Has Kevin Been in the Kitchen????

The answer is....
Yes and No!

I've been in the kitchen cooking but I have a new schedule I am trying to get used to. So while I've been cooking...I haven't really been doing anything interesting.

Most of you know what has happened to me. Having been unemployed for 15 months was tough. But doing this blog helped me think about other things than not being able to contribute money to the family income.

Then in March I got a job with a major beverage company who have a call center here in town. I didn't like it as the pay wasn't very good and the hours were terrible. I had to cook dinner in the morning and didn't feel I could be creative or even somewhat experimental in the morning as what I made had to be reheated as if it were leftovers. It cramped my style.

Then 6 weeks into that job I got a call from a company for a job I had applied to 10 months prior. It is in the field for which I have over 20 years experience and the pay and hours were much more to my liking. So I am trying to settle into a new schedule.

What's great about it is that I can actually start cooking like I used to and hopefully I can be a little more creative with what I make. One little caveat though...my son is being more careful about what he is eating (low fat, low calorie) since he is trying to lose weight and get into better shape (Keep it up son!) and then my daughter is expecting our 2nd grandchild and her food tastes have been changed (for now).

Anyway, enough about me (the reason I haven't been active in doing this blog) and on to something better....food.

My family and I love Chinese food. Recently we went to one of our favorite Chinese restaurants. Fortunately (or unfortunately) it is more than 35 miles away from where we live. So it was a really nice treat. One of the appetizers we got were for lettuce wraps. So I tried to duplicate it. I think it turned out pretty good. Here is a picture of it.

I made a side of shrimp fried rice (well the rice isn't really fried, but it still tastes great). Nothing too special there. Here are the recipes.

Well. hopefully now that things are a little more settled in life I'll be in the kitchen more and back to my somewhat foodie life. And, I hope to get back into the swing of being on my blog.

In the meantime, try this recipe and leave me a comment if and when you do. Tell your friends about this blog, share your recipes with me. Follow me and like me on Facebook.

I'll be in the kitchen again soon!

A fish tale

A recenttly discovered and un-authorized version of a story in Genesis:

Now the Etheridge had said unto Townsley, "Get thee out of thy county, and away from thy neighbor, and away from thy house. Thou shalt sojourn through a foreign land called Geo-Rgia and a city called Sava-Nnah where the inhabitants speak an unknown tongue and their food is flowing with grits and fried green tomatoes. Speak to no one and with haste make thy way unto another foreign land called Flor-Ida inhabited both by the aged and all manner of young and foreigners. I wilt show thy family of a great city called Orl-Ando. And I will make of thee a mouseketeer, and I will make thee glad, and thy name great among the kingdom of magic. I will make for you a villa of blue and white in a land flowing with mouse ears and duck. And in this kingdom and in all the earth you will be happy."

Or something like that....

Last year, we had the pleasure of going to Disney World. First time we had ever been there. Disneyland, many times since I grew up in L.A. and lived there with my family until the mid 1990's (and my job swept me away to a new and frigid land...Chicagoland...which is a fun place to live too, but much colder in the winter and no Disneyland or Disneyworld).

Anyhoo, Our son-in-law's parents...or our daughter's in-laws (not quite sure how to in-law them to us....'rents-in-laws?) asked us to go to Disneyworld with them as they have a vacation package. So we accepted and made the trek to Orlando. We had high expectations of sunning on the deck of the villa or playing on the man-made beaches around some of the resorts, but alas, Florida had a cold spell and we were vastly underdressed.

The first night we were there we ate a a cafe on the resort. It was called Olivia's Cafe and was a great choice (thanks Debbie for lining up all the food/eating options for us). I wasn't sure what to eat because the menu had some really great choices but I finally settled on their Coconut Crusted Mahi Mahi with a Citrus Chili Glaze. It was delicious. So when we got home I had to try and copy it.

Here is my version of it:

I'm not usually a coconut kind of guy (it's a texture thing), but when it is toasted that is a different story. I also like the sweet and slight heat from the glaze that goes over the fish. Olivia's Cafe also served their fish over a bed of mashed Sweet Potatoes with some grilled Green Beans on the side. In the picture you'll see a mix of roasted Sweet and Red Potato chunks. Use your own favorite side dish to compliment the fish.

Here is the recipe:

Give this fish recipe a try and let me know what you think of it.

And, if you have any recipes you want to share with me and see posted on this site go ahead and send me the recipe, where you got it from, why you and your family enjoy it and I will give it a try and post it on this blog.

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Above all, tell your friends about this site. The more we get your friends and family involved, there more fun this will get. Thanks for all your support. Please leave comments as I would love to know what you think about what you see.

Soups On!

Well, winter is finally here in Winston-Salem. I know for some of you it has already arrived and for some it has arrived with a vengeance.

However, in our household anytime the temperature dips below 60 degrees that means several things:
1) The cotton and/or microfiber sheets are replaced with flannel sheets (not my choice!)
2) The pilot light is lit on the fireplace (not my choice!), and,
3) Our sustenance now comes from soup.

My wife grew up in Northern Ireland and they lived on soups and stews. Don't get me wrong I like soup just like the next person, but not 4 or 5 times a week like my wife would prefer at this time of year.

The good thing about soups though, is that they are relatively easy and quick to make. You just dump a bunch of stuff in a stock pot and turn the stove-top on (or crockpot) and let it simmer away.

The soup that I am featuring today is my copy-cat recipe of a soup we love from one of our favorite Italian Grills (here's a hint...let see if you can get it...it is s'abbarraC). It is my version of their Italian Sausage Lentil Soup.

Doesn't this look delicious? Well it is...so there!

It is a hearty and filling soup. We love it with fresh crusty bread (as we do with all soups we eat).

Here is my copy-cat recipe:

Give it a try and let me know what you think of it.

I'm sure we will be eating more soups as the "winter" months go on here in Winston-Salem. Enjoy your winter months wherever you are. Keep warm and well fed!

Until next time, I'll be in the kitchen.