Shredded Pork and Rice Brunch Burritos

Inspired by Rachel Ray - adjusted to meet the needs and available ingredients of the day, these burritos were so Quick and Easy, and would likely remain so regardless of whether you had various pieces pre-made in the freezer.

A quick reheat of 1 cup of Rice Pilaf. A simple saute of Bell Peppers (or using 1 cup frozen veggies), followed by the scrambling of 4 eggs, the reheating of 1 cup Shredded Pork, the Chopping of one Tomato and the assembly of 2 large Burrito-Tortillas is all it takes to enjoy a filling, nutritious Sunday Brunch between writing MAED papers and banging your head against the wall ^.^

Red Curry Soup-ness

There's no real reason I should post this as a recipe...

This is one of those times I just need to make a 'mental'/blog note regarding what I've done that is semi-successful when I have random foodstuff in the fridge.

I'm not talented with premade things...hence, soup-ness, it shouldn't have been so soupy...oh well.  It was edible...that's what matters at the end of a long day.

I wanted my veggies (cabbage, bell peppers, onions) to have a bit more character than normal so I prepared them using the same method I did here and then set them aside on a plate.

Heat a bit of oil in a pan, add 1-2 Tbsp. red curry paste and mix. 

Dump in a can of Coconut Milk (I also use a small bit of water to get the extra coconut milk off the tin can insides...so a half cup tin of water contributes to soupiness).

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, throw in some shrimps - 1-2 cups, heat through, add veggies, a touch of fish sauce if you have it on hand, heat through and serve over brown rice.  You'll enjoy it...I'm sure.

Kimbap in a Pinch

Kimbap is Korea's version of a sushi roll...but not really because Korea is not Japan and sushi is Japanese. So kimbap is a Korean snack/quick dish of rice and things wrapped in seaweed. Typical Korean Kimbap includes ham, egg, pickled radish and other non-Japanese style additions. It's cheap and perfect for so many situations.

Once, in desperate need of a quick dinner, a Korean friend recommended a twist on traditional kimbap...I'm calling it Kimbap in a Pinch.

Like all foods I truly, truly love, this can be adjusted and played with to create some great fusion style eats....here's the basic and a couple of variations I've had some success with ^.^

Prepare rice. White rice. (One cup of un-prepared rice will be enough for about 4 rolls once it's been properly prepared).

Mix in mayonnaise, a touch of sesame oil, drained tuna fish, a veggie of choice (I used bell peppers), and some sesame seeds.

Spread onto a sheet of seaweed ('kim' in Korea, 'nori' elsewhere).

Roll, cut, eat.

Variations~Mix-In:

• Mayonnaise, chopped tomato, chopped bacon, salt and pepper (B.S.T. - Bacon, seaweed and tomato) Quite amazing, trust me.
• Pesto and chopped tomato -- received the most raves at a recent gathering
• Mayonnaise or a touch of salsa/hot sauce, black beans, corn and tomatoes -- haven't tried this, could be a total fail.
• Hard-boiled and chopped egg, mayonnaise, salt and pepper (think egg salad in a sheet of seaweed) -- also, haven't tried but definitely think there's potential!
• Whatever you can think of! Kimbap is the new sandwich my friends, go out, experiment and have a grand ole time.

Udon with 'Poached' Egg and Veggies

This was uh-mazing. And easy.
Pinterest Inspired.
Original Recipe here - from the Kitchn

Ingredients/Directions:

2 cups of water per Udon Noodle package -- if you're using the one such as that pictured in the bottom right of the above collage. Bring water to a boil then add Udon Noodles, cook 3-4 minutes or until near done. Throw in chopped cabbage, cover with a lid and let cabbage cook/steam for 1-2 minutes.  Mix in sauce packets from Udon Noodle package (soy and such) then carefully put a raw egg (in this case 2) into the boiling water, let it cook until set, dish into bowls, sprinkle on some green onion and enjoy!

Spanish Rice and Shrimp

Starting to use some of my pre-made freezer goods since I've been living in the uncomfortable space that is two MAED courses simultaneously (we've also eaten a TON of fried chicken...don't judge) Regardless, having food stuff ready and waiting in the freezer is awesome when I want to have somebody over, eat something relatively fresh and home-made and want to get to work on my MAED in a reasonable amount of time.

So, October saw the creation of Rachel Ray's Spanish Rice and Shrimp - a simple, simple compilation of:

4 cups Rice Pilaf, heated in 2 Tbsp. EVOO, set aside in a bowl.
4 cloves Garlic, chopped plus 1 lb. Deveined, Peeled Shrimp and 1 Tsp. Paprika heated in same skillet as Rice Pilaf.
1 cup Tomato Sauce and 1 cup Roasted Peppers added unto the Shrimp mixture and heated through.
Pilaf returned to the pan, mixed, heated served with Parsley (if available) and lemon wedges.

Enjoy with friends and a glass of home-made wine or any wine should do.

Unstuffed Pepper Soup

I quite enjoy stuffed peppers, however I tend to be impatient and too much of a procrastinator to actually make them happen.  Not to mention, I really have a thing for soups. I don't remember any quantities or anything of an exact nature in regards to this dish, but this blog is primarily for personal records and as a source of inspiration to those folks who find a random assortment of whatnot waiting in their fridge...

You may remember when I took a day to prepare some foods once-a-month-style so that doubling up on my Master's wouldn't be deadly? Well, I used one cup of that Tomato Sauce in addition to home-made chicken broth and a cup of Cold Chaser Tea to provide the base for this dish. That of course was after sauteing Onion, Bell Pepper, Jalapeno and Garlic in a touch of olive oil. I also had some corn lying around, so threw that in the pot and soaked up all the excess liquid by throwing in some rice I cooked up quickly in the rice cooker. Season with salt and pepper, serve with cheese and sour cream if you're so lucky and enjoy as part of a Monday night dinner with a good friend and someone you love - they'll probably devour it all ^.^

Pesto Egg Baguettes

At Costco recently, I just so happened across LaBrea Demi-Baguettes, which I had learned, from my dear friend Holly, are an item to be treasured.  So, at just under 7,000 won, I picked up a bag of 6 and got to brainstorming the best uses for these delectable little morsels.  With brainstorming came images once gathered on Pinterest and before you could spell LaBrea Demi-Baguettes in Hanguel (the Korean alphabet), I had these Pesto Egg Baguettes in the oven!

Ingredients/Directions:

Slice the top third or so off of a demi-baguette, scoop out the innards from the bottom 2/3's of the bread and munch on this while completeing the other tasks...Spread some prepared Pesto into the hollowed out bread (you could also use rolls or bowls), sprinkle a bit of Mozzarella cheese in side and top with a raw egg.  Place baguette boats into an oven of 350 and bake for approximately 20 minutes until the egg white has set. Last 5 minutes sprinkle on some more Mozzarella if you enjoy cheese, remove from oven, pour a glass of wine and enjoy my friend!