Qi

Qi is a Lapsang Souchong based liqueur made by the good folks at Hangar One Vodka. If you have not tried Lapsang Souchong tea, I insist you run out and try it. Now. I'll wait.

Lapsang Souchong is a black tea that has been smoked within an inch of its life. Out of the box it smells like a campfire. Prepared with a touch of Agave, its reasonable substitute for coffee. As a base for a liqueur mixed with Lillet Blanc, Vodka, Orange and Peychaud bitters, its fanstastic.

Here is the current blueprint for a QiTini, which has been mostly a hit with the 'less sweet' martini crowd.

• 1.25 Qi Black


• 1 Vodka


• 1 Lillet Blanc


• 1/3 Agave


• Dash Orange Bitters


• Dash Peychaud Bitters

Shake with ice and strain.

Tropical Infusion

Does anyone else hate store bought infused vodka? I've tried just about every brand but they all wind up tasting artificial. And I mean cleaning agent mixed with KoolAid kind of artificial. In my quest to have a tropical infused vodka for the pending Costa Rica get together, I decided to experiment with making them myself.

Here's what I've learned so far in a few pioneering efforts.

First, for tropical flavor I thought pineapple and papaya. Yum, that sounds good! I ran the idea by the Indian Culinary Academy (aka, the ladies that I work with) and they suggested maybe mixing in a bit of basil, cilantro or mint. Ooooh, that sounds even better! Hmmm, with all those ingredients I have 5 factorial combinations. Better trim it down. Pineapple, papaya and cilantro. Yes, thats it!

Click, basic research on the web for technique. Zip, over to Fiesta for fruits and herbs. Bing, over to Specs for vodka. Ohh, the vodka ailse is next to the scotch ailse and I've recently become curious about scotch so I diverted. But the resident Scotch Guy decided to give me a disseration on the many merits of oak casking before sherry casking and which exactly was the best of the infinite number of regions in Scotland for scotch production. I finally termed the monologue by telling Scotch Guy that I was a scotch neophyte and that at this point in my education, all scotch tasted like someone had put out a cigar in a cup of whiskey.

But I digress.

Zoom, over to Sur La Table to pick up some glass infusion containers for the experiments. It is always surprising when there is something kitchen related that I don't already have. Funny how often I'm surprised.

Really, there isnt much to making an infusion. Cut up the fruit. Wash, dry and crush the herbs lightly, then mix them in a container with vodka. Close and set in a dark cool place for a week. Drain through a fine mesh strainer. Then again through a coffee filter. Presto, infusion!


Tropical Vodka Infusions

Since the infusions matured today, lets go over the results.

Pineapple Cilantro
[1C pineapple, 1C vodka, 1/4C loosely packed cilantro - 7 days infusion time]

Wow, great flavor! The cilantro is a little strong but I bet it will mix well with a little pineapple juice and ice. Keeper, maybe cut back a little on the cilantro.

Pineapple
[1C pineapple, 1C vodka - 7 days infusion time]

Sit down before trying, whoa, intensely flavored and sweet! This could be good mixed with orange or lime. Keeper.

Papaya
[1C papaya, 1C vodka - 7 days infusion time]

Gross. First of all, there is something in papaya, post cutting, that has the consistency of school paste. The infusion wasnt just thick, it was clumpy. I managed to strain off a little bit of liquid. Good flavor but the consistency was gagg-o-licious. Pass.

Papaya Cilantro
[1C papaya, 1C vodka, 1/4C cilantro - 7 days infusion time]

Gross, for the same reason. Pass.

Pineapple Papaya
[1C pineapple, 1/2C papaya, 1C vodka - 7 days infusion time]

Good, but still suffers a bit from the papaya clumping syndrome. I think cutting the amount of papaya in half might make this one a keeper.

Pineapple Papaya Cilantro
[1C pineapple, 1/2C papaya, 1C vodka, 1/4C cilantro - 7 days infusion time]

Also good flavors but again it suffers from papaya clumping syndrome. I think the cilantro overpowers the softer papaya flavor in this case, so I would probably cut its amount in half.

I am trying one more - Pineapple Mint but you will have to wait with me for a week before the results can be announced.

One more thing I learned. You can, in fact, buy super cheap vodka and filter it through a Brita filter (like 7 times) to produce very nice tasting vodka on the order of Skyy or Titos. This is not without some cost, the filter, which has to be thrown out afterwards. Not to mention the time it will take. But if volume is your MO, then it might work for you!

Kibbeh Shiftah B'Shwandar

Turkey? Ha! Anyone can do turkey. For Thanksgiving I tried something new, an old Iraqi Jewish dish, Kibbeh Shiftah B'Shwandar.

It took some time but the flavors emerging from the complexity of ingredients were surprisingly good.

Kibbeh Shiftah B'Shwandar (Lamb Meatball & Beet Stew with Tumeric Rice)


Meatballs

• 2T Olive Oil


• 1 Red Onion, chopped


• 1 LB Ground Lamb


• 4 T Dried Currants


• 2 T Parsley, chopped


• 1 t Smoked Paprika


• 1 Egg, beaten

Sautee onions in oil over medium-high until carmelized, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. In a large mixing bowl add onions and all other ingredients. Hand mix until blended. Roll mixture into 15-20 balls, placing them on a wax-paper lined container. Place container in refrigerator for at least an hour, this will firm them up for what comes later.

Tumeric Rice

• 1 1/2 C Long Grain White Rice


• 2 C Water


• 1 t Tumeric


• 1 t Sea Salt


• 1/8 t Cinnamon


• 1/8 t Clove

Soak rice in water for 20 minues. Drain in fine mesh colander, then rinse several times. Over medium-high heat, bring rice and water to a low boil. Lower heat to low then add other ingredients. Cook covered for 20 minutes. Keep warm. (Ordinarily I would use brown rice but it will not work for this dish)

Stew

• 6 Red Beets, peeled and quartered


• 6 C Lamb Stock


• 1 Red Onion, chopped


• 1/2 C Tomato Paste


• 6 T Olive Oil


• 1 T Butter


• 6 Garlic Cloves, smashed


• 1 T Coriander


• 1 T Cumin


• 1 T Sweet Curry Powder


• 2 t Tumeric


• 2 t Smoked Paprika


• 1 t Ground Ginger


• 1/2 t Cayenne


• 1 t Red Pepper Flakes


• 6 T Lemon Juice, fresh


• 2 T Sugar


• 2 T Parsley, chopped
  

Unless you are feeling very energetic, I would not try making lamb stock from scratch. There is a perfectly good off-the-rack lamb stock by a company called "More Than Gourmet".

Bring lamb stock to a boil, add beets, reduce heat to medium and cover. Cook beets for 30 minutes. Remove beets with slotted spoon, reserve beets and beet/lamb stock liquid.

Make a spice paste. Add smashed garlic, 3T olive oil, coriander, cumin, curry, tumeric, paprika, cayenne and pepper flakes to a small bowl and mix until a paste is formed. Reserve.

Add remaining oil and the butter to a large sock pot (large enough to hold everything, including beets and meatballs, about 6 Qt). Sautee onion over medium-high heat until carmelized, about 7 minutes.

Add spice paste and tomato paste and stir fry for another 2-3 minutes. Make sure to stir continuously so nothing burns. Stir in a cup or two of the reserved beet/lamb stock liquid. Blend the liquid with the spice/tomato paste, scraping up any bits that make have stuck to the bottom of the pot. Add all remaining reserved beet/lamb stock liquid, stir to blend. Add lemon juice and sugar, stir to blend. Simmer mixture for 10 minutes, uncovered.

Gently add meatballs to stew, simmer covered for 15 additional minutes. Do not stir during this time, give the meatballs time to firm up.

Uncover the pot, skim the foam off the surface, then add beets. Stir several times, then let simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Taste, adjust seasonings (you might want more salt since the flavors here lean heavy to hot/sweet).

To serve: Place a cup of tumeric rice in the middle of a wide, shallow bowl. Spoon stew around the rice, then top with chopped parsley. A dollop of thickened yogurt is also a good addition, particularly if you've made a hotter version.

One note, in case you have not worked with beets or tumeric. They stain. Badly. I cover my chopping board in wax paper before working with beets. And I wear black. Also, any plastic containers used in the process will naturally be sacrificial.

White Sangria

The party celebrating Spain, otherwise known as a cover for me to make all the recipies I learned in Barcelona, was a success. Fortunately, whether it was the "collapsing economy" or the "H1N1 global pandemic", the crowd was much smaller than the previous party. I've found that 15-20 people is ideal; more becomes too much work, less is just a dinner party.

The most requested recipies were the White Sangria and the Saffron Meatballs.


White Sangria

• 2 T Sugar
  
• 3 Shots Apple Brandy (Calvados is good)
  
• 4 Kiwi, peeled and sliced 1/2"
  
• 3 Granny Smith Apples, cored and sliced into wedges
  
• 1 Lemon, sliced 1/4"
  
• 1 Lime, sliced 1/4"
  
• 1 Pint Raspberries
  
• 1 Bottle Savignon Blanc (I liked Monkey Bay)
  

In a large container, mix the brandy and sugar until the sugar in dissolved. Add in sequence: apples, lemon, lime, raspberries, kiwi, wine. Store in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.

Its interesting that the order in which you stack the fruit in the container changes the flavor of the sangria. I think its the weight of the ingredients that forces the juice out of the fruit you place on bottom. If you like your sangria with more citrus notes, add the lemon and lime first. If you like it fruit forward, add the apples, kiwis and raspberries first.

Turchickini Bowl

I love cooking but it has taken a way back seat lately. With work, school, 3 new acrylic painting projects, 2 pops over the pond and attempting to not slip into my natural hermitdom state, its been secondary. With 5 whole days off I was determined to try some new recipes. We will skip right over the utterly gross attempt I made at the Classic French Omlette; good taste but it looked like the 7th circle of hell in egg form.

Moving right along to my Chicken Soup. Naturally I made a few changes, like making a turkey stock instead of chicken, subbing collard green for spinach and spinach fettucini for egg noodles.

Turchickini Stock

• 1 lb Ground Turkey
  
• 1 Red Onion, Chopped
  
• 2 Carrots, Peeled and Chopped
  
• 2 Celery Ribs, Chopped
  
• 1 T Canola Oil
  
• 4 C Water
  
• 8 C Chicken Broth (low sodium)
  
• 3 Bay Leaves
  
• 2 T Black Salt
  
• 1 t Black Pepper
  
• 1/4 t Red Pepper
  
• 1 1/2 lb Chicken Thighs
  

Add oil to a large pan over medium high heat until shimmering. Add ground turkey, carrot, onion and celery. Stir until turkey is almost coooked through, about 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium low. Add water, broth, bay leaves, salt, peppers and chicken thighs. Cover and cook for 45 minutes. Remove lid, crank up heat until boiling. Remove thighs and set aside. Continue to cook stock for 20 minutes. Strain the stock through mesh.


Turchickini Soup

• 3 T Cornstarch
  
• 1/4 C Water
  
• 1 Red Onion, Thinly Sliced
  
• 2 Carrots, DIced
  
• 1 Celery Rib, Diced
  
• 1 Large Potato, Diced
  
• 1/3 C Collard Greens
  
• 6-8 Oz Spinach Fettucini
  
• 2 T Parsley, Chopped
  

Tear thigh meat into bite sized pieces and set aside.

Return stock to medium high heat. Whisk cornstarch into water until blended and smooth. Gradually stir cornstarch liquid into stock stirring constantly. Allow soup to boil gently for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add onion, carrot, celery, potato, collard greens and cook until all are almost tender, about 10 minutes. Add fettucini to soup and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occassionally. Remove from heat then add parsley. Readjust seasoning with salt, black and red pepper then serve.




( Of course its not really soup until you add the red garlic chili sauce! :))

Bocconcini App

• 36-48 Bocconcini (little monz balls)
  
• 1/2 lb Proscuitto, Thinly Sliced
  
• Grape Tomatoes, Sliced
  
• Marinated Artichoke Hearts, Chopped
  
• Truffle Oil
  
• Black Pepper
  
• Toothpicks
  

Roll each bocconcini in a slice of proscuitto, trim edges. Thread a piece of marinated artichoke heart and grape tomato on a toothpick then spear the wrapped bocconcini. When all bocconcini are assembled, drizzle with truffle oil and a couple pinches of fresh black pepper.



Of all the new experiments in party appetizers, this one was by far the simplest and most popular.

Smoked Salmon App

• 1/2 lb Scottish Smoked Salmon
  
• 16 oz Sour Cream
  
• 1/2 C Dill, Chopped
  
• 1 3oz Jar Capers, Drained
  
• 1/4 t White Pepper
  
• 1/2 t Salt
  
• 2 Cucumbers
  
• Red Onion, Chopped
  
• 2 Eggs, Hard Boiled
  
• Lemon Wedges
  
• Dark Rye Bread, Sliced Thinly
  

Peel and seed one cucumber then chop finely. Add the chopped cucumber to the sour cream with the dill, half the jar of capers, white pepper and salt. Mix well, place in a serving bowl then regrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Peel and thinly slice the other cucumber. Separate egg yolks from whites and finely chop both.

To serve: on a large tray place smoked salmon, cucumber dill sauce, onion, caper, egg whites, egg yolks, lemon wedges and bread slices.

To assemble: explain to guests that cucumber covers bread, smoked salmon covers cucumber, cucumber dill sauce covers smoked salmon. Capers, onion, eggs and lemon are optional.

Pesto Cheesecake

1 t Flour
8 Oz Sour Cream
Olive Oil
2 T Bread crumbs
15 Oz Ricotta
8 Oz Cream Cheese
1/2 C Parmesan, Grated
1 - 1.5 C Pesto
1 Egg
Red Pepper

1) Preheat oven to 375

2) Lightly coat 2 7" springforms with olive oil then sprinkle each with the bread crumbs.

3) Mix ricotta and cream cheese with a hand mixer in a medium sized bowl until smooth. Add Parmesan, pepper and egg. Continue mixing until smooth.

4) Place 3/4 C of the ricotta mixture in each pan. Top with 1/2 C of pesto, then another 3/4 C of the ricotta mixture.

5) Bake for 45 minutes or until set.

6) Combine 1/4 pesto, flour and sour cream in a bowl, stirring well. Spread evenly over each cheesecake and continue to bake for 7 minutes.

7) Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.

These will store micely in the fridge for a day or two and can even be frozen, if you want to prepare ahead of time.


(Sorry to report that these were gone before I could get a picture of them)

Asian Moo on Crack

Sorry for the lack-o-post, its been a busy post-hurricane week. But the show must go on. And by that I mean the housewarming party. I've been experimenting in preparation and really liked this one.

• 1/2 C Light Soy
  
• 5 Cloves Garlic, Minced
  
• 1 T Ginger, Minced
  
• 2 T Honey
  
• 1 T Sesame Oil
  
• 4 T Olive Oil, Divided
  
• 2 Limes, Juice Squeezed
  
• 4 Oz Cream Cheese
  
• 4 T Sour Cream
  
• 1/3 C Wasabi
  
• 1/2 C Cilantro Leaves
  
• 1 LB Flank Steak
  
• Sesame Crackers
  
• Grape Tomatoes, Halved
  

Mix soy, garlic, ginger, honey, sesame oil and half of the olive oil in a large Ziploc bag. Add steak and shake. Refrigerate flat for at least 3 hours, turning over once.

Mix cream cheese, sour cream and wasabi in a small bowl then refrigerate.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large pan over med high heat. Sear steak on each side for 3 minutes then continue to cook to the desired doneness (another 3 minutes on each side for med rare). Remove from heat and let sit for 30 minutes. Slice thinly against grain.

To assemble, spread wasabi cream cheese mixture on a sesame cracker. Fix a cilantro leaf to the cream cheese mixture. Add a slice of beef on top. Optionally add a grape tomato half on top of the beef.

Burger

I've been on a quest for a Turkey Burger that doesnt taste like highly salted cardboard. I asked a few of my foodie friends and one of them had the platform from which I made the JLO Turkey Burger.

Burger

1/4 C Green Onions, finely chopped
1/4 C Celery, finely chopped
2 Granny Smith Apples, finely chopped
1/4 C Parsley, finely chopped
1/4 Cashews, finely chopped
1 LB Ground Turkey Breast
1 T Salt
1 T Black Pepper
2 T Chipotle Tobasco
Zest and Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1/4 C Mango Chutney

Sautee green onions, celery and apples over medium heat until tender. Remove from heat and cool. In a large mixing bowl add turkey, sauteed items and all other ingredients. Mix brirefly then shape into 4 patties. Cover and efrigerate for 1 hour to allow flavors to blend. Cook patties on grill or in frying pan for 5-7 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Sauce

1 Pear, very ripe, peeled, seeded and diced
1/2 t Cinnamon
1/2 t Allspice
1/2 t Black Pepper
1/2 t Chipotle Tobasco
1 t Salt
1 1/2 C Mango Chutney
1/4 Golden Rasins, chopped
1/4 Cashews, chopped

Toss pear in the next five ingredients then bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Cool. Mix the pear with the other ingredients in a medium sauce pan and cook over low heat until ready to serve burgers.

Plate up on burger and a 1/4 sauce. I did this once with brown rice and another time over an English Muffin - both good.

Albóndigas de Jaime

San Antonio left a culinary impression. I was really impressed with the Albóndigas I had at Guajillo's, so I tried them myself. Not exactly like the one's I had but still noteworthy and servable to guests.

These are extra spicy, so cut the chipotle in half if you are heat-challenged.

Meatballs

• 1 lb Ground Beef
  
• 1 lb Ground Pork
  
• 1/4 C Plain Breadcrumbs
  
• 1/2 C Cooked Short-grain Rice
  
• 3 T Chopped Garlic
  
• 3 T Chopped Cilantro
  
• 1 T Dried Oregano
  
• 1/2 T Salt
  
• 1 t Black Pepper
  
• 1/4 t Chipotle Pepper
  
• 1/4 t Allspice
  
• 1 t Cumin
  

Sauce

• 60 ounce tomato puree
  
• 3/4 C Chipotle in Adobo Sauce
  
• 2 t Onion Powder
  
• 2 t Garlic Salt
  
• 1 t Ground Cinnamon
  
• 1 t Dried Oregano
  
• 2 Ounce Dark Chocolate, Chopped
  
• 1 t Black Pepper
  

To make sauce: Place all ingredients into a large saucepan and cook over high heat until bubbling. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 1 hour, occassionally uncovering to stir, taste and adjust seasonings.

To make meatballs: Preheat oven to 400. Mix meat and spices together by hand in a large bowl until blended. Form into 1-2 inch balls. Place meatballs on a baking pan and cook in the oven until firm, about 12-15 minutes. Remove and place into sauce. Simmer the meatballs in sauce covered for about 10 minutes.

To assemble: Serve 4-5 meatballs and sauce over rice, pasta or just by themselves. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

Alas I was bad and ate them before taking a picture, when I defrost one of the leftovers I'll capture an image.

Shakshuka

I loved this peasant breakfast dish in Israel. I've made it at home a couple of times and found I like the sauce part on pasta too.

• 2 T Olive Oil
  
• 1 Red Onion, Chopped
  
• 6 Garlic Cloves, Chopped
  
• 2 Jalapeños, Seeded and Minced
  
• 2 Red Bell Peppers, Chopped
  
• 1 Green Bell Pepper, Chopped
  
• 8 Plum Tomatoes, Chopped
  
• 4 14.5 Ounce Cans, Whole Italian Plum Tomatoes
  
• 1/2 t Hot Paprika or Chipotle
  
• 2 t Sweet Paprika
  
• 1 t Smoked Paprika
  
• 1 t Tumeric
  
• 1 t Salt
  
• 1 t Pepper, Freshly Ground
  
• 2 t Sugar
  
• 1 C Tomato Sauce
  
• 1/2 C Vegetable or Chicken Stock
  
• 5 Large Eggs
  
• Pita Bread
  
• Za'atar (follows)
  

Heat oil over medium high heat then add onion and saute until browned.

Add garlic, bell pepper, jalapeños and saute for 2 minutes.

Add fresh and canned tomatoes, reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes.

Add paprikas, tumeric, salt, sugar and pepper. Stir and cook for 5 minutes to blend.

Add tomtato juice and stock and bring to a full boil. Reduce to low and simmer until little moisture is left, about 1 hour.

With a large spoon make 5 indentations in the mixture. Crack the eggs into the indentations, cover and cook for 8 minutes or until eggs are set but yolk are not hard.

Spoon mixture and one egg each into bowls and serve with pita.

Za'atar is equal amounts of ground sumac, oregano, marjoram, toasted sesame seeds and olive oil. This gets sprinkled over the top.

Pina Colada Jello Shot

1 envelope Knox unflavored gelatin
1 cup Pineapple Juice
1/2 cup Malibu Coconut Rum
1/2 cup Mailbu Pineapple Rum
Coco Lopez

Boil pineapple juice the pour over Knox gelatin, stir to dissolve. When mixture cools a bit add both rums. Pour into Solo Jello Shot Cups and cool to room temp. Drizzle about 1/2t of Coco Lopez on top then cool in the fridge for 4 hours.

These were great, just dont go overboard with the Coco Lopez!

Fuzzy Navel Jello Shot

• 1 package Orange Jello
  
• 1 package Peach Jello
  
• 1 cup Orange Vodka
  
• 1 cup Peach Vodka
  
• 2 cups Water
  
• Mandarin Orange slices
  

Boil the water then divide equally in 2 Pyrex bowls. Dissolve peach jello in one bowl and orange jello in the other. Cool a bit so the alcohol won't burn off, then stir the peach vodka into the peach jello and the orange vodka into the orange jello. Put a mandarin orange slice in the bottom of each Solo Jello Shot cup ( we got these at Party City) then cover with the orange jello mixture. Cool in the freezer for 30 minutes or until set. Top with the peach jello mixture then let set in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.

Agave Experiment 01

This weekend I reacquainted myself with the kitchen after a noticeable pause. Not that I cooked anything of substance, basically just drinks and a dip, but they were really good!

My standard set of testers are not minding the drive downtown to continue their culinary guinea pig obligations. Thankfully. Thank you my esteemed culinary guinea pigs :)




Mango-Cilantro Margarita against Chase tower


Mango-Cilantro Margarita

• 2 mangoes, peeled and diced
  
• 1/4 C cilantro, chopped
  
• 1 C Blue Agave Silver Tequila (I used 1800)
  
• 6 T lime juice, fresh
  
• 6 T simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water boiled and cooled)
  
• 2 T Patron (Orange liquer)
  
• Ice
  

Put the mango and cilantro in a food processor and pulse a few time to chop finely. Add mango-cilantro mixture to other ingredients and marinate for 30 minutes. Strain over ice-filled glasses. Drink quickly. This will make enough for 2 heavy drinkers, 3 regular or 4 people who sip.

A Use For Carrots

I've been working on this one for a couple of days. I had a big bag of leftover carrots so I decided to try to make something out of them. Ironically I had to get even more carrots and now I still have leftover carrots.

This is my favorite soup so far this year, even better than the sweet potato one from a few months back. I think this one will be nice for DC Mom's reception. (Suzy, you will have to let me know what you think. )


Carrot-Cumin Soup with Avocado-Lime Cream and Chipotle Oil

Soup

• 1 2-lb bag Carrots, peeled, chopped
  
• 1 Russet Potato, chopped
  
• 1 Yellow Onion, chopped
  
• 32 ounce Vegetable (or Chicken) stock
  
• 3 t Coriander
  
• 2 t Cumin
  
• 1 t Salt
  
• 1 t Black Pepper
  

Avocado-Lime Cream

• 1 large Avocado (or 2 medium)
  
• 2 T Lime juice
  
• 3-4 T Whole Milk
  
• Salt
  
• Black Pepper
  

Chipotle Oil

• 3 T Olive Oil
  
• 1/4 t Chipotle
  

Garnish

• Cilantro, chopped
  

1) For Soup: Put all the soup ingredients in a stockpot and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Take a hand liquidiser to the soup or alternatively put the soup through a blender in batches. Return to stockpot and keep hot.

2) For Avocado-Lime Cream: Mash avocado, lime and milk with a fork then wisk until desired consistency. Season with salt/pepper. Keep cool.

3) For Chipotle Oil: Wisk oil and chipotle together and let sit for 30 minutes.

4) Assembly: Ladel soup into bowls. Top with a couple T of avocado-lime cream, drizzle with chipotle oil and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.


Servings: 4

A Use For Eggplant

Personally, I love the eggplant. But I am usually on my own when I make eggplant as most people seem leary. I think the eggplant haters I know just havent had it prepared correctly or they had one experience with a bitter one and called it quits.



Baingan Bharta (Eggplant Curry with Shrimp)

• 1 pound 21-30 count shrimp, peeled and deveined.
  
• 2 eggplant
  
• 3 T olive oil
  
• 2 t cumin
  
• 2 yellow onion, diced
  
• 2 T ginger, minced
  
• 2 T garlic, minced
  
• 2 T sweet curry
  
• 2 tomatoes, diced
  
• 1 C plain, full fat yogurt (dont use non-fat)
  
• 2 jalapenos, diced
  
• 2 t salt
  
• 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
  
• Basmati
  

1) Preheat oven to 450, Slice eggplant in half lengthwise then place on foil-lined baking sheet, flat side down and roast for 20-30 minutes until softened. Remove, cool, peel and chop into bits.

2) Process ginger and garlic into a paste. Heat 2T oil over medium high heat then stir onions and cumin until onions are soft. Add ginger-garlic paste and stir fry for 30 seconds. Add tomato and curry and stir fry for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low then add in the yogurt, jalapenos and eggplant, stir to blend. Season with salt then cover and crank heat to high. Cook for 10 minutes over high heat then reduce to low. Uncover then continue cooking at low heat for 5 minutes.

3) In a separate frying pan add remaining 1 T of oil. Over high heat stir fry shrimp until cooked through. Either add the shrimp to the curry mixture or serve them over the top.

4) Serve with Basmati, garnish with cilantro.


Servings: 4

A Use For Proscuitto

DC mom is getting married in the Fall. Her daughter, Suzy and I have been tossing around food ideas for the reception. This one I have been playing with for a couple of weeks and I think its ready for production. Basically its a Caesar Salad you can eat with your hands.



Caesar Spring Rolls

Dressing
1/4 C Light Mayo
2 T Romano, grated finely
1 t Anchovy, minced
1 T Lemon (or kumquat) juice

Croutons
1/2 C Sourdough bread, cubed
1 T Butter
1 T Olive Oil
1 Clove Garlic, minced

Roll
8-10 Rice paper wrappers (8.5" diam)
16-20 slices Proscuitto (very thinly sliced)
4-6 leaves Romaine; lenghtwise cut into 1/4" strips
1-2 C Arugula



1 Croutons - Heat butter and oil over med. high heat. Sautee garlic for 30 seconds then add bread cubes. and sautee until golden. Turn out on paper town and season with salt and pepper.

2 Dressing - Whisk mayo, romano, anchovy and lemon juice in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Store in fridge.

3 Rolls - Soak each wrapper in luke-warm water until soft, less than a minute. Lay on piece of wax paper and blot dry with paper towel. Top each with 2 slices of proscuitto, covering entire wrap. Add a mound of romaine and arugula in a lengthwise column close to one end of the wrapper. Tight roll the wrapper then wrap the roll in saran wrap and stick in fridge.

4 When you're ready, trim the ends off all rolls then cut each into 4 pieces. Stand pieces on end then top each with a dollop of dressing, pressing a crouton or two into the dressing. 8 pieces should do for a serving. Grate romano over the top, add a little fresh pepper. Serve with extra sauce, if there is any.


Servings: 4

(Yes, I know its a crap picture but imagine it as if I had not rushed through the assembly and if I had taken a decent picture.)

A Use For Crystallized Ginger

Another day, another sampling.

No marriage proposals were generated but it was a 4-0 approval vote, therefore plopped onto the blog.


Chai Cheesecake

Crust

• 1 1/2 C Graham crackers, crushed
  
• 1 t Ground ginger
  
• 1/4 C Crystallized Ginger, chopped
  
• 3/4 C Butter, melted
  

Filling

• 4 8-ounce Cream cheese packages, room temp.
  
• 1 1/4 C Sugar
  
• 1 8-ounce Mascarpone package
  
• 5 Eggs
  
• 2 Egg yolks
  
• 2 1/2 t Ground ginger
  
• 2 1/2 t Ground cardamom
  
• 1/2 t Vanilla extract
  
• 1/4 t Allspice
  
• 1/4 t Salt
  
• 1/8 t Ground black pepper
  

1) Preheat oven to 350. Spray springform pan with pam. Mix grahams, butter, ground and cystallized gingers in a small bowl until blended then press the mixture to the bottom and 3" up the sides of the springform. Bake crust until set, about 30 minutes. Cool completely.

2) Using a hand mixer, mix together cheeses and sugar in medium bowl until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Mix in eggs one a time until smooth, then mix in yolks one at a time until smooth. Add remaining spices (ginger thru pepper) until blended. Transfer filling to crust then bake for 1 hour.

3) Reduce oven to 200 and continue baking until edges are set but center jiggles to the touch, about 20-30 minues. Cracks will likely form, its normal.

4) Cool completely then refrigerate overnight.

Last minute we whipped up some whipped cream with cardamom and clove, pretty good topping for this.

(Eat at your own risk, Lipitor not included)

A Use For Stout Beer

Bad vegetarian, bad!

About once a year I have a huge meat-fest and get it out of the way, this would be it. Laurel (Freebird), Andrew (I make lamb) and Galina (Single is good) participated in this evening's tasting of Stout Chili and Chai Cheesecake (details to follow).

It was approved in a 3-0 vote, therefore passed on to you. (Laurel could not participate in the Chili tasting due to her unfortunate allergy to onions and peppers. She refers to chili as 'death in a bowl')

Stout Chili

• 2 T Cumin
  
• 1 T Coriander
  
• 1 lb Ground Beef
  
• 1 lb Ground Turkey
  
• 1 lb Hot Italian Sausage, cooked and sliced
  
• 2 Purple Onions, diced
  
• 1 Yellow Onion, diced
  
• 2 Green Bell Peppers, diced
  
• 1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
  
• 1 Orange Bell Pepper, diced
  
• 1 Yellow Bell Pepper, diced
  
• 3 Jalapenos, diced
  
• 3 T Regular Chili Powder
  
• 3 T Ancho Chili Powder
  
• 1 T Chipotle (optional)
  
• 2 t Chipotle in Adobo (minced)
  
• 2 28-ounce Cans of chopped tomatoes
  
• 2 15-ounce Cans of kidney beans, drained
  
• 1 12-ounce Bottle of Stout Beer
  
• 3 T Canola oil
  

1) Add half the oil to a heavy pot then sautee beef in a over medium high heat until no longer pink, add turkey, cook through, about 7 minutes for both. Remove. In same pot heat the remaining oil then add onion, bell peppers and jalapenos. Sautee to soften, about 10 minutes. Add meat to veggies then add all spices, tomatoes, cooked sausage, beans, chipotle in adobo and stout beer. Bring to a boil, stirring occassionally. Reduce to simmer and cook uncovered for 2 hours, stirring occassionally.

2) Taste, adjust with salt and black pepper if necessary. If too acidic add 1 T of sugar to cut.

3) Serve with Frito Scoops, sour cream, shredded sharp cheddar and chopped green onions.