Garlic Noodles

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We went back home to Michigan last week to visit family and friends.  We had a great time and were able to catch up with lots of people that we haven't seen in years!  It was really nice to be able to see all the people we did, but a week is never enough time.  We missed seeing quite a bit of our family friends and hopefully next time we will be able to catch up!

We got home on Wednesday and I have been sick until today.  Good thing is I was the only one who was sick and hopefully it stays that way because this one knocked me down and had me bed ridden for 3 days!  Yuck!  But now I am feeling better and am happy to get back into the kitchen.

My oldest is back to school after spring break and my hubby is back on nights so it was just me and the little one for lunch today.  I decided to make a simple Asian inspired garlic noodle.  This is a really simple dish that we love!  I usually make this for dinner by adding some chicken, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and broccoli.  If I add all those veggies and chicken I double the sauce.  Play with it and have fun adding what you like.  Get creative and enjoy!

Garlic Noodles
8 oz angel hair pasta
2 TBS butter
1 heaping TBS minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped green onions
3 TBS reduced sodium soy sauce
2 TBS brown sugar
3 TBS oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil

• Prepare noodles as directed on the package
• Meanwhile melt butter in a skillet over medium heat
• Add green onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 2-3 minutes (if you want some heat add some crushed red pepper just a pinch will do...I omitted it this time since it was just me and the little guy)
• When onions are softened remove from heat
• In a small bowl mix together soy sauce, brown sugar, oyster sauce, and sesame oil until blended
• Add the drained pasta and sauce mixture to the onions and toss until fully combined
• Serve and enjoy!

These are really good!  I mean really, really good!  They are super addicting and can be hard to put down.  My picky little one ate 2 huge bowlfuls and so did I.  This is the perfect dish that can be adjusted very easily.  If you want more sweetness add some more sugar and if you want it more savory add more soy sauce.  Simple and delicious!

Below is the nutritional information per serving.  This recipe yields approximately 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 103 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 260 Calories from Fat 74

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 8.2g 13%

Saturated Fat 4.0g 20%

Cholesterol 57mg 19%

Sodium 592mg 25%

Total Carbohydrates 39.2g 13%

Dietary Fiber 0.5g 2%

Sugars 4.9g

Protein 7.7g

Vitamin A 7% • Vitamin C 6% Calcium 3% • Iron 14%

Nutrition Grade B-

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• High in thiamin

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Pierogies - #SurpriseRecipeSwap

It's time again for the Surprise Recipe Swap!  I look forward to the fun every month.  Getting to know a new foodie blogger, browsing through recipes, and of course making those recipes.  This month I was paired up with Eric over at Happy Valley Chow.  He has tons of delicious recipes.  In fact I have a number of them saved to try very soon.  Seriously...Egg Rolls, Stuffed Chicken wrapped with Prosciutto, Foccacia, Cheese Steak Mac n' Cheese, and that is only some of the yummy deliciousness you can find there!

As you can tell I had a rather hard time deciding which recipe to choose.  I really wanted to attempt something brand new and out of my comfort zone.  When I saw the recipe for Pierogies I knew I had to try them.  I have always wanted to make them, but shied away because I have no experience preparing pierogies other than opening a box of Mrs. T's.

Last year a friend of mine (who is Polish) went to the local Polish Fest we have.  The food was amazing!  It was the first time I have ever had a homemade pierogie.  Can you believe it?!? I went 30 years before having a real pierogie!  I know it doesn't seem fair at all!

Enough with the chatter lets get to the good the stuff!  The Pierogies!!!!

Look at that yummy golden brown deliciousness!

Here's a look inside

And one more from another angle in case you aren't drooling yet ;)

Pierogies adapted from Happy Valley Chow

****Note**** I doubled the recipe because I wanted extra to freeze and I had to give some to my Polish friend :) So if you don't want so much (I got about 4 dozen pierogies from the recipe below) just cut the recipe in half.

dough

4 cups flour

1 tsp salt

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup butter, softened and cut into small pieces

• Combine flour and salt in a large bowl
• Add eggs and stir until incorporated (I used my dough hook on my mixer)
• Add sour cream and butter and mix until the dough loses most of it's stickiness and forms into a soft ball
• Remove dough, perform a couple of quick kneads, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days

Filling

****Note**** I had quite a bit extra filling, but we will have the extras with dinner tomorrow night 

12 medium russet potatoes, peeled and diced

12 oz shredded colby cheese

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic salt

• Place potatoes in a large pot of salted cold water
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and boil for 20 minutes or until tender
• Drain potatoes and place back in the warm pot to help cook out any extra water
• Add the remaining ingredients and mash together

To Assemble:

• Pull off about 1 TBS of the dough and with a rolling pin roll into 1/8" thick circles (this way produces less waste and you don't have to worry about overworking the dough)
• Add 1 TBS of the filling, fold over, seal edges by pinching together, and then press the edges with the tines of a fork
• Repeat until all the dough is used 

This works best with a team, but is definitely doable on your own.  I did this by myself and it ended up taking  me about 3 hours total to make 4 dozen pierogies.  It may seem like a long time, but remember I have never made one before so the beginning I was really slow.  By the end I was moving along pretty quickly.

Once all the pierogies are made I placed them on a cookie sheet and placed them in the freezer.  When they were solid I transferred them to a freezer bag for later use.

To Prepare:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil
• Drop pierogies into the water and boil for about 5-8 minutes
• The pierogies will float to the top when they are done

You can serve them now with butter, sour cream, salsa, or whatever else you enjoy or you could saute them in butter until browned and crispy like I did.  In a skillet over medium-high heat melt 2 TBS butter and 1 TBS olive oil and then saute for about 2-4 minutes on each side or until desired crispiness and browning has occurred.

We served ours with caramelized onions.  To caramelize onions cut into slices.  Use 1 tsp oil or butter per medium onion.  Heat the oil/butter over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and allow to cook undisturbed for 10 minutes.  At this point salt the onions and reduce heat if necessary.  If onions are sticking add about 1 TBS water and turn the heat down to medium or medium-low and continue cooking for 10-20 minutes.  Continue to stir occasionally and add water or oil as needed to prevent sticking and burning.

Incredibly amazing!  There is no other way to describe these.  So grab a couple friends or get the kiddos in the kitchen and start making these wonderful Polish treats!

If you are looking to get some more blog traffic, to meet other foodie bloggers, or to just challenge yourself a little come and join us with the Surprise Recipe Swap.  Click the button below for details and to sign up!  I hope to see you join us the next month :)

Below is the nutritional value per pierogie.  I know they aren't the healthiest, but they sure are yummy!

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 61 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 114 Calories from Fat 45

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 5.0g 8%

Saturated Fat 3.0g 15%

Cholesterol 19mg 6%

Sodium 151mg 6%

Total Carbohydrates 14.0g 5%

Dietary Fiber 1.1g 5%

Sugars 0.5g

Protein 3.3g

Vitamin A 3% • Vitamin C 12% Calcium 5% • Iron 4%

Nutrition Grade B-

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• Low in sugar
• High in vitamin C

Bad points

• High in saturated fat

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