Thursday, January 28, 2010

Steamed Fish With Soy Sauce

Ingredients

2 Barramundi Fillets (about 340 g) or 1 Medium Whole Fish
4 Slices of Fresh Ginger, julienned
2 Stalks Scallions, chopped or julienned
1 Red Chili, julienned
Fresh Coriander, chopped
1 ½ Tbsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Chinese Cooking Wine (Shaoxing)
1 tsp Sesame Oil
3 Tbsp Peanut Oil

Method

Combine the fish with ginger, scallions, chili, soy sauce, wine, and sesame oil and steam on a high heat until they are cooked.

Then heat the peanut oil on a moderate to high heat. Carefully, pour the hot oil over the cooked fish. Top the fish with coriander leaves and serve immediately.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Honeyed Mango and Chicken Saute with Toasted Cashews

Ingredients
3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup salted cashews
3 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1/4 cup)
1 medium mango, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
Sesame Rice, recipe follows
Directions
In a large bowl or re-sealable plastic bag, mix together 2 tablespoons of the oil, the soy sauce, and the honey until well combined. Add chicken and toss to coat well. Place in refrigerator to marinate at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan over medium heat and add nuts. Toast nuts, shaking pan a few times, until nice toasted, about 2 minutes. Set aside to cool. (Can be made up to 3 days in advance.)

When chicken is ready, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add chicken and marinade juices and cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is browned on all sides and cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in mango and cashews and cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Taste and adjust seasoning, as necessary. Serve immediately over Sesame Rice.

Toasted Sesame Rice:
3 1/2 cups water
2 cups long-grain rice
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup white sesame seeds
Bring water to a boil. Add rice and salt and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until rice is tender and water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, to finish cooking, about 5 minutes. Stir in oil and sesame seeds and serve.

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Ease of preparation: easy

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Rosemary Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly chopped rosemary leaves, plus 4 sprigs rosemary, with hard woody stems
5 large garlic cloves, 2 cloves minced, 3 cloves smashed
2 pork tenderloins, about 1-pound each
4 slices maple bacon
Directions
In a small bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, fresh ground black pepper, chopped rosemary, and minced garlic and mix well. Rub the mustard mixture over the surface of the tenderloins and wrap in plastic wrap. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Place rosemary sprigs and smashed garlic in the center of a roasting pan. Remove the plastic wrap from the tenderloins and top each with 2 slices of maple bacon. Tie with kitchen twine to secure bacon strips.

Place the roasting pan in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer, inserted in the tenderloins, registers 160 degrees F. Remove from oven when desired doneness is reached and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes on a cutting board. Remove kitchen twine, slice and serve with your favorite sides. Garnish with the rosemary sprigs and garlic. Enjoy!

Nutty Greens with Bacon and Blue Cheese

Ingredients
Kosher salt
1 pound haricots verts, trimmed
3 slices bacon
4 ounces blue cheese, cut into small chunks (recommended: Shropshire)
1 1/2 cups toasted whole pecans, coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the haricots verts and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove the beans from the water and immediately place in a bowl of ice water. Remove the haricots verts from the ice water and set aside in a medium bowl.

In a large saute pan, over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon and place on paper towels. Add the beans to the bacon drippings and cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the blue cheese and toss just until it starts to melt. Break the cooked bacon into bite-size pieces and add to pan. Finish by stirring in the toasted chopped pecans. Season with the freshly ground black pepper and just a tiny pinch of kosher salt. Serve immediately.

Mashed Potatoes with Bacon and Cheddar

Description
Reminiscent of twice baked potatoes, this take on mashed potatoes includes bacon and cheddar.

Ingredients
5 lb russet potatoes
10 sli bacon
8 oz cream cheese
1⁄2 c unsalted butter, melted
1 c sour cream
1⁄4 c chives, minced
2 1⁄2 c cheddar cheese, grated
2 t kosher salt
1⁄2 t pepper
Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes, and cut into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large saucepan, and add enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender and easily pierced with a paring knife, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain; return to pan, cover, and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon, and cook until crisp and browned, turning once. Transfer to paper towels to drain; let cool, and crumble into pieces.

3. Using a fork, mash the potatoes in pan until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, and sour cream, and stir until combined and smooth. Add the onion and any onion juice, chives, 2 cups cheese, half the bacon, salt, and pepper. Stir until well combined.

4. Transfer to a buttered 3-quart baking dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake until top is slightly golden and potatoes are heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; garnish with remaining bacon. Serve immediately.

Jalapeno Bacon Stuffed Potatoes

Total Recipe cost: $4.82
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Cost per serving: $0.80
Prep time: 10 min. Cook time: 90 min. Total: 100 min. (mostly passive cooking time)

INGREDIENTS
3 medium to large russet potatoes
1 cup cheddar chees
6 oz. applewood smoked bacon
3 small jalapenos
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk
1 Tbsp fresh cracked pepper to taste
salt and pepper


STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Wash the potatoes well and prick with a fork (I do this along the line where I will be cutting them in half later so as not to weaken the skin "shell"). Bake the potatoes for approximately 1 hr. You can check them at 45 minutes, they should be slightly soft when squeezed.

STEP 2: While the potatoes are cooking, cut the bacon into "bit" sized pieces and cook in a skillet over medium/high heat until they are crispy. Spoon them out of the grease and drain on folded up paper towels. Set the bacon aside.

STEP 3: Slice the jalapenos down the center and scoop out the spine and seeds. If you like it extra extra hot, leave some seeds in. Chop the remaining jalapeno pieces into small bits and set aside.

STEP 4: When the potatoes are done cooking, remove them from the oven and turn the oven down to 350 degrees. Let them cool for ten minutes or so and carefully slice them in half length wise. Using a sharp spoon, scoop out the flesh of the potatoes into a bowl leaving some still attached to the skin to give it support.

STEP 5: Add the butter, milk, salt and pepper to the scooped out potato flesh and mash it up good until it is light and fluffy. Stir in the bacon pieces, jalapenos and 2/3 cup cheddar cheese.

STEP 5: Refill the potato shells with the mashed mixture. Top each with a little bit more cheddar (about 1/3 cup total). Place the stuffed potatoes on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until the cheese has melted and browned slightly (about 30 minutes).

NOTE: Use as much or as little jalapeno as you like. My three peppers were very small and the mixture was still extremely spicy. Another option would be to use pickled jalapenos which tend to be slightly less spicy (and you may have some left over from your Pork and Pineapple Burritos).

Six ounces of bacon is about half of a regular sized package. You can freeze the unused portion and keep it handy for making more bacon bits or cook off all of it and freeze the unused cooked bacon bits!

If you are going to freeze your potatoes, refrigerate them first and then once they have chilled wrap them tightly in foil or plastic wrap, place them in a zipper freezer bag and date and label them. Frozen potatoes are also great to bring for lunch because they will stay cool (and safe) for hours until you are ready to reheat and eat!

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

1/2 cup finely grated parmesan (1 1/2 ounces)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 large boiling potatoes (3 1/2 pounds), peeled and quartered lengthwise
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°F.Sprinkle cheese on wax paper or foil and dry 1 hour. Transfer to a large sealable bag with flour, salt, and pepper, then shake to mix.

Rinse potatoes and drain in a colander. Add potatoes to flour mixture, tightly sealing bag, and shake to coat well.

Pour butter into a large shallow baking pan. Lift potatoes from bag and arrange in 1 layer in butter.

Roast in middle or lower third of oven, turning twice, until browned and crisp, about 1 1/4 hours.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Peanut butter blossoms

Ingredients:

48 HERSHEY'S KISSES
1/2 cup butter flavored shortening
3/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Remove wrappers from chocolate kisses; place in freezer overnight.(I forgot to freeze them and they came out just fine!)

2. Heat oven to 375°F. Beat shortening and peanut butter in large bowl until well blended. Add 1/3 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar; beat until fluffy. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into peanut butter mixture.

3. Shape dough into 48 balls (about 1-inch each). Roll in granulated sugar; place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 3 to 4 minutes. Press frozen peanut butter filled chocolate piece into center of each cookie; cookie will crack around edges. Remove cookies from sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. 48 cookies.

Curried Couscous With Roasted Butternut Squash and Spinach

1/2 butternut squash
2 TBSP plus 2 tsp olive oil, divided
1 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
salt
1 1/4 cup instant whole wheat couscous
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 TBSP curry powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup orange juice
2 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped
2 green onions, green part only, thinly sliced
2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil. Peel butternut squash and scoop out seeds. We'll only be using half of the squash so if you're not going to roast the entire squash, cover other half with plastic wrap and refrigerate for further use. Dice squash into 3/4" cubes. Place squash into a bowl and drizzle with two tsp of olive oil. Stir to coat. Season with salt, cumin and cayenne pepper. Stir again to evenly coat squash with spices. Place squash on prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Roast in oven for 30-35 minutes, until fork tender, stirring after 15 minutes so squash cooks and browns evenly. Remove from oven and set aside.

Stir the couscous, cranberries, salt, sugar and curry powder together in a heat-proof bowl. Add boiling water and orange juice. Stir well and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside for five minutes then uncover and fluff with fork. Stir in the remainder of the olive oil, lemon juice, spinach, green onions and pecans. Gently fold in butternut squash. Serve warm, cold or at room temperature.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Sticky Lemon Chicken

Ingredients
1 large chicken jointed into 8-10 pieces or chicken thighs or pieces or…
Sea salt and black pepper
3-4 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, halved horizontally
Few thyme sprigs
Splash of sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
3 tbsp honey
1 lemon, finely sliced
Bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped

Cooking Method:
1) Season the chicken with salt and pepper and heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan. Brown the chicken pieces (in batches if necessary) over a high heat with the garlic and thyme for 2–3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Return all the chicken to the pan, add the vinegar and bubble until reduced by half. Drizzle over the soy sauce and honey and shake the pan to mix.
2) Pour in a 1/2 cup of hot water and add the lemon slices. Let the liquid bubble and reduce down until syrupy, which will take about 10 minutes or so. By now the chicken should be cooked through.
3) Transfer the chicken to a platter and sprinkle over the chopped parsley.
4) Serve with mashed potato (boil potatoes, add milk and butter and mash together, add cooked peas and carrots and some thyme).

Spicy Garlic Green Beans

Ingredients:
1 lb green beans, ends trimmed
2 tbsp olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
Pink Himalayan Finishing Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook until just tender but they still have a bite. Drain and shock in an ice bath.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute as they release their flavor. Add the green beans to the skillet and combine while heating the green beans again. Remove and finish with a sprinkle of finishing salt and pepper if desired.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Potato and Leek Soup

From Pinch My Salt

3 tablespoons butter
3 leeks, thinly sliced*
1 medium or large onion, chopped
6 – 8 russet potatoes, thinly sliced**
3 1/2 cups chicken broth (or enough to barely cover potatoes)
1 cup heavy cream
salt to taste
fresh ground black pepper to taste

1) Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat then add onions and leeks. Cook, stirring, until onions are limp and just slightly brown.
2) Add sliced potatoes to saucepan then pour in enough chicken broth to just barely cover the potatoes. Continue cooking over medium heat until potatoes are tender. Using a potato masher, mash and stir potatoes until desired consistency is reached. As you mash the potatoes and the soup thickens, turn down heat and stir frequently with a large spoon to prevent scorching on the bottom.
3) Add one cup of heavy cream (or more if you desire) and salt and black pepper to taste. Cook 15 minutes more over low heat, stirring frequently, then remove from heat and serve.

Notes: *Make sure to clean leeks thoroughly and slice only the white and light green part of the leeks. **You don’t need to peel the potatoes as the peels add to the rustic texture of the soup. But make sure to scrub them thoroughly and remove any obvious blemishes before slicing. Although we always make it with chicken broth, this can easily become a vegetarian soup by simply using vegetable broth instead.