In the Kitchen Archives - Page 4 of 5

Week Night Cooking and Crafts

By Christina Lee| October 15th, 2015|In the Kitchen|

It’s my evening to host a week night dinner and knitting sesh with my neighbor and since I don’t cook very often – or better yet, usually opt to go out or pick up food – I had to scratch my head to put together a few options. I’m with most people on the lack of time and sheer laziness over cooking, but once in a while I like to ‘play’ in the kitchen.

From all those years of watching Food Network, I knew there was a little bit of Sandra Lee’s ‘Semi-Homemade Cooking’ in me – especially with Trader Joe’s down the street from me. I don’t like to experiment when I have guests over, but here’s one idea I tampered with previously and enjoyed the results.

In the frozen aisle, Trader Joe’s offers a package of the Saucy Scallops with Mushrooms. I’m not a big fan of frozen food and agree with the online rating, but there are ways to adapt pre-fabbed food to make it suit your taste. The first time I tried the Saucy Scallops, I found it to be way too cheesy as with most; however, adding in some fresh mushrooms and onions gave it some flavor. And since I’m a big fan of Sauvignon Blanc (which typically complements my pasta dish), I decided to pour in some white wine for flavoring and it did the trick. My taste buds approved, so I’m hoping that my guest will enjoy it. This ‘semi-homemade’ Saucy Scallop with wine, mushrooms and onions goes well with any type of pasta, but I prefer fettuccine, but if you’d like a bit more body, you can opt for the four cheese tortelini as well. For those non-vegetarians out there, top it with you favorite protein and you’ve got yourself a hearty meal. I put this to the test tonight and the request for a second round of pasta told me this one was a winner.

Xmas Eve Home Cooking

By Christina Lee| December 24th, 2015|Holiday Fun, In the Kitchen|

It’s always a question that’s top of mind especially during the holiday season. What dishes are people already bringing and what should I cook for the holidays? I usually go with with the fancy appetizers and my famous brussel sprouts with caramelized onions, pancetta, slivered almonds and white wine sauce (I already did this during Thanksgiving), but I’m compelled to try something different this time around. I peaked online to see if I could get any inspiration and then I spent a good amount of time over the weekend at a couple of grocery stores – the lines were insane. I wanted to make something hearty, meaty, flavorful and easy on the eyes. For some reason, I was still craving turkey, but had to remind myself to move past that one since that was last month!

Top of mind next to all the active orders for chicken, prime rib and pork shoulder was the cornish game hen that stood in the self-serve refrigerated section. I bypassed the line and picked up these babies. I landed on four cornish game hens, since I had to make x2 the amount – one for Mom’s side of the family and one for Dad’s side. They were a good portion size given that the table itself would already be filled with a variety of dishes.

I may have made these once a long while ago, but I was most excited, since it reminded of a mini turkey. I went ahead and sauteed the carrots and onions with rosemary, thyme and a drizzle of white wine. They simmered on the stove for about 15-20 minutes. I didn’t want to overcook them since they’d be stewing some more in the oven.

Next, I buttered up the cornish game hens and seasoned them similarly to the vegetables. After the vegetables cooled, I stuffed them from the front and the back, then topped them with lemon slices. About an hour in the oven leaves you with them slightly brown and sizzling. This is now ready for dinner party number one. I’ll be tackling this again tomorrow!

Homemade Hot Pot

By Christina Lee| December 6th, 2015|In the Kitchen|

On cold wintry evenings such as tonight, there’s nothing that warms the heart and soul like homemade hot pot. It’s one of my favorite, easy-to-do meals that comes with some prep work in advance. But it’s the prep work that makes sitting around the hot pot such a fun and enjoyable meal. And I’ve got to thank my mom for doing all the hard work.

Much of the seafood, meats and vegetables, you can buy at your local Ranch 99, Tokyo Fish Market or Asian grocery stores on Irving and/or Geary if you’re a San Franciscan local. You can ask them to thinly slice the meats or if you’ve got mad knife skills, you can slice them yourself. Tonight we’re having pork, beef and lamb, and for extra protein, throw in an egg.

Other favorites are the fish balls, white mushrooms, firm tofu and udon noodles when dipped in the the spicy peanut sauce. For the soup base, my mom uses chicken broth with the fresh flavor of ginger, cabbage, tomatoes and red peppers. It’s simply, but flavorful.

I’m feeling warmer already!

Letting the Chef Retire

By Christina Lee| November 26th, 2015|Holiday Fun, In the Kitchen|

As far back as I could remember, my Dad has always been the one to cook and prepare the turkey for our Thanksgiving feast. It’d start with days of preparation from picking out the turkey to buying all the ingredients to doing hours of prep work in advance to making his traditional Chinese sausage sticky rice the night before. Every Thanksgiving morning, my Dad would wake me and my sister up at 8:30 am sharp. He’d pull the drapes open and tell us to quickly wash up. Each minute of delay was another extra minute the turkey would have to spend in the oven. There in the center of the table was the 18 lb turkey and two bowls of sticky rice — one bowl was for us to stuff the front and back of the turkey, and the other bowl was for us to stuff our own bellies. My sister and I would see compete to see how much sticky rice we can hold in our palms before shoving it into the turkey. For the turkey to get a share of the sticky rice, we deemed that one lucky bird. Within good time, we were stuffed and most importantly, the turkey was stuffed and ready for the oven. This is one of the Thanksgiving rituals I cherish and love. Thank you, Dad for all the hours, days and years you spent making the turkey for Thanksgiving and creating this wonderful tradition for our family. We both tip our hats to the Chef in thanks as you gracefully retire from being the Cook.

While Susanna and I won’t be able to wear the chef hat just yet, we thought we’d make sure our cooked turkey have a friend or two. With a little inspiration from Pinterest, and a lot of vegetables and chopping, we present our Turkey Vegetable Platter.

And just in case the vegetable platter needed a friend, we made these Oreo cookie Turkeys using Reeses, Whoppers, chocolate sauce and piping. Now how fun is that?! If this can’t get you to say “Gobble, Gobble,” then I don’t know what can. Happy Thanksgiving from the Lee Family!

Second Annual Oyster Fiesta

By Christina Lee| June 13th, 2015|Holiday Fun, In the Kitchen|

Bought by the dozen, our Second Annual Oyster Fiesta consisted of an assortment of Pacific, Kumamoto and Atlantic Oysters. Some of us became pro-oyster shuckers and mastered the art of shucking an oyster, while others (such as myself) stood to the side and cheered them on. With no shortage of fixings and dipping sauces, we all enjoyed a generous helping of fresh, raw oysters. My favorite happened to be the Kumamotos – small, sweet and nutty.

Once we had our fill of raw oysters, it was time to fire up the grill and cook those meaty Pacific oysters. My friend, Steph had the BEST recipe to dress up these oysters. She filled them sweet garlic, bourbon butter that was nothing short of perfection. It was a lovely afternoon indeed.

First Book Club: The Goldfinch, Lemon Shooters and More

By Christina Lee| November 9th, 2014|Humbling Hobbies and Habits, In the Kitchen|

I’m excited to host and kick off our very first book club for The Goldfinch. Supposedly we all read the book in advance; however, for those who just barely opened the book, are still at the beginning or three quarters of the way done, be prepared for spoilers. I think I made it a little beyond the halfway mark. But bonus points to those who actually got through the entire 700+ page book this past month.

Of course no book club is complete without the wining and dining experience. Aside from the munchies and fruit and cheese platter (not photographed), tonight’s menu includes:

1. Spring salad with sliced apples, silvered almonds, goat cheese and raspberries with a champagne vinaigrette.

2. Mashed yams with creamy butter and milk.

3. Roasted vegetable (carrots, onions and bell peppers) pasta with garlic and white wine sauce, and a side of grilled chicken.

And to top it off our meal, I sprung for making these yummy lemon shooters. Crumbled vanilla cake with lemon curd and whipped cream.

Bon Appetit!

Cousins’ Dinner Party

By Christina Lee| September 27th, 2014|In the Kitchen|

It’s been a seven year tradition of us continuing to get together for our cousins’ date (minus our long lost cousin, Clifton, who always seems to be traveling the world). This time around, I’m playing chef and hosting. I’ve got the Living Fireplace running in the background, a full fruit and cheese platter, everyone’s champagne glasses full and the stove piping hot. Let’s get this party started.

On the menu this evening is a home-cooked, three course meal. We’ll start with a refreshing pear and gorgonzola salad topped with a champagne vinegarette. Then for a hearty main course is grilled chicken and pesto, tomato pasta with a side of spaghetti squash and creamy mushroom sauce. Because no dinner is complete without dessert, we’ll have strawberry shortcake sandwiched between two madeleines. My favorite.

I’m hoping this three course meal won’t put everyone into a food coma. In case it does, I’ve got a pot of coffee brewing because we can’t be falling asleep during our friendly game of Cards Against Humanities.

Cheers to a fun Cousins’ Date. I hope the rest of the gang will be in town for our next one.

Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread

By Christina Lee| September 6th, 2015|In the Kitchen|

I’ve always fancied making my own bread and now with my new bread-maker, I can make bread of all sorts: country white, buttermilk, wheat, oatmeal, chocolate banana – the possibilities are endless. This right here, hot out of the oven is cinnamon raisin swirl! The best part is cutting a slice or two right out of the bread machine, then lathering it with butter. The bread literally melts in your mouth.

Well, I’m finding that my investment in the bread-maker is one of the best purchases I’ve made recently… for today.

Here’s to my new bread-maker and many more loaves to come!

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