Homemade Chinese. Save Yourself the Calories!

Chinese food is amazingly delicious, but it's often a calorie bomb. To save your waistline you can easily make it at home with less than half the calories and fat! Today I'm featuring an easy Shrimp Fried Rice, one of my absolute favorite Chinese dishes.

You will need:

3 cups of cooked brown rice
1 pound of cooked shrimp, seasoned with salt and pepper and I added some garlic powder
1 bag of frozen stir-fry veggies, cooked according to package directions
3 tbsp of olive oil
3 tbsp of low sodium soy sauce
1 egg

To start, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add in the rice and stir until all of it is coated with the oil.

Next, push the rice to the center of the pan and turn the heat down to low. Break the egg into the center of the frying pan and quickly stir it into the rice so that the rice is coated with the egg.

Drizzle the soy sauce over the rice and stir, then add the shrimp and vegetables. Turn the heat back up to medium-high and stir until combined. Add extra soy sauce and salt and pepper to taste if necessary.

This is so easy! It tasted almost exactly like take-out without all of the guilt. I will be making this again, and stay tuned this fall for my crockpot General Tsao's Chicken!

Baked Chicken with Sun-dried Tomato Cream Sauce

I've had this recipe on my list of ones to try for a while and finally got around to it last night. I was looking for something simple, healthy, and flavorful and this one was all of those things. Also key was a recipe that wasn't going to cost me an arm and a leg. 

To start you will need:

At least 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used 6 thin sliced)

1 1/2 cups of heavy cream (it also says you can use coconut milk but I opted not to)

Good quality steak seasoning (I actually used McCormick's Montreal Chicken Seasoning, worked great!)

Fresh thyme sprigs

1/2 cup of chicken stock 

10-12 sun-dried tomatoes pureed in a blender or food processor

1/2 tsp of fresh thyme leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Start by preheating your oven to 375F. Season your chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and steak seasoning and top with a spring of thyme. Bake for 45 minutes. If you are using thin sliced chicken breasts I suggest you cut the cook time down to at the most 30 minutes. I personally would check on them after 20 because they cook extremely fast and mine were just slightly dry after a half hour.

While the chicken is baking, heat a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the cream and 2 sprigs of thyme and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer for 10 minutes until it's reduced to 1/3 of its original volume.

Remove from the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes, then place it back on the heat after removing the thyme. Add in the chicken stock and let it simmer for another five minutes. Now add the sun-dried tomatoes, salt and pepper, and the thyme leaves. Stir with a whisk to break up any clumps, then you're ready to pour it over your chicken! 

It looks so yummy! And it truly tasted delicious. I have a ton of sauce left and it would be perfect poured over pasta. It also solidifies in the fridge and could potentially be used as a spread for a sandwich. 

I wanted a nice vegetable dish for a side, and my mother-in-law brought us a ton of vegetables from her garden the other day. I had some leftover canned corn in the fridge and white onion that I had already diced and was dying to use the zucchini so I threw together a quick little medley in a saute pan.

Start by heating a tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat, then add in the onions. Saute for a few minutes until tender, then add in the zucchini and corn. Saute until the zucchini is tender but still green, then season with salt and pepper and Italian seasoning. I used McCormick's Tuscan seasoning. This was very fresh and light and tasty, a perfect addition to a nice late summer dinner! 

Glyndon Grill

This past Saturday my maid of honor and best friend since I was 5 accompanied me on a wine excursion across northern Baltimore and Harford counties. I love wine, but in the last 6 months or so I've gotten really into local wine. I'm all about supporting local business and a lot of Maryland wine I've had has been incredible. This desire for local wine was only heightened by the discovery of the Maryland Wine Passport, which was brought to my attention by another friend. You purchase what looks like an actual passport and each time you visit a winery you get a stamp and a code to enter online. The more wineries you visit, the more perks you earn such as discounts to wine event tickets. Once you reach 32 you're entered into a raffle to win $120 worth of Maryland wine. Yes please.

On this gorgeous day we traveled to Woodhall Cellars, Royal Rabbit, Harford, Dejon, Boordy, and Basignani vineyards. Our favorite of the day was Royal Rabbit. Their tasting room is located in the basement of their house and was the first one I've been to where you actually sit at a table instead of standing at a counter. We were greeted by an extremely personable woman who explained all of the wines they were offering that day in detail and she even offered us a taste of their Chardonnay, which wasn't on the tasting menu but she had uncorked it for another couple.

Our least favorite had to be Woodhall Cellars. At this winery, there were only a handful of other people tasting the wines but the staff member/possible owner doing the tasting seemed more interested in figuring out the intricacies of their Groupon offer on her iPad than telling us about the wine or the winery. It took her at least 5 minutes between pours and she was very distracted. Later on in the day when we visited our last stop a couple next to us was asked where else they had been that day. Their response was "a sad little winery" and then proceeded to name the aforementioned place. I feel bad for Woodhall Cellars because they did have good wine, they just desperately need to work on their customer service.

By the time we finished our wine jaunt we were starving and decided to stop at the Glyndon Grill, a fairly new restaurant located, of course, in Glyndon, MD. This restaurant is owned by the same people that opened Barrett's Grill in Hunt Valley, a place that I have not been to but is a favorite of my mother-in-law and her significant other. Last week was Baltimore County Restaurant Week, a fact we were not aware of when we first entered the restaurant and were told their were no open tables available without a reservation. Not to worry, there were plenty of seats at the bar so we plunked ourselves down.

The staff at this place were very friendly and even joking with us as we ate. I hadn't wanted to sit at the bar initially because neither one of us wanted a drink but the bartender didn't make us feel bad for ordering our sodas. A quick perusal of the menu later we had chosen the buffalo calamari for an appetizer, a lobster and shrimp roll for me and filet for Caroline.

The calamari was already dressed in the buffalo sauce and served with a blue cheese dipping sauce. It seems like a weird combo for a seafood item but it was so good and not too spicy like buffalo sauce can sometimes be.

I absolutely loved my lobster and shrimp roll. I often find that just like you shouldn't order crab cakes outside of Maryland, you shouldn't order a lobster roll outside of New England. But this was done perfectly. This one was served on a toasted, buttered brioche bun with the meat dressed in a light herb mayo on a bed of shredded lettuce and topped with green onion. So good! The key to a good lobster roll is the simple light mayo and hardly anything else. I want to go back for one of these!

Caroline really enjoyed her filet. It was a no frills entree with simply the filet and asparagus and was cooked to her specifications and seasoned nicely. I opted to skip dessert but Caroline chose the Apple Cobbler. You get a huge portion of the cobbler topped with vanilla bean ice cream. I took a bite or two and it was a nice mix of warm and crunchy apple filler and crust crumbles, cinnamon, and coolness from the ice cream.

Some of the awesome artwork on the wall!

Sideways Cafe

Recently I discovered that there are two wine cafes in Westminster. I had already heard of Sideways before because I had driven past it many times, but there's also the Artisan Wine Company, and they're both located on Main Street.

One Monday night we were looking for a low key dinner that we didn't have to make ourselves or a restaurant that wasn't too far away. We ended up at Sideways rather than the other because this was the only one open that night.

The restaurant is very small and the only other patron was an older gentleman sitting at the bar reading a book and drinking a beer. Mondays are not usually a busy dining night but it was a little weird being the only other patrons. The bartender was also serving as the hostess, waiter, and chef.

Fortunately service did not suffer because of this but I feel like that's hard to do when you only have three customers to focus on, one of which is reading. Sideways only carries a few local wines and a limited selection of other wines. I chose a white from local winery Knob Hall that I had already had and knew I liked and Justin chose a Riesling from out of state.

We were both fairly hungry so we opted for an appetizer, going with the Buffalo Chicken Dip. You're served several slices of crostini on a long white plate with the dip in the center, which was essentially sliced chicken pieces doused with buffalo and ranch sauce. It tasted fine, but from the appearance of the chicken I'm skeptical as to whether it was freshly sliced and cooked or had been previously frozen, thawed, and heated up.

I chose the Chesapeake pizza for my entree. Old Bay oil, shrimp, crab, tomatoes, and parmesan made up this pizza, which was pretty decent. It tasted essentially like eating crab dip on a pizza, always a plus with me. My only critique was that I believe there may have been some extra garlic salt on the crust making it slightly too salty.

Justin picked the Maryland Burger, topped with Old Bay aioli, crab meat, cheddar cheese, tomato, and red onion. This did not start off very well because our waiter did not ask how Justin wanted his burger cooked. What resulted was a well done burger that was seasoned well but very overcooked. He did enjoy the other ingredients on the top but was disappointed in the meat.

We did order a second round of drinks. I picked the Riesling that Justin had and he chose a Bold Rock, which is a delicious cider out of Virginia.

Throughout our waiter was very personable and we had a nice conversation at the end of the meal about local wineries and breweries. It's a shame that the food was rather lackluster, and I don't think we'll be going back to Sideways in the near future.

Wings & Things

Sometimes you just really need some crispy, juicy delicious chicken wings smothered in a glaze and bleu cheese dressing. The best place to get this kind of food is a good old-fashioned bar, at least most of the time (Dry 85 in Annapolis, MD is not quite a bar but has some of the best chicken wings I have ever had). For this venture we hit up the Antietam Brewing Company/Benny's Pub in Hagerstown, MD. Much like I traverse far and wide for local wineries, my fiance really enjoys craft beer. We've been to places like Brewer's Alley in Frederick and Pub Dog and Frisco's in Columbia, but I hadn't really heard of this place until I did some thorough online searching. We also heard a few fellow patrons of the Red Heifer Winery singing the praises of this place, and conveniently it was our next stop that day.

 

Benny's Pub is located close to the heart of Hagerstown in a strip mall and is easy to miss if you're not looking for it. It's open seating, so we plunked ourselves down at a round table near the front. The music selection was mostly pop with a little bit of country mixed in and it is loud like in most bars so be prepared. After choosing our beers (raspberry ales) we selected wings in a raspberry chipotle sauce for an appetizer (see a theme here?). These weren't too spicy and had a subtle raspberry flavor. I picked the crab cake sandwich with fries and Justin chose the Irish Burger, topped with bacon and a fried egg. Per their menu they only use local meat, always a plus with us. We really enjoy buying and eating local. Justin likes anything with a fried egg so he had nothing but good things to say about the burger, which was seasoned well and cooked to his liking, meaning close to still alive. Getting a crab cake sandwich that far away from the shore is always risky but mine was pretty tasty, not too much filler and a nice Old Bay flavor. We would definitely like to come back to this place.

 Recently we also visited Frisco's, as I mentioned previously in this post. We had headed down to Columbia for an appointment of mine and to see a movie (we ended up skipping the movie) and food is always on the agenda for any outing. Frisco's has over 20 beers on tap and selections rotate frequently. The day's offerings are posted on HD screens above the bar and are a little difficult to read without getting up and walking over to the bar. Fortunately our waitress was very helpful in assessing our tastes and pointing us in the right direction. My favorite was a Ginger Lemon beer from Boulevard Brewing Company, which was like drinking ginger ale. So refreshing! Justin chose some darker Irish beers that he also really liked.

 

This time we skipped an appetizer and went straight for the main course. I chose the Pulled Pork sandwich, served dressed in housemade BBQ sauce with granny apple slaw and onion rings. The sauce was a little spicy and was good, but I prefer my BBQ to be more sweet than spicy. I really enjoyed the granny apple slaw. Normally I really don't like coleslaw, but I've been growing to like it more recently. This was a nice departure from the traditional cabbage that was still dressed in what appeared to be a light mayo and was mixed with carrots.

Justin picked the Spicy Steak Samich, which was grilled flank steak dressed with Thai bird chili BBQ and topped with avocado and goat cheese. He chose a side of beans and rice. I was told by him that his sandwich was good but nothing to write home about. He did like that they offered beans and rice as a healthier side option than your traditional fries and onion rings.We'll probably go back to Frisco's for the beer and maybe try appetizers next time. What are some of your favorite bars/craft beers? 

Bare Cupboards Quick Fix Meal

Because I've been working mostly nights, I really like recipes that I can make ahead and grab on the go, as well as ones that don't require me to spend a lot of money. Enter Baked Broccoli Cheddar Rice Cups, an easy side or snack that I bet you already have most of the ingredients to in the house.

To start, cook 2 cups of rice (we use brown) and thaw 10 ounces of frozen broccoli, according to package directions. While these are cooking, preheat your oven to 350. 

Once cooked, add your rice and broccoli plus 1 cup of chicken stock, 1/4 cup of Ranch dressing, 2 eggs lightly beaten, 3/4 cup of cheddar cheese, and 1/4 teaspoons of salt and pepper to a large bowl and mix well.

After mixing, grease an 8-12 cup muffin tin and form the mixture into balls. Top with cheddar cheese and bake for 25 minutes. 

Another easy recipe is one I made last night, a Caprese grilled cheese. All you need is 2 slices of bread (we use whole wheat), sliced mozzarella, sliced tomatoes, basil leaves, and balsamic glaze (we use Trader Joe's). 

Heat your griddle on the stove over medium high heat. You don't want it too hot because you'll burn your bread before melting your cheese. Chiffonade the basil (roll the leaves into a tube and slice. You'll get these nice little strips) and then layer the bread with the cheese and tomatoes. Top with the basil.

Once cooked, remove to a plate and drizzle with the balsamic glaze. So good! 

End of July Cupcakes

Dare I say it, I think I may take a brief hiatus from cupcakes for the month of August. There will be the exception when we go to Ocean City at the end of the month, but I have gotten very into lifting at the gym and want to see how I feel when I cut them out for a little while. There is no way on this earth that I could do it permanently though. No way, no how. In the meantime, I will be eating 45 calorie popsicles for my sugar fix.

With that said, I have two cupcake reviews today from two places in the city that had been on my list to try. The first is Sweet 27, a gluten free bakery located near the Johns Hopkins University campus. I had not stopped here yet because my work hours did not jive with when they were open, but this past Monday morning several of us went out to breakfast after work at one of my favorite breakfast places in the city, Slainte, and by the time we were done they were open.

Before I get to the bakery, let me just take a moment to wax poetic about Slainte's glorious Eggs Benedict. It's so good that I never order anything else, nor have I found a place that does it as well as here, even places that offer it with crabmeat. Everything is cooked and seasoned to perfection on the plate and I always clean mine! And wash it down with their bottomless mimosas which are also delicious. It is truly a treat.

Fortunately Sweet 27 was right on my way home and not out of the way at all. I was interested in trying these gluten free cupcakes because I have had quite a few gluten free things that were great at a friend's house.

I picked the red velvet, the vanilla, the chocolate peanut butter, and the chocolate strawberry. I think my favorite of the bunch was the red velvet. The cake was pretty moist and the frosting was creamy with a nice cream cheese flavor. They also don't glom on too much frosting, always a plus. I was a little disappointed with the vanilla, the cake was kind of dry and the frosting tasted more like cream cheese than buttercream. The chocolate peanut butter I only had a bite of because I bought it for Justin, but the chocolate cake was very chocolate-y and moist and the peanut butter almost tasted like natural peanut butter, which was good to me but if that's not your thing I wouldn't recommend it. The chocolate strawberry had strawberry chunks in the batter and again I thought this one was just okay. I think I just wasn't in the mood to eat that particular flavor of cupcake.

The second place I visited Wednesday after being called in from 7a-11a. I had tried to go to Oooh So Sweet before but they had been closed unexpectedly. Fortunately they were open yesterday and I popped in. This bakery offers quite a few flavors every day and you mark what you want with a dry erase marker on a laminated sheet. They then disappear to the back, and I'm pretty sure they frost everything fresh since there is no case in the front.

Here I chose Blue Velvet, Banana, Ice Cream Sundae, and Sugar Cookie. All around these cupcakes were moist. The Ice Cream Sundae was a chocolate cake studded with chocolate chips and very tasty, and the top was a vanilla frosting with hardened hot fudge, rainbow sprinkles, and a maraschino cherry. The cake on the Banana tasted truly like the fruit, but the frosting was yellow buttercream that wasn't as flavorful as I was expecting. The same went for the Sugar Cookie and Blue Velvet. The Ice Cream Sundae was definitely my favorite out of the batch.

Wish me luck with my month without cupcakes! It's definitely going to be challenging but I'm keeping my fingers crossed I can do it!