This week’s Foodie Friday features blogs with the word FOODIE in the title:

1. The Fumbling Foodie – http://fumblingfoodie.typepad.com/fumblingfoodie/
2. DC Foodies – http://www.dcfoodies.com/
3. Chicago Foodies – http://www.chicagofoodies.com/
4. Philafoodie – http://www.philafoodie.com/
5. FoodieNYC - http://blog.foodienyc.com/

I love Turkey Tacos. I substitute ground turkey for ground beef and use a mixture of spices. Usually I will go out and buy one of those packets and add it to my browned turkey meat with onions and garlic.

But a few days ago, I brought out my bottle of chipotle powder that I got from a friend, Lisa Lohnes. I wanted to make a mix of my own. I came across a food blog called Food Renegade that had a nice simple, flavorful mix.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

The Players

• 1 Tbsp. Chili Powder (in my case Chipotle powder)
• 1/4 tsp. Garlic Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Onion Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 1/4 tsp. Dried Oregano
• 1/2 tsp. Paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp. Ground Cumin
• 1 tsp. Sea Salt
• 1 tsp. Black Pepper (optional)
• Pinch of Anise Seed (this was my touch…)

This is enough seasoning to season 1.25 pounds of ground turkey. You can go for the all white ground turkey, but I opted for the mixed with dark and white meat tonight. Sauté a small onion and two small cloves of garlic. Add the ground turkey and cook thoroughly. Add the seasoning mix. Usually with the “packet” you need to add water, but this this mix, the juices from the turkey work just fine.

I bought a small bag of locally made corn tortillas and made my own “shells”.

Garnish with lettuce, cheese and some Tapatio and you have a fiesta!

This week’s Foodie Friday are all blogs based here in Southern California!

1. Monster Munching – http://elmomonster.blogspot.com/
2. White on Rice Couple – http://www.whiteonricecouple.com/
3. Orange County Mexican Restaurants – http://ocmexfood.blogspot.com/
4. Gourmet Pigs – http://gourmetpigs.blogspot.com/
5. WannaBChef – http://www.wannabchef.com/

Got home late again and I’m finding it hard to cook a meal this late. Usually if I can’t make it home by 8pm, I find myself getting take out. I need to get home earlier so I can make proper meals. Tonight we have some fried rice with potstickers from Diho Siam in Mission Viejo.

The rice tonight was a bit greasy and that’s the problem with most Chinese restaurants outside of China or Chinatown. Here is a recipe from my friend Allen at Eating Out Loud.

BBQ Pork fried rice

1 cup BBQ Prok, diced (you can substitute ham or bacon)
4 eggs, fork whipped
6 cups cooked long grain rice
4 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh minced ginger
1 Tablespoon Dark Soy Sauce
2-3 Tablespoons Regular Soy Sauce
2 tablespoons peanut oil (any veggie oil is fine)
dash of Siracha Sauce

I use a wok but a deep pot or dutch oven would work well too. Place pot on burner and turn up to medium high heat. When the pot is hot, add the oil. Some smoking may occur, this is ok, just move along quickly. Add the eggs, but don’t stir. Let them firm up on the bottom (like a pancake), then flip it over. When cooked, remove from pan and set aside.

Add meat to the pan and cook for 1-3 minutes until lightly browned and cooked through. I use whatever meat we have on hand, bacon is outrageously good. I’ve also used leftover meatloaf (also amazing), pork, or chicken. If you want something lighter, omit the meat entirely. In this case, I might add a bit more ginger.

When meat is done, add the green onions and ginger. Stir to combine and cook 30 seconds. Add rice and eggs, stir to combine. I stir the rice maybe once every 30 seconds for a few minutes, then add the soy sauce and siracha. Use the spatula to ‘chop’ the egg into smallish bits. Stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes. At this point I usually give it a taste to see if more soy sauce is needed to season it.

I usually turn off the burner and let it set in the for 5-10 minutes, I think it tastes best when close to room temperature. If you have leftovers, it freezes well.

Allen’s recipe is clean and bright with a fried rice that isn’t glistening in oil. Fried rice is one of the simplest things you can make. With a few leftover ingredients in your fridge a bowl of fried rice can be quite satisfying.

DinnerInDisguise is a daily record of my evening meals. It won’t always cover hand-made meals, it will probably have fast-food and meals at friend’s homes as well.

Every Friday I will bring you 5 related food blogs. Check them out, its good reading!

1. The Streaming Gourmet – http://www.streaminggourmet.com/
2. Noble Pig – http://noblepig.com/
3. Evil Chef Mom – http://www.evilchefmom.com
4. ZigZat – http://www.zigzat.com
5. Fork n Cork – http://www.forkncork.blogspot.com/

Some of their contributors include:

David Lebovitz - davidlebovitz.com

Matt Armendariz – MattBites.com

Jaden Hair – SteamyKitchen.com

Todd Porter and Diane Cu – WhiteOnRiceCouple.com

Shauna Ahern – glutenfreegirl.com

It doesn’t stop there. There are many more contributors with more being recruited!

The site is vibrant and keeps your attention. The site has already been well monitized with sponsors like Martha Stewart and and they make use of browser space and integrate Adobe Flash technologies well. GoodBite.com is already filled with lots of content so even though they are new on the scene, they have content to keep you busy for days.

Check out GoodBite.com and try something new!

They found that the magazines were piling up in their DC apartment and they decided they were going to put their magazines to use. The goal? Cook at least one recipe from each magazine a month, publish their results and show us how they made it. So far it’s a model that has worked for them and for their readers. It’s the reason I was drawn to their website in the first place.

What a great idea! I only wish I had the time and dedication these two have. I have to give kudos to the two of them for bringing these recipes to life and proving or disproving that the recipes in the magazines do turn out like the picture! Haha. They are not afraid to tell of their recipe woes or if they made a change to a recipe.

Hopefully I’ll make it out to DC soon and get a chance to meet these two and offer a challenge. Cook a three course meal with each course being from a different magazine of the same month. Sounds like fun right?

So take a moment and visit The Bitten Word, you may never look at your cooking magazines the same ever again!