Ingredients:


1lb of Cauliflower
1 lb of Red potatoes
2 lb of Ranchers Reserve Beef Check Mock Tender Roast (pre seasoned in a bag found at Safeway)
4 tblsp of Butter
4 large Garlic cloves
1/2 cup Grated parmesan cheese
2 tblsp Olive oil
1 tblsp Every Day Seasoning (a must for every pantry, found at Trader Joes)

Substitute for Every Day Seasoning:
A combo of dashes of- Onion powder, Black Pepper, Celery Seed, Cayenne Pepper, Parsley, Basil, Marjoram, Bay Leaf, Oregano, Thyme, Savory, Rosemary, Cumin, Mustard, Coriander, Garlic, Carrot, Orange Peel, Tomato Granules, Lemon Juice Powder, Oil of  Lemon, and Citric Acid.


Prep Process:


Step 1: Pre Heat oven to 475 
Step 2: Cut potatoes into fourths creating 1 inch wedges, stick into a medium bowl and pour olive oil over, mixing together with the seasoning. Make sure potatoes are evenly coated.

Step 3: Cut cauliflower into large florets 

Step 4: Place butter into a microwaveable dish, crush garlic over it, then place in the microwave until butter is melted (about 15 seconds)

Step 5: Lay potatoes and cauliflower in a baking dish and pour melted butter/garlic mixture evenly over them

Step 6: Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the dish 

Step 7: Place the roast and the potato/cauliflower dish in the oven to bake for 45 minutes, the potatoes and cauliflower take a bit longer to cook so check back every so often to switch them on the racks.

Step 8: Remove when roast reaches an internal temperature of 120 degrees and is pink and juicy in the center. Potato/Cauliflower dish should have a nice golden brown, melted cheese layer on top

Overall rating: 10 out of 10
Left over potential: 8 out of 10
Total prep/bake time: 1-1.5 hours
Level of complicity: Beginner
Kitchen mess aftermath: Minimal
Boyfriend Approval: 2 thumbs up

You Know What They Say About Big Woks...

Ingredients:


1 Green bell pepper
1/2 Red bell pepper 
1 Red onion 
2 Carrots 
5 Garlic cloves 
1 lb of fresh broccoli  
3/4 lb of lean beef
1 cup of cashews
Sauce- House Of Tsang Specialty Food Szechwan Stir Fry - 11.5 Oz (found at Safeway)
or make your own Schezwan sauce: 
1/4 cup sesame oil
3-4 whole red peppers
3/4 onions-chopped fine
1 tbsp garlic
1 tbsp ginger
1/2 tsp chilli powder
2 tbsp corn flour mixed in a cup of water
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp soya sauce
1 tsp chilli sauce
1 tsp salt




Prep Process:
Step 1: Slice bell peppers into 2 inch strips length wise
Step 2: Chop onion into one inch pieces
Step 3: Peel carrot, then cut into thin circles
Step 4: Finely chop garlic cloves

Step 5: Cut the flowerets of broccoli into edible sized pieces

Step 6: Thinly slice beef against the grain, then marinade for 30 minutes...or while your veggies are cooking if you do not have time or did not remember to marinade before hand

If you are making your own sauce...
Step 1: Grind together the onions, garlic and ginger.
Step 2: Heat the oil in a wok add the whole red peppers and saute over high heat till they darken a bit. Add the onions, garlic and ginger and stir-fry over high heat till glossy.
Step 3: Add the corn flour mixture and bring to a boil
Step 4: Lower the heat and add the chili powder, vinegar, soya sauce, chilli sauce and salt and mix well
Step 5: Cook till well blended (1/2 minute) and use



Cooking process:


Step 1: Heat 3 tbl spoons of olive oil into a medium pan on high heat, add slices of beef cook until brown (1-2 minutes), then set aside 

Step 2: Add all veggies into a large wok (make sure not to overheat the wok, medium high is hot enough)
Step 3: Saute veggies with the schezwan sauce until evenly coated

Step 4: Once veggies are cooked, add the beef and cashews, being careful to stir constantly...thus STIR fry

Note: if veggies are not cooking fast enough, add the lid to speed it up for about 5 minutes. 

Overall rating: 8 out of 10

Left over potential: 7 out of 10
Total prep/bake time: 30 minutes

Level of complicity: Beginner
Kitchen mess aftermath: Minimal
Boyfriend Approval: 1 thumb up...we ran out of the pre-made sauce and my attempt at homemade schezwan was not up to par

Daily Deals to the Rescue!

Cooking impaired? Pressed for time? Planning for a dinner party? Well, daily deal site Living Social is here to give you a hand. For only $24 you will get totally hooked up with all the works to make a gourmet 3 course meal fit for a king. 


Here is the deal description off of Living Social: 


If autumn is about anything, it's about the harvest -- a cornucopia of fresh food that begs for a role in your next dinner party. But if you're like us, your kitchen skills could use some refining. Spend just $24 on today's deal and Style & Entertaining will dish out their Gourmet Dinner Kit (a $50 value). The kit includes the pre-measured herbs, spices, and other dry ingredients needed to prepare a gourmet three-course meal, plus a shopping list for the additional fresh ingredients. To entertain in style, you'll also receive scent-free votive candles, custom invitations and envelopes, high-quality place cards, elegant menu cards, cocktail napkins, and luxurious paper dinner napkins. Learn to establish your wine style as well: The Gourmet Dinner Kit comes with easy-to-follow instructions on selecting and serving well-paired vino. Find your inner celebrity chef and enjoy a home-cooked meal with your friends. Grab this deal and reap the harvest.

Legit. What will they think of next?

Romantic Nacho Dinner Date Night

Double Decker Nachos

Ahhh nacho night! This tradition began as a romantic dinner for two on a rooftop with a bottle of wine and some candles. The beauty of San Francisco is that most of the buildings are hosts to some of the most spectacular rooftops making star gazing and romantic nacho dinner dates that more special. Unfortunately our newest home does not have an accessible rooftop, so we settled in front of the tv to watch the Giants face off against the Padres in the race for entry into the playoffs. Romantic? Not so much. But absolutely delicious none the less. Extremely easy prep and short cooking time.




Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 onion diced
1 green Pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley
2 medium jalapenos
1 large tomato diced
1 package of pre made guacamole (Wholly Guacamole is awesome, found at Safeway)
1 container of light sour cream
2 cups shredded cheese
1/2 bag of tortilla chips (we use Casa Sanchez thick and crispy...heaven)


Prep Process:


Step 1: Preheat oven to 350
Step 2: Prep veggies

• Dice 1/2 onion into 1/2inch pieces
• Slice green pepper into 1inch strips then cut cross ways to make 1-1 1/2 inch pieces
• Chop several leaves of parsley (to be sprinkled casually onto nachos)
• Cut tomato into 1 inch pieces
• Cut jalapenos into sections then dice finely...this is where the Slap Chop performs like a champ

Step 3: Cook ground beef in a medium pan on medium high heat until meat is brown
Step 4: Layer chips on the bottom of a casserole dish

Step 5: Add a layer of meat, onions, peppers, jalapenos, cheese, and parsley

Step 6: Lay down another layer of tortilla chips on top of that and repeat Step 5 adding more cheese as desired

Step 7: Place in the oven and bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted
Step 8: Remove from oven and add a layer of diced tomatoes, pour the package of guacamole on top and spoon the desired amount of sour cream over that.

Overall rating: 10 out of 10

Left over potential: Unless you like soggy nachos...4 out of 10
Total prep/bake time: 30 minutes

Level of complicity: Beginner
Kitchen mess aftermath: Minimal
Boyfriend Approval: 2 thumbs up


The Key to a Man's Heart is Through His Stomach

Asparagus and Ham Casserole

Alrighty, so here is the first recipe post on The Delicious Life. Normally the process I go through is fairly simple and common to what most people do when searching for new recipes. Popular sites such as Sunset Magazine and My Recipes are the ones I frequent and for the most part feature fairly simple and delicious recipes. This one caught my attention right off the bat with the simple word "ham". Now I have nothing against religious practices that think pigs are dirty animals and forbid consumption of any food containing parts of it, but I must make a point to say that I really do believe that you are missing out on life if bacon is not a regular part of your diet. That being said, this dish is of course malleable in the sense that the ham can be substituted for chicken and the asparagus can be replaced with broccoli. After I read some reviews from other people commenting on their experience with this dish, I realized a lot needed to be done to rescue it from becoming too bland and undesirable to picky eaters.


Remember the key to cooking from a recipe is to READ the whole thing first. There may be steps that need to be done in a certain order or techniques that need to be properly executed. Personally, I like to prep veggies and such first, placing them all into separate bowls/measuring cups to make the process more efficient and less prone to mistakes.


This being the first post and all, I am still experimenting with the style of how I will present these cooking adventures and the recipes to accompany them, so bare with me and feel free to comment and make suggestions. Here are the original ingredients I found on My Recipes: 

• 1  (1-ounce) slice white bread (to be later put into a food processor to make breadcrumbs)
• 3 3/4  cups  uncooked extra-broad egg noodles
• 2 1/2  cups  (1 1/2-inch) sliced asparagus
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  cup  whole milk
• 1  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  tablespoon  butter
• 3/4  cup  finely chopped onion
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2  cups  (1/2-inch) cubed ham (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2  tablespoons  grated fresh Parmesan cheese

And here is my (much tastier) version with pictures to give you an idea of what the process should look like

• 1  cup of Panko Plain breadcrumbs...gives it an extra crunch and takes out the time to make breadcrumbs yourself
• 2 1/2  cups  (1 1/2-inch) sliced asparagus 
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  cup  2%  milk to make the sauce a bit more creamy
• 1  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  tablespoon  butter
• 1  cup  finely chopped onion
• 3 Large cloves of garlic minced (TIP: for stubborn cloves that refuse to peel properly, zap in the microwave for no more than 5 seconds and the skin peels right off)
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice (I forgot to do this, could potentially be a nice addition)
• 1 1/2  cups  (1/2-inch) cubed ham (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (I probably put a little more in than this, not recommended) 
• Grated fresh Parmesan and Asiago cheese (just pour it in to your hearts content, I probably did 1/2 cup each) 

Prep Process:

Step 1: Preheat oven to 450 (Always preheat your oven first so it heats while you are prepping)

Step 2: Prep your veggies

• 
  
  Cut Asapargus into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces and set aside

• 
  
  Finely chop half of a large onion...yes this is the magical Slap Chop and yes it really does work, just not with  tomatoes, I do not reccomend doing that.

• 
  
  Mince 3 large cloves of garlic...you can use the Slap Chop on this one too, works wonders.
• 
  
  Finely chop 1/4 cup of flat leaf parsley

This is flat leaf parsley in case you weren't sure

Step 3: Start boiling a pot of water for the pasta to cook in, omit salt for all you health conscious people

Step 4: Cube the ham into 1/2 inch pieces

Step 5: Once the water is boiling, pour the pasta in and let cook for about 5-7 minutes

Step 6: While that pasta is cooking, start prepping your flour/milk mixture

• 
  
  Lightly spoon 1/4 cup of flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife.
• 
  
  Place flour, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp  pepper in medium bowl
• 
  
  Gradually add milk and broth, stirring with a whisk until well-blended. The key here is to keep whisking while pouring the milk/broth mixture in. I have messed up on this before and it ends up clumpy and unusable. Its ok if you do not get it right the first time, practice makes perfect!

Step 7: This is about the time when your pasta will be cooked, add the pieces of asparagus
 and cook for only ONE minute then drain the pasta/asparagus and set aside

Step 8: Melt 1tblsp of butter in a medium sauce pan on medium high heat then add the onions and garlic sauting until fragrant, about 5 minutes

Step 9: Add milk mixture (you may need to whisk it again for a few seconds), stiring constantly until thick, about 5-7 minutes depending on the percentage milk you used. Again, this is tricky for people who have never made a milk/flour based sauce. It is really easy to burn or ruin this by not stiring constantly.



This is the sauce when you first pour in the mixture



This is the sauce as it starts to thicken

Step 10: Remove the sauce from heat...this is the part where I was supposed to add the lemon juice...oops!

Step 11: Combine the pasta mixture, milk mixture, ham, asiago cheese and parsley into a large bowl

Step 12: Spoon it all into a casserole dish and sprinkle with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese.

Step 13: Bake at 450° for 10-15 minutes until filling is bubbly and topping is a gorgeous 
golden color.

Step 14: 5 minute warning! Tell your significant other/kids to stop playing video games and
 set the table

Step 15: Bon Appetit!

 My favorite thing about dishes like casseroles is that you put all the ingredients together, stick it in the oven, let it get happy, and you're done! I cleaned up the kitchen in the time it took to bake so we would not have worry about the mess after dinner.


The boyfriend went back for seconds and it made good leftovers. The asparagus however did not reheat very well and I probably would use more ham next time. The original reviews were right, it can be somewhat bland and I tried my best to make it really stand out. It is a great meal for a week night when you will need leftovers for the next couple days. I almost liked it better the afternoon after.

Overall rating: 7 out of 10
Left over potential: 8 out of 10
Total prep/bake time: less than 1 hour, about 45 minutes
Level of complicity: Novice
Kitchen mess aftermath: Moderate
Boyfriend Approval: 2 thumbs up
Wine pairing suggestion: Chardonnay, Beringer has a nice balance of citrus and melon notes which are complemented by a good balance of acidity. On the cheap, affordable side less than $10 at Safeway

 Original recipe Nutritional Facts:

Calories:250 (26% from fat)

Fat: 7.1g (sat 3.4g,mono 2.4g,poly 0.7g)

Protein: 16g

Carbohydrate: 30.9g

Fiber: 2.7g

Cholesterol: 52mg

Iron: 2.6mg

Sodium: 835mg

Calcium: 114mg