Crab Cakes a la Chef John Ash

I vowed after taking the cooking class with Chef John Ash last month that I would take a chance on making crab cakes at home.  Yesterday evening was the fateful day of reckoning!

Crab Cakes

Chef John Ash

Ingredients

1 egg, beaten
5 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp minced parsley
1 tbsp minced green onion
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, white preferred
salt, white pepper, and hot sauce to taste
1 lb fresh cooked Dungeness crab meat, picked over for shells
1/2 cup coarse dry bread crumbs, panko preferred
clarified butter or olive oil

Steps

1.  Combine egg, mayonnaise, parsley, green onion, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and hot sauce in a large bowl.  Stir to combine.
2.  Stir in crab and then half of the bread crumbs.  Do not over mix.  The cakes should just hold together and be delicate in texture.  Mix in additional bread crumbs if too moist.
3.  Form into 8 mini cakes.
4.  Lightly dust both sides with additional bread crumbs.
5.  Saute in clarified butter or oil until lightly browned on both sides - about 3 minutes per side.
6.  Serve with a little dollop of aioli on top.

Smoked Paprika Aioli

Chef John Ash

Ingredients

4 blanched garlic cloves
1 tbsp olive oil
2/3 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp smoked paprika or to taste
Salt, pepper, and drops of lemon juice to taste

Steps

1.  Add all ingredients to a mini food processor and pulse until smooth.
2.  Store refrigerated for at least 1 hour to allow flavors to blend before using.  Makes 3/4 of a cup.

The Final Product

Making crab cakes has always seemed like a daunting task.  The meat is so delicate that I always worry about over working it.   After taking this class with Chef John Ash, I felt more confident and the cakes turned out wonderfully.  I will add that I did not have all of the ingredients listed above.  I traded out the green onions for some Penzey's Minced Onions, used light mayonnaise, and regular Worcestershire sauce.  I kept my mixing of ingredients to a minimum and almost all of my 7 crab cakes (okay I made them bigger) stayed together.  I can't wait to make them again!

Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup

June Gloom has hit our area.  It has been relatively gloomy for most of the morning to mid-afternoon.  It makes me yearn for hearty soups, even though it is not exactly what one would call "cold" outside. This soup really hit the spot.

Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup

from Family Fresh Meals

Ingredients

24 oz jar spaghetti sauce
2 cups water
1/4 cup diced onion
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup diced carrots
1lb ground beef, browned
4 cups of loosely packed fresh spinach leaves
4 cups beef broth
8 oz cream cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes
8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms
16 oz refrigerated  cheese tortellini (you can also use frozen, just add 30 more minutes to cooking time)

Steps

1. Combine spaghetti sauce, water,  meat, onions, garlic, carrots,  spinach, cream cheese, beef  broth, and mushrooms in a slow-cooker. Cook on LOW for 7 hours, on HIGH  for 5  hours.   

2. Before adding in the tortellini, take a whisk to your soup to break up any chunks of cream cheese. Stir in tortellini.  Cover and cook for 20-30 minutes or until tender and hot.

The Final Product

Wow!  This was totally yummy.  I ate three bowls.  Fantastic - and I don't really like vegetables.  For your reference, I used a 24 oz jar of Bertolli Tomato and Basil sauce.  I used a whole package of baby spinach because I didn't feel like measuring.  My cream cheese was still quite chunky after 7 hours so I had to do a bit of mixing to get the consistency a bit creamier.  I have two ideas for the next time that I throw this in the slow cooker:

1. Cut the spinach in half and add a drained can of kidney beans.
2. Use 8 oz of soft cream cheese and not a block - the soft cream cheese from a container tends to meld better in the slow cooker.

Now go make this soup on those down and dreary days - it will certainly brighten your day.

Slow Cooker Beer Cheese Soup

I am amazed to have landed on two great slow cooker recipes in a row.  I adapted this one slightly from FamilyFreshMeals.com.  I did come up with some ideas for next time as well.

Slow Cooker Beer Cheese Soup

adapted slightly from FamilyFreshMeals.com

Ingredients

28 oz chicken broth
12 oz beer
1 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup cornstarch

Steps

1.  Mix first 9 ingredients together in your crockpot.  Cover and cook on LOW for 6 - 8 hours.
2.  When done cooking, stir in cheese and heavy cream until the cheese is melted.
3.  Whisk in cornstarch.  Cover and cook for 30 minutes on HIGH.
4.  Smooth soup by blending in batches in blender or use an immersion blender.

The Final Product

It must be good when this kid likes it so much that it drips all over his shirt.

This soup tasted fantastic.  I used a bottle of Kona Brewing Co's Big Wave Golden Ale.  It was so cheese-y and beer-y (can I just make that a word?) that I wish that I had some hard pretzels to dip in the soup.  Everyone loved it, so clearly there were no leftovers, which incidentally left me with the only option of getting pizza for dinner tonight.  There was only one note for the next time we make it - and yes, there will be lots of next times.  The soup did thicken up but not as much as I had anticipated.  So next time, I might only use 1 can or 1.5 cans of chicken broth to get a thicker soup.  I also learned that I need an immersion blender - using the blender was fine but it allowed the soup to cool a bit much for my taste.  Enjoy!

Happy Anniversary!

In just a few short days the hubby and I will be celebrating our six year wedding anniversary.  We decided to indulge a a week early by going out to dinner and attending some fun events at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

We started off by enjoying dinner at the Chart House restaurant.  It was delicious!  I ordered the crab cakes, which were superb.  Not to mention the Molten Lava cake.  Really no anniversary meal is complete without a chocolate lava cake.  Fantastic!

We spent the remainder of our evening at the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Cooking for Solutions - Party with Alton Brown.  With a little prodding, I convinced the hubby to come take a picture with me and Alton.

 

More like I said - I'll wait in the line and you get some drinks!  So very cool!  We spent the rest of the evening tasting different organic sustainable foods and drinks.  An even bigger plus was that there were only about 700 people there, so we could wander around the aquarium looking at the fish and not worrying about the 40 other people trying to look at the same tank as you.  Sadly, the new tentacles exhibit was closed off - I guess once they get those cephalopods on a schedule you don't want to mess them up.

The next day we wrangled the kiddos up for yet another trip to the aquarium.  This time for some cooking/drink classes.  I had an absolutely fabulous class with James Beard award winning chef John Ash.  There were just under 30 people in the class.  He showed us how to make a grilled pizza.  He told us that it is probably the best way at home to imitate those huge wood burning ovens because the surface of the grill does in fact reach the 700 degrees that is obtained in those ovens.  And yes, we did cook the dough right on the surface of the grill.  Yummy grill marks.  I am set to put this on my meal plan calendar for next month (then I'll share the recipe!).  

Chef Ash then mentioned that we had extra time - so why don't we make some crab cakes?!?!  I thought - major score.  I just had the great crab cake last night at dinner, now I'll know how to make them myself.  Holy macaroni, I was so surprised at how simple the process was and how few ingredients created a super tasty cake.  I actually think the crab cake I made was even tastier then the one I had the evening prior.  Yet another recipe I plan on trying next month.

Creepily, there was a photographer there for the aquarium - so I am a little weirded out there may be photos of me cooking/enjoying wine at the this class.  I might try to do some searches to see if I find them.  I can't imagine they look great.

We passed off the kiddos and the hubby attended a class on pairing beer (Sierra Nevada) with food.  He said it was pretty good.  They let you sample food and beer.

I didn't take many pictures of my experience but I did walk away with these:

 

Given this army lifestyle, I am now a believer in if you can take advantage of an experience - do it.  You may not get another chance too.

Slow Cooker Beef and Broccoli

It has been a while since my last update.  I have been trying out a few new recipes and unfortunately, they have been a little lackluster -- until last night.  I have been scouring the web for ethnic slow cooker recipes - specifically, Chinese food.  If you have not been paying attention, I have been really disappointed about the lack of good Chinese takeout.  So I somewhat reluctantly threw together this recipe after having looked at several online.  It is a combination of a couple of recipes - so I have no idea to whom I should give credit.  But thanks to everyone for all the ideas - because this one pretty much nailed it on the head.

Slow Cooker Beef and Broccoli

Ingredients

1 lb stew beef
1 cup beef broth
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 pkg frozen steamer broccoli florets
rice

Steps

1.  I had big chunks of stew beef.  I took a minute to cut them into smaller strips.
2.  Mix together the broth, oyster sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, and garlic.
3.  Place beef pieces in slow cooker and cover with mixture.
4.  Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours.
5.  When done, create a slurry by mixing the cornstarch and some of the slow cooker liquid together.
6.  Stir the slurry back into the slow cooker and add the package of broccoli florets.  Cook on low for another 30 minutes.
7.  Serve over rice.

The Final Product
I wish I had taken a picture.  The flavors melded wonderfully.  It reminded me so much of good east coast Chinese takeout.  The only thing that I was disappointed with was that my sauce did not thicken up as much as I would have liked after having added the cornstarch.  I suspect it is because the slow cooker didn't bring the sauce up to a boil in the last half hour.  I think I will wait until the very end to make the slurry.  I will remove the beef and broccoli to another dish and pour the remaining sauce into a saucepan.  Add the slurry and bring the sauce up to a boil to get it to thicken.  Then pour the sauce back over the beef and broccoli once it is the right consistency.  Give this one a try!

Keep Running!

This week marks the start of training for the Disneyland Half Marathon.  I am very very excited about this.  What better way to start things off then by having this happen:

A good friend, who ran the Big Sur Marathon, which happened today, let me tag along to hear Jeff Galloway speak at marathon expo.  Jeff Galloway ran on the US Olympic team in 1972 - in the 10K event.  He is infectious to listen to.  He is almost 70 - just completed the Boston Marathon last Monday, flew cross country, and ran the Big Sur Marathon today.  Talk about energy.

He went on to explain his method of running these long races called the Run-Walk-Run method.  Since I started running in high school, I have only really ever known running all out.  What is this "walking breaks" nonsense?  But after listening to him speak, I am pretty convinced that this will help keep me running (bum knee and all) for a long time.  I also got a chance to ask him about running with two boys in a stroller.  He said wow! His wife was the one who got that lucky job.  He said to keep at it and if possible try to do the long runs with them if they stay happy in the stroller.  "It will make your half marathon seem really easy if you run it without them". ::wink::

So I have picked out my training schedule - "just finish" and not for time.  I think I can do pretty well time wise even if I don't try to go for speed.  I know it won't be anywhere near as fast a high school (not that I was exactly fast) but I would be happy with a 10 minute pace.  On the "off" days I hope to get in some sort of abs/arms routine, pilates, or a light walk with the dogs.  This way maybe I can improve my fitness level.

Hey, maybe this training will knock the last of the baby weight?!?!

Easter Eggs

I have read the past year or so about how easy it is to make hard boiled eggs in the oven.  I have kept off actually trying it because I did not believe that you could get the same results in the oven as on the stove top.  I don't know why I waited so long to try it - this made my easter egg making a lot easier.

Hard Boiled Eggs

Ingredients

eggs - however many you need to make
muffin pan

Steps

1.  Preheat oven to 325.
2.  In the mean time, place your eggs in the muffin pan.  This will help the eggs from rolling all over the place.
3.  Cook eggs for 30 minutes.
4.  Just a few minutes before you remove the pan from the oven.  Make an ice water bath.
5.  Remove eggs from oven.  Using tongs, place eggs in ice water bath for 10 minutes to stop the cooking process.

I used my first batch for our Easter eggs.  I thought it was so much easier than watching my pots for when they began boiling.

Crispy Cheddar-Ranch Chicken

I will be honest I was very hesitant to try this recipe.  It just seemed way to simple to come out well.  I was pleasantly surprised.  It is a quick and a great alternative to just have chicken for dinner.  I have reposted it below.  Unfortunately, I did not get any pictures so that you could see just how nice and crispy the chicken got.  My apologies!

Crispy Cheddar-Ranch Chicken

from Hyvee

Ingredients

4 (3 oz each) boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used a package of chicken tenderloins)
1/2 c. Hy-Vee light ranch dressing (I didn't have light - so we went with regular)
4 c. Hy-Vee cheddar harvest chips, crushed (I just used Sun Chips harvest cheddar)

Steps

1.  Place chicken and ranch dressing in a resealable plastic bag; shake to coat. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.
2.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
3.  Remove chicken breasts from marinade and discard marinade. Coat chicken with crushed chips. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake 20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Employed!

I have been doing a bit of a happy jig for the past week or so.  All of my job searching has paid off!  I have a job that I am very happy for.  It fulfills my goals of being able to stay at home with my boys when necessary and it gives me some personal purpose.

I am very excited to get started.  I will be working through orientation/training materials for a while so I may not post as frequently (but I do have a few new recipes slated for the end of the month and next month).

Excitement abounds!

Job Search

I hit the breaking point.  I love my boys.  I love how Thomas is beginning his exploration of the world and how JT is becoming his own little man - having likes and dislikes (I do not however enjoy the fact that it comes with "end of the world" meltdowns - but that could be a post of another day).  

I have reached a point where mommy wants - needs - space and activities that engage and entertain my brain.  So I decided I would like to get back into the work force.  Below are a few of things that I did to help my searching:

1.  I signed up at the base Civilian Personnel Advisory Center for a military spouse preference.  It essentially bumps your name to the top of the hiring list if (and it is a big if) you can be termed "Best Qualified" for a government position.

2.  Dusted off the old resume and gave it a bit of a facelift.  I included all of my volunteering time while at Fort Riley to compensate for time gaps.

3.  I joined LinkedIn.  *I'll be honest - I don't really like having a bunch of social media outlets to have to deal with - but this one is worth it if you are job searching.*  I added my now rejuvenated resume to the site and it provides me with job openings that match some of the positions I have previously held.

4.  I joined flexjobs.com for one month.  Why one month you ask?  Because I had managed to get membership discounted to $5.  Why flexjobs.com?  Because I still have a desire to "be at home" with my boys.  I want to have the flexibility and freedom to deal with the little things or - in JT's case - catastrophes as they arise.  I do not want to have all of my earnings go straight to a daycare service.  So flexjobs.com provides a lot of positions that give you the freedom to work remotely.

I hope some of these tips can help you out if you are looking to re-enter the workforce.