever tried. It’s Alton Brown’s that we got from his show on the Food Network. I just add nutella and banana and that’s my perfect crepe combination. Here’s the recipe if you want to make it at home:

Crepe Recipe

Coho Cafe

I just love this place, simply because they have the BEST and I mean THE best slider I’ve ever had. Their Kalbi beef short rib sliders are a must! I swear I can eat these sliders everyday. So last Sunday after church, we had brunch at Coho and hubby really enjoyed his omelet and he had bloody mary too! I had the sliders and a chicken curry dish:)

rockfish with tartar sauce!

This is the simplest recipe of any fish I’ve prepared so far! I like watching Secrets of a Restaurant Chef with Anne Burrel. She is so much fun and energetic, she really shares her restaurant knowledge with the viewers. Now, back to the fish, Anne prepared Sole Meuniere this week and it’s really simple and inspired me to prepare this rockfish in a similar way. We paired our rockfish with home made tartar sauce. My husband prepared the sauce and he used Ina Garten’s recipe.

I seasoned the fish with salt and pepper,italian herbs.

Tartar sauce recipe: Ina’s Recipe

Coffee Creme Brulee!

This is just another version of the first creme brulee I made 2 weeks ago. Instead of Vanilla Bean, it’s coffee this time! I really prefer the coffee flavor over the vanilla, since it’s more intense and there’s a “kick” on every bite of it’s creamy goodness!

Ingredients:

8 egg yolks
1/2 cup superfine sugar
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
6 teaspoon instant coffee granules or powder
tablespoon raw sugar to finish

Direction:

1. Use a fork to mix together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Pour the cream into a saucepan and bring almost to a boil.Gradually stir into the egg yolk mixture.

2. Strain the custard back into the saucepan and stir in the coffee and keep stirring until the coffee has dissolved completely.

3. Arrange 6 ovenproof ramekins in a roasting pan. Pour the custard into the dishes,then pour water into the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the dishes. Bake in a preheated oven at 350F for 20-30 minutes until the custard is set with a slight softness at the center.

4. Leave the dishes to cool in the water, then chill in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours. About 25 minutes before serving, sprinkle the tops of the desserts with the sugar and caramelized with a blowtorch. Leave at room temperature until ready to serve.

after 30 minutes!!love the color!looks so good:)