Happy Father's Day!!

A huge shout out to all the dad's out there!  My love for the kitchen can be attributed to my father, the person who taught me how to cook!  This Father's Day, we collaborated to grill up some shish-ka-bobs.  My dad was eager to help me take photos of the process to share with our creations with you.

There are four main aspects to a good kabob.  

1. The marinade:  we used a beef marinade from River Roads Cook Book as our guide but don't follow the recipe exactly.  The longer they can soak, the better.  Allow at least 4 hours.

You can message me for the recipe if you're not feeling adventurous.

2. The Meat (cubed):  Steak and Chicken.  Country style ribs also work well.  

3.  The Veggies and Fruit

mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, squash, zucchini, bell peps, and a pineapple

4. The Presentation:  My dad is an engineer so this comes easy I guess. 

Here's the how to:

Cube the meat. Marinate it for at least 4 hours.  Cut the veggies.  Soak the wooden skewers.  Then create the kabobs.  Alternate the veggies to ensure they take on the flavor of the meat.  Also, keep the chicken and the beef separate.  The chicken tends to cook a little longer.

Grill each skewer on medium high heat for about 5 minutes on each side.  (there are four sides)  Serve with dirty rice and a nice artisan bread from Kroger (shameless plug). 

"hey dad, can I has some?"

Sure you can, Biscuit.  Sure you can.

Happy Plates!

and Happy Father's Day!! (a little late)

Leftover Sliders and a Review

Mushroom and Swiss Churizo Sliders. 

     For the first time in a while, my brother came over and I was able to cook for him this past Sunday.  I posted a status on facebook asking people "whatchew want for lunch?"  My good friend, Dayna Furnish said she wanted a mushroom swiss burger.  (I now owe Dayna, Scott and Stephen a meal.)  However, I decided to try something a little different with my leftover churizo so we made some swiss mushroom churizo burgers to watch during the Texans vs Steelers game.  They were pretty good.  Clare thought they were delicious; I think they will be better the next time I make them.  We ate all but one patty, and the Texans won.  That patty, I decided ,was a very lucky patty.  Eat it, and they probably would have lost...who knows?! 
     I put it in the fridge to save for a future date.  With an evening meeting at the Archdiocese tonight, I found this afternoon the perfect time to create a churizo slider.  I warmed the patty and split it in half between two small rolls (seen above).  They look like a little alien from Batteries Not Included AND have a kick and flavor that is certainly OUT OF THIS WORLD.  Happy Plate (yes, that's the Hercules plate from McDonalds with Meg on it...)!!!

One of my other goals with this blog is to offer reviews for different eateries I visit throughout the year.  Today I had the privilege of visiting
Kublai Khan with my friends Kristin and Scott.  This unique restaurant allows you to pick all the ingredients for a "special" stir fry experience. 
     Today I mixed some beef with marinated tilapia, an egg, vegetables (squah, zucchini, bean sprouts, and some other stuff) and their coconut curry spice.  I'm unfamiliar with curry and some of the spices they have available, so I tried mixing and matching.  The food was good and decently priced (althought our waitress had an issue charging me for too many bowls).  Some interesting facts:  You can order from the menu if you're not feeling creative, most of the clientele was of the male variety, and they offer "cheat sheets" for different types of stir fry. 

   The most interesting thing about this place is:  if you do not like what you make, it is your own fault.  I can see people either being challenged by this and returning to "out-do" themselves, or never going again.  All this being said, the food is fresh, somewhat healthy, and if you go with the right people, you're sure to have a good time.  Let me know if you're ever in the mood to go (especially if it's 5:00pm somewhere). 

Happy plate (because I took some of it home.  Hey, it was a big serving)!