HOMEMADE MONDAY MEALS: thai chicken chile & basil

This is probably one of my favorite dishes to make because it's so simple and very tasty! Also, you can try it with different kinds of meats.  I have made it with chicken, salmon and even tofu!  All came out yummy!!!

THAI CHICKEN CHILE & BASIL

ingredients

2 chicken breasts (cut up)
2 red bell peppers chopped (I prefer yellow, orange, or red as they are sweeter)
1 big handful of fresh basil
2 serrano peppers (seeded and chopped)
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 teaspoon red chili paste with garlic (from Asian market) or Siracha would be fine too
1 tablespoon soy sauce (tamari sauce for Paleo or gluten-free peeps)
2 teaspoons of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of coconut oil

So first, mix the chopped serrano peppers and minced garlic with a little bit of salt using the edge of your knife.  (See pic below).  Place coconut oil in a heated pan, dump the pepper/garlic/salt mixture into the pan.  Stir until the garlic turns slightly brown.  Then add the chicken and mix for about 3 minutes. Now add the soy sauce, fish sauce and the red chili and mix until chicken starts to brown.  Then add the chopped red (or yellow or orange peppers).  Cover the pan until chicken and peppers are cooked all the way through.  Lastly, add the basil loosely all over the dish. Let the basil sit until wilted then mix.  Voila!  Done!  Serve with rice or eat by itself.  This dish is soo tasty and yummy!!!  You can even ask my friend Sheri, this one is one of her faves too!

garlic, serrano peppers and salt mixture

mixture in the coconut oil

with the cut up chicken breast

thai chicken chile & basil  (i should really start taking better pictures!)

FEATURE FOOD FRIDAYS: WTF? blueberry breakfast cereal without actual blueberries

So this week I came across this article that shocked me!  I was so angry that I had to post it as soon as I could.  (I might post another Feature Food Friday to make up for this one hehe.) Here is an excerpt from it...

Looking forward to enjoying some wholesome antioxidant-chockedblueberries in your morning cereal? Chances are, you're going to have to look elsewhere. Nonprofit organization Consumer Wellness Centerrecently released a video report on blueberry breakfast cereals, breads, and pastries that are missing, that's right, blueberries.


I've always thought cereals, bake mixes that contain fruit have dehydrated real fruit...not fake fruit!  More validation why I should be reading food labels meticulously!  Here's another excerpt...

Take Kellogg's Blueberry Muffin Frosted Mini-Wheats. They contain "Blueberry Flavored Crunchlets," made of "sugar, corn cereal, soybean oil, modified corn starch, water, natural and artificial flavor, glycerin, corn syrup, red #40 lake, and blue #2 lake."


OMG!  All I can say is WTF.

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: your local farmer's market

Isn't it amazing how much more expensive it is to eat healthy nowadays?!  Fast food places are EVERYWHERE.  They are inexpensive and easily accessible.  Veggies - not so much. An organic medium sized yellow onion can be $1 at Wholefoods, whereas you can get a cheeseburger at McD's for the same amount.  It's sad...very, very sad.

A solution to costly healthy foods is your awesome local farmer's market!  You get a better selection of fruits, veggies, and nuts for a lower cost...and it gives you the opportunity to support your local farmers, it's a win/win situation!  To locate your local farmer's market, click HERE.

Here are some pics I took this past Sunday from my local farmer's market...just another beautiful day in SoCal! :)

selling grass-fed beef and cage-free, organic chicken (which I used for Monday's meal) 

what we took home from the Farmer's market

HOMEMADE MEALS MONDAYS: moroccan chicken stew

Yesterday morning, the hubs and I went to the local weekly farmer's market, which we try to do whenever we get the chance.  We always go to this booth which sells grass-fed beef and organic, free-range chicken. So we bought 2 one-pound ground beef and half of a whole chicken.  So I thought I would do something with the chicken.  First I thought I should roast it but then it wasn't a whole chicken so I don't how that would work and I didn't want to spend too much time waiting for the chicken to cook in the oven.  Then, I thought I'll use the slow cooker to make something so the hubs can watch a movie in the theater yeah!  Then I remembered this Moroccan chicken recipe my friend had given me a while ago.  Well I couldn't use the whole recipe as I wanted to make a healthy, Paleo dish and I didn't have some of the ingredients on hand.  So here is what I came up with which actually turned out really well!

Moroccan Chicken Stew

1/2 whole chicken or 2 lbs worth of chicken pieces (If you do not have good knives or just don't want to deal with the hassle of de-boning, I suggest getting boneless chicken pieces.)

1 onion (chopped)

1 red bell pepper (cut into 1in. pieces)

1 green bell pepper (cut into 1in. pieces)

1 27oz can of plum tomatoes

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

1 1/2 teaspoon of cumin

1/2 teaspoon of paprika

2 tablespoons of water

2 tablespoon of almond butter

ingredients

This recipe, as most slow cooker recipes, is very easy.  First, place onion, red and green bell peppers, tomato, tomato paste, cumin, paprika and water into the slow cooker.  Mix it all up.  Then nestle the chicken pieces in the mixture.  Turn slow cooker on for 6-7 hrs on low.  (We didn't have much time so we had it on high for 3 hours but the veggies weren't as soft as we wanted them but were still yum!!!)  Add the almond butter at the very end when you are ready to serve.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  Voila, that's it!  For non-Paleo, serve with rice or couscous! 

Moroccan chicken stew

FEATURE FOOD FRIDAYS: birthday sushi & triple chocolate mousse cake!

sashimi lunch special from Sushi Gen

Today's feature Friday revolves around two of my food loves: Sushi Gen sushi and Porto's Cuban bakery.  For my birthday celebration, a group of work peeps and I went to Little Tokyo for our sushi fix.  Not just any sushi spot, we went to my favorite - Sushi Gen!  I have been coming here for lunch for at least six years.  Hands down, the best, freshest sushi in Little Tokyo!  Why not right?  Fish market is seriously down the street from it.  So fresh the yellowtail just melts like butter in your mouth, yummy!  Here is a picture of my sashimi lunch special - it comes with miso soup, tofu appetizer, cucumber salad, rice and all this yummy sashimi all for about $15.  There is a price for the yummy sushi, everyone wants some and there usually is a line so come early!

Porto's awesome triple chocolate mousse cake

So it seems that there is a common denominator amongst all my friends...FOOD!!! That certainly is the case with my girlfriend, Marilyn.  She and I bonded over three years ago over a certain cake from a certain bakery - the delicious but light triple chocolate mousse cake from Porto's bakery.  Porto's has awesome empanadas, potato balls, guava rolls, cheese rolls, breads...all kinds of pastries and cakes.  So yummy!!  I've had their Parisian chocolate cake, cheesecake, mango mousse cake, fruit tarts, tiramisu, red velvet cake...but the one I keep coming back to is their triple chocolate mousse cake.  It's three layers of goodness, the bottom is like this dark chocolate cake, the middle is chocolate mousse, the top layer is white chocolate mousse topped off with a hefty serving of white chocolate shavings.  It's amazing - it tastes light and it is so tasty!!!  You'll have to try it out for yourself!  

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: korean day spa

I am definitely not a spa type of gal, seriously! I've been to a couple of Burke Williams, Glen Ivy, and have gotten some massages during vacations...but I am never the type to spend a whole day at a spa!  I like them but I get pretty antsy and bored pretty easily. So as a birthday activity, I decided to go to the spa - but not just any kind of spa - a Korean day spa!  What's so special about a Korean day spa?  Well first of all the prices are much more reasonable and second of all...you have to be completely nude!!!  Say what?!  Yup, no sporting your favorite bikini...just your birthday suit and it was appropriate for me as it was my birthday after all!

So I checked out the Olympic Spa in Koreatown after reading numerous reviews and consulting my Korean friends.  All said Olympic was good for my first experience as the place is popular for non-Koreans.  I signed up for the Pure Bliss treatment which included the famous Korean scrub, jojoba bead body polish, a shiatsu massage, scalp and facial massage with mask, and finishing it off with a hair wash and conditioning treatment.  All that for $100!

Upon entering, I dunked myself in a couple of hot baths, aromatherapy bath, went in and out of the showers and steam rooms.  Surprisingly, the nudey thing didn't bother me much, well maybe because there weren't as many people as I had expected, or I was too involved enjoying these baths and showers.  Mid-shower my number was called and this cute, petite Korean lady came looking for me to start my scrub.

Well...the Korean scrub is one of my favorite spa treatment...ever!  I got scrubbed down like I've never been scrubbed down in my life before!  It was fantastic!  The massage, facial and everything else were amazing too but the scrub is what will keep me coming back, for sure!  If you live in the LA area...you MUST try it at least once and you will be hooked!  Don't take my word for it...come on $100 for a full on spa treatment? Try looking for that elsewhere!

FEATURE FOOD FRIDAYS: Korean food - all-you-can-eat yeah!!!

Today, my girlfriend Jen, took me to Hansong, a Korean buffet in honor of my upcoming birthday!  Whoohoo!!!  I have been dreaming about this for a week!  You see, I heart Korean food and...I am one of the few women I know who can thrown down at a buffet.  That's right, I believe in getting my money's worth, in this case, my friend's money's worth haha!

Unfortunately, I was too busy stuffing my face to take any decent pictures of the buffet!  I did manage to take a picture of 1 out of the 3 plates I consumed.  This place is nice and big, and very clean.  It has kalbee, bulgogi,  pork belly, chicken wings, seaweed salads, tuna, sushi, of course kimchee, Chinese food, seafood, and even cheese!  The food was good, not excellent, but good.  Service was great though - our waiter was attentive!  For $16.99 for lunch, I'd definitely go back!  Check out their website! http://hansongbuffet.com/

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: one of my loves...the spin bike!

So today I wanted to share with you one of my loves - the spin bike.  Haha sounds so dramatic!  Why do I like it?  Because you can burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time and you can just sit on the bike and pretend to work out if you're tired haha!  I introduced myself to spin about seven years ago at my local YMCA.  Through the glass door of the work out room, I saw a bunch of people in bikes cycling like mad and sweating like mad!  You see I feel like I haven't worked out unless I actually burn some calories and sweat.  So I tried it and my butt was seriously sore and after class, my clothes were drenched in my own sweat...so gross but so good!  Now I spin about two to three times a week and I have recruited my work buddies Joy & Jamie (time to go back, Jamie, I'm putting you on blast! haha) to accompany me to spin during our lunch break.  Such a great work out in a short amount of time and a wonderful break from work.  You should try it out!

HOMEMADE MEALS MONDAYS: chicken milanese - Paleo style!

Ok Chicken Milanese is one of my favorite dishes.  I've come up with a healthier version about a year ago that is really yummy.  Today, I tempted to create it - Paleo style!  Yikes!  Paleo style means no cheese, no wheat flour, no breadcrumbs - this should be interesting right?! Yes, interestingly good!!!  It was really good, try it out for yourself!

chicken milanese with topping and spinach salad  - yummy!!!

What you will need:

2 chicken breasts (pounded until breast is about 1/4in thick)
1/4 cup coconut flour (non-Paleo: use wheat flour)
1/2 cup almond meal (non-Paleo: use bread crumbs and add shredded Parmersan cheese)
1 egg
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
olive oil
salt & pepper

topping:
olive oil
garlic
small onion
1 1/2 cup grape or sugar plum tomatoes (cut in half)
salt & pepper

First let's make the topping!  Place a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet.  Add garlic and brown.  Then add the onion and sautee until it starts to turn brown, I believe the term is "carmelizing" it. This step is important in creating this sweetness to your topping.  Then add the chopped tomatoes and mix with the rest of the ingredients and cook for about 3 min. Done and put aside.

Now mix almond meal, basil and oregano in a bowl.  Place aside.  In another bowl, mix coconut flour, salt, and pepper.  Set aside this too.  Then beat a large egg and place in another bowl.  Now it's time to dip your chicken breast in those three bowls!  This is the order in which you should dip the chicken breasts: 1) Dunk the chicken breast in the coconut flour mixture. 2) Then dunk it in the egg mixture until all surface areas are covered in egg. 3) Then roll it around in the almond meal mixture.

Place the chicken breasts on a heated pan with about half a tablespoon of olive oil for every batch.Cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Voila!  You're done.  Serve up the chicken breast with the topping and with some baby spinach and drizzle olive oil and some balsamic vinegar. ENJOY!!!

FEATURE FOOD FRIDAYS: dim sum at LA's Chinatown!

Ahhh the joys of Fridays. Fridays are usually when I start my weekend splurge whoohoo!  So it's always a special day. :)  Today,  some peeps from work (Jamie, Michael, and Viviane) and I decided to go to dim sum at Empress Pavilion in Chinatown - one of the perks of working in DTLA!  Dim sum is sort of like tapas at a Spanish restaurant.  You get to try a bunch of different kinds of dishes served on a small plate or a small steamer.  And the best part is...these dishes are on carts to be served to you!  Here are pictures of some of our dishes.  Thanks to Viviane who spoke Cantonese, we were able to try a couple of new different dishes today yay!

bbq pork (top) and roasted pork with skin (I personally liked the latter more)

flat rice noodles filled with shrimp (top) and beef (bottom)

pan-fried flat rice noodles with shrimp (top), shumai (center). and the ones at bottom are shrimp dumplings I think

Chinese broccoli for some fiber hehe

famous steamed pork buns and egg custard buns (so sweet and so good)

So I tried the taro cake for the first and loved it!  I thought I took a picture of it but I guess that's when I dropped my camera phone on the Chinese broccoli yikes!  Enjoy the pictures!  Tune in on Monday when I attempt to make one of my favorite dishes - Chicken Milanese - Paleo style.  Paleo style means no bread crumbs, no flour or cheese, this should be interesting.  Until then, hasta la vista!

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: kettlebells!

  
Well as you may know, one of my new year's resolutions this year is to be able to do...ONE PULL-UP.  This is definitely one of the most intimidating resolutions I've had! Why intimidating you may ask?  Well, hello?!?!  This one is measurable, I can't fake this!  I think most people can run a mile without really training.  They may be sore the next day but it can be done.  But not everyone can pull off a pull up!  In fact most men I know can't do one proper pull up!  So to be stronger, I have decided to do some (very little) strength training.  My uber healthy husband came across kettlebell work outs while reading one of his books for uberly healthy and uberly fit people (he may fall into that category but I certainly don't!).  So, last night I did about 5 minutes of kettlebell workout while waiting for the meatloaf cook (will post recipe for that once we've perfected it!).  Yes, 5 minutes and that's all I can take of it. It's hard!  So I pretty much did the first exercise of this youtube video, yes just the first exercise LOL.  Hey it's a start and today my arms and hips are sore!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrXfqjJWGXo 

HOMEMADE MEALS MONDAYS: remy's yellow chicken curry!

It's been unbelievably cold in LA lately.  Yes, I know it's not snowing nor are we having a blizzard...but the temperatures being in the 40s in Los Angeles is REALLY cold.  So to warm up, I've decided to cook up some Paleo yellow curry (I think this dish is a bit more Thai than Indian but not too sure as I am making it up as I go haha)!

What you need (all ingredients I used are organic):
1 tablespoon of coconut oil (olive oil will be fine too)
1 teaspoon of minced garlic
1 yellow onion (chopped)
1 green pepper (chopped)
2-3 carrots (chopped)
2 chicken breast (cut up)
3 tablespoons of curry powder
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 13.5oz can of coconut milk

yummy curry!

Heat up coconut oil in a skillet.  Add the garlic and onion, sautee with garlic for about 3 min.  Then add the chicken and brown for about 5 min.  Add the curry and cinnamon, mix it all up. Then add the green pepper and carrots, mix it all up one more time. Finally pour in the coconut milk. Simmer for about 30 min or until carrots are tender.  Voila it's done! Yummy!!!  Enjoy with white rice or eat by itself!!!

remy eats & (cooks!)...here's to new food adventures and new awesome recipes! bring it on 2011!

Today is the day...Oprah said it best..."Cheers to a new year and another chance to get it right." Love Oprah and love this quote!

My new year's resolutions this year are the following (I figured if I publish it, I have to really stick to it!):
1. Eat healthier
2. Be able to do one pull up by the end of the year (I exercise regularly to maintain my weight but by no means am I strong enough to do a push up, let alone a pull up!).
3. Figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Ok I'm about to turn 32 this month, but yes I still need to figure out what I want to do when I grow up, this seems to be a recurring new year's resolution and I hope this year is the year that I actually get the answer to this question.
4. Start a food/cooking blog.  Write on it at least once a week.  I am an avid foodie and love to cook.  I eat a lot, a lot of indulgent food usually not healthy for you BUT I cook really healthy meals, actually mainly healthy meals.  SO for the new year I will write about my healthy cooking and my bad food consuming and oh also about random things.  So here we go!!!