Instant Ramen - Frozen Dumplings - Egg. dead.

What time is it? Whether it's 2am, 10am, or 2pm, it's always a good time to whip up a quick meal before dinner time. I went to the gym today and was starving when I got out. I was thinking about everything I wanted to eat while spinning. As I closed by eyes, I started going through what I had at home. Within no time, my hour on the bike was up. Peace out 20 miles, it's Friday and I shouldn't be at a gym.

View fullsize

Instant ramen, dumplings, and egg.

Ingredients are simple. Get your favorite instant ramen or whichever one you are craving at the moment. Frozen dumplings. Don't know which ones to get? Sorry I don't know either. HAH! Just kidding but not really. If you go to an Asian Market on the weekends, there will probably be samples with a lot of bags going on this blowout sale. That's when I would buy a few body bags of frozen dumplings. I am not going to pay $6+ for a bag, so wait till they go on sale for like $2.50-$3ish. It's a steal.

Timing. The first thing that I do is heat up a non-stick pan with some oil heated on medium high to high depending on how hot your stove is. I like my pan HOT (By the way, I used canola oil). I also started heating water for the ramen. Once you drop the dumplings in the pan, it will start sizzling like sh*t. This is when I would tuck my arms in like T-rex. After about 1 minute, I would add water and cover it with a lid to steam the dumplings. Add enough water where it cooks out after 3 minutes or so. If there is still water left, don't worry it will cook out/evaporate.

Once your dumplings are steaming, drop the ramen in the boiling water to cook. This will be quick. After your noodles are done, pour it into your bowl and arrange your dumplings (the bottom of your dumplings should have a nice golden brown). Now, quickly crank up the heat on the same pan you used to make your dumplings, add some oil and fry up an egg. I season my eggs with salt and togarashi pepper. Slide your egg on top of your noodles and voila, I am your BEST friend.

The egg should be crispy with a nice golden butt. The yolk should goo lusciously all around.

Comfort Food. E N J O Y.

Daiisies

Pan Roasted Asparagus, Fried EGG, lemon everything, Oro del Tempo Piave Vecchio

This dish is SUPER easy to make. So cancel all your plans, and grab yourself a bunch of asparagus, lemons, eggs and Cheese! Because there is no excuse. It was hot as hell this week in LA and I still managed to cook, so put on that apron or that one cooking outfit you know you haven't washed in weeks.

View fullsize

Beautiful Citrus Asparagus Egg - But... you should see how my kitchen looks after...

This dish is so decadent, you will look like you were in culinary school for years. I am SO hooked on this dish right now, and it doesn't take much at all. Tell your friends you had this in Italy.

Recipe (for 3 people or one... lol)

• 1 pound of asparagus - try to get the thicker stems for more texture and flavor.
• 1 Lemon - juice and zest
• 3 eggs (Happy Eggs)
• Cheese: A lot of people use Parmigiano Reggiano, but I am using Oro del Tempo Piave Vecchio, which can be found at Whole Foods. The flavors taste like a matured Gruyere. ABSOLUTELY SHAAABBAANNGG.
• red chili flakes.

Ok. First thing FIRST. I started heating the pan on high while I shave off the ends of the Asparagus. Please do not skip this step, unless your asparagus still have a beautiful elasticity on it. Also, cut off the dry ends. No one wants to have a hard, dry chewy bottom, not even your dog. When your pan is hot enough, throw in your asparagus and coat them with the olive oil. Once they start charring, I tossed in some Kosher salt. On a separate nonstick pan, I started frying up an egg.

And next thing you know, it feels like so much sh*t is going on because you didn't prep anything. *runs for cheese*, *oh sh*t the grater*, *omg the asparagus!* *THE EGG!*. Please get your prep together, unless you can work extremely unorganized like I do. When the asparagus has a good char all around, remove it away from the heat and start plating.

Zest your lemon over the top of your asparagus and put some in the pan for the oils to release. I then squeezed half a lemon into the pan to pick up on any excess flavor. After about 15 seconds, pour your light dressing over the asparagus.  Top the egg, dazzle with some red chili flakes (or black pepper if you prefer), and shave loads of cheese.

Please show off to your friends, and tell them I taught you. But if you destroy the recipe, tell them someone else taught you. Make sure your eggs are sunny side up. Crispy edges is a major plus. GOOD QUALITY EGGS ARE A MUST (I used Happy Eggs).

Enjoy. And let me know what you think. Lastly, don't cook your asparagus to death.

View fullsize

It must look like this.

Cheers!

Daiisies

BACON MOMENTS #1

So it's another Sunday where I would just whip up a simple bacon and waffles breakfast. As I was cooking bacon, I had an epiphany. Bacon.. I used to bake the bacon in the oven, but I've been cooking it on the stove lately. The sound of sizzling bacon and seeing the fat transform to a dark golden brown is a sight any diet person would dream about. So as I was cooking the bacon.. my eyes just lit up.

Cooking the perfect Bacon.

Recipe:

• B A C O N.

View fullsize

I realized cooking bacon is like making popcorn. I have the pan on high, and sizzle the bacon on for about 2 minutes till it shrinks a little and starts making the ripples. After you flip it, you will basically do the same, but lower the temperature a bit as the fat starts melting off. After this, I would flip the bacon more occasionally. Maybe because it's more enticing to see the fat bubbles foam around it or something, but I just can't leave because it's so beautiful to look at. So, like popcorn. Once the sizzling starts fading away, your bacon is ready. Don't mind the char bits at all because it adds so much more smokey flavor. I drizzled the bacon with a little maple syrup and just a tad of Cayenne pepper because I am obsessed with that at the moment (though it makes my mustache on fire).

I served this with some cold brew that I've got from Trader Joes.

View fullsize

Cold Brew by Trader Joes

Trader joe sells a small jug of cold brew for about $7-8. It makes around 12 8oz cups. but more like 6 cups because who really drinks 8 oz? I made a quick simple syrup, chilled everything, and served with a lot of ice, and a splash of whole milk.

Bacon, cold brew, I am wired for Sunday Funday and ready to go!

cheers.

Daiisies

Good Morning BEW - Bacon, EGGS, Waffles.

On the weekends, it's been a constant struggle trying to find a restaurant that serves a simple breakfast with good coffee. We really want to stay local, or away from Los Angeles because of the heavy foot traffic and inconvenience of getting there. Then there is parking, and long lines. Don't get me wrong, I love to go dine out, but there are days where I just want to lay around in the morning and stare at my cat chasing his tail. Yes, my cat chases his tail ALL.THE.TIME. Anyways, restaurants either serve food that is either too heavy where we end up not productive for the rest of the day, too small where we feel gypped, or just lacking in flavor (especially the coffee, agree?) where you stop after a few bites because you get bored. Then, there goes $20-$40 down the drain depending on where you are. I've decided to cook a simple brunch at home and not worry/stress about finding a new place to dine (or regular) and just whip up something I know I am comfortable eating.

Simple:

View fullsize

BEW - Bacon Eggs and Waffles

I just popped a few frozen thick waffles in my toaster, cooked up some bacon and eggs with a pot of coffee. No struggle and clean up is minimal. Slab on some sweet cream butter with the old fashion Aunt Jemima and we are all set and ready to go.

If you haven't been to the market lately, bacon is ridiculously expensive. So when a sale goes on, I would buy 2 packs and keep one in the freezer till I need it. For eggs, I always eat Happy Eggs. And waffles? Leggo my Eggo.

Enjoy!

Daiisies

Breakfast Potatoes with Egg and Pretzel Bread

There's just something so special about breakfast/brunch on the weekends. I just love waking up early in the morning, to look forward to a fantastic day. Although I haven't had time to do much lately, this meal of the day is something I am always excited about. I love to eat out at restaurants. If you were to ask me what I did over the weekend, I will tell you something that involved something I made or a dining experience somewhere.

John and I went to a Sur La Table in Pasadena, which is by far one of my favorite places to go to. There's all kinds of inspiration I find when I go there, and finding things I never thought I would need. Basically, I need everything in that store. We were looking at pans, and the non-stick pan I currently have right now is failing to keep up with my massive cooking needs. I've been in need of a larger pan of some sort that has a lot of surface rather than depth. We ran into a pan made by "Scanpan" that seemed like what I was looking for. Not much hesitation even though it took us about an hour in the store to commit to this purchase. What's also great about this non-stick pan is that it's scratch resistant.

Low and Behold, I put this little beast to work for one of my favorite breakfast brunch items: Breakfast Potatoes.

View fullsize

Breakfast Potatoes with Pancetta and Pretzel Bread.

I made everything you see here with one pan. The Pancetta was rendered until crispy before the potatoes were thrown in to be coated. I always microwave the potatoes before throwing them in a pan to cook. Doing so just helps with making sure the potatoes are cooked throughout, there's nothing I hate more than a beautiful golden crust than a undercooked crunchy potato inside. Some shallots were also added with sharp cheddar. Everything was assembled at the end with a few eqqs on top finished in the oven.

View fullsize

Breakfast potatoes with Pancetta, Eggs and Pretzel Bread.

If you've never had pretzel, do yourself a favor and try it. I am changed forever. The one you see here is from Whole Foods. Light brush of canola on top with a sprinkle of Kosher salt heated in the oven. Oh and a dazzle of Parsley for color.

This was such a treat! I always love a breakfast that makes me want to take a nap, I guess that's why the coffee is there for.

If you decide to get it, let me know what you think. If you have any questions regarding it, feel free to ask.

Happy Cooking!

~Daisy.