cooking class

Last night I taught part of a Help! What's for dinner? class for our relief society. I talked about what are some things to keep in the pantry as basics and I talked about and demoed some cooking tips. They seemed to really enjoy it and I got good comments. They said I was well prepared and even asked some questions that I was able to answer. They also loked that spiral book I got a long time ago when grocery shopping with mom that goes through all the kinds of produce, when they are in season, how to pick and store and use them. Here are the cooking tips I had to Give them.

When cooking mushrooms dont crowd the pan or they will steam each other

Pat meats dry to get a good sear in the pan

brown foods taste good, browning develops flavor

Tap the knife into the seed of the avocado and twist to remove. dice while still in skin

Clean pomegranates in a large bowl of water

thicken soups, gravies or sauces with a roux or cornstarch slurry

salt pasta water, and cook in as much water as possible

do not rinse pasta so the sauce will stick, pasta water can be added to sauces for flavor and to thin it slightly

dice vegetables to a uniform size so they will cook evenly

when zesting do not go down to the whitish pith, its bitter and you only wan the colored part with the oils

Breading things goes- flour - eggwash/buttermilk - breadcrumbs/panko/seasoned flour - fry

remove the skin off ginger with a metal spoon- greatly helps nausea

place arrugla and chopped leeks in a large bowl or sink of water, they are grown in sand and are full of it, this prevents sandy, gritty food

Buy produce in season it is cheaper and more nutritious

have 2 cutting boards 1 for produce and 1 for raw meats or cover the cutting board in wax paper when cutting meat to avoid cross contamination and food poisoning

except hothouse or english cucumbers peel before serving, they are coated in and edible wax to prevent water loss

Store tomatoes on the counter, the cold kills their flavor

walking directions

So Josh found these waling directions to get from San Fransisco Ca to Honolulu Hawaii. Look on the page and see how they suggest getting there. It's funny.

watercolor lionfish

this art i laid down masking tape over my drawing and cut out the areas colored on the fish. i put down a wash on top and removed the tape. its about 14 inches square

Rachel grabs her feet

Rachel has learned to grab her feet and she is so cute when she does.

dinner party

Friday night we had our home teacher and his wife over for dinner and games. I made a really awesome spread of spring rolls, pot stickers, fried rice and lettuce wraps. We got to play lord of the rings trivial pursuit and it was really fun.

Dream

I had a kind of funny dream last night. I dreamed that my parents house was a giant warehouse like Sams or costco. All the grand-kids came and were picking out dress-ups from all the racks and racks of cloths and there were tons of snacks and especially cereal. Then it turned out weird and I was taking the LSAT at the same time as Josh. At the end they had to take a blood sample. I had to use the restroom and when i came out I couldn't leave because the next test had started and they were going to have to cut my score in half because i was still there. Dreams are strange but a little true.

Vacuum cleaner instruction manual

This is the instruction manual that came with our vacuum that we got from coke rewards points. Be sure to read it carefully. Manual are very important to using the product correctly and safely.



What idiot in India was writing this and who forgot to proofread it????

CHicken Tetrazzine

I tried a new recipe I found on foodnetwork. It had been rated over 900 times and given 5 stars so i figured it would be pretty good. It was. Remember when cooking mushrooms to not crowd the pan so they get golden and do not steam. In this case you can cook them all at once just be sure to use a large skillet. Also remember that the pasta will keep cooking while it is warm and especially when it is bubbling in the oven so al dente or a little firmer is best. That was always my biggest complaint with boyscout spagetti dinners they overcook the pasta really bad every single time.

Chicken Tetrazzini

Ingredients

• 9 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound white mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 cups whole milk, room temperature
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 12 ounces linguine
• 3/4 cup frozen peas
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup dried Italian-style breadcrumbs

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Spread 1 tablespoon of butter over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish. Melt 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil in a deep large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the hot pan and cook until pale golden and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate to cool slightly. Coarsely shred the chicken into bite-size pieces and into a large bowl.

Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil to the same pan. Add the mushrooms and saute over medium-high heat until the liquid from the mushrooms evaporates and the mushrooms become pale golden, about 12 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and thyme, and saute until the onion is translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it evaporates, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mushroom mixture to the bowl with the chicken.

Melt 3 more tablespoons butter in the same pan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, cream, broth, nutmeg, remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Increase the heat to high. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook until it is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 9 minutes. Drain. Add the linguine, sauce, peas, and parsley to the chicken mixture. Toss until the sauce coats the pasta and the mixture is well blended.

Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish. Stir the cheese and breadcrumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the cheese mixture over the pasta. Dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Bake, uncovered, until golden brown on top and the sauce bubbles, about 25 minutes.

Toes

Rachel has now found her toes and is reaching and grabbing for them as much as she can.

red Panda and Herbs

This is the art that I did today. The panda is just a pencil drawing. I go the image from the internet not my own.

The herbs I have been painting bit by bit for a couple days as I had time while Rachel slept. They were too big to scan so I had to take a photo. The colors are much more vibrant in real life.

Rachel laughs

I can't believe that i got such a cute and easy baby. she laughs when i bounce her on the couch, when i change her cloths and if I put my hand on her tummy she grabs it with hands and feet and laughs when you rock her side to side.

fajitas

I tried to make fajitas. the meat was well cooked and sliced right so it was tender and juicy but the flavors were not there quite yet. The best was actually the one i just put steak seasoning on. The fajitas at chilies have a almost sauce like brown seasoning. Got to figure it out. The hand made tortillas were good however and i am much better at making them.

mini monsters

I found these really cute little monsters someone painted on the internet and decided to make a bunch of my own. I think they would be really cute matted and framed all together for a child's room.

Who's line

Last night we discovered a terrible tragedy one of Josh's most beloved shows Whose line is it anyway? was moved from the 10pm slot to 1 am and so is no longer feasible to watch.

It was our bedtime routine that we got ready for bed around 9-9:30 and Rachel swung to sleep in her swing from 10-11 falling asleep somewhere in there. Josh will go to bed early now and get maybe a bit more sleep but I am stuck up with Rachel.

I have a routine and I don't really want to put her to bed any earlier because with this routine she wakes up at around 6 am and eats and goes back to sleep for another hour or two making the official get up and go time between 7 and 8. Just perfect. If I am fine getting up at 6 I can even start my day with a shower. But now I have to stay up by myself and Josh and me don't get our evening laughs.

wild dog watercolor

Wild dogs or african painted dogs are one of my favorite things to paint. They have the big ears the long legs and their splotchy fur is the best. The Houston zoo got some in and any pictures i can get of them are quickly painted.

This one is in a nice little watercolor field sketchbook I have and it is one of my favorites.

Rachel rolls over

Rachel rolled over for the first time on Thursday.

Recipe: Spring Panzanella

1 rustic loaf of bread

1 hothouse cucumber

1 pkg grape tomatoes

parmesan cheese

olive oil

salt and pepper

Dressing:

1/4 c olive oil

1/4 c red wine vinegar

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Cut bread into large crouton sized chunks. Heat oil in skillet. Toss in the bread salt and peppering it. Toast tossing occasionally. Meanwhile cut tomatoes in half and seed and dice the cucumber. Mix together the dressing ingredients and whisk well to combine. Mix together the bread and the vegetables, drizzle with however much dressing you want and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Serve while still warm.

I watched a greek panzanella made on food network and decided to make one of my own. It worked really well and it looks really pretty too. Nice and different for potlucks and stuff.

Rachel on the walk

Rachel is about two months here i think she likes taking walks in the morning when it is cool and she usually falls asleep halfway through.

Can u see it?

Tomato frog hiding in the tomatoes.

watercolor zebra

This is based on a photo I took at the zoo.

Rachel's Blessing

She was blessed exactly 1 month after she was born

gardens

I went to some gardens with my mother in law one visit to Nebraska. Near the entrance these beautiful flowers were attracting butterflies.

oranges

Parrot

Just a cute parrot.

pears

I got on a pear stint for awhile. they were fun to paint.

sorry some of these are photos and not scans they were to big. this was done with the painting through spiderwebs technique. cute shrimp.

I am making this blog about family, food and art. I will be loading pictures i have done to put a few out there and the adding some as i do more