Cauliflower Soup with Garlic Croutons

My hubby and I just celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. We headed out for a date night to a local French restaurant, and upon parusing the menu my husband immediately requested the cauliflower soup.
I was sort of appalled by this request. Nothing about cauliflower soup screams romantic! Decadent! Worthy appetizer to celebrate 5 years of marriage! But, I will admit, when the tureen of silky, pale soup arrived at the table I had a change of heart.

Turns out Justin has been loving this soup for far longer than he has been loving me. As seen in the hand written recipe card he wrote around age 8. He loved his grandmother's recipe so much he copied it down. If I had known he was carrying around this recipe card I would have whipped up a batch years ago, but he kept this love hidden away.

Going off of this recipe and what the chef at the restaurant suggested I came up with an extremely simple version of the soup. Don't let that fool you though, it is actually a very festive dish, worthy of any type of celebration. Even if that is just celebrating surviving a Thursday.

I topped the smooth soup with garlic croutons I made from leftover baguette. Any crunchy bit of bread would do, but the garlic made the soup pop.  Feel free to leave the cream out of the soup, it is still delicious without it.

Cauliflower Soup with Garlic Croutons
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, roughly chopped
4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped
4-6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 - 1/2 cup cream or half and half
salt, pepper

3 cups cubed stale bread
4 garlic cloved, finely chopped
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
salt

1. In a large sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and let cook slowly, without browning for about 20 minutes.
2. When onions are soft, add garlic and cauliflower and continue the slow cooking about another 20 minutes until cauliflower begins to soften.
3. Add broth. Cover and simmer until cauliflower is soft.
4. Puree mixture either in a blender or with a stick mixer.
5. Stir in cream, if using. Taste and adjust seasoning.

To make croutons:
1. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat.
2. Put bread cubes in, sprinkle with garlic and olive oil.
3. Toast, turning often, until bread begins to brown and the garlic smells fragrant. About 5 minutes.

To serve:

Ladle hot soup into a bowl and top with croutons and a drizzle of the fried garlic. 

The Dog Days of Summer

This has been a crazy summer for our family!

We have braved the wilds to take our 1 1/2 year old camping, we have played in Eastern Oregon, celebrated multiple birthdays and decided to sell our house and move into a rental.

We are finally settled into our new house. I am still getting used to the kitchen, it isn't as large as my old one and not all the burners work on the stove. I never realized how much storage I had for all my kitchen toys until I realized I couldn't keep them all at my finger tips. I have what looks like a mini Sur La Table in my basement now. :)

We had to leave our large garden but are making due with hitting up a friend's farm garden on a regular basis. This week we are eating our weight in Sungold cherry tomatoes! Once we started to slow down on popping handfuls of the sweet, fresh tomatoes into our mouth I remembered how much I enjoy them cooked.

Here I sauteed them in a touch of butter, garlic, and salt. Over very high heat, just until they popped open. One night we ate these as a side salad, sprinkled with fresh basil and oregano. The next night I mixed in a spoonful of pesto and slurped it up with long spaghetti noodles.

How do you like to eat your cherry tomatoes?

Also, any ideas on how to best enjoy Patty Pan squash? We have had them shaved, raw in this salad. But my attempts to cook them have ended up with a soggy mess, as did grilling.

Quinoa Shrimp Soup

I made Peruvian Quinoa Chowder from the Oregonian's FoodDay tonight. It was fabulous. A great combination of corn, jalepenos and shrimp. There is just enough quinoa in it to add some weight to the soup. It is a quick soup too - I made it in about 20 minutes.

I subbed a pound of wild salad shrimp and used less 1/2 and 1/2, but other then that stuck with the recipe. (Which is odd for me!) :)

Chick Pea Curry

Oh, Hi!
It has been a while.
Things have been a bit a busy lately, and I have to admit, I haven't had much to say. And anything I did have to say, I felt like had already been said somewhere else on the internet. This is probably still true. Nonetheless, here I am. I am going to try a little harder. :)

I saw a version of this recipe on The Kitchn. I ended up not really having all the ingredients so I played with the idea and came up with a really good one bowl dinner. It is mild enough for all family members to enjoy - big and small - but really rich in flavor. The best part is that it came together in about 20 minutes. Peeling and cooking the sweet potato took the longest.

Chickpea Curry
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
1 teaspoon mild curry powder
1 inch of fresh ginger, chopped fine
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 large sweet tater, peeled and chopped into one inch pieces
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 can coconut milk
a few handfuls of fresh spinach or frozen spinach
handful of chopped cilantro
salt, pepper and a squirt of siracha (or any hot sauce)

1. In a large pan heat the oil over medium heat. Add garlic, curry powder, ginger, and onion and cook until the onion starts to get soft.
2. Add sweet potato and a 1/2 cup water. Cover pan and cook about 10 minutes until sweet potato is soft.
3. Add the chick peas, coconut milk, spinach and cilantro. Cook until heated through.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve with a squirt of siracha or hot sauce on top.

Shrimp Endive Salad with Lemon Cream Dressing

Justin and I were lucky enough to have a date night a few weeks ago. We went to Grain and Gristle, a cute little pub with amazing food and tons of pickles. I love any place with loads of pickled things! (Even though I think the restaurant name is a bit unfortunate, the place is stellar and I would recommend it!)

While there I had an endive salad with shrimp. The combination of crunchy bitter endive and the sweet shrimp was made even tastier by the creamy, lemon dressing. I had to replicate it. It took a few tries to get the dressing right, and needed real cream, not a low-fat alternative. Also, using a meyer lemon made the dressing much more delicate and fragrant, but using a regular lemon and adding a spoon of white sugar worked just as well.

This makes plenty of dressing, enough for a few salads. Save it in the fridge for about a week. 

Shrimp Endive Salad with Lemon Cream Dressing
1 shallot, very finely chopped
Juice from 2 meyer or regular lemons (2 teaspoons white sugar if using regular lemons)
1/3 cup olive oil
large pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 heads of endive, separated and laid on a serving platter or individual plate
1/2 - 1 lb shrimp, cooked and peeled.

1. In a jar, add shallot and lemon juice. Let rest 10 - 15 minutes. This will soften the shallots.
2. Add olive oil, (sugar), and salt to jar. Put on the lid and shake until it starts to emulsify (get a bit thick). Add cream and gently stir to combine. Don't shake the cream too much.

3. Separate endive leaves and lay them on a serving platter or individual plate. Divide shrimp onto the plate or platter.
4. Drizzle with dressing.

Enjoy! 

Deconstructed Wonton Soup

Whenever snow falls in Portland, the whole city freaks out and then shuts down. There was snow on the air this weekend, so I was prepared to make my snow day soup. I had some wonton wrappers in the freezer, a pound of Oregon salad shrimp, a Chinese cabbage and a bunch of cilantro on the ready.

For as long as I can remember homemade wonton soup has been a family tradition on snowy, blustery days. On Sunday a few snowflakes swirled so I started making my wonton filling. I had planned on wrapping the wontons, but little man had other plans.

He is very helpful these days, but I just didn't see his assistance making wontons ending well. As luck would have it dinner time rolled around and the filling was still in the bowl. I decided to wing it and make soup from the filling, adding more vegetables, and cutting the wonton wrappers into noodles.

It was a surprise hit! The water chestnuts added crunch, and the filling flavored the whole pot. Even the wrappers softened into the satiny texture I adore. It was delicious!


As of Monday afternoon, Snowpocolips 2012 has yet to arrive. In fact it is sunny and windy. Oh well.

This recipe is 100% shrimp, but feel free to substitute half a pound of ground pork, chicken or turkey for a 1/2 pound of the shrimp.
Deconstructed Wonton Soup
3 garlic cloves
1 lb salad shrimp, divided
4 chopped green onions
1 inch knob ginger peeled and chopped finely
2 cups finely chapped napa cabbage
1 5oz can chopped water chestnuts (if not chopped finely throw in the food processor for 2-3 seconds.)
1/4 cup soy sauce - or more to taste
1 T toasted sesame oil
Few hearty twists of fresh ground pepper
1 T rice wine or sake
1 T chopped cilantro leaves

2 carrots, sliced into coins
2 cups (or the rest of the napa cabbage), sliced
1 cup frozen peas
1 package wonton wrappers
6 cups chicken or veggie broth
handful of cilantro
1. In a small food processor blend the garlic and 1/2 of the salad shrimp until it creates a paste.
2. In a large bowl mix the rest of the ingredients. Use your hands to mix it all up into a uniform mess.
3. Heat a large soup pot. Add wonton mix, carrots and cabbage. Stir fry for about 2 minutes.
4. Add broth, bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes.
5. Cut wonton wrappers into 1/3s, making thick noodles. Add to broth and simmer another 5 minutes. Stir a bit to keep the noodles from sticking together.

6. Serve in a big bowl sprinkled with cilantro.

Baked Plantains

Plantains are a great fruit to get to know. It looks like a banana, but with a thicker peel and a tougher meat. Plantains need to be cooked to eat them. They are staples in multiple cultures around the world. The first time I cooked with them was while attempting a Cuban dinner. Justin and I double deep fried them. They were amazing! We had been craving them again, but knew that we really didn't need the added fat and calories that deep frying brings. Since I am obsessed with baking and roasting veggies I decided to try them out in the oven. 

They turned out fabulously and were very, very easy. The sliced plantains are tossed with a bit of olive oil and salt and then laid in a single layer to bake. Turn once to ensure that both sides get nice and crispy. Now plantains are a regular in our dinner rotation.

Our favorite way to eat them is sprinkled with chopped garlic and a squeeze of lime. Adding them to a rice bowl is also delicious. It makes a simple dinner of beans and rice into something a little special. 

Here they are with some sweet tater and black beans.

What is your favorite way to eat plantains? (I have simmered up a chunk for Levi with a little water, and then mushed it. He loved it!)

I have done this with very ripe (black) and very green plantains. I think the baking works best with the greener fruit. The very ripe is more mushy and better for a quick simmer and mush. The mush is still delicious with the garlic, salt and lime. Because really, what isn't good with salt and lime. 

Baked Plantains

2 -3 plantains, thick peel cut and peeled away. Sliced into about 1 inch thick pieces
2-3 Tablespoons oil
sprinkle of salt
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 lime, ready for squeezing.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees
1. In a bowl toss plantain slices with oil and salt.
2. Lay in a single layer on a baking pan.
3. Bake 10 minutes and then flip, bake another 10 minutes.
4. Toss with more salt, if you want, lime and garlic.

Best enjoyed hot.

Kao Man Gai (or what your Jewish Grandmother would make if she were Thai)

It is no surprise that we love to cook Thai food around here. Honestly, so much of it is labor intensive that we mostly cook it for friends or on the weekends. This recipe is gonna change that. It looks like a lot of steps, but is as easy as chicken and rice.

The first time we had Kao Man Gai we were on Ko Samui island. After multiple days of grilled chicken and papaya salad we decided to branch out.  We stumbled upon a little hole in the wall restaurant filled with Thai folks enjoying their lunches. There was only one thing on the menu. We ordered two and waited to see what would arrive. Two plates of rice, a bit of sliced chicken breast, a sprig of cilantro and a small cup of broth. The waiter/cook/ owner brought over a small bowl of what looked like soy and maybe chilies. Slightly disappointed in the looks of our lunch, we dug in anyway.

WOW! Were we mistaken. The simple appearance belied the intense flavor. It was pure comfort food. Tender chicken atop delicious fragrant rice. The bowl held a delicate chicken soup for sipping. The dipping sauce brought just enough zip and spice to the table. We were in heaven.

Sadly, we never got the name of what we were eating...

Fast forward two years and at the height of the Portland food cart boom I read about a cart selling only one dish. Thai chicken and rice. At the first chance we had we went to check out the offerings. There it was, sliced chicken breast, rice just as fragrant as we remember and a small bowl of broth to sip. I finally had a name. Kao Man Gai.

Justin was lucky enough to receive the book Thai Street Food, by David Thomas for his birthday this Summer. This is a huge, beautiful Thai cookbook and coffee table book. We were drooling immediately. Lo and behold, there was a recipe for Kao Man Gai.

So far we have made it three times, and each time we whoo and ahh over how delicious it is. And really, it isn't that hard. The best part is, it is great to make ahead and heat up for lunches or dinner. I have simplified the recipe a bit, but I highly recommend getting the cookbook to see the original recipe (and all the others!).

This recipe calls for pandanus leaf, which is a long, spiky leaf which has a sorta nutty-sweet taste and smell. I found mine in the frozen food section of the Asian market. I pulled two leaves off for this recipe and have kept the rest  in the freezer.


Kao Man Gia (Thai Poached Chicken and Rice) (Modified from Thai Street Food)
This is a doubled recipe, so there are plenty of leftovers.
Chicken Ingredients
8 cups chicken stock
2 teaspoons salt (or none if stock is salty)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 pandanus leaf
4 garlic cloves, crushed, but left whole
a small handful of cilantro stems
2 1 inch pieces of ginger, crushed with a knife
4 chicken breasts, on the bone

Rice Ingredients
5 cups jasmine rice (rinsed)
a second small handful of cilantro stems
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons chopped ginger
2 tablespoons oil

a small zucchini, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 green onion, sliced
cilantro leaves

1. To make chicken, in large sauce pot put all ingredients, except the chicken. Bring to a boil.
2. Turn heat to a simmer and add chicken breasts. Check after about 20 minutes. If still a little pink, cook another 10 minutes.
3. Remove chicken from broth and let cool.

To Make the Rice
1. While chicken is poaching, crush into a paste the cilantro stems, garlic, and ginger. I like to use my mortar and pestle, but a food processor would be fine too.
2. Heat oil in a medium sauce pan. Add spice paste and cook a minute until fragrant.
3. Add rice and stir until coated. Fry rice for about a minute.
4. Add enough of the poaching stock to cover the rice by about an inch.
5. Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid and turn down to a low simmer until rice is cooked. This should take about 20 minutes.

Now that your chicken is cooling and your rice is cooking you can make the soup.
1. Taste the poaching stock and add a little salt or sugar if needed.
2. Add in cubed zucchini. Bring to a boil.
3. Turn heat off and sprinkle in green onion and cilantro.

To plate, slice chicken breast from the bone. Serve on a mound of the hot rice. Sprinkle with cilantro leaves or a bit of cucumber. Serve the soup in a cup along side.
See!!! That wasn't so hard!

If you have time the sauce is a great addition!
This is my version. The original calls for yellow beans. I can't find them anywhere. 
Dipping Sauce
5-6 cilantro stems
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
6 garlic cloves
2 inches of ginger, chopped
1/2 of a hot Thai chili
1 tablespoon white vinegar
soy sauce to taste

1. In a mortar and pestle (or food processor) crush everything but the vinegar and soy.
2. Stir in vinegar and soy. Taste and add more sugar or salt as needed. I liked it sweeter, so I added a big ole spoonful.

Drizzle over chicken when eating.

Stuffed Pork Loin

All photos by the ever-lovely Amy Wing

 Each year I forgot how crazy Septembers are for our family. This year, with the addition of the little man, things are even harder. I find that I am reaching for a box of pasta more and more often. I am going to try and refocus myself on meals that come together easily and/ or ahead of time. Hopefully that will have me posting more often again. I noticed that I have lost quite a few followers. I hope it is because of my lack of posting. Maybe I can woo them back!

I have been sitting on this recipe for quite a while. It seems a little fussy, but is really delicious. What makes it difficult to write is that pork loins come in all different sizes. The piece that cooked with was about 6 inches long. I have seen some that are 3 feet long...so if you are working with that size, increase the filling, cooking time, and number of chairs around your table!

I have making a concerted effort to use some of the more, shall we say random, ingredients in my kitchen. Pomegranate molasses is one of them. I love the tart taste, but can be difficult to incorporate into multiple dishes. I used it here, for a lentil dish, but other than that it has been sitting around. This recipe uses it as a glaze. If you don't have it in your pantry try simmering down a bit of cranberry or pomegranate juice until it has reduced by 1/2, or just use the honey. Or leave it off. No worries.

The fussy part of this recipe comes with the butterflying of the meat. Here is a step by step picture of how to do it. Then it is easy to season and stuff the meat with goat cheese, spinach and tangy cranberries. I used toothpicks to hold the meat together, but twine would have been easier and look better.

 

Stuffed Pork Loin
1 pork loin, about 6-8 inches long. Butterflied
3 garlic cloves, chopped
4 tablespoons, about, of goat cheese
3 tablespoons dried cranberries
large handful of young spinach leaves
1/4 cup pomegranate molasses
1/4 cup honey
salt and black pepper
olive oil

Also needed: Toothpicks or cooking twine to hold together the meat.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Sprinkle cut side of pork loin with salt and pepper. Spread garlic over the meat.
2. Evenly layer the goat cheese, then cranberries. Finally, lay the spinach in an orderly fashion over the top.
3. Carefully roll the meat closed, securing with toothpicks or a twine.
4. Heat an oven proof pan over high heat. Coat the bottom with olive oil, about 2 tablespoons. When the oil is hot put meat roll in, cut side down. Brown all sides, about 3-4 minutes on each side.
5. Meanwhile, stir together molasses and honey. You may need to pop it into the microwave for 30 seconds to help it blend.
6. When the meat is browned, drizzle mixture over the top and put the whole thing into the preheated oven. Cook until pork reaches 150 degrees.
7. Let meat rest 15 minutes before slicing.

Thank you Amy for these beautiful photos!

A Different Way to Cook Pasta?

Justin and I were listening to more Splendid Table podcasts while driving to Eastern Oregon. (Have I mentioned how much I love that show?) There was a guest on, who for the life of me I can not relocate on the site, who described a different way to cook pasta.

He suggested putting pasta into the cold water and bringing it all to a boil. By the time the water has come to a boil the pasta is perfectly cooked.

I have done this repeatedly since listening and I swear it works. And, man, is that a time saver! Instead of waiting for a huge pot of water to boil and then waiting 15 minutes to cook the pasta, it is all done in about 20 minutes.

Try it out on some of these pasta recipes!

Arugula, Artichoke, and Spicy Sausage Pasta

Pasta Scorpio

Chicken Paprika 

Roasted Squash Pasta with Browned Butter and Walnuts

Pasta Lyonnaise

Tuna and Caper Pasta

 

 

 

Grilled Corn Salad

I am having really mixed feelings about my blog lately. On one hand this is my place to share and store my cooking ideas. It is really just for me. I refer back to my own recipes often, looking back on my life and what was happening at that time.

But, I love that I have regular readers and hope they enjoy the few minutes a week they spend here. It thrills me when someone leaves a comment. On the other hand, I am also a little disappointed in myself that I wasn't able to "step-it-up" when I had all those new visitors when my little blog got some press. Of course I secretly would love tons of readers and a little bit of fame. But, as someone pointed out, my photos suck. And good photos attract readers, because, let's be honest, food blogs are a dime a dozen. I am no photographer, a medicore writer, and an untrained cook. But, man, do I love to cook. :)

So all this is to say, thank you for reading my blog. And thank you for putting up with my crappy photos. I hope you at least like the recipes you try from here. :)

Okay, onward and upward!
This is a simple Summer salad that is worth the little extra work of cutting the corn off of the cob. I feel like a broken record, but I am constantly looking for easy, healthy, make ahead recipes these days. I found organic corn on sale 3/ $1 and I bought a huge armload of them. I adore good sweet corn. I grew up next door to a small farm owned by an amazing man, Mr. Miner. (I have written about him before).

During the summer my folks would put a big pot of water on the stove and send me out into Mr. Miner's corn field. He had taught me how to check for ripe corn by squeezing the top of the cob to see if it felt full of kernels and to make sure the silk was darkened and dry. I would collect an ear for each of us and race back to the yard. We would shuck them on the back step and drop them into the pot of bowling water. This corn was sweet as sugar and so fresh. Dripping with melted butter it was better than chocolate cake!

When I met Justin he introduced me to grilling corn. We just toss the unshucked ears of corn onto the grill.  Five minutes later they are perfectly cooked. I highly recommend trying this method of cooking corn if you haven't tried it.

This salad is easily doubled, tripled, etc and is great the next day! (It is a great way to use up leftover cooked corn too).

Grilled Corn Salad
4 ears of fresh corn, unshucked
large handful basil leaves, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
sprinkle of kosher salt

1. Over hot coals, arrange corn on the grill. Turn about each minute or until all sides of the corn leaves as charred. This should take about 5-6 minutes.  Remove corn from grill and let rest about 10 minutes until cool enough to touch. This will also let the corn steam a bit more.
2. Once cooled, peel back leaves and remove all the corn silk. Using a sharp knife remove the kernels from the cob. After the kernels are removed I like to rub the back of a knife back and forth on the cob to remove the corn "milk".
3. Toss corn with basil and vinegar in a bowl. Taste and add salt if you feel it needs some.

Hmmmm, Summer in a bowl!

Polenta with Greens (and an Egg for Good Luck!)

Dinner Math
One recipe of polenta (fried up in olive oil with loads of black pepper)
+
One batch of garlicy kale
+
some leftover caramelized onions
+
1 egg over easy with a nice runny yolk
=
Dinner! (Or quite possibly Breakfast, Brunch or Lunch)

left over onions and greens ready to go

Cooled polenta, fried in a little olive oil

er medium high heat

Arugula, Artichoke, and Spicy Sausage Pasta

I adore arugula! I have taken to smooching handfuls of the slightly spicy green a top my sandwiches, pizza, and pastas. I also love a good arugula salad (here is one of my favorites).


This is a quick summer dinner that features the bite of arugula, but also the sweetness of artichokes and the kick of a good spicy chicken sausage. It is perfect for eating on the back porch along side a glass of ice cold rose wine.

What is your favorite way to enjoy arugula? Do you have it in your garden? I have a small patch but I end up buying large bags of it weekly because my garden can't keep up with my NEED for the green.  :) Trader Joe's is a great source of inexpensive organic arugula.

Arugula Pasta
1 lb box of small pasta
1/2 onion, sliced thinly
2 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 lb bulk spicy chicken sausage (or sliced if in sausage form)
1 teaspoon chili flakes  (more or less)
1 can artichoke hearts (in water), sliced small
1 bag or about 5 cups of small, washed arugula
Parmesean Cheese for grating over the top

1. Cook pasta according to directions. Drain pasta, saving about a cup of cooking water.
2. In a large frying pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. ( I feel like all my recipes start this way...). Add onion and garlic and cook about 3 minutes.
3. Add sausage, artichoke hearts and chili flakes. Cook, breaking up the sausage as it cooks.
4. What sausage is cooked, add arugula. Put a lid on the pan for about a minute or until the arugula begins to melt .
5. Add in pasta and stir to combine. Drizzle in a little pasta cooking water as needed to help the sauce coat all the pasta.
6. Serve with cheese.

PS. I have been getting a lot of traffic about drinking vinegars! I will have more recipes for using and making drinking vinegars soon.

My Peanut Sauce

Petty picture, I know. Tastes better than it looks.

Peanut sauce is the perfect Summer food. Once it is made it is happy to hang out in the fridge until needed for a quick meal.

Ideas:
You can toss it with spaghetti noodles and veggies for peanut noodles.
Dip Vietnamese salad rolls into it
Thin with a little additional water or vinegar and use as a salad dressing.
Drizzle over a bowl of rice and veggies
A dip and marinate for chicken or pork skewers.
Spread on bread and add some turkey (seriously! Sounds weird, but it is good)
Eat off of the spoon (the most civilized choice, of course.)

There are endless ways to make peanut sauce, I like to use fish sauce in mine, but soy or plain salt would also be good. I have even seen recipes using beer! The key is having a balance between sweet, salty, sour and spicy. Some peanutbutters have sugar added, so there is no need to add additional sweetener, some are already salty, so go easy on the soy or fish sauce. Some people heat their sauce up, others use a blender or just a fork.

You get my drift.

My Peanut Sauce
1 cup natural, chunky peanutbutter
1 garlic clove mashed
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon sambal sauce (or more, depending on my mood)
juice of one lime (or maybe more...)
about 1/4 cup fish sauce
1 cup water

1. Heat a small sauce pan over medium heat. Add in a spoonful of peanutbutter and heat until some of the oil releases. Add in garlic and cook for about one minute. This makes the garlic a little less sharp, but you don't have to do it.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients. It will be watery, chunky and ugly at first. As it heats and you stir the sauce will come together smoothly.
3. Taste and adjust seasonings.

This keeps in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

Musubi - or the perfect pocket food

The other morning while we were wandering through the Hollywood Farmer's Market we sampled a teriyaki chicken and egg musubi from the Hawaiian restaurant Ate Oh Ate. It was a delicious block of rice, egg, and flavorful chicken all rolled up in seaweed. Traditionally, it usually has Spam too, but I was happy to sample the roll without it. Spam just doesn't appeal to me, no matter how many people tell me it is really good.

This isn't raw, but looks this way in the picture!

(Side story: One of my Korean students spent a week convincing me to make Spam and kim chi stew, he even hand wrote a recipe, translated from his Korean grandma. I just couldn't do it. I used a pork chop instead, and brought him a little to try. I was informed it wasn't as good as it could be, but not bad for a teacher. High praise from a 5th grader!)
 
The next day Justin and I decided we needed more musubi. We have trying to take more hikes and get out of the house with the baby. These little rolls, packed with protein and rice, were a perfect lunch we could throw in our bag. We made a bunch Sunday evening and they were delicious through Wednesday. After reading up on musubi, turns out they are Hawaii's perfect snack food. Surfers and swimmers could tuck this in their bag and head out to a day of fun.

The hardest part of these is making the block of egg. I scrambled up 4 eggs, heated a small frying pan over low and sorta scrambled, sorta swirled the eggs until 1/2 way set. Then I put a lid over the pan and let it cook until solid. This made a nice block of egg that was easy to slice.

We used leftover boneless, skinless chicken thighs which we tossed with a little teriyaki sauce. Next time you are grilling throw a few extra thighs on and roll these up after dinner. You will have snack food for your summer adventures ready to go. (I am thinking of YOU, Mrs. Larson and your mountain biking boys.)

This is the seaweed I found at Fred Meyers

 The Japanese short grain sushi rice (which sticks together) and seaweed can be found at most grocery stores, so no need to hunt down a specialty store.

 The amount you will end up with varies on how full you pack your rolls.
Chicken and Egg Musubi
2 cups sushi rice, cooked (to make about 4 cups), slightly cooled
10 sheets of seaweed, cut in half
4-5 chicken thighs, sliced
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
4 eggs
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
cooking spray

1. Start with the eggs. Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk in a pinch of salt and sugar. Heat a small frying pan over low heat. Spray pan with the cooking spray and pour in the eggs. Using a spatula slowly swirl the eggs for about a minute, or until they begin to set. Put a lid on the pan. Cook 3 minutes. Swirl the eggs again if still loose. Repeat until the eggs are set.
2. In a bowl, toss sliced chicken with teriyaki sauce.
3. When eggs are set, slide onto a cutting board (or scrape them out, which often happens to me) and slice into 1/2 inch thick strips.
4. Lay a piece of seaweed on a cutting board.
5. With wet hands grab a handful of rice and smooch it gently onto the seaweed. Leave about an inch without rice at one end.
6. Lay a few pieces of chicken and one or two slices of egg length wise across the rice.
7. Roll seaweed around the filling toward the end with no rice. It should seal itself. If it doesn't, dip your finger into a little water and run it over the open end.

These store really well in a tupperware or individually wrapped in plastic if they are going in your pocket.

Whole Grain Spring Risotto

I am still recovering from my sugar coma from eating all those s'mores I won from Enjou Chocolat! (AND the when Blogger went down I lost this post - and apparently a follower! Come back!)

Closer to home, while at the foodie event, Bob's Red Mill gave me a bag of mixed whole grains, called Grandé Whole Grains Cereal/Pilaf.  It is a mix of hard red white wheat, long grain brown rice, whole oats, whole rye, whole triticale, whole barley, white buckwheat, and sesame seeds.  I have been trying to incorporate more whole grains and beans into my diet so I was excited to try these.

The package had a risotto recipe printed on the back. I was skeptical because I think of risotto as labor intensive due to having to stir it constantly. This recipe called for cooking the grains in broth and aromatics then stirring it up. That was a recipe I could do with a new baby!

After making it I don't think I will ever go back to traditional risotto. This cooks up so easily and the flavor is outstanding! Nutty, rich, and flavorful. I have modified it from the package's directions. I have made it repeatedly with different vegetables - peas, arugula, spinach, and my favorite, leftover asparagus.

Spring Risotto
Modified from Bob's Red Mill's recipe
2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
one onion, chopped finely
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups Grande Grain mix
4 1/2 cups veggie or chicken broth
2 cups cooked veggies cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 - 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a lidded sauce pan over medium-high heat, heat oil or butter. Add onion. Saute until transparent. Add garlic and grains. Cook 2-3 minutes or until garlic is fragrant.
2. Add broth. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down to low and cover. Cook 40 minutes or until grain is tender.
3. Stir in cheese, it will begin to look creamy. Add in veggies. Adjust seasoning. Enjoy

This is extra delicious with a poached egg on it. But then again, almost everything is better with an egg on it!


In other news, my baby had his first taste of real food this weekend :) Time is flying!

Wheatberry Salad with Butternut Squash and Cranberries

 Photo by Amy Wing

I have been trying to incorporate more vegetarian meals into our weekly food plan. It is difficult to find meals that satisfy Justin's need for hardy meals (aka: MEAT) while keeping us on budget and healthy. Happily, a friend introduced me to wheatberries. These are a cheap, chewy and delicious grain that mixes well with other ingredients.

This recipe is a ripped off from my dear friend. She made it for dinner and I grilled her on the ingredients. She is the type of cook that can just toss this and that into a bowl and end up with something delicious! I have tried to break it down into measurements, but feel free to play fast and loose.

 

  Photo by Amy Wing

A little about wheatberries: Wheatberries are the entire wheat, including the bran, endosperm and germ. They are also very high in fiber and protein.

To Cook Wheatberries
You do not need to soak the kernels overnight. Just add a cup or two to a large sauce pan. Cover with water, cover pot, and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer for about one hour. I suggest making twice as much as you need and freezing half. That way you can whip up the salad at a moments notice.

These photos were taken by my friend Amy Wing. Aren't they lovely?
Have you been incorporating interesting grains into your diet? What do you think? Found any great ones? I have some spelt to try as well. Any recipe suggestions?

  Photo by Amy Wing

Wheatberry Salad with Butternut Squash and Cranberries
2 cups cooked wheatberries
2 cups cubed and cooked butternut squash
1/4 cup cranberries
1/2 cup finely diced celery
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

1/2 cup light vinaigrette (I would suggest my jam dressing to bring out the sweetness in the squash and cranberries. I used a pear ginger jam.)

1. Toss all ingredients together. Add dressing. Taste and adjust salt if needed.

This salad improves with a little rest. It would be an excellent New Mama food!

Photo by Amy Wing

Feeding a New Mama (and her family)

 (I find this image from the internet really amusing)

I have been researching freezer foods and ideas to help out a new mom and her family survive the first little while. I began the research not for me, but to begin planning to help out my pregnant friends. So far no babies have arrived yet, but we are all huge and slow and eagerly awaiting the arrival their arrivals.

I have been SO lucky because even before my baby has arrived my mom and sister-in-law have been taking care of us. My hubby has been home sick for a week and I am about as slow as molasses, but we are surviving because my mom has been bringing food and helping grocery shop and my SIL has been helping us around the house. I am SO thankful!! xoxox

Shortly after I posted my query for ideas Deb at Smitten Kitchen began a Freezer Friendly section. All of the recipes are fabulous for making ahead. Also, if you have a baby already, be sure to check out her baby food section, and the pictures of her utterly adorable son... oh those curls!

Jessika, from Life is Good, suggests stocking the freezer with homemade (or store bought) ravioli. Just make sure you bring some sauce along for the new mom too. She also had a terrific idea of freezing burritos filled with meat, beans, cheese, etc. Then all a new mom needs to do is heat up a ready made meal.

Joseph, from Joseph's Grainery,suggested Lentil & Brown Rice Burritos and a delicious looking Tortilla soup!

I loved Henna73's ideas of bring unbaked pies to a new mom. Nothing makes a house feel homier then the smell of a pie in the oven! She also suggests homemade energy bars, meatballs and sauce, unbaked, but prepared garlic bread and any hardy soup.

The always lovely Jacquelyn suggested stuffed shells, pastas, and pork enchiladas.
Thank you everyone for sharing these ideas!


Additional food suggestions to bring to a family with a new baby :
bagels/ cream cheese/ veggies/lox
ready made sandwiches
roasted veggies that are good hot or cold
hummus and cut up veggies
veggie risotto
healthy soups they can drink from a mug
sweet or savory muffins, scones, bisquits
sliced bagette, meats, sliced nice cheeses, pickles
Ready made salads with a bottle of dressing
Roasted chicken and potatoes
milk, oj and a few rolls of toilet paper

A lot of blogs I have read say that it is best to either just drop stuff off, or come in but don't really demand chatting.
Other ideas
Fix a plate of food for the mom and then clean up the kitchen.
Empty all the garbage bins on the house
Do a load of laundry (keeping in mind baby stuff has to be on hot with the special baby soap)
Sweep
Take out recycling
Clean the bathroom

I know this seems weird coming from a preggo lady and I hope know I am lucky enough to have family around to help me out, but I hope readers keep some of these ideas in mind for friends living far from family.

Any other advise or ideas?

Mussels - a la easy

Mussels are extremely easy to cook and totally delicious, as well as being healthy and very nutritious. (Seriously, they are pregnancy power packs!) High in protein, low in fat, rich with iron, manganese, phosphorous, selenium, and zinc. Best of all, they cook in a few minutes and take to all different sorts of sauces. It was easy to buy up a few pounds when they are under $5 a pound for locally grown mussels.

Some farm grown (and all wild) mussels will have "beards" growing out of the shell. These are the fibers that attach it to the rocks or ropes they are grown on. I like to pull them off before cooking. It takes a yank, but it is easier then eating around them.

Store mussels in the refridgerator in a strainer covered with a wet towel. They will die if left in the plastic bag and you don't want to eat or cook dead shellfish. Discard any shells that don't open after cooking. That means they were dead before cooking.

Also, I just learned the orange mussels are females and the white are males. Who knew! 

Mussel Basics (works for clams too!)
The basics of cooking mussels is to start with a flavor base, such as garlic, onions, tomatoes or celery and carrots. Chop any or all of these into small pieces and saute in a little oil. (Curry paste is another great base, for a Thai flavor.)
Then add mussels to the hot pan with 1/2 cup - 1 cup liquid. Cover the pan and simmer 5-8 minutes until all the mussels have opened. Pour into a large bowl and sprinkle with herbs. Serve with lots of crusty bread to mop up all the juices.

Generally a pound will fill 2 people, but I have a big eater in the house, so I got a pound and a half for us.

Sauce combos to try:
Beer, fennel, parsley, and tomatoes
White wine, garlic and lemon
Green curry paste and coconut milk, with lime juice and little brown sugar to balance flavors. Serve this one with jasmine rice.
White wine, onions, celery, carrots and cream. (Add cream last, after mussels have opened.)
White wine, tomatoes, fennel and saffron

How do you like your mussels??

French Onion Soup

Cooking is becoming harder and harder for me as I get closer to the end of my pregnancy. I think all my energy is going into fattening up the baby. When I am cooking now it is only things that require me to stand for less then 20 minutes and are pure comfort food.

Vegetables are a shockingly hard sell these days. My friend brought over a beautiful salad for dinner last week and I picked out the pears and candied walnuts to eat. All I can say is I hope by the time this boy joins us at the dinner table my love of vegetables will have returned. (And!! I hope he likes veggies too! What would I do with a kid who won't eat his vegetables!)

French Onion soup is a surprisingly fast meal, if (BIG IF) you caramelize the onions the day before. The night before I planned to make the soup I filled a large sauce pan with a pat of butter, 10 thinly sliced onions, and a sprinkle of salt. We left them on low over the stove from about 5 pm (while I cooked dinner) to 9pm (when we we closing down the kitchen for the night.) This may not sound low maintance, but whenever one of us would think about it we would walk by and give the onions a stir. In 4 hours over low, low heat the mountain on onions cooked down to about 2 cups of deliciously caramelized goodness. If you wanted to you could freeze this bag of onions to pull out as needed for sauces, soups, sandwiches, etc. Real caramelized onions are one of my favorite flavors.

Another way I simplify French Onion soup is I toast the bread and Swiss cheese seperately under the broiler. This means the soup can be served in any bowl, with no worries about pulling bubbling bowls of soup out of the oven.

French Onion Soup
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup flour
2 boxes beef broth, low sodium if can find it
2 cups of caramelized onions (starting with about 8-10 thinly sliced onions, cooked down)
1 sprig of thyme
a bay leaf
1/4 cup cream or dry sherry, or dark beer, or dry white wine, depending on your preference and what you have around. I really like it with the sherry
salt and pepper
1/2 a stale bagette sliced about 1 inch thick
1/2 cup of shredded Swiss Cheese

1. In a large sauce pan, melt butter over med-high heat. When melted stir in flour until a paste forms. Cook one minute, continuously stirring.
2. Pour in broth, starting with about a cup, stirring or whisking until the flour mixture is combined smoothly and you see no (or just a few lumps.)
3. Add onions, herbs and sherry, simmer for 20 minutes.
4. When soup has 5 minutes left to cook lay stale bread on a baking sheet. Sprinkle each slice with cheese. Broil or heat in the oven until melted.
5. Taste soup, add salt or pepper as needed. Remove herbs.
6. Spoon into bowls and float a couple cheese toasts on top. Serve immediately

If there are left overs I suggest storing the bread separately from the soup until ready to serve.
Dinner in under 30 minutes with about 10 minutes standing time :) This makes a big pot of soup, so you don't even have to cook dinner the next night!

Sorry about the lack of photos, our camera got lost in the shuffle, and is now recharging.