Just a Dude Trying to Cook

Attempting to cook things despite no knowledge and a garbage palate but with plenty of love for food

[pottedghost]

Baked Cod with Zucchini and Sweet Potato

So despite me not being any sort of expert, I decided it would be a good idea full of fun and whimsy if I were to make Christmas dinner for my mom and stepdad. Since they agreed for some reason, I decided on cod (which my mom loves), mashed sweet potatoes (which I make a lot), and a marinara and mozzarella  zucchini casserole (cause I saw a few recipes that looked awesome).

I did two trial runs for the cod and zucchini which did not go super well. Both were way too damp. Not moist which is a delicious food word, but damp which is what socks are when it rains. This is a crusted cod with breadcrumbs, chives, and oregano and the crumbs were soaked instead of crispy goodness. The zucchinis were swimming and I don’t want to talk about it. The second attempt was an improvement but not enough of one for the wretched zucchini.

Then came Christmas day and I was worried. What if I ruin this Christmas and by extension all future Christmases? The sweet potatoes were easy enough, steam’em, mash’em, and some lingonberry jam and maple syrup to make it interesting. With the zucchini I hand dried every individual slice and then threw them in the oven at 200 degrees for about 15 minutes. If they weren’t dry enough after that then I would have assumed I’m cursed. The cod went smoothly and seemed to cook how I wanted it to so hooray.

Then the moment of truth, I served my meal. The cod and zucchini were both infinitely better than my first two attempts. The cod was as close to perfect as I think I’m capable of and the zucchini were in a casserole instead of a soup. The sweet potatoes were well flavored, the syrup and jam both popped without being overwhelming. But what did my mom and stepdad think? Well they loved it and my mom had seconds of everything. I’d done it, I saved Christmas from myself.

[pottedghost]

Pizza-ish Mac & Cheese

Contents: Shells, sharp cheddar, Parmesan, provolone, shredded Italian cheese blend, chive and onion cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, milk, turkey pepperoni

Macaroni and cheese is good. So good, that even boxed mac & cheese is still deeply satisfying. But every once in a while I accumulate enough random cheeses that the time comes for me to make my own mac & cheese. This is one such time.

I usually have even more random combinations of cheese (a tragic lack of blue cheese today) but since what I had leaned Italian, I decided to lean into it... as much as turkey pepperoni counts as leaning into Italian.

I melted all the cheeses together, which is always delightful. Cheese is just so very magical and more cheese means more magic. Also sour cream. Sour cream is also magic. This was a damn fine cheese sauce. Then I threw a handful of of turkey pepperoni into the food processor and mixed it into the cheese sauce and now we have pizza-ish mac & cheese.

The pepperoni gave it a pop of flavor and accomplished exactly what I wanted it to, including pairing well with the chives and onion cream cheese. The other cheeses all came together well (no surprise there, it’s cheese). Even though my mac & cheese is usually driven by my cumulative cheesy whims, this is one I might actually plan on recreating.

[pottedghost]

Turkey Swedish Meatballs & Mashed Cauliflower

Contents: Ground turkey, Worcestershire sauce, one egg, breadcrumbs, assorted meatball spices, head of cauliflower, shredded carrots.

For the meatballs, I checked out basic meatball recipes for the contents and then proceeded to not be at all precise with the spices. I used turkey because I try to avoid pork when I can. Pigs are just so smart and turkeys are… less so. I like to consider myself some sort of conscientious omnivore. 

The recipes also called for chopped onions but I hate almost all onions. I wish I didn’t, but that’s how it goes. What I don’t hate, though, are deep-fried onions. So I crushed up a handful of fried onion strings and mixed that into the meatballs which is a fair compromise as far as I’m concerned.

For the gravy I just used packets instead of making it from scratch. I mixed one turkey packet because turkey meatballs and one homestyle packet because staying home is my style. I also added some parsley, a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce, and a spoonful of sour cream to thicken it or make it creamier or something. I just like sour cream.

I steamed the cauliflower, threw it in a food processor with some carrots and then mixed it with milk and butter for the mash. Then just piled on the meatballs and gravy. The cauliflower was more granular than I would have liked, I should have used more butter or even some cream cheese to smooth it out. Lesson learned.

Overall I was happy with this meal. Making meatballs from scratch is satisfying and they turned out deliciously. The onion strings were a perfect addition and added a little extra crunch. The gravy concoction paired well with both the meatballs and the cauliflower. The only real issue I had was the texture of the mashed cauliflower. I’ll definitely be repeating this one in the future.

[pottedghost]

Pumpkin-Glazed Cornish Hen

Pumpkin-Glazed Cornish Game Hen Stuffed with Thai Peanut Stir-Fry Veggies

Contents: One adorable Cornish game hen, pumpkin butter, Thai peanut sauce, stir fry vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, baby corn)

My grocery store has frozen Cornish hens and I absolutely needed to do something with one. My roommate had pumpkin butter and I will put anything pumpkin-flavored inside my body. The peanut sauce and frozen veggies were leftovers from making a simple stir fry. Pumpkin and peanut sounds like it’d be a thing, right?

You think you're prepared to pry open a tiny corpse and shove vegetables into it but ya know what? I wasn't. It was weird. There was peanut sauce mixed with poultry juice oozing out. Honestly, though, at that point I was just worried that too much peanut sauce might seep out. 

After that came the pumpkin butter. Did I forget to pumpkin up the back of the bird? Yes. Is that a thing I was supposed to do? Maybe? I didn't end up eating off the back and have no idea if people eat poultry backs anyway. 

The final verdict after eating is that pumpkin butter and poultry is a delightful combo and the peanut sauce gives it a nice kick. The veggies retained enough of the sauce and bites with both them and chicken were solid but the pumpkin and peanut could have blended more. I was also reminded why I tend to avoid eating meat off the bone though since it's more work and occasionally nasty. Overall it was tasty but not worth the effort to both prepare and consume it. Next time I want pumpkin butter I'll just get a chicken breast.