Entries categorized as ‘Entree’

Roasted Vegetable Salad with Fried Egg and Shaved Parmesan

February 22, 2010 · 36 Comments

It was really nice seeing my parents this weekend in Houston, I had felt a little homesick since finding out that my mother has decided to retire and will move back to China in the next couple of years.  Though it is hard to imagine life without my mother right next to me, we all have to grow up sometime…right? I had quite the adverse reaction when I first heard the news, which she conveniently told me during my lunch break at work of all places (that’s how my mom rolls, abruptly).

With tears (and snot, lots of it) streaming down my face, my bosses  thought something horrible had happened.  Which at the time, it really did feel terrible.  I seldom cry in front of anyone, but because the news was completely unforeseen, I felt as if someone punched me in the stomach and knocked the wind out of me.  I know it sounds cliche, but my mother is one of my very best friends.  I love her to pieces, even when she has her what I’d like to call her “crazy asian mom moments”,  it is so hard to imagine life without her being right beside me.  She has always been my rock and the older I become, the more I come to understand (and appreciate) the difficulties of being a good mother.

But I understand this is something she has to do and I completely respect her decision.  Sooner or later this was going to happen and maybe this reality check was exactly what I needed to push me to work harder than ever before.  I appreciate both of my parents for moving to the United States to provide me with a better future and can’t even begin to wrap my brain around the numerous sacrifices they must have made to ensure that their child will have a better life and future than they did.

Though I have picked a career route that my parents may not deem to be “practical” the more I come to think about it, the happier I am with my decision. I couldn’t possibly imagine myself doing anything else.  Food has always been my passion, for many reasons which I will save for another time.  I had a friend ask me this weekend “So what is the purpose of your blog?  What do you think will come from it?”  The reason why I spend so much time on each post is because I know my efforts will be appreciated, sometimes in the most unexpected ways.  My purpose is to solely provide a place for everyone to enjoy, whether you use my recipes is not my main concern, but the fact that this place provides you a momentary (and hopefully visually appealing) break from this busy hectic schedule we call life.

I’ve always appreciated the importance of art and music for this very reason — it is able to provide us with a form of escape even on our crappiest days.  Whether its blasting your favorite love song that tugs at your heart strings or looking at an awe inspiring painting that brings you to a different world, ultimately it provides us with happiness that otherwise would be lost.  So to my dear readers, I thank you guys for reading/looking at my blog, you all are the inspiration for why I started to write this blog and you guys continue to be my drive to keep this bad boy going.  I think happiness is best enjoyed when it is shared, don’t you? :)

I would also like to thank Eggland’s Best for providing the eggs for this dish.  When I went home this weekend, I found out my mother uses your eggs as well!  Anyways, even before I volunteered to be a tastemaker for their product, I have always bought their eggs.  Their eggs are not only lower in cholesterol than your average egg but somehow they magically pack all of these healthy vitamins along with it too!  Because they feed their hens with all natural and all vegetarian feed and they never use antibiotics or hormones, this ensures that the quality of the egg is always fantastic.  So thank you Eggland’s Best for providing me with a carton of your awesome and delicious eggs!

For this salad, I decided to roast some vegetables and topped it off with a fried egg and freshly shaved Parmasean.  I always fry my egg over easy, but it is important that you always use fresh eggs if you are going to cook them this way.  I really love the way the runny yolk pairs with the cheese and field greens and nothing beats the flavor of a roasted red bell pepper.

To roast a red bell pepper it is quite easy.    You can either broil all four sides in your oven or blacken them on a skillet as I have shown above.  Once you’ve browned all four sides, place it in a bowl and cover with saran wrap.  This will help you remove the outer skin of the pepper easiest.  Once the pepper cools, simply peel off the outer skin and discard the stem and seeds.

Ingredients for Roasted Vegetable Salad with Fried Egg and Shaved Parmesan:

(serves 2)

  • 1 Portobello Mushroom, stem removed
  • 1/2 lb Asparagus, ends trimmed off (about 1″)
  • 1 Red Bell Pepper, roasted (see instructions above) and cut into strips
  • 1 Tomato, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup Mixed Field Greens
  • 1 cup Arugula
  • 1/2 cup Spinach
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence, or Basil (dried)
  • 1 teaspoon oil or cooking spray
  • 2 Eggs
  • Parmesan cheese, shaved for garnish
  • salt pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400F.

In a large baking sheet coat the asparagus with the 2 tablespoons of oil along with the garlic and dried herbs.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until tender.

Heat an iron skillet on medium high heat and spray with cooking spray.  Sear the portobello mushroom, about 3 min on each side and place in the oven with the asparagus until tender.

Meanwhile, mix your greens in a large bowl with salt and pepper and place the tomato slices on each plate.  Heat a medium saucepan on medium heat with 1 teaspoon of oil or cooking spray.  Cooking one egg at a time, crack an egg onto the pan once heated.  Cook until the whites are almost solidified, about 3-4 minutes, and carefully flip the egg over using either a spatula or the magic flick of the wrist (I do not recommend using magic if you have no tried it before) and finish cooking on the other side, about 1 minute.  Repeat with other egg.

Take your roasted vegetables from the oven and cut the asparagus 3 ways and thinly slice the portobellos and bell pepper.  Place vegetables over the greens and top with the fried egg.  Garnish with the shaved Parmesan, placing as much as you prefer.  Serve immediately.

Price of Items:

  • 1 Portobello Mushroom – $1.50
  • 1/2 lb Asparagus – $ 1.50
  • 1 Red Bell Pepper – $1.00
  • 1 Tomato – $0.33
  • 3 cup Mixed Greens – $1.10
  • 2 Eggs – $0.67
  • Parmesan cheese – $0.50

Cost Per Serving: $3.30

Categories: Easy · Entree · Healthy · Low Fat · Salads
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Warm Medjool Dates Stuffed with Goat Cheese served with a Strawberry Cucumber Salsa

February 17, 2010 · 46 Comments

It is crazy how fast time is flying by this year, in a blink of an eye February is already half way gone.  In a month I will be flying to Shanghai with Collin, where he will meet my grandmother for the very first time.

My mother has been sending her photos of us which my grandmother keeps next to her chair so she is able to look through them everyday.  As much as I’d like to see my grandmother every year, it has been over 5 years since I’ve last seen her.  Since living in America I have only visited twice and seen her a total of three times.

She is the only grandparent I have left, being 92 this will probably be one of the last times I see her.  It makes me sad that I was never able to spend as much time with my grandparents as I would’ve liked.  Though I know all of them loved me dearly, a big part of me feels guilty because I was never able to return the favor.  I try to send cards, art projects and pictures whenever possible but a lot of times I feel it’s just not enough.

I attribute my constant happy attitude to the overwhelming amount of love that I received when I lived in China.  My parents would tell me all my grandparents would almost argue over who would hold me next, and being the youngest one of the family it was natural for everyone to spoil fat little round me.  Yet I don’t remember any of it.

Now that I’m older, and with only one grandparent remaining, I’ve come to realize that this trip will probably be the most important one of my life.  I left when I was a 2 year old baby and this time I am coming back as a young adult.  I have so many questions that I want to ask my grandmother, about our family history, about the life lessons she’s learned, and perhaps any embarrassing stories about my mother that I later can pull out and chuckle at her about. :)

But most importantly I want to give my grandmother a good impression, to show her that I am confident in myself and my abilities as well as introducing her to the love of my life.  She has adored Collin since the first day she laid eyes on his picture, telling my mom that “He is a Hollywood movie star.”  I’ve been racking my brain as to what I should buy her from here that she could enjoy in China, but nothing seems good enough.  What could a 92 year old woman need?

So with one month remaining before the big trip, I am beginning to freak out a little bit.  It starts with the little things, like not being 100 lbs like all the other girls in Shanghai to bigger things like What can I do to express all of my gratitude and love to my grandmother?  Especially with my mother not coming with us, I even question the level of my Chinese.  What if my Chinese is so shoddy that they can’t understand me?

I push these pestering questions to the back of my head and try not to worry about things that I am unable to control or simply just too minuscule to matter.  I should just concentrate on the present.

And presently I am enjoying eating healthy this year.  My meat consumption has been cut down tremendously, however because I have a pretty active workout regimen at times I feel myself getting tired.  Do any vegetarians out there have any tips as to what good foods will provide energy and give me the protein my body needs after an intense workout?

I found this salad to be pretty satisfying, I love the combination of sweet and savory so this was the perfect combination for me.  I found these beautiful Medjool dates at a local Mediterranean market and found an interesting recipe the other week in Nancy Oakes’ Boulevard cookbook.  Warm Medjool Dates Stuffed with Goat Cheese, the title itself made my mouth water.


I made the dates by her recipe and made the salsa and salad on my own.  If you’re interested in obtaining the original recipe just shoot me an e-mail and I can send it to you.  I thought the strawberries meshed well with the dates while the cucumbers and pecans added a nice crunch.  I brightened the salsa with some fresh lemon juice that paired well with the goat cheese.  Though a peculiar combination, the flavors were quite delightful :)

For my greens I chose Mesclun, Spinach and Arugula, all are pretty mild in flavor except for Arugula, which packs a peppery earthy kick that I really enjoy.

To toast the pecans, preheat the oven to 350F.  Put the pecans in a small baking pan and toast for 8 to 10 minutes or until slightly browned.  Remove from the oven and place in a bowl, set aside.

Ingredients for Warm Medjool Dates Stuffed with Goat Cheese:

(serves 2)

  • 8 Medjool Dates
  • 2 ounces of goat cheese
  • 1 cup Mesclun
  • 1 cup Arugula
  • 1 cup Spinach

From Boulevard:

For the Dates – Make a lengthwise slit in each date and pull out the pit.  Roughly divide the goat  cheese into 12 pieces, stuff into the dates, and press them closed.  Place, seam side down, on a small sheet pan or baking pan.  Set aside or refrigerate until ready to serve.  Just before serving, heat the dates in a 350F oven for 1 to 2 minutes, or until warm.  (I placed mine in for 7 minutes until the goat cheese was browned)


Ingredients for Strawberry Cucumber Salsa:

  • 4 strawberries, husked and small diced
  • 1/8 cup celery, small diced
  • 1/8 cup cucumber, small diced
  • 1/4 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • salt to taste

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and taste with salt.  Set aside until ready to serve.

To serve the salad, toss the mixed greens in a little lemon juice if desired, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place in a mound on a plate and place the salsa ontop.  Place 4 warm dates on each plate and serve immediately.

Starting from this post, I will be listing the price per serving of each meal I make.  This wonderful idea actually came from my friend Karen, who is a tax analyst by the way (this made me chuckle) and I thought it was a great way to not only show people how inexpensive it can be eat well but it can finally convince all my friends that cooking at home is SO MUCH CHEAPER than eating out all the time (and much more cleaner might I add)!

Price of items:

  • 4 strawberries – $1.00
  • 1/4 cup pecans – $0.75
  • 1 celery stalk – $0.15
  • 1/4 cucumber – $0.25
  • 8 medjool dates – $1.50
  • 2 ounces goat cheese – $2.00
  • 3 cups Mixed Greens – $1.10

Cost per Serving: $3.38

WOW!!! In the words of Borat “VERRRY NIIICE, I LIIIKE” Thank you Karen for the fabulous idea.  I think this way I am actually able to show readers and friends how inexpensive it is to cook at home as well as eating healthy. My biggest tip would be to look through your local grocery ads to see what produce is on sale and in season, that way you get optimal quality ingredients at a good price.

I will be heading off to Houston this weekend to visit my parents as well as to pick up our visas for China (yipee!!).  Hope everyone has a great week and I’ll be back on Monday hopefully with fun food adventures in Houston.

Categories: Appetizer · Easy · Entree · Healthy · Salads · Vegetarian
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Cream of Potato Soup with Jalapeno Oil & Neiman Marcus Popovers with Fresh Strawberry Butter

February 12, 2010 · 29 Comments

You guys will not believe the weather we are having in Dallas.  For the 17 years I’ve lived in Texas I have never seen this much snow, a record breaking 12.5 inches of snow in a 24 hour period.  INSANE!!  We had a transformer blow out last night and the power went dead, thankfully we were able to seek shelther at Collin’s parents.  Thank goodness for family :)

We woke up early this morning and built an 8 foot snow man!  Actually it was more Collin who built the entire 8 foot body and I sculpted the face :) .  I was off taking pictures and I turned around and what do I see?  Collin rolling a gigantic snow ball around the front yard that sat almost as tall as my shoulders… I was concerned as how he was going to get the midsection on there, which weighed at least 200 lbs.  Thankfully with a family full of big Polacks (sp?), Collin and his dad moved it on there just fine.

It’s been years since I’ve built a snow man, and never one of such massive proportions (Which I have my intense fiance to thank for that)! :) On our way back to our house this morning we saw streets decorated with all different types of snowmen of all shapes and sizes, it was truly adorable.

With weather like this I felt nothing could be better than warm bread and soup.  This classic cream of potato soup recipe can be dressed up in several different ways.  You can add bacon or sour cream, or perhaps some smoked chicken and cheddar cheese?  I decided to add some heat and drizzled it with some Jalapeno oil to give the soup an extra kick!

The popovers are to die for.  I had my first popover experience when Collin’s father took us out for dinner over the holidays and the restaurant had served them as starters.  They were warm and had a crunchy outside but a warm and chewy inside.  The recipe I am using is Neiman Marcus’, they suggest using a their popover pan, which I recommend using if you have it, but if not you can use a muffin pan.

Ingredients for Cream of Potato Soup with Jalapeno Oil:

(serves 4)

  • 8 medium sized potatoes, cleaned peeled and cut into 1 1/2″ pieces
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 jalapeno, top discarded and thinly sliced
  • 2 small leeks, white part only, washed and finely chopped
  • 4 shallots, finely chopped
  • 1 medium white onion, finely chopped
  • 2 carrots, washed, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 celery washed and finely chopped
  • 4 cups of chicken broth or water
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper
  • salt pepper to taste

Heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat until the butter starts to foam.  Add the leeks, celery, carrots, onion and shallots along with some salt and cook over gently heat for 5-6 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.  Add the stock and potatoes, bring back to the boil, then lower the temperature to a simmer and cook slowly for 10 minutes.  Puree the soup in batches in a blender.  If you’d like you can pour the soup through a metal sieve.  Heat the pureed mixture and cream in a pan, check for seasoning and taste with salt and pepper.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat until oil slightly smokes.  Add the sliced jalapeno and allow to sautee until oil is fragrant and jalapenos are softened, about 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and pour oil mixture through sieve.  Set jalapenos aside for garnish.Divide the soup among four bowls and add a generous dash of black pepper.  Drizzle with jalapeno oil and add jalapeno slices.  You can also serve this soup with some crostinis as I have.  You simply slice a baguette into 1″ pieces and brush with a butter mixture.

Ingredients for Crostini Butter mixture:

(for about 12 crostinis)

  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 tablespoon parsley, minced

Mix ingredients together in bowl and brush onto sliced crostinis.  Bake at 350F for 10 minutes or until bread is golden brown.

“The key to making great popovers is having the eggs and milk warm before mixing.  It is also important to let the batter sit for an hour before baking it.  Popovers do not freeze well, and pre-made batter has a tendency not to work properly the next day.”

Ingredients for Neiman Marcus Popovers:

(about 2 dozen popovers)

  • 3 1/2 cups milk
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 5 large eggs, at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 450F.

Place the milk in a bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes, or until warm to the touch.  Sift the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a large mixing bowl.  Crack the eggs into the work bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until foamy and pale in color.  Turn down the mixer to low and add the warm milk.  Gradually add the flour mixture and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Turn the machine off and let the batter rest for 1 hour at room temperature.

Spray a popover tin or muffin pan generously with nonstick spray.  Fill the popover cups almost to the top with the batter and place the popover tin on a cookie sheet.  (If you are using a muffin pan, fill every other hole because the bread will puff up when baking).  Transfer to the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Turn down the oven temperature to 375F and bake for 30 to 35 minutes longer, until the popovers are a deep golden brown on the outside and airy on the inside.  Turn out the popovers and serve hot with strawberry butter.

For Neiman Marcus’ recipe they used strawberry preserves, I actually used fresh strawberries and 1 tablespoon of agave syrup.  I have cut down the quantity of butter so the following recipe makes about 1/4 cup of strawberry butter.

Ingredients for Fresh Strawberry Butter:

  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 cup good-quality strawberry preserves (I used 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, chopped)
  • 1 tablespoon of agave syrup (I added this)

Place the butter in a bowl with minced strawberries and syrup.  Beat on high until lught and fluffy.  To serve, spoon or pipe the flavored butter into a plate or bowl.

If you have leftover strawberry butter it goes great on toast or any type of bread you may have lying around.  It am sure it is great with preserves, but the butter is SO fragrant when I made it with fresh strawberries, I recommend that everyone tries this recipe.  It is so ADDICTING!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend.  I am off to ice a cake for a special someones birthday that is coming up!  :)   Stay tune on Monday for a very special birthday dedication post for a very special lady!  In the meantime, everyone stay warm eat lots and be merry!!!

p.s.

Our 8 foot snowman :)

Categories: Easy · Entree · French · Fusion · Soup
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Epic Indian Feast

February 10, 2010 · 44 Comments

One of the many beauties in life is friendship, we are able to learn so much from each other when we open our hearts and our homes.  I would like to dedicate this meal to one of Collin and I’s dearest friend, Bijeta Chakraborty! She along with Kumar, Aditya and Sanjay lived in Dallas for a year for an engingeering development program with Collin at Texas Instruments.  Back then Collin and I were living out in Wylie,TX in our trailer (I will reserve that story for another day), and seeing that #1 I lived in a trailer, therefore many friends were hesitant to come over and “hang out” and #2 I lived all the way out in Wylie,TX which to many people who live in the city, is in the middle of no where.  It was lonely out there, it literally was just me, Collin and the cows. (If only I had known you Alta back then!)

Then one day Collin told me a few of his coworkers had invited us over Saturday for dinner who recently moved here from India. My eyes instantly lit up, I have never had a home cooked Indian meal before — my tummy could hardly wait.  That week the days honestly seem to creep by, I almost felt weary with (Indian food) craving exhaustion but Saturday FINALLY arrived.  I remembered specifically wearing loose fitting pants that night because I had my game face on and I was ready to CHOW DOWN.  I love Indian food for several reasons: the COLORS — the greens, yellows, reds, and the beautiful smells of the SPICES, it’s as if I could just eat forever and ever.  But the best reason that makes Indian food not only fun to eat, but simply an art,  is the beauty of eating the various flavors on your plate using your hands.  I don’t know why Indian food tastes better when you use your hands but I highly recommend that everyone tries it.

Even before arriving at Bijeta’s door, you could already smell the magic brewing half way down the hallway.  And let me tell you what, the food that night was magical indeed — the crispy potato samosas, curried cauliflower, fried fish curry, chicken curry, paneer (from scratch), chutneys, yogurt, perfectly cooked basmati rice, and ending with a deliciously fragrant kheer.  By the time I was done I could hardly breathe,  but boy was I one happy camper! It was nice to experience a part of their culture through food, it’s definitely one of my favorite ways of learning from people of different backgrounds.  Though our native languages may be different, and at times communication can be hard — food will always be universal, a common ground that all cultures share and understand.

It was nice to learn (and taste) from Bijeta, Aditya and Sanjay, we exchanged stories of our families, our backgrounds, and even battled over a few games of Wii Sports.  By the time we were leaving, I felt as if they’ve been my friends for many years — and for the rest of the time they lived in Dallas we hung out with them often.  We had more dinner get togethers, a music concert, and even grabbed some brewskies to check out to the “American bar scene”.  When it was time for them to leave both Collin and I were really sad to see them go, but happy that we’ve made lifelong friends.  Since then, Bijeta and I keep in touch via e-mail and now Facebook and recently she sent me this amazing Fish Gravy recipe.

I told her I would have to dedicate a post to her featuring her amazing Fish Gravy (Hi Bijeta!!) and made an Indian feast in her honor as well as Aditya and Sanjay’s as well.  Though we are thousands of miles apart, while eating this meal both me and Collin decided you guys were there in spirit :) This was also my first attempt in cooking Indian food – there were so many various spices that my head almost started to spin!  But a fun adventure nonetheless and the end result was a glorious complexity of flavors.

Ingredients for Fried Tilapia with Tomato and Onion Gravy:

(serves 4)

  • 4 Tilapia fillets
  • 1/2 white onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 3 tablespoons fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
  • 4 green Serrano chiles, tops discarded
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 tablespoon Tumeric powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon Coriander powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon Mustard Paste
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon corn flour

  • 1/2 tablespoon Cumin seeds
  • 1/2 tablespoon Onion seeds
  • 1/2 tablespoon Mustard seeds
  • 1 Bay leaf
  • 3/4 cup of water

Make a smooth paste of the onion, ginger, chiles, lemon juice, tumeric and coriander powder, mustard paste, salt and cornflour in a food processor.  Place paste in a large bowl and marinate the fish pieces for 15-20 minutes. In a small or medium-sized saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil at medium high heat.  Sear the Tilapia on both sides, about 3 minutes on each and set aside on a plate.  Remember, you do not want to overfry the fish because it will be cooked further in the gravy mixture.  Next you will make the Tomato and Onion Gravy:

Tomato Gravy:

  • 2 medium-sized Roma tomatoes
  • 1/2 tablespoon Tumeric Powder
  • 1 tablespoon Coriander powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon red chili powder
  • salt to taste

Place ingredients into food processor and blend together.  Place in bowl and set aside.

Onion Gravy:

  • 2 medium-sized White onions
  • 1 tablespoon garlic and ginger paste
  • 1 tablespoon fresh Coriander leaves
  • 1 green serrano chile, top removed

Place ingredients into food processor and blend together.  Place in bowl and set aside.

In a large heavy bottomed pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil along with the Bay leaf and Cumin, Onion and Mustard seeds.  Add the onion gravy and fry until it becomes brownish in color.  Add the tomato gravy to the mixture and fry until the two gravies become thick and paste like.  If it becomes too dry add a little more oil.  Add 3/4 cup of water and put the fried fish in the gravy and cook, covered for 10-15 minutes.  Add salt to taste.  Remove from heat and serve with Basmati rice.

For the Indian Feast I made the following items, I am not going to post all of them for the recipes are quite lenghthy, however if any of these sound interesting to you, shoot me an e mail and I will be more than happy to send them to you :) .

  • Mint Sambol (Srilankan)
  • Fresh Coriander Peanut Chutney (Indian)
  • Spiced Cabbage Salad (Srilankan)
  • Cauliflower Dum (North Indian)
  • Katchhi Village Potato Curry (North Indian)

I found all of these recipes above from Mangoes & Curry Leaves – Culinary Travels through the Great Subcontinent by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid.  A very wonderful book indeed, with captivating pictures of not only food but the regions from where they are from.

Ingredients for Spiced Cabbage Salad:

  • 4 cups shredded green or Savoy cabbage
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped shallots
  • 2 to 3 green cayenne chiles, seeded and minced
  • 6 fresh or frozen curry leaves
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons fresh or frozen grated coconut

Wash the cabbage, then put it in a medium heavy pot with the shallots, chiles, curry leaves, salt, turmeric, and cumin.  Place over medium-high heat, cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.  Give the pot a quick stir, cover again, and lower the heat to medium.  Simmer until the cabbage is cooked and tender, about another 10 minutes, depending on your cabbage and how finely it is shredded.  Add the lime juice and coconut and stir to mix well.  Let cook for a minute or two, uncovered, then turn out and serve, mounded on a plate.

Ingredients for Katchhi Village Potato Curry:

  • 2 tablespoons raw sesame oil, vegetable oil, or ghee
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic or garlic mashed to a paste
  • 1 pound potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 cup finely chopped shallots
  • 1 cup chopped tomatoes
  • 2 green cayenne chiles, seeded and chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon round cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Heat the oil or ghee in a wok or wide pot over medium heat.  Add 1 teaspoon garlic and cook for a minute, then add the potatoes and shallots.  Stir-fry for several minutes, until the shallots have softened, pressing the potato cubes against the surface of the hot pan, then add the chopped tomatoes and chiles and stir to blend.

Add the turmeric, mustard seeds, cumin, coriander, and the remianing 1 teaspoon garlic and stir.  Add the water and salt and bring to a boil.  Cover tightly and simmer vigorously until the potatoes are just tender, about 20 minutes.  Check after 10 or 12 minutes to make sure there is enough liquid and that nothing is sticking; add a little more water if necessary.

I deem my first Indian cooking adventure a success!  Next time I would like to cook with lentils and more vegetarian options, it’s great to have so many delicious vegetarian options in Indian food.  Indian food also seems to taste better the next day and even better the second — the flavors of the spices are slowly drawn out by the oils creating a bolder flavor.  Bijeta, I thank you for your wonderful recipe!  It was Collin and I’s favorite dish, you were– right we loved it! Please send our love to Kumar, Aditya and Sanjay, we miss all of you dearly :) .

Let’s do some Food Art!

The End.

Categories: Entree · Fish · Indian · Vegetarian
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Portobello Mushroom Risotto with Poached Shrimp

February 8, 2010 · 26 Comments

I went to the library this weekend and scooped up more cookbooks, and found an absolutely phenomenal cookbook called “The Food I Love” by Neil Perry.  The internationally renown chef provides detailed instructions and backgrounds on all the ingredients featured in this book.  One particular one that caught my eye was Risotto.  I have always heard the “wonders” of risotto yet have never tasted one that has tickled my fancy.  I’ve ordered it several times when eating out only to be disappointed time after time with the results, so I finally gave up.  In my mind risotto was a mushy, gummy, paste reminiscent to a goopy oatmeal, or an overly “soupy” concoction that reminded me of porridge — both very unappealing views on something that is suppose to be “magical.”

AND THEN I figured out why I frequently had these negative experiences with Risotto, the following passage is from “The Food I Love” –

” Risotto is one of those things that you can make at home better than most restaurants can.  Unfortunately, because of either staff restraints or cumstomer impatience, most restaurants and cafes seem hell bent on cooking the risotto first and then finishing it off when ordered.  It is very hard to achieve the right texture using that method.”

… then why do restaurants even offer it?  My bad stigma with risotto was instantly erased upon reading that passage, how did I know that the best bowl of risotto I’ve ever had would come right out of my kitchen?  The directions that Neil provides, though lengthy are very good instructions.  I chose to make a Portobello Mushroom Risotto with Poached Shrimp, I was going to poach my shrimp in butter but  I decided to skimp on the calories and just poached them in white wine and water.  For the stock I chose to use a dashi stock which paired really well with the shrimp and brought out the savory flavors of the mushrooms.

Ingredients for Portabello Mushroom Risotto:

(serves 2-3)

  • 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
  • 2 portabello mushrooms, cleaned and cut into 2 cm dice
  • 6 shrimp, cleaned and deveined
  • 5 cups of chicken stock or dashi stock
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine or sake
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmeasan, plus extra, to serve
  • 2 1/4 oz unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley or scallions
  • freshly ground pepper

Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large heavy-based frying pan.  First sautee half of the mushrooms and set aside.  Then heat more oil and add the onion, mushrooms, garlic and a little salt and sweat over low heat until soft.  Add the rice and cook, sitrring for about 3 minutes, or until the starch starts to come out of the rice.  The rice will start to stock and become opaque.  Add the wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until the wine is completely absorbed.  Add enough stock to cover the rice and simmer slowly, stirring occasionally.  As the rice absorbs the stock, add more to keep it moist, but don’t drown the rice.  If you do, the risotto will lose some of its unctuous quality, but if it is too dry it will stick and retard the creaminess of the finished dish.

It is important to continue stirring at this early stage or the rice will sink to the bottom and stick.  After 15-18 minutes most of the stock should be used and the rice tender.  Meanwhile, poach the shrimp in a small saucepan with water and a little bit of white wine.  When the water is boiling, add the shrimp and cook for 4-5 minutes or until shrimp is fully cooked.  Remove and set aside.  At this point, add the reserved portabello mushrooms, along with the cheese, butter and any remaining stock.  Cover, remove from the heat and rest for 2 minutes.  Remove the lid, stir in the parsley and check the seasoning.  Spoon into four bowls and sprinkle with extra Parmesan and green scallions and place shrimp on top.  Serve immediately.

Variations

  • Using the same formula, you can cook a variety of yummy risottos.  Remember, in the most part, you would cook whatever needs cooking beforehand and simply add to the risotto at the end, at room temperature or warm, to heat up before serving.
  • Pork seems to work well in this dish: fold through sliced ham or prosciutto at the end, or add pancetta at the start with the onion.  Cooked sausage also goes well but make sure it’s a pure pork style with good texture and flavour.  Pan-fry or grill (broil) them, then slice.  Add at the end with some fresh herbs.
  • Of course, all manner of vegetables work well…sliced cooked green beans, spinach, nettle, raddichio that has been grilled (broiled), stewed red or yellow capsicums (peppers), braised red or green cabbage… the list goes on.

Were those not well written directions?  Neil Perry you are quite the culinary bad ass.  And the result?  The best risotto I’ve ever tasted!  I will take 80% of the credit and give 20% to Neil :) .  The rice wasn’t mushy, and maintained its “unctuous” quality — each kernel was flavorful with umami from the dashi broth and mushrooms.  If you are not a shrimp person, just leave it off.   To be honest, I placed it on there for a little protein but would’ve been just as good without.

Here is more food art!  This one is an easy one so I am sure you guys will guess what it is right away ;) Last night I realized that we have not seen the sun in Dallas much at all this winter, it has been mostly dreary, rainy cold and very unpleasant.  Perhaps that explains why my pounch is slowly growing, it is so hard to get the motivation to work out in weather like this!  The groundhog didn’t see his shadow so I guess it’s six more weeks of winter for us folks, I am praying for a lil sunshine this week, let’s see how it goes!

Categories: Easy · Entree · Healthy
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