Jo Jo Vegetable Rice

Welkom to Jo Jo.   You like to try som of our Jo Jo Vegable Fry Rice?  No noodle, this healthy wit brown rice.

We stir fry the veggie and then add rice.

Jo Jo rice is Yum Yum, but me want Jo Jo Noodle.

Chicken Kabobs with Chimichurri

One of the first things I ever remember making myself were chicken kabobs, my mom used to marinate big ziploc bags of chicken, peppers and onions in italian dressing and then throw them on the grill.   We were having my parents over for Jo's bday and wanted to make something outside... we added mushrooms to the mix as well as cherry tomatoes.   Threw them on the skewers and then onto the grill... got some fresh corn and then I made a chimichurri sauce to spice it up a little. 

garlic, fresh parsley, cilantro, olive oil, red wine vinegar...

Reed entertains the family...

Cappuccino Fudge Cheesecake!

Pictures say it all on this one lol... recipe courtesy of Smitten Kitchen.   We saw this crazy cheesecake a few days ago online and then decided Saturday night that we would put Reed to bed and try to create this masterpiece.  The recipe seemed pretty complicated (making our own crust, ganache, filling, etc) but we had fun making it and at the end of the day it really wasn't that difficult.  Roughest part was not being able to try it until the next night. 

Ganache!

Cappuccino flavor gets mixed in...

Chocolate wafer cookie crust

We got our piping skills on...

This cake was just amazing... couldn't have turned out any better.   Perfect cake for Jo's birthday!!!

Lemon Risotto with Asparagus

Jo used to make this a lot and for some reason we hadn't had it in a few months... it is one of my favorite thing she makes.  Usually we throw all sorts of vegetables in there... eggplant, squash, tomatoes, peppers, onions.  Aunt Barbara gets credit for the original risotto which she made at family parties, it had shrimp in it with roasted garlic, tomatoes with balsamic and olive oil.   This time we changed it up a little, going with what we had on hand - which was asparagus and lemon.

Lemon Risotto with Aspragus

- Roast vegetables (red onion, garlic, cherry tomatoes, asparagus) with olive oil on the top rack

- Cook risotto with chicken stock

- Mix in vegetables

- Add lemon juice, goat cheese, spinach, salt, pepper

- Serve

Really simple to make, the goat cheese really holds this dish together.  The goat cheese and lemon go perfectly together.  Soooo good and healthy with all of those vegetables in there.

Mother's Day Menu

I knew I wanted to make dinner for Jo and my Mom this Mother's Day, so I started out by asking my wife what she would want to eat for the perfect Mother's Day meal.... she did not hold back,

"Umm... how about Oysters, Filet, Lobster & Champagne!"

I think she was sort of joking at first, but it was the perfect opportunity for me to try and cook a great meal for her.... so I went for it.  I checked in with my Mom to see what she'd like to have, with a few additions I had my official Mother's Day Menu:

Appetizers:

Bruschetta (for mom)

Chargrilled Oysters (for wife)

On our last trip to Nola Jo and I went to Drago's to try their oysters (we saw them featured on a food network show)... they were unreal, one of the best things we ever ate.  So I tried to re-create them at home.  They are simply put on the grill and continously doused with a combo of garlic, butter, parsley and parmesan cheese... turned out really good (but not as good as Drago's).   Jo didn't scrape the shells like she did when we were in Nola lol.

Inspired by Drago's in NOLA... 

Main:

Lobster (for wife)

Filet Mignon (for mom and wife)

Sides:

Asparagus (for wife)

Homemade Chips (for mom)

Sauteed onions & mushrooms (for mom)

Roasted Red Pepper and Ancho Chile Salsa (center)

Dessert:

Champagne Cupcakes

Jo insisted that she make something!

The filet was a Bobby Flay recipe, Pepper Crusted Filet with goat cheese and a Roasted Red Pepper and Ancho Chile salsa.  Soooooo good.   Defintiely have to make that again. 

It was a great day with family... the filet was so good that I didn't even get a chance to take a picture of it lol.  Both mothers enjoyed the meal, and my mom even tried an oyster which was the surprise of the day! 

Inspired by the 4 Sisters of Reston Town Center

So Lynch gets the props on this one... he took me for some awesome Vietnamese food when I was down in his neck of the woods, and it was so awesome that I have been craving a chicken lemongrass rice noodle dish ever since.   However I have been struggling to find an equivalent in the south jersey area, so Jo and I tried to re-create our own.   Knew I needed some rice noodles, some ginger, some sprouts, some green onions, some soy/hoisen/saracha mix as well as some cucumber.  So we threw it together one night for fun...

It was really fresh tasting, didn't get the sauce right on and it was not "soupy" enough.  Have to get Jo down to DC to try out the 4 Sisters so she knows what she is up against and what she is trying to re-create for me.

Carolina Blue Inspired

Filet Sandwich topped with Arugula & lightly dressed with Bleu Cheese

Picture says it all!

Jo and I love the filet sandwich at Carolina Blue, so we decided to give it a shot and make it ourself!  Turned out awesome, fresh roll and fresh arugula went a long way.   Blue cheese is very light and not overwhelming.  Sandwhich comes with homemade potatoe chips, so naturally we gave them a whirl in the Fry Daddy! 



Definitely worth the effort and almost as good as the real thing... must do again.