Sweet and Spicy Snap Peas in a Snap
Posted: December 13, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Sides, Snacks, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: asian side dish, quick healthy sides, sweet and spicy snap peas, sweet chili sauce recipes, what to do with snap peas 2 Comments »
These sweet and spicy snap peas are ready in minutes and make a perfect side dish or healthy snack.
I cannot seem to get enough snap peas lately. Since I started working out again, I’ve craved something cool and quick after I exercise. A handful of cold snap peas is a perfect little sweet and crunchy snack for a post workout cool down.
I challenged myself to workout every day for 30 minutes outside, rain or shine, this month. It seemed like an awesome idea the first week when the weather was in the 70s and 80s, reaching record highs for December. As Texas weather does, it abruptly turned from gorgeous 70s to the 30s this weekend. I went from a tank top and shorts and a lovely workout in the park on Sunday…
Resourcefully using the playground equipment for a Sunday afternoon workout/jog with the family.
….to a headwrap, multiple layers, down vest, and gloves on Monday.
Bundled up for our first cold front of the season.
Instead of needing a crisp snack to cool down with, I needed something to help me thaw out after that workout. Like a hot bath for starters, and these warm sweet and spicy snap peas that are literally made in a snap.
Three ingredient, five minute side or snack. Sweet, spicy, delicious.
Sweet & Spicy Snap Peas in a Snap
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 c. Sugar Snap Peas
2 T. Sweet Chili Sauce (in the Asian aisle of most grocery stores)
1/4 t. sea salt or kosher salt
Directions
In a sauce pan, bring the sweet chili sauce to a boil, stirring constantly until it reduces by about half. Add in the snap peas and stir until coated and just warmed through. Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately.
Here’s a closer look.
Sugar Snap Peas are easily found in most super markets.
I’ve seen this in the Asian aisle of many grocery stores and at specialty stores like World Market.
Bring sweet chili sauce to a boil, stirring constantly.
Add snap peas and stir until coated with sauce and just warmed through. Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately.
Serve alone as a snack or appetizer, or as a side with something like rice and Teriyaki Tofu or Chicken.
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The Title: Sweet and Spicy Snap Peas in a Snap
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Fruit & Almond Kale Salad with Clementine-Maple Dressing
Posted: October 28, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Fruit Dishes, Salads, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: almonds, cherries, chia seeds, clementines, cranberries, flax seeds, fruit, hemp seeds, kale, kale salad, maple syrup, mustard, olive oil, oranges, sliced almonds, soy sauce, tangerines, vinegar, water chestnuts 1 Comment »
(Becky, the Mama. )
Greg and I just spent two days on a road trip, driving from snow-covered Denver to the blue skies, hot air balloons, rusty-red mountains, green grass, gorgeous flowers and warm sun of Arizona. As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I grabbed my bathing suit from the suitcase (still in the car) ran into the condo and threw it on, then dashed to the swimming pool. The sun was still in the sky, but sinking, so I arranged my lounge chair just so, where I could get the maximum rays, then sat down and basked and beamed with happiness. For as long as I can remember I’ve been a sun and a water baby. I wore my dark hair in two braids, as a little girl, and by summer’s end I always looked like Pocahontas, my skin as “brown as a berry,” my mother said.
To this day, I wonder if I am part Indian, as I disdain shoes and socks, preferring to be bare foot, even in the winter. I seek out sun like a lizard, anywhere I can find it. I do know that my grandmother Nonny and her family came to Sweetwater, Texas from New Mexico. Her eyes were a twinkling blue, her hair a stunning natural silver, and her skin turned a deep olive every summer. She loved being outside in her garden, always in a flower print dress (I never saw her in slacks), and if we grandkids were lucky, she’d see and catch a baby horned toad, which us we loved to hold and play with more than any store-bought toy.
But I digress. Back to the pool. When I could see the sun dipping in the sky, I jumped out of the lounge chair, hurried back to the condo, grabbing this and that from boxes of food stuffs and ice chest we brought from home – kale, dried cherries, hemp seed, sliced almonds, Clementine oranges – quickly creating the world’s fastest salad. Then photographing it while there was still natural light on the patio overlooking an emerald green golf course. After two days of road trip food burgers and fries, my body was craving something green and healthy. This is truly a Super Salad, loaded with nutrition – and it was soo yummy, I know I’ll be making it again and again. The nice thing about using kale in salads is that the salad still has lots of chew and crunch the next day, and in fact, it seems to get even better as it has time to sit and soften a bit in the dressing.
Super Fruit & Almond Kale Salad with Clementine Maple Dressing
Ingredients for salad:
2 to 3 cups of chopped kale, leaves only – no stems (I was able to find it pre-chopped and mixed with some shredded carrots in the grocery produce aisle)
2 Clementine oranges, peeled and pulled apart in sections
2 T. dried cherries or cranberries
1 T. hemp, flax, or chia seeds
2 T. sliced or slivered almonds
1/4 cup sliced water chestnuts
Ingredients for Dressing:
¼ cup red wine or rice wine vinegar
Juice from 1 Clementine orange
1 T. pure maple syrup
1 t. soy sauce
2 t. good mustard
¼ cup olive oil
dash garlic powder or about 1/4 of a fresh garlic clove, grated
Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions:
Put kale in a large bowl and knead and massage it with clean hands for a minute. This will break down the fibers and make the kale tender enough to eat raw. (Sometimes I run hot water over it in a colander to soften the kale first, knead it, and then rinse again in cold water.) Add all the rest of the ingredients for a salad and serve in a pretty flat platter. Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together and drizzle over the salad. Serve and enjoy.
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The Title: Fruit and Almond Kale Salad with Clementine-Maple Dressing
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© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Sweet n’ Sour Green Beans and Bacon
Posted: October 25, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Sides, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegan Options, Veggies | Tags: bacon, brown sugar, green bean, green bean casserole alternatives, green bean casserole unique, onions, pepper, sweet and sour, thai chili sauce, Thanksgiving, vegan green bean casserole, vegetarian green bean casserole, vinegar 1 Comment »
(Becky, the Mama.)
Greg is away this evening, having dinner with a friend. And therefore, I decided to make this dish that I created and love and that he considers, actually, to be the Side Dish From Hell.
His three least favorite foods are onions, peppers and green beans, so even the addition of a scrumptious sauce and bacon could not turn his head. It would turn his stomach, but not his head. Greg worked many summers as a kid in Oregon either picking green beans or in a bean cannery and he has vowed, and I respect this, never to eat another green bean again. Onions and peppers, according to him, have an “icky, slimy” texture and are also to be avoided.
So while Greg is gone, and won’t have to even look…I made my own Dream Dinner to Eat in Bed, while snuggled in my PJs. Tonight’s dream meal is made of this sweet and savory green bean dish, below, loaded with sautéed onions and sweet peppers, with a side of (I know, it’s bad, but try not to groan) boxed Kraft macaroni and cheese. Served with a spoon in a big flat pasta bowl. With a glass of ice cold milk in a frosty-frozen mug. And a cozy blankey tucked around my feet. While I watch non-action-related shows like Parenthood and Oprah’s Next Chapter, TV my husband enjoys about as much as green beans.
Of course, I miss my man, as I do adore him.
But in the meantime, I’m soldiering on the best I can, a bowl in one hand, remote in the other.
Sweet n’ Sour Green Beans with Bacon
Ingredients
2 cans or 4 cups frozen or fresh green beans, cooked and drained well
1 T. olive oil
1/2 c. red onion, diced
½ c. chopped sweet red pepper (I used some mini red and yellow peppers)
3 T Thai sweet chili sauce (in the Asian aisle…or World Market)
2 T. brown sugar
¼ c. red wine vinegar
1/3 c. crumbled bacon (I used some Hormel pre-cooked bacon pieces this time. Some nights you just take the easy way.)
*Vegans can use a vegetarian bacon bits product instead or use sliced almonds that have been sauteed in smoked paprika and a little olive oil instead.
Salt and Pepper to taste (I like a lot of black pepper in this)
Directions
Turn oven to broil
Drain green beans as well as you can. (I even use a paper towel to sort of pat them dry in the colander.)
In an oven-proof skillet saute onions and peppers in olive oil. Add the Thai sweet chili sauce, red wine vinegar and brown sugar. Cook and stir all together until it is syrupy.
Add well drained green beans and stir once again until well heated. Add salt and pepper to taste. (This will vary quite a bit depending on whether you used canned or fresh or frozen green beans.) Sprinkle the top with bacon crumbles and put pan under broiler for a minute or two until bacon is crisp and beans are bubbling.
Serve as a side dish (a nice alternative for a Thanksgiving green bean casserole) curl up with a bowl of it, while lounging in your PJs.
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The Title: Sweet n’ Sour Green Beans and Bacon
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© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Sesame Chicken with Honey Garlic Sauce
Posted: October 21, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Chicken | Tags: asian chicken, chicken, coconut oil, dipping sauce, garlic, honey, molasses, sesame, soy, thai sweet chili 2 Comments »
(Becky, the Mama.)
One of my most-repeated cooking mottos is, “It’s all about the sauce.” Growing up in Texas, pot luck suppers often provided informal competitions for whose mama made the best Bar-B-Que Sauce or home-made Salsa. My palette was set for big flavors at a young age. And I am still like a kid when it comes to tasty dipping sauces.
One of my favorite flavor combinations are foods that use the following layers of flavor and texture: crunchy, spicy, savory, garlicky, tangy and sweet. A tall order, but I think I may have created the perfect irresistible dish that, as we say in the south, “has it ALL going on, ya’ll.”
These spicy oriental style chicken strips get an extra crisp texture by dipping them in a mixture of egg whites and siracha, then rolling in seasoned flour and cornstarch before pan-frying in healthy coconut oil.
And wait until you try this sweet garlicky sauce made with honey, soy and a touch of molasses. So easy and only has to be heated to a boil then simmered for a minute before serving, but the depth and layers of flavor is amazing.
Move over Colonel, I think I may have given a whole new defination to finger lickin’ good!
Sesame Chicken with Honey Garlic Sauce
Serves 3 to 4 people
Ingredients:
½ to 1/3 c coconut oil (may substitute other oil, but this is my favorite)
12 chicken tenders (or breasts cut in 12 tender-sized slices)
2 egg whites
1 T. siracha (or Tabasco or Frank’s Red Hot Sauce)
½ c. flour
½ c. cornstarch
1 ½ t. Tony’s Cajun Seasoning
1 t. steak or grill seasoning
1 T. sesame seeds (black or white, I used black
For sauce:
½ cup honey
¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
3 cloves fresh garlic grated
1 T. vinegar
1 T. molasses
1 T. sweet thai chili sauce
1 T. bourbon (may omit and sauce will still be delicious)
Directions:
Heat Oven to 250 degrees.
Melt about 1/3 to ½ cup coconut oil in a large skillet, so that there is about ¼ inch of oil in the pan. Heat to medium high.
Rinse and pat dry a dozen chicken tenders. Lightly salt and pepper them. In a side shallow bowl, mix egg whites and siracha sauce. In another bowl, mix flour, cornstarch, Cajun seasoning, grill seasoning and sesame seeds.
Using long tongs, dip tenders first in egg white mixture and then in dry flour mixture, then carefully in hot oil in skillet, about 6 at a time. Turn when golden brown and crispy on one side. Repeat on the other side. Put the first batch in a warm oven on a cookie sheet while waiting for next set of tenders to cook
In the meantime, in a saucepan, mix all the ingredients listed for the sauce. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally, and then simmer for one more minute. Let cool a bit before pouring into small individual dipping bowls. Serve each person 3-4 chicken tenders about 3 T. of dipping sauce. We enjoy this meal with brown jasmine rice and colorful stir-fried veggies as a side dish. Fresh sliced pineapple makes the perfect dessert.
(Vegan variation: use a vegan chicken-substitute product, extra firm tofu or seitan instead of chicken. Substitute egg white with a 3 Tablespoons water mixed with 1 T. flax meal.)
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The Title: Sesame Chicken with Honey Garlic Sauce
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© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
“Healing” Panang Curry Soup
Posted: October 16, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Chicken, Seafood/Shrimp, Soups, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: coconut milk, curry, kale, mushrooms, panang, rainbow slaw, red curry, shitake, thai 1 Comment »
(Becky, the Mama.)
A sure-fire way to humble yourself is to announce: “I never (fill-in-the-blank)” publically. (Or worse, “My child will never…..”) And so when I declared, on Facebook that I almost never get sick, I should have known I was in for it.
For some unknown reason, for nearly a week, day after day, I forgot to take my daily regime of immune-boosting supplements (fish oil, odorless garlic, probiotics, super green food powder) and woke up one morning feeling as though I was swallowing razor blades.
I went on the attack with liberal doses of all my regular supplements above plus a couple of more exotic-sounding ones: olive leaf extract and astragalus. By mid-afternoon my throat had calmed considerably and by nightfall it did not hurt at all. (I did, however, get the standard stuffy head, runny nose bit – though, thankfully, without fever and it seems to be running its course fairly quickly.)
My husband was also out of town, so I had no choice but to “practice good self-care,” as my therapist friend Lucille would say. I took guilt-free naps, enjoyed hot eucalyptus-scented bubble baths and made myself quick and easy healing foods and drinks. (You can pre-order Lucille’s excellent book on self-care and get a free list of ways to take care of yourself at http://www.lucillezimmerman.com/book/.)
In addition to honey-sweetened white tea (more nutrition-packed than green tea) laced with fresh grated ginger, and sips of Feel Good Blueberry Smoothie, I made two pots of healing soup.
First, I made a classic home-style chicken soup, a super quick and easy recipe I’ll share in coming weeks. The other, is my new favorite “healing soup” – a Thai Panang Curry soup, rich with cancer-fighting and immune boosting antioxidants from the ginger and spices, cruciferous veggies, shitake mushrooms (which contain a compound called lentinan, shown to strengthen the immune system’s ability to fight infection and disease) and vitamin & mineral rich kale. Coconut milk, too, has healing properties. It contains lauric acid, antimicrobial lipids and capric acid, which have antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties.
It was Lucille who introduced me to my first good Thai Panang curry , when she bought us both take-out containers of it during a working writer’s lunch. It was love at first bite. It hit all the strong flavor notes I crave: spice from the curry and ginger, slightly sweet and creamy from the coconut milk, a touch of tang from fresh lime, and salty-savory-earthy from the mushrooms, veggies and broth.
It sounds so exotic, but I do not make complicated recipes, especially when I’m fighting a cold, so trust me – this is quick and easy. Feel free to substitute any veggies you have on hand, or enjoy, in this basic recipe.
“Healing” Panang Curry Soup
Ingredients:
1 can coconut milk
1 ½ cups veggie broth (or chicken broth)
½ small jar Thai red curry (about 3 T – less if you prefer less spice) (This jar of curry is found in Asian section of most groceries now and is small, about the size of a baby food jar.)
1 t. fresh grated ginger (pinch of dried ginger if you don’t have fresh)
1 t. brown sugar
Soy sauce to taste
1 c. rainbow slaw (or broccoli slaw)
2/3 c. sliced mushrooms (I used shitake)
1 c. loosely packed, torn kale
2 sliced green onions
Slice of lime, cilantro (sprig or chopped) for garnish
Protein of your choice: grilled diced tofu, diced or shredded chicken; or cooked shrimp, 1/2 to 1 cup depending on preference. I use a small amount of chicken as I like the veggies taking center stage in this soup. You could also sprinkle in toasted peanuts for added protein.
Instructions:
Dump all the ingredients except the last three (onions, lime, cilantro) into a pot and simmer until veggies are tender but not mushy, add green onions and choice of protein, stir until everything is hot again. Ladle veggies and broth into each bowl, then garnish with a sprig of cilantro (or chop it up and sprinkle) and slice of lime to squeeze over and stir in right before eating.
Variation: To make a more traditional curry instead of soup, omit broth and serve over jasmine rice. Add slices of cooked sweet potato and pineapple for a creamy pineapple curry. To add heat, use a few drop of siracha sauce or thai chili paste.
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© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Buttery Tofu and Vegetables with Spicy Plum Sauce
Posted: September 20, 2012 Filed under: Asian Dishes, Main Dishes, Sauces and Dressings, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: buttery tofu vegan, italian prune plums costco, roasted brussel sprouts, roasted cabbage, spicy plum sauce 2 Comments »
Italian Prune Plums, just a small portion of my 3 pound Costco purchase.
I bought three pounds of fresh prunes.
I’ve never bought a single fresh prune, let alone three pounds of them.
What was I thinking?
Well, I was thinking “What a deal, three pounds of prunes for only $7!”
At Costco, among the pallets of 50-pound bags of dog food and cases of toilet paper bigger than my bathroom, three pounds of prunes and $7 purchases seem like nothing … until the cashier tells me the total sum of all my “little” purchases and I try to find room in my crisper, already filled with a 10-pound bag of organic carrots, for the case of prunes.
Technically, I think they are plums, Italian Prune Plums. They taste and look a lot like plums, just a little more tart. Jackson and I enjoyed snacking on them fresh out of the over-stuffed crisper drawer for awhile. I put them on a pizza, with caramalized onions, vegan applewood sausage, walnuts, spinach, broccoli, and grapes. Prune pizza, who knew it would taste like a little slice of sweet and savory heaven?
One night, I chopped them up and threw them in pot on the stove while I heated up some of another impulse Costco purchase, a huge box of spring rolls. Can you see I have a problem? Anyway, the prune plums reduced into this gorgeous sweet red sauce. With a dash of spicy chili paste, it made the perfect dip for a spring roll. Though I could eat egg rolls and pizza every night, I probably shouldn’t. So, I needed a recipe that would really make a dent in my prune inventory without putting unsightly dents on my thighs. Last night, I made the prune plum sauce again and served it with buttery roasted vegetables and tofu over brown rice. All the flavors were rich and deep and the colors were so beautiful.
I’m almost out of prunes now and I’m tempted to buy three more pounds.
All the ingredients people love to hate–prunes, brusel sprouts, tofu, and cabbage–in one glorious dish that proves those haters wrong.
Buttery Tofu and Vegetables with Spicy Plum Sauce
Serves 2
Ingredients
Buttery Tofu and Veggies
- 2 slices of tofu, lightly pressed with paper towel to absorb extra water
- 1 c. Cabbage sliced into thin long strips
- 1 c. Carrots, cut into thin long strips
- 1/2 c. Onions, sliced into thin long strips
- 1 c. Brussel sprouts, sliced in half
- 1 T. Earth Balance or prefered butter
- 1 T. Olive Oil
- 1 T. Braggs Amino Acid (or Low Sodium Soy Sauce)
- 1 t. Agave + a extra drizzle for tofu
- 1 t. Kosher Salt
- 1 t. Fresh Cracked Pepper
- sprinkle of dried parsley, optional for color
Spicy Prune Plum Sauce
- 2 c. Italian prune plums (or any variety of plums), chopped into small chunks
- 1 t. Chinese chili paste
- 1 t. Agave
- 1/4 t. salt
Serve with brown rice.
Directions
Buttery Veggies and Tofu
Coat veggies and tofu with sweet and salty buttery blend.
Preheat oven to 400. (My oven has a convection roast setting that works nicely for this, but you certainly don’t need it). Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray and spread out sliced veggies and tofu. Mix butter, oil, Bragg’s, agave, salt and pepper, and use a pastry brush to lightly coat the veggies and tofu. Drizzle tofu with a little extra agave and a pinch of parsley for color. Cook vegetables and tofu, stirring veggies after about 10 minutes. Roast until the carrots, onions, and cabbage are soft and the Brussel sprouts are golden brown, 20-30 minutes total.
Roasting brings out the natural sweetness in these veggies. These pretty multi-colored
Buttery, flaky, and moist tofu reminded me of baked fish.
Plum Sauce
Chop up plums into small dices.
Chop plums into small dices, heat on medium heat for five minutes, stirring often. Add agave, chili paste, and salt. Continue to cook and stir for about five more minutes or until the plums turn into a beautiful red chunky sauce. Delicious with a bite of buttery flaky tofu or with fried spring rolls.
Sweet and spicy, this plum sauce was the star of the plate.
Avocado Cucumber Sesame Salad
Posted: August 20, 2012 Filed under: Appetizers, Asian Dishes, Sides, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: avocado, cucumber, salad, sesame 7 Comments »
My sister and my nieces, Whitney and Tori, age 9 and 11, are here this weekend and we are enjoying them so much! The youngest one, Whitney, is quite the food connoisseur, and has made me feel like the best cook on the planet with her over-the-top compliments. She describes the food on the end of her fork as one would describe a fine wine, “I can taste the layers of flavor! The hint of coconut, the tang of pineapple…”
As soon as she arrived from Texas she asked if we could make my sweet n’ spicy meatloaf again, together. She remembered it from three years ago, when they last came to Colorado! We did, and she said she loved squashing the meat and the seasonings together with her bare hands. When she took a bite of the cooked finished meatloaf she raised her hands, rolled her eyes heavenward and exclaimed, “This is even better than I dreamed it would be!”
Yesterday, I let the girls paint pictures outside under our tree and beach umbrella, and then made them each virgin cocktails. (Cranberry Sprite, OJ and slices of lemon, lime and orange on ice.) Whitney took one sip and said, “This is delicious! In fact, it is as good as meatloaf!” I wonder how many bartenders have had compliments like that. “This Long Island Tea is as tasty as meatloaf!” Gotta love kids.
With such an appreciative food critic in the house, it really spurred me on to bring out my inner chef. This is a very simple Asian salad that packs a powerful burst of flavor with very few ingredients, one the whole family loved! The key is the salt. Be sure to use sea salt, the best you can find. McCormicks now has a sea salt grinder, where you can grind fresh flakes of sea salt on to your food. It is quite good! You will be amazed how good fresh sea salt can be and the “layers of flavor” that come from using the finer, gourmet versions of it. This dish combines the smooth, richness of avocado with the crisp crunch of cucumber, the warmth of sesame oil and sesame seeds, and that final touch of freshly flaked sea salt. So easy, but so gourmet at the same time. I guarantee you, it is even as good as meatloaf!
Avocado Cucumber Sesame Salad
Serves two to three
Ingredients
1 ripe but still firm avocado, cut in bite sized pieces (we like a lot of avocado, so I sometimes double the avocado in this recipe)
1/2 English cucumber (or regular cucumber with seeds removed , but peel left on) cut in bite sized pieces
1 t. fresh lime juice
pinch sugar
1 T. sesame oil
1 t. sesame seeds (toasted, white or black seeds –black seeds are actually quite pretty, but I did not have them on hand)
fresh sea salt to taste
Directions:
Gently coat the sliced avocado and cucumber in a bowl with lime juice, pinch sugar, sesame oil and seeds. Sprinkle generously with sea salt. Serve in a low-rimmed edge blow or plate.
Sweet n’ Savory Asian Meatballs
Posted: August 18, 2012 Filed under: Appetizers, Asian Dishes, Uncategorized | Tags: Asian meatballs, green onions, hoison, jasmine rice, meatballs, sesame seeds 1 Comment »
(Becky, the Mama.)
“Now, that’s a good meatball,” my husband said as he took a bite of these amazingly moist Asian meatballs.
Quick. Name the scene and the movie that came to my mind in that moment.
If you guessed the scene with Rosie and the meatballs from The Wedding Singer, well, you get this free recipe for meatballs in your inbox today!
And if you didn’t guess correctly, you not only get the recipe free, but here’s the dialogue from the movie that left me smiling.
Adam Sandler is teaching a darling little old lady singing lessons, so she can sing to her husband on their 50th wedding anniversary. As he turns to leave after the lessons Rosie says, “But your payment!” And Adam Sandler’s character Robbie says, “My payment. Can I get it to go?”
Rosie calls from the kitchen, emerging with a sauce pan. “You’re such a sweet boy…letting an old woman pay you with meatballs.”
Robbie dismisses her protest. “They taste so good, it’s like I’m ripping you off.”
“I don’t have any clean Tupperware.”
“All right, definitely next time.”
“Don’t be silly. Now hold out your hands.”
He obeys and she plops a giant messy meatball in each of his hands and encourages him to taste one on the spot. He sweetly obliges, in spite of the awkwardness and takes a bite, then looks up at her and smiles. “That’s a good meatball.”
Let me tell you, the recipe for these meatballs are so good you’ll have people begging to eat them out of their hands!
They are made from ground turkey, so it is a surprise how moist and savory they taste. The sauce is just to die for: thick and rich, sticky with hoison sauce balanced by the tang of lime and vinegar and chopped green onions. Serve over rice with assorted chopped veggies and you’ve got a one bowl wonder.
Unless, that is you prefer to skip the fork and bowls, and eat them with your hands, Wedding Singer style.
Sweet n’ Savory Asian Meatballs
Serves 4
Preheat over to 400 degrees.
Ingredients for Meatballs:
1 lb to 1.25 lb ground turkey
3 peeled cloves garlic
1/4 red onion
1/2 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1 T. sesame oil
1 T. olive oil
1 egg
1 1/2 pieces soft fresh bread, torn into small pieces
1 inch square, fresh peeled ginger
Directions for Meatballs:
Put all ingredients into food processor and process the above into a thick meatloaf like mixture. Add more oil or a little water if needed to keep the processor moving. Roll and pat this mixture into 1 1/2 inch meatballs. Mixture will be a little sticky so you may want to grease your hands with a little olive oil, to help the process. (They don’t have to be perfectly round either… ) Don’t worry, the meatballs firm up beautifully, but also stay moist, when cooked. )
Bake uncovered 400 degrees in an oblong Pyrex pan that has been sprinkled with olive oil, turning periodically, and baking until the meatballs are golden on the outside and cooked on the inside about 20 minutes. If they are cooked through but not browned, run them under the broiler to get the outsides nice and brown and crispy!
Ingredients for Sauce:
2/3 c. bottled hoison sauce
1/4 white or rice vinegar
1 grated garlic clove
1 t. grated fresh ginger
1 T. soy sauce
Juice from 1/2 fresh lime
1 T. sesame seeds
2 T. chopped green onion
Directions for Sauce and Putting it All Together:
Put first 5 ingredients into a big sauce pan, and simmer for about a minute, until good and hot. Add juice from lime and then, gently put cooked meatballs in sauce and cover them all with sauce, heating until the meatballs are nice and hot.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds and chopped green onion. .Serve over rice (jasmine is our favorite) with any steamed or sautéed vegetables that you like. (May also garnish with chopped peanuts and cilantro and additional lime or hot sauce, if you like.)
This was printed from: We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook
The site URL: http://welaughwecrywecook.com
The Title: Sweet n Savory Asian Meatballs
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© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Thai Lettuce Wraps with a Sweet Ginger Sauce
Posted: June 14, 2012 Filed under: Appetizers, Asian Dishes, Main Dishes, Sauces and Dressings, Vegan, Vegan Options, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: garlic, lettuce cups, PF Changs Lettuce Wraps, sweet ginger sauce, tofu, vegan lettuce cups, vegetarian lettuce wraps Leave a comment »
Tofu Thai Lettuce Wraps with a sweet garlic and ginger sauce.
(Rachel – The Vegan-Eatin’ Daughter)
I love P.F. Changs. It’s my go-to special occasion restaurant when I get to do the picking (I’m still working on Jared and Asian food–baby steps). In fact, that’s where I asked to go for Mother’s Day. We took Jackson along and sat outside on the patio on a beautiful Spring day. As usual, the service and food were both great. Their chefs understand and respect vegan diets, which makes eating there so easy. However, the view was of a busy mall parking lot and there was an out of control gnat problem. I longed for my own patio with our country pasture view and my own personal fly swatter.
I’ve started to notice more often than not, I regret dining out. Whether for comfort, ease with Jackson, or control over what goes into our food, I just really prefer eating at home these days. So this week, I made my own version of P.F. Chang’s famous lettuce wraps. Fine dinin’ in my t-shirt and yoga pants on my own back porch. Aahhh.
Just like theirs, these can be made with tofu or chicken. The sweet ginger sauce is good enough to drink. And since you made it at home, their really will be no one around to judge you if you choose to do so. Just make sure you save some for the lettuce wraps.
Arrange the lettuce cups in a pretty flower-like arrangement and serve the cashews, cilantro, and green onions right on the cutting board for a fun and easy presentation.
Thai Lettuce Wraps with a Sweet Ginger Sauce
Serves 4 entree sizes or 8 appetizer portions
Ingredients
Stir Fry
1 block of firm tofu, crumbled or chopped into small cubes (could also use shredded or chopped chicken)
canola oil
1 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 chili pepper, sliced thinly
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 14.5 oz can baby corn, drained and chopped
1/2 c. diced canned pineapple (reserve juice for sauce)
1 8 oz can water chestnuts, drained and roughly chopped
1 8 oz can bamboo shoots, drained
2 green onions, chopped
several lettuce leaves (iceberg or romaine work nicely)
(Other veggies like shredded carrots and cabbage would work well in this too)
Marinade & Dipping Sauce
1 T. canola oil
2 T. fresh ginger, minced or finely diced
1 T. garlic, minced
1/2 c. Braggs Amino Acids (or Soy Sauce)
3 T. sweet chili sauce (in the Asian aisle of most grocery stores)
2 T. brown sugar
1 c. pineapple juice (buy a 15 oz can of diced pineapples and use juice here and pineapples in stir-fry)
1/2 c. veggie broth or water
Toppings
1/2 cup toasted cashews, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro chopped
1 green onion, chopped
Directions
Marinade & Dipping Sauce
In a sauce pan, heat canola oil on medium heat. Add ginger and garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and stir. Set aside 1 cup. When you get the stir-fry going, bring remaining sauce to a boil, then simmer on med-low to reduce for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir-Fry
Use half of the reserved sauce to marinate the tofu or protein for 30 minutes or longer. (This can be done the night before to save time the next day.)
In a large skillet or wok, heat about a tablespoon or so of canola oil on medium high. I like to chop as I cook, so chop the onions while the oil is heating, then chop the garlic and add it, then the chili, then the mushrooms, baby corn, pineapple, water chestnuts, and bamboo shoots.
In a separate nonstick skillet, heat about two tablespoons of canola oil and the tofu on medium high heat. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining reserved sauce and cook for a few more minutes. Then, combine the tofu with the veggies. Add the green onions at the last minute. (Follow similar steps for chicken, but adjust cooking time as needed.)
Serve in lettuce cups, with chopped cashews, cilantro, and more green onions for toppings on the side and individual sides of the dipping sauce.
Notes: I changed the recipe slightly from what is pictured. I cooked the tofu with the veggies and it tasted good, but didn’t pick up as much color as it gets when cooked on it’s own, so I adjusted it so yours should have more color than mine did. Also, the lettuce I used was Living Lettuce. It looked really pretty, but got mushy too fast. It needs something sturdier like romaine or ice berg.
This was printed from: We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook
The site URL: http://welaughwecrywecook.com
The Title: Thai Lettuce Wraps with a Sweet Ginger Sauce
The URL: http://wp.me/p1UwM9-pm
© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Crispy Southern Fried Tofu
Posted: June 8, 2012 Filed under: Appetizers, Asian Dishes, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegan Options, Vegetarian | Tags: crunchy tofu, fried tofu, tofu Leave a comment »
Crispy Southern Fried Tofu
(Becky, the Butter Lovin’ Mama)
When Rachel and I pitched our new book we described it as Alicia Silverstone meets Paula Deen. This fried tofu recipe is the perfect mingling of a young vegan chef with an older southern cookin’ mama.
Say the word “tofu” to non-vegans and vegetarians and wait to see how quickly they respond with some form of the words “yuck,” “spongy,” or “blah.”
What I’ve discovered about tofu is that it is indeed “yucky, spongy and blah” until you cook it correctly. I now love and often prefer it to meat, as long as it is sautéed or baked in a coating until caramelized, or…. fried. Let’s be honest: frying is not the healthiest method of cooking anything. However, as a treat, it is one of the tastiest ways to cook anything.
My 5 year old grandson Georgie is staying with us this week, and had never experienced Kentucky Fried Chicken. He laughed and laughed when I told him we were going to get “chicken in a bucket” for dinner. (At the end of a week with a five year old, this Nonny was losing touch with her normal cooking groove. Lack of sleep and uninterrupted thoughts will do this to a person, as adorable as he may be!) But one taste of KFC chicken leg and he started humming happy “mmm…mmmm…MMM’s” and saying things like, “I can’t stop eating this!” and “This is the best chicken I ever had.” He had three pieces before he finally paused to lick every finger on his hands.
Georgie chowing down on his first piece of southern fried chicken, Colonel Sanders style
Granted, a roast chicken is much healthier, but now and again, there’s just nothing like a good ol’ southern friend chicken. Or tofu.
Rachel and I were together in Phoenix this past fall, when we both ordered the crispy tofu and noodles dish at an Asian restaurant. When we took a bite of the tofu and it actually went “crunch,” it was a revelation. Tofu can crunch? Not only that, but the inside of the crunchy coating was a pillow of silken perfection. I had to duplicate it. This recipe below turned out at least as good as that lovely crunchy tofu in Phoenix. It’s a wonderful “gateway recipe” to get people who are afraid of tofu to give it a try.
Becky’s Southern Fried Tofu
Serves 2 to 3
Ingredients
1/2 block tofu, diced in squares about the size of a dice (little more than 1/2 inch squares)
1/4 c. teriyaki sauce
1 t. sesame oil
1 T. thai chili sauce
canola or coconut oil for frying
1/2 c. cornstarch
1/2 t. sea salt
/3 c. toasted sesame seeds
More teriyaki and chili sauce for coating and dipping, if desired (to personal taste)
2 slices fresh lime
1/4 c. chopped green onion
Directions:
Fill a medium sized sauce pot with oil until it is one and one half to two inches deep. Heat oil at medium high. (Or use a fryer.)
Use medium saucepan filled 1 1/2 to 2 inches with oil
Mix teriyaki sauce, sesame oil and chili sauce in a shallow bowl. Use a spoon to toss and coat the pieces of tofu lightly.
Next, toss the tofu in a shallow bowl of cornstarch mixed with 1/2 t. salt.
Tofu marinated, tossed in cornstarch. After frying you will roll in the bowl of sesame seeds.
Carefully place tofu in small batches in sauce pan or fryer. Using a heat proof slotted spoon, turn the tofu until it is golden brown on all sides and remove with the same spoon (tapping to drain off oil) to a shallow bowl with sesame seeds. Gently toss the tofu in sesame seeds. Taste and if needed sprinkle with a very light dusting of sea salt.
Can use as an appetizer just like this, or coated in a bit more teriyaki sauce with a side of edamame.
Variation: Delicious also served with a variety of Asian sauces (such as teriyaki, black bean, hoisin, low sodium soy, Thai Sweet Chili sauce, plum sauce, hot chili sauce , lime, sesame oil, grated ginger), chopped green onions, and served with a slice of lime over a bowl of rice and steamed veggies. A sprinkle of chopped peanuts and chopped cilantro is wonderful with this dish as well.
Southern Fried Tofu
This was printed from: We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook
The site URL: http://welaughwecrywecook.com
The Title: Crispy Southern Fried Tofu
The URL: http://wp.me/p1UwM9-oj
© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved
Becky Johnson
Rachel Randolph
