Time Spent With Family

This past weekend, like most weekends, means time spent with family.  Yesterday, for us, was Easter and like most holidays in our household, this one was spent making dinner with my Mum and laughter with the family.  Breakfast consisted of mouth watering lemon Ebelskivers, savory carrot pancakes, Golden Baked ham and eggs.  Later in the day, my sister and I worked off breakfast with a game of tennis at the local park. While we were arriving children of all ages were gathering eggs that the park rangers hid throughout the park. Tennis was a sight to be seen and I'm glad no was there with a camera but it was loads of fun! Then as dinner time came, the whole process started again.  And to say the least, it was all delicious!

Ginger, Maple and Mustard-Glazed Tempeh- vegan and gluten-free.

I'm am absolutely loving vegan food.  Now I know by some vegan standards eating foods that have a similar texture to meat is considered a no-no.  But since I'm only a part-time vegan, I think it's OK especially if the recipe was created by my favorite the Spork Girl.  This recipe is so incredibly easy that one of the kids in my class could make it and they're only 4!

This is the mustard I used- so yummy!

Serves 4-6
2 (8 oz) packages soy tempeh
1 piece fresh ginger  (about 2 inches) peeled (I used ground ginger and felt it was just as tasty)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 C Olive Oil
1/4 C fresh lemon juice
2 T mustard, stone ground or German
3 T maple syrup
1 t salt
1/2 t red pepper flakes

Slice and steam the tempeh for about 5 minutes.

While steaming; mix ginger, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, maple syrup, salt and red pepper flakes.  Whisk until uniform.  Add steamed tempeh to the mixture.

Heat a pan over medium heat and pour tempeh and sauce into the pan (no extra oil is needed).  Cook for about 4 minutes on each side (I cooked these a little longer until they got a little crispy looking).  Flipping occasionally until the sauce has been absorbed.

Just poured sauce in

Sauce is bubbling away- not ready yet

Sauce is totally absorbed- Ready!

Fiery Dan Dan Noodles- improvised

Everyone who knows me, knows I'm IN LOVE with Jamie Oliver. If Jamie ever knocked on my door saying, "Kerry, I remember you from my book signing in 2003 in London and I haven't stopped thinking about you.  I will give up Jools if you say you'll be mine."  Ok, I'm in!  There's no doubt about it, not that I want to be a home wrecker or anything or wish that on anyone. I'm truly happy that he has found his soulmate and has 4 beautiful children (grumble, grumble).  But I'm sort of going off on a tangent here, so where was I.  Oh, yes... so tonight I made his Fiery Dan Dan Noodles recipe from his cookbook Jamie's America.  Except (always an except) I improvised a few things.  I don't eat red meat so I substituted salmon (slice the meat from the skin and cut into cubes; these will break up as you fry them with the vegetables).  Nor did I have any of the veggies found in his recipe.  So, I cut up one purple and one orange carrot (into coins, yes speaking like a true chef), some bell peppers in various colors (having an array of colors in your food is always fun) and sliced up some brussel sprouts (rather than making one cut down the center, I cut it like you would cut up a head of lettuce) to replace the bok choy.  For seasoning I added,  a little ginger, some Chinese Five Spice, a bit of Sumac (still don't really know what this spice does but I do like it), a wee bit of basil, some Old Bay and a new one called Marrakesh Za'atar (just wanted to see how this tasted).  I used buckwheat noodles and followed everything else from his recipe (oh, no garlic or onions but put them in if you like them).  Totally simple and quick!

Here's Jamies original recipe:

Recipe serves 4.

500g minced beef

2 tablespoons runny honey

500g wheat noodles

4 handfuls mixed green vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, bok choi, etc), cut into 1cm strips

4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

3 tablespoons dark soy sauce

2 teaspoons Szechuan pepper

4 tablespoons chilli oil

1 fresh red chilli, finely chopped (you might want to omit this if you don't have a good tolerance for chilli, as it's quite hot already if you only use the oil)

2 spring onions, trimmed and sliced

1 lime, quartered, to serve

• Throw the beef into a dry pan on a medium to high heat. Keep it moving about for about 10-15 minutes, or until it's becoming golden and crispy. Drain out any excess fat and stir in the honey, mixing it in well, and continue to heat for around 40 seconds. Remove the pan from the heat.
• Cook your noodles on the hob according to packet instructions. When they have about a minute to go, chuck in the green vegetables. They should be heated through but still really crunchy.
• Drain the noodles and vegetables in a colander. Tip them back into the hot pan with a mugful of water. Add the garlic, soy sauce, Szechuan pepper, chilli oil and fresh chilli. Give it all a good stir.
• Put the beef back on the heat for 30 seconds so it's piping hot.
• Divide the noodles into 4 bowls. Sprinkle the crispy beef on top. Throw on the spring onions and serve with a lime quarter.
  Enjoy!!

Tuesday Tunes- We're Cooking Now

I'm making a vegan chocolate cake for a potluck lunch at our school tomorrow, so cooking/baking is on my mind.  Hence the following songs...

I was looking for the version by Bing Crosby and Bob Hope but this is just as good. Take a guess as to why...

Just had to put this song up...

And last...

What's For Breakfast? Baked French Toast with Blueberries

I don't care what anyone says, there's nothing better than Mum's home cooking.  Whatever your age; to be greeted at the door with your Mum saying, "Guess what I made for you!"  I'm visiting my family for the weekend, they only live an hour north, so I'm blessed that I can visit anytime.  I think for most people, going home brings back days of yore when life was simpler and the only worry you had was what imagination game you were going to play that day.  This morning my Mum made Giada's Baked French Toast with Blueberries.  The golden brown top sparkling with cinnamon and sugar; the smell of sweet blueberries, divine;  the inside was so light and fluffy that it melted in your mouth with just a hint of lemon.  Give it ago this week and Enjoy!

Ingredients

• Butter, for greasing
• 6 eggs
• 3 cups whole milk
• 3/4 cup maple syrup, plus extra for serving
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus 1 tablespoon
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 lemon, zested
• 3 (1-inch thick) slices (8 ounces) day-old challah or sourdough bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 cups (12 ounces) fresh or frozen, thawed, and drained blueberries
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar

Directions

Place an oven rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking dish. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs until frothy. Add the milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, salt, and lemon zest. Add the bread cubes and mix until coated. Stir in the blueberries. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.

In a small bowl, mix together the remaining cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the egg mixture in an even layer. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until the top is golden and the filling is set.

Spoon onto serving plates and drizzle with maple syrup.

Two Potato Vindaloo- changed

I received the cookbook Plenty for Christmas and was very excited to try some of the recipes. Tonight I made the two potato vindaloo. Of course, I changed somethings, one being I'm cooking for only myself so I halved the recipe (maybe a little more than half). The second, I used half of a sweet potato, half of a small red potato and half of a small yellow potato.

I also added 1/4 of a small pumpkin, cut into one inch cubes. I didn't have any cider vinegar so I used pomegranate vinegar. The most amazing aroma wafted throughout my kitchen, when I added this! Last, I used red pepper flakes instead of chili, again just because I didn't have any in the house, about 2 Tablespoons of curry powder instead of the leaves and about a teaspoon of cardamom powder. Remember, when cooking for one person, use about half of the required measurement. These were the only changes I made. Oh, except I added whole wheat naan, not crazy about white rice. LOL! I mean if you want the starch... go for the Naan! The scent of curry and coriander still linger in my house, BTW. How I love that aroma!

Here is the original recipe:

The longer you let this curry sit, the deeper the flavours will become, so it's well worth making it in a larger quantity and refrigerating any excess for a later date. As always, thick, cool yogurt makes an excellent condiment. Serves four.

1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp coriander seeds
8 cardamom pods
½ tsp cloves
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 large shallots (about 150g each)
½ tsp brown mustard seeds
½ tsp fenugreek
25 curry leaves
2 tbsp chopped ginger
1 red chilli, finely chopped
3 ripe tomatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 C cider vinegar
1 3/4 C water
1 tbsp caster sugar
Salt
2 1/2 cups (net weight) waxy potato, peeled and cut into 2.5cm dice
2 small red peppers, cored and cut into 2cm dice
2 1/2 cups (net weight) sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2.5cm dice
Mint or coriander leaves, to serve

Dry-roast the cumin, coriander and cardamom in a small frying pan until they begin to pop. Transfer to a mortar, add the cloves and work with a pestle to a fine powder, discarding the cardamom skins once the seeds are released. Add the turmeric, paprika and cinnamon, and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pot. Add the shallots, mustard seeds and fenugreek, and sauté on high heat for eight minutes, or until the shallots brown. Stir in the curry leaves, ginger, chilli and ground spices, and cook for another three minutes.

Add the tomatoes, vinegar, water, sugar and some salt, bring to a boil and leave to simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Add the potatoes and peppers, and simmer for another 20 minutes. Now add the sweet potatoes, make sure all the vegetables are just immersed in the sauce (add more water if needed) and continue cooking, covered, for about 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Remove the lid and leave to bubble away for about 10 minutes, to reduce and thicken the sauce.

Serve hot with plain rice and garnished with the herb leaves.

• Yotam Ottolenghi is chef/patron of Ottolenghi in London.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Right now I'm going to sound like Sally Albright from "When Harry met Sally" because I'm going to tell you some things I did different for this recipe.  First, the recipe I used was for pumpkin risotto but I used butternut squash instead.  Second, it was one I wrote down from who knows where, so I found an easier one (www.marthastewart.com).  But that's not all I changed.  Oh, no....   To make the butternut squash really tasty, ROAST it rather than cooking in the saucepan.  I mean, it probably is good but it has more flavor when roasted. (roast at 400 degrees until fork tender (and don't be doing yoga while doing this part).  I also sprinkled the cut-up squash with salt, pepper, thyme and some rosemary.

When it came to cooking the risotto, I seasoned my oil with some more thyme, tarragon and some shallots.  Also I did not add the squash until half-way through cooking the risotto.

Make sure you heat your stock (you can use vegetable stock instead of chicken).  Also when the risotto is at the creamy stage (which is when the risotto is al dente), remove from heat and add 1-2 Tablespoons of butter.  (This is a tip from Jamie Oliver)

Last, I added some cooked pancetta.  YUMMM!

The rest of the steps can be found in the recipe below.  Also I don't add the extra salt, I find the pancetta and parmesan give it enough saltiness.

Rather than adding the squash at the end, we cooked it with the Arborio rice; the squash softens during cooking and makes the dish sweeter.

Everyday Food, October 2004

• Prep Time1 hour
• Total Time1 hour
• YieldServes 4

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth, mixed with 1/2 cup water and heated
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish

Directions

1. In a medium heavy-bottom saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add squash; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until edges soften, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Add rice; stir to coat. Add wine; cook until almost all liquid has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low; add 1/2 cup hot broth mixture. Cook, stirring, until almost all liquid is absorbed. Add remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until liquid is absorbed before adding more, 35 to 40 minutes total.
4. Stir in Parmesan, sage, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Serve immediately, garnished with more Parmesan and sage, if desired.

Whole Living -- Whole Living Challenge of the Day

Ok, I'm going to come right out and say it, I have some stomach issues. But I think I may know the reason why but since I'm not a doctor nor do I play one of TV, I'm not going to self-diagnose. Anyway, I have two friends who are vegans. To me the thought of not being able to eat eat the sweets that I love keeps me from going in this direction. But last week, I took a vegan cooking class and boy was I surprised! Not only were the meals Fabulous! But I didn't have one single stomach problem!! So when I came across this article from Whole Living, I just thought I should share it with everyone. Enjoy!

click on the link...
Whole Living -- Whole Living Challenge of the Day