Feb 4 2015

Cooking On A Budget: Lazy Chicken w/ Rachel Ray

One year while perusing in Target, I decided to grab cookbooks. I’m pretty sure cookbooks were not the purpose for the visit, but you know how that goes. Twenty-fifteen looks like the year that I will actually use said cookbooks. On Sunday, I flipped open Classic Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals: The All-Occasion Cookbook and tried ‘My Sister Ria’s Lazy Chicken, or My Lazy Sister Ria’s Chicken’ recipe. Yum-O! I’m pretty sure the 30-minutes does not include prep time, start to finish took about an hour. Check out my photos and get the recipe below. To purchase the cookbook from Target, click the link above.

Ingredients

Balsamic vinegar
1 & 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets – thinly sliced or pounded breast meat (I used 2 chicken breasts, I sliced into pieces.)

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil (evoo)

2 medium white potatoes, thinly sliced (I did not skin the potatoes)

1 medium white onion, halved and thinly sliced (I used a brown onion)

Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick, to taste

1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth (I used white wine from Trader Joe’s)

1 small zucchini, thinly sliced

1 can (28oz) crushed tomatoes ( I did not use the full 28oz)

10 leaves fresh basil, torn or coarsely chopped

2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves stripped from the stem chopped

1/2 to 2/3 cup shredded Italian cheese of your choice (I used a packaged mixture of 6 Italian cheeses)

Ria’s (Rachael’s sister) Recipe (with a few changes)

Lightly coat chicken with balsamic vinegar. Heat 1 tbsp evoo (once around the pan) in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken for two minutes on each side (Next time I will add time and cook it about 90 percent through)
Remove chicken and set aside (Next time I will add seasoning to chicken for more flavor).

Add 1tbsp evoo to pan and add a layer of potatoes and onions. Sprinkle potatoes and onion with Montreal seasoning. Continue cooking and turning occasionally until potatoes begin to brown. Add wine to the pan. Layer zucchini on top of potatoes and onion. Add more Montreal seasoning. Top with layer of chicken breasts. Pour crushed tomatoes on top (I used about 3/4 can), then sprinkle chopped basil and oregano. Cover pan and cook until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are tender, 10 to 12 minutes (I cooked for 25 minutes).

Sprinkle shredded cheeses on top. Place pan under broiler for a few minutes until cheese melts and begins to brown. Serve directly from the hot pan at the table, with a green salad on the side (I added a baby arugula blend as the side. I used a balsamic and basil vinegrette dressing).

I look forward to trying this recipe again. Enjoy!

Thanks for reading.

Hugs,

Roshell

STK Steak Soiree

Can you hear that boom, badoom, boom, boom, badoom, boom, bass? I asked myself that when pulling up to STK. It really has mastered the chic restaurant + lounge hybrid, but the music could stand to be turned down a notch or two.

My seester and I celebrated her birthday (part deux) with yummy food, delicious drinks and good vibes. Below is the list of food pictured above. Sides are served in large portions so we shared them family style.

Host

Tuna Tartare $17

Guest of Honor

60z Petite Filet Steak $27

Attendees

Asparagus $9

Mac & Cheese $9

Life of the Party

Cucumber Stiletto $15

STK Los Angeles

755 N La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90069

310.659.3535

Oct 7 2014

Smancy Burgers Only Use 1/2 The Bun

Benedict Burger

(Red onion confit, gruyère, sunny egg, watercress, Béarnaise, house brioche, potato chips)

Yummy, but pricey. This half-bunned goodness can be found at Ray’s & Stark Bar. Since it’s semi-fancy (smancy), there are less carbs, enjoy half the bun guilt-free. Eat. The great atmosphere is free. Savor your meal outside and take in the beauty that sounds you.

Ray’s & Stark Bar at LACMA

5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Reservations 323.857.6180

Oct 2 2014

Am-ster-DAMN!

From Germany, we headed to Amsterdam, Netherlands via train intending to sleep during the five-hour ride. We were lucky enough to NOT have seats because the powers that be overbooked the train. We sat on the floor and attempted to sleep in our laps. Tiare and I were not successful. Augi, the sleep master, enjoyed a little shut eye.

On our second night in Amsterdam, I suffered a baby heart attack because I accidentally deleted about 300 vacay pictures. I digress.

We took a boat tour through the canals, explored the city by foot, shopped (not until we dropped), and filled our bellies. Oh! And I recovered a some deleted pics. All in all, we had a great silly time in Amsterdam.

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Mar 24 2014

My Shrimpy Pesto Pizza Birthday

There are two kinds of people in the world: Birthday people and not birthday people. Until 2011, I never worked on my birthday. Of course, I am a birthday person and typically make it multi-day celebration of moi.

This year, instead of organizing a party/events, I had a pretty chill birthday. I like big celebrations, but not coordinating people is pretty awesome. I lived in the moment and enjoyed my day sans stress.

On Friday I received these gorgeous flowers (pictured below) from my man. On Saturday (my actual birthday) he cooked us breakfast, then I went to the nail salon for more pampering, later he took me to dinner at Soleto. We ordered Shrimp Pesto Pizza and Chicken Fettuccine. I tend to prefer pasta over pizza, but not in this case. Pizza ingredient (garlic shrimp, basil pesto, mozzarella, grana padano, sundried tomatoes, peppers) proportions were great and the pizza crust… not too soft, not too crispy, but just right. It tastes just as delicious as it looks. The pasta did not do anything for me, nothing (flavor, ingredients, presentation) stood out. Pasta and service were both 7, on a scale of 1-10. More Shrimp Pesto Pizza, per favore!

Mar 14 2014

Running the Manhattan Beach 10K again

Runners take your mark! Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one… Go!!! I’m doing great, pacing myself, and staying in front of the grandmas and grandpas. Yes! After about 1.5 miles I slow down, oopsie. My failure to train kicked in.

If you remember, the 2012 MB10K was my first race ever. I trained for four weeks that year and walked (7.2 miles) to work once a week. I proudly crossed the finish line in 1:14:04 (74 mins 4 secs), but planned to do it in 60 minutes the next year (2013).

So here were are, back at the 2013 MB10K and my pace has slowed. People are passing me, too many people. Oh no! I start running again, but soon after I take another walk break. I find no joy in running, I like the challenge and the results.

Two weeks before the 2013 race, my end time goal went from 60 minutes to just beating my 2012 time. People on the sidelines were really cheering us in about 2 miles from the finish line. “You can do it! You’re almost there!” and then I heard “These are the slow runners”. I picked up my pace and anxiously crossed the finish line in 1:13:25 (73 mins 25 sec).

Mar 10 2014

Long List, Short Order…

‘Restaurants to Visit’ is a collection of places to grub. When I see or receive a recommendation of a place with potential to make my mouth water, I add it to the ‘Restaurants to Visit’ list in my phone.

One of my best friends told me to choose a restaurant and she would treat me to a late birthday dinner… I would usually go to my restaurant list, but I accidentally ERASED IT! Ugh! It took forever, but I decided to dine at Short Order.

We went during dineLA Restaurant Week and ordered from the prix fixe menu (see below). I ordered the items pictured above (circled on the menu). We did halfsies with the meat, so I got to try the flat iron steak too.

Dante’s moist, tender, well-seasoned fried chicken eclipsed the steak. The warm, gooey, lightly breaded mac n’ cheese was yummy. My order came with Short Order spuds and a fresh standard side salad. I forced myself to stop eating, so that I could save room for a vanilla shake… apparently shakes were in high demand because they ran out of ice cream after us. Nothing disappointed, but a few items (Dante’s Fried Chicken, the mac ‘n’ cheese and vanilla shake) were extra tasty.

Dec 16 2013

Delicious At First Bite: Mercado Santa Monica

Alambres de Camarõn $19

Birthdays are a perfect excuse to stuff our faces. What am I saying? It’s always a good time for delicious food.

On Thursday I went to a Birthday dinner at Mercado Santa Monica and my taste buds partied like it was 1999. Our party of about 10 ordered dishes in groups. My group of three went with the items pictured, we added an extra portion to the dishes that served two.

Yummy food makes me really happy. Oh! I tried flan for the first time too… it was pretty good.

*Fun Fact: The parking situation is not the best, but that’s typical Santa Monica. I lucked up on a metered spot after circling a couple times. There are parking structures a block or two over.

Thanks for reading! xoxo

Guacamole $10 & Mexican Kale Salad $10
Tostaditas de Tinga de Pollo (appetizer-2 servings) $10

Sashimi Ahi Tuna Tostada (appetizer-2 servings) $16

Sep 27 2013

I Reached Two Milestones This Week. It’s a Celebration!!!

Tuesday marked 1 year since the birth of kinkycurlsLA.com, yay (see the first post here)!!! And… Wednesday marked my 2 year naturalversary (see 1 year naturalversary post here)! It’s a celebration, I want a cupcake.

This journey has been awesome and I’ve learned so much. Kinkycurlsla will continue to evolve and improve as I grow and figure out how to better serve you guys. I appreciate you all. Thank you for your support! Please feel comfortable enough to share your opinions, content requests, and ask questions.

As for the hair… If you follow me on Instagram, you saw that I cut my hair on August 31. I will reveal the reasons for the cut in a Youtube video on Monday.

Have a great weekend! Take a shot for me. xoxo

Sep 18 2013

Giving Up Junk Food

Happy Humpday!!!

In August I vowed to stay away from “The Darkside” (see the declaration here). Did I stick with it?

Breaking an addiction takes time. Day 1-2 were tuff, but I did great after the initial withdrawal. Well, I didn’t have junk food for 5 days. Does that count for anything?

I went to Target on the first weekend and let Mini Oreos and Teddy Grahams win. I don’t typically buy junk food. At work i’m surrounded by junk and eat it because it’s there.

During week two there were chili cheese Fritos at work and I politely ate two guilt-free snack sized bags.

Although I failed to achieve my goal, I am happy. I’m down to 1 junk food item per week. One step at a time.

August Junk Food Log

8/11/13 – Mini Oreos (3.5oz Go Pak)

8/12/13 – Mini Teddy Grahams (3.25oz Go Pak)

8/14/13 – Chili Cheese Fritos (1oz bag)

8/15/13 – Chili Cheese Fritos (1oz bag)

8/20/13 – Warheads Sour Rips Roll (1.5oz)

kinkycurlsla

Experience. Learn. Grow.

Tag Archives: food