Even Yummier Refreshing Pad Thai

I love cooking asian/oriental. Every time I successfully accomplish an oriental dish, I kinda feel like I conquered the world, (or at least i do until the food gone...)

[Oh man, i have to give you guys the recipe for a delicious japanese carrot dressing that I created. !!!! The next time i make it... for sure.!]

but mmMmm this pad thai was even more delicious than the first! I combined thinly sliced Shitake mushrooms with julienned carrots and peppers and tossed it with chopped scallions. I dont recall exactly everything i used to season it, but Im pretty sure I used a simple dressing of rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil a few red pepper flakes (opt) & i think i might have added garlic powder or freshly minced garlic..

Oh && super uber muy imporante when making pad thai... use the right kind of noodles!! I think these are rice noodles... and for lo mein, i use egg noodles...fyi.

Greek Salad doesn't have lettuce.

So im still stuck in my cobb salad, greek food phase from my visit with my sis in NYC. From the delicious feta cheese that made me itchy, to the to-die-for cobb salad with bacon, avocado, tomatoes, mozzarella, baby corns, onions, olives and the wonderful fresh hot pitabread. (yum! my mouth is watering)...but basically, im stuck in a salad rut & I can't get out... (but i don't really want to either)


So, Apparently in Greece, their salads don't contain lettuce. But hey, who needs lettuce when it tastes soo good! I love salads, especially when it has lots of accessories... thats what i call all the croutons, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers and other toppings...

Either way... greek salad is all accessories... and its mighty fine with me. So i decided to make my version of the all-accessory greek salad with black olives, capers, cilantro, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, lemon juice and salt... it.is. divine. ((oh && you can add plenty of feta if you so desire!))

SO here it is!

Lettuce + Tomato + Bacon - Burger x other stuff = Delish Cobb Salad

ive been gone from the internet all weekend until today... Can i just say i was going through tastespotting withdrawal! Oh, how wonderful it is to be back and surrounded by mouthwatering recipes & food!

But, while i was gone I went to this amazing diner (and i didnt think i liked diners) where i ordered a cobb salad. TALK ABOUT SALAD! that was the biggest & most gourmet cobb salad i have ever eaten & boy was it good. if had huge chunks of avocado & bacon, & those little corn thingys that are often in Chinese dishes. Also since i dont like blue cheese... and am allergic to milk... i had them put on mozzarella cheese instead (for some reason i don't always get a reaction to that)... YUM! (I even went back the next day and ordered the same thing!)

anyway... the salad was so good, i decided to make my own.! Except minus the avocado and corn thingys and plus crispy apple chips & fresh purple basil...boy was it good.!

Bean Salad! With Fresh Tomatoes & Peppers!

i. love. beans.



( ...ok well maybe not the side effects of bloating & whatnot. ) BUt they taste good in so many different ways! As a snack, as breakfast, as lunch, as dinnner, as supper, as a midnight snack, on crackers, in soup, on a salad, in tacos, on a sandwhich, in a potpie, on brownies, in a biscuit... ... joking about the brownie part. but heyy... technically if you make tofu brownies, then theyve got beans!




But this time, I made a salad with them! A delicious two bean salad (Garbanzon & Kidney Beans) with sautéed onions & peppers and diced fresh tomatoes. DELISH!

Tomato Salad

Fabulous tomato salad with fresh onion, garlic, purple basil & olives! Its sooo good on everything... from steak sandwiches, to salads & even omelets!

Want recipe? let me know!

pasta circles.! (transformed into a wonderful salad.)

So I found these pasta circles at Trader Joes and HAD to do something with them. Even though it's only pasta, I couldn't exactly wrap my mind its cheerio shape.

My first thought was to string them on a licorice rope just like all the cheerio and fruitloop shaped edibles have once experienced.. or maybe i could cut them all in half so they look atleast a little bit like normal macaroni... no, that would take too long... so instead I insisted on deceiving my mind and telling myself that it is only pasta...
it's only pasta...
it's only pasta...

... no.
it's not only pasta. its circles. im cooking circles.
who cooks circles?
I must be loosing my mind!? My sister is going to call me up and ask what i cooked today...
"I cooked circles ..."

Either way... atleast I cooked my circles with spinach and mushrooms sautéed in garlic infused olive oil and tossed with toasted pine nuts! Ill admit it was a well rounded dish (HA! okay... not funny) but hey, it was Healthy && Delicious!

Want recipe? let me know!

spicy cabbage salad.

Thinly sliced cabbage sautéed and tossed with toasted Ramen noodles and a variety of oriental-ish ingredients.
Great as a light summer salad or a warm nightime meal!

Want recipe? let me know!