The Assassins' Super Secret Scullery (insert food here)

[erosan]

I think I've just found what I'm doing for lunch today!

take better pictures than mine, please.

[iatetheyeti]

take better pictures than mine, please.

 

I didn't even think of taking pictures... Though I can say yours look far better than mine did!

[erosan]

hopefully it tasted good at least

[Raincloak]

I put smashed sweet potato in my fishcakes (learned that from Nom Nom Paleo).

[Tkdgirl]

I put smashed sweet potato in my fishcakes (learned that from Nom Nom Paleo).

OMG that sounds good!

[starsapart]

I am here to report on my lamb stew adventures!

 

Per raptron's suggestion, I used this recipe as a base.  Except I only had 1 pound of lamb, which I made up for by adding half a cup of walnuts, a couple small snack-sized boxes of raisins, and extra tomatoes (because I used fresh, not canned).  Also omitted the onion, because screw onion, and added an extra half cup of wine when this all turned out to be quite a lot of produce......

 

Cooked meat and veggies in a pan at first, then dumped it in my slow cooker on high for about 8 hours (I didn't time it, just prodded at it until I could tell it was done).

 

The result:

 

Not the best photo, but it tastes AMAZING.

[raptron]

Ooooh! I'm glad it turned out well!

[Granny Nogg]

Caution:  if you're vegan or vegetarian, you may wanna pass this post.

I'm lactose intolerant, so high protein sources such as whey aren't an option for me.  I can do soy, but not often; I just have a hard time masking the taste unless I'm adding alot of fruit, which adds sugars and carbs, and I'm trying to keep those limited.  So that leaves eggs, beans, peas, nuts, and meats.  

 

Lately I've been having a couple pieces of calves' liver for my post-workout meal.  I'm one of those people that doesn't mind the taste of organ meats.  But my experience hasn't been wide, either;  I've had beef and chicken liver, chicken hearts, and gizzards.  I like all of them, though I prefer beef liver to chicken.  I haven't ventured into brains and tongue and heart yet.  Not that I'm opposed to doing so;  just that they're something I haven't yet tried.  

Anyway, this morning I was curious about how calf liver stacks up nutritionally, and I ran into an interesting article by Wellness Mama that I thought you might like.  http://wellnessmama.com/12579/organ-meats-healthy/

[erosan]

I personally do not like the flavour of liver… but I'm game for everything else.

If you're ever in Mérida (in México), send me a msg, we can go for some tacos de cabeza and you can try all of it: tongue, heart, tripe, eye, ear, brain, etc. all of it is GREAT

[Elastigirl]

Caution:  if you're vegan or vegetarian, you may wanna pass this post.

I'm lactose intolerant, so high protein sources such as whey aren't an option for me.  I can do soy, but not often; I just have a hard time masking the taste unless I'm adding alot of fruit, which adds sugars and carbs, and I'm trying to keep those limited.  So that leaves eggs, beans, peas, nuts, and meats.  

 

Lately I've been having a couple pieces of calves' liver for my post-workout meal.  I'm one of those people that doesn't mind the taste of organ meats.  But my experience hasn't been wide, either;  I've had beef and chicken liver, chicken hearts, and gizzards.  I like all of them, though I prefer beef liver to chicken.  I haven't ventured into brains and tongue and heart yet.  Not that I'm opposed to doing so;  just that they're something I haven't yet tried.  

Anyway, this morning I was curious about how calf liver stacks up nutritionally, and I ran into an interesting article by Wellness Mama that I thought you might like.  http://wellnessmama.com/12579/organ-meats-healthy/

Good article. I need to read stuff like this as I try and acquire a taste for liver.

Not to lure you to the dark side, because your post workout meal is super nutritious, but if you want some emergency back up protein powder, I buy some that is lactose free whey called Bio-chem. 

[Granny Nogg]

Good article. I need to read stuff like this as I try and acquire a taste for liver.

Not to lure you to the dark side, because your post workout meal is super nutritious, but if you want some emergency back up protein powder, I buy some that is lactose free whey called Bio-chem. 

 

OOH.  Does it happen to have casein in it?  It's a protein in milk that I'm also intolerant to.  Sad but true. 

[Elastigirl]

OOH.  Does it happen to have casein in it?  It's a protein in milk that I'm also intolerant to.  Sad but true. 

Not sure, it doesn't specifically say. Which means it probably does. Ah well, liver is much healthier for you anyway.

[starsapart]

Does anyone other than me ever get mashed potato cravings?   No?  Just me? Okay, well, here's my stupid simple, 2-ingredient way of dealing with those.  4 ingredients if you count salt and pepper...... I do this at least every other week.

 

1. Cube 2 small buttenut squashes (or buy pre-cubed squash if your local grocer carries it, as the cubing is a huge pain)
2. Put a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep pan or a pot (assume you will need to fit the squash and put on a lid) and turn heat on medium high
3. Dump the squash into the pan, salt, cover, and cook on medium high for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If you're getting a lot of browning, turn the heat down a bit.
4. Add half a cup of water to the pan (this will start boiling almost immediately), cover again, and cook for 15 more minutes.  Stir occasionally, and if the water all cooks out before you're done, you may want to add a bit more water.
5. At the end of this time, the squash should be bright orange and super soft, and the water should be pretty much gone.  Take a potato masher to it and mash it up.  Add fresh ground pepper if you like, and more salt to taste.
6. Eat your mash with great enjoyment.  Half the pan (assuming you used small to medium squashes) comes in at about 215 calories, huge doses of vitamins A and C, and plenty of hearty flavor.

 

I don't have a pic to share right now (lulz, I made it last night and promptly ate it all!) but it looks like this:

 

You can absolutely add other spices, too.  Going sweet with cinnamon and nutmeg works, I would guess that going savory with sage and thyme would be good, too.

[Elennare]

Here's a simple breakfast recipe I got from a cooking show on TV.  I'd give proper credit if I could remember who it was.

 

Ingredients: bacon (I liked peppered, but whatever kind works), fresh Italian parsley, and cherry or grape tomatoes.

 

Directions: chop up the bacon and cook in a pan until it's almost to the crispness you like.  Chop up the parsley and add it to the pan.  When it starts to wilt, add the tomatoes.  Cook until the tomatoes start to get soft, but not so much that they turn to mush.  Enjoy.

 

Next time I make it, I may add some minced garlic as well.

 

Really easy and really tasty.  Not too horrible on the nutrition side, either.

[erosan]

Pork rind fritatta

 

I once saw Ferran Adria do a potato fritatta by rehydrating potato chiips (i.e. the frito-lays kind)... its super easy, and its tasty. But I wanted to make it healthier than using that, and I liked the idea of a heavy protein breakfast, although I'd eat this anytime of the day. Its still easy to do, fast and yummy, and again, a technique that you can use for a miriad of similar dishes.

 

Start by buying good pork rinds (the kind its fried on its own lard) crumble it on a bowl.

 

Scramble a couple of eggs in there and let it sit for a couple of minutes so the moisture of the egg hydrates the pork rinds a little. Then pour into a skillet with a dollop of butter and cook as you would a regular fritatta...

 

 

 

let it cook, finish in the oven... or let it cook carefully flip --with the aid of a spatula or with a quick wrist movement if you've got the skill-- and cook the other side too.

 

You can't tell, but I added some parmeggiano and some microplaned almonds, for some umami and flavour. But you can add whatever you feel like, bacon/peppers/onions/spinach would be a classic combo, but really, the sky is the limit.

[raptron]

Interesting! So the rinds are no longer crunchy?

[erosan]

nope, they get a little chewy/meat-like-but-not-quite consistency, like when you cook chicharron en salsa verde (pork rinds in green salsa) -- I'll post a recipe other day.

[Trewest]

This one is a recipe that I personally loved but the husband didn't.

Paleo scone:
1 egg
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup unprocessed sugar (I used cane sugar)
1 1/2 cup almond flour
1 tsp vanilla
6 oz frozen berries ( I used black and rasp)
1 tsp baking powder
Heat oven to 350. Line baking pan with parchment paper, sprinkle baking powder over that. In mixing bowl add egg, sugar, coconut oil and almond flour and blend until combined. Add berries and mix. Press batter into pan and bake 35-40 min. Take over the world one delicious scone at a time. Makes 4 good sized ones. ANd because I am a little anal when it comes to figuring out food, here's the breakdown in the pic. The boxed numbers are the total scone, the bottom numbers are individual serving

 

[erosan]

I think I'm due for a recipe by now, am I not? Well good news and bad news. I cooked a kickass ceviche de pescado, super simple, yummy and ready in about 15 mins of active cooking time (plus another 45 of waiting)... problem is... I ate it. All. before I snapped a pic because my memory is useless so I did not remember the challenge. Next time, I promise.

 

In the meantime, we'll go back to basics with a simple (very simple) side-dish.

 

Bellpeppers & onions PARTY!

 

Meet your guests: Juliened onions, and bellpeppers from all types of lifes. More colors = better (this is a diverse party). I used Green, Red, Yellow. I also bought orange, but used it previously on something else (although I can't remember what it was). Oh, and you'll also need some bacon, because what kind of party does not have bacon? A boring one, which this is not. So! Choose your favourite thickness and type of bacon from your bacon collection and use that. You keep different kinds of bacon in your fridge at all times, don't you? Of course you do, what a silly question. Why wouldn't you?

 

Hickory smoked bacon, relatively thick slices for me this time.

 

So... use some chopping skills (or scissors...) to cut the bacon strips into small pieces, throw them into a big pan (I'm using one of those wok-wannabe pans) sweat it till you render the fat, leave enough fat on the pan to fry the veggies (you save the excess for cooking on another occasion, right?).  set the cooked bacon aside.

 

Now its time to start sweating the onion (that means onion in the pan, good pinch of salt, cook on slow heat for a couple of mins. You don't want brown forming... just the onions to become soft and translucent). Then in go all of the peppers. Turn on the heat to the max and hit play on the stereo. Let the veggies mingle and jump around. Help them do the later.

 

 

Reintroduce the bacon, shake shake shake and serve while hot. (if you are feeling sassy, add a squeeze of lime and some sriracha sauce).

[hybrid756]

Spicy tuna fishcakes. Improv version

 

Do what you can with what you have, right? I had 2 cans of tuna, eggs, ginger and hunger. so I made this:

 

Drain the tuna (not all of the liquid, but most of it), add some freshly ground ginger, a dollop of garlic/habanero paste, a dash of soy sauce, some chopped cabbage, and two eggs scrambled. Make patties and cook em, bout a minute a side.

 

 

Voila. Easy spicy tuna fishcakes. Good with a squeeze of lime, but then again what isn't? Maybe not the prettiest looking, but I can assure you they were GOOOOOOD.

 

Full spanish instructions, and several more pics here.

 

I need to try this. As a beginner to cooking, I'm starting with easy stuff like burgers and learning how to cook chicken properly. These look tasty! I'm sure I have some tuna kicking about somewhere, and these sound quicker than other burgers, so good if I'm off to work for the night.

 

Recently, I've tried lamb mince + 1 egg + fresh basil / mint / coriander + garlic + lemon juice + salt + pepper. Mix, make burgers. Grill burgers for about 15 minutes. Lovely with homemade tzatziki (I like this recipe). Also works well with turkey mince + 1 egg + chili flakes (I'm sure fresh chilies would be even better) + lemon juice + dash of Worcester sauce + garlic + salt + pepper. I love the idea that you can just throw everything together, fashion it into a burger shape, and hey presto, food! Without all the crap you get in prepacked burgers. So much nicer.

 

Had a successful time with the chicken salads too. What seems to work is covering an oven dish and a sheet of foil and some chicken breasts or fillets with olive oil, seasoning with salt & pepper, chopping half a lemon into 4 wedges and putting it next to the chicken, then covering the chicken entirely with fresh tarragon. Cover well with the foil, 40 minutes in the oven at gas mark 6, take out, leave to settle for 5 mins, chop up and throw on a bowl of babyleaf salad with basil, coriander & mint. Next, I'm going to try the same idea, but with coconut oil, lime wedges, ginger, garlic, mint and lemongrass.

 

Made this chilli for dinner tonight. Mr Hybrid is so confused. Cannot figure out where all this delicious food is coming from. Think I've found a new hobby!

[Trewest]

Recently, I've tried lamb mince + 1 egg + fresh basil / mint / coriander + garlic + lemon juice + salt + pepper. Mix, make burgers. Grill burgers for about 15 minutes. Lovely with homemade tzatziki (I like this recipe). Also works well with turkey mince + 1 egg + chili flakes (I'm sure fresh chilies would be even better) + lemon juice + dash of Worcester sauce + garlic + salt + pepper. I love the idea that you can just throw everything together, fashion it into a burger shape, and hey presto, food! Without all the crap you get in prepacked burgers. So much nicer.

 

Want a neat trick? Use muffin tins and bake it in the oven for 20-30 min depending on what protein base you use (fish needs less, beef and chicken need more). You end up with what my husband has dubbed 'meat pucks', and they freeze and microwave in a minute to a minute and a half. VERY handy if you're on the go.

[hybrid756]

Want a neat trick? Use muffin tins and bake it in the oven for 20-30 min depending on what protein base you use (fish needs less, beef and chicken need more). You end up with what my husband has dubbed 'meat pucks', and they freeze and microwave in a minute to a minute and a half. VERY handy if you're on the go.

 

Oh, I like this idea, thanks! I will be trying this Bonus: I actually have a muffin tin. Woot!

[Trewest]

Oh, I like this idea, thanks! I will be trying this Bonus: I actually have a muffin tin. Woot!

 

You can do eggs the same way. I've copped out of breakfasts so many times by simply lining the muffin tray with slices of bacon, cracking an egg into each cup and baking the whole thing until it's ready to eat. I use the peppercorn bacon for added excitement since I'm making the lazy work for me

[hybrid756]

You can do eggs the same way. I've copped out of breakfasts so many times by simply lining the muffin tray with slices of bacon, cracking an egg into each cup and baking the whole thing until it's ready to eat. I use the peppercorn bacon for added excitement since I'm making the lazy work for me

 

What a great concept! I am lazy, I will make it work for me too

[mediaguy99]

Speaking of bacon:

 

Crock Pot Maple Bacon Wrapped Chicken
1 ½ pounds chicken breast (about 4 breasts)
12 slices bacon
2 Tablespoons chili powder
2 cups maple syrup (yeah right.  More like 2 Tbsp)

Wrap each breast in bacon.
Place chicken in bottom of crockpot.
Combine chili powder and maple syrup.
Pour mixture over chicken.
Cover and cook on low 6 hours!!!

 

This I MUST TRY!!!  Though that seems like a LOT of maple syrup.  Yup.  Maybe use even less than half that.  Otherwise it's a sugar bomb.