Scraps Stirfry

Well the homemade subs were FANTASTIC!
The bar-b-que fake-chicken salad was good too.... (not enough dressing on mine, but that was my bad).
And still there's leftover beautiful, fresh, organic veggies that need to find their purpose.
Well there are several translations for "beautiful, fresh, organic veggies", and the only one left I can think of is OBVIOUSLY STIR FRY!
He-we-go......

Onion
Garlic

Not my actual stir fry.

Bell Peppers
Mushrooms
Broccoli (frozen but organic)
Leftover Gravy
Spare Terriyaki Sauce Packets (from Gardein chicken)
Angel Hair Pasta Nests (from De Cecco)
Sesame Seeds (if ya gottem)

Get your water boil ready for the pasta. It's really cool if you can keep the nests together for presentation purposes! But if not, it still taste good just the same.
I like to preheat my water so that I don't end up carelessly just leaving pasta in a hot bath to get mushy if I become engaged in other parts of my prep and can't get to it - my water is primed and will cook my pasta quickly - when I'm ready for it.

I do not have a wok.
If I did, I would use it now.
So into the frying pan go all these veggies, sliced or chopped to your stir-fry preferences, with a little olive oil. You could even use coconut oil for a more tropical flavor. Just consider the other flavors you'll be adding and ponder if that's something you're gonna enjoy.
Please be carefree!
But don't be completely thought-free and stupidly waste beautiful foods.

Anywho..... This time, I'm using the olive oil. Cuz I wanna.

So..... Nice-n-hot, don't burn your oil or start a fire! Stay with it and cook it gently, very fast. Turn it off. I enjoy my stir fry with life left in the veggies... In other words, not mushy and over cooked.
In my opinion, this is not a pan you want to walk away from.
Stay with it.
Cook it gently.
Cook it fast.

But not so fast that you don't have a second to drop your on-deck pasta into the primed water boil. Turn the heat up on your water if you've preheated it so that your pasta gets enough cooking. Peak at the directions on your packaging to better understand timing.
Tend your veggies and get them off their heat, then patiently give that pasta a couple minutes to blossom fully.

If you're using a Terryaki packet (or two or three or....), put that over your veggies while the pasta pastas.

When everybody's ready, bowl it up, sprinkle with Sesame seeds!


Oishii!

Broccoli Mushroom Quesadillas

Onion thinly sliced

Not my actual quesadillas.

Garlic cloves, 3 chopped
Jalepeno, fresh, 1 half chopped
Butter
Mushrooms, 1 box fresh chopped
Broccoli, one bag organic frozen
Spring water
Flour, 1 tablespoon & Milk in a small jar, shaken
Mozerella, grated
Cheddar, grated
Parmesan, grated
Flour tortillas

Heat up the butter - medium heat - in a spacious pan.
Add onion, pepper, and garlic and let it get at it but not too long.
Add mushrooms and spin it around a few times.
Let all that brew about a minute maybe two...
Add broccoli. You may have some bigger pieces you need to cut up smaller.
Add just a healthy splash, or two if you feel it, of spring water.
At this point, turn the heat up till you see a bubble in the juice, then turn it all the way down to warm.
Now add your shaken flour/milk jar to thicken the gravy.
Stir it around well.
You may need to add some salt - I did.

Now quesadilla it up!

Butter in a skillet, tortilla down - I always flip mine after the one side heats up so both sides are hot.

Cheeses it, veg it, fold in half and let each side crisp to your liking.

There will be juice! 

This will interfere with your crunch!

Be cautious and either enjoy the juiciness or use a paper towel or baking grate to allow drip-off.

I serve mine with sour cream.

YUM!

Slaw for Fish Tacos

Cabbage sliced very thin

Not my tacos.....

Onion sliced very thin
Diced Jalepenos
Chopped Cilantro
ACV
Raspberry Jam
Lime Juice

Ok, YOU have to decide how much you want, so........
I used about a quarter wedge of a small cabbage, intending to have enough for 6 large-ish soft tacos.
I likewise used about a quarter of a small onion... not too much. Onion can overpower when it's raw.
I had about half of a left-over chopped fresh jalepeno so I tossed that in there too.
And then a nice handful of fresh cilantro.

Then, in a sufficient bowl, pour in - I'm thinkin' about 3 to 4 tablespoons of ACV, about a quarter cup raspberry jam, and the juice of half a fresh lime. Spin that around till the jam is all dissolved.

Then.... Add all that other stuff and tossed it around carefully, coating all the veggies so that the acid gets in there and "cooks" your slaw to perfection.
Ok don't panic, all it does is break down the veggies a little.

Give it a taste. If it needs something, add it. More vinegar? More jam? More cilantro?
Don't be scerd!

Once it's like you like it, put it in the fridge till its Taco Time!
There is a very strict law that says you may NOT use this for any other purposes than FISH TACOS.

Please use caution and don't get caught by a "friend" or "neighbor" or even supposed "family member" who'll dial that number and turn your ass in without thinking twice!

Have a taco and lighten up........ I'm full of it and I know it. LMAO!

Sugar Substitute #SugarSubstitute

Oooooo! 

I bet you're all excited to find the 

NEWEST ! 

FAB-EST !

Substitute for sugar because your doctor told you, you can't have sugar anymore!!! 

Right??

Well.......

SORRY!

I just wanted to let everyone know what a great sugar sub jelly and jam is!

I discovered this in a moment of desperation in the middle of cooking one evening. I was gonna try to take a shortcut but my cheffy-senses just wouldn't let me be! I needed a SAUCE and I needed a good one.

So I chopped up some crystallized ginger, that I had used only a bit of for air sickness, and then proceeded to go thru the fridge for something else that tasted right in this sauce.

Pears.

Of course!

And..... grape jelly???

Yes!

All I needed was the SUGAR in the jelly, not the grapes. So I separated them.

(don't be ridiculous..... I'm a freestyle recipeanist, not a chemist!)

No but really, you can't taste the grape for the sugar. You only taste the grape in grape jelly when you want to, like if you know you're eating a PB&J....

So it worked great! Candied ginger, dash of ACV, dash of soy sauce, finely chopped pear, and grape jelly! 

Simmered over low heat until a little bubbly..... 

BAM - Sweet & sour.

Great sauce for Asian food.... Such as egg rolls. Which is what I needed sauce for.

YUM!

Jellies and jams incorporate well into just about anything that needs a sweet spot. 

It also enhances a fruit flavor or actual fruit you may already be using, rather than just plain ole sugar.

But mostly, it's just handy to know when you're caught out there in a pinch like I was!

Do It Freestyle
Throw caution to the wind
And everything else in the bowl!

Fake Chicken Tacos

Ok so here's a simple one.

Not my actual taco.

"Back in the day" before I realized that I could NOT eat meat and not die (like everyone makes you believe when you're afraid to think for yourself.... I digress...)
I used to love me some chicken tacos from Taco Bell! That chicken!

Well I FINALLY did it the way I wanted to instead of rushing thru a quick "damn I'm hongry!  herry up!" chicken taco.
As always, Gardein brand fake chicken strips. I got the terryaki this time and just put the sauce in the freezer for another time.
So....

• Gardein Chicken Strips
• Bearitos Taco Seasoning
• Frank's Buffalo Sauce
• Butter
• Garlic cloves
• Fresh Jalapeno
• Soft Taco Shells
• Grated Cheese
• Tomato
• Sour Cream
• Lettuce 
• Salsa optional
• Black Beans optional

So I melted a generous cube of butter, dumped the whole bag o'chicken strips - minus the sauce pouch! - into that pan, and cooked it on a medium heat till it started to thaw good and get a little brown sizzle on it, 

While that was a'sizzlin I smashed about 3 cloves of garlic, ya know.... just to be healthy and all. Put that in there to sizzle and also a chopped jalapeno, then started to chop up that softened chicken with my spatch (ula). 

Let it sizzle and get that flavor for a minute or two, turned the heat down JUST a tad, then sprinkled some Taco Seasoning over them chicken nuggets. Not the whole pouch, just a good healthy dusting. Mixed that around to coat it. Then promptly poured some Frank's in the pan and mixed it around so's the taco powder doesn't begin to stick and burn. 

Use as much Frank's as you want but make sure you realize this - My recipe here calls for a long slow simmer and this fake chicken WILL soak up that liquid! You don't (I assume) want it to burn, so pay attention!

Now don't OVER compensate and add too much. (It's a sin to waste Frank's!!! And you will go to hell for it....! js.....) You can always add more in a little while.

It's real simple - The key to every locked door in life is to just pay attention!

I must've let it simmer on REAL low for about an hour.

Then when it's eatin' time - to make it like a chicken soft taco from The Bell - I just warmed up a soft taco shell, put cheese on it, chicken, sour cream, tomatoes and lettuce. (I like mine supremed). I also added a little bit of salsa in mine just for the juiciness.

OMFnG!!!!

Now one other version that I also made that night was to use a hard tostada shell, warmed of course, add cheese, black beans, chicken, sour cream, and a touch of salsa.

DAYUM! on that one too!!!

Yall gotta try this if you love tacos!

Whether you're a meat eater or not, you will love this.

¡Buen provecho!