spicy sesame noodles with Sake

Spicy Sesame Noodles or Green Beans

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

This is a great sauce you can use on noodles or even green beans.

spicy sesame noodles with Sake

spicy sesame green beans

You’ll Need

1 pound of fettuccine or linguini style noodles (or 2 pounds of french cut green beans)
4 tablespoons of roasted sesame seeds
4 tablespoons of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of Chinese chili paste (optional if you do not like the heat)
2 tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce
4 large garlic cloves, crushed

Let’s get started…

Green Beans

Using a medium size sauce pan, bring 1/3 cup of water (enough to cover the bottom of your pot) to a boil with some sea salt.  Add your green beans. Boil for one minute covered. Turn off burner and let it sit covered for one minute. We want to blanch the beans. This keeps the beans crispy.

Drain and rinse with cold water.

Noodles

Boil your pasta to your liking. I like it al dente. It usually takes six to eight minutes per pound of fettuccine or linguini.

Drain and rinse with cold water.

Sauce

While your beans or noodles cook, mix together the sesame oil, chili paste, soy sauce and crushed garlic.

Once your beans or noodles are ready, toss in the sauce and sesame seeds.

You can eat this warm or cold. If you serve it cold, chill for about an hour.

Easy, yummy and spicy. Just how I like my men.

 

#GL2E
final citrus ale summer pasta salad

Citrus Bluemoon Summer Ale Pasta Salad

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

This is definitely a unique and delicious pasta salad if I do say so myself. That, or it’s the two beers I drank whilst making this. Ha!

Tip

You can prepare everything in advance, however, mix it right before serving. Not sure why, but it tastes best the first day.

You may not want to use all the dressing. I suggest you gradually pour it while mixing your salad. You can decide how much is enough.

Salad Ingredients You’ll Need

1 cup of Bluemoon Summer Ale
3 tablespoons of shallots, minced
1 teaspoon of finely grated orange zest
1 tablespoon of honey
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
4 tablespoons of EVOO
1 pound of your favorite pasta, I used Rotini
1/2 cup of green onions, chopped
1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
1/2 cup of Kalamata olives, seeded and chopped
1 cup of Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 can of oranges, drained
1 cup of Mozzarella cheese, grated
Sea salt and ground pepper to taste

Let’s get started…

Grab a beer or seven, and turn on Pandora.

The Dressing

In a small bowl, whisk the beer, shallot, orange zest, honey, mustard and oil. Or, if you have a shaker, that would be best. Season the dressing with salt and pepper to taste. This can refrigerate up to three days. I wouldn’t push it any longer. Homemade dressings can get funky, awfully quick. Especially, without having the added preservatives.

Removing the tomato centerWhen I use tomatoes in salads, I remove the center with a spoon. This helps to keep your salad from getting watery.

adding dressing to pasta saladIf you do not have time before serving, chop up everything ahead of time and store in your refrigerator. Right before serving, toss all your ingredients in a large bowl. Slowly pour the dressing over the top and mix it all together carefully.

adding cheese to pasta saladTop it off with Mozzarella cheese.

final citrus ale summer pasta saladDone! This salad does not take much time at all. Particularly, while drinking a beer.

You can also add in spinach or other vegetables. Play with it!

I would love to hear from you. Contact me because this girl likes to eat.

#gl2e
Three Minute Gourmet Microwave Breakfast

Three Minute Microwave Gourmet Breakfast

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

I don’t know about you, but I usually wait for the weekends to make a gourmet breakfast. No time to waste during the week. I usually hit the snooze button for the umpteenth time before I have to drag my butt out of bed.

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. I love it so much that I even eat it for dinner from time to time.

Here is a perfect recipe to get a yummy start before heading off to a busy day.

ingredients in the gourmet microwave omeletYou’ll Need

1/3 cup All Whites or 2 large eggs
2 Tablespoons of milk
1 Tablespoon of real bacon bits, or baked ham lunch meat (optional)
1 Tablespoon of your favorite veggies. I used a green onion and mushroom
2 Tablespoons of your favorite cheese (shredded)
Salt and pepper to taste

Let’s get started…

In a small microwave safe dish, or a coffee cup, mix together eggs, milk, bacon, and veggies. Microwave on high for 1-1/2 minutes.

Sprinkle cheese on top and microwave until cheese is melted; about 10-20 seconds depending on how much cheese you use.

Recipe calories is 279, including bread.

Three Minute Gourmet Microwave Breakfast While your eggs microwave, toast a slice of bread, and top it with your favorite fruit spread. I recommend a multi grain Tuscany style loaf. Yummy!

Tip: If you use bacon bits, or a salty meat, you may want to omit the salt until you taste it.

Done! Breath deep. It’s going to be a great day.

I would love to hear from you. Contact me because this girl likes to eat.

 

 

BYOB

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

Here’s a great cork tip from one of our readers Valerie Lans.

This will save you lots of cashola.

Those that know me know I like to enjoy a glass or two of wine when dining out. So, I did the math…

Two glasses of wine for me can cost $14 (at least). Plus, two for my dinner companion. That equals 28 big ones. Forget buying by the bottle, which starts at $30. My tip is take your own bottle.

Most places are happy to just charge you the cork fee. which is about $2 per person. Call ahead before you go and see if they will allow you to bring your own bottle. You would be surprised how many restaurants actually allow it.

We enjoyed a lovely dinner last night at the Cheesecake Factory. I called ahead and they charged $10, and I took my $9 bottle of wine. There you go! $$ SAVINGS $$

 

 

Well, I’m not a wine drinker, so I called up my local Cheesecake and asked, “Does the cork fee include beer?” Amazingly, it does! If it’s a beer they do not have in stock, or if it’s a special occasion, bring it in and talk with a manager. They will set you up. Keep in mind people, you can’t carry in a case of beer. Keep it classy…

I also believe they will waive the cork fee. All you have to do is ask.

Thanks Val for the great tip. I did not know that liquor license establishments would allow this, nor did I ever think to ask. You ROCK! And, a SHOUT OUT to The Cheesecake Factory for excellent customer experience.

Do you have cool ideas? Please share because this girl likes to drink.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

Top Secret’s Benihana Ginger Salad Dressing by Todd Wilbur

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

Recently, our friend Val sent in a request,

“Dear Girl, I just love the ginger dressing you get from Hibachi restaurants.  Any ideas?”

Why, yes I do! Whenever I eat at a Japanese restaurant, I look forward to the ginger dressing; always requesting extra. I even use the dressing for dipping crusty breads, and sometimes I use it to marinade my Sunday roast, or pork chops. Yummy!

I’ve never been to Benihana, but I have tried “Top Secret Recipes version of Benihana Ginger Salad Dressing” by Todd Wilbur. It is the best dressing. Even better than the average ginger salad found in your local Japanese restaurant.

It’s easy to put together. Todd’s instructions say to use a blender. With using a blender, I’ve found that you need to do a little fine chopping. However, since finding my Immersion Blender, I toss the roughly chopped ingredients into a pot and go at it with my handheld wonder stick. Less clean up too (our least favorite effort to cooking).

Todd has a ton of great recipes to try. You should check out Top Secret Recipes for lots of cool ideas and tips.

Hey Val! Let me know if you try it. This is definitely a win-win dressing.

You can find this recipe here: “Top Secret Recipes version of Benihana Ginger Salad Dressing” by Todd Wilbur.

 

smoothie preparation

Frozen Fruit Smoothie

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

We’re big on fruit smoothies. I make one just about every day. I would really like to add beer, but this is for breakfast after all. Ha!

frozen fruitSAM’s Club has yummy produce. I buy bulk fruits, clean them, and toss in a Ziploc freezer bag. We always have blueberries, strawberries and bananas on hand.

smoothie preparationInstead of ice, I use frozen fruit to make it rich and thick. I use one cup of milk, a scoop of protein powder (optional), and whatever fruit that tickles my fancy. Toss it in a blender until blended. Done!

Sometimes I add in a spoonful of peanut butter. Very. Delicious.

breakfast smoothieA smoothie for breakfast really jump starts the day, and only takes five minutes to whip up.

Be creative! What do you like?

sesame peanut dressing on the salad

Sesame Peanut Dressing

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

Dedicated to our friend Ron.

Ron said, “I’m looking for a good sesame, peanut dressing. Can you come up with something for me?”

Me in response, “Hells yay!” I too love sesame and peanut’y tasting dressing. I’m actually shocked that I didn’t try this before. So, after a few failed attempts, I came up with this dressing.

You’ll Need:

1/4 cup of rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup of sesame oil

1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter

3 teaspoons honey

1/4 cup of soy sauce

1/3 cup of water

2 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds

1/4 teaspoon of red chili paste (optional)

IMPORTANT: Do not substitute the rice vinegar with other vinegars. Trust me, I learned the hard way. The ‘other’ vinegars make it too sour.

shake up the ingredientsVery Hard Instructions:

Toss it all in a shaker and shake.

sesame peanut dressing on the saladPour over your favorite mixed greens. It’s also great over grilled chicken, and even roasts.

Ron, let us know what you think. We hope you like it. Keeping our fingers crossed. Haha!

Enjoy!

 

Do you have something you want us to create? Please share because this girl likes to eat.

 

 

salmon, tuna, white fish sushi

Jimmy Wan’s Pittsburgh

Posted on by Jenny MacBeth

 

Jimmy Wan’s is a Pittsburgh favorite for a fusion of Chinese cuisine with a Japanese influence. Jimmy’s is a casual fine dining experience from their contemporary atmosphere to their mouth-watering dishes. We eat here often and always try new things. Jimmy has never disappointed us.

They have two locations in Pittsburgh. One in Cranberry and the other in Fox Chapel. They have been in the area since 1985. We frequent the Cranberry location, and have yet to try the one in Fox Chapel.

entrance to jimmy wan'sShall we go in…

cucumber saladCold Cucumber Salad with ginger and a hot spice of red chili peppers. Oooo so good.

tar tarTokyo Tar Tar. Salmon, Tuna, White Fish. The tuna was our favorite.

salmon, tuna, white fish sushiJimmy Wan’s sushi is like butter. It just melts in your mouth. Yummy!

filet mignonVietnamese Filet Mignon. Moan-worthy. This was the special, and we told the managers that they need to add this to the regular menu. By far our favorite EVER.

chocolate molten lava cakeMolten Ghirardelli Cake. I’m not be into sweets, but the darkest Ghirardelli chocolate gives this cake a perfect balance. Oooooo.

 

Not only is the food delicious and the atmosphere relaxing, the service is top notch exceptional.

I highly recommend you get there if you can. Enjoy!