Vegatable Pad Thai

Skill level:

Ingredients

For the Pad Thai

4 ounces brown rice noodles (you can get stir-fry type noodles or Pad Thai noodles and usually that's half a box)
1 zucchini 
1 red pepper half a yellow onion 
2 carrots 
2 tablespoons oil 
1 egg, beaten 
½ cup peanuts, chopped 
½ cup fresh herbs like cilantro, green onions, and basil, chopped 

For the Sauce

3 tablespoons fish sauce or vegan fish sauce substitute 
3 tablespoons brown sugar (or sub another sweetener) 
3 tablespoons chicken or vegetable broth 
2 tablespoons white vinegar 
1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon chili paste (sambal oelek)

Preparation

1. Place the uncooked noodles in a bowl of cold water to soak.
2. Spiralize the zucchini, red pepper, and onion into noodle-like shapes. Cut the carrots into very small pieces (or spiralize them, too, if they're big enough).
3. Shake up the sauce ingredients in a jar.
4. Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium high heat. Add the veggies - stir fry with tongs for 2-3 minutes or until tender-crisp (if they are not spiralized, they might need longer). Be careful not to overcook them - they'll get soggy and heavy. Transfer to a dish and set aside.
5. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan. Drain the noodles - they should be softened by now. Add the noodles to the hot pan and stir fry for a minute, using tongs to toss. Add the sauce and stir fry for another minute or two, until the sauce is starting to thicken and stick to the noodles. Push the noodles aside to make a little room for the egg - pour the beaten egg into the pan and let it sit for 30 seconds or so. Toss everything around with the tongs. The egg mixture will stick to the noodles and everything will start getting sticky.
6. Add in the vegetables, toss together, and remove from heat. Stir in the peanuts and herbs and serve immediately.

NOTES:  

There is a fine line between the mixture being Just Right Sticky and TOO Sticky. Usually too sticky happens when you cook it too long. 

Watch it carefully and once you see it starting to come together, remove from heat right away and toss with the veggies.

You might not need all the sauce in this recipe, but I (as a sauce lover) did use all of it! I would say just eyeball whatever amount looks good to you and save the rest to add in later if you want.

This recipe is gluten free other than the 1 tablespoon soy sauce, so just swap that out for something else if you need it to be gluten free

Recipe Source:

http://pinchofyum.com/rainbow-vegetarian-pad-thai-with-peanuts-and-basil

Herbed, Spiced & Candied Nuts

Mixed nuts seem to have greatly increased in price over the last couple of years.  The brand name nuts cost a premium, and lower cost nuts seem bland.  In general, within the entire price range of cocktail nuts, they are too stale, soft, salty, flat, flavorless, oily, or just have far too many peanuts in the mix.

I looked up several recipes online for making home roasted nuts, and many were tasty, but not quite what I was looking for.  Often, the recipes were a bit too spiced, overpowering the taste of the nut mixture.  After a bit of playing with recipes, I came up with this mixture which is subtly herbed, spiced, and lightly candied.

Making your own toasted nuts, with raw ingredients, is not as expensive as buying premium brand prepared nuts, but is a bit more costly than buying the generic brands.  Raw nuts are available in bulk at most premium and specialty grocers, and the quality, crispness, and flavor of homemade roasted nuts are superior than any of the store bought brands.  These are fantastic with a glass of wine, and are a pleasant treat for entertaining.

Cooking tip: If you do not like peanuts, substitute raw pumpkin seeds.

Herbed, Spiced & Candied Nuts

Skill level:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15-20 minutes

Makes: 3 cups

Ingredients

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary

1/2 teaspoon finely chopped thyme

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1 teaspoon water

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup of raw almonds

1 cup of raw cashews

1/2 cup of raw peanuts

1/2 cup of raw hazelnuts

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a bowl, combine the corn syrup, rosemary, thyme, cayenne, water, salt, and pepper.
   
   
3. Add the nuts to the candy spice mixture. Stir gently with a rubber scraper to coat all of the nuts.
   
   
   
   
4. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
5. Spread the coated nuts in roughly a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.
   
   
6. Place nuts into the preheated oven, and cook for 7 minutes.
7. Remove nuts from the oven.
8. Using a spatula, stir the nuts, as the nuts on the outside edges of the baking sheet tend to brown quickly.
   
   
9. Place the nuts back into the oven for another 8 to 13 minutes, until cashews have reached a deep golden brown color.
   
   
10. Remove nuts from the oven, and allow to cool completely.
11. When nuts are completely cooled, break nuts apart with your hands, and place in an air tight container.

Tabbouleh!

After some really heavy meals last week, I want to come into the holiday season eating healthy, and I will try to eat mainly vegan or vegetarian until Thanksgiving. While this may sound like a challenge, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Indian cuisines offer many flavorful vegetable dishes.  

I chop my parsley in a food processor. 

It only requires a few pulses to have

roughly chopped herbs.

Tonight I am serving Tabbouleh (Arabic: تبولة‎ tabūlah), which is a seasoned salad originating from the mountain regions of Syria, and Lebanon. It is popular throughout the Middle East, with countless regional variations. Traditionally, tabbouleh is made of herbs (usually parsley) and bulgar.  This variation uses barley.

Tabbouleh

Skill level: 

Ingredients

1/4 cup barley

1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion

2 Roma tomatoes

1 cup finely chopped cucumber

1 cup roughly chopped flat leaf parsley

fresh ground pepper (10 turns, or to taste)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/3 cup finely chopped mint

juice from 1/2 lemon

Preparation

1. Boil water, and add barley.  Boil for 20 to 25 minutes, until tender.

2. Drain barley, and rinse thoroughly with cold water.
3. combine all ingredients in a bowl, and stir to combine.

4. Chill for at least one hour to allow flavors to combine.

Tabbouleh, served with hummus garnished with olive oil and paprika, sliced and toasted pita bread, and olive orzo salad.

Home Made Marshmallows

Home made marshmallows, browned with a sugar torch,
and served on homemade graham cookies and chocolate gnash.

Marshmallow has it roots in antiquity, as far back as ancient Egypt.  The Egyptians made a sweet confection, mixed with nuts and honey, from the roots of the marshmallow plant.  The modern incarnation of the confection has a French origin, and uses gelatin to give it a springy and spongy form.

Last April, for Easter, I catered an event for 85 people.  I made five courses, plus two deserts, and three or four appetizers; needless to say, it was a big job.  One of the dessert choices was gourmet s'mores, with graham cookies, chocolate ganache, and home made marshmallow.  They were very tasty, if I do say so myself. 

Home made marshmallows are not difficult to make, and the flavor is so much better than any of the evil and slightly rubbery varieties found at the store.  Once you have had a home made marshmallow. You will never want a mass produced one again. I found this recipe at :

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/homemade-marshmallows-recipe/index.html 

Marshmallows 

Skill level: 

Ingredients

3 packages unflavored gelatin 

1 cup ice cold water, divided 

12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups 

1 cup light corn syrup 

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/4 cup powdered sugar 

1/4 cup cornstarch 

Nonstick spray 

Preparation 

1. Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by. 
2. In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat. 
3. Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows. 
4. Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use. 
5. When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight. 
6. Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. 

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks

Perfect Fluffy Rice; like the "Bend & Snap," it works every time!

I love rice, from the sticky Asian rices, to wild rice, to fluffy white rice. Unfortunately, I have always had difficulty with making fluffy white rice.  I usually buy rice in bulk, and when buying white rice, I love both the basmatti and jasmine varieties.  The directions always state to rinse the rice before cooking to remove the starches.  No matter mow many times I pre-rinse the rice, I seem to end up with a sticky overcooked mess. I really hate overcooked rice, and for years, it seemed that I was cursed when trying to make fluffy rice.

After some experimenting, I came up with this method of cooking fluffy, and slightly al dente, white rice. Like the bend and snap, it works every time!

Perfect Fluffy Rice

Skill level:

Ingredients

1 cup long grain white rice 

4 1/4 cups water

2 tablespoons butter, margarine, or olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Preparation

1. Put the rice, and 4 cups of water, and 1 teaspoon of salt  in a pan with a lid. 
2. Bring the rice and water to a boil.
3. When rice mix comes to a boil, reduce the heat (maintaining a rolling boil) and cook for 9 minutes.
4. Remove the rice from heat.  (The water in the rice mixture will be milky with the rice starches, which is the cause of gummy and sticky rice).  

5. Pour the rice into a colander, and rinse thoroughly with cold water.  Rinse until the water flows clear, and the rice is completely cold.  This usually takes about 3 to 4 minutes.

6. Rinse any residue from the pan used for boiling the rice.
7. Put the remaining 1/4 cup of water, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and butter in the pan.  
8. Bring the butter and water mixture to a boil.

9. When mixture is boiling, add 1/2 of the rice, and stir so that the rice gets coated. Repeat with remaining rice.

10. When the rice is all back in the pan, reduce the heat to just past the low setting, and put the lid on the pan.  This will rewarm the rice, and the liquid will absorb completely within 5 minutes.

11. Fluff with a fork, and serve.

Home Made Crostini Crackers

One of my favorite snack items are Crostini crackers. They are simple, flavorful, and accompany everything from dips to spreads very well. (I love these with hummus). In addition, there are many varieties available featuring herbs, cheeses, seeds, olives, etc. They are truly a versatile little item, and I usually have a bag on hand.

With grocery prices soaring, especially on "specialty items." The last bag I bought was nearly five dollars, for a 7.5 ounce bag! This seemed outrageous, as the ingredients are simple, and relatively inexpensive. I decided it was time to figure out how to make my own. After a couple of attempts to replicate the store bought Crostini crackers, I created this recipe. The flavor resemblance is extremely close, and, in fact, I almost think mine are better, as they are fresh, and have not sat in packaging, on a shelf, or had to endure long warehousing and transportation to the grocery store.

Best of all, this recipe makes a tub full. As my time is my own, and ingredients are cheap, it costs far less than the grocery store, for significantly more crackers.   

Home Made Crostini Crackers

Skill level:

(I gave this and "advanced" rating, because the dough can be fragile when rolled, otherwise this is an extremely easy recipe)

Ingredients

2 teaspoons yeast

3/4 cup warm water

2 cups flour

1/3 cup olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Additional Flour

Dried herbs (optional)

Preparation

1. In a bowl, combine yeast, water, and 1/4 cup of the flour. Using a whisk, stir together until combined.

2. Allow the yeast mixture to sit for 20 minutes. It will expand and become "fluffy" looking.

3. Using a stand mixer, fitted with the standard stirring attachment, add remaining flour, olive oil, and salt. Blend on medium slow setting for 4 to 5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. When done, the dough will be ribbony, stretchy, and quite sticky.
   
4. Put a small mound of flour onto a clean surface, and speed it out until you have a 6 to 8 inch circle of flour.

5. Scrape dough from bowl, on top of the flour pile.
   
6. Gently kneed the dough in the flour, 10 to 15 times, until dough is no longer incredibly sticky. Kneading time is minimal, as you do want the dough to remain soft and stretchy.

7. Divide dough into 2 parts,
8. Optional: Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of dried herbs onto one of the dough mounds, and gently kneed another 20 to 25 times, until herbs are combined into the dough. (In the pictures, I used a mixture rosemary and oregano leaves). 


9. Round both dough clumps into nice rounds.

10. Loosely wrap dough balls in plastic wrap. 

11. Allow to sit for 1 hour. Dough will rise slightly, and wrap will tighten around the dough.

12. Take 2 cookie sheets, and cut 2 pieces of baking parchment to the size of the baking sheet.
13. Take one ball of the dough, and roll out very thin, on a lightly floured surface. Make sure to roll the dough nearly to the size of your baking sheets.  (I try to leave 1 1/2 to 2 inch borders).

14. Place one piece of parchment on top of the dough.

15. As the dough is very thin and fragile, carefully roll dough and parchment around a rolling pin, and transfer (parchment side down) onto one of the baking sheets.
    
16. Repeat steps 13 through 15 with the remaining dough ball.
17. Use a fork, and poke random holes all over the rolled dough.  The crackers will puff while baking, the random holes keep the crackers from becoming completely hollow.

18. Using a pizza cutter, cut the rolled dough into 1 1/4 wide strips.  (I found that using a knife does not work well, as the dough is thin and sticky).

19. Again, using a pizza cutter, cut the strips into 2 1/2 wide pieces.

20. Place the first baking sheet with the cut strips into a 425 degree oven. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until the crostini begin to brown and puff up a bit. 

21. Remove from oven, and turn all of the crostinis over, braking apart any that may have stuck together.

22. Bake again for another 5 to 7 minutes, until lightly browned.

23. Remove from the oven.
24. Repeat steps 20 through 23, with the remaining cut dough.
25. When both batches are complete, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees.
26. Pile all of the crostini onto one baking sheet, and allow to dry and crisp in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes.

27. Remove "dried" crostini from the oven, and transfer to a cooling rack.
28. Allow to cool completely, as part of the crispness is achieved while the crackers cool.
29. Store in an air tight container, until ready to serve.