Homemaker – Page 8 – The Adventures of a Calamari Queen

Taking Care of Riley!

Riley had a surgery last Wednesday to remove a small mass in his shoulder (we are still waiting for the analysis). We decided to have his teeth cleaned too because they gave him general anesthesia so might as well do that while he is under the meds. We’ve known about this mass for a while now,so we are prepared financially (it’s so pricey!) and we thought the mass was starting to get big. Riley is family so he is worth it! We want to make sure that he is healthy and will have many more years with us, thus we want to do all the preventative care we can for him. Right now he is recovering very well and taking pain meds and doggie antibiotics for his incision. He is back to his normal bouncy and playful self (2 days after his surgery). He is one little brave schnauzer!

we have to remove his "cone" because he was miserable the whole afternoon — we had to remove his “cone of shame” because he was miserable the whole afternoon

how cute is this seahawks bandana from his vet!

he feels much better without his "cone" — he feels much better without his “cone”

Steamed Clams!

We had this Clam dish a couple of weeks ago, and my Hubs, Zach, cooked this for us. Although I did the prep thing, like cleaning the clams (you have to make sure you really clean the clams because who wants “sandy” broth to dip their bread in?), Zach is the one who makes this for us. I just assume that whenever we have steamed clams, he’s cooking. This is such a simple and quick recipe, I think that’s why he doesn’t mind it! Anyways, Hubs tweaked this recipe by Robert Irvine from food network. Hubs found some bargain priced moscato de’ asti that we paired with our meal!

Steamed Clams (recipe:Robert Irvine)

6 dozen fresh clams (littlenecks or middlenecks, your choice)
3 tablespoons grapeseed oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup white wine
2 cups clam juice or water
Chopped parsley leaves
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup melted butter (1 stick)

Directions:

Wash the clams thoroughly and remove any blemishes. They should have no odor. Heat oil in a large saucepan (with a cover) over medium heat and cook garlic and onion until translucent. Add the wine and let cook for a couple of minutes to combine the flavors. Add the clams and clam juice (or water) and cover the pan for about 10 minutes until the clams open. Discard any clams that do not open and remove clams to serving bowls. Season the juices in the pan with salt and pepper to make a sauce. Pour the sauce and melted butter over the clams.

Saffron brûlée!

I made this brûlée last week because it’s been a while since I’ve made cream brûlée and “saffron” sounded so decadent to me that day! This recipe was just OK for me, I still prefer the Vanilla cream brûlée, I’m still glad I tried the recipe though! My Hubs liked it and so did my Father In law, so maybe I will make this next time for them.

Saffron Brûlée (recipe: Sara Lewis)

Ingredients: (serves 6)

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 cup light cream

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads

8 egg yolks

1/4 cup superfine sugar

1/4 cup superfine sugar,to finish

Procedure:

1. Pour the heavy and light creams into a saucepan, add the saffron threads, and slowly bring almost to a boil. Take off the heat and allow to stand for 15 minutes for the flavor to develop.

2. Use a fork to mix together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Reheat the cream, then gradually mix it into the yolks, stirring continuously.

3. Place 6 heatproof ramekins or custard cups in a roasting pan, then strain the custard into them. Pour warm water into the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the dishes. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 F for 20-25 minutes, until the custards are just set with a slight softness at the center.

4. Leave the dishes to cool in the water, then lift them out and transfer to the refrigerator for 3-4 hours to chill well. About 20-30 minutes before serving, sprinkle the tops with the remaining sugar. Caramelize with a blowtorch, then leave at room temperature until ready to serve.

Boodle Fight!

I prepared Boodle Fight dinner for my friend Faye and her Husband Roger when we had them last night. It’s been a while since we had them,and we always wanted to try a Boodle fight kind of dinner so last night it finally happened! Boodle fight is a military style of eating where long tables are prepared with food on top of banana leaves (urbandictionary.com). Although our dinner was not as “authentic” because we didn’t have any banana leaves, and we used plates and forks, the boodle fight idea was there. I prepared Pork Hock Humba, Chicken wings Inasal (grilled), Chopsuey (stir fry veggies), Shrimps, Grilled pork belly, grilled bangus (milkfish). We still have left overs but it’s not a lot because the portions were just enough. We had Ube (purple yam) ice cream for dessert that Faye bought. It was so much fun and the weather was great so we spent most of our time on our patio. I hope you had a great weekend friends!

"modeling" with our tomatoes! — “modeling” with our tomatoes!LOL

Gave these HUGE tomatoes to Faye,I hope she will like it and will enjoy it in her scrambled eggs!hehe — Gave these HUGE tomatoes to Faye,I hope she will like them and will enjoy it in her scrambled eggs!hehe

Till the next Boodle Fight Faye and family!

Butter Chicken!

I made this Indian dish last night because my Hubs has been requesting/challenging me to make this because it’s his favorite Indian dish. So I started watching “how to” cook videos on YouTube regarding Butter Chicken. This is the recipe/video that I followed youtube vid. I had to buy a couple of spices that she used because I don’t have it in my pantry (like Garam Marsala). I did adjusted and didn’t follow her measurements specifically, like I added more brown sugar,more cream, etc. In her video, she used chicken breast while I used thigh(it’s just our preference). My Hubs enjoyed it a lot, I think he said it’s OK with him if I’ll cook this once a week:) I’m glad that the dish turned out great,because this is my second time cooking Indian food (I cooked Tandoori Chicken before) and it’s kinda hard if you’re not familiar with some of the spices they use in their cooking. It encourages me to try other dishes when the recipe isn’t a disaster!

bad picture(i really need to practice taking pics)

i think she used cilantro for garnish,i used parsley (its what i have in the garden)

Grocery Hauls!

I went to 3 Grocery stores this week because QFC (I rarely shop there) had a pretty good deal on their “mix and match” promo. I’ve read in some couponers/bloggers that this is the time to visit the store because some of the products have “rock” bottom prices. I hardly use coupons now so I was interested to see if they still have cheap prices even without coupons. So after we had dinner at the Outback, I asked the Hubs to go check it out with me. We got a lot of his fave cereals. We stocked up actually because they were like $1.50 each (with coupons, it’s probably $1). He normally has cereal twice a week, so this will last him for a while.

I paid $44 and saved like $71 (i can't find the receipt),but Im sure I paid $44. — I paid $44 and saved like $71 (i can’t find the receipt),but Im sure I paid $44.

I had rewards points that will expire today,so I wanted to use them. I went to walgreens and wasn’t really planning on buying a specific product. I was planning to get coffee (they’re on sale) because we always drink coffee, or I can send it to the PI in my next balikbayan box. When I checked the clearance they had their detergent soap for very cheap prices,so I grabbed a few and decided to just forget the coffee! I got 4 cheap lipsticks too($2.50 each,on sale for 69 cents), and packing tape (for packing balikbayan boxes).

I paid $9.92 for all,the receipt says I saved $31.50/79% savings

After Wags,off I go to Fred Meyer (they’re just in the same area) to get some ingredients for butter chicken. My hubs requested it this week,and I’ve been looking at Youtubes videos on how to make it. It’s his favorite Indian cuisine and I really wanted to do something nice to him especially that he’s really busy at work and lots of meetings and decisions to make this week!

I paid $34, I did use store coupons and most of what I bought was on sale. — I paid $34. I did use store coupons and most of what I bought was on sale.

Happy Shopping and Savings Friends!

Crockpot Pumpkin Spice Latte!

Nothing says Fall like Pumpkin Spice Latte! It’s one of Starbucks famous fall drinks. I was looking forward to drinking this despite all of the information going around online about the ingredients of the famous starbucks pumpkin latte (how it doesn’t contain pumpkin!). I’ll still drink it, moderation is key! So when I was browsing Pinterest a couple of nights ago, I saw this recipe and tried it the next day because I checked our pantry and we had all of the ingredients. It was so easy and we really liked the result, though we had to add more sugar because my hubs and I prefer our drinks “sweeter”. I will definitely make this again for sure!

Crockpot Pumpkin Spice Latte (recipe from Young Wife’s Guide)

Recent Hauls!

Happy Labor Day Weekend Friends! With all the labor day sales going on right now,I just wanted to share my recent “hauls” that I purchased within the last 2 months (with the exception of the groceries of course!). I rarely buy things full priced, I always try to wait for sales/clearance and I love going to discounts stores like HomeGoods, Ross, and Marshalls. I also checked online shops like Groupon, LivingSocial, Zulily for good deals. I have several gift cards (from bday gifts, Christmas) that I wanted to use before the cards were completely drained. I forgot that I even had them!

I got this Kcup drawer at Zulily for $20;original price $36. I got the herbal coffee at Amazon. — I got this Kcup drawer at Zulily for $20;original price $36. I got the Teeccino herbal coffee at Amazon.

Having coffee in the morning so so easy now!

I finally got another vacuum cleaner for our 2nd floor. It's a Dyson DC39 multi floor vacuum. — I finally got another vacuum cleaner for our 2nd floor. It’s a Dyson DC39 multi floor vacuum.

I’m so loving this Dyson vacuum cleaner. It’s really light and powerful. I only use this for the second floor of our house (no wood floors). I got this in a Groupon deal for $251 (it’s refurbished but works like new). I’ve checked the price in amazon it’s around $449 new!

with gift cards I paid $20 for all perfumes! — After gift cards I paid $20 for all perfumes!

I have gift cards from Homegoods/Marshalls and I saw these perfumes on clearance, they looked like a pretty good deal. Speaking of perfume, I also used my Nordstrom gift card and bought Jo Malone perfumes. They smell so good and light. I love it! I got the Nectarine Blossom and English Pear.

And now to the more “exciting” parts, my grocery this week. I shopped at Fred Meyer and another local discount store in Issaquah, Champion Grocery. I think Champion Grocery is my new go to store, they don’t sell fresh produce but they do have the basic staples like coffee, dried fruits and household stuffs.

Champions Grocery: my fave deal was the Kcups! $7.50 for 36 Kcups; i checked on amazon their 40 kcups cost around $25! This Haul cost me $47:) I will probably pay around $100 if I bought this in the regular grocery store.

Pork Belly Humba!

I made this Pork Belly Humba a couple of weeks ago and I just wanted to share this because it’s really easy and such a hearty filipino dish. It’s similar to the famous adobo (cooking style) but the major difference is the flavor because of the pineapple juice. One of my favorite sites to follow for Filipino dishes is the Panlasang Pinoy site. The directions are simple, and he also has a video so it’s easy to see and follow the procedures. Although I “adjusted” the recipe (I only put 1 bay leave;no banana blossom) because my Hubs doesn’t like bay leaves, and seasoned it to my liking (I added lots of pepper). It turned out great! I only wish I had doubled the recipe so I could have extra humba in my freezer. Oh well, I can always go to the asian market and get all the stuff I need to make this dish again.

it's so important to brown the meat,DO NOT skip this part. — it’s so important to brown the meat,DO NOT skip this part.

I added eggs in the last 10 minutes of cooking time because I like eggs with my humba

I sprinkled a little parsley just for color!

Humba Recipe (www.panlasangpinoy.com)

Ingredients

2 lbs pork belly
1 cup Pineapple juice
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons salted black beans
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
½ cup dried banana blossoms
2 pieces dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole peppercorn

Cooking Procedure:

Heat the cooking pot then brown the pork belly.
Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onions are soft.
Put-in the soy sauce, peppercorn, bay leaves.
Pour-in the pineapple juice and let boil. Simmer until the pork is tender (add water as needed).
Add the vinegar and wait for the mixture to re-boil. Simmer for 3 minutes.
Spoon-in the salted black beans and brown sugar then simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the dried banana blossoms and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes.
Transfer to a serving plate and serve. Share and enjoy!
Number of servings (yield): 6

Farmer’s Market!

Visiting our Local Farmer’s Market is one of my favorite things to do in the summer! Fresh produce, fun activities, live music and yummy food is my idea of a fun weekend. Last Saturday the hubs and I checked out Issaquah’s Framer’s market, dogs are not allowed so our fatty Riley stayed home. My favorite parts were the berry and flower sections. They’re so fresh, yet so cheap! We ended up buying some berries, although they have the same price with our local grocery, the quality was superior. I bought potatoes, pappardelle pasta, honey that I will send to my mom in the PI (through balikbayan box) The Hubs and I enjoyed some tacos and crepes too, both of them were Okay and nothing special. Hope you all had a great week!

different kinds of pappardelle pasta! I end up buying the garlic chive kind!

Riley wasn't very happy that we left him,so I had to cuddle with him when we got home! — Riley wasn’t very happy that we left him,so I had to cuddle with him when we got home!