Asian Babyback Ribs.

Mmmm, mmmm, mmmm! If you like Asian sauce and ribs, you will love them!

ingredients:

2-3 lbs. baby back ribs

3/4 cup ketchup

3 T. soy sauce

1tsp. salt

4 T. sugar

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

honey for brushing

Directions:

1. In a roasting pan (big enough for a turkey), boil enough water to cover the ribs. Boil and then simmer for about an hour.

2. In a meantime, mix the rest of the ingredients except for the honey.

When the ribs are cooked and cooled, marinate them in ziploc bags for at least 2-3 hours.

3. Bake the ribs in the oven at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Brush them with good amount of honey once or twice as you bake them.

Bon Appetite!

Chicken Stew with Biscuits.

I love Ina Garten's recipes, so I tried this stew for dinner today. It was very tasty and everyone loved it though Rob's first reaction to it was "Wow, it's like 'Better Homes and Gardens' cooking." It's definitely a good American comfort food!

Ingredients:

3 whole chicken breasts, bones in, skin on (I used a whole rotisserie chicken)

3 tablespoons olive oil

5 cups chicken broth (low sodium)

2 chicken bouillon cubes

1 1/2 sticks butter (I only used 1 stick)

2 cups onions, finely chopped

3/4 cup four

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups medium diced carrots, blanched for 2 minutes

1 10 oz package frozen peas

1 1/2 cups frozen pearl onions

1/2 cup minced Italian parsley

For the biscuits:(confession: I used pre-made ones)

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, diced

3/4 cup half-and-half

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Direction:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

(If you choose to use a rotisserie chicken like I did, omit 1.)

1. place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cook enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones and discard the skin.

2. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.

3 In a medium pot, heat the chicken broth and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the broth.

4. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onion with a pinch of salt over medium-low heat for 1o to 15 minutes, until translucent. Add the four and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.

5. Add the hot chicken broth to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring, until thick. Add 2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and the heavy cream. Add the cubed chicken, carrots, peas, pearl onions, and parsley. Mix well.

6. Place the stew in a 10 x 13x 2 inch baking dish. Place the baking dish on a sheet pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

(If you choose to use a store-bought biscuits, omit 7)

7. Meanwhile, make the biscuits. Combine the four, baking powder, salt and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas. Add the half-and-half and combine on low speed. Mix in the parsley. Dump the dough out on a well-floured board and with a rolling pin, roll out to 3/8-inch thick. Cut out twelve circles with t 2 1/2-inch round cutter.

8. Remove the stew from the oen and arrange the biscuits on top of the filling. Brush them with egg wash, and return the dish to the oven. Bake for another 20- to 30 minutes, until the biscuits are brown and the stew is bubbly.

Swedish Pancakes. (Plätta)

Here is another absolute comfort food in the Olson household. Rob made sure I knew how to make them before we got married : ) It's rather time-consuming, but these pancakes are very special that I make them quite often for dinner as well as breakfast.

Ingredients (you can double the recipe):

2 eggs

2 cups milk

pinch of salt

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1 cup flour

2 Tbs. melted butter

Mix the wet ingredients except for butter. Add salt, sugar, nutmeg and almond extract. Gradually add flour and mix well until you have few lumps. Add melted butter. The texture should be similar to crepe batter.

Then, I use this special, well-seasoned and inherited Swedish pancake pan, preheated on medium-high. Butter the pan and pour the batter. When they are golden brown, flip them with knife.

When the both sides are golden brown, they are done.

According to the real Swedish way, we should eat with butter and jam, but we have Americanized them that we eat them with butter and syrup. I even eat them with fruit and whipped cream : ) Yum!

Summer Favorite.

The kids and I enjoy this summer treat every summer.  I got this ice shaver at Target a few years ago.  Target also has a variety of syrups including cherry, watermelon, blue raspberry and such.

                   

                    

Super Guacamole.

I just tasted this guacamole at James' baseball party this last weekend.  I might have missed a couple of ingredients for the guacamole, but it still turned out fabulous. 

                         

Ingredients:

2 avocados

1/4 cup canned corn

1/4 to 1/3 cup black olives, roughly chopped

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

2 green onions, chopped

1/4 cup Rotel tomatoes with green chilies, drained

dash of garlic powder

dash of Tapatio or however spicy you want it to be

salt 

Dinner Tonight!?

We had an In-N-Out for dinner!!  Definitely one of my favorites!

Fried Rice.

When I make a salad for dinner, I usually make another meal for James and Matty.  They can handle a little salad with dinner, but not as an entire meal for their dinner.  One of those salad nights, I make fried rice for them.  It has a great nutritional value.

                 

Ingredients:

Canola or Vegetable oil for cooking

Any kinds of your favorite vegetables such as:

onions

carrots

green bell pepper

 

4 slices of thinly sliced ham

2 eggs, beaten

3 cups of cooked rice (better if cooked rather hard)

salt and pepper

soy sauce

1. Finely chop the vegetables and ham the same size.  

2. Heat the pan until hot and add 1/2 Tbsp of oil.  Cook soft scrambled eggs.  Set them aside on a plate.

3. Using the same pan, on high heat, heat 1 tbsp oil and fry vegetables.  Season with salt and pepper. Stir fry them for about 3 minutes and add ham.  Keep frying them until they are cooked through, about a few minutes longer.

4. Add 1 tbsp oil to the pan and when it's sizzled, add the rice to it.  Using a metal spatula or wooden spatula, fry the rice and vegetables, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan constantly, for about 7 minutes.  If the rice sticks to the bottom, don't worry.  That happens.  Try to scrape as much as possible.

5. Add the scrambled eggs to the rice and vegetables.  

6. Season with salt and pepper generously.  The key is to keep tasting as you season.

7. Add 1 tsp. of soy sauce.  Stir the rice and done!