Tag: cooking

Posted in Uncategorized

It was a surprise to me!

Posted on by Distracted Damsel
Daily writing prompt
What food would you say is your specialty?
View all responses

I would not consider myself a top chef. My skills are maybe above average but way below a Michelin star. The boyfriend likes my food so at least I have that going for me. I have always just added flavors as I cooked, or pulled a recipe that sounded delicious from Pinterest. Sometimes I get inspired by other things though.

Recently, our weekend date night has been to watch a Netflix show and cook together. The inspiration for the cooking has came from the show itself. We have been watching Bon Appetit, Your Majesty- a Korean drama show. The leading character who is a chef, travels back in time and ends up being the chef for a Tyrant king in the Josean era Korea. I wont say much more but she creates good dishes for the king and runs into political and heart trouble.

My take away here, is that I have been making similar dishes to the ones that she creates for the King. Seeing all the food cooked and then characters over the top reactions to the flavor got me wanting to try some. I have been to plenty of Korean restaurants, but have never really cooked any Korean food. So I looked up popular Korean dishes. This article had some good ones in it.

https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/g40065835/korean-recipes/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=copy&utm_campaign=action_bar

The picture above is my latest. I followed a recipe (loosely) for this Tteokbokki-Style Gnocchi. I added chicken for protein, chili powder for more of a kick and cashews for a bit of crunch. I have found that I really like Gochujang, which is Korean Chili Paste. I also made a really delicious Gochujang soup with tofu and diakon radishes. The broth was so good and I had just the right mix of ingredients. To my big surprise, the BF said that the soup was the best thing that I have made for him in 3 years. He also said that my Gnocchi was on point!

I dont want to toot my own horn. I couldnt get enough of the dishes and the flavor. Boyfriend only had compliments, the biggest of which was finishing of the whole pot. I did not know that I was a Korean Chef in a previous life 🙂 Surprising but I will take the win!!

Posted in Lifestyle

Whos Cooking for the 4th??

Posted on by Distracted Damsel

if you are anything like me, you step outside and you fry right away. But thats not the cooking we are talking about. I am talking about that age old tradition of BBQ or grilling on the fourth. Grill season is my favorite food season. No mess inside and delicious char on meats.

My man has few skills when it comes to cooking. Not that I am bashing that, more to call out that one thing he enjoys is grilling. He is a steak and potatoes kind of guy. I am expanding his grilling experience since I have enjoyed all kinds as my dad would grill anything that sounded good at the time. And yes that includes watermelon, fish, corn on the cob with husks, pizza and desserts.

I have been craving red meat but specifically marinated flank steak cut crisscross and grilled just long enough to sear each side. My favorite marinade has cilantro, lemon, chili powder, chili flakes, olive oil, a little bit of soy sauce and a few other spices. I am planning to get the ingredients and have it marinating in the fridge for 24 hours to bring out all the juices.

I havent decided if I want to go with traditional bbq sides like beans and potato salad or if I want to go for more of a fajita/mexican style side dish. I really love sweet corn grilled. It reminds me of summers on the farm or river with my grandparents. Cooking that up and making it into a spicy corn salad sound good too.

We just got back from a week of drinking on our Alaska cruise. I dont really want to go hard on the alcohol but I would love to make a fruity sangria. I love mixing a pink wine and berries or pineapple with a sprig of mint or basil. Refreshing and simple to cool you down on a hots summers day.

And last but not least, you have to have a yummy dessert. My man doesnt read this blog so spoiler alert for everyone else. I am going to make a pie for him that I have never tried to make. I will either make a rhubarb pie or a strawberry rhubarb pie. Not your traditional 4th pie but rhubarb is a summer veggie and if I can rack up some girlfriend brownie points I am going to take the opportunity.

What do you guys do for your family and friends? Have any recipes that you are known for that all the family requests? I hope that everyone is going to enjoy the day off at the least and enjoy the family and food and fireworks at the most!! Stay safe and eat til your hearts content!

Posted in Uncategorized

Dinner for Friends

Posted on by Distracted Damsel

Ok so maybe it isnt a dish but it is my favorite kind of meal. Just yesterday we had our friend Katey over for dinner and a movie. Most Thursday nights we get together and just hang out and talk about our weeks, what we are reading, what new date she went on, what new clients I have. The fun part about it is we get completely random about what’s for dinner.

Our favorite rabbit hole for recipes is Instagram. There are so many accounts that have quick meals, healthy meals and whats trending. We have made our own versions of Sushi caserole, spinach and tomato pasta, cranberry and Bree spread. That app can make you hungry with just a five minute board scroll.

Last night, I really didnt feel like going to the store for the 3rd time in a week to come up with something new. So instead of something new and complicated, we went with a tried and true easy dinner. Taco salad. You just cant go wrong here. Our healthy leafy base was kale and a baby spring mix. we loaded it up with onions, peppers, jalapenos, cheese, cilantro and for a crunch spicy dorito crumbs. Add some salsa and sour cream and boom! Yum!

We spent two hours chatting and eating. Just a simple night and a simple meal. No need to go big with expensive steak and wine all the time though those things are just as delicious. We dont have a dinner menu for next week yet, so who knows what new recipe we will come across. But hopefully it will be a good time and less dishes then I am about to finish up from last night lol

Daily writing prompt
What’s your favorite thing to cook?
View all responses