cheeky recipe: macaroni & cheese with creme fraiche

i know i've been a slacker about blogging lately (sorry!). i've also been slacking on new recipes. relying on our old favorites keeps dinners easy while we're preparing to move. at light horse tavern a few weeks ago, fanboy & i had a delicious mac & cheese that was made with creme fraiche. i started looking into recipes. i chose this one because it didn't require a roux and uses only one pot. the creme fraiche gives it a little zing and makes a super creamy sauce. i opted for an aged cheddar but this would work well with other cheeses. i plan to try it with gruyere next time.

macaroni & cheese with creme fraiche (adapted from food.com)

• 12 ounces of your favorite pasta
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 10 - 12 ounces cheddar cheese
• 4 ounces creme fraiche
• salt, to taste
• freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. reserve 1 cup of the pasta water. drain and set aside.

return the pasta to the pot. toss with the garlic, shredded cheese, creme fraiche, salt, pepper, and butter. heat should be on low to avoid burning the cheese. ladle in about 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking liquid, tossing ingredients gently.

if the cheese does not melt right away, increase heat to medium for a few moments. the cooking liquid will help create a light, saucy coating of cheese. most importantly, be extra careful not to burn the ingredients! if the pasta seems dry, ladle in a bit more liquid, only 1/4 cup at a time, until the macaroni is creamy but not watery.

transfer to pasta platter and serve hot.

cheeky recipe: korean tacos

what if bulgogi and pot roast got married and had a baby? i'm pretty sure that marriage would result in these fantastic korean tacos. thanks to pinterest and josie at pink parsley, this will be going into heavy rotation chez cheeky. if tacos aren't your thing, just serve on some sushi rice and soak up every drop of the perfectly sweet and savory sauce!

p.s. did i mention that this recipe is super easy? 


korean beef short rib tacos (recipe adapted from pink parsley)

• 6 1/2 pounds beef short ribs 
• 1 1/2 cups low sodium soy sauce
• 1 1/3 cups packed brown sugar
• 10 cloves garlic
• 2-3 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
• 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
• 1-2 teaspoons chili garlic 

cucumber slaw:

• 1 hot house cucumber
• 4 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 pinches of salt
• crushed red pepper flakes to taste

to serve:

• 6-inch flour tortillas (i used egg roll wrappers) 
• fresh cilantro or scallions (i opted for scallions) 
• extra chili garlic or sriracha 

in the bowl of a small food processor, pulse the garlic and ginger until finely chopped (you can do this with a knife or on a microplane as well, but it was really fast and easy in my mini food processor).

add the ribs to the crock pot.  in a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the cooking liquid. pour over the ribs. 

set the crockpot to low and cook about 8 hours. when ready to serve, remove the bones from the ribs, and shred into bite-sized pieces.

skim the fat off the top of the liquid and add to a small saucepan.  simmer over medium-low heat until thickened and reduced.  pour over the shredded meat and serve.

for the cucumber slaw, slice the cucumber as thinly as possible, using a mandoline if you have one.  in a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes.  toss the cucumbers in the mixture and refrigerate until ready to use.

to serve, warm the tortillas and fill with the shredded meat, and top with cucumbers, cilantro or scallions, and sriracha to taste.

monday meal planning

i don't always do meal planning every week but fanboy is going to be fending for himself for two weeks, so easy meals with plenty of leftovers are the name of the game. 

tonight, i'll be making chicken parmesan meatloaf and tossing a few servings in the freezer for fanboy to have later in the week. 

pioneer woman's italian drip beef takes almost no effort and so delicious! fanboy's secret is adding brown ale instead of water. what isn't better with a little beer? 

orzo with parmesan and basil is a go-to answer to "what's for dinner?" chez cheeky. it's great as a side or a main dish tossed with some grilled chicken or shrimp. 

fanboy is going to try out a new recipe too! crockpot barbecue chicken (with dinosaur barbecue sauce, of course).

all this talk of food is making me hungry! 

make this now

let's say it's 4pm tuesday and you haven't even thought about dinner yet. and you certainly haven't gone to the store. you want something super easy. and really good.

this is it.

a big thank you to my friend, jess, for sharing the recipe!

ginger glazed mahi mahi 

• 3 tablespoons honey  *i only used two tablespoons
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger root
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• 2 teaspoons olive oil  *i used one teaspoon of toasted sesame oil
• 4 fillets (6 oz. each) mahi mahi  *i used hake
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
• salt and pepper

in a shallow glass dish, stir together the honey, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, ginger, garlic and olive oil. season fish fillets with salt and pepper, and place them into the dish. if the fillets have skin on them, place them skin side down. cover, and refrigerate for 20 minutes to marinate.

heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. remove fish from the dish, and reserve marinade. cook fish for 4-6 minutes on each side, turning only once, until fish flakes easily with a fork. remove fillets to a serving platter and keep warm.

pour reserved marinade into the skillet, and heat over medium heat until the mixture reduces to a glaze consistently. spoon glaze over fish, and serve immediately.