Food!

I like to eat. And I sometimes like to cook.

If what I cook looks good to you, you can cook it too. I tend not to follow recipes; instead, I create to taste using whatever ingredients I have on hand. Sometimes I loosely follow directions, more often, I cook how I feel.

Soups
Soups are magical. With soups, you can combine any variety of your favorite flavors. Soups are fairly simple to create and they are pretty difficult to ruin. I almost never add potatoes to my soups. I don't like potatoes, but I imagine you can very easily add them to nearly any brothy soup.


Egg Drop Crab and Corn Soup - Very, very semi-homemade. Takes only minutes to prepare and cook. My kids love it.

Gyoza And Vegetable - So comforting and so easy to prepare. Perfect any time or when you're feeling down and you don't feel like chicken soup.

Pumpkin Soup - I love when pumpkins are in season on Saipan. I could eat some form of pumpkin every day. I never tire of this silky savory soup.

Split Pea with Chicken - This soup, no matter what ingredients are added to it, always envokes tender memories of my father. This time, I used chicken.

Split Pea with Zucchini - I used yellow and green peas in this one.

Yellow Split Pea Soup with Pasta - An image to inspire. Please see the split pea recipes above for more of an idea of how I made this.

Zucchini and Edamame and Vegetable Tumeric - Both links will take you to the same post. These soups were total experiments and I welcome you to take the basic idea for the soups and enhance them, or as my mother says, "doctor it up". While these are not my best soups, they were not bad and I decided to include them here to show you that you can make soup from nearly anything you have in your kitchen.

Entrees
Don't be afraid to dive right in. Once I really understood that, I felt like I could take on the whole grocery store. Yes, you can ruin entrees - they are not as forgiving as soups, but they are forgiving, and you won't get better if you don't try. So look in your pantry and get cooking!

Baked Chicken with Easy Gravy - Succulent and simple. I don't bake main dishes very often because of the outrageous electric rates on Saipan, but if you need a dish that you can throw in the oven while you take care of some other task, this is that dish. It's easier than meatloaf.

Chicken Salad Sandwich - A simple and quick way to use leftover chicken. I really like that this can be spiced in many different ways. And if you only have a little bit of chicken, this is perfect for a single serving meal. 

Coconut Curry Ribs - Rich and creamy curry made with coconut milk. Follow the link for the recipe.

Corned Beef Hash on Rice with an Egg - An image to inspire. A great breakfast for Saipan. Saute garlic first then add onions and saute until translucent, then add the corned beef hash. Cook and occasionally stir so that bits and pieces caramelize.

Creamy Pasta with Brussel Sprouts - This isn't much of a recipe, it is more like an image to inspire. You  could make your own cream sauce for this or use one from the store.

Curry with Pumpkin - I love Japanese style curry. This particular time it turned out watery, perhaps because of the vegetables I used - I will update with another curry post sometime. Curry is a fun dish to make. It's fairly easy and you can experiment with nearly any vegetable - cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin, potato, onion, carrot . . . I think that heartier vegetables work best.

French Toast with Cream Cheese and Berries - I regularly make french toast for weekend breakfasts. This is an easy way to glam up simple and routine french toast. 

Garlic Ginger Beef with Snow Peas - Do you like fresh ginger as much as I do? This garlic and ginger beef is savory and comforting with a lovely crunch from the snow peas.

Hamburger Casserole - If you can brown ground beef and boil macaroni, you got yourself a meal! (I'm sorry no picture for now.)

Kang Kung and Beef with Onions - Savory, tender beef and onions with oyster sauce. Quite delicious.

Kielbasa and Spinach with Garlic Potatoes - This is such a simple dish to make. Only a few ingredients, yet it is so tasty and so comforting. This could be a great dish to throw together on a cold evening.

Meatloaf - This is probably the most basic meatloaf there is. I have since made it with different seasonings, including a packet of Lipton french onion soup seasoning - it all depends on what I have on hand and how I feel at the time. (I'm sorry, no picture for now.)

Pan Fried Pork Chop with Tomato Cucumber Salad - Another image to inspire. The pork chop is pan fried. I find that keeping it covered during most of the cooking process keeps it moist, but don't keep it covered the whole time, because a little bit of crispiness on the outside makes it tastier. The salad is tomato, cucumber, cilantro, onion, vinegar, oil, and salt and pepper, and perhaps some italian seasoning - I don't remember.

Pasta with Spinach - If your kids like spaghetti, this is a great way to introduce them to spinach. (I'm sorry no picture for now.)

Penne Pasta and Chicken Bake - Semi-homemade makes it so much easier. This is a simple and tasty meal in one dish. If your kids like pasta, cheese, and chicken tenders, this dish will make them happy. (I'm sorry no picture for now.)

Ravioli and Zucchini Ribbons with Garlic Butter Sauce - So easy and so delicious. Semi-homemade using frozen ravioli. I would like to try this again but with roasted garlic.

Salmon Patties - They were good, but they could be even better. This recipe gives you an idea of how to throw ingredients together and have a good meal. I admit, I haven't made them since this post, but I do think about making them every few months.  (I'm sorry no picture for now.)

Spinach and Basil Macaroni - The preparation is fairly simple and you could use any type of pasta you desire. The "recipe" lists the use of olive oil in several steps - I think that could be cut down by adding olive oil first during the blender step. (I'm sorry no picture for now.)

Steak and Zucchini - Delicious and beauiful! If you aren't familiar with how to cook a steak to your liking (I prefer medium rare), I suggest you turn to Chef Google for some guidance, because a properly cooked steak makes all the difference.

Appetizers and Sides
A pleasant appetizer and a flavorful side with choice vegetables completes a delicious meal.


Asparagus and Cherry Tomatoes - I love fresh asparagus. I don't know what it costs in the mainland, but on Saipan, asparagus is not an everyday vegetable. This dish pairs rich asparagus with the bright sweet flavor of fresh cherry tomatoes.

Coleslaw - I enjoy a good coleslaw. It is unfortunate that I haven't tasted too many good coleslaws. This is a good coleslaw.

Fried Zucchini - Flour, egg wash, seasoned flour, fry. Ranch sauce. Yum!

Roasted  Zucchini and Carrots - So flavorful! A great side to go with the Baked Chicken with Easy Gravy.

Desserts
I don't post dessert recipes often. I do make lots of desserts, but most of those recipes are top secret. Sorry.


Baked S'mores - S'mores aren't just for campfires and barbecues. These are delicious oven baked cookie like s'mores. Click on the link in this post to take you to the recipe I used.


Dessert Pizza - These are a treat for everyone! They are sweet and tangy and topped with your favorite fresh fruit. You can do the semi-homemade version by using store-bought cookie dough.

Homemade Ice Cream Cake - An experiment in my dessert assemblage abilities. No guidance, just an idea. And it worked! I made this for my son's third birthday.

Spectacular Bananas - When all you have are bananas, canned whipped cream, peanut butter, and chocolate syrup. Warm, cool, crisp, soft. This is a winner for any kid (or grown-up kid) who likes bananas and sugar.

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There you have it. I'll continue to update this page as I post more "recipes" on Deece.net. You can always find this page if you click on the Food! link toward the top of the page.

Please allow me to bid you farewell with a princess birthday cake I made for Katelyn's 4th birthday.