Adobo Chicken - saying farewell over dinner...

Over the past decade we have been fortunate to host many students from Japan in our home.  Each one has been unique and memorable to us in their own special way.  We feel the home stay experience hasn't only enriched the lives of the students, but all of ours as well.  I love seeing how these young people grow into themselves from the day of their arrival in Canada to the day they return to Japan.  This is such a life changing opportunity: coming to a new country, studying in English, meeting new friends, tasting new foods, seeing Canada in all it's natural and multicultural beauty, learning to embrace their independence, and becoming part of our family.

The hardest part of hosting a home stay student is having to say good bye when they return to Japan.  These girls are always treated like they are a member of our family - so often it is like saying good bye to one of our own when they leave.  We have a tradition of saying farewell to our students over a family dinner.  This dinner is usually also attended by extended family members our students have gotten to know during their time with us.  It is a celebration of their time in Canada and one last gathering for all of us around the table.

Last night we said good bye to Megumi - she arrived last fall and stayed with us for three months before moving to a home closer to her job at the airport.  Today she is on an airplane back to Japan.  It made me so happy to see that she returns home with fond memories of her time in Vancouver and a stronger sense of confidence in who she is and what she wants in her life.  That is the greatest pay off of hosting a student for me...not the money we are paid, but instead seeing that I (and my family) have had a positive influence on their life.  Okay, let's be honest, the cooking compliments I am given by my students are good too!!

Megumi loves my Epicure products...so last night I made Adobo chicken, my yummy scalloped potatoes, lemon dilly green beans. and a tossed green salad. A blueberry buttermilk pie followed for dessert, but I can't take credit for that as it was not homemade.

The recipe I used was Adobo Chicken...a Latin inspired recipe...

Notes:  I used the recipe on the side of Epicure's Adobo seasoning bottle - it mixed 2 tablespoons of the seasoning with 1/2 cup vinegar.  I used cider vinegar as per someones recommendation.  I drizzled it over, and then roasted my chicken pieces in the oven.  Once they were done I sprinkled Epicure's Arriba Sansel over them and served.

Verdict:  The taste of the seasoning and vinegar together is really good and it flavored the chicken - unfortunately the meat didn't brown with it, it turned out a pale color like I cooked it without seasoning at all.  The sauce is too liquid to grab onto the chicken.  Next time I would add tomato paste to the mixture to make the Red Adobo Sauce.  I think this would stick to the chicken better and help it to brown.  I would use the sauce I made last night as is on steamed vegetables - I think that would be a nice complement of tastes.

I guess they can't all turn out well!  That is part of the adventure of recipe trying.
Happy Cooking!

P.S.  The green beans were EXCELLENT - stir fry them in a little olive oil and then toss with a spoon of Epicure's Lemon Dilly Dip Mix.

Instant chocolate pudding finally made healthier...

I don't know about you but I have fond memories of chocolate pudding from when I was a little girl.  To me it was comfort food.

It is sad but in the years since I was young, chocolate pudding has kind of been ruined by all the ready-made varieties available in grocery stores.  Have you looked at the list of ingredients on the packages?  So many preservatives that I can't even pronounce.  I'm sorry but if I can't even say it, how is my poor body going to digest it?  Even the top-selling instant chocolate pudding brand disappoints me with it's list of ingredients.

Epicure's "Chocolate Pudding in an Instant" launched with their 2011 product line-up...I was curious because of my affection for pudding.  I bought a package to put in my sample bag and discovered....drum roll please...their pudding only has FOUR ingredients...sugar, tapioca, cocoa and sea salt!!  No preservatives and no artificial colors.  I got very excited and wondered about it's taste...

I made "Epicure's Chocolate Pudding in as Instant" into a Chocolate Parfait.

Notes:  I used one package of the pudding mix ($5.95) and mixed it with 2 cups of skim milk.  My youngest daughter stirred it with a whisk for 2 minutes, then I stirred it for another 2 minutes.  (the package says 2 minutes total, but the first stirs were child-strength, next time I may use the electric mixer, I think it would be fastest)  At this point it looked very pudding-like.  I spooned it into small dishes, put them in the fridge for 5 minutes and then added a layer of cream I had whipped ahead of time.  On top of this I added some blackberries and then shaved a little semi-sweet chocolate over everything.  This made 8 smaller servings (really all you need!) or it could have been done as 6 regular servings if you like.  I put them in the fridge for an hour before serving.

Verdict:  Chocolate pudding is back in our house!  Woo hoo!  This was easy to make and I LOVE that it is not full of junk.  The whole family LOVED it.  I can't wait to try to make pudding pops in the freezer with this...move over Fudgsicles!!  I think the way I made it tonight would be great with sliced strawberries.  If you don't have time for "made from scratch" this mix is pretty close - especially since it's ingredients are all things you know.

Cheers!

P.S.  I know I may seem partial to Epicure products because I sell them, but when I make their recipes or use their ingredients I am trying them out honestly for my family and my business.   I don't want to personally recommend anything to my customers that isn't a good product - therefore I test it first.