An Asian Dish from a French Cookbook?

After a busy week, and more leftovers than I originally expected, as well as an extreme Thai craving, I was left with last Friday's planned meal to make tonight for dinner. Sometimes we just don't stick to the plan. I thought this recipe, for Shrimp with Cellophane Noodles, was intriguing, and after tasting it, I was right!

This was a really quick one to pull together, and that was a good thing, because I was pretty tired by the time I got home this evening. I peeled my shrimp and de-veined them quickly. The best part about buying frozen shrimp is that they are usually "e-z peel" which means it does not take a ton of work to clean them up. It's a wonder those are the ones that are usually on sale too - less work, less cost - it makes no sense but I'm not complaining.

I placed some dried mushrooms into a bowl of warm water, allowing them to reconstitute while I brought together the rest of my ingredients. I also put a pot of water on to boil for my noodles. I couldn't find cellophane noodles at my regular grocery store this week, and didn't have a chance to get to my favorite Asian market, so I made do with some Chinese noodles instead. It worked out just fine, although I think the cellophane noodles may have absorbed a bit more of the sauce...we'll just have to try it again!

While my noodles cooked, I heated some peanut oil in wok, sweated some onions and then added those reconstituted mushrooms, chopped, along with some garlic. Thirty seconds later, I added the shrimp to the wok with a mixture of Chinese Five Spice, cayenne pepper, and sugar. As the shrimp began to turn pink, I seasoned the mixture with a generous amount of white pepper and salt, and then poured in some tomato puree. I know, weird, right? There's all these Asian influences, and then...tomato puree!? That was left to simmer for about two minutes, while the shrimp finished cooking.

Meanwhile, I pulled those noodles out of the boiling water and doused them with a splash of sesame oil. After splitting the noodles up between the bowls, I topped them with the shrimp and tomato mixture, with a cilantro garnish. The pop of spice that the cayenne pepper brings, and the notably Asian flavor of the Chinese Five Spice really makes this an intriguing dish. As I worked, I wondered if it would be any good - it seemed so simple, but all over the place - but everything came together so nicely, and made for a really delicious one-dish meal! Yum!!

There's no new menu this week because I realized that we've got a bunch of things in the freezer that I need to use before adding more things to my collection...so we're gettin' creative this week!

Crabcakes Benedict with Mango Cream Sauce

There are few things my husband likes more than crabcakes, so I thought it would be a special treat to add Crabcakes Benedict to the menu this time around. Crabcakes and Benedict...in the same sentence!? Could it get any better than that?

Yes it can ... because mango cream sauce is delicious!

This was a late night to start cooking because we had to take Oia (the puppy) to the vet for her shots...and breakfast for dinner is usually a quicker process than other recipes so this worked out well. I gathered my mise en place: 

Mango Cream Sauce:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup heavy cream, warmed to room temperature

1 large mango, peeled, pitted, and diced

1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper

1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro (I used parsley because "the man" doesn't like cilantro)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crabcakes Benedict:

12 large eggs (I used 6, and made the portions appropriate for two)

12 crabcakes (I made 4, using this recipe: click here.)

One 9-ounce bag corn tortilla chips, finely crushed

Olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 English Muffins (I used 2)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish

That came together quicker than you'd think. The first thing I did was make the mango cream sauce. In a saucepan, I melted my butter over medium heat. 

Once the butter has melted completely, whisk in the 2 tablespoons of flour, until the mixture is smooth and fragrant...but does not change color. You don't want it to start browning.

At this point, add the cream and whisk until the mixture is well combined.

Add half of the mango, as well as the red pepper, cilantro (or parsley), salt and pepper to taste, and then bring the mixture to a simmer. You want the sauce to become thick, yet smooth. The recipe says to simmer for 8-10 minutes but mine was ready much sooner than that, in fact, I'll go far as saying that it was a little too thick. I'd maybe add a little less flour next time.

Okay, let's keep the sauce warm while we do the rest of the work. I promise the rest goes pretty quickly. Whisk two eggs in a bowl with a little bit of water, and then brush both sides of each crabcake with the mixture. Coat each cake with the crushed up tortilla chips.

Heat some oil or butter in a large skillet over medium heat, and once it's heated, add the cakes to the pan. If you decide to make a lot of them, you might need to do this in batches. Because I only made 4 crabcakes, it was fine to do them all at once. Cook them until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. I placed them on a paper towel after removing them from the pan to absorb any excess grease that might be sitting on them.

Once the crabcakes are done, whisk up your eggs (in my case, I used 6) and season them with salt and pepper. Wipe your skillet clean with a paper towel and add some new butter to the pan. Once it's melted, pour in your eggs and scramble them.

Once all of your working pieces are finished, it's time to plate. Toast your English Muffins and put them on the plate. I gave us each two halves as a serving since it's dinner and not just an appetizer, and I topped each half with a crabcake. Pile some scrambled eggs on top of each crabcake and spoon some of the mango cream sauce on top. Sprinkle each half with the reserved diced mango, as well as some chopped parsley. 

Dinner fit for the beach! Welcome, Spring, we've been looking forward to your visit!

Radhika's Kebab Sausage with Tomato Jam

Tonight, I'm making sausages! Well, it's a loosely based version of a sausage, as there's nothing being stuffed into any sort of skin, but still...Quickfire Challenge here I come! (For all you Top Chef fans, you know exactly what I'm talking about, but for everyone else - it's from the Quickfire Cookbook, which includes recipes created during challenges on the show, Top Chef.)

This specific challenge was to create a signature hot dog. Radhika, from Season 5, made these great Kebab Sausages, and here we are, making them ourselves! You can find the recipe here. This recipe also calls for a bunch of accoutrements for the sausages. I'm sure these sausages would be wonderful on a roll, like the recipe describes, but I decided to serve them over a delicious, parsnip puree instead! A little heartier, and more ... dinner-like! :)

The first thing I did was make the sausage mixture. For this, I mixed 1 pound of ground lamb, 1/2 a pound of ground pork, and 1/2 a pound of ground beef with a tablespoon of minced garlic, 2 tablespoons of Tandoori Masala, kosher salt and ground black pepper. Once the mixture was blended, I put half of it into a food processor until it was finely ground. Then I mixed the finely ground portion back into the rest of bowl, and mixed some more. I then formed the mixture into the shape of logs, sort of like bratwurst.

Once that was done, I turned the oven to 350 degrees to preheat while I made the sides. I chopped a red onion into slices, and put them in a pan with a little canola oil to cook down for about 20 minutes. These browned onions sweeten as they cook and make a lovely topping for the sausages. In another bowl, I put a cucumber (peeled, seeded and diced), cilantro, white wine vinegar, capers and a little salt and pepper to taste. I set this aside to macerate for 20 minutes. In a third bowl, I made a tomato jam, which consists of mayonnaise, tomato paste, cumin and a little bit of heavy cream. I only used enough cream to thin the concoction, rather than the amount that the recipe depicts.

I browned the sausages on all sides in a skillet and then added them to a baking sheet I had waiting in the preheated oven, and then cooked them for another 10 minutes.

Once they were done, I plated the parsnip puree and piled two of the kebab sausages on each plate. I served the sides separately, allowing us each to choose our toppings appropriately. Once I added my toppings, I took a picture so you could see the finished product!

Voila! And this just goes to show, you don't even need a special tool to make your own sausages. They tasted a bit meat-loafy when cooked, and the sides were the perfect accompaniment to the flavors in the sausage. I really liked my pairing of the parsnip puree. I think it added something that a sandwich roll couldn't have contributed to the dish!

TOP 5 : Fresh Herbs That Work in Almost Every Situation

There are a lot of herbs and spices out there, and sometimes, it can be overwhelming to look at a recipe and see all sorts of ingredients you don't have, or better yet, haven't heard OF! However, I want to provide you with a list of five fresh herbs that you can save you in a pinch.

Parsley

1. Parsley : I buy parsley every time I do a big grocery shopping. It keeps well for a long time in the fridge, it's cheap, and it makes for the best garnish. I chop parsley in copious amounts, and use it generously. Did you know that parsley can also freshen your breath after a meal? That's why you usually find it in large sprigs on a dinner plate! I prefer the flat-leaf variety as it can be more widely used. Parsley can even be made into a pesto (usually made with basil). Check out the recipe for Fettuccine with Walnut-Parsley Pesto.

2. Basil : Basil is a perfect addition to any Italian meal, goes great with tomatoes and mozzarella, as well as sprinkled on top of pasta dishes. It also adds a lovely flavor to marinara sauce. Basil tends to go bad quickly, so if you buy it, use it! However, I've found that I can lengthen the life of basil by buying a plant, keeping it in the window, and watering it generously. The plant will continue to grow, giving you new leaves every so often, and draw out the time between basil purchases. If you find yourself with a large bunch of basil, and no use, make a pesto sauce (with basil, this time) and save it for a quick weekday dinner, tossed with some penne. A great lunch time use for basil is my favorite sandwich : Proscuitto, Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil.

Mmm...Basil with Tomatoes and Mozzarella

3. Chervil : This one is a bit harder to find, but if I find it, I buy it, and in the summer months, I usually try to grow it in a pot on my windowsill. It's a very light herb that makes for a lovely garnish, and tastes great in salads as well. It is related to parsley, but much lighter in flavor, and plays an integral part in the French herb mixture, fines herbes. A recipe I love, and use all the time, uses many different herbs, mixed with greens, and a maple shallot dressing for an extremely flavorful salad. It can be found in Barbara Lynch's, Stir.

4. Chives : Chives also make for a wonderful garnish, and have quite a bit more bite than the other herbs listed here. As part of the onion family, they add a lovely zest to a dish, and I rarely make scrambled eggs without them. Because this is a year-round herb, it's always readily available, and if you are plating a dish that seems to be missing a pop of color, add chives - you can't go wrong.

Mixed Herbs

5. Cilantro : Also known as coriander, as well as Chinese parsley, this herb is widely used in many cuisines. It's a very common garnish in asian cuisines, and it also plays a very important role in most salsas, guacamoles, and other Mexican sauces. I know, I'm sure some of you are saying that you don't like cilantro, it tastes like soap, etc...I admit that it is definitely an herb that you either love or hate. After reading an article about the strong feelings that people have towards cilantro, I found this: "Dr. Wysocki contends dislike of cilantro stems from its odor, not its taste. His hypothesis is that those who don't like it are unable to detect chemicals in the leaf that are pleasing to those who like the herb."  Hope that helps to explain your love or hate of this lovely herb!


Well, that's five! I hope that this post shed some light on the many herbs out there. I'll leave you with this: The best way to keep your herbs freshest the longest is to keep the stems in water. I put my herbs in a large vase or bowl, stems in water, covered with a plastic grocery bag. Then, when I need some herbs, I just pluck some off the bunch and put the rest back in the fridge. Another way to do it is to wash your herbs, and wrap them in a damp paper towel. Store them in ziploc bags in the refrigerator.

The snow is piling up out there, and I have a feeling I might have some extra time on my hands to do some cooking tomorrow. When you're stuck in the house, what better way to pass the time then with something you can enjoy when it's finished!

Until tomorrow...