Jackpot Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies!

I just tried this recipe this afternoon and all I have to say is AWESOME! Here is the website:

http://dinnerwithjulie.com/2010/07/29/blueberry-oatmeal-cookies/comment-page-1/#comment-17542

Definitely worth it to give these a shot. I didn't have canola oil so I used a 1/2 cup butter instead. I baked these for 10 mins. and they came out beautifully. These could replace blueberry muffins for me and even possibly chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches!

Pan Roasted Chicken and Asian Dirty Rice

I was looking for a different way to make roast chicken and use up some scallions that were still in the refrigerator. During my search I came across this website http://sundaynitedinner.com/vietnamese-roasted-chicken-ga-ro-ti/. I made the chicken and the rice. I did however add a little something extra, I used lemongrass, I just had a taste for it and it goes well with this chicken. My husband, who is Vietnamese/Chinese, enjoyed both dishes and our 2 and 3 year olds gobbled it up.

The way that the other guy made his chicken he used only dark meat, which is great, but I had a whole chicken pulled out for dinner. This is not a problem though! Cut your chicken into pieces and prepare it the way he did by first browning up the chicken on the stove top and then finishing it in the oven. Just remember the chicken paradox: The white meat will cook faster than the dark meat, because their is less fat in the white meat. So you just pull the white meat out before the dark and that will prevent over cooking of the white meat. Over all cooking time between the stove top and the oven is about an hour.

I also used different measurements for the marinade (because I was going by memory)

I did this:

2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 large garlic cloves finely chopped
2 2 inch long pieces of lemongrass finely chopped

He also says to marinate this 12-24 hours, which if I had the time I would have totally done this but I didn't and so it marinated for 30 minutes in a fancy marinating thing called, the Vacu Vin Marinating Container, from my brother-in-law (Thank you brother-in-law!) Next time I make this I will definitely make it a day in advance though, the flavors are so good!

Next the rice. The rice is really good, we only had enough left over for my husband's lunch the next day :) This I also didn't do the same way as the other guy. I didn't have very glutinous rice, I didn't have chicken stock, and I didn't season it with salt or pepper. I had Jasmine rice that I cooked earlier in the day and let cool, and I had a whole lot of scallions.

This is how I prepared it:

I used the same pan that the chicken was cooked in. I removed a lot of the burnt stuff and drained most of the oil out leaving about 2-3 tablespoons left to saute the scallions and rice with. I sauteed the scallions first in the same manner as the other guy and I found that the moisture from the scallions helped with deglazing the pan. I scraped up all the good bits that were stuck to the bottom of the pan and then added my rice. Basically I made sure the rice and scallions were mixed together well and that the rice had been heated up again. I didn't make 6 cups of cooked rice either, I only did about 4. I couldn't fit 6 cups into the pan. But I did use the same amount of scallions.

Overall these were very good dishes and I am definitely going to make this again!

Blueberry & Peach Cobbler

Finally we got some dessert on this page! This is a very simple dessert and not to mention tasty :) I know what your thinking, "Cobbler in the summer?", and to that I say yes, cobbler in the summer! You have all of these great summer fruits that are fresh, readily accessible, and are begging to be used.


Fruit Directions:

5 peaches washed, skin peeled off, and sliced (don't be afraid to get peaches that have bruises)

1 pint blueberries washed

1/2 cup granulated sugar


1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt (about an 1/8 of a teaspoon)

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Put sliced peaches, blueberries, and vanilla into a bowl. In a small separate bowl mix sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, cornstarch, and salt. Once dry ingredients are well combined, add to the fruit and mix well:


The topping:

2 cups flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 stick of cold butter + 3 tablespoons cold butter for later use

3/4 cup cold milk

Mix all dry ingredients first. Cut the butter into small cubes and add to the flour. With a fork you are going cut the butter into the flour. Cutting the butter into the flour is what the technique is called, its kind of like mashing. Cut the butter until it is well incorporated into the flour and you have pea size bits all mixed about. Add your milk mix well, you will have a wet and sticky dough.

Assembling of the Cobbler:

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter the sides and bottom of an 8x8 baking dish. Pour the fruit mix into the pan. Tear the 3 extra tablespoons of butter that was reserved into smaller bits and place them randomly all over the fruit mixture. Using a tablespoon scoop out spoonfuls of the dough. Using your fingers, flatten the dough just a little and then place it on top of the fruit. You can also use a fork and granulated sugar for this too. All you do is place the dough in the pan and then dip your fork into the sugar and gentle flatten the dough. Repeat this procedure until all of the dough is gone. Bake for 1 hour, the tops of the dough will turn golden brown. Serve piping hot with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or at room temp with dollop of freshly whipped cream.

Lemongrass Porkchops

Try the Pork! It's a Vietnamese dish and it's good!

4 pork chops
3 tablespoons of finely grated lemongrass (use a box grater)
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame seed oil
1 shallot or 1/2 of a small onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/8 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt

Lemongrass Marinade Directions:

1) Put all the ingredients minus the pork chops into a blender and puree.

2) Add the marinade to your pork chops cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, up to about 6 hours.

3) When the pork chops have sat for at least 30 minutes, throw them on a hot grill and cook until done.

4) Serve with rice, a fried egg and top with sliced green onion.