Pasta Fagioli

Ingredients

  • 1 TBL EVOO
  • 1/2 Onion – chopped
  • 4 cloves Garlic – minced
  • 1 stalk Celery – chopped
  • 1 pkg Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
  • 1/2 C white wine
  • 2 C chicken broth
  • ± 2 C tomatoes
  • 1 C Elbow macaroni or other pasta
  • 1 can Cannelloni beans
  • Parsley and/or cilantro

Step by Step

  1. Sweat garlic, onions and celery in 1 TBL EVOO
  2. Add crushed red pepper flakes
  3. De-glaze with white wine
  4. 1 can Tomato pieces with juice
  5. Chicken broth
  6. Bring to a boil
  7. Simmer for 60 minutes
  8. Add elbow macaroni, cook another 10 minutes
  9. Cannelloni beans – Cook for 5 more minutes
  10. Parsley and/or cilantro
  11. Salt to taste

 

Quick Green Salsa

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 jalapeños
  • 2 Hatch or Anaheim peppers
  • 4 tomatillos
  • 1 grilled Vidalia onion
  • 1/2 grilled red onion
  • 2 cloves grilled garlic
  • 2 dried arbol chilies – seeds removed
  • salt
  • Water and apple cider vinegar
  • 1 hand of fresh cilantro

STEP BY STEP

  1. Remove tomatillo skins
  2. Deseed your arbol chilies
  3. Cut your onions into thick wedges – leaving the skins intact
  4. Put all ingredients on a baking sheet
  5. Broil for about 3-6 minutes
  6. Remove arbol chilies when they start to blacken
  7. Remove grilled garlic when the skin starts to blacken
  8. Remove the onions when the edges start to blacken
  9. Peel the onions and garlic
  10. Leave the peppers in place until the skins are nearly all blackened
  11. Put the peppers into a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 5 minutes
  12. Peel off the pepper skin using a paper towel – DO NOT RINSE
  13. Put everything into a blender or food processor
  14. Add fresh cilantro
  15. Add 2 TBL vinegar and pulse
  16. Add water just until the ingredients blend together
  17. Do not puree, but leave a bit rustic

Sicilian Bread Soup

INGREDIENTS

  • Abot 4 C Left-over pieces of rustic bread.  Basic white sponge bread will be a disaster if you try to use it.
  • 6 cloves whole garlic
  • To taste: red pepper, salt, pepper
  • 2 TBL EVOO
  • 1/2 C carrot
  • 1 C onion
  • 1/2 C celery
  • 1 can peeled tomatoes
  • Basil leaves
  • Chicken stock
  • Scallions
  • Romano Cheese or Parmesan Cheese

STEP BY STEP

  1. Saute onion in EVOO
  2. Add carrot and celery
  3. Add garlic
  4. Add red pepper, salt and pepper
  5. Add tomatoes – crushed or broken apart
  6. Cut bread into 1 inch pieces – about 4-6 C of it – and add to pot
  7. Add basil chiffonade
  8. Add 4-6 C of chicken stock
  9. Simmer 90 minutes
  10. Stir every 15 minutes
  11. Top with scallions or basil
  12. Top with cheese
  13. Drizzle with EVOO

This is also called Pappa al Pomodoro and was originally a peasant dish in Italy.

Asian Dumplings

xiao long bao

These are not the dumplings that are most commonly served in tomato soup here in the US.  These are kind of like miniature sealed burritos or calzones… although that comparison is made VERY loosely.  They are commonly called Pot Stickers.

There are too many dumplings to list here, so I have taken the liberty of including a post from Culinary One which is a great reference site.  Only slight modifications have been made, although links have been removed.  If you want to explore this page in more detail, complete with photos, use the link in this paragraph.

21 Different Types of Dumplings

Every country on earth has its own glorious regional cuisines that have developed over centuries, if not millennia, and when you travel, you have the opportunity to try all the different morsels of delight that each has to offer. One type of food that seems to be ubiquitous is the stuffed pocket, or dumpling: it’s a comfort food that can be made with either the simplest, or fanciest ingredients, and every culture has its own style and flavour for you to experience.


1.  Banh bot loc

These delicious Vietnamese dumplings are made with tapioca flour, and filled with a mixture of shrimp and pork that’s been seasoned with fish sauce and green onion, and then the dumplings are cooked in banana leaves. The tapioca wrapper becomes translucent, and has a unique chewy texture that contrasts beautifully with the savoury filling.

2.  Buuz

Mongolian steamed dumplings, these are most often filled with mutton, onion, and garlic. The flour used for the dough can be either wheat, or a mixture of wheat, barley, and buckwheat.

3.  Daifuku

Made with glutinous rice flour, daifuku are dessert dumplings with sweet fillings such as red (adzuki) bean paste, lotus seed paste, sweetened plum, and pureed chestnuts. The flour can be tinted with green tea, and can also have sesame seeds added to it for texture.

4.  Empanadas

Common foods not only in South and Central America, but also in Spain and Portugal (from whence they originated), these can be filled with anything you can imagine: Argentine empanadas are filled with a mixture of ground beef, olives, onions, and raisins, while in Portugal, you may find them filled with sardines or pork loin. Vegetarian versions are common as well.

5.  Gyoza

Made with very thin wrappers and usually filled with a mixture of finely-chopped pork and vegetables, these fried Japanese dumplings are staples at just about any restaurant you visit. They’re also ridiculously easy to make at home, and can be stuffed with your filling of choice.

6.  Ha Gao (or Har Gow)

Chinese shrimp and pea shoot dumplings wrapped in rice paper: the wrapper goes translucent when steamed, making these morsels into tiny bite-sized jewels. The flavours within complement each other gorgeously.

7.  Khinkali

If you think you’d enjoy a mixture of pork, beef, cilantro, chili pepper, and fenugreek, you’d likely love these Georgian dumplings. Some people make them with caraway seeds instead of Fenugreek, but both add a very subtle bitter note to the filling.

8.  Kreplach

An Eastern European Ashkenazi Jewish specialty, kreplach are filled with a mixture of minced meat and mashed potato, and are usually served in soup.

9.  Kroppkaka (Plural: Kroppkakor)

Don’t let the name put you off: these Swedish stuffed dumplings filled with smoked pork, onions, and cracked pepper, and can be served with either cream, or lingonberry jam.

10.  Mandu

These Korean dumplings can be made with store-bought gyoza wrappers, and are most often filled with minced kimchi, or kimchi and tofu. These base fillings are mixed with bean sprouts, shredded carrots, garlic, leeks, and green onion, and seasoned with ginger, garlic, and brown sugar. These are then either steamed, fried in sesame oil, or boiled in soups.

11.  Manti

A different kind of Turkish delight altogether, these are filled with a mixture of minced lamb, onion, pine nuts, and garlic, doused liberally with smoked paprika, and served with yoghurt.

12.  Maultaschen

Literally translated as “a sack for your maw”, these large Schwabian dumplings are filled with spiced meat, spinach, breadcrumbs, and herbs. They can either be pan-fried with onions, or simmered in a broth.

13.  Momo

Popular in both Tibet and Nepal, the Nepalese momo has more vegetables than its Tibetan cousin. Most commonly made with ground buffalo or yak meat, you can substitute beef or pork if those aren’t readily available. Vegetarian versions can be made with cabbage, onions, and herbs. Mixed with spices and fresh herbs, the filling is stuffed into flour wrappers, pleated, and then the dumplings are steamed.

14.  Pasties

Hailing from Cornwall, these are large dough pockets stuffed with chopped beef, potatoes, carrots or parsnips, and peas, and then baked until golden brown. They were traditionally made as lunch for miners, and one corner may have been created as a “dessert”, with the filling at that end consisting of jam, or cream cheese and fruit.

15.  Pelmeni

Like a cross between an Italian tortellini and Turkish manti, these are little folded and wrapped savoury dumplings that are easily recognized by the thickness of the dough. They can be filled with meat (goat, mutton, poultry), mushrooms, vegetables, or cheeses, but never have sweet fillings. These are boiled, and then served with melted butter, sour cream, and chopped green onion or chives.

16.  Pierogi

Known as varenyky in Ukranian cuisine, Pierogis are made of wheat dough, and filled with a variety of stuffings such as mashed potato with onion and cheese; sauerkraut; wild mushrooms and buckwheat; spiced ground beef; even sweet fillings like blueberries, gooseberries, or plums.

17.  Ravioli

Anyone who’s a lover of Italian cuisine will be well-acquainted with these pillows of glee. Dough squares are filled with anything from ground meat or cheese to squash, nuts, herbs, and even fruit, sealed well, and then boiled. They can be served with any kind of sauce, or even lightly pan-fried and topped with browned butter.

18.  Samosa

These Indian delicacies are usually stuffed with a mixture of spicy potatoes, onions, and peas, and can be either baked or fried. They go wonderfully with tamarind or mango chutney, or any other sweet/sour dipping sauce.

19.  Svestkove knedily

Sweet and adorable, these Czech dumplings are as delicious as they are simple to make. A small, whole fruit (like a plum or apricot) is wrapped in a dough made of flour, egg, milk, and butter, and then dropped into a pot of boiling water. They’re considered “done” once they’ve risen to the surface and bobbed around for a couple of minutes, and are then immediately rolled in a mixture of melted butter, sugar, and cinnamon.

20.  Uszka

Translated as “little ears”, these tiny Polish dumplings are usually filled with assorted wild mushrooms and onion, or minced meat. They can be boiled and served with melted butter and chives, or in borscht-style beet soup.

21.  Xiao Long Bao

If you’ve never tried these steamed “soup dumplings”, you must. The filling is made of seasoned ground pork, but the magic of these little beauties is the gelatin: cubes of gelatinized chicken or pork broth are mixed in with the rest of the filling, so that when the dumpling is sealed and steamed, the gelatin melts and creates a “soup” inside.


Lana Winter-Hébert ( shown to the left ) fell in love with cooking while still in primary school. The various dietary needs of her extended family (i.e. gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian, and paleo diets) have helped her to learn a fair bit about substitutions and meal plan modifications, and though her first love will always be the Scandinavian/Eastern European cuisine she grew up with, she has a penchant for Mexican food and can be bribed heartily with the offer of good huevos rancheros. Lana currently resides in rural Quebec with her husband and family, where she divides her time between writing, editing, design, and tending her permaculture garden. She cans and preserves whatever’s in season, and is having some fantastic adventures with home cheese-making and mead-brewing.

Shogayaki – Japanese Ginger Pork

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 inch piece of grated ginger
  • 1 onion – sliced thin
  • Sesame seed oil
  • 1 lb pork loin
  • Marinate
    – 1 TBL soy sauce
    – 1 TBL sugar
    – 1 TBL sake
    – 1 TBL mirin
    – 1/2 tsp pepper and salt

STEP BY STEP

  1. About 1-2 hours before eating, put your pork loin into the freezer for 30 minutes
    This will make it easier to slice
  2. Slice your pork loin on the bias as thin as possible
  3. Put into zip lock bag with your marinate – refrigerate
    ABOUT 30 MINUTES BEFORE EATING
  4. Meanwhile – Srape the skin off your ginger using the edge of a spoon
  5. Grate ginger on microplane
  6. Put sesame oil into hot pan over medium low heat
  7. Saute your onions just to lighten and soften
  8. Toss your pork slices in with the onions for only about 2-3 minutes
  9. Serve with white rice or fried rice

Consider a hot cast iron skillet at the table, and allow people to cook their own meat.

 

Ginger Broccoli

INGREDIENTS – MIS EN PLACE

  • 3 TBL Safflower oil and 4 cloves of garlic
    – Heat to about 350º and put garlic cloves into it. Let rest 10 minutes
  • 1 Carrot – thinly sliced on the bias
  • Tofu ( for protein ) Firm
  • 1 Red bell pepper – thin slices
  • Ginger – peeled and about 1 inch in size
  • 1 large head Broccoli
  • 1/4 C Oyster sauce
  • 1/4 C chicken broth

STEP BY STEP

  1. When all has been prepped, heat wok to about 500º
  2. Add safflower oil
  3. Add pieces of ginger, and cook for about 60 seconds, then remove
  4. Add carrot and salt – stir to cover
  5. Toss tofu gently in corn starch
  6. Add broccoli
  7. Add tofu (or other protein) – Toss gently from here forward
  8. Add red bell peppers
  9. Add garlic
  10. Add oyster sauce
  11. Add chicken broth

Tamale Taco

INGREDIENTS

  • Corn tortillas
  • Hot canola or corn oil
  • Shredded “Mexican Blend” Cheese
  • Arbol chilies

Optional toppings:  shredded chicken, shredded pork, lettuce, tomatoes, jalapeños, cilantro, etc.

STEP BY STEP

  1. Heat a small amount of oil in a pan
  2. Heat tortillas till they soften and barely start to brown
  3. Remove from heat and sprinkle with cheese
  4. Put on some chilies or other optional toppings
  5. Enjoy

Mexican Pizza

This is a Blue Corn Chicken Enchilada similar to the one served at the Rooftop Pizzeria in Santa Fe, NM.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 C cornmeal
  • 1 C High Gluten Flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 TBL EVOO
  • ice cold water
    TOPPINGS to taste
  • Alfredo sauce
  • Shredded chicken
  • Asadero cheese
  • Green chilies
  • Cotija cheese
  • 1/2 onion – sliced thin

STEP BY STEP

  1. Pulse all dry ingredients in food processor
  2. With the food processor running, drizzle in EVOO
  3. While running, drizzle the the ice water until the dough starts to ball up
  4. Sprinkle cornmeal on the counter
  5. Take dough ball out of food processor and knead it by hand until it starts to become more elastic
  6. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest on the counter for ten minutes
  7. Roll out on an upside down cast iron skillet
  8. Bake 10 minutes at 350º
  9. Meanwhile, prepare your toppings
  10. Remove the pizza base and set on counter
  11. Turn up oven to 500º
  12. Put an Alfredo base on the pizza, then the other toppings
  13. Put back into the hot oven for 5-8 minutes
  14. Cut with pizza cutter and slide onto plates to serve

Mu Shu Pork

mushu

READ HERE HOW TO MAKE MU SHU PANCAKES

INGREDIENTS

  • Pork Tenderloin
  • Shitake mushrooms (fresh or dried)
    – If dried, soak in boiling water 5 minutes
  • 2 TBL soy
  • 1 TBL dry sherry
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 TBL oil
  • 6 scallions (whites and greens thinly sliced and separated)
  • Bamboo shoots
    PORK MARINATE
  • 2 TBL soy
  • 1 TBL dry sherry
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1/2 tsp white pepper

STEP BY STEP

  1. Mix together Pork Marinate – set aside
  2. Cut Pork Tenderloin half
  3. Wrap and refrigerate one half
  4. Cut the other half into two or three long strips
  5. Cut into thin medallions
  6. Let pork marinate with mixture created in Step 1
  7. Slice your shitakes very thin
  8. MUSHROOM SAUCE:  Mix 2 TBL soy, 1 TBL dry sherry, 2 tsp cornstarch and 1/3 C shitake water or chicken broth
  9. In hot wok (or pan) cook two eggs – soft scrambled – set aside
  10. Add 1 TBL oil and then your scallion whites
  11. Add your pork marinate into the pan
  12. Add your pork and saute about 2-3 minutes – set aside
  13. Add 1 TBL oil then your bamboo shoots and mushrooms
  14. Add 2 C shredded cabbage and your scallion greens
  15. Add your mushroom sauce and toss until reduced and thickened
  16. Add back your pork and eggs and toss to combine
  17. Serve with mu shu pancales and Hoisin sauce.

Crispy Orange Chicken or Beef

INGREDIENTS

  • Two chicken breasts or 1 LB flap meat or 1 LB skirt steak
  • 1 TBL soy sauce
  • 6 TBL corn starch or potato starch
  • 3 C Vegetable oil – heated to 375º
    SAUCE
  • 1/4 OJ
  • 3 TBL molasses
  • 2 TBL honey
  • 2 TBL soy sauce
  • 2 TBL dry sherry
  • 1 TBL rice vinegar
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • Skin peeled from one orange
  • 1/2 red bell pepper
  • 2 TBL ginger – minced
  • 3 cloves garlic – minced
  • 1 tsp red chili flakes
  • 4 scallions – whites and greens minced, but kept apart
  • Rice – Cooked

STEP BY STEP

  1. Cut chicken or beef into 1/4 inch strips against the grain
  2. Toss meat in 1 TBL soy sauce
  3. Drain briefly, then toss in 6 TBL corn starch
  4. Put onto a baking sheet and into the freezer for one hour
  5. Start 3 C Vegetable oil heating up to 375º
  6. Cook meat in small batches and set on paper towel and bread rack to drain
    SAUCE
  7. Meanwhile, mix OJ, molasses, soy, sherry, vinegar and sesame oil.  Set aside
  8. Cut orange peel into VERY thin julienne strips
  9. Cut red bell into slightly thicker julienne strips
  10. Fry orange peel and scallion whites in 2 TBL of the deep fry oil – cook till it starts to brown
  11. Add ginger, garlic and chili flakes
  12. Cook about 30 seconds, then add your sauce, scallion greens and meat
  13. Stir to combine and reheat
  14. Serve over cooked rice

Tlayuda – Mexican Pizza

mex-pizzDOUGH

  • 2 C Masa Harina (corn flour)
  • Salt
  • water – approx 1-1/2 C – drizzle into running food processor until it starts to pull together
    (SHORTCUT: Use large soft yellow or white corn tortillas)
    (WORSE SHORTCUT: Use a large flour tortilla.  This is a quesadilla!)

STEP BY STEP

  1. Put the masa and salt into your food processor
  2. Have a measuring cup with 2 C water – YOU WILL NOT use it all.
  3. In a food processor, put the masa, salt and 1 C water
  4. Start the food processor and drizzle more water in a bit at a time, till it starts to pull together.
  5. Take it out and finish it on the counter
  6. Cut in half, and form two large balls, about the size of a softball, and press it kind of flat
  7. Cover with plastic, and let it rest 5 minutes
  8. Put onto a parchment paper, flatten a bit more
  9. Put a second parchment paper on top
  10. Roll it even flatter
  11. Put into a hot lightly oiled cast iron skillet
  12. 3-5 minutes, then flip
  13. Cook other side 3-5 minutes
  14. It should have blacked spots on both sides
  15. Set aside on baking sheet
  16. Repeat 8 through 15 for the other ball of masa

TOPPINGS

  • Refried Beans as a base
  • Cheeses
    • Many grocery stores offer a shredded Mexican blend of cheeses.  This is your safest best
    • Other good choices – Asiago, Havarti, Mozzarella, Provolone, Queso Oaxaca, Queso Asadero ( aka Queso Quesadilla), Panela, Manchego, Queso Chihuahua
    • In a pinch, use a blend of Cheddar, Monterrey Jack & Mozzarella – or just  Cheddar and Monterrey Jack
    • Bad choices: These cheeses do not melt well, and probably are not as good for this application – Queso Fresco, Queso Anejo (Aged Fresco), Cotijo, Parmesan
  • Meat:  Chorizo, chicken, fish, carne, bacon, or carnitas – Cooked
  • Avocado
  • Fresh tomato
  • Sun dried tomato
  • Bell pepper
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Mexican Crema
  • Corn
  • Mushrooms
  • Black beans
  • Black olives
  • Crumbled Queso Fresco

Hasselback Potatoes

This dish takes its name from Hasselbacken, Sweden where it was first served.
The potatoes turn out crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.

INGREDIENTS

  • Two regular baking potatoes – Russet
  • Cream cheese
  • Sliced Swiss cheese
  • Drizzle Sauce
    • 4 TBL butter
    • 1 TBL EVOO
    • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
    • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 2 Strips of bacon
  • 1 Stalk chives
  • Sour cream

You will also need two wooden mixing spoons with long handles (or chopsticks or skewers_

STEP BY STEP

  1. Melt Drizzle Sauce in a small sauce pan – set aside
  2. Wash potato then dry it
  3. Cook medium potato in microwave for about 90 seconds.
  4. Let cool, then rub potato with oil
  5. Put potato on a cutting board, and place a spoon handle on each side of the potato
  6. Cut 1/4 inch slices (or less) through the potato.  The spoon handles prevent you from cutting the potato all the way through.
  7. Put potato on a baking sheet in a little foil “boat”
  8. Stuff slices with a bit of the cream cheese
  9. Baste liberally with the Drizzle Sauce, getting some sauce into each of the accordion folds
  10. Salt outside liberally
  11. Bake at 400º for 20 minutes
  12. Baste
  13. Bake another 20 minutes
  14. Meanwhile, cook the bacon till crisp
  15. Steam broccoli if that is your side
  16. Chop the chives into small pieces. . . just keep busy
  17. At about 38 minutes, baste again and put a slice of Swiss cheese on top.
    The cheese will melt and become real messy – that’s why they are in a boat
  18. Serve as soon as the cheese starts to brown
  19. Top with sour cream, bacon and chives

 

Chicken Tinga

The literal translation of this is simply “Chicken that is just a little bit spicy.”

If you are making Poached Chicken from scratch, START HERE. Use the back button on the Poached Chicken page to return to this recipe. You can also use a precooked deli chicken.

INGREDIENTS

  • Poached Chicken (view recipe)
  • 4 oz chorizo
  • 1/2 onion – diced
  • 3 cloves of minced garlic
  • EVOO
  • 3 tomatoes – peeled (or 1 can drained)
  • 2 tomatillos
  • sprigs of marjoram, thyme and oregano
    Keep whole so you can remove them later
  • Chipotle packed in adobo

STEP BY STEP

  1. Start your chicken poaching (view recipe)
  2. Brown chorizo
  3. Add in onion and stir till translucent
  4. Add garlic and EVOO
  5. Add tomatoes and tomatillos
  6. Add sprigs
  7. Let simmer about 20 minutes, then remove sprigs
  8. Add shredded chicken
  9. Thin as necessary with chicken stock – Should be fairly thick, but moist
  10. Use this as a base for tacos or tostadas or even a burrito

 

Chinese Sauces – Yakisoba Copy Cat

Yakisoba Sauce

This sauce is difficult to find, so here is a recipe to make your own

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/4 C Ketchup
  • 1/4 C soy
  • 2 TBL Worcestershire
  • 1-1/2 TBL brown sugar
  • 3 Cloves garlic
  • 3 Anchovies – rinsed
  • 1 tsp rice wine vinegar

NOODLES

  • Yakisoba – very good, but hard to find
  • Lomein – similar to yakisoba if prepared properly
  • Soba – buckwheat
  • Udon – Wheat
  • Somen
  • Ramen

Easy Apple Strudel

INGREDIENTS

  • Commercial Puff Pastry, or Strudel Pastry
  • 3 Baking Apples – Granny or Honeycrisp – cored but with skin still on – sliced very very thin or grated
  • 1 TBL Cinnamon
  • 2 TBL Butter
  • 1/2 C Sugar – Turbinado sugar is pretty, but not required

STEP BY STEP

  1. Use strudel pastry (keep moist).
  2. Roll just a bit flatter
  3. Melt your butter in the microwave
  4. Lay down filling – Leave an edge bare for sealing
  5. Sprinkle cinnamon and 3 TBL sugar over apples
  6. Drizzle apple with butter
  7. Fold ends, roll tightly
  8. Press together seam
  9. Place on baking sheet with seam side down
  10. Brush outside w/ butter.
  11. Bake till golden brown. Cut ends off to sit flat
  12. Cut into 2-3 inch pieces – straight across
  13. Cut pieces at an angle (on the bias)
  14. Place on serving plate with the flat side down.
  15. Serve w/ ice cream or yogurt

FROM SCANNED NOTES

Apple Strudel
1 pound red apples, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons raisins
pate Brisee:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup cold butter, diced

4 to 6 tablespoons ice waterp
2 tablespoons melted butter pPp”

p p
p p p
1. Preheat oven to 375∞; Lightly coat a baking sheet with canola oil.
2. In a large bowl, toss apples with sugar, cinnamon and raisins.
3. To prepare pate brisee, place flour in a medium bowl. Add salt and sugar and mix
well. Add butter and cut into flour, using a pastry cutter, until butter is the size of
small peas. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing gently after each addition.
Dough will begin to form a ball when enough water has been added. Gather dough
with dry hands and form into ball. Let rest for 5 minutes.
4. Roll into an 8″ by 12″ rectangle!~ffff~poon filli~g”along”the 19n9 edge of the dough, about
. “”i ii” “i”
1-mch from the edge. Roll dough and fillin,gi;9ver itself and seal ends to form a strudel-
“i
Score into 10 1-inch slices. Brush top of strudel with melted butter.
5. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until top is lightly browned. Remove from oven and trim
any extra pastry off the ends. Cut into 10 servings.
Makes 8 servings, each containing approximately:
170 calories
28 mg. carbohydrate
6 gm. fat
15 mg. cholesterol
2 gm. protein
95 mg. sodium
2 gm. fiber
9/01

Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas

INGREDIENTS

  • Tex Mex Chili Sauce (see recipe below)
  • 1/4 C Shredded cheddar Cheese
  • 1/4 C Monterrey Jack cheese
  • Corn tortillas
  • 1/2 Vadalia or other sweet onion

Text Mex Chili Sauce

  • 2 TBL AP flour
  • 2 TBL butter
  • 1 TBL ground cumin
  • 1 TBL ground Ancho chili
  • Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste (just a tiny bit)
  • 2 C chicken stock
  1. Heat flour and butter together until it starts to brown
  2. Add cumin, chili, salt, pepper and garlic
  3. Stir for two minutes
  4. Whisk in 2 C chicken stock a little bit at a time
  5. Stir until smooth, then add more stock – REPEAT
  6. Cook until thickened

STEP BY STEP for Cheese Enchiladas

  1. Mix together your cheeses
  2. Put chili sauce on the bottom of a glass baking dish
  3. Heat your corn tortilla 10 seconds in the microwave
  4. Wrap 2 TBL cheese and 1 TBL chopped sweet onions in a corn tortilla
  5. Place it seam side down
  6. Repeat Steps 3-5 until your pan is full
  7. Put more sauce on top
  8. Top with cheese
  9. Bake for about 14 minutes at 350º
  10. Top with more chopped onion
  11. Bake for another 5 minutes
  12. Serve bubbling and hot

 

Potato Latkes – Potato Rosti – Hash Browns – Potato Pancakes

I started researching the difference between American Hash Browns, Jewish Latkes and German Rösti, but the bottom line is there really isn’t a whole lot of difference.

  • Hash Browns: A traditional staple in America that you would get at Mel’s Diner. Shredded potatoes fried until browned.
  • Latkes: A Hanukkah potato that is grated (or spiralized) mixed with egg and onion slivers, and then pressed into small loose pancakes and then fried.
  • Rosti: A German/Swedish grated parboiled potato that is pressed into a slightly larger pancake and then baked. Most of the rösti recipes that I reviewed had rosemary in them.

The end result is very similar.

PLEASE READ: The key to successful deep frying is temperature. As long as bubbles are going out, oil cannot be going in. Too cool and the oil will seep into whatever you are frying. Too hot and it will burn, but still not be cooked inside. As soon as the bubbles stop, get it out of the oil. Use a submersible or candy thermometer to monitor temperature closely and keep your temperature as closed to 365º as possible. If you do it right, very little oil will be absorbed.

INGREDIENTS FOR PANKO POTATO LATKES

  • 1 lemon
  • 1 TBL salt
  • 3 Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes (grated)
  • 1 small sweet onion (grated or minced)
  • 1/4 C flour – Bluebird Flour if possible
  • 1 eggs, beaten
  • 1/4 C yogurt
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 TBL potato starch (use corn starch if you have no potato starch)
  • 1/4 tsp pepper or Grandpa's Thunder Powder or Arghhh Powder
  • Peanut or grapeseed oil for frying – both have a high smoke point
    Alternatives are olive oil and/or schmaltz.

This recipe is adapted from ToriAvey.com.  CLICKING HERE will give you a page of quite extensive instructions and a lot of good information and history about latkes.  I recommend you visit Tori’s web page and read about latkes, then stop back here to print out this brief recipe summary, that makes a smaller amount than Tori’s recipe. (Internal Link)

SETUP

  • Place a cooling rack near your oil with a newspaper beneath it to catch the drips.

STEP BY STEP

  1. Peel the potatoes, then grate them using a food processor.  If you don’t have one, use a hand grater.
  2. Place grated potato into a bowl and immediately cover with cold water and squeeze juice from one lemon and 1 TBL salt into the water.  Mix well.
  3. No need to clean the grater.  Grate the onion and put into the water with the grated potato.
  4. Drain the potato/onion mixture and place in the center of a clean tea towel.
  5. Let rest for 5 minutes, then pour through a colander.  Let drain for 20 minutes.  If you are in a hurry, continue straight to Step 6.
  6. Firmly squeeze all excess liquid from the shreds.
  7. Place potato/onion mixture in a large bowl and separate the shreds with a fork.
  8. Mix flour, beaten eggs, potato starch and pepper
  9. Fold panko into the potatoes and mix well.
  10. Pour peanut oil in a cast iron skillet to a depth of 1/8 inch and heat to 365º – You should use a thermometer to assure correct oil temperature.
  11. Put 3 TBL of the mixture into your hand and squeeze it into a fairly flat disk.
  12. Lower the disk carefully into the hot oil.  The latke can break apart easily, but if you can get them into the oil, they should be OK.
  13. Shape each subsequent latke just before it is slid into the oil.  Don’t fry any more than five at a time.  Don’t crowd the pan.
  14. Fry until brown and crispy (about 3-5 minutes per side)
    NOTE: If your latkes are not holding together, stir 2 tsp potato starch and 1 tsp beaten egg till the batter holds its shape.
  15. Remove the latkes to drain using a metal spatula, and place on the wire rack.
  16. Serve within 10 minutes of frying them.  Always serve latkes hot and fresh if possible. The longer they sit, the less crisp they’ll be.
  17. If you can’t do this, leave them on the rack to cool. When ready to serve, place in 375º oven for 10 minutes until heated through.
  18. Serve latkes with applesauce and/or sour cream, if desired.

Serving Options

  • Horseradish mixed with sour cream
  • Sauteed mushrooms
  • Slices of smoked salmon
  • Cherry tomato salsa

NOTES

  • Latkes are traditionally cooked on Hanukkah, along with other fried foods, to commemorate the miracle of the menorah oil in the Jewish Temple.
  • Chremslach (singular: chremsel) is the Yiddish word for a fried pancake. Potato chremslach are often mistaken for latkes. They are similar to latkes, with one major difference. Instead of shredding the potatoes, as we do with latkes, the potatoes are mashed and made into a thick batter before frying. Chremslach often appear on deli menus as “potato pancakes.” Latkes are thinner and more crispy due to the shredded texture of the potatoes. Chremslach are thicker and fluffier.
  • The perfect latke is crispy on the outside while hot, soft and fluffy in the center. It’s aromatic and salty and oniony and delectable. A well made latke is nearly impossible to resist.
  • This recipe is summarized/adapted from ToriAvey.com.  CLICKING HERE will give you a page of quite extensive instructions.  There is also quite a bit of information and history about latkes.  I recommend you visit Tori’s web page and read about latkes, then stop back here to print out this brief recipe summary.
Simple Potato Pancake

  • 1/2 C left over mashed potatoes
  • 1/2 C grated russet potatoes
  • 1/2 C flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 C cheddar cheese
  • garlic, salt and pepper to taste
  • Form into loose (not tight) patties
  • Fry in hot oil until browned

 

ANOTHER RECIPE BRIEF – IRISH POTATO PANCAKES

  • Make your Creme Fraiche
    • 1/4 C Sour Cream
    • 2 tsp whole grain mustard
    • 1 tsp Fresh Chives
    • salt and pepper
  • Prepare your mashed potatoes
    • 1/2 C mashed potatoes
    • 1 TBL butter
    • 2 TBL Half and Half
    • Put ingredients into a pot
    • Heat, melt and blend
  • 1/2 C grated russet potato
    • Squeeze out as much water content as you can
  • Make the batter
    • Add 1 egg (beaten)
    • 1/4 C Half and Half
    • 3 TBL AP flour
    • scant baking powder
  • Combine all ingredients
  • Add salt and pepper
  • Butter a cast-iron skillet
  • Drop by spoonfuls onto hot skillet
  • Flip when edges are brown
  • Plate and top with a dollop of Creme Fraiche
  • Add a thin slice of smoked salmon
  • and garnish with chives

 

NOTES FROM CHOMPIES

  • 1 C Fresh grated potato
  • Chopped onion 1/2 C
  • 1/2 C masa meal
  •  (or flour)
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp canola oil
  • 2 eggs
    • Rest 10 minutes
  • Create patty and put into 1/4 C hot canola oil
  •  

Chipotle’s House Spicy Guacamole – Copy Cat

CLICK HERE for Avocado Tips and Tricks.


Ingredients
1/4 tsp sea salt (to taste)
1 tsp garlic (more or less to taste)
1/4 CU finely diced red onion or Valida
2 seeded habeñero, jalapeno or Serrano peppers (see Variations)
3 limes (approx 2 TBS lime juice)
1/2 tsp salt
Mix and let set 10 minutes
2 ripe avacados (soft, but not squishy)
1/2 CU diced cilantro or parsley
1 few mint leaves
1 diced tomato
1/2 finely minced onion
1 Tomato
1/4 CU Parsley

Instructions
1. Crush avocados
2. Mix in all other ingredients

Variations
1.Substitute seeded jalapenos for heat, but not too hot
2. Add diced tomatoes (cherry is best from my viewpoint)
3. Best to meld for 30 minutes, but impressive to mix at the table.


Ahi Poke

SEE TUNA TIPS BY CLICKING HERE

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 LB fresh sashimi grade RED tuna
  • Scallions
  • Macadamia nuts
  • Marinate ingredients (see below)

STEP BY STEP

  1. Cut ahi tuna into 1/2 inch chunks
  2. Toss gently in marinate
  3. Refrigerate 30 – 60 minutes
  4. Top with minced scallion greens
  5. Finish with chopped macadamia nuts

MARINATE

  • 1/2 Maui onion
  • Garlic
  • Ginger
  • Soy
  • Lemon
  • White scallion
  • Sambal olek
  • Sesame oil
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