Come and get me, boys

It's time for dinner.

Kinda Sorta Beef and Broccoli

Want the recipe?

First up, the rice. My stupid rice cooker quit my ass two nights ago for reasons unknown. Perhaps it took up with the wok I lost in the move. I suppose it's a blessing in disguise since being without it brought to mind a simple rice "recipe" I used frequently before that little appliance came into my life.

Simple Rice

Melt one tablespoon of butter in a heavy saucepan. Mince up nice and fine one glove of garlic and add to the butter. Drop in 2 cups of calrose* rice. Stir over high heat until the rice is nice and shiny and looks a bit like well sweated onions. Pour in three and a half cups of water and bring to a boil, stirring so the rice doesn't stick. Cover with a lid and reduce heat to just a bit above low. Let cook for 10-20 minutes or until you see little tunnels in the rice.

*Calrose rice is a California rice that's really popular in Guam, Hawaii and parts of Asia. And I had no idea it was from California until I looked up just now on Wikipedia. It's in the asian section of the grocery store if it's not with the regular rice and usually comes in a big yellow bag. You can sub some other rice though, just not the minute stuff.

Now onto the stir fry. It's a blending of a couple different recipes I've used at one time or another. Accordingly, the measurements are more eyeballed than exact. So taste along the way and adjust as necessary.

Beef and Broccoli

1-2lbs of beef (I used top blade steak because it was cheap and cheap is my friend)

2 cloves of minced garlic

1 bag of frozen asian stir fry veggies

2 cups of frozen broccoli

1/3 c of teriyaki sauce

1/3 c ketchup (yes, I said ketchup, dooooeeeeet!)

1 1/4 c chicken broth

1 1/2 tsp corn starch

1. Stir fry the veggies and broccoli until heated though, seasoning with a bit of salt and pepper. Remove from pan and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together the teriyaki sauce, ketchup, chicken broth, and cornstarch until well blended, especially the cornstarch. It tends to stick to the bottom of the bowl.

3. Slice the beef nice and thin against the grain. Add a tbsp of butter or oil. Drop in the beef and the garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook until just shy of done. Pour over the teriyaki mix and cook until the sauce is thickened.

4. Pile the rice onto a platter or into a cassarole dish. Pour the veggies on top, followed by the saucy beef.

Donzo!

And hopefully yours looks better than my cellphone's crap camera.

I'm sorry, Mama

I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to make you cry but tonight, I'm not using Bisquick.



This is the face Eminem will make if he finds out what I've done to his song.



I grew up in a strictly Bisquick home. No other baking mixes, be them store brand or otherwise wer permitted in our household. And rightly so. Bisquick pancakes are only the fluffiest, most awesome things in the world, even better than Denny's. However, mr man in law buys whatever's on sale. And since I never turn down food I didn't have to cook, I've gotten used to them.

They're actually pretty tasty.

As a bonus, they don't require milk or eggs which saves me a few pennies and leaves me with two extra eggs when I make breakfast for dinner.

So tonight, we used Krusteaz.

Unfortunate name not withstanding, I love them. But don't worry, Mom. I still have a soft spot for the good stuff. There's a whole box of it in my cabinet.

"Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favourite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed."

HA!

That little gem was taken from a 1955 article in an issue of "Housekeeping Weekly." I'll give you a moment to stop laughing hysterically.

Need more time?

At first glance, you kind of sort of want to punch the man who wrote this in the face. And really, it had to be a man, yes? But let's ignore the part where they paint the wife as man's only salvation after a grueling day at the office and focus on the actual advice. While I might not agree that mr man's day was so immeasurably more difficult than mine, I do think that having a plan in mind and serving dinner at the same time every day is a really good idea.

So, that's goal one. Eat dinner by 6:00.

Speaking of dinner, want a simple recipe for potato soup?

4 strips of bacon. cut into small pieces
1 clove of garlic, smashed and minced
4-5 medium potatoes
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
1 cup half and half
1 tbsp butter
3 oz shredded cheese

1. Cook the bacon in a heavy sauce pan on high heat, stirring often until brown. Remove the bacon and set aside, leaving the bacon fat in the pan. Turn off the heat and try not to nibble too much of the saved bacon like my fat ass usually does.

2. Drop the minced garlic into the bacon fat and turn the heat to very, very low. While that sits, cut your potatoes into 1-2 inch cubes. Turn the heat up to high again and add the potatoes. Make sure you stir it fairly often so the garlic doesn't burn.

3. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and a couple shakes of garlic powder. When the potatoes are all golden crispy, pour in the chicken broth and water. Add the bay leaf. Cover and let cook over medium heat.

4. After about ten minutes, taste the broth and add salt and pepper if necessary. Replace the cover and continue cooking on medium heat. Once the potatoes are fork tender, use the back of the spoon to mash them against the sides of the pot.

5. Remove the bay leaf. Then, stir in the cream, butter, cheese, and bacon.

6. Try not to die of happiness.