Easy Bœuf Bourguignon/ Beef Burgundy

OK, so I had some beef cubes and my mom had some leftover red wine.  I never have alcohol in the house, so I have no recipes calling for wine. I looked everywhere for a decent beef burgundy recipe with serving sizes for two.  I had no luck at all.  I found this recipe on All-Recipes and changed the serving amount to two for the correct amounts.  What I liked about this recipe versus many others was it was a one pot dish and very easy.  I found this recipe actually serves more like 3 servings than two so you can adjust accordingly.  Here's the Campbell's recipe as written from AllRecipes.com :

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound beef sirloin steak or top round steak, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped onions
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
• 1 cup fresh or frozen whole baby carrots
• 3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons Swanson® Beef Broth (Regular, 50% Less Sodium or Certified Organic)
• 1/4 cup Burgundy or other dry red wine
• Hot cooked orzo pasta

Directions

This recipe's Ingredients were scaled to yield a new amount. The directions below still refer to the original recipe yield of 4 servings.

1. Place the beef in a large bowl. Add the flour and toss to coat.
2. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until it's well browned, stirring often. Add the onion, garlic, parsley, mushrooms and thyme and cook until the mushrooms are tender. Add the carrots, broth and wine to the skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 20 minutes or until the beef is cooked through.
3. Serve the beef mixture over the orzo.

This was YUMMY!!  I didn't really have any substitutions.  I used beef stew meat and broth made from a bouillon cube.  Also, I did not have orzo so I used Acini de pepe. This may be a general theme here, but it needed salt, lol. Also, we both agreed it needed to simmer MUCH longer than the stated cooking time. The meat tasted delicious but it was too tough and the sauce was more soupy than stew.  I think both those problems could be solved if I had allowed it to simmer for an hour instead of the 20 minutes stated.  Like I said though, tasted VERY yummy and this would be a good rainy weather recipe!

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Crabmeat-Stuffed Flounder

It was a little chilly this morning but with the windows all opened up to the ocean breeze, it felt so nice in the house.  I decided I wanted something fresh and light for lunch.  Tonight is movie night followed by sitting around the fire-pit and roasting s'mores so we're doing our main meal this afternoon. This recipe is also from Light Cooking for Two page 103:

Ingredients

• Butter-flavored vegetable cooking spray
• 1  teaspoon  reduced-calorie margarine
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh mushrooms
• 1  tablespoon  chopped green onions
• 1  tablespoon  Neufchatel cheese
• 1/2  teaspoon  minced fresh marjoram
• 1/8  teaspoon  pepper
• 2  ounces  fresh lump crabmeat, drained
• 2  tablespoons  soft breadcrumbs
• 1  teaspoon  lemon juice
• 2  (3-ounce) flounder fillets (1/4 inch thick)
• 2  tablespoons  (1/2 ounce) shredded reduced-fat Swiss cheese
• Lemon wedges (optional)
• Fresh marjoram sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Coat a small nonstick skillet with cooking spray; add margarine. Place over medium-high heat until margarine melts. Add mushrooms and green onions; saute 2 minutes. Add cheese, minced marjoram, and pepper; cook, stirring constantly, until cheese melts. Remove from heat; add crabmeat, breadcrumbs, and lemon juice, and stir well.

Spoon crabmeat mixture evenly onto fillets; roll up each fillet, jellyroll fashion, beginning at narrow end. Secure with wooden picks. Place rolls, seam side down, in a small baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 10 minutes. Sprinkle Swiss cheese over rolls; bake an additional 10 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove wooden picks, and, if desired, garnish with lemon wedges and marjoram sprigs.

OK, here were the changes: I used Tilapia instead of Flounder, I didn't have marjoram so I used parsley. and I used fake crabmeat instead of lump crab. Also, I took one look at the fillets and figured there was no way I was going to be able to roll them, so I just placed the stuffing on top of the fillets. I really enjoyed this though it seriously needed some kind of seasoning on the fish...salt for one. It tasted like it was missing something...marjoram perhaps?  I will more than likely make this again though the hubby agreed it was missing something.  I imagine when I make it again, I will season the fish before adding the stuffing.  The portions were plenty large and at only 192 calories a serving (for original recipe) you can't go wrong.

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Beef Stroganoff

So I actually got worse over the last few days and the doctor called to confirm the new x-rays still show pneumonia, so I haven't actually been eating much lately.  Today was the first day I was feeling up to standing  for an 1/2 hour not to mention eating something :D.  We haven't had beef in the house for several years so I forgot how yummy it smells cooking.  Here's the recipe as it's written in Light Cooking for Two page 81:


Ingredients
6  ounces  lean, boneless beef sirloin steak
Vegetable cooking spray
1 1/2  cups  sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4  cup  sliced onion
1/2  teaspoon  minced garlic
1/4  cup  canned no-salt-added beef broth, undiluted
2  tablespoons  no-salt-added tomato sauce
1/2  teaspoon  low-sodium Worcestershire sauce
1/4  teaspoon  salt
1/8  teaspoon  pepper
3  tablespoons  low-fat sour cream
1 1/2  cups  cooked medium egg noodles (cooked without salt or fat)
2  teaspoons  chopped fresh parsley

Preparation
Partially freeze steak; trim fat from steak. Slice steak diagonally across grain into 1/4-inch-wide strips. Coat a nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add steak; cook 3 minutes or until steak strips are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet. Drain and pat dry with paper towels. Wipe drippings from skillet with a paper towel.
Coat skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Return steak to skillet. Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic; saute 3 minutes. Add beef broth and next 4 ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes or until meat is tender. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream. Spoon over noodles; sprinkle with parsley.

I didn't actually make any substitutions this time.  This recipe was very easy  though since it has to simmer for 45 minutes, not terribly quick.  It was incredibly filling but only 357 calories a serving. The hubby said the meat was very tender and in general it was delicious but needed more sour cream.  I agree. I would make this again, but this one probably won't become a staple in the kitchen.

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Kung Pao Chicken

Woke up to a stormy day and feeling horrible.  Can't catch my breath.  We decided to have Kung Pao Chicken for dinner.  This recipe is from my mom and is for 3 large servings.  I went ahead and made the portions as listed and kept some for leftovers.  We've had this before, though I've never made it.  Because I was feeling really ill today, Peter took care of it with me supervising :D.  He appreciated it so much, lol.


Ingredients
 
-3 1/2 tsp cornstarch, divided
-5 tsp soy sauce, divided
-5 tsp dry sherry, divided
-1/4 tsp salt
-3 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces
-1 Tbl red wine vinegar
-2 Tbl chicken broth or water
-1 1/2 tsp sugar
-3 Tbl vegetable oil, divided 
-1/3 cup salted peanuts
-6 to 8 small dried hot chili peppers
-1 1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger
-2 green onions with tops, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
-additional green onion and dried hot chili pepper for garnish
 
Instructions

1 - For marinade, combine 2 tsp cornstarch, 2 tsp soy sauce, 2 tsp sherry and salt in large bowl; mix well. Add chicken;stir to coat well. Let stand 30 minutes.
2 - Combine remaining 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch, 3 tsp soy sauce, 3 tsp sherry, vinegar, chicken broth and sugar in small bowl; mix well. Set aside
3 - Heat 1 Tbl oil in wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add peanuts; cook and stir until lightly toasted. Remove peanuts from wok; set aside. Heat remaining 2 Tbl oil in wok over medium heat. Add chili peppers; stir fry until peppers just begin to char, about 1 minute.
4 - Increase heat to high. Add chicken mixture; stir fry 2 minutes. Add ginger; stir fry until chicken is no longer pink in center; about 1 minute. Add peanuts and onions; stir fry 1 minute. Stir cornstarch mixture; add to wok. Cook and stir until sauce boils and thickens. Garnish, if desired.

Let's see... the changes made were; water was used in place of sherry, rice wine vinegar instead of red wine vinegar, and I only used 2 thai peppers instead of 6 chili peppers. We had brown rice and some canned veggies on the side.

All in all I'd say this was very high up on the taste scale! It's an easy meal but expect to have to clean up a couple bowls, a wok and your cutting board so I wouldn't put this on a day when you want to avoid dishes.

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Shrimp Salad Sandwiches

It's worth noting that I will be making thousands of substitutions throughout these recipes.  This is either done for taste preferences, or because of availability.  In this case, its a combination of the two.  I will post the recipe as is, tell you what I changed, and tell you if it needs any fixes.  When I have it, I will try to give general nutrition info, but I don't expect to have that most of the time.  Also, I'll try to give credit and location for each recipe if I have it available.

to OK, for this afternoon, we had Shrimp Salad Sandwiches (Light Cooking for Two, pg 157).

Ingredients

• 3  cups  water
• 1  pound  unpeeled medium-size fresh shrimp
• 1/4  cup  nonfat cream cheese, softened
• 2  tablespoons  sliced green onions
• 2  tablespoons  diced sweet red pepper
• 2  teaspoons  nonfat mayonnaise
• 2  teaspoons  lime juice
• 1  teaspoon  capers
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried dillweed
• 2  (2 1/2-ounce) French rolls

Preparation

Bring water to a boil; add shrimp, and cook 3 to 5 minutes or until shrimp turns pink. Drain well; rinse with cold water. Chill. Peel and devein shrimp.

Combine cream cheese and next 6 ingredients, stirring well. Add shrimp, and toss gently. Cover and chill 1 hour.

Cut a 1/2-inch slice off top of each roll; set tops aside. Hollow out center of rolls, leaving 1/2-inch-thick shells. Reserve excess bread for another use. Place bread shells and tops, cut sides up, on rack of a broiler pan. Broil 5 1/2 inches from heat (with electric oven door partially opened) 1 to 2 minutes or until lightly toasted. Spoon shrimp mixture evenly into shells; cover with tops.

OK...to start with, I apparently used the recipe as a guide only, lol.  Instead of the shrimp, I used imitation lobster.  I omitted the capers and peppers for taste reasons. I do not have nonfat mayo or cream cheese, but I used light mayo and neufchatel cream cheese.  All in all, I thought this was delicious!  Because we had this for lunch instead of dinner, I didn't serve anything on the side but tea. This was actually amazingly filling, but for dinner I might serve this with cucumbers and onions or some steamed veggies. The calories listed are 311 per serving.  I have zero idea how to convert things like that when making substitutions, so....go with it.

My hubby said that he would prefer less Dill and lime juice.  I eyeballed those measurements so I think if you were very specific on the recipe, you'd be fine.

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The motivation

It's 2011 and my body is shutting down on me.  It's my own fault.  I ignore all kinds of warning signs like I did in my 20's and you just can't do that in your late 30's.  I recently had a 2lb tumor (along with my uterus) removed and I am currently in bed with pneumonia. I am tired almost all the time and my waistline is expanding enough that I'm starting to look like Santa Claus. I'm lazy and when I eat, I eat mostly crap or horribly large portions. I have tried going pescetarian which is a diet that I love, but is a wee bit expensive after awhile.  I fully intend to go back to my pesce ways, but in the meantime, I'm on an omni diet. 

I am a working wife to a wonderful husband and our baby is our 9 year old kitty named Liberty (she was born on 9/11). I am completely sedentary during the day.  I work out of my home tethered to my desk with no real chance to break away.  I have 1/2 hour lunches which only leaves enough time to snarf down a sandwich or some soup. All the recipes I know and love are from my family...which  is fine but the portions are all wrong.  I hate trying to buy food for two since everything seems to be Sam's sized. This blog will be an attempt to experiment with new recipes, foods and better portions.  I'll try to share all the successes and failures and even some photos.  I know they won't all be winners, but I have to start somewhere.  I'm even going to try actually exercising when I get some strength. We live on the beach (quite literally) and I have a wii....I should be able to get some fitness in.

My aunt gave me this book and my Aunt Kat's estate sale.  The binding had not even been creased but I love the ideas and advice.  It's an oxmoor house book published in 1995. This is where I will start.

Needless to say, this is not where I saw myself when I was 21 years old looking toward my future. I can't change the past, but I can try to literally reshape my and my hubby's future.  Thanks for joining the journey :D