what is bok choy anyway?

so, what is that stuff hiding in your "chicken and assorted vegetables" that tastes a bit like radish and a bit like, well, water? it's bok choy my friend and you should become better acquainted. in the store it looks a bit like a rhubarb ran off with a swiss chard, bright white stalks and dark greens. in the wok i've learned to divide and conquer, slice it all up, separate the stalk from the leaves. add the stalks first with your other veggies that require a bit more cooking and the leaves at the end, when everything else is almost done. it's great with ginger, the radishy taste really likes fresh ginger for some reason, and it's good all by it's self or with a mixed stir fry. then there's our little buddy, baby bok choy. to tell the truth it's almost a completely different veggie, small bright spring green bundles of tender leaves. my favorite thing to do with a baby bok choy is cut it in half length wise and sear it on my griddle with a smidge of oil and a sprinkle of salt. fresh ginger would not go amiss here either, but i find it has plenty of flavor on it's own. just don't over cook it, big or baby, it becomes a somewhat slimy mess. this is not all that hard to avoid, keep an eye on the leaves, they should just start to wilt when it's done. so, steam some rice, pour some voinger, and enjoy!

chicken cordon... cottage

alrighty, this one is so easy it's almost silly to blog it. so it turns out i'm brewing thing three right now, and being 6 weeks pregnant is not fun for me. my precious food tends to turn on me in a serious way for the first 4 months or so. my solution? a dinner i hardly have to touch in it's raw elements so that i will still want to eat it by the time it hits the table. the basic staple here: IQF chicken breasts. literally Individually Quickly Frozen. i can grab as many as i need, throw them in a pan and cook from frozen if i need to. these were partially thawed, for the record. preheat the oven to 375, place the chicken in a baking pan (glass is favorite) in a single layer, brush a little dijon mustard on each breast, top with sliced ham, then finish with a slice of swiss cheese. cover with foil and bake for about 35-40 minutes, depending on if they're still on the frozen side or not. et vio la, chicken that any decent french chef would be ashamed of: and yet, quite tasty.

vegetable modesty and nutrition

you may have noticed that i rarely write "peeled" carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, etc. there is a reason for this. it is largely agreed that the bulk of the nutrients that make veggies so good for you are in the skins. also they add texture and flavor to what you're cooking, besides which by the time you're done dicing, cooking, and otherwise obliterating your ingredients, a littel carrot skin doesn't stand out. so, go a head let your veggies keep their clothes on, it'll serve you well. personally i like my mashed potatoes better when i leave the skin on about half of the potatoes during the cooking process, and so does my husband. for tougher items like tomato skin, dice the raw fruit smaller so the pieces that survive will be easier to deal with. go ahead and scrub your carrots, just be sure to leave the skin on, there's alot of good stuff in there. if you want to serve an extra pretty side dish of glazed carrots, go ahead and peel away, but remember you can save those peelings along with the tops and tips to make broth for soup. and by the way "baby" carrots are just chunks of big carrots that have been tumbled to remove the skin and soften the cut edges. it's a scam and a misnomer, don't let them fool you.