April/May cooking doodle

[Melissa Knox]

Hi guys,

Here's a link to the poll for our next cooking collective.  I'll assume that everyone who responds is interested in participating.  Also, I'm happy to host unless the only dates available are those that I can't make (or if someone else wants to do it).

http://www.doodle.com/pqb8nr4mt6f25h3a

Melissa

[Margaret Pai]

Hi guys:

Sorry, I think I'm going to have to bow out of cooking group for the foreseeable future.  I hope if I decide I can come back in, you'll let me!

I think I've just taken overscheduled kind of past my ability to cope.  I regularly have fantasies of sitting on the couch and staring at the wall.  For hours.  I need to find some breathing room before I go off the deep end.

Thanks!

--Margaret

Melissa

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[Cat Burns]

Just voted. :-) xxo c

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

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[Melissa Knox]

Sorry to hear that, Margaret.  I hope things calm down for you soon.  

Melissa

[Tina Neogi]

Hi,

I just voted too.  There are several days where I wrote maybe because I may have to work some weekends.  I will know more in the next week or so.  

Thanks,

Tina

[Melissa Knox]

Ok, we seem to be at a bit of an impasse.  Four of us can make it on April 27 (Me, Bethany, Mickie, Cat) or if Tina's maybe turns into a yes then four of us can make it on April 20/21 (Me, B, Mickie, Tina).  The next time that four of us can make it is the end of May, and there is no time given that all five of us can do it.  I'm inclined to do one in April just because I'm running out of food and if we wait until June we'll be losing Bethany, anyway.  Tina, do you know any more about your upcoming schedule?  If you can't do the 20th/21st then I think we should just go for the 27th.  If you can, then I guess we will need to vote?  What does everyone think?  

Link to the poll in case you want to look for other solutions/change your answer: http://www.doodle.com/pqb8nr4mt6f25h3a#table

Melissa

[Bethany S]

I second the idea of doing one in April - either the 27th or 24th depending on which day has the most availability. 

Bethany

[Michelle Farris]

I agree- we are running low on freezer meals!

Michelle Geri Farris

farr...@comcast.net

[Tina Neogi]

Bummer; I hope to join on the  next round.  Please go ahead on the 27th.

Thanks,

Tina

[Melissa Knox]

Are you sure?  Are you not available on the 20th?

[Cat Burns]

I can do the 27th of April, but sadly not the 20th. Feel free to proceed with earlier date if all want to. I'm ok with that. 

;-) Cat

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Melissa Knox]

Actually, it's sounding like the 27th is most likely, but I just wanted to double check that we knew everyone's availability.  

Seriously, guys, stop having all these "plans" and "lives" and "jobs" so we can get some cooking done!  :)

M.

[Tina Neogi]

Sorry, the 20th probably won't work.

Thanks,

Tina

[Melissa Knox]

Sorry, Tina, we miss you!  I'm up for doing another one in late May/June, too, if that is a better time for you.  We can make Bethany some post-partum meals!

[Cat Burns]

;-) 

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From: Melissa Knox <kno...@gmail.com>
To: seattle-cooki...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 1:04 PM
Subject: Re: April/May cooking doodle

[Bethany S]

I just heard that I may have to attend a wedding shower on the 20th, so the 27th is looking better for me.

[Melissa Knox]

Ok, let's put the 27th on our calendars and lock this thing down.

Send me your recipe suggestions, and depending on the number we get we can do an informal email vote or another doodle.

Sent from my iPhone

[Cat Burns]

Hi M!

I'd  like a little on the lighter side recipes     Aka healthier meat recipes. Less on the curry, cream and salt. Meatballs are nice to have in freezer. 

I can look through the sites and send what I'm thinking. 

Xxo c

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Michelle Farris]

Meatballs for sure. I really like the chicken squash dish (I served it with garbanzo beans one night instead of ravioli. Yum.). I liked the pork carnitas we’ve done in the past.

[Bethany S]

I think these tropical chicken burgers look good: http://thehealthyfoodie.com/2012/10/09/the-best-darn-looking-tropical-chicken-burgers-ever/

 

I also think this thai shrimp looks good, but I don't know if people are into shrimp: http://www.closetcooking.com/2008/06/thai-lemon-shrimp.html

 

I really liked having the cookies and would love to do that again, or some muffins or waffles etc, or pizza dough :)

 

 

[Cat Burns]

Those sound good

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Cat Burns]

Both sound good. 

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Melissa Knox]

Both of those look good!  And lighter meals sound great, especially with the changing of the seasons.  But, what did we learn about shrimp and the freezer?  It's ok if you cook it first?  Micheal would loooove it if we made a shrimp dish.  

Other ideas are Margaret's "Mac n Cheese"  (not cheesy and contains chicken, Cat) and the coconut chicken. 

So, should we do 4 recipes (maybe 1 crockpot/no cook) and a cookie?  Or possibly a granola bar like this: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/playgroup-granola-bars/detail.aspx?

A couple of no-cook ideas: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Beef-Bulgogi/ and http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/slow-cooker-asian-pork-with-snow-peas-red-peppers-and-soba-noodles-00000000052428/

By the way, I hope nobody minds me becoming camp director.  Feel free to step in if I'm being too bossy!

Melissa

PS: Not for our cooking day, but I found this on Pinterest and think I might try it.  It sounds a lot like our chicken tikka recipe adapted for the crockpot: http://www.tablefortwoblog.com/2012/10/19/chicken-tikka-masala-crockpot/

[Michelle Farris]

Yes, please to both of those pork recipes! And I liked doing the cookies (they didn’t make it to our freezer, alas.) If we can figure out a shrimp recipe, my kids would be over the moon.

Mickie

[Michelle Farris]

We can do pizza dough very easily – we did it in the past (though the 5 minutes a day recipe can be a little fickle with pizza. I have another good recipe we could try, and I could bring my kitchenaid).

[Melissa Knox]

Do you mean the two I posted (one was actually beef)?  Or do you mean the pork carnitas and the other pork I posted?  Sorry, dumb question.

Pizza dough sounds great.  And you've reminded me that I need to get back into having my 5 minute dough in the fridge.  The cookies were really good, and I'd be happy to just do the peanut butter again, or maybe a standard chocolate chip?

[Michelle Farris]

Sorry for being confusing. The two you posted (the Asian soba pork and the beef bulgogi).

 

My suggestion:

 

Asian soba pork

Beef bulgogi

Shrimp something

Meatballs

Maybe a good chicken marinade for grilling or broiling later

Cookies (same ones. They were awesome)

Pizza dough

 

It would be a lot, but three would be no-cook, and cookies and dough are super easy too. I always have beans/rice/pasta and veggies around, so I really like the meat heavier entrees because that’s the element that is usually missing when it’s time to pull dinner together.

Mickie

[Bethany S]

Those cookies were awesome! The shrimp dish I mentioned was from OAMM and was no cook also. I could look to see if they have any other shrimp recipes.

[Melissa Knox]

Hmm, I don't mind doing another no-cook, but I am skeptical about freezing raw shrimp.  What do others think?  

[Bethany S]

The recipe says to just freeze the shrimp in the sauce and then you cook it after you thaw it. It seems like we could just buy frozen shrimp and then make the sauce separately.   I don't know much about safe handling of shrimp or how well it does when frozen.

 

The other OAMM shrimp recipes are Chipotle Shrimp: http://onceamonthmom.com/chipotle-shrimp/

, Lighter Cajun Jambalaya with Shrimp, Sausage and Okra: http://onceamonthmom.com/lighter-cajun-jambalaya-with-shrimp-sausage-and-okra/

Shrimp and Orzo Bake:http://onceamonthmom.com/shrimp-and-orzo-bake/

I am no shrimp expert, so am open to any suggestions!

[Michelle Farris]

Here is what about.com says:

Shrimp Storage

Cooked shrimp can be stored in a sealed bag no more than 3 days in the coldest part of your refrigerator. Both cooked and raw shrimp may be frozen, but freezing raw preserves a better flavor. Raw shrimp can be frozen with shell or without, but should have the heads removed. Raw frozen shrimp will last 6 months in the freezer while frozen cooked shrimp should be consumed within 2 months. Commercially-frozen raw shrimp will last longer in the freezer without deterioration, since they are flash-frozen fresh with little handling. 

Frozen cooked and uncooked shrimp should ideally be thawed in the refrigerator in advance of need. They can be added frozen to casseroles and baked dishes. If you need to quickly thaw, you may put the shrimp under cold water, not warm. Warm water will begin the cooking process. 

Shrimp is also available canned. Canned baby shrimp are a nice addition as a salad garnish, but should be rinsed thoroughly before using and may require a bit of picking over depending on the grade.

 

 

I’m thinking that it would be best to make a sauce and freeze it separately, and get portioned frozen bags of shrimp, so we can defrost them separately and then cook them the night they are eaten. I am not a shrimp eater, but Owen LOVES it, and I usually either get him frozen shrimp or we get fresh shrimp when we go out with my dad on his boat.

[Melissa Knox]

Oh good idea to freeze the sauce separately.  I'm sure we can get some good frozen shrimp at Costco.

Sent from my iPhone

[Cat Burns]

Sounds yummy. 

I'm down with making all the recipes listed below including shrimp, but can we start earlier? Like kick off at 10 so we can finish by 3pm at the latest? Last time was great & wonderful learning experience - but tricky for me for longer than 3pm. If not, I'll deal -thought I'd ask. 

Thx Mommas! 

Cat

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Mickie Farris]

I like starting earlier too!
Mjckie
Michelle Farris
www.michellefarris.com

[Bethany S]

I have bad news/dilemma.  I realized that due to a scheduling confusion, I have a prior commitment on Saturday, April 27th.  I am pretty bummed because I was looking forward to the proposed menu and more food. 

 

I am wondering if we can still make it work?  I could still do the costco shopping and I could cook at least one of the meals ahead of time at my house... and maybe do some prep (like chopping) for another meal.  I wouldn't want this to become a consistent pattern, but I would really like to still participate.  What do you think? 

 

I will let you know what the time commitment is for my other thing once I find out.  Maybe it will still work to do both.

[Cat Burns]

I'm ok with this. ;-) cat

FromMarketerToMommy.blogspot.com

[Michelle Farris]

I’m fine with it too, Bethany. Maybe you could do the cookies ahead of time or something.

Mickie

[Bethany S]

Can do! 

[Melissa Knox]

Yeah, that's fine with me.

Sent from my iPhone

[Cat Burns]

Works for me. Those cookies r to die for!

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