The Food Addicts

There are just those days where we don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen to prepare dinner. And in fact, sometimes we’re so lazy we don’t even want to cook! So contrary to popular belief, just because we have this food blog doesn’t mean we’re constantly cooking every day and having lovely home-cooked meals! I’m actually a big fan of quick cooking, so this recipe we created is perfect for that. For those who want to get rid of some ingredients in the fridge and want a nice healthy meal, this is for you!

We are not exposed to a lot of Filipino food, so the only time we really get to eat it is when we make it ourselves, like the Chicken Adobo we made awhile back. Pancit is basically Filipino noodles that is usually pan fried with soy sauce, citrus flavoring, sliced meat, and vegetables. There are a lot of variations, so we decided to make our own version with what we had at home. We used the Kikkoman lime ponzu sauce and soy sauce to flavor the dish, and added some chicken, carrots, and pea sprouts. Yes, pea sprouts. It’s actually really refreshing and tasty in noodle dishes!

We bought an 8 oz. bag of pancit (ingredients are rice flour, cornstarch, and water), and we soaked it in warm water for about 15-30 minutes, until soft.

In a pan, we started by sauteing 3 minced garlic cloves, 1 large shallot, and 1 cup of grated carrots. Then we added 12 oz of bite-sized chicken pieces (we used chicken breasts).

When the chicken is just about done, we added the noodles along with 8 oz. of pea sprouts and 2 scrambled eggs. To that, we seasoned the entire mixture with soy sauce and ponzu sauce.

See how easy that was? Doesn't take a rocket scientist to throw some ingredients together to get a nice and healthy colorful meal. Pancit is definitely "something conveniently cooked fast."

To view or print-out this recipe, click here: Chicken Pancit Noodles

What a wonderful feast we had at the Haiti Fundraiser on Sunday! There were plates and plates of delicious finger foods that were being passed around by our fellow food bloggers, as well as fancy cocktails being stirred up by Grey Goose and Natalie from The Liquid Muse. Chrystal Baker, our lovely hostess from The Duo Dishes, organized the event beautifully and Greg from Sippity Sup provided an amazing location for the party – a charming and lavish home in the Hollywood Hills.

We want to share with you some photos we took from the event so you can see all the hard work that everyone contributed to make this a successful fundraiser. To see full-sized images from other food bloggers, check out the Facebook photo album that Chrystal has put together.

Chrystal & Amir from The Duo Dishes, and our rep from Grey Goose along with Natalie from The Liquid Muse.

Greg from Sippity Sup couldn't resist all the goodies!

Enjoying the interactive bruschetta bar from Small Pleasures Catering by Gisele Perez.

The Grey Goose bar had some signature cocktails for us to enjoy - like the "Hearts for Haiti" and "Celery Delight."

Barrie Lynn of The Cheese Impresario!

My friend Nancy Goodman Iland was able to make it to the event with her son.

The food bloggers are working hard to prep their dishes in the kitchen.

Daniel passed around our Bacon-Wrapped Scallops with Chipotle Mayo Sauce. It didn't last very long!

Deviled Eggs by Patti Londre and Proscuitto-Wrapped Dates with Goat Cheese from Craig.

Lemon Bars and Mini Egg Salad Sandwiches were just some of the many great treats we had!

Coconut Zabaglione, Nanaimo Bars, and Insanely Chocolaty Cookies (Photo Courtesy: Josie of Daydreamer Desserts)

All in all, it was a stellar event and we had a great time eating, drinking, and most of all, mingling with our fellow food bloggers and guests. We didn’t get to chat with every single person there, but I’m sure there will be other foodie events in the future to meet again. Thank you for having us a part of this fantastic fundraiser! Cheers!

I forgot to mention in the Rack of Lamb post that we made dessert after dinner. Bananas Foster is made with bananas that is drizzled with a dark sweet sauce made from butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, dark rum and banana liqueur, and is served with vanilla ice cream. This is a very classic dessert most notable in Southern cooking. In fact, the origins of this recipe dates back to 1951 in New Orleans by Chef Paul Blangé at Brennan’s Restaurant.

Daniel has made Bananas Foster once before for me and some friends a few years ago, so it was nice that we got to make this again for dessert after our nice hearty meal. My aunt gave me some Manzano bananas from her backyard (which by the way, we also grow, and just the other day we noticed we are having our very first bunch of bananas growing in the tree! So excited!), so we used these bananas to make our Bananas Foster. Of course, you can use any kind of bananas to make this – like the Chiquita bananas (also known as Cavendish banana).

According to some research, the Manzano banana is short and chubby with a mild strawberry-apple flavor, and the skin is black when it’s ripe. It has a chunkier and heavier appearance than traditional banana. This banana is usually grown in Asia, South America, Mexico, Caribbean, and Africa, which is also known as Apple banana. My parents have a lot of these bananas in their backyard, too. The texture of the Manzano bananas is very firm when you bite into it, which is great for me, because I actually can't stand eating mushy bananas!

To make the dark sauce, we melted a 1/2 stick of butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Add in the halved lengthwise bananas... and then.....

To flambé, add in the alcohol: we poured in 1/4 cup dark rum and 1/4 cup Grand Marnier (in replacement of the banana liqueur). The alcohol creates a burst of flames to the pan. Wha-lah!

When the flames subside, the Bananas Foster is ready to be plated with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The incorporation of the sweet sauce, warm bananas, and cold ice cream really distinguishes this dish. I really like the hot/cold combination of desserts - like Peaches a la mode. Give Bananas Foster a try sometime - it's really easy and doesn't require any baking!

Visit Brennan’s website for the original recipe: Bananas Fosters from Brennan’s New Orleans

Like last year, we didn’t want to go out for a fancy dinner to celebrate Valentine’s Day, so we stayed in and made Chicken Roulade with Risotto.  So in keeping with the tradition of staying home, we thought it would be nice to make something different – something we don’t normally eat – like lamb! We recently bought a 1.5 lb Australian rack of lamb at Costco so that we could make Rich’s winning dish from our Thanksgiving Potluck. Everyone was extremely impressed with the dish, so we had to get the recipe to share with everyone! I actually only got to try a tiny piece during our Thanksgiving party because I was so overwhelmed with all of the great food we had. This time around, I got to sit down, relax, and enjoy each bite of the heavenly rack of lamb.

The day before you plan to cook this, you need to make the marinade to rub on the lamb and refrigerate for a day. To begin, we used the herbs we had in our garden: 3 sprigs of thyme, 1 sprig of rosemary, 3 sage leaves, 1 tsp oregano, and 2 tbsp parsley. Chop that up and throw it in the mortar and pestle. To that, add 2 garlic cloves, 2 tbsp Dijon mustard, 2 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt. Crush and mix everything together until it forms a paste.

Season the meat first with salt and pepper and rub the entire rack of lamb with the herb paste and refrigerate at least overnight (or a full day for best results).

When it's ready to be cooked, get the pan extremely hot and sear each side of the rack of lamb for 10 minutes. Then pop it into a 400-degree oven for 15 minutes for medium rare. Leave it in longer if you want the meat to be less pink. Make sure you let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes after you take it out before you cut into it. (We were kind of impatient, so as you can see, some of the juices ran out).

To add extra flavor to the meat, we prepared the wine reduction sauce which consists of 1 cup of port wine and 1 cup of veal broth. Keep reducing until it has the right consistency to drizzle over the lamb. And of course, we made risotto to complete the meal.

The meat is absolutely succulent and moist! The wine reduction sauce also gives it a very bold and full flavor, and you get that hint of herb and Dijon from the rub. Two thumbs up for a fabulous Valentine's Day dinner!

To view or print-out this recipe, click here: Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb

As previously mentioned, I am super excited about this month’s freebie giveaway for one lucky reader! Why?? Well, I am a HUGE shopper at Target, so getting a $25 Giftcard was absolutely awesome (which we have already used by the way). The great people at Wanchai Ferry sent us this gift pack and reserved another pack for one of our readers. The Wanchai Ferry “Perfect Night In” prize pack includes one VIP coupon valid for a free package of any of the Wanchai Ferry frozen entrees, in addition to a set of great Asian-inspired rice bowls, chopsticks, bamboo placemats, flavored fortune cookies, and a $25 Target gift card.

Hmm, so who is going to be the lucky person? Here’s what you have to do -

1) Subscribe to The Food Addicts or if you’re already a subscriber, get a friend to subscribe to our food blog.

2) Leave a comment letting us know you subscribed or who you introduced our food blog to AND describe your idea of a “perfect night in.“

This contest ends exactly on midnight February 28th. Contest is over! Congratulations to Sherill for winning this Wanchai Ferry Prize Pack!

February Giveaway Contest: Wanchai Ferry "Perfect Night In" prize pack that includes one VIP coupon valid for a free package of any of the Wanchai Ferry frozen entrees, in addition to a set of great Asian-inspired rice bowls, chopsticks, bamboo placemats, flavored fortune cookies, and a $25 Target gift card. Contest ends February 28th!

The inspiration for this stunning flatbread pizza came from a foodie we met at a Foodbuzz event at Beso Restaurant last September. We recently had the opportunity to meet with her again a few weeks ago for dinner at Street Restaurant in LA. Nancy is a Food Stylist To the Stars – which means if a show needs someone to design a set that includes food or eating, she’s the one they’ll call. She’s worked on a ton of TV shows & film, including the more recent Melrose Place and Prison Break. Her job is definitely interesting and she absolutely loves it.

Anyway, before we headed to dinner at Street, Nancy asked us to come over to her house for cocktails. We were surprised she also went out of her way to make us a flatbread pizza with prosciutto and gouda cheese. It was simply amazing! I honestly wanted to eat the entire pizza, but I had to resist. The flavors she used paired so well together – prosciutto, cheese, caramelized onions, spring mix lettuce, and balsamic glaze. So of course, I had to call Nancy a week later to ask her for all the ingredients she used so that we can make our own at home! Without a formal recipe, we did our best with what we had and still managed to replicate a delicious flatbread pizza! Thanks, Nancy!

We made our own pizza dough, but it is much easier to use store-bought pizza dough! It also takes more time to make your own because you have to let it rest for about an hour.

Slice 2 red onions thinly and saute in a pan until they get soft and caramelized. Set aside.

Once the dough is ready, roll it out to about 1/4 inch thick. Dock dough with a fork and bake at 500 degrees for about 7 minutes. Docking (which is when you poke the dough with your fork) keeps the dough from puffing up. You want this to be a flatbread pizza.

Meanwhile, grate your gouda cheese. We used this Smoked Gouda Cheese, but any will do.

And now the fun part - putting on all the toppings! Add the grated gouda cheese, caramelized onions, and prosciutto. Pop this into the oven for another 5 minutes directly on the oven rack so the bottom gets crisp.

Once the cheese has melted and the edges of the pizza brown up, take it out of the oven and sprinkle with fresh arugula (or spring lettuce mix) and balsamic glaze. The glaze is a lot more concentrated than balsamic vinaigrette, so make sure you use a glaze. Take a knife and cut it up into squares and enjoy! You will love the crunch of the pizza, the sweetness of the onions, the saltiness of the prosciutto, and creaminess of the cheese.

To view or print-out this recipe, click here: Flatbread Pizza with Prosciutto and Gouda Cheese

We have been very lucky to receive a ton of free products and samples from various companies since we started our food blog last year. We also love sharing these freebies with our readers, and that is why we always have a monthly giveaway! We never thought that starting this website would equate to getting so many goodies, because afterall, we do it for the love of cooking and food. So we definitely feel like the freebies are the icing on our massive cake! Not only that, we have established a lot of contacts and friends through the foodie community, and that is something we really enjoy. We look up to a lot of successful blogs and admire their work and dedication to their hobby.

Anyway, we got a free fondue set from cookware.com which is absolutely perfect because we can finally host a fun fondue party soon! We already have one fondue pot, but we actually need 2 more, that way we can have one for stock, one for cheese, and one for chocolate! We are so stoked about this stainless steel fondue set, so stay tuned for a post on our fondue party! In addition, they also have a great website that features stools for kitchen islands and bars. We’ll have to upgrade our kitchen stools eventually for our 9-foot island!

As for February’s monthly giveaway contest, we will be posting up an amazing product on Monday for everyone to participate in. It’s probably one of my favorite giveaways so far, so remember to check back on Monday!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Our gift from Cookware.com. Thanks, guys!