Kung Pao Tofu

I'm actually surprised by how much we both love tofu. I know it's good for us and it's a great substitute for meat, but I didn't think we would both be head over heels for it. So far I've made 4 different tofu dishes and we've loved them all. This is shocking to me since my husband had always been a meat and potatoes kind of guy. If I served him a meatless meal the first thing he'd ask is, "where's the meat?" quickly followed by, "you know, some bacon would make this better."

This Kung Pao Tofu is another take-out fake-out (to quote Rachael Ray) that is actually better than anything we could get at a local Chinese restaurant. The flavors were outstanding and the fresh veggies and crispy tofu rounded out the meal. I made a few modifications to the original recipe, adding some chicken broth (or you could use vegetable to keep it vegetarian) and a few splashed of fish sauce to bump up the amount of sauce. We like our stir-fries saucy, what can I say. I don't have coconut oil so I cooked everything in canola oil and it worked just fine.

Between the 30 minutes to bake the tofu and the actual cooking time of the dish, this is not exactly a weeknight-friendly meal unless you get home from work early. Unfortunately we think Baby Girl might have a mild peanut allergy so she didn't get to sample this meal. I took these pictures before I remembered the green onion garnish, which I added before we ate and definitely helped brighten up the dish.



Kung Pao Tofu
Modified from Prevention RD

Cooking spray
2 blocks extra firm tofu, pressed and drained, then cubed
2/3 cup roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
1 large red bell pepper, sliced into strips
12 oz mushrooms, sliced
4 green onions, sliced and divided
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
4 tablespoons soy sauce
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 inch piece fresh ginger, grated
1 cup chicken (or vegetable) broth
A couple shakes of fish sauce, optional

Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and spray well with non-stick cooking spray. Arrange tofu on the baking sheet and lightly mist with oil. Bake for 30 minutes, turning the cubes after 15 minutes.

Heat canola oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add peanuts and red pepper flakes and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add tofu and stir. Add bell pepper and mushrooms and cook another 1 -2 minutes.

Add half of the green onions, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, chicken/vegetable broth and fish sauce. Reduce heat and allow sauce to thicken for 2-3 minutes. Serve over cooked rice topped with remaining green onions.

Trip to Sonic

I've been seeing commercials for Sonic for years even though the closest one to us was 70 miles away. I heard their marketing strategy is to imprint the brand in your subconscious so if you are ever traveling and see one you'll want to try it. This also works for if one eventually opens near your house - all the hype has already been built up so they have very little work to do to get you to the store.

Then about 6 months ago not one but TWO Sonics opened within 15 minutes of our house. Score! A few weekends ago we went to one for a quick burger fix. We'd been once before about a month before the recent visit and I was mad that I'd forgotten my camera. This time I brought it along and got a shot of my cheeseburger:


Just look at that glistening, greasy bun. Their burgers are delicious but I shudder to think of how unhealthy they are. I got a combo that included the burger and fries:


I also got a cherry limeade, which is perfect for cutting the buttery, fatty goodness. I love eating in the car with the windows rolled down. Such a fun summer treat.

Takeout...Yes, Again

On Thursday I had every intention of making dinner, but when I got home I realized the chicken I'd taken out to defrost was still partially frozen. I also realized I wasn't really in the mood to cook. When SP called to say he'd had a rough day that was all the reason I needed to suggest takeout for dinner. We tossed around a few ideas before deciding on our favorite place, M's. We got the usual suspects, a cheesesteak hoagie for me:


... crispy pizza fries (french fries topped with sauce and mozzarella cheese):


... and a pizza with The Works:


It really hit the spot, as always.

More Take Out

On Wednesday we experimented with a new hoagie shop but on Friday we went back to our first love, M's. Yes, we got similar take out meals twice in the same week. Sue us, it was a rough week. The first time we went to M's SP noticed they had a pizza called The Works and he waxed rhapsodic about how when he was a kid pizza places used to have this pizza topped with pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onions and green peppers and explained how it was called The Works because that was all the toppings available. Apparently this was in the days before pineapple, anchovies, and the like were standard issue. It was his favorite and he's been dying to order it from M's, so we got a large:


It was delicious! I have to admit, I was shocked. I thought all those toppings would be too much but everything worked well together. And since this was our first foray into pizza at M's I'm happy to report it's just as good as their hoagies.


Speaking of which, I got my cheesesteak hoagie:


... and was pleased to see a return to the fresh toppings piled high on top of the meat.


This is one delicious cheesesteak hoagie, hands-down the best I've ever had. I doubt we'll be straying again.

Take Out

We recently found a fantastic pizza/hoagie shop near our house, which I will refer to as M's. Despite loving everything we've ever gotten from M's, SP decided he wanted to try another hoagie shop, just so he knew for certain that M's was really the best around. He picked up dinner for us on Wednesday at a new place, S's. We started with an order of fried mushrooms:



... served with a horseradish-based dipping sauce. SP is a huge fan of mushrooms so these were mostly for him. He liked them, but he prefers the batter-dipped variety. I've been loving fries lately so I got an order of cheese fries:


They were good, but there was way too much cheese sauce. I liked that the fries were skin-on and had survived the trip fairly well, but I couldn't eat the ones soaked in cheese sauce. My staple at any new hoagie place is the cheesesteak hoagie. I love the contrast of the hot, cheesey beef mixed with the cool, crisp lettuce, tomato and onion. When I unwrapped my hoagie I was dismayed to see this:


I was worried they'd given me a regular cheesesteak by mistake but no, this was a cheesesteak hoagie - the lettuce, tomato and onion were buried under the meat. While I can appreciate the fact that the toppings didn't fall out with every bite, being buried under the hot meat meant they weren't cool or crispy. Wilted lettuce is very unappetizing. This was a decent cheesesteak hoagie, but it just solidified my love for M's. SP got a roast beef hoagie:


... and admittedly went a litle overboard on the toppings. He told me he said yes to just about everything they offered to put on it, which made for too many contrasting flavors.

All the food was OK, but my ultimate test is in the leftovers. Obviously we didn't eat all that food in one sitting. I like to reheat the other half of my cheesesteak hoagie the next day for lunch and I pay special attention to the bread. I've never met a roll that can remain sturdy overnight (until we went to M's) and S's fell prey to the soggy factor. It was a decent version but when M's is right across the street I see no reason to stray.

Wendy's Snack

SP got home late on Monday which meant stopping for food on the way home. He was going to Wendy's so he asked if I wanted anything. The broccoli rabe pasta wasn't satisfying so I asked him to pick me up a double cheeseburger. I snagged a few of his fries and had a tasty snack:

Sushi

We're coming to the end of a difficult week and SP thought we should treat ourselves to a scrumptious dinner. What better then sushi for pure indulgence? I'll admit, we totally pigged out. This is way more food then two people need, but man was it good!

We got two orders of the Godzilla roll:


I can't quite remember what's in it (I think salmon, probably some kind of tuna, veggies, rice, etc.) but what makes it amazing is that they deep-fry it. After it's sliced the roll is topped with spicy mayo and those yummy, crispy flakes. So amazingly good, with the cool fish and veggies and the hot, crispy roll.


We also got two spicy tuna rolls, a tuna and avocado roll, a salmon and cucumber roll and an eel roll:


I've waxed rhapsodic about the spicy tuna roll many times before, with it's generous portion of chopped tuna and spicy mayo topped with chopped scallions:


I absolutely adore the tuna and avocado roll:


The avocado is always so buttery and luscious. How do they always manage to get such great avocados? And the tuna...impeccable. SP wanted to try something new so we got a salmon and cucumber roll:


I liked it, but I definitely prefer tuna. The salmon was good and I liked the crunch of the cucumber, but the other rolls were better. SP is a huge fan of eel so this eel roll was all for him:

Sushi

SP had to go out of town on Tuesday for a work event so I decided to treat myself to sushi.


I got two rolls, the spicy tuna roll:


... which we love because not only do they stuff the roll with the spicy tuna, they pile more of the mixture on top of the roll, and a tuna and avocado roll:


... which is always a favorite with the creamy, buttery avocado and the luscious tuna.

Thin Crust Pizza

There's a gourmet thin crust pizza place near us that serves a great slice of pizza. It was a rough week, so by Thursday we wanted something easy for dinner. SP stopped off at the pizza place on the way home and got a few of our favorites and some new ones to try.


One of our favorites is the pepperoni and sausage:


We also love the mushroom and basil:


One of the new ones was a Thai chicken with shredded carrots, bean sprouts, cilantro and peanut sauce:


He also got one with caramelized onions, edamame and ricotta cheese:

Chinese Take Out

I've had a sore throat since last week and by Friday I was worn out. I came home early and slept for a few hours, so SP decided take out Chinese was the way to go for dinner. I got roast pork egg foo yung and chicken with broccoli:


... in addition to the wonton soup we shared:


SP wanted to try their Szechuan dumplings:


... which turned out to be steamed dumplings in a spicy peanut sauce. They were amazing, like the kind of sauce you wish all cold sesame noodles could have, just spicy enough to be interesting but with a rich peanut flavor. Definitely something we'll be ordering again.

Stewart's Root Beer

When I was growing up my dad used to take me to Stewart's Root Beer to "eat on the window" (aka tray service). I loved the novelty of eating in the car, the frosty mug of root beer and the fantastic burger and fries. SP and I found ourselves near a Stewart's today (not the one linked above, that's just the only one with a Web site) so we stopped for lunch. We both ordered a double California cheeseburger, along with fries and onion rings:


I love the fries here because they actually taste like potato:


... and the onion rings are crispy and crunchy:


The burgers are on the small side here, but a double is perfect:


The California is served with lots of lettuce, a thick slice of tomato, thin slices of raw onion and a smear of mayo, along with plenty of melty, gooey cheese:


No meal at a Stewart's would be complete without a frosty mug of root beer:


This Stewart's has only outside seating so it's seasonal. I love that I can go somewhere I went with my father over 15 years ago and everything is exactly the same.

Pasta with Beet and Gorgonzola Sauce

As I'm sure you've all noticed, I've been buying beets at the farmers market quite often. I love them and could eat beet and goat cheese salad every week, but SP mentioned wanting a little variety. I thought a creamy beet pasta sauce might be nice, so I did a search and found this recipe. All the ingredients sounded good, so I decided to make it for dinner tonight. The result was certainly gorgeous to look at:


But the flavor just wasn't there. We tried adding salt, pepper, more gorgonzola, but nothing helped. It's rare that a dish is so bad that we throw all of it away, but we did just that. Nothing pains me more, but this just wasn't worth saving. SP told me he was wrong, that he loves beet and goat cheese salad and begged me not to experiment with beets anymore. Ha!

Wanna know what we had for dinner instead? It's so wrong (especially since I've been so good about exercising lately) but we went to Wendy's. I got a Baconator and a small order of fries:


I wanted the Spicy Baconator they used to have, but I guess they stopped carrying it. It was greasy and the fries were limp and on the cold side, but it still hit the spot. Oh well.

Sushi

On Friday we went to my parent's house for dinner. We brought food in, but they wanted BBQ, which I've had too much of lately, so I got sushi instead.


I got three rolls - the spicy rock roll (along the left edge in the photo above), spicy tuna roll:


... and a tuna and avocado roll:


All of them were fantastic, with buttery soft avocado, spicy chunks of tuna and all the flavors melding beautifully. I wish sushi wasn't so expensive so I could eat it more often. We also got two orders of eel sushi for SP and my stepfather to share:

BBQ

On Tuesday, my last night at home until Sunday, SP picked up some BBQ for dinner. I got pulled pork, mac & cheese, collard greens and cornbread:


Once again, this is half the food they give you. It never looks like a lot in the styrofoam containter, but the food is rich and satisfying and a little goes a long way.

More Takeout

I'm in the process of catching up on all the photos that were on my camera. I think this was dinner on Monday - mozzarella sticks and cheesesteak hoagies from the local pizzeria:


The mozzarella sticks were still hot when I got them home, which was fantastic. They were really well done so the outside was nice and crispy while the center held molten, gooey cheese.


I love a good cheesesteak hoagie and this was definitely an excellent version: