Justin & Meredith Winokur's Kitchen Cooking Notebook
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posts/2017/02
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Whole30 Chicken Pot Pie -- back to top
We tried to make a Whole30 version of our Chicken Pot Pie. We also wanted to make a larger thing of it to have lunch.
To bulk it up, we also added half of a spaghetti squash. And since we couldn't have Better Than Bouillon, we used chicken broth for some of the milk and for any extra liquid. We also used coconut flour. We obviously skipped the peas. Also, the carrots were from Meredith's garden.
Finally, I forgot the thyme. And I added a bit of green chile.
Actually, Meredith did all of the chopping for the dish as seen below:
Overall, it was not amazing. I am not really sure why. I suspect it was the spaghetti squash or the flour, but I really not sure.
It did make a ton of food!
Mustard Brussel Sprout Hash -- back to top
We made a Whole30 version of the brussel sprout hash we made before. The differences were that we used regular (French's) mustard since Dijon is not Whole30 and we deglazed with broth. Of course, we had to find sugar free bacon:
Other than that, we followed the steps and idea as last time 1.
It came out really good. You could tell it was a different mustard but not in a bad way. I would say this is a quick-ish meal and pretty good and easy!
Actually, I even baked delicata squash but they were old and didn't taste very good. ↩
Chicken Piccata -- back to top
We made Chicken Piccata using the same recipe as the first time. Last time we had to pan a bit too hot but it came out okay. This time, it was more of a train wreck. The walnuts didn't stick. Maybe they were too large pieces or because they were frozen. But they didn't work well.
Then they started to burn a bit more so we had to pull it off and get it in the oven. Also, when making the sauce, it was (a) burned and (b) a bit sour because of getting a bit too much caper juice.
I think this gave it a bad taste. I would certainly make it again since it was so good before, but this was not a good example of the recipe.
We made eggs and (paleo/whole30) bacon. We used the same stuff as last time. It worked out well. I like this mix for breakfast a lot.
Crab and Avocado Hand Rolls (Temaki) -- back to top
We made Crab and Avocado Hand Rolls (Temaki) from The Kitchn (local). It is pretty simple. We used Whole30 Mayo.
We followed the recipe pretty closely except we didn't have scallions or micro greens. We also used seaweed snacks instead of nori. That worked pretty well, though it was hard to fold so we kind of just did it like a cracker.
I liked it though it got a bit too gross from the crab. I think that flavor can be a bit strong not baked into something.
We figured this is a good most pantry style meal we should keep around. And it was nice getting to eat outside.
Keftas and Grilled Eggplant -- back to top
Meredith had keftas in Epcot when she went Disney last fall. We decided to make them since the work fine for Whole 30.
We used this Serious Eats Recipe (local) but with just beef (and just 1 lbs). We also finely chopped the red onion instead of grating it. This worked fine enough.
We also grilled the eggplant with some of the similar spices.
We liked them, though Meredith would have preferred it without the mint. I didn't have anything to compare it to.
Roasted Vegetables with Chicken Sausage -- back to top
Pretty standard and simple meal. I cut up
I tossed them with olive oil, garlic powder, onion pepper, salt, and pepper. I roasted them for about 30 minutes and then added whole30 compatible chicken sausage.
I think I should have spread this out into two trays. It was good but it kind of steamed. I like how easy this meal is!
Turkey Taco Skillet -- back to top
We made Turkey Taco Skillets. We actually made a 2-4x batch. It calls for 1/2 pound of beef turkey but we used 2 lbs and extra veggies. We obviously skipped the corn and cheese for Whole30. But overall, it worked pretty well. Maybe a bit too much veggies in the pan that I had to turn up the heat to try to boil off some of the liquid.
It was pretty good and made 6 reasonable (though not huge) servings.
Meredith realized we also forgot the tomatoes.
Whole30 Taco Stew -- back to top
**Photo to come later**
I made a Whole30 version of our Taco Stew. We used the same basic recipe except without the corn or beans. I tried to bulk it up with extra peppers and I was supposed to add extra zucchini but I forgot and just had the one. I also added two jalapeños with the seeds and all. The only other bulk was some home-grown kohlrabi (which were a pain to chop)
I used the same spice mix as yesterday for the taco mix (all commercial ones have sugar, MSG, and/or corn flour).
It was actually pretty good. Spicy from the jalapeños but I liked it. It could have used more bulk. I wish I had used the other zucchini.
Salsa Chicken Salad with Dressing -- back to top
I had originally made salsa chicken to take for lunches just like last week. We had extra so I used it for dinner. The biggest change is the dressing that Meredith figured out.
We made a really good dressing with roughly: ( SEE RECIPE BOOK PAGE)
I also tried to make it more interesting by using sunflower seeds and broken up plantain chips for crunch. I think that worked really well too.
I really was happy with this dressing. I think we would do this again!
Shrimp and Zucchini noodles with green sauce and roasted potatoes -- back to top
This was a two part meal. First, we had a phone date but were hungry so we made roasted potatoes from the can as we've done before. I tossed them with olive oil, salt, and smoked paprika and then did them at 400°F for an hour (on convection, turned half way). These were amazing as usual.
The other part was just a repeat of 2017-01-24 except it just wasn't as good. I didn't marinate the shrimp with the sauce and I do not think I did a good job mixing it all. Not bad, but not as good.
Mustard Brussel Sprout Hash -- back to top
We've been making this a lot (exhibits A, B, and C). We did it again but had to use turkey bacon since we couldn't find Whole30 pork bacon. It actually worked fine since I had bacon fat left over from last week. I just used that while I was going. And we used French's since Dijon is not Whole30.
It was good as usual. This is becoming one of our favorite winter lunches. While it isn't a pantry meal, everything had a long shelf life which also makes it easy.
Surf 'n Turf for our Anniversary -- back to top
We usually like to go out for our Anniversary and stay in for Valentine's Day but Whole30 is making us flip that a bit.
We decided to make Surf 'n Turf for our special meal. We made lobster tail with our favorite green sauce but with ghee for butter. And for the steak, we used two small tenderloin pieces sous-vide at 133.5°F for about 2.5 hours and then seared.
Meredith made the broccolini and it came out really well. She used a bit of ghee with some
They were really good. Nice flavor and a bit of spice.
It was kind of a small meal but everything was really good. Especially the tenderloin which had a nice sear and was cooked perfectly inside.
Patatas Bravas with Eggs -- back to top
We made our pretty regular Patatas Bravas for lunch. Last time, we had big pieces of onion and forgot to blend it. This time, Meredith super chopped the onions and we chose to skip blending it.
For the potatoes, I microwaved them for about 6 minutes before doing them in the pan for about 30 minutes at 400°F. After they got super stuck last time, I used the non-stick foil.
I liked it a lot as usual. Lots of smokiness from the paprika and a bit spicy, but very good.
Green Curry Turkey Meatballs -- back to top
While we made this a few times already this month (A,B), we made Coconut Turkey Meatballs but this time with green curry paste just to mix it up. We followed the same changes as last time to make it less dry (and again, coconut flour). We also used an extra bell pepper to bulk it up. Also, we only had one can of coconut milk (and it was low-fat) so we used the milk-substitute kind for the other 3/4 cups.
It was pretty good. I am not sure I could really taste the difference with the green vs red curry but the red has a nicer color for the future1.
Also, we meant to put hot peppers in but totally forgot. Oh well.
While we will make it again, once Whole30 is over, we'll probably make it less often since it is pretty caloric ↩
Turkey Chorizo with Peppers -- back to top
We had about 10oz of lean turkey leftover from yesterday and decided to make turkey chorizo like we did on 2017-01-20. We were originally going to also fry some eggs on the side but instead we decided we weren't too hungry and went with just sautêing two peppers first and adding spinach at the end. Since we had less than the 1 lbs it calls for, I went scant with the spices
As expected, this was actually pretty good and pretty easy. A quick meal we will keep in mind. Also, petty tasty
Seared Salmon with Broccolini -- back to top
This was both our last Whole30 dinner and Valentines, but we went pretty easy. I did my usual seared salmon with some Mural of Flavor (described on 2017-01-25). I also used ghee for the oil but I brushed it on first which worked well. The salmon was very good. I was afraid I overcooked it but it came out fine. Note that the higher temp was better.
Meredith also made the broccolini like she did on Sunday and that was, again, very good.
Overall, a very fast and quick meal that was pretty tasty!
Smoked Paprika Deviled Eggs -- back to top
** No Photo **
We made deviled eggs for a party. We did the Smokey Deviled Eggs as we had done before except we made a few small changes. First, we actually did use mayonnaise1 since we wanted them to be dairy free. Also, since our friend at the part was on a restrictive diet, we did the frizzled onions on the side.
They worked really well. I think I actually liked them more with mayo. And we did steam them a bit longer (15 min at ABQ altitude) so we had a firmer yolk for the filling.
We used a bit of the remaining homemade mayo and then the rest was Avocado mayo ↩
We made Shepherd's Pie (along with a ton of prep ahead stuff) for dinner. It was pretty standard but with some different veggies. We made the beef with ground beef (in a bit of butter). We took the beef out and sautéed an onion, a bell pepper, and then later two yellow squashes. We then added frozen peas (which is part of the "recipe", not that there is one).
We seasoned it with salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder and lots of 21 seasoning salute.
Meredith did most of the mashed potatoes. She used greek yogurt, salt,garlic powder (a lot), a little bit of butter, and scallions.
It came out really good. As with last time, it looked like it was all meat but when cooked and served, it actually seemed like mostly potato.
Either way, it was great comfort food but pretty healthy (4 oz potato and 2.6 oz of beef per serving)! We should keep it in mind more since it made 6 servings so we have lunches too!
Ginger Stir Fry with Cauliflower Rice -- back to top
This was what is becoming a standard: Ginger and Snow Pea, Shrimp Stir Fry with Cauliflower Rice.
We basically followed the directions except Meredith is still avoiding wheat as we come off Whole30 so we still used coconut aminos. Otherwise, I just used extra sriracha and some sesame oil in the sauce. Oh, and I skipped the garlic but added garlic powder to the sauce.
I actually made three servings with it since we had a lot of shrimp so we also have a lunch. Pretty easy, healthy, and tasty
Miso Cod and Shishitos -- back to top
Meredith is still working to recreate her favorite cod meal. This was our latest attempt. We used this Rasamalaysia / Nobu (local).
We basically followed the recipe but used red miso, and maybe a little extra. We were a bit hesitant about searing it so hot. We also followed a similar Kitchn recipe is and seared it for a bit too long. But we only baked it for about 4 minutes (after ~2 min per side of sear).
It was overcooked, but not too bad. It also stuck to the pan a bit more than I was expecting. But we did like it. The marinade was a bit too salty alone, but it was fine in the fish. I think we would try this again!
We also made Twist Peppers. I think they needed a bit more time. And some dipping sauce
Twice Baked Potatoes with Roast Beef -- back to top
We made (and prepped ahead) healthy twice baked potatoes. We didn't follow any specific recipes, though we looked around for times. We roasted the potato for about 1.25 hours at 400°F rotating it ever 20 min or so. After they cooled, we hallowed the out and Meredith made horseradish mashed potatoes.
We used a mixture of greek yogurt, some butter, a little bit of mayo (for creaminess), salt, pepper, garlic powder, and lots (and lots) of horseradish. We also threw some scallions and "Unexpected Cheddar" from Trader Joes.
We stuffed them into the potatoes and cooked them (I forget how long). Meanwhile, we super caramelized onions. We french cut them and used butter and salt as appropriate. Also, while we used a low heat, we also deglazed as needed with white wine.
Finally, when we reheated the, we topped it with roast beef and some spinach sautéed with Mural of Flavor.
It was pretty good. Kind of fun to make and also pretty easy. We would do this kind of thing again! And the onions were also really good.
Jerk Chicken Tacos -- back to top
We finally used up the jerk chicken from July. Not much more to it. They were our pretty standard made-ahead jerk chicken tacos. I do still want to make our own Diablo sauce sometime.
We made our standard Lasagna Soup again with the sauce mentioned on that post. I do not think we really did many other changes. We didn't end up using any kind of starch such as pasta or potatoes. We also just used some sliced mozzarella cheese and no parmesan
It was, as usual, pretty simple and flavorful!
Pimento Cheese (and other party stuff) -- back to top
Meredith was having a friend over and wanted to make some food. Her main dish was pimento cheese. She followed the general recipe with our changes from 2015-08-15. It ended up really good, though maybe a bit heavy on the tabasco and the smoked paprika.
She also made some boozy gummy bears by soaking grapefruit gummy bears with rosé wine.
As you can see in the photo, she also had some (store-bought) macarons.
Sous-Vide Brisket, Jalapeno Cheddar Corn-Bread, and Broccolini -- back to top
This was something of a project meal but not too bad.
For the brisket, I again followed the Serious Eats guide 1. Unlike the first time, I did it at 135°F for 72 hours (yes, 72 hours!). I then put it in the fridge and cooked it the next day.
The original plan was to grill it as per the recipe, but decided to bake it instead since we hadn't soaked the wood chips.
I followed the general idea, but I just did it with salt and pepper by feel. I did use the liquid smoke, but you could barely taste it. Next time, I would do a bit more, even if I do plan to do it on the grill.
It was pretty good. I think I liked it at the lower temperature. The meat was very flavorful. And even in the oven, it got a nice crust
As you can see from the pictures, it went from to 4.09 to 2.62 pounds, a 35% loss! (Actually, I saved a lot of the liquid from the sous-vide bag to use later).
Meredith made a modified version of this Homesick Texan Recipe (Local). She used the recipe but added cheddar cheese, two jalapeños, and used ghee for the oil/bacon drippings.
It was very good but could easily have used much more salt in it and also, maybe Maldon salt on top. The texture was perfect and worked very well in the cast iron. It gave it a perfect crust (though we needed to cook it an extra 10ish minutes).
Meredith made broccolini by sautéing it with some ghee with roasted garlic powder, salt, and crushed red pepper. She sautéed it for about 10 minutes.
She topped it with Tahini sauce which worked really well.
On that recipe page, is a link to the PDF with the entire page ↩
Roasted Veggies and Chicken Sausage -- back to top
This was a pretty standard meal. We chopped up onions, pepper, some (homegrown) kohlrabi, and canned artichoke hearts. We roasted it for about 35 minutes then added chicken sausage.
There wasn't much more to it. We made a double portion so we could take it for lunch.
Frijoles a la Charra and leftovers -- back to top
The main part of this meal was Frijoles a la charra. Meredith followed the recipe except we pressure cooked the beans. Actually, we had to do it twice since we didn't get them cooked enough the first time.
Also, we had leftovers from different meals: