Sometimes the easiest things are the most difficult to make. I really like having Beef and Broccoli at Chinese restaurants, but I can never get the same flavor at home. Something was always missing. My most recent try though, was the closest I've ever gotten!

Broccoli CHECK. Beef CHECK. Recipe CHECK! This recipe was simple, I had all the ingredients and most importantly very tasty! I thought the amount of vinegar would be overpowering, but it actually ended up providing a nice contrast to the soy and oyster sauce flavors that were in the marinade and sauce. Another thing I enjoyed about this was the use of a different marinade and sauce. I don't know if it was something in the ingredients or the beef I happened to get - but wow - the beef was so tender and delicious. I found it difficult to stop and save some for lunch the next day. If you've been struggling to find a Beef and Broccoli recipe, give this one a try. Perhaps it'll be what you've been looking for.

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Worth every minute

Once my good friend changed my impression of Risotto completely (by making an AWESOME artichoke Risotto), I have been seeking out recipes to try at home. I was about to make my bento's for Monday when I thought about making some risotto to accompany my meal. I had chicken stock, so now the flavor. I wanted to try something different..what flavor Risotto could I make? I'm sure you figured it out from the picture above, but click through to find out...


In my searches for recipes, I came upon this Aparagus Risotto recipe from the New York Times via Mario Batali. WOW this was SO GOOD. As with any Risotto, it takes time spent over a hot stove, but who minds in the wintertime? This is WORTH IT. Creamy, lots of asparagus flavor as it uses both a puree and small pieces. If you're willing to spend some time over a stove, definetly give this recipe a try.

In terms of the pork chops. I was originally going to do a ginger pork recipe, but they didn't have thin sliced pork - so I had to switch to a cocoa chipotle pork chop recipe. The recipe needs a little bit of fixing, so I'll post it when I get a better handle of it.

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The past few months have been a blur. I got chicken pox, lost my job, found a new job, started the new job and whoa! here we are 5 months later.

Granted I shouldn't resort to excuses, but with the illness and job changes, my schedule that I had worked so hard to establish (in terms of exercise, eating, etc.) were all shot. This month, I'm on a huge kick to get myself back in gear. Without my 3-5 times a week workouts and healthy eating habits, I've seen a double-digit increase on my scale. NOT GOOD. Anyhow, the two things that I'm focusing on, are lunch and exercise. I've figured out a workout schedule and now lunch...what to do for lunch. Going back to my elementary school memories and the trendiness of the bento, I've decided to try my hand at bento lunches.

Here's my most recent bento. Carrot Rice with Broccoli Vinaigrette and Taro and carrots. The carrot rice was awesome and it will be a stand-by in my kitchen from now on. Barely changes the flavor of the rice, but provides a huge boost in healthiness with the addition of carrots.

The Carrot Rice was inspired by Just Bento's recipe. I prepared mine slightly different.
*I prepped the brown rice and added the normal amount of water.
*I grated (using a microplane) about 3 carrots.
*I poured the grated carrots on top of the rice.
*Added a pinch of salt.
*Added a small package of bonito broth.
*Cooked rice as usual.

Since I had some broccoli in my kitchen, I looked for some simple vegetable preparations. The Brussel Sprout Vinaigrette recipe from Everyday Food was perfect. Easy to swap out the brussel sprouts with broccoli and tasty.

The taro recipe was "eh" so I will post it when I perfect it a little more.

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Nothing says fall like pumpkin pie

I LOVE pumpkin pie. I don't understand the people who don't like it. All I can think of, is that they haven't had good pumpkin pie. Smooth, spicy and oh-so-tasty. It's good warm with a scoop of ice cream or cold the next day (I prefer cold). It's easy to make and I can't get enough of it. In college I used to be too lazy to make crust and didn't like the pre-made crust, so used to make crust-less pumpkin pie. Tasty...

Anyhow...

I ran into Jamba Juice today for a light dinner and saw something called the Pumpkin Smash. When I used to frequent coffee shops, I used to squeal with delight the minute the pumpkin latte's hit the menu. Would a smoothie be just as good? I asked the guy behind the register what he thought of it, and he was honest and said he wasn't the biggest fan of pumpkin to begin with, so didn't like it, but he did say it was smooth and thick. I really dislike watery smoothies, so I figured I'd give it a try.

WOW - I think I'm in love. It's like liquid pumpkin pie! I really enjoyed it - and am already worried about when they'll stop serving these. To my delight, it looks like Jamba has shared their recipe for the Pumpkin Smash. I will definitely be giving this recipe a try sometime soon.

Although some of Jamba's smoothies can be a calorie fat bomb - this one doesn't look too bad! A little big on the calories, but not too much fat.

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Fall, here we come!

Who would have thought that we'd be needing tights and jackets so soon after wearing shorts and tanktops - but fall is here! Not that I mind, it's one of my favorite times of the year.

Anyhow, click through to see how I celebrated the end of summer...

For some reason, I couldn't get to the greenmarket that often this summer - too much going on I suppose. About a month ago, my friends kept talking about the delectable things they were making with peaches. Peach pie, peach cobbler - I couldn't take it anymore. I ran to the greenmarket and got myself some white peaches. Pie was too involved, but cobbler, what's cobbler? Apparently it's like a crumble, but instead of the crumb topping, it's more of a cake on top. I found an an interesting sounding peach strawberry cobbler and though that it would be a great way to utilize the strawberries in the freezer. Oh - my - goodness. Was it good!

It might be too late to get fresh peaches and strawberries, but I bet this would be just as good with frozen fruit.

Find the recipe here.

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