Tuesday, November 24, 2015

What's on YOUR menu for Thanksgiving?

As I've gotten older, my interest in cooking (and food in general) has exponentially increased and since 2-3 years ago, I have become the designated cook for Thanksgiving! For a family of 5 people (usually 4 since my dad is working), it's been pretty simple. During the beginning, we didn't bake a turkey since my mom wasn't a fan and we were satisfied with a Steak substitute, but this year, my mom and I are really fired up! During this year's Thanksgiving, my dad is going to be home for the Holidays so we decided to really make a variety of stuff!

Is there anything that is traditional for you and your family during Thanksgiving? We celebrate the Korean Harvest Day in October and make that the major one, (and it's really traditional for us), so this 2nd Thanksgiving for us is room to explore new dishes and stuff!

This year, I have in mind these following dishes:

  • Garlic Mashed Potatoes
  • Sauteed Asparagus with Almonds (may substitute asparagus for string beans though. Haven't decided yet.)
  • Spinach Mac n Cheese
  • Stuffed Pasta Shells
  • Stuffed Mushrooms
  • Either Fried or Pan Fried Shrimp
  • Stuffing
  • Quinoa salad
  • Pan Roasted Cauliflower
  • Individual Beef Wellington
  • Roasted Potatoes, Onions and Carrots
  • Oven baked Turkey (brined for 24+ hrs)
  • Ratatouille
  • Simple Salad
  • Creamed Corn Shrimp
  • Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
  • Sweet Potato Casserole
  • Panna Cotta
  • Orange Cranberry Sauce
  • Apple Tart or Cobbler... maybe neither, but def everything above this one. ;)
Probably so much food for 5 people, but I swear, it's gonna disappear within the next few days, maybe week 1/2. I just finished shopping and holy cow!! So many people!! Ahhaha. I'll be starting my cooking tonight, so for those of you doing the same, LETS DO THIS!

Are there any correlating dishes here with what you're planning to cook? If not, what do you guys plan on making this Thanksgiving? Share with me your amazing ideas in the comment section down below! :)


Happy Eatings everyone!

Friday, November 20, 2015

Lobster Salad Recipe

Doesn't it suck when you go out to restaurants and leave a tad disappointed or feel like you didn't get the bang for your buck? I get that feeling often with lobster dishes. In many restaurants, the lobster dish barely had any lobster.................. Granted, there are so many reasons for limiting how much a guest gets for expensive ingredients, but it still sucks. I mean, honestly... who wouldn't want a little bit more of the good stuff? When I had brunch with my boyfriend this past summer, I ordered Ensalada de Langosta and I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor and the spiciness it packed! However, I honestly felt like the dish could have had a few more pieces of lobster. And for $26, the portion was a bit smaller than expected.
The Lobster Salad I had at Calle Ocho
When I went to the supermarket recently, a sale was going on for lobsters and I thought I'd try recreating the dish! It was my first attempt, but I'm VERY satisfied with the results. It's refreshing, clean and cool with a slight kick to it - and there's a substantial amount of lobster too. The original dish uses Green Papaya, but since I was unable to attain that fruit, I substituted it with cucumbers! Please enjoy and I hope you have wonderful results too!!!

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Smoked Salmon Benedict Spaghetti + Recipe



Hello my fellow Brunchers!

I am here to share with you all the fantastic news of the Smoked Salmon Benedict Spaghetti. I was totally feeling like making a Smoked Salmon Benedict recently but after making the hollaindaise sauce and poaching the eggs, I realized I didn't have any english muffins or toast... just no bread at all (which was a shocker for a bread lover like me). So then I digged through the refrigerator to find some leftover spaghetti noodles that my lovely mother had cooked previously. I stared at it for a little while and decided why the heck not? It became my substitute and I dumped everything together. THAT, my friends, was the best freaking decision ever. I mean, Carbonara works beautifully on its own, but this random ass decision (which can be considered Carbonara's cousin) totally does too.