Kitchen Doorknobs

Stuffed Portabellos

2010-09-26T18:12:00.000-07:00

my favorite author is Nicholas Evans, he wrote the Horse Whisperer. i didn't particularly care for the movie (tho, hello Mr. Redford) but when i read the book, oh mercy, his lyrical prose was moving. i even drove 2 hours to NoVa to meet him at a bookstore where he was promoting his book the Divide. (for reals, loverly brit-ish accent...) anyway, a few years ago he, along with a few members of his family accidentally consumed some poisonous mushrooms, they are now on a dialysis regimen and on the kidney transplant list. oh the horror!

i like mushrooms, i always have. but i've also always had a very healthy respect for not putting random things in my mouth when hiking or camping. (let's be clear, i haven't been camping in forever but if i ever go again, i'm avoiding any kind of foraging of wild vegetation blah blah blah...) for this month's challenge, i used portobellos, big & beefy, a perfect item as a side but really, capable of being a stand alone entree. which is what i had for dinner friday night.

Stuffed Portobellos

adapted from Bon Appetit Hon

once again, no exact measurements

2 big portobellos, gills scraped off

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 zucchini, diced

1/4 fennel, sliced thinly

1 heirloom tomato, diced

1 small apple, diced

splash of olive oil & balsamic vinegar

goat cheese

preheat oven 350F.

drizzle a splash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar over mushrooms, both sides. bake in oven for 5 minutes, both sides. meanwhile, saute up onions in a bit of oil until softened. add in the apples and zucchini, about 5-7 minutes, until the zuchs are soft. put the cooked mixture in a bowl and cool slightly, add in the fennel and tomatoes, mix well, season with salt. throw in a bit of goat cheese, it'll a melt a bit.

take out the 'shrooms and scoop mixture on top. return to the oven and cook for another 5 minutes. top with a bit more cheese and serve.

just so you know, the 'shrooms shrink a smidge.

Shrooms

2010-08-30T17:26:00.000-07:00

I recently spent a weekend with my vegetarian sister. And this week I'm taking off for a trip to WA for DMB. Both remind me of mushrooms for different reasons. That will be our challenge.

Slice it, dice it, whatever.

Deadline: September 30

Limencello Cheesecake

2010-08-16T18:00:00.000-07:00

I adore cheesecake. However, I have to admit that when I have a slice I prefer it be simple. The less bells and whistles the better. I chose to use the limencello because it's one of my favorite flavors. Anything citrus-y really.

Thank goodness the girls at work aren't dieting because it's going to the office tomorrow.

Crust:

1 pkg of graham craker crumbs

6 tsp butter, melted

2 tsp sugar

Pulse graham craker crumbs in a food processor to a fine consistency. Add melted butter and sugar. Pulse to mix. Press the crumbs into the bootom and sides of your springform pan. Bake 15 minutes at 325. Let cool while the filling is prepared.

Filling:

3 8oz packages of room temp cream cheese

1 1/4 cup sugar

4 eggs room temp

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup limencello

zest of lemon

Using your food processor or stand mixer blend the cream cheese until smooth. Add in the sugar, vanilla, limencello and lemon zest. Mix until smooth. Throw in the eggs one at a time.

Pour prepared filling into crust. Bake 1 hour at 325. Turn oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour or so. Resist the temptation to open the door.

Let the cheesecake cool for a bit before chilling in the fridge overnight. Unless you have an impatient roommate like myself, you should not be cutting after only 1 hour of chill time. Matt was jonesing for some sugar.

We both loved it. I'm very pleased with this recipe...no cracks at all. It came out extremely creamy and was even better after proper chill time.

White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake

2010-08-15T00:12:00.000-07:00

do you see that cheesecake? it was delicious. i was lucky that i had an actual social event to attend to give me ~~an excuse~~ a valid reason to make it and not consume it myself. small blessings you know.

White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake
Crust:

1 1/3 cups vanilla wafer crumbs

3 tbsp sugar

1/3 cup melted butter (or veg oil)

Press into the bottom of a lightly greased 9” springform pan.

Batter:

3 8 oz packages cream cheese

½ cup sugar

3 eggs

3 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup whipping cream

1 cup good quality white chocolate chips

1 cup whipping cream

Heat the 1/3 cup whipping cream till scalding, pour over the white chocolate chips and mix well. Set aside. In a mixer, cream the cream cheese and ½ cup of sugar, being sure to scrape down the sides. Throw in an egg, one by one, again scraping down the sides. Add in the vanilla extract. Slowly pour in the melted white chocolate mixture, being sure to scrape down and mix well. Finally, add in the final cup of whipping cream.

Pour over the prepared base and bake at 325F for about 45 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave it in there until it cools down completely. Remove the cake from the oven and run a sharp knife around edge of pan. Allow to cool to room temp before putting it in the fridge over night.

White Chocolate Mousse

½ cup whipping cream

8 oz white chocolate chips

1 ½ cups whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup icing sugar

Heat the whipping cream to scalding but not boiling. In a bowl, pour the hot cream over the white chocolate chips.

Set aside for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth.

Whip the 1 ½ cup whipping cream till firm peaks. Add in the vanilla extract and icing sugar.

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the chocolate into the whipped cream. Chill for a couple of hours or until firm before piping it on top of the cheesecake. Top with raspberries.

Cheesecake Throwdown

2010-07-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

big k and i have discussed it. we've neglected this blog for too long. we blame pat. him and his chicken/biscuit challenge...

this month's challenge is Cheesecake.

deadline: August 15th.

Winter? What's Winter?

2010-01-19T08:32:00.000-08:00

Subject line has nothing to do with anything, ok I'm kidding. It's the middle of winter and what warms you up better than a nice piping hot bowl of soup? Well, this month's challenge is not soup, or stew or anything like that.

This month's challenge is chicken AND biscuits. Not chicken or biscuits. Chicken and biscuits. Crispy, juicy delicious chicken. Flaky, soft buttery delicious biscuits. The combination that can't be beat.

Try different breading, panko, pulverized cereal, honey, hot sauce, but make it delicious ...

Deadline Feb 28th, 2010.

Finally...Fudge!

2010-01-17T16:21:00.000-08:00

Many moons after the deadline, here is my post. I bring to you peanut butter and chocolate swirled fudge. PB and chocolate are one of my top favorite flavor combos. I could eat it daily.

Recipe:

1/2 cup butter

2 1/4 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup peanut butter (i chose creamy but i'm sure crunchy would be delish)

1 tsp vanilla (i used a combo of extract and vanilla bean)

3 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Melt butter then add the brown sugar and milk. Bring to a boil stirring frequently. Let it boil for two minutes. Remove from heat and add the peanut butter and vanilla. Pour mixture into confectioners sugar and blend. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into 8x8 pan and chill.

The result is delicious. Matt, who doesn't like fudge, liked this kind. I kept a few pieces for us, but boxed up the rest to be sent to a friend. Better on his thighs than mine.

Packing Fudge

2010-01-06T17:52:00.000-08:00

i used this recipe but added a bit of melted white chocolate on top to make it all marble-y. you know, cus it's kinda fancy looking etc.

this chocolate goodness tho, was not was for me to consume. all this chocolate-y goodness was sent to a friend for his birthday.

grow that ass.

And the kitchen sink!

2010-01-03T21:06:00.000-08:00

Ok, first off, I've been really busy and sick in bed therefore my posting is 3 days behind - yet I'm still the FIRST to post?!?!

Second off, this challenge turned out to be a challenge. Not because the topic was hard, but was to pick to put into my fudge! Recipe was simple:

10 oz White chocolate chips
8 oz Milk chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp Vanilla
1 stick butter
4 peanut butter cups chopped
6 oreos chopped
1 cup of sugar

Combine all the ingredients except for the oreos and peanut butter cups into a saucepan and bring to a very gentle simmer, and then turn it down to low. Let simmer for 10-15 mins until the mixture is utterly smooth. Turn OFF heat and take off stove, let cool for 30 mins, occasionally stirring the mixture. After 30 mins, add in peanut butter cups and oreos. (I was going to add marshmallows too, but I didn't) Combine thoroughly and then pour into a baking sheet to set.

2009-11-12T02:40:00.000-08:00

Challenge: Fudge

Make different flavors, colors, whatever. Make it interesting. I've never made it from scratch so who knows what will happen. And if you don't like fudge, it's a great office gift for someone (or you can send to charlotte!!).

Due date: Dec 31.

Good luck!

Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

2009-10-28T17:57:00.000-07:00

Halloween starts the holiday sugar fest for me. When pumpkin was decided for this challenge, I knew the result would be something sweet coming out of my oven.

I bent the rules. I made a pumpkin cake, but it's not made of pumpkin....it IS a pumpkin!

The flavor is a basic spice cake baked in a bundt pan. The icing is maple syrup flavored. Basically, it's a package of cream cheese, 1/2 stick of butter, four cups of powdered sugar, and maple syrup....(not Aunt Jemima)....i probably used 3 or 4 tablespoons. Any more and it would be too runny.

Obviously I tinted the icing. I used my red and yellow tubes....then threw in a dollop of my orange paste. The paste really adds more depth in color. For the stem I used an ice cream cone....the kind you don't like to eat because they taste like styrofoam. I piped the green lines which I hope gives it a more round look.

I'm taking it to work tomorrow. I secretly hope that the icing turns everyone's teeth orange.

Until next time fellow doorknobs...keep those ovens and buns hot!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Bowlful of Fall: Pumpkin Gnocchi & Wilted Kale

2009-10-28T07:26:00.000-07:00

like my cousin, i am not a fan of pumpkin. pumpkin pie makes me suicidal. ok, not really but i don't like the stuff. i've played with pumpkin before, making a soup and challah. when i decided to make pumpkin be this month's challenge, it was my intention to celebrate the coming autumn season (even tho i lament the cold), but also to play with an ingredient i normally avoid.

i went with pumpkin gnocchi, figuring that the pumpkin flavor wouldn't be overwhelming. i know Pat already did gnocchi for the roll challenge but whatever. i also decided to incorporate another ingredient i don't usually play with: kale. tis the season, yo. the finished product turned out well, the gnocchi wasn't too pumpkin-y, the kale was mild and a perfect complement to the gnocchi. success!

Wilted Kale

for this portion of the recipe, it's my typical angry asian style of dumping whatever is in my fridge into the pan.

a bunch of kale, cleaned and rough chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, diced
handful of shiitake mushroom, sliced
a few sprigs of thyme
olive oil
salt/pepper to taste
lemon juice

in a large pan, heat up the olive oil. add in the onions and sautee till translucent. throw in the garlic and mix around, be sure not to burn it. add in the kale and maybe a splashful of water. i pulled some thyme leaves off the stem and added that too. i cooked this for about 20 minutes, or until i finished making the gnocchi, making sure to add a spoonful of water every now and again. at the last minute, i threw in the mushrooms.

Pumpkin Gnocchi

1/2 cup pureed pumpkin, either fresh or from a can
1 large egg yolk
12 Tbl flour, i divied it up 6 AP, 6 Whole Wheat

mix together the pumpkin puree and egg yolk in a medium sized bowl. add half the flour until incorporated. slowly add the rest of the flour, by tablespoon, until a dough forms. on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for a few minutes. if the dough is still too sticky, add more flour, but a little at a time. when it doesn't stick to everything anymore, divide the dough into four balls. roll them out, into snake-like formations. with a dough cutter, (i don't have one, i used my pizza cutter), cut out little 1-2" pieces. i've seen gnocchi with cute indentions and whatever on them. i wasn't interested in that, i was hungry...

to cook the gnocchi, bring a pot of water to boil. add about a tablespoon of salt. cook the gnocchi in batches. when they're first put into the pot, they sink right to the bottom but when they're cooked, they float up to the surface. easy.

add to the pan of kale and allow to mix thru.

to serve, i added a splash of lemon juice. separately, the kale came out great, i would've been happy to nibble on it sans gnocchi, which turned out nice too. but together, it was lovely. just like autumn in a bowl.

I'm not a fan of pumpkin ...

2009-10-27T19:00:00.001-07:00

... but I did enjoy what I made! Maybe there's some hope for pumpkinisms.

This summer, I failed miserably at getting around to making vichyssoise, aka potato leek soup. Now that the temps have dropped and fall is here, it's the perfect time for soup, warm/hot soup! I scoured the internet for a good recipe, didn't find one that I loved so I started with one that I came across from Alton Brown ... well very loosely.

You're going to need:

6 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
4-6 leeks, cleaned, green leaves removed
1/2 large onion (yellow/spanish)
Half (or more if you wish) small pumpkin
Cream
Buttermilk
Salt
Pepper
Worcestershire sauce
Chives
Garlic
Garlic powder
Vegetable stock
Butter

Preheat oven to 425. Cut up pumpkin into chunks, you'll need to remove the rind, seeds, etc. Place onto cookie sheet, drizzle with some olive oil, garlic powder, pepper. Place into oven and roast pumpkin for about 20 mins. You'll need to turn the pieces.

Clean the leeks, remove the tops and then make sure to remove all the dirt and grit from the stalk, I just soak in a bowl of cold water, it should fall to the bottom. Cut leeks in half stem-length and then into smaller pieces. Set aside. Peel and cube potatoes, set aside.

In a saucepan, add in 3 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp olive oil, sweat the chopped leeks with 2 cloves crushed garlic, and chopped onion until tender/translucent.

Add in 5 cups vegetable stock to the sauteed leeks, turn heat down to low/simmer. Add in potatoes and let simmer covered for 20 mins.

Take roasted pumpkin and cut into cubes, similar in size to potatoes, add to rest of ingredients in saucepan.

Continue to simmer for another 30 mins, until a bit of the stock has burned off. Add in 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce. Salt & pepper to taste. Remove from heat and allow to cool for about 5 mins.

Place soup into a blender and blend until smooth. Add in 1 cup of buttermilk, 1 cup of cream, 3 tbsp butter. Blend until mixture is smooth. Serve while still hot, top with chives, or if you want to get crazy, some crumbled bacon.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was smooth, creamy, savory and delicious. It smelled like fall.

October Lurve

2009-09-15T08:22:00.000-07:00

this month's challenge:

pumpkin.

deadline: October 31st.

make it happen.

Sun-dried tomato bread

2009-09-11T18:53:00.000-07:00

I concur with Lan....where has the time gone? The summer has been so busy...the days flew by and my post is super late. However, it's here. I didn't follow the rules to the "t" b/c I didn't use fresh tomatoes. I know. I couldn't find what I wanted at the farmer's markets b/c the earlier birds snagged everything. So, following Lan's cooking techniques....I used what I had in the kitchen. What I had was a giant sized jar of sun-dried tomatoes (costco is my new love), basic baking ingredients, and one mother of a zuke that a friend brought me. I made a savory loaf of bread using my ingredients.

The recipe is basic:

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup grated zuke (some say to squeeze the juice out, but i didn't)

dried herbs (i used rosemary and thyme)

crushed garlic

tons of sundried tomato cut into smaller pieces

baking soda

baking powder

salt

2 eggs

Bake at 350 for an hour-ish. maybe just 50 minutes. the house smelled like an italian eatery.

I made this just before the guys came over for dinner and they ate nearly all of it, so I didnt' get a chance to get any fancy pics...not that I really do much of that anyway.

Lan and Patrick, your posts look delish...nice job!

Until next time fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

Fried Green Tomatoes

2009-08-31T10:54:00.000-07:00

oh but i'm late this month. where has the time gone? i actually made this particular dish a month ago and procrastinated with the posting of it. oops. so without further ado... i present Fried Green Tomatoes. i've read the book and seen the movie countless times. i've scanned recipes that include bacon grease, chocolate (!), lard... oh the list goes on and on. i kept it simple. i wanted a crunch, i wanted some tartness and most importantly, i wanted a good dipping sauce that had a kick.

slice tomatoes on the thicker side, maybe half an inch. dredge in flour, egg wash and then cornmeal. fry it up in some hot ass veggie oil until golden brown. drain on paper towels.

for the sauce, i combined: mayo, horseradish, ketchup and maybe a pinch of salt. to thin it out, i add some water.

so until next time, keep your kitchen warm, your apron on and try to keep your jeans from getting too snug...
Angry Asian

Sometimes keeping it simple works ...

2009-08-30T18:49:00.000-07:00

So two weeks ago or so - I ended up at the farmers market that sets up every week next to my office. The pickings were diverse and I started out with the following tomatoes (don't the look absolutely delicious?)

I stared at them, and frankly scoured the internet to possible new recipes to try or twist up - but I kept coming back to the how good they looked as is. All the recipes I found were either too convoluted, or frankly - too much work given the hotness of the weather the last two weeks. And so I asked my stomach what it really enjoyed with tomatoes and of course I ended up making things I like eating over three days. Relatively simple, delicious and won't work up a sweat by cranking on the burner or oven.

First up was a splendid caprese salad, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, lots of basil and a balsamic vinaigrette drizzled over top with a bit of extra virgin olive oil to top it. I solely used the heirlooms ...

Next up was, of course bruschetta. Dived roma's, heirlooms, basil, salt, pepper and of course a bit of the balsamic vinaigrette served atop toasted (w/extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper) crusty bread ...

And lastly - my epitome of summer salads. Spicy tomato, avocado, roasted corn salad. I used a sampling of all the tomatoes I bought including heirlooms, roma, cherry, grape, yellow and field tomatoes with large chunks of avocado, lots of jalapenos, roasted corn, ample cilantro and a tangy lemon, cider vinegar dressing.

Simple, but I thoroughly enjoyed every bite over three nights ...

What does summer bring?

2009-07-16T07:01:00.000-07:00

It's the middle of July which means the farm stands around here in Boston are in abundance with local fruits, vegatables and herbs. Everything is ripe for the picking and every summer I spend countless days perusing the markets hoarding vast amounts of fresh goods. It's peak tomato season, so this month's challenge is tomatoes! Cold gazpacho soups! Summer salads! Grilled with your steaks! Or simply paired with some very fresh mozzarella and basil. Let's get creative. Try new varieties, cherry, grape, heirloom, yellow, orange ...

Deadline is August 30th!

Apple of My Eye

2009-07-05T17:15:00.000-07:00

For this month's challenge I stuck to tradition. An apple pie. It felt appropriate for July 4th. This, along with some baseball and fireworks (beer too!) and I'm happy.

I used two types of apples: Red Delicious and Braeburn. I gave Granny Smith a thought, but decided against the old gal.

The crust, which I anticipated, was my real challenge. However, this time it was easier to roll and deal with. I have to remind myself to move a little faster though b/c it warms quickly and likes to stick to the counter.

Basic crust:

2 cups flour

1 tsp of salt

3/4 cup chilled crisco (i had butter but wanted to save it for my brownies)

Filling:

5 apples peeled (any mixture you'd like)

1 cup of white sugar (i decreased this and added brown. i like mee dang)

healthy dashes of cinnamon

pinch of salt

quite a few grates of nutmeg (which i freakin' love btw)

2 tb flour

I tossed my apples with the dry ingredients and immediately the kitchen smelled of fall. it seemed fitting b/c although it's July, it was fairly cool for us NC folk.

I rolled out the bottom portion of the dough and layed it in the pie dish, then filled it with the apple mixture. For the top, I attempted the lattice look. Again, I wasn't moving quick enough so the strands started to break on me. I don't have the easy cut out tool that Sandra Lee. My pie has the more rustic look like Grandma Walton would have baked. I was out of eggs so I brushed milk on the crust and gave it a slight sprinkle of sugar.

Bake at 375 degrees for one hour and voila!

Until next time, fellow doorknobs, keep those ovens and buns HOT!

Blueberry peach tart (not pie!)

2009-07-05T16:02:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I was wrestling with a few different possibilities this month and my intentions were to make a pulled pork coleslaw pie, but I thought that was a bit over the top, so I decided on using fruits of the summer. Blueberries and peaches are in season, why not make a tart out of it. And yes, I didn't make a pie, pies and tarts are essentially the same to me, except I'm not a huge fan of too much crust, a tart was the next logical choice. I've made apple tarts, pear tarts, even peach tarts in the past, except this time I decided to twist it up a bit in the prep of the peaches and blueberries instead of just throwing them into a crust and baking w/sugar.

Here's what you'll need:

Crust:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
pinch of salt
3 oz cold cold butter cubed
cold water

Combine flour, salt into a food processor, add in cold (cold!) butter until you get breadcrumb consistency. Add in cold water a bit at a time until the dough comes together, roll out on floured surface and gently lay into your tart pan. Trim off the edges. I opted to try out a new silicon tart pan this time instead of using a generic metal one. I like it a lot, non-stick!

Filling:
5 semi-ripe yellow (or white but I prefer yellow) peaches
1 container blueberries
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon (split into 2)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoon butter

Bring a quart of water to boil and add in 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar. Place peaches into the pot once it starts to boil and let simmer for 5-7 mins depending on how firm your peaches are. Remove and run under cold water immediately. Halve peaches to remove pit and the skins should come right off. Set aside on a plate. Preheat oven to 425.

Take the other 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar, combine with 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon, ginger mix thoroughly, add to the bottom of your pie tart covering the bottom of the pan.

In a sauce pan, add 1 tablespoon of water with 1 cup light brown sugar set to medium high until the brown sugar begins to dissolve and lightly bubble and add in 1/2 tablespoon remaining cinnamon. Once sugar begins to bubble, place halved peaches into the pan being careful not to splash hot sugar. Let simmer, flip cut site down occasionally for 5-8 mins, until peaches become tender.

Remove the peaches from the syrup placing them cut side down into the dough. Add into the syrup the package of blueberries and let simmer for 2 mins. Turn off heat, and add blueberries into tart pan covering gaps. Drizzle some of the syrup onto the top of the tart before placing into oven. Bake for 20-25 mins.

Remove from oven, let set for 30-40 mins. Serve warm plain or with a bit of vanilla ice cream!

coconut creame pie

2009-07-05T11:59:00.000-07:00

for this month's challenge i actually made a tart. but then i argued with myself that it wasn't really a pie. pies are deeper whereas tarts are more shallow. i also argued with myself over the timing. i wanted to make the crust from scratch but i just did not have the time to make it, (i did make the tart dough from scratch). there was a lot of arguing within myself this month.

so i chose the coconut cream pie. actually, jason did. what happened was that he requested it for a bbq but i was so embarrassed by how it kinda looked, i ended up buying it frozen (the horror, i know) but i still did have the ingredients hanging out. so i brought it for another cookout. (it was also a month of bbqs)

nuria tasted the filling, it was too sweet for her liking. for me, i didn't taste it, i don't like coconut.

i used this recipe: Cheater's Coconut Cream Pie

i think i will do this pie again, but in mini version, for jason. it's not often that i bake for him.

Ode to Jade

2009-06-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

for years i have called my youngest sister, jadey pie. well, really since she was a baby. last night summer and i bought our tickets to see her in san antonio and we're SO excited to see her in a couple of months.

this month's challenge will be pie. sweet or savory, whatever puckers your lips. extra points for making your own dough.

deadline: July 5

16 days later...

2009-05-21T16:38:00.000-07:00

better late than never right? i was in love with this whole idea of using herbs for the challenge. however, when it came down to it, i couldn't think of anything to save my life....preoccupied with this and that. i thought i'd just throw something together with a few ingredients that i really love. i chose basil because it is my favorite. i grow it every year in my backyard....for cooking and just because i love to smell it.

i made up this little pizza with pre-made dough (i can hear the whispers), mozz cheese, garlic, evoo, basil, and sun-dried tomatoes. i spread the evoo on the dough and on the edges. then i crushed garlic and spread that on top of the oil. next came the mozz cheese. i sliced up the sun-dried tomatoes and tore the basil cause Grandpa Emanuel says basil bruises if you cut it. i layered those around the pie and stuck it in the oven for 10-ish minutes.

the result? i really liked it....and then it hit me...i forgot my spinach. i think that would have added another level of taste,but either way, i really gobbled it up and so did matt. it had a fresh, light, taste that you can't get at pizza hut. i'm just sayin'....

Lavender Lament

2009-05-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

it's just been one of those months. it's been rainy and dreary, sapping one of their energy and in my case, inspiration. Spring should be a time of rejuvenation, not lackluster, half hearted attempts in the kitchen. plus, my challenge for this month is awesome: using herbage. spring herbage at that.

i chose to use lavender, which incidentally is now going to be my color for the summer. i've played with lavender before, liking the fresh earthy taste. it's not as awesome as thyme but i do like it alot.

this past month i've made 3 loaves of bread. one recipe was actually for Rosemary Olive Oil Bread that a fellow twi-friend shared with me. it did come out well but i forgot to take pictures. next, i used a romantic rosemary bread recipe, substituting lavender. the first go, i brought half the loaf into work. the second half i breaded for another food challenge. today's loaf will go towards a panzanella salad for dinner. i'm thinking the floral scent will add a lovely spring taste to it. :)

Romantic Lavender Bread
from recipezaar

3 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup lukewarm water (120F)
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh rosemary or fresh lavender blossoms, finely chopped
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon salt
6 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (approximately)
yellow cornmeal, as needed
coarse salt, for sprinkling on loaves (optional)
spray bottle filled with cold water, for spritzing loaves

Combine yeast and lukewarm water until well blended and let sit about 10 minutes- it should look foamy and thick (if your water was too hot or your yeast is bad, it will not get foamy and you'll need to start over).

Combine buttermilk, oil, rosemary (or lavender), 1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp salt in a mixer bowl, then add the yeast mixture and combine well.
Add flour gradually, beating slowly until enough flour has been added to form a dough ball that leaves the sides of the bowl in one mass.

Dump any remaining flour onto a flat surface, dump dough onto that surface, and with floured hands knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes.

Set dough into a large greased bowl, flip dough over to grease both sides, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk- about 1 1/2 hours.

On dough has risen, place dough onto a floured surface and cut into equal halves and form each half into a round loaf shape.
Set loaves onto a large greased baking sheet dusted with cornmeal.
Cover with a clean, slightly damp towel and let rise 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Using a serrated knife, slash the top of each loaf with an asterisk (*) pattern and sprinkle each with a little coarse salt (optional).
Bake in center of the preheated oven for 15 minutes, spritzing occasionally (at least 2-3 times).

Continue baking another 45-55 minutes (no more spritzing) or until the loaves sounds hollow when rapped on the bottom and they appear golden brown.

Let cool on racks completely.

til next time, keep your kitchen clean. seriously, you don't want mice up in there.

April Showers Brings May Flowers

2009-04-06T11:58:00.001-07:00

For this month's challenge, use a springy herb or flower in your cooking or baking.

go ahead.

it's spring, get sprung.

deadline, Cinco De Mayo.

Birthday and Challenge Combo

2009-04-05T17:23:00.001-07:00

This month's challenge happened to land on Matt's birthday. I knew I'd tie them together somehow. One of our favorite things to have on the weekends are cinnamon rolls so I said to myself "self, make Matt homemade cinny rolls this time". And so I did. This was challenging for me b/c while I bake quite often, it is almost never dealing with dough (besides cookums dough). I remember my mother giving many attempts at homemade bread and it never coming out the way she wanted...(although slathered with butter i didn't care!). Maybe that's why I don't try it more often?? the rising, the waiting, blah blah blah....

I found a basic cinny roll recipe for the dough portion. And I apologize, but I'm not going to type out all that right now. I'm beat from gardening all day and am becoming blurry eyed! Anywhoozer....so I'm doing the dough and it occurs to me...I can really do this. Everything came together too easily. And I loved loved loved rolling it out with my pin.

Ok, so after I rolled out the sweet dough I took a generous amount of brown sugar, cinnamon, and a few grates of fresh nutmeg and cut in cold in butter. That little delicious mixture was spread over the dough and then I rolled it up and cut it. They baked for about 20 minutes...and oh my. The fragrance that filled the house.....la sigh....

The icing was a simple mixture of cream cheese, mascarpone cheese (cause i'm italian like giada), powdered sugar, and a splash of vanilla. i didn't use exact measurements. i threw it in bowl, whipped it up, tasted, and then added if neccessary. if matt weren't always on to me i'd be standing in front of the fridge now eating the remainder of the icing from the bowl.

Good call on this month's challenge idea....I really enjoyed it and now I'm over my fear of doughs ;) And I'd like to give props to my stand mixer with the dough hook. Holla!

Until next time, fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

Go Go Gnocchi!

2009-04-05T15:30:00.000-07:00

I've actually only recently come to enjoy gnocchi, and that's to say it's only been about 6-8 months. Not sure if I didn't get enough exposure, or it was a texture thing, but I wasn't a fan. I figured I would take a stab at actually making this at home, thought it was more complicated than it actually, time consuming on the other hand.

For this month's rolled challenge, I decided to make spinach potato gnocchi, with fresh mozzarella and garlic basil red sauce (instead of a white sauce). I've had for the most part plain potato gnocchi, it's usually spinach ravioli's, so I thought to add in finely chopped spinach into the dough.

(4) russet potatoes
(1) teaspoon salt
(1/2) teasppon baking powder
(2) egg yolks
(1 1/2 cup flour)
half package of spinach
fresh mozzarella
(1) large sweet onion
(2) small cans tomato paste
(8) cloves of garlic
bunch of basil
salt, pepper, red pepper flakes

Slice onion and saute slightly, adding in salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic cloves. Add in tomato paste and 2 cups of water, let simmer until paste dissolves. Add in a large bunch of the basil leaves, let simmer on low.

Bake potatoes in a 400 degree oven for 1.5 hours, uncovered. Very finely chop spinach, saute with some olive oil until wilted. Remove potatoes and peel while hot. Take peeled potatoes and run through a potato ricer, or if you don't have a ricer, use a finer grater (that's what I used). Add in salt, baking powder, egg yolks, and spinach. Using your hands, slowly mix in flour a bit at a time to incorporate, until you have a dough. You may need a bit more than 1 1/2 cup of flour.

Take a bit of dough, place onto a flat floured surface and roll out into 1/2 inch thick rope. Cut into 1-inch pieces and then roll down a gnocchi board (and if you don't have a gnocchi board, roll with fingers and use a fork) to create indentations.

Bring water to boil with a bit of salt, drop in gnocchi about a dozen at a time and when they rise to the top of the water, they're done, should be 2-3 mins max.

Plate with fresh mozzarella, sauce and a bit of extra basil

asianized enchiladas

2009-04-05T00:12:00.000-07:00

remember when i said i wasn't that hot for mexican or latin american food some time ago? the stuff's grown on me. i like it a lot now. i think the combination of rice and beans is almost genius. my long weekend in PR last week solidified that cheese melted over meat topped with salsa is damn good.

be con's challenge of something rolled made me wrack my brain for something latin amercan. enchiladas seemed easy enough and definitely good enough that i could have it for leftover during the week. my spin was to use japanese eggplant for the filling. weird combo, i know but when i was at the asian market they looked so appetizing, i couldn't resist buying them.

i was quite happy with the end result. it was different. i didn't pay much attention to what i used and how much so. sorry! i chopped up the eggplant into bite size pieces. sauteed with chopped onions until soft. i used taco mix and dumped a can of green chili peppers for the added spice. alright, filling done. i had flour tortilla hanging out so i wrapped up the eggplant filling and lined them in a casserole dish, poured enchilada sauce over it and topped with cheese. baked in the oven at 350 til cheese is melted. done. i paired my asian enchilada with avocado. yuuuuuuum.

til next time,
Angry Asian

Let's get ready to roll ...

2009-03-03T09:20:00.000-08:00

It's almost spring knobbers and this month's challenge has nothing to do with anything or spring!

I was going to offer up a suggestion to do all three courses (appetizer, main, dessert), but I leave it to you to select which course you'd like to prepare (or multiple courses to prepare).

This month's theme is, 'things that are rolled'. Perhaps some eggrolls, perhaps manicotti, or perhaps a canoli. Get crazy and wrap a hotdog inside of a pancake that's rolled in a deep dish pizza and then battered in cornmeal and deepfried, mmm mmm tasty.

Things that are rolled. Deadline is April 5th. Party on folks.

Organic and what not

2009-03-02T17:14:00.001-08:00

This is my first lasagna. I love the dish, but it makes so much and is usually so fattening which I think is why I've avoided it. I really did not follow a recipe. I had a few things at home, picked up a few more things at a health food store (while forgetting even more) and called it a day.

Lately I've been leaning towards going vegetarian (Just cause. That's a whole different post) so I made my lasagna sans meat.

It turned out....well....not so great looking, but the taste made up for it. It looks like a rainbow of a mess really. I ended up dropping my noodles so they were all broken. nice. oh, gluten free noodles by the way. Normally I wouldn't go to that extreme, but we were in the health food store at the time and it's all they had....

My list of items:

ricotta cheese

2 zucchini

parmesan cheese

cheddar cheese

orange pepper

onion

noodles

petite diced tomatoes

garlic

I started out by mixing the ricotta in the food processor with one of the zukes, garlic, and salt. it made a nice light green color. Oh, and I added rosemary to that as well. Second, I sauteed the remainder of my vegs just until a bit soft. The diced tomatoes were pureed with garlic, salt, and tomato paste. I layered the dish starting with the noodles, then the ricotta, vegs, tomato sauce, cheese, and repeat. Honestly I do think I messed up on the order of my layers during the middle of the production.

It cooked for one hour and voila! It looks like more of a veg casserole in the pics, but the effort was there! I topped with parmesan (my fave cheese ever), and had some fresh rye bread from the bakery on the side. Mattie was in for seconds and said he didn't miss the meat at all. I can dig that!

I can honestly say that I did enjoy this meal and I don't feel like I just ate a brick. Next time I hope that I don't break my noodles into little pieces before they reach the pan though. Matt couldn't say why, but he felt that he liked the noodles that you have to cook before assembly better than the oven ready guys. Noted.

I'm off to have hot chocolate with baileys, but until then fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

individual moussaka

2009-03-02T15:36:00.000-08:00

greek food is hit or miss for me. i am particularly partial to moussaka because it reminds me of lasagna. i kept it real simple, made it in individual ramekins and topped with a bechamele sauce.

Moussaka

thinly slice up an eggplant (i used a chinese eggplant)
1/2 stick of butter
1/4 cup of flour
1/2 cup of milk (i used buttermilk because that's what i had)
tomato/spaghettie sauce (i had some leftover with meat)

for the bechamele sauce, i melted the butter in a sauce pan, added the flour and stirred till incorporated. add the milk (or buttermilk) and stir till thickened. salt and pepper to taste.

assemble in layers, first with the eggplant, the tomato sauce and then another layer of eggplant. top it all off with the bechamele sauce. if i had had bread crumbs available, i would've added that to the top but i didn't, so i sprinkled some oats. bake in preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes.

watch that growing ass and stay warm!

A twist on the standard lasagna ...

2009-03-01T19:12:00.000-08:00

I'm a big fan of the brasserie's in the Boston area, and the mac'n'cheese that's served at the retaurants. Most either are ham or lobster mac'n'cheese so for this month's challenge, it's lobster mac'n'cheese lasagna!

1 lobster, about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 lb in size
8 oz Ricotta cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup Sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
1/3 cup Mozzarella cheese (shredded)
1/3 cup Gruyere cheese (shredded)
Lasagna noodles
1/2 cup Milk
1 tbsp garlic powder
pepper
1 large egg

Since I was only making a small amount, I decided to make it in a loaf pan instead of a standard lasagna pan, adjust amounts accordingly as needed for more servings.

Steam lobster, remove all meat from shell and cut into very small pieces, set aside.

In a bowl, combine well ricotta, egg, parmesan cheese, garlic powder and milk. In a second bowl combine the mozzarella, gruyere and cheddar. Prepare your lasagna starting with a thin layer of the ricotta, topped with lasagna pasta, some lobster and then finish off with a layer of the mixed cheese. Repeat. Cover and place into a 375 oven for 45 mins. Uncover and bake for another 10-15 until the top of the lasagna is perfectly brown.

Lots of Layers

2009-02-03T14:39:00.000-08:00

For the past couple of weeks I've had a craving for something....high in calories, taste, and fat grams. Then I narrowed it down. I've been wanting lasagna. So fellow knobs, that's February's challenge....

Make a lasagna using unique ingredients. I think we're all capable of producing a basic dish, but let's show Giada that her creations aren't the only talk of the town (it's just her twins). Make a big dish, invite some friends over and share your pics.

Deadline: February 28

Good luck!

Hey Ya'll!

2009-01-31T16:31:00.000-08:00

This month's challenge was just that....a challenge. I only eat two kinds of seafood and I'm usually scared to cook it myself b/c I'm scared that I'll not do it right and end up ill. Anyway, I thought and I thunked and came up with Shrimp-N-Grits. I had to represent the south...yee haw!

I purchased 1 lb of shrimp, 1 lb of sausage, and the ingredients to make grits. I did not buy instant grits. If you've seen "my cousin vinny" you'd know that no self respecting southerner eats instants grits (like i'm a big grit eater, but whatevs).

My picture is my serving which is why there is just a tad. However, Matt's bowl was filled and he went in for seconds. Those TN boys like some food.

I started with the grits. They were cooked in chicken stock until tender, then I removed them from the heat and added 1/2 cup cream, salt, pepper, and a little butter. Not very figure friendly, but creamy and delish.

Next for the shrimp part of it....

I sauteed an onion and garlic for 2 minutes and eventually adding the sausage to it. I let that cook for a while until enough fat developed in the pan to make a roux. Next came the chicken stock and a bay leaf. I didn't buy hot sausage so I added some red pepper flakes for kicks. After the sausage was nearly cooked I threw in the shrimp and let that cook until pink (peeled/deveined of course). Once everything was cooked through I ladled the grits into a bowl and topped with the shrimp mixture.

Results: Matt says he would like this again. Me, well. I liked it, but don't know that I LOVED it. I will admit though....the grits were my favorite part b/c they were creamy. I think if I made them for breakfast I would use water instead of stock, and add some sweetener along with the milk. Anyway, the dish was filling and comforting on a cold night. I'm glad to say that I can mark this dish off of my "to try" list.

Until next time fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens HOT!

scallops: 2 ways

2009-01-30T15:38:00.000-08:00

without fail when i go to a fancy restaurant, i usually get one of two things: lamb or scallops. for this month's challenge i wanted to tackle my fear of cooking scallops at home. i made it two ways, seared, topped with lychee onion salsa and baked, topped with a sesame soy ginger sauce. both turned out really well, i mean, i liked both a lot.

handling scallops isn't as difficult as i thought. i just had to make sure it was fresh and dried completely. i seasoned with just kosher salt and pepper.

Lychee Onion Salsa:
a few lychees, chopped (i used canned)
small onion diced (red onions or scallions can be used too)
dash of lime juice
green onions, sliced (i only threw this in for the color)

mix all ingredients in bowl and refridgerate til ready to use.

Sesame Soy Ginger Sauce
few slices of candied ginger, julienned (fresh is fine too, i just wanted to use up some of the candied stuff)
splash of soy sauce
splash of sesame oil
red chile, sliced tiny (for color and some bite)
green onions, sliced (again, for color)

mix all together. i know i'm not giving any measurements, it's all about taste. i also heated it up in the microwave for about 20 seconds before topping on the scallops.

preheat oven to 400F. place 4 seasoned scallops on baking sheet. bake in oven for about 8 minutes. (i think it's entirely up to you on how well you want it done, as well as the size of the scallops. just do it til it's about opaque.)

for the remaining 4 scallops to be seared. in a pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and heat til hot. carefully place the scallops in pan, being sure to keep them apart from each other to prevent steaming. sear fro about 2-3 minutes on one side and about 1-2 minutes on flip side.

plate respective scallops seperately. for the seared scallops, i topped with the fruit. it came out sweet and tender. for the baked scallops, i topped with the sesame soy ginger sauce. it was really good too.

i'm really pleased with how well these came out. what i liked most was that it was all done quickly, under 30 minutes. great party food!

so until next time, may your kitchen bring forth much love to your tummy!

I wish it were warmer ...

2009-01-29T20:31:00.000-08:00

It's been snowing, it won't stop snowing up here in Boston, it's awful! This doesn't warm you up, but it at least reminds you of sitting on outside on a warm day and enjoying a refreshing [deconstructed] salad.

Lump crab napoleon with pesto vinaigrette and herb goat cheese:

- handful of grape tomatoes (or vine ripe/heirloom if you can find some)
- basil, lots of basil
- lump crab (maryland blue crab is best, again if you can find some)
- your favorite herb goat cheese
- 1/2 ripe avocado
- extra virgin olive oil
- white vinegar
- 1 tbsp maille mustard
- parmesan cheese
- salt & pepper
- honey

Coarsely chop a handful of grape tomatoes with 3 basil leaves, add a bit of salt, put into a round form and pop into the fridge while preparing the rest. Add about 20-25 basil leaves into a blender, add in olive oil, vinegar, honey, 1 tbsp parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, mustard and about 3 grape tomatoes. Blend well. Remove the tomato form from fridge, place onto a plate, top with lump crap and sliced avocado. Add as much pesto vinaigrette surrounding the tomatoes as you prefer, crumble goat cheese.

i <3 New York

2009-01-02T06:33:00.001-08:00

i'm headed to NYC this month. jab bought me a weekend in NYC, complete with dinner at Tao and a broadway show. we're going to see the Little Mermaid.

personally, i prefer the original storyline, and the japanese came out with an anime version that stays true to it. however, how can one NOT like the disney version with the likeable songs and sidekicks??? in 8th grade, while living in Africa, i think i watched the movie every night with Cilla, we memorized the lines together. dorky, i know!

this months challenge: make something from under the sea.

you know you totally got that! :)

due date: January 31st, 2008

She almost stole my recipe! Corn, crab and shrimp chowder ...

2008-12-07T12:14:00.000-08:00

Oh emm jee Lan, I actually was thinking about making a bacon based vichyssoise for this month's challenge (very unconventional), but decided not to because I really wanted chowder. So I ended up making corn, crab and shrimp chowder, I guess I'm glad I did!!

This is a recipe that has sort of grown over the years, it always comes out different, warm, better, tastier and this time I don't know why but I felt the need to use shrimp instead of clams or white fish. I really just like this recipe because it's full of potatoes and corn, two of my favorite soup ingredients.

(1) can of sweet corn
(2) cans of crab (lump preferred) or those of you in the south, get the fresh stuff!
(4) cups of seafood stock (seasoned and boiled lobster shells + shrimp shells)
(3) cups of light cream (or heavy cream if you so desire)
(6) strips of bacon, cut into small pieces
(4) cloves of garlic, halved not chopped
(1) pound of large shirmp, de-veined and halved
(4) medium-large yukon gold potatoes, cubed
(1) large onion finely chopped
woooorcestershire sauce
tabasco sauce
(2) sprigs of thyme
(1) tbsp Old Bay seasoning
(1) tbsp Salt
Pepper

In a pot, cook finely cut bacon until almost brown, remove from heat and disgard all but one tablespoon of the bacon fat, set the bacon aside. Put pot back on the burner and add in onions and sautee until transluscent, add bacon back in and sautee for another 2-3 mins, do not burn bacon to a crisp. Season with salt, back pepper. Add in seafood stock and bring to a simmer. While it's coming to temp, peel & cut potatoes into small cubes.

Add in can of corn (with liquid), garlic, thyme, salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon tabasco and woooorcestershire sauces and bring to a gentle boil. Add in cans of crab with juices, and potatotes and let simmer for 30-40 mins. While soup is simmering, peel, de-vein and halve shrimp. Add in light cream, old bay and shrimp, bring back up to a light simmer for 15 mins. You may need to skim the top of the soup as needed.

Cook up some more bacon and crumble on top, serve with some warm delicious bread on a cold day.

Auriane's Mom's Leek and Potato Soup

2008-12-03T19:25:00.000-08:00

this is what my friend Auriane wrote me to inspire me this month:

Hello love,

Well, with your time off, I thought you could use a few cooking inspirations... I think you should create a healthy (maybe even use the Cuisinart to finely grind broccoli and add a bit) leek and potato soup with bacon for your current challenge. Bacon would compliment leek and potato so well, dontcha think? The soup comes out a lovely creamy green, and tastes like heaven. Very soothing, especially in the winter time. Is it cheating to use a recipe? Because my mom has a great one, if you need.

Love,
Auriane

and so that is what i made...

Auriane's Mom's Leek and Potato Soup
copied and pasted from email

2 medium leeks, 2 medium peeled potates in bite size chunks, 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil, 4 cups of chicken broth (bouillon cubes broth is fine).

Cut off ends and tough green parts of leek. I just use the white part, with about an inch of the green part. French from the countryside often use the whole leek, and just cook longer, but I think the tough leaves are bitter tasting. Slice leeks sideways to rinse very thoroughly and get out all sand/dirt (this is the only hard part of leek soup). Slice into 1/2 inch rounds, and saute in butter or olive oil over medium heat until the leeks begin to change color slightly (they'll get brighter). Do not brown them! Add the potatoes and saute for another minute or two, stirring. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, cover and cook until potatoes are tender about 15 minutes. You can eat it this way, or put it in a blender or cuisinart to make a delicious cream soup--don't over process. It's yummy to sprinkle with pepper and stir in a big spoon of fresh cream or sour cream in the bowl.

verdict:
j'adore this soup. it did not come out green tho. i didn't add broccoli and use the greens of the leeks. i actually have a container in the freezer for consumption later this month. and of course, i added some bacon on top.

stay warm out there doorknobs, it's effing cold!

November theme ...

2008-11-05T11:22:00.000-08:00

Fall is upon us, tis the season to waffle in those delicious fall spices and enjoy a warm bowl of soup when coming in from the brisk air.

This month's theme is Soups, bacon required. That's right, your soup must contain bacon someway shape or form.

Due date: December 7th.

Party on peeps!

Breakfast for Dinner

2008-11-02T17:08:00.000-08:00

Let me begin by saying...I AM SO FULL. I started this challenge with three "nevers". I've never made homemade pancakes. I've never made hollandaise sauce and I've never had eggs benedict. I accomplished all three tonight.

Matt and I were very pleased with everything this evening. Lucky for us there are plenty of leftovers and I believe I'll be having this again tomorrow night!

Making eggs benedict was much easier than I assumed. Poached eggs are now on the top of my list. I've been watching Food Network for a while now so I had a pretty good idea on the how to's including the splash of vinegar in the water. The hollandaise sauce was simple as well. You just have to keep your eye on it. But who knew that just a couple of ingredients would create such a lovely yellow concoction.

The pancakes were pretty good as well. I kept them in a warmed oven until we were ready to eat so i think that toughened them just a tad. However, the topping I made for it....HEAVEN! It was a stick of softened butter (Paula Dean will love me now), three tablespoons of OJ concentrate and 1/3 cup of honey. Mix well and slather the cakes. I didn't think twice about that bottle of syrup. What's nice is that the butter mixture will go well on my english muffins.

I am pretty worn out b/c I've been up FOREVER and I'm stuffed so I'll pass on detailing the recipes. However, I'd be glad to share should anyone be interested.

Until next time fellow doorknobs keep those buns and ovens HOT!

banana-chocolate-waffle sandwich

2008-11-01T21:18:00.000-07:00

for this month's challenge, i knew i had to make a waffle sandwich. last month i happened to mention to jab about a waffle maker, i could've sworn he had one. as a surprise he bought me one! i was so excited. at first chance, i had to make use of my new kitchen toy.

naturally, i made my roommate sous chef. and we had breakfast for dinner. the poor girl had no idea what to do. i like to think that am helping her ... not only in feeding her but also giving her tips in the kitchen.

the waffles came out well. i am not much of a waffle person but i did enjoy the process of making the batter and using my new maker. i included a side of corned beef hash (crystal's favorite) and topped it with a sunny side up egg (my fave).

it felt like a slightly rushed breakfast/dinner. we were busy eatting but taking turns getting up every so often to check on the waffle maker. we ended up with quite a bit of waffles that i subsequently reheated for breakfast that week. not complaining!

for "dessert" i made my waffle sandwich. sliced bananas and spread of nutella chocolate on both waffles. it was so decadent. everything i thought it was going to be when i first saw its creation.

i thought of making up another batch of waffles, and this time making a savory sandwich, similar to the McGriddle. i probably will when i have more time but for now, the waffle maker is on the kitchen counter, next to the coffee maker. it's still too new of a toy to put away. :)

Start the day off right!

2008-11-01T21:08:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love breakfast?

This month's challenge, I wanted to make a complete breakfast of delicious things I've tried in the past or things I've seen recently that I wanted to put a twist on. On the breakfast/brunch menu:

- Potato galette (not pastry kind)
- Spicy roasted pepper & prosciutto piperade omelette
- Peas and bacon
- Roasted garlic tomatoes

Potato galette:
- [Very] thinly sliced white/yukon gold potato
- Cheddar cheese
- Light cream
- Salt & pepper

In a bake proof frying pan (or bake-ware you can skip the fry part), line the pan with one layer of the potatoes. Sprinkle some salt, pepper and cheddar cheese. Top with another layer of potatoes and repeat. Complete with three layers. Place on stove top and fry on medium heat for about 7-8 mins, this will set the galette. Pour 1/3 cup light creme over top and add a bit more cheddar cheese. Place into 375 oven for 15 mins.

Spicy roasted pepper & prosciutto piperade omelette:
- Thinly sliced onions
- Thinly sliced mushrooms
- Prosciutto
- Roasted red pepper (coarsely chopped)
- 1 jalapeno pepper
- Salt
- Pepper
- 1 clove garlic

A piperade is a sautee mixture of peppers, onions, garlic, and tomatoes. I omitted the tomatoes in my recipe since I was going to be pairing roasted tomatoes. Crack three eggs and whisk with pepper and finely chopped jalapeno & garlic. Quickly saute onions, mushrooms in some olive oil, add in roasted red peppers as onions are almost complete. Add in beaten egg mixture (set burner to med-low). Allow omelette to set for a few minutes and then layer the slices of prosciutto on top of the omelette. Place the pan under a broiler for 3-4 mins.

Peas and bacon:
- 3 slices of bacon
- 1/2 cup sliced onion
- 1 package of frozen (or fresh) peas

Cut bacon into small pieces, and saute until brown. Add in onions and then peas.

Garlic roasted tomatoes:
- Sliced tomatoes
- Crush garlic
- Salt & Pepper
- Olive oil

place sliced tomatoes in a bake-safe dish, top with salt, pepper, garlic and olive oil. Bake for 15 mins at 375.

Most Important Meal of the Day

2008-10-02T18:15:00.000-07:00

This month's challenge.......(drum roll).....BREAKFAST/BRUNCH.

Let's go beyond scrambled eggs, bacon, and a burnt muffin. Let decadent ingrediants take over your kitchen. Lan, I realize you just did the caviar/egg dish, but there are other items to choose from. It can be one item or a complete meal....whatever you have time for. I think these days we're all pretty slammed with things to do.

I chose breakfast/brunch b/c it's my favorite meal. Sometimes I have breakfast items for dinner.

Good luck knobs!

Deadline: Nov 2

Hello Autumn!!

2008-09-28T16:25:00.000-07:00

Monday marked the first official day of Fall. Much to Lan's dismay this means crisp air, falling leaves, and football. But it also means soup! One of my favorite places to get a quick bowl of soup is McAlister's Deli. It's your average sandwich/salad, etc chain place, but they're not too bad! My friend Sallee and I looove to get the soup on a chilly day and have it served in a breadbowl. So, that's what I've chosen for this month's challenge: broccoli cheddar soup in a breadbowl. Naturally, the day I chose to make the soup it was 80 degrees.
Ingredient list:

1 bag frozen broccoli

3 or so cups of vegetable stock

2 cloves of garlic

1 sm yellow onion

salt and pepper

dash of nutmeg

sprinkle of thyme leaves

shredded cheddar cheese

couple pats of butter

flour

milk

round loaf of bread

The onion and garlic were chopped and dropped into a large stock pot with melted butter. I sauteed those for about 10 minutes. The onions and garlic were pushed to the side while I made a roux in the pot with butter and flour. after that cooked for a sec i mixed the onions in and then added the veggie stock. i let that simmer for a bit until it thickened. add stock as you see necessary. i like my soup thicker so i didn't add too much more. after the mixture thickened i added the broccoli, thyme and nutmet and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Why 30 minutes? i don't know. Just sounded good. Afterwards I transferred the mixture into the food processor to blend until smooth. Put it back in the pan, add about a 1/2 cup of milk, cream, whatever. I used half and half to save a few calories (plus i can use that for my mix drinks later on). Throw in some cheddar cheese and stir until it melts.

I took the round bread loaf and hollowed it out saving the torn bread for dunking. Ladle the soup and enjoy!

Until next time fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

Bringing my favorites home ...

2008-09-27T19:02:00.000-07:00

I've been insanely busy lately and when I get insanely busy, I always end up at my local favorite stand-by. Papa Razzi. Papa Razzi is part of a group of Boston restaurants run by the Back Bay Restaurant Group that includes italian, seafood, american bistro, steak, and (my most favorite after Papa Razzi) french bistro.

I've tried a number of things on the menu and have thoroughly enjoyed them all but my favorite meal typically begins with a caprese salad, followed up by mozzarella fritta, completed by penne con pollo.

For this month's challenge, I decided to recreate those dishes, nix the caprese (fresh mozzarella + heirloom tomatoes + basil)

Mozzarella fritta:

fresh mozzarella, sliced and patted to remove excess water
flour
eggs
milk
panko bread crumbs
parmesan cheese
salt, pepper
olive oil (or canola for frying)

Create a dredging station, first dredging plate should be flour, second should be (1) large egg + small bit of milk whisked, third plate should be panko breadcrumbs combined with 1/3 cup parmesan cheese + salt + pepper.

Dredge the sliced mozzarella and then bring (1) cup of oil to temperature. Fry on medium high heat until golden brown. I typically serve with some marinara sauce (always have some in the fridge) and maybe some fresh basil.

I also made penne con pollo. This is a delicious, simple recipe of penne (or ziti) sauteed with juicy delicious chicken, asparagus, plum tomatoes, garlic white wine & butter sauce.

Penne con pollo:

1-lb chicken breast (or tenders)
Asparagus
(4) plum tomatoes
(3) cloves garlic, sliced
Penne or ziti
Salt + pepper
Crushed dried red pepper
(3) tbsp butter
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tsp paprika

Cut chicken into 1" pieces, combine with some olive oil, pepper, paprika. Boil ziti/penne. In a saute pan, saute the pieces of chicken until seared/slightly brown. Add in garlic and saute for one-minute. Add in cut asparagus, tomatoes and continue to saute for 2 minutes. Add in wine, butter, salt + pepper. Tomatoes will break down, sauce will thicken, add in sprinkle of dried red pepper before serving.

I'm glad I took the time to participate this month given my insane schedule, the dishes turned out terrific and it was mentally relaxing.

my take on a My Thai appetizer

2008-09-25T17:48:00.000-07:00

i remember as a child thinking it was rather normal for peter or my mother to go out to the garage and do the frying out there. the times that they had to do quick stir fries in the house, it was also very normal for one of them to yell out for me to haul ass upstairs to shut all the bedroom doors to keep the food fumes out. i found myself doing the same thing today. the hauling ass to shut all the bedroom doors. also, this month's challenge taught me a lesson. it taught me that i am not a fryer. the splatter of the oil and working fast bit, not fun. however, the end product was worth it.

my thai is a thai/sushi restaurant in mt. vernon. i've been there a number of times. and each time i've had their Crispy Green Beans. sometimes i think about it. i think about how crispy and hot that first bite is. i also think about the fact that the green beans are always still green and moist on the inside, but the outter layer is golden brown. and from the moment i tasted this appetizer i knew i had to re-create it.

and that is why i made it this month's theme.

My My Thai Crispy Green Beans
green beans, probably 1/2 lb
tempura batter, follow package instructions
oil for deep frying
2 tbls oyster sauce
1/2 tsp garlic chili

deep fry the green beans til golden brown, it's ok if they stick together. be sure to place on towels to drain excess oil. (i kept it warm in the oven while i finished off the batch.) once all fried up and dried up, place in serving dish, drizzle with the oyster sauce and chili. how simple is that? how incredibly awful for your hips is that???

with a dish like this, doorknobbin is a tad bit more challenging but i'm totally up for it! :)

Happy Doorknobbin' Hookers!

September : Restaurant Month

2008-08-29T15:54:00.000-07:00

this month's theme challenge is inspired by my subscription to Bon Appétit. actually, i don't subscribe anymore. i wish i could but i end up with piles of all these mags, doggy earred pages and they take up too much space. plus, with the plethora of online food bloggers/community, why pay? however, i am a tad bit burned out with the world wide web and i'd like to scale it back. to the point of unless i'm part of an blogging event that requires me to use an online recipe, for the month of September i will only be using recipes from cookbooks, magazines or what grandma tells me. i encourage you to do the same.

having said that, there's a section in Bon Appétit where readers can ask the magazine for recipes of dishes from their fave restaurants. that got me thinking. there are plenty of dishes i've had at random restaurants that i'd love to recreate at home. and so this month's theme: a dish (or two or three) from whatever restaurant(s), remake it at home. Be sure to include where the dish(es) came from!

Deadline: September 28th.

Til then, Happy Doorknobbin Bitches!

Sizzlin' in August

2008-08-29T13:49:00.000-07:00

Matt and I love to grill during the warmer months so I was pretty excited when this challenge was announced. We have a charcoal grill so things usually take a little longer for us. That's ok though. It gives us time to chill outside, drink cold beer and watch Elvis chase the birds.

I originally started out doing Steak Quesadillas with an avocado salsa. What I ended up with was a very large steak burrito instead.

First things first: light the grill. Apparently I got the wrong kind of charcoal so it took Matt a sec to get it going, but he succeeded.

Actually lighting the grill was second. I started out by marinating a big steak. I got a large plastic bag and filled it with the following: lime juice, cayenne pepper, garlic chunks, cumin, and chili powder. I covered the steak well in those ingredients and let it sit for about 2 hours. While it marinated I made the av-tomato salsa.

I simply cut up a few roma tomatoes and a large avocado (maybe two i can't remember). i mixed in fresh cilantro, garlic, lime juice, s&p. fresh and delish. (good job on yours lan!!)

Next came the veggies. I cut up onion and green pepper, made a tin foil pouch to place them in, added s&p, a little EVOO, and set them on the grill to cook until tender.

Time for the steak to hit the heat:

And now for the tortillas.....they don't need to be on the grill for too long. Just long enough to get a few char marks and get toasty.

I sliced the steak into long strips and we piled the meat, veggies, sour cream, and salsa into our tortillas. I really enjoyed this dish. Matt REALLY enjoyed the dish. In his opinion the marinade made all the difference in the world...it had a nice heat w/out being too hot to eat. It was extremely tender as well.
Until next time, fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and oven hot!

tex-mex burger

2008-08-25T16:52:00.000-07:00

i have to say i am not a fan of mexican food. i'm just not. i could use a taco or some nachos every once in awhile but yeah. it's not my favorite cuisine. whatevs. this month i made two mexican/latino inspired dishes. i think i've hit my quota for the year.

i remembered an episode of Simply Delicioso: Ingrid Hoffman where she made latin burgers. i decided to make burgers but used ground chicken and seasoned the meat with taco seasoning. you can either grill or pan-fry the burgers. to be on the safe side, i cooked these burgers very well done, just cus they were chicken. i did use the idea of caramelized onions on top. next, rather than the extra carbs of hamburger buns, i used a slice of texas toast. along with the onions, i topped the burgers with sliced avocados and drizzled the entire pile with salsa. for a side, i made a cucumber, tomato and avocado salad with cilantro dressing. the entire thing, surprisingly, was delicious.

Cucumber, Tomato, & Avocado Salad with Cilantro Dressing
cut up the cukes, tomatos and avocados into small bite size pieces. put in bowl, season with salt and pepper. for the dressing, chop up cilantro and mix in olive oil and red wine vinegar. mix it all together.

happy doorknobin!

Pork, the other white meats.

2008-08-24T18:54:00.000-07:00

Pork is delicious, pork is very delicious when it's cooked low and slow. The smell should stick to the insides of your nostrils as the sweet brown sugar and spices waffles from your grill into your house. Pulled pork BBQ tacos with homemade salsa, cucumber salad and spicy black beans. As a snack, I also made jalapeno corn bread muffin pork sandwiches. Sorry, if there's a few different pieces to this entry, I was hungry.

Slow roasted pork butt:

Pork butt (or pork shoulder)
Dry rub (brown sugar, garlic powder, black pepper, red pepper flakes, paprika, onion salt, parsley flakes, chili powder, mustard powder) ... proportions to preference - about 2tbsp each except brown sugar, use 4tbsp.

Dry rub the pork butt the night or day before. Place in a ziploc bag and refrigerate overnight. Take out of fridge and let come to room temp, about 30 mins. Place on a medium-hot grill and sear both sides, 2-3mins each side. Place on far side of grill, indirect heat (maintain grill temp between 200-225 degrees) and cook for 5-6 hours. Alternatively if you don't want to maintain a grill for that long, you can place into an oven at 200 degrees for 6 hours, covered. Buy or make your favorite BBQ sauce (for later)

First on the menu my jalapeno corn bread pork snackers:

Cornbread (1c cornmeal, 1/2c flour, 1tbsp sugar, 1tsp baking powder, 1tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 2 eggs, 1c buttermilk, a couple of finely chopped jalapeno's/habanero's)
Bake at 400 degree for 12-15 mins, until golden brown, let cool
Slice in half, top with pulled pork (place hunk of pork in a bowl, add in a heaping tablespoon of BBQ sauce, pull)
Eat.

For my dish, I decided to combine my enjoyment of BBQ foods and mexican foods ...

For homemade salsa, use a 3-2-1 recipe:

3-parts tomatoes, 2-parts jalapenos, 1-part onion, +cilantro, +pinch of salt
I actually use about 10-12 roma tomatoes, 6-8 jalapeños + 1 habanero, 1/2 bunch of cilantro, half a large yellow/vidalia onion, salt, small squeeze of lime
Put through mini-chopper, combine
Eat (with chips if you like).

Hot spicy black beans:

1/2 Finely chopped onion
1 finely chopped jalapeno
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp red pepper flakes
black pepper
1/2 cup water
1 can black beans
Sautee first (5) ingredients, add in beans and water, simmer on low until most of water has evaporated
Eat.

Cucumber salad:

Thinly sliced cucumber
Thinly sliced daikon radish
1 cup water
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 habanero's
2 jalapeno's
1 big mason jar
Bring water to boil, add in vinegar and sugar, turn off heat and allow sugar to dissolve
Put sliced cucumbers and radish into jar in addition to rough slices jalapeno and habanero along with a few peppercorns, pour vinegar mixture into jar
Place in fridge for 5 days.
Eat.

Finished product, pork in flour tortilla's topped with salsa, cucumbers, and beans:

Ready, set, GRILL!

2008-07-31T06:43:00.000-07:00

Ok ... August is winding down the summer, although you folks in the south seem to have extended summers August is unofficially the last month of summer, well that's how I think of it because I used to have to go back to school in September.

I love mexican food. I love grilling and BBQ. August challenge is tex-mex-grill (that is, make something tex-mex and add in the element of grilling part or all of it)

We all know mexican food typically consist of 6 ingredients assembled in one of 14 ways, but I am sure we all can come up with a few new nuances to your standard Mexican plate.

Deadline is August 31st. Viva la revolucion!

HI-YA!! Battle Meatloaf!

2008-07-30T20:41:00.000-07:00

Well, isn't this coincidental. I started cooking tonight, without checking in on the site and low and behold, Kelcy beat me to the punch line. It's ok - we all have our favorites and sometimes they coincide, meatloaf is just warm comfortable food. I'm not sure why I like meatloaf so much, I think it has to do with the fact that my parents always made me Nem Nuong when I was a kid, I consider it a bit of a Vietnamese derivative of American meatloaf, except the consumption medium is slightly different with rice paper and trimmings. When I went away to college, I missed Nem Nuoung and at the time, I happen to find a new love for American meatloaf. It's since stuck. Whether it's frigidly cold up here in Boston or the warmth of the summer heat, I'll still enjoy it. I use a relatively standard recipe as follows:

1 green (or red) bell pepper finely chopped
1 medium onion (sweet vidalia) finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic

Take the above three ingredients and I like to run it through a mini food chopper/processor instead of hand chopping for a fine chop. Take the ingredients and gently saute them in a pan with olive oil on medium/low heat until a fair amount of the moisture is cooked off. This should take about 7-10 mins. Let cool while combining the following ingredients in a bowl:

1lb of ground beef
2 eggs
1 cup plain bread crumbs (or half and half plain and italian)
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp baking soda
2 tbsp finely chopped parsley
1 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp black pepper
1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper

Mix the above ingredients along with the saute mixture into a bowl, thoroughly combine/mix (using your hands are best). At this point you can place into a loaf pan, but I prefer to just form a loaf on a baking sheet, bake at 375 degrees for 50-60 mins. About 30-40 mins into the cooking process, top the meatloaf with the red sauce below.

While meatloaf is cooking, make a simple chunky red sauce with:

1 large can whole tomatoes
1 large vidalia onion very roughly chopped
1 small can tomato paste
6-8 garlic cloves
water
salt
pepper
sugar

Take onions and saute in olive oil for a few mins, until slightly cooked, while they are cooking, open can of whole tomatoes and rough chop into chunks. Add chopped tomatos to sauteed onions in addition to tomato paste and garlic cloves. Add 1.5 cups of water. Salt, pepper, and about 1 tbsp of sugar to taste. The sauce should be simple and fast to make as well as chunky and delicious.

When the meatloaf is done, I sometimes serve it up with a side of gamelli or cellentani with tomato sauce topped and a simple spinach and tomato side salad with balsamic vinaigrette.

What REALLY makes my day isn't the above plate, I just make the meatloaf as an excuse to really have meatloaf ... the day after - and how I really enjoy a good meats-loafs. Get a chewy/crusty loaf of italian bread, lightly butter one side and place into a fry-pan. Next place a few slices of pepper-jack cheese (yes, that hot spicey jacky-stuff), a slice of meatloaf a dollop of tomato sauce, a few basil leaves, another few slices of cheese and the other slice of bread. Lightly fry 3-4 each side, cheese will be gooey, and I enjoy with a side of sauce to dip in. Ok, I'll admit it's not the most calorie conscious sandwich, but make one and you'll understand.

This ain't your momma's meatloaf

2008-07-30T17:54:00.000-07:00

One meal that always fills my belly is meatloaf with mashed potatoes. now, the thought of packing meat into a loaf pan is just....weird. it doesn't seem right. and sometimes it's weird to me that i even dig this meal so much due to growing up a vegetarian. even know i eat minimal meat. anyway, so that is my comfort meal. my go to dinner when i want to eat something hearty. however, now that i'm kicking 30 up the wahoo and constantly watching the scales (except for bakery tour days) i don't make it the old fashioned way with beef and potatoes and all the good stuff. instead i've taken the lighter route.

instead of beef i used ground turkey. here's what i added to the meat for some extra flavor:
-crimini mushrooms
-1/2 onion
-red pepper flakes
-garlic
-sea salt and pepper
-handful of bread crumbs

i always put a glaze on top. there is no recipe for it. i throw ketchup, brown sugar, and worcestershire into a bowl and mix. i taste and add what i feel is necessary. sometimes i add spices, but tonight i kept it at these three ingredients.

i put the meat mixture in the pan, topped it with the glaze, covered with foil and baked @ 350 for 35 minutes. i don't know where i got 35 minutes but it seems good. once it's cooked i take off the foil and put it back in the oven with the heat off just to brown the top a bit.

ok, so on to the mashed potatoes. i do love a tater. but i needed something tonight that wouldn't stick to my gut for the next 2 days. my twist is to use cauliflower. here's what i did:

-steamed 1 head of cauliflower
-heated a little 1/2 and 1/2 with butter in a pan
-once the cauliflower is cooked, i put it in my mixer and added the butter/cream mixture.

true, they're not JUST LIKE mashed tates, but omg, i love it. add some sea salt with pepper and that's good eats.

i needed a vegetable so i did something that Lan actually taught me....the avocado salad. i changed it up a bit from what she showed me waaaay back in the day. i chopped an avocado and a yellow tomato. i added some grey salt, pepper, lemon juice and touch of extra light evoo. delish.

so while it's not your traditional meatloaf comfort meal, it's certainly delicious and better for you. matt even went in for a second helping.

dessert:

i had to add my hot cocoa drink to this even though it's probably the most simple things. however, this is the drink i adore. when it's cold out it warms my bones. i don't make it so much in the summer b/c it's sweltering out, but tonight i did just for you guys! i'm not sure what makes it so special to me except that it could be what relaxes me so well....especially when i'm snuggled under an electric blanket.

tres simple recipe. i add milk to a small saucepan (medium low heat please!), 2 tb of unsweetened cocoa, 2 tb of sugar (or add more if you like it sweeter). mix that up, heat it through. meanwhile, add a hefty shot of Irish Cream to your mug. and by hefty i do mean 1/4 of the way up. ok, not that much, but make sure you can taste it. add the chocolately mixture to the mug once heated through and enjoy. i don't add whip cream or anything like that usually. a little too much in my opinion.

so that's it. i'm stuffed, but feeling good and i believe i'm ready to snuggle in and get some sleep. until we meet again fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

ode to my grandparents

2008-07-30T06:36:00.000-07:00

so big k's theme for the month had me slightly stumped. there are so many different foods that warm my soul. so i decided to pull up memories of some pretty important people in my life. i was raised by my paternal grandparents until i was about 10 or 11. they are a comfort to my soul. it is because of grandpa that i love swiss cheese, mama celeste pizza, and sour apple jolly ranchers. it is because of grandma that i love spicey food, pâté, wonton soup, and phở . i remember weekend mornings having breakfast with them. grandma would warm up a mug of milk for me, and grandpa would sneak a spoonful of sugar in. there'd be sliced oranges or ritz crackers to munch on. as i got older, grandpa would take me to pastry shops and always, always, always he would get me a napoleon. i would sit at the table and happily eat my pastry while he sipped his coffee and smoked his cigarette. grandma was no slouch. she made cream puffs for me. that stuff was so good! i was called bánh bèo face for a good reason.

so i decided to make a hybrid of both pastries. i'd make the body of the cream puff but use the napoleon cream and icing. that's my twist.

the batter was a bitch to stir. this was before i added eggs. i just hate babysitting at the stove, it's not my favorite.

once the eggs were fully incorporated in the batter, it became slightly too pliable for my liking. the whole piling it high up etc is a crock. don't sweat it.

the first batch, i followed the recipe to a T. i reduced temp, turned oven off, ignored the puffs and they came out hard. they smelled good tho, exactly like how i remember them to smell.

the second batch came out much better, i ix-nayed the whole 20 minute wait in the turned off oven. eff that.

the Napoleon cream filling came out well, taste wise. but in retrospect, i should've done a cream puff filling. the napoleon cream filling is to be spread between layers. whatever, it still tasted good.

verdict: a lot of work that really, helped me keep my mind off random drama. i'll definitely make these pastries again, just not combined. my new roommate Crystal was tastetester and she had 3!

For the Cream Puffs, i used this recipe.
For the Cream Filling and icing, i used this recipe.

Challenge: Soul Food

2008-06-22T04:43:00.001-07:00

By soul food I do not mean collards, fried chicken, and grape soda. Show us your comfort foods, what makes you feel better after a rough day, but give it a unique twist.

Deadline: July 31

Good luck fellow knobs!

Bringing the yellows of summer.

2008-06-15T18:09:00.000-07:00

So, I started thinking about this challenge a few weeks ago and earlier this week (sorry for the delayed post, but it's still on the deadline!) and came up with a plethora of ideas for Yellow recipes ... alas I decided on one that would help ring in the warm weather and tastes of summer.

I decided to make Chilled Yellow Tomatoe Soup with Garlic Brioche and Grilled Shrimp. It's quite easy, as long as you've got all the ingredients prep'd ahead of time.

First, make a simple cilantro vinaigrette (pepper, honey, mustard, oil, white vinegar, cilantro) and marinate the shrimp, set aside.

While the shrimp are marinating, grill up some corn, follow Kelcy's recipe below, or just as simple, take some ears of corn, wrap in foil and throw on the grill for 15 mins, remember to turn.

You can set the corn aside as you prep the rest of the dish. Take (3) medium (to large) yellow tomatoes along with (3 or 1.5 regular cukes) pickling cukes (peel and remove all seeds of the cukes) and place into a blender, cut cukes and tomatoes into small pieces to make the blending process easier. To this blended mixture, you will add: 1.5 tbsp white vinegar, 1 tbsp garlic chili sauce, 2 tsp worcestershire sauce, 2 tsp salt, cracked black pepper. Blend to combine.

Take a piece of crusty bread (rustic italian, sourdough, etc) and make a garlic brioche by sprinkling some olive oil, garlic powder, pepper, & paprika and then grilling/toasting under a broiler.

Take the marinated shrimp and grill for 1-min on each side.

To complete the assembly, ladle the tomato puree into a soup bowl, place the brioche in the center, top with grilled shrimp and corn and garnish with finely chopped cilantro, jalapeno, and a small amount of red-tomato.

Challenge Yellow

2008-06-15T14:53:00.000-07:00

I chose to do three items for our first showdown. I did this b/c my items were very simple so I had the time.

The first is corn on the cob. Easy? Yes. However, my method of cooking the cob was not the traditional boiling pot of water. I cooked my ears on the grill. We were already grilling out so I thought, what the heck? To do this you simply peel back (but not off) the husks, remove the silt and soak the corn for about thirty minutes in water. This helps to steam and prevent the ears from burning. Pull the husks around the corn tightly. Put them on the grill for about 30 minutes and you're done. No aluminum foil needed.

To add a kick I softened one stick of butter and added two crushed cloves of garlic and a hunk of gorgonzola cheese. I loved it, however, I think Matt could have done without the gorgonzola part in the butter.

My next item was lemonade. Again, easy. I did not use a powder mix. Mine was fresh squeezed. I started with simple syrup of one cup of water and one cup of sugar. It was a tad sweet so I would suggest using a smaller amount of sugar. I juiced 5 large lemons through a sieve (b/c I hate pulp), added the simple syrup, and 4 cups of water. omg. SO good! Just for giggles, I added a shot of Southern Comfort to our glasses. You have an instant Soco-laide. It takes a little bit of time to squeeze the lemons, but it's sooo worth it.

Last but not least....dessert. I chose a panna cotta recipe that Lan and I did before and altered the ingredients. Espresso Panna Cotta

Instead of the espresso I went with a vanilla flavor dish with lemon whipped topping. For the whipped topping I added lemon zest and a bit of the juice along with a little bit of sugar. Delicious!

This was a fun challenge. Although I went tres simple I thoroughly enjoyed my dishes. Until we meet again, fellow doorknobs, keep those buns and ovens hot!

Angry Asian's Yellow Fever

2008-06-12T08:21:00.000-07:00

i made two dishes. because i felt like it.

the first dish was polenta. i'd never made it before, nor had i ever tasted it so i figured i'd learn something in the process. furthermore, i knew it was a soft food which we all know i'm a big fan of right now due to the grill.

i used instant polenta mix, just followed the package directions, only i added a cup of heavy cream to thicken the mixture a bit and make it smoother. i quickly spread the polenta onto a greased rimmed baking dish, evenly distributing it. then i set it aside to cool. i had a few items in the fridge i wanted to get rid of. i made a simple roasted red pepper jam, basil pesto chicken salad and regular chicken salad. once the polenta was cool enough to handle, i used a flower cookie cutter to shape little appetizer sized portions and added a dollop of whatever topping on top. it tasted ok, i don't have anything to compare it to but i thought it was pretty to look at.

the second dish was citrus semifreddo that i saw Giada make on her show Everyday Italian. Naturally, i had to change a few things in the recipe. rather than using amaretti cookies, i used molasses cookies (i'd never even heard of amaretti cookies and i couldn't find it in any of the stores i went to.) plus, i like molasses cookies. i also did not use limoncello, rather i used a mojito mix.

it came out ok. it melted the instant i took it out of the freezer so i had to move fast. jab taste tested it first, he said it was very lemon-y. he liked it but i know it's definitely not something he would normally eat. he said it reminded him of sorbet. he really liked the molasses topping.

i thought it was a nice snack to have, it's been hot all week. it's creamier than sorbet, a tad bit citrus-y. my roommate tasted it too, and noted the topping. (take that Amaretti cookies!) i don't think i'll be doing this recipe again, i did come across a mocha semifreddo that i'd like to give a whirl. i wish it didn't melt so quickly cus i'd take the rest of what i have leftover into work for my coworkers to devour. now i gotta eat it.

Citrus Semifreddo:

Nonstick cooking spray
4 ounces purchased amaretti cookies crushed (about 20 small cookies) plus more for sprinkling
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup
8 large egg yolks
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons limoncello
Pinch salt
1 lemon, zested 1 lime, zested
1 cup whipping cream

Spray a 9 by 5 by 3-inch metal loaf pan with nonstick spray. Line the pan with plastic wrap, allowing the excess to hang over the ends and sides. Combine the crushed amaretti cookies and the melted butter. Put in the lined pan and press down to firm and form a crust.

Whisk 1/2 cup of the sugar, the egg yolks, lemon juice, lime juice, limoncello, and salt in a large metal bowl to blend. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (do not allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water). Whisk the egg mixture until it is thick and creamy, and a thermometer inserted into the mixture registers 160 degrees F, about 5 minutes. Set the bowl of custard into another bowl of ice water to cool completely. Stir in the zest.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in another large bowl until firm peaks form. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold the whipped cream into the custard. Spoon the mixture onto the prepared crust. Fold the overhanging plastic wrap over the custard and freeze until frozen, at least 8 hours or up to 3 days.

Unfold the plastic wrap. Invert the semifreddo onto a platter and peel off the plastic wrap. Cut the semifreddo into 1-inch slices and sprinkle with crushed amaretti cookies and serve.

recipe courtesy of Giada de Laurentiis.

Happy Kitchen Doorknobbin'!

yellow for Brie

2008-06-01T14:06:00.000-07:00

This is an appeal on behalf of a group of food bloggers who are friends of Briana Brownlow @ Figs With Bri.

Bri was diagnosed with breast cancer two and half years ago. A mastectomy, chemotherapy and two years of relatively good health later, the cancer is back. It has metastasized to other parts of her body. At the age of 15, Bri lost her 41-year old mother to the disease. Now, she’s waging her own war against breast cancer. More about it here.

She is going through intensive chemo and other treatments and needs to focus single-mindedly on healing and finding what treatment works best for her. Her health insurance, unfortunately, does not cover holistic alternatives which she would like to try. Bri and her husband Marc have enough on their plates right now in addition to worrying about her medical bills.

The team organising the JUNE edition of CLICK at Jugalbandi has organised a fundraiser to help Bri and her family meet her out-of-pocket medical costs for ONE YEAR.

CLICK is a monthly theme-based photography contest hosted by Jugalbandi. This month’s theme is: YELLOW for Bri

Yellow is the colour of hope. Through the work of the LiveStrong Foundation, it has also come to signify the fight against cancer.

The entries can be viewed HERE. The deadline for entries is June 30, 2008. The fundraiser will extend until July 15, 2008.

The target amount is 12,000 U.S. dollars. We appeal to our fellow bloggers and readers to help us achieve this. Bri deserves a chance to explore all options, even if her insurance company thinks otherwise.

There’s a raffle with exciting prizes on offer. After viewing the list, you may make your donation HERE or at the Chip-In button on any participating site.

Your donation can be made securely through credit card or Pay Pal and goes directly to Bri’s account.

This month’s photo contest also has some prizes. Details HERE.

You can support this campaign by donating to the fundraiser, by participating in CLICK: the photo event, and by publicising this campaign.

:: Yellow Recruits ::

2008-05-17T06:33:00.000-07:00

i convinced my cousin Buu to partake in the smackdown. i'll have to remind her... often... of the deadline.

my other cousin Pat in boston wants to join in the fun too. he tried to bend the rule a bit and say well it's made by a yellow (asian) person, that doesn't count? what about a dish that originates from Asia and is for Asians? i wanted to cyber kick him in the nuts. the rules are simple. don't overanalyze it. then he tried get all Bobby Flay throwdown and wanted to know about prizes and winners. sigh. sometimes my pham-ily is just too much! :)

until we can figure out a way for the judges to be able to eat ALL the foods in every location (DC/Baltimore/Charlotte/Boston so far), there's no way to fairly judge so we'll keep it fun and SIMPLE for now.

so i leave with a cute pic of a yellow apron Buu made for me that i can't bear to get dirty in the kitchen. i don't want to have to DRY CLEAN the thing so it hangs on a hook in my living room for me to look admiringly at.

:: Mellow Yellow ::

2008-05-13T13:54:00.000-07:00

the task: Yellow is the color of the season. we also missed
Live Strong with a Taste of Yellow so we're going to create something in honor of our heritage.

deadline: June 15th.

happy doorknobbin in the kitchen!