Food Lush

My Take-Out Obsession: Crab Rangoon

By Nora    

If you follow me on Twitter, you may have noticed that a few nights ago I mentioned that I was planning on stuffing my face with Crab Rangoon. In my humble opinion Crab Rangoon is the most perfect appetizer ever invented in the history of time. If you've never had it before, let me describe it: It's a friend wonton pouch with creamy, cheesy, crabby goodness inside, and it's made even more sublime by dipping in duck sauce. I ate 8 of them in one sitting last night and just thinking about them now is making me drool. Whenever I order chinese food, I ALWAYS order Crab Rangoon. Now, sometimes i've been disappointed; on the rare occasion certain restaurants will not make the filling cheesy enough and so it's just too heavy on the crab flavor for my liking. But generally, I think most places know how to do it. The best ones should look like this:

(Photo from: thericegarden.com)

I've tried frozen versions that you can buy in the grocery store, and while they're good, they just don't match up to the take-out kind. Probably because the take-out kind are WAY higher in calories and fat (like everything delicious in the world. Unfair).

So what's YOUR take-out obsession?  What's the one dish you ALWAYS order?

Friday Cocktail Hour: Jim Beam Red Stag

By Julie

I am not a big drinker. I have a limited number of drinks I can order and actually know the ingredients. I tend to stick to wine and the occasional margarita. But my husband aspires to be an amateur bartender, and because it is so insanely difficult to buy gifts for him, he ends up with a lot of booze for his birthday and at Christmas. This year, one of the bottles he acquired was Jim Bean Red Stag Black Cherry Bourbon.

(Photo from: wikipedia.org)

Folks, this is some good stuff. Straight or on the rocks, it is incredibly smooth with just the right sweetness and warmth. And it’ll make the most amazing adult-style cherry cola you could ever want. If regular bourbons are have too much bite or bitterness, this is a great alternative.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe my personal barkeep needs to fix me a cocktail.

Recipe Round-Up: Before the long weekend

By Nicole

(photo of Gazpacho Chicken Salad by Framed Cooks)

Check out some of the most enticing recipes posted around the web this week. They look delicious and are surely worthy of a whirl in your kitchen and mine.

Fettucini with White Beans, Mascarpone and Prosciutto by Apple a Day

Tamale Stuffed Peppers by Food in my Beard

Shrimp Burgers with Scallion Mayo by An Edible Mosaic

Spicy Chicken Salad with Pickled Jalapenos by Coconut and Lime

Tex Mex Chicken and White Cheddar Spaghetti by Lauren's Latest

Butternut and Black Bean Egg Rolls with Citrus Avocado Cream by Perry's Plate

Gazpacho Chicken Salad by Framed Cooks

Brown Sugar Buttermilk Cake with Fresh Blackberris by Butter Me Up Brooklyn

Cast Iron Chicken by Christie's Corner

Red Lentil Dal with Tamarind and Asparagus by The Bitten Word

Pea Pesto Pasta Salad by Soup Addict

My Happy Tummy and My New Favorite Marinade

By Dani

Yesterday, after work, I got a chance to go horse-back riding with a friend (one of my favorite activities, and one I don't get to do too often) and didn't get home until almost 7 p.m. Luckily I had chicken marinating in this very concoction, and despite being dusty and tired, I still got to wow my hubby and whip up something fresh and delicious. It was so satisfying to have a great homecooked meal shortly after I got home with just a few minutes on the grill. Viva le marinade!

The recipe is easy:

3 parts soy sauce

1 part Sriracha hot sauce

Fresh lemon zest and juice (I like pretty tangy/spicy flavors, so I used about 2 parts lemon, but you can add more or less depending on what you like).

The result? Well, I thought you needed an illustration to know just how happy this marinade makes my tummy:

{Photo credit: freefoodclipart.com and my mad Photoshop skillz}

Lemon Light Cocktail

By Jennie

I was recently contacted by a publicity firm, promoting the W Los Angeles' summer cocktails, with recipes included in the email. Hey, I love the idea of a summer trip to a fancy LA hotel to sip cocktails, but I don't particularly know a person who wouldn't love that idea. It's not in the cards for me this summer, sadly, but I didn't let that stop me from testing out a recipe in my own kitchen.

I invited a couple friends over (Food Lush's very own A'Dell and former writer Kristie) and served up some Mother's Day refreshments. The cocktail I chose was a big hit, and I was so pleased with it, I wanted to share.

LoCal Lemon Lyte

-2 oz Voli Lyte Vodka (I'm an equal vodka opportunist, so we used whatever we already had on hand)

-1 oz Agave Syrup

-3 fresh Lemon wedges muddled (we just used lemon juice because we didn't have any fresh lemons on hand, but muddled fruit and herbs always sounds particularly fancy, so go for it, if you have them!)

-Splash of Diet Sprite (I probably added more than a splash; enough to fill up the glass)

Mix and then pour over ice!

Delicious! Drink up!

(Photos from: me)

My Newest Obsession: Hidden Valley Dry Ranch Mix

By Ariel

This might be one of those "well duh" posts, and I'm sure most people have seen those dry ranch packets at the grocery store. That said, I recently found it in the form of 16 ounces.

My Sam's Club had this bad boy sitting on a shelf the last time we went. I SWEAR this is new, or new to me. I checked for you Costco members and it looks like it's available in this size there, as well. I used to always keep a few of the packets on hand, but they lacked the convenience and the spontaneous appeal you get when there's a huge tub of it sitting in your cupboard. I use this ranch mix in EVERYTHING now. Chicken, potatoes, hamburgers, roasted veggies, cheese balls, not to mention a lower fat ranch dressing (skim milk and fat-free mayo) and, of course, the dips.  

I threw about a tablespoon full into my pepperoni ball recipe and kicked those up a notch. I religiously add ranch to my parmesan potatoes as well. I guess you could say I have a slight addiction, but this seasoning has officially replaced garlic powder as my most used dry good.  What's even better is that I was paying almost $5 for a 3-pac of one-ounce envelopes, and now I can buy the 16-ounce container for under $15.  If you are not a member or near a Sam's or Costco, you can also make the ranch yours on Amazon for about the same price here.

What's the best thing you've ever bought in mega-bulk?

[Photo from amazon.com]

Grocery lists

by Elsha

I don't know about you, but unless I'm only picking up one or two things, I need a grocery list. I'm useless without one. Even when I write a list, I tend to run straight down it, instead of picking up items by section. This usually results in me running back and forth to the same areas of the store over and over because I didn't pick up everything while I was there the first time. Enter a pre-written grocery list like this one:

{photo credit: amazon.com}

A couple years ago for Christmas my sister-in-law gave me a set of list pads as a stocking stuffer and one of them was something like this. Now I can't live without it. The foods are already grouped for you! Reading through it reminds you of things! It's easy to mark things you need when you walk by, instead of waiting to write it all down. I'm certain my pre-written grocery list has saved me much grocery store wandering, and I'm pretty sure everyone needs one.

Do you use a list like this or do you prefer to write your own?

HEB Cocinaware

By Jessica

For a long time, a REALLY long time, I've wanted a fancy Le Crueset dutch oven (and let's be honest here, everything else they make too) but the $$ has made actually owning any prohibitive. I'd rather spend my money on travel and camera equipment, than worrying about my kitchen cookware as my desperately in need of replacing non-stick pots and pans can attest.

Then I found HEB Cocinaware and brought home this lovely enameled cast iron pot

for under $40! I haven't used it yet, but if it holds up AT ALL, it will be worth it.

I also almost bought their drink dispenser but unfortunately, they didn't have it in the same color.

What cast iron pots do you use?

(Photo from: me)

Farmer's Market Fruit Basket

by Katie

Until very recently, I had been storing all of our room-temperature produce (bananas, tomatoes, potatoes, etc) in our salad bowl. This worked, sort of, except it meant that I never actually used the salad bowl because it was full of all that other stuff.

For my birthday, my mom got me this:

It's the farmer's market epergne from the Sundance catalog, which my mom had seen me admiring. Now look, I am fully aware that $75 for a fruit basket is ridiculous, but that's what made it a perfect birthday gift. I would never have purchased it for myself, and I love it beyond all reason. The oxidized metal matches our new kitchen perfectly (more on that later) it holds a ton, and because it stacks vertically, it has freed up a lot of counter space. Plus, now I can use my salad bowl again! Thanks, mom!

Homemade Coffee Creamer

by Tara

I've been trying to eat "clean" or "real" foods lately, and I like being able to say that I know exactly what I'm putting into my body. I also love my coffee, and I am one of those "I like a little coffee with my cream" kind of people. So when I spotted a recipe on Pinterest for make your own coffee creamer, I was super excited!

I followed this recipe, and with the help of some plastic bottles from my favorite store I have delicious Cinnamon Strudel and French Vanilla creamers in my fridge.

Not only were the recipes easy (I doubled both to fill up my bottles), but they were simple ingredient recipes, and they're really good. Highly recommend. The initial cost, to buy the plastic bottles, was more than store-bought creamer, but after one more batch it will be much, much less. And I know exactly what I'm putting into my coffee!

(Photos from: me)

Have you ever made your own coffee creamer?