Cheesy Shrimp Bread

It's been way too long since I've written on this blog. Way too long. 

That's not to say that I haven't been cooking. I'm still doing most of the cooking at home. And the eating too.

And that's not to say that I haven't thought about my blog either. 

Believe me, this blog was ALL I could think of. 

I think about my blog when I wake up. When I drink my coffee. When I drive to work. Oh you know, stuff like... I wonder how my blog is doing. Could someone be reading one of my posts right now? Is Google going to suspend my blog for inactivity? 

Did my blog eat? Did it remember to take a bath? I have got to check that blog out! 

What's that darn blog's password again? Why in the world did I even bother putting up that blog, anyway? (Did I not think at all that I have 3 kids that needs to be showered and changed and fed???)

You know, the usual stuff bloggers think of when they think about their blog, really. Nothing new.

Here's how I make my cheesy shrimp bread. Actually, I wasn't planning to make any sort of cheesy bread shabang. I was just really craving for cronuts. 

And while I was buying cronuts at Brioche, I fell upon this lovely focaccia bread that they had. A little overpriced in my opinion, but it looked so good. I had to buy it. Needed to buy it. I couldn't leave without it.

So now inside my ref is one lovely and very expensive bread that I have absolutely no idea what to do with. I know I have to use it quick because the shelf life is only 2 days. Yep, 2 days. As in 48 hours. 

Focaccias are great for paninis but I just wasn't feeling like making a panini sandwich.

So I made this "cheesy shrimp bread" instead.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons margarine or butter, at room temperature

1 cup shredded cheese

3/4 cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons pimiento cheese

1/2 cup sliced green olives stuffed with pimientos

1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

1 cup shrimp

Sliced spring onions

Focaccia bread

Take a mixing bowl and put in your margarine. Mine is herbed margarine. Make sure this is at room temperature otherwise you will have trouble blending it in with the other ingredients.

Throw in your shredded cheese. I used quick melt kind. You can be fancy and use Monterey Jack, Mild Cheddar, or Colby. Nothing too strong because you'll want to taste the shrimp too.

Then the mayonnaise.

Followed by the pimiento cheese. I used the one you can squeeze out of tetra packs.

Throw in your diced red bell pepper,

Followed by your sliced green olives stuffed with pimiento cheese.

Mix all these good stuff up slowly.

Meanwhile take your precious focaccia bread and cut in half so that you will have a top and bottom (like you're about to make a sandwich). Then cut each layer in to rectangular pieces (I had 4 slices each layer). Lay all the pieces on a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. 

P.S. I know I don't take good pictures.

Spoon some of your cheese mixture and spread on the bread. (The bread slices are suddenly missing some because I took a couple of slices to be frozen so that I can bake it at later date). 

P.S. This is a really bad picture.

Using a tong I take my peeled and deveined shrimp one by one and put it on my cheesy bread.

Then I sprinkle some sliced spring onion on top.

I put the whole thing inside my preheated oven at 150 degrees celsius. This will bake for 15 - 20 minutes.

This is how it looks when it's done. 

Don't forget to wipe off some of the melted cheese with your bread. Have a good dinner, y'all! :)

Bacon Wrapped Salmon

You may not believe this but there is chemistry between bacon and salmon. Really. This super unhealthy cut of meat and this wholesome fish just sizzle together. Just deliciously wonderful, together. They'll leave your tastebuds tingling!

Honestly, bacon is not my thing. In fact I only started eating bacon in the last 8 years of my life, and only few and far between. Before that, it was practically nonexistent in my food repertoire.

You see growing up with a doctor made me really picky with my choice of food. Unlike most kids, I had no taste for such fatty food as fried chicken skin, or bacon. These are high in saturated fat, high in cholesterol, and very very bad for a person, my dad would say. And he's right. These kinds of food are just not worth it. So my routine when eating fried chicken is to first remove all skin, as much skin as I can. And if by some unusual cosmic event bacon is on my plate I would meticulously separate the lean meat from the fatty strip. And of course I only eat the meat.

But one time in college, when I had settled in a dorm and ate with all my other peers in the dining hall, the unfamiliar smell of bacon wafted over to greet me. And much to my surprise my peers went on to put bacon on their plate, the really crispy but not burnt kind (which I still can't figure out how to make because mine's either sloppy, or burnt). I had to have some myself. And oh they were so good! That was when I started to appreciate bacon. And since then, I would have bacon. Very occasionally. And only if I can't help it.

I mix together about a tablespoon of kalamansi juice, two tablespoons of light soy sauce, a tablespoon of ground mustard, and a tablespoon of brown sugar.

Okay let's take that step by step.

First, the squeezed kalamansi juice.

Then the two tablespoons of light soy sauce. Or whatever this is that I found in our fridge that tastes something like soy sauce but not quite. But plain light soy sauce will do.

Then a tablespoon of mustard powder.

Lastly a dash of garlic salt, and a tablespoon of brown sugar. Mix together until the sugar has dissolved.

I pour this sauce on my salmon fillet.

Then I wrap the bacon around my salmon.

This will go to the broiler for 15 minutes, exactly.

While waiting....

This is my daughter Brie. Yep, after the cheese. Isn't she just adorable? She did that hair thing herself!


After exactly 15 minutes, take the salmon out of the broiler.

Transfer to a plate. You can pour some of the greasy but flavorful sauce on top, if you want.

And you don't have to have that bacon. My husband and I took ours out.

And you may ask... so what was the point of wrapping that bacon around that fish in the first place??? The point was, ladies and gentlemen, was to make sure the salmon doesn't become too dry and flaky. That was the job of the bacon. And now his job is done and you can throw him away.

But if you do throw him out you'd feel really guilty... so just give him to your dog, Spot. Or Pluto. Or whatever his name is.

Chicken Quesadilla

It has been a great Christmas and a great new year.  And post new year too, if I may add. Once again my 2012 books ended beautifully, with so many happy memories.

Unfortunately, my tummy also kept plenty of happy reminders during the holidays. Believe me, it shows.

It's time to kick off the new year with some non-fatty, healthier choice of meals. Well... slightly. If only to undo all that fatty, not so healthy choices I made in the holiday food selection.

I remember eating a lot of quesadillas in the U.S., owing much to the  South American influence in the country. I don't recall ever eating in an American restaurant that doesn't serve some sort of fajita or burrito or quesadilla.

In college, quesadillas and burritos were some of my favorite choices of frozen food. It's quick to reheat and easy to eat while studying.

So here I am making chicken quesadillas a few years later.

I start by roasting chicken breast. I just rub them with garlic salt and stick them in the oven at 150 degress Celsius for about an hour.

Then I separate and discard the bones. I shred the lean white meat. I have about 2 and a half cups.

I chop up 4 pieces red peppers and 1 large piece of green pepper.

I transfer my chicken and my peppers to a ball. To that I add half a cup of store bought onion vinaigrette dressing. Because it's what I've got. You can use just about any type of creamy salad dressings. Ranch works best. Cesar isn't bad at all.

I mix them all up.

I grab some tortillas and lay them flat on my work area. I use 9-inch sized whole wheat tortillas. Whole wheat because, I want to start this year by making healthy choices. And besides, I can't taste the difference between whole wheat and white.

Spoon half of your chicken mixture to one side of the tortilla.

Top with shredded cheese. Actually I hate shredding cheese because it makes my muscle ache so I use cheese slices that I just cut up. It works fine anyway. If you have shredded cheese though, mix it with your chicken before spooning to tortilla. Oh and use soft cheese, or cheese that melts quickly. You can use mozzarella, cheddar, swiss... or a mixture of all 3. I use good old American white cheddar cheese.

Fold the other half of the tortilla to cover. Lay on a baking sheet. Repeat to the other tortillas. I made 12 in total.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 150 degrees for 30 minutes or until cheese melts.

I made a few extras and I'm going to wrap each one in aluminum foil and then slip them inside my freezer bag. They will go inside the freezer so that anytime I want one, I'll just grab a piece, unwrap the foil, and stick it in the microwave for a minute. And I'll have instant chicken quesadillas!

Cajun Pork Chops

This blog is so long overdue. And my apologies.

The rush of the holiday season has absolutely whipped me around like a spinning top there was hardly any time left to sit around and write.

The entire month I was busy mostly spending time with my children. You see something happened this month that I must share.

My kids and I were out eating lunch at a popular fast food. It is a once a week thing we do, just me and my first two children, where I take them out to eat and I let them pick the place.

So we were seated and eating spaghetti and hotdog and fried chicken, when I noticed this young lady on another table stealing glances our way. She was with her colleagues, and they seemed like they were having a good time. But once in a while this particular young lady would turn to look at us. I ignored her the first few times, but that was difficult to do. I was getting very self-conscious and frankly, just plain irritated. Why does she keep looking at us???

Finally, towards the end of our meal, I caught her glance, and gave her a look that said "please stop staring." She looked away very quickly.

Just when we were about to leave, she looked at me again, wearing a sorry look on her face. And this young lady said to me, "Ma'am, I am so sorry I keep staring. It's just that your daughter reminds me so much of my daughter. And I miss her so much this Christmas."

The nuisance that I felt left as quickly as it came. I am suddenly sorry, and unquestionably guilty for being upset at this woman. I could feel the pain and envy she must be feeling, a mother away from her child during the holidays.

So I am reminded that Christmas isn't all about gift-giving, but instead about togetherness. And I am so lucky that my children are here with me. And so I tell myself this Christmas I will not ask for anything. Because I've got everything I need.

I made this dish early this month and I will be making this again and again. One, because it is so easy that the preparation only takes 10 minutes, max. Two, because pork is affordable, this a perfect dish to make when you have guests over or when you're headed to a potluck event. Three, because it is impressively delicious.

I have here about six pieces of 3/4 inch thick pork chops.

I rub these babies liberally with mayonnaise so that all the pork is covered throughout.

Hmm... I realize just now that I don't have a picture of that because I must have deleted it in my phone. And I guess because its no longer in my phone it's also no longer in the "Cloud." Which doesn't make sense because I uploaded my photo up in the Cloud therefore if I delete it in my phone it should still be in the Cloud. Whatever.

Where in the world is the Cloud anyway???

After the mayo layer I rub the pork chops with  just a little bit of Dijon mustard. Just until it turns a tad bit yellow.

Here's the picture of the mustard I used:

Then finally I sprinkle a scant amount of Cajun spice on both sides of the chops.

This is the Cajun spice I use. McCormick Perfect Pinch Cajun. Natural. No MSG.

If you don't have that in your spice rack just mix equal amount of cayenne and paprika. It works just as fine.

Slide the chops in your oven and bake at 150 degees celsius for an hour. They should be fork tender.

Let cool and serve.

Spinach in Coconut Milk

I'm all about being healthy tonight.

And why is that, you might ask?

Because... I couldn't resist the Christmas sale at the mall and bought myself a pair of skinny jeans for 995. Not so very good deal I must say. The last skinny jeans I bought was early this year and it was only 600.

I convinced myself by saying it's must be inflation...

LOL.

Over 30% inflation in less than a year? Who am I kidding? Besides myself...

So tomorrow my skinny jeans will go into the washing machine. In a couple of days it will be pressed, folded, and will be sitting nicely in my closet waiting to be worn. I am anticipating that day by cooking up something healthy tonight.

I mean I've got to look good in those jeans!!

I have tried it on and it fits fine but you know how skinny jeans tend to be the stretchy kind too? And fitting room mirrors are made in such a way that you'll look like a Victoria's Secret model? All I'm saying is I don't want my legs to end up looking like Spanish chorizos...

Just because it fits doesn't mean it looks nice.

So here I am making a veggie dish. Not that one dinner will magically make me look like a Victoria's Secret model in skinny jeans.

But who knows???

I start by chopping sword peppers, about 2 teaspoons worth. You can go up to 1 tablespoon if you like spicy.

I also chop up about 2 cups worth of string beans in to 1 inch lengths. And about 3 cups worth of washed spinach.

I turn the heat up on a wok, and add 2 tablespoons of oil. When it's hot I throw in 2 tablespoons of garlic.

And about the same amount of chopped white onions.

Excuse the green beans that popped out of nowhere.

Actually my son had a lot to do with that. But it's all good...

I put in the sliced sword peppers.

And 1 cube of pork bouillon. But we are not making bouillon.

Just sort of crumble the bouillon cube with your laddle and stir for a bit.

If you don't want to use a bouillon cube you can throw in small slices of bacon instead. I usually do that when I make this dish but this time I use a bouillon cube because:

a) it taste just as good,

b) I wasn't able to slice any bacon tonight

and,

the most deciding factor,

c) I need to look good in those skinny jeans. Bacon and skinny jeans just don't click like that.

Dump in your string beans and let them cook until they are soft, about three minutes.

I let my kids do this step.

Look at my little girl. Isn't she cute??? She likes princesses and the color purple.

She also likes to do a high-pitch scream if she doesn't get what she wants. If you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain!

While waiting, grab a cup of coconut milk. I use the powder kind. Just add about a cup of water and stir to dissolve. It makes life a lot easier.

This is the packet I used:

To your wok, throw in the chopped spinach leaves and stir.

Immediately pour in your coconut milk and let simmer until the spinach wilts.

And until the milk has reduced to half its original volume like this:

Transfer to a plate and serve on top of white rice! Skinny jeans, here I come baby!!!

P.s.


I was decided on serving ONLY this for dinner... really. Until I saw a few slices of pork chops on the kitchen sink that I had my kitchen help take out and defrost, hours before I fell upon those skinny jeans. So... I decided to cook those chops and serve them alongside my veggie dish. Nevermind looking like a Victoria's Secret model. Perhaps in another life time...

Recipe for the pork chops on my next blog! 20 days to go before Christmas my friends!!! Happy Holidays!!!!