Roasted Vegetables

My first time cooking and eating yellow zucchini. I love it. The yellow zucchini is the yellow one with the green stem. 

Toss everything with oil.

Ingredients

• 1 green zucchini 
• 1 yellow zucchini
• 1 yellow squash
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 large onion
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Dice all vegetables to about the same size
3. Lightly season vegetables with salt and pepper, then toss it with vegetable oil
4. Spread vegetables onto 2 baking tray and roast for about 45 minutes.

Never overload the tray with vegetables because you may end up steaming them.  I made that mistake before and I ended up with soggy vegetables. NEVER EVER roast mushroom because they are mostly water so you would end up with a soggy mess. I would saute the mushroom over the pan or you may want to roast them separately. 

I used very little salt for this dish because roasting them this way bring out the sweetness from the vegetables. I could eat them every week. Even though it was so hot during the summer, I still turn on the oven to roast the vegetables. I literally ran out of the kitchen each and every time I went in while the oven was on. It was worth it because I tried cooking the same vegetables over the stove but it was nowhere as good as roasting them. 

Turkey and fried egg sandwich

I had only 2 slices of turkey, way too little for a sandwich. I decided I would make a sandwich with a fried egg.

Ingredients

• 2 slices of turkey deli meat
• 1 egg
• a handful of spinach
• 2 Monterrey Jack cheese (or any melty cheese)
• 2 slices of slightly toasted bread
• Vegetable oil
• salt and pepper to taste

 Direction

1. While egg is frying, place one slice of cheese on one toast. 
2. Place egg on cheese, then fry the turkey on one side of the pan while wilt the spinach on the other side.
3. Place turkey on top of egg, then turkey, the remaining cheese and the other piece of toast.

I love my cast iron pan, the egg fry beautifully in it. The turkey brown and heat up in less then 1.5 minute. Before eating, I suggest that you get the sandwich in half because the yolk will run onto the plate and you can sop it up with the sandwich as you go along.  If you eat it whole, you may be wearing the yolk instead of sopping it with your sandwich.

I used 100% whole wheat bread to make this sandwich and it was very filling. I really like white bread but they don't keep you full for long so I am trying different kind of bread to keep myself fill for a few hours.

Pink Lemon

When I was a kid, I thought pink lemonade came from pink lemons. I was shopping at Fresh Direct and came across pink lemons so I had to get it!  This lemon is $1.49 for one but I had to get it even though it is so expensive. The smell of this lemon is actually sweet which was surprising. Too bad the smell and taste is not the same because like all lemons, it is sour.

The inside is not pink but more grapefruit color instead.

YELLOW WATERMELON!

I have been looking for yellow watermelon for years. It is so hard to find them! Yellow watermelon has a different taste and smell then the red ones. It is sweeter and many says it has a honey like taste to it.

When I mentioned this quest to my two friends, they said one of their customer always bring them whole yellow watermelons. They brought this one over for 4th of July!

So yummy!

Golden Curry Chicken with Chinese Eggplants

I love Japanese curry. I usually go for the instant ones that is already in liquid form from a pouch. I used it in my Curry Pork Cutlet recipe. However this cost less and make so much more! 

I like to try new things and was shopping at the Japanese market when I stumbled upon these sticks that is labeled "Fish Sausage."  How different can that be from the Chinese fish balls? I was so wrong! When I opened the packages, I was shocked to see that the color was bubble gum pink! They were definitely different from anything I had before, I am not so sure I will buy them again.

I cut them into bite size pieces and also added some fried tofu skin to the mix.

Ingredients

• 3 chicken breasts
• 2 Chinese eggplants
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, julienne
• 1 fish sausage (optional)
• 3 fried tofu skin (optional) 
• 1 pack Golden Curry sauce mix
• 3 cups of water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• salt and pepper to taste.

Directions

1. Cut the chicken and eggplants into bite size pieces.
2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and sear them in batches.
3. Then add the onion, peppers and eggplants, cook for about 5 minutes.
4. Add 3 cups of water and bring to a boil and lower temperature to a simmer. 
5. Break the curry cubes into pieces before adding them to the pot. As the curry cubes dissolve, the liquid will thicken significantly. 
6. Simmer for 35 minutes, stirring occasionally,
7.  Add the fish sausage and tofu skin and simmer for another 15 minutes.

Serve this over brown rice and you have a very tasty meal! Of course most of the credit goes to the curry cubes. I will still buy the instant Golden curry from the pouch but I will definitely start buying this one instead because it is so much more cost effective.

I Love Fresh Direct!

Hello all! It has been a very long time since I posted. I have been very busy with an estate cleaning, moving, settling in a new place and having a new job. I have been cooking new things but just haven't have the time and energy to post them. I absolutely miss my old neighborhood because of the Supermarket. The selection of meat and vegetables were amazing and very fresh. This new supermarket I am now currently next to is just sad! Then why did I move? I absolutely love my new spacious space and the commute is 100 times better than my old commute.

I still need to eat and correctly too! The new supermarket has nothing super in it. I don't think a lot of people here eat much fruits and vegetables. The meat selection is just scary. Since fruits and vegetables are not being bought, they just sit there. They sit there for so long that they start to rot. The chicken are abnormally large and you can see the fat all over it. The very small selection of fish is expensive and greyish. The beef is just OK. So what should I do?

This is where Fresh Direct comes and save my days. I order from Fresh Direct about once a month. People always think that they are so expensive but it is not if you go for the sale.  For about $80, I got two big boxes of incredibly fresh produce!

This is what was in the boxes:

- 4 mangoes
- 2 clear containers of organic Bok Choi
- 1 3 lb watermelon
- 1/2 gallon milk
- 4 baby eggplants
- 4 heads of organic garlic
- 3 ears of bi-color corn
- 4 peaches
- 1 chocolate milk
- 4 Fuji apples
- 1 lb organic carrots
- 12 oz organic cherry tomatoes
- Frozen peas
- 4 filets salmon
- 1 lb beef stew
- 1 lb ground beef
- 2 Cornish hens

I love opening the boxes and start cooking! I bought most of the produce on sale so it is cheaper then going to the store near home. Plus I did not have to carry all of those things myself! I always tip the guy delivering because my boxes are always so heavy. I once bought the big 9 lbs watermelon for $4.99 (among many other things) and the delivery guy never complain about the weight!