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Sixteen of 20 Things 2020 Has Taught and Reminded Me + Brick Oven Pizza

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It’s sweet 16.

16. Recognizing that everyone deals with crises differently.

We’ve gone through an ordeal of crises in 2020. I came to understand that everyone has dealt with the tribulations differently this year, including myself. While I was feeling motivated and optimistic, others around me were feeling stressed and depressed. As a compassionate person and licensed social worker, it’s in my nature to empathize and imagine myself in other people’s shoes to understand how the certain situations and multiple factors affect their emotions. Things like: familial discord, financial struggles, loss of vocation, lack of socialization and personal interaction, loneliness, and uncertainty of the future… This year’s circumstances immensely attested to our emotional and mental health. But we will rise from this. We always do. We are resilient. We come out better and stronger.

Overtime, I’ve experienced going through the spectrum of emotions this year. I started off feeling positive and driven, but those emotions slowly turned into frustration and despair. I had to practice a lot of self-talk, self-motivation, and self-love to get myself through the year.

I was searching the internet and came across a colorful wheel of emotions. This pretty much explains the entire year, and then some…

Last Christmas, my colleagues and I went to our boss’s house to make pizzas in her man-made brick oven (see featured image). It was a beautiful oven. The pizzas we made were delicious. I made a pesto base with spinach, vegan cheese, onions, and garlic. It was scrumptious. Yum!

Wishing you all the best last week of 2020. Let’s go out with a BANG!

FS x

Ground lamb and turkey squash stew

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Happy Spring!

In light of a new season, I made a yummy squash stew with ground lamb and turkey and barley rice from Japan. I was inspired by this recipe.

Ingredients used:

  • Ground lamb
  • Ground turkey
  • Large onion
  • Garlic
  • Sprigs of thyme
  • Kale
  • Carrots
  • Kosher salt
  • Garlic salt
  • Pepper
  • Garlic pepper/powder
  • 1.5 bottle of beer (I used Miller Lite)
  • Butternut squash
  • Chicken stock (no salt)
  • Barley rice
  • Flour for thickening

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Barley rice from Daiso in Japan.

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Ta da! A very tasty stew.

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I wish I had bought more of this rice. It was so delicious!

A healthy, yummy dinner just in time to welcome spring! I was very pleased with this dish.

Now that Honolulu has Daiso, I hope to find this rice there. It was to-die-for!

 

Spring chicken soup before spring is over!

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I saw this awesome spring chicken soup recipe while browsing my Facebook and I HAD to make it!

https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a19992009/spring-chicken-soup-recipe/

Ingredients: (of course, as y’all know, I modified the recipe.)
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1″ pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried thyme
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
6 c. low-sodium organic chicken broth
1 whole chicken, shredded
2 sprigs thyme
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 cans of Southwest corn
Lemon slices, for garnish
My ingredients for this awesome soup!
Directions:
  1. In a large pot over medium heat, heat olive oil. Add onion, carrots, celery, and asparagus, and cook until soft. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, then add oregano, salt, and pepper.
  2. Pour in chicken broth and thyme. Bring to a boil then add chicken and lower heat. Let simmer until chicken is cooked through, 10 minutes.
  3. Remove chicken from pot and shred with two forks. Add chicken, lemon juice, and corn to pot. Cook until warmed through, 5 minutes. Garnish with lemon slices and parsley to serve.

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This soup was amazing! It lasted my family and I for three days!

I made pesto grilled cheese sandwiches to go along with the hearty soup.

The homemade pesto recipe is super simple:

  • Basil (Thai basil is also fine to use)
  • Pine nuts
  • Olive oil
  • Garlic cloves

Blend ingredients in a food processor or blender. It is so good! The best pesto I’ve ever eaten!

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I wanted to try Muenster cheese. It reminds me of Swiss. It was very yummy!

Bringing out an old friend… Happy Cinco de Mayo!

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Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

In honor of this holiday, I was inspired to make some grinds with tequila! This time, with lamb shanks, baby!

I made orange-tequila lamb shanks.

I tweaked the recipe, as I always do.

Ingredients (Foodnista Soul’s way):

Hard core balsamic vinegar!

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Boy, oh boy! Balsamic vinegar is where it’s at! It’s potent, but oh-so-good, and healthy for ya. Did you know it’s made from grapes?! I had no idea! Where was I? Haha! Makes me think of wine.

I was inspired by our Easter luncheon to make a dish with balsamic vinegar. I also learned how healthy it is for you. Time to use this ingredient much more often.

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I made a honey-balsamic chicken dish, courtesy of AllRecipes.

It was a very simple dish. I, of course, added onions and garlic to my dish. My must-haves!

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I baked the chicken for an hour and 10 minutes at 375 degrees. It was really good! Best to marinate the night before- not required, though.

I also made a spinach, quinoa, and strawberry salad with homemade oil and vinegar dressing. Oh, to-die-for!

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Ingredients for the dressing. I measured 1/3 c oil and vinegar and 2 tsp. sugar. The garlic powder and pepper are bonuses! Hehe!

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Beautiful salad; beautiful colors. You can cook the quinoa in a rice cooker or on the stove. I cooked it in the rice cooker- one cup of quinoa and measured two cups of water, as instructed, but the quinoa came out a bit mushy. Next time, I’ll put 1.5 cups of water instead. Can’t always trust the instructions. That’s why I always cook by taste, rather than following a recipe to-the-tee. I use recipes as a guide.

Happy Friday and upcoming weekend! Relax and unwind…

 

Yee haw! We going country!

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The other weekend, I made a country hamburger dish. It was fairly simple; only required several ingredients.

Here is the recipe: https://www.copymethat.com/r/ItaR9ec/country-hamburger-skillet-dinner/

I used hash browns instead of what the recipe called for, which was Yukon potatoes. It turned out pretty good!

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Of course I had to add onions and garlic to the dish! Those are must-have ingredients.

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Let’s get cooking!

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I first placed the hash browns onto a 9×13″ pan. You can pan-fry them first to get them golden brown. Then, layered the cooked hamburger before baking at 350°.

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After baking it for about an hour, I sprinkled cheese and put it back in the oven for five minutes, so it could melt. Garished some chives for some extra taste!

Bon appétit! Have a great weekend.

It’s a chick pasta dish!

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Happy Hump Day! I’m so glad to be cooking weekly again. It’s been a while, as life got busy. Happy and excited to be sharing my homemade dishes with y’all again! Thank you all for your support, Readers!!

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I used these roasted garlic chicken sausages to make a hearty pasta bolognese dish.

This dish was very simple to make. I mainly base everything on taste. I don’t really follow recipes, to the tee. I may use them as a guide to make my dish, but I don’t always rely on them.

I boiled large sea shell pasta. The ingredients used for this bolognese dish were: roasted garlic chicken sausage, broccoli, onions, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and red pepper flakes. I always season my dishes with Himalayan pink salt and pepper. Got to have that pepper!

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Bam! It was very light! Sauce blended well with the pasta and ingredients.

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Next, onto the chicken dish. I made an Italian-Parmesan chicken bake.

Seasoned the chicken with Italian seasoning, black pepper, extra virgin olive oil, Italian dressing, and Parmesan cheese. Yum! Another simple dish!

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Yea! So, so good!

I placed the raw chicken (I used boneless thighs) in a baking pan, drizzled olive oil, and sprinkled the pepper and Italian seasoning on both sides. I then added onions and garlic, and poured the Italian dressing on top. Baked at 350º for about 60 minutes. Before serving, I sprinkled the Parmesan cheese.

There you have it! Easy, huh?

Happy cooking!

 

A rosy, orange beery chicken

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Happy Monday! I always wanted to cook with beer and I finally did! It was exciting! It was a simple, easy dish! I call it “rosemary-orange-beer chicken.” I also roasted red potatoes, Okinawan sweet potatoes, and onions, with some rosemary sprigs.

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The ingredients: orange, potatoes (any of your choice), rosemary, chicken broth, beer, onions, and chicken

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The seasonings: olive oil, black pepper, Himalayan pink salt, and garlic salt

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Ready to go into the oven! It looks good already! This was drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with black pepper, Himalayan pink salt, and garlic salt.

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Ta da!!! It was so good, especially those Okinawan sweet potatoes!

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Ready to bake! Let’s do it!

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Ooh, mouthwatering!

You can use any kind of chicken. I decided to use small wings and drumsticks. I drizzled the chicken with olive oil, seasoned them with black pepper, Himalayan pink salt, and garlic salt. Then, the beer was poured. You can use any beer of your choice. I used Bud Light Platinum (one pint because I made two trays of the dish). I mixed it with some chicken broth. Topped the marinade with orange slices and rosemary.

The dish turned out great! Got to make it again, with just the beer, haha!

Have a great week, y’all!

 

 

My fave kind of stir-fry

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Happy Sunday! Is the weekend over already? Where did it go? Hope y’all had a great one!

I made my favorite stir-fry tonight, with ground turkey breast. It’s very simple and oh-so-good! I can’t get enough of it! Once I start eating it, I can’t stop. It’s THAT addicting!

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These are the seasonings I used: Mrs. Dash salt-free garlic and herb seasoning, fresh black pepper, garlic powder, and Himalayan pink salt (just a dash- get it? Haha!)

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The ingredients: udon, ground turkey breast, soft tofu, onions, won bok (Chinese cabbage), mixed frozen veggies, and the Kikkoman stir-fry sauce (the magic sauce).

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Ta-da!!! So delicious, and very healthy!

Mmm, slow cookers are one of the best inventions ever!

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Mama mia! Why haven’t I taken advantage of slow cookers more often in the past? I absolutely love it! My dad would occasionally make dinners in the Crock Pot and it would be soo delicious!

So, one weekend, I decided to make one of my dad’s Crock Pot dishes- chicken with Cream of Mushroom soup sauce. I added frozen mixed veggies, carrots, potatoes, and onions. Yum! I wanted to test out the slow cooker. Before I started my busy afternoon of errands, I put all of the ingredients in the Crock Pot and set the cooker to low for eight hours.  I started with the vegetables first. Chopped them up and put them in the pot. Then added chicken thighs and breasts, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and seasoned with thyme, pepper, garlic and pepper seasoning, and Hawaiian salt. Finally, I added the Cream of Mushroom soup and diluted it with a little bit of water, so it wouldn’t be so thick. Stirred it to get the sauce evenly in the pot, covered it, set the timer, and left for the long day ahead.

When I returned home in the evening- violà! The chicken came out so tender and the dish amazing! This was served with egg noodles. Yummy! It was such a simple and easy dish. Just typing this and reminiscing at these pictures are making me hungry. I gotta go! Haha!

Have a great week!

~FS