File under: tasty

Random thought for a theme - wine & cheese. All dishes have to have wine or cheese as a component (or wine & cheese as a component?).

October Recipes - Round 2

They say that hindsight is 20/20. This morning, with the delicious dishes prepared for last eve only a lingering memory on the palate, I'll do what I can to post the recipes and offer discussion. Though the group was a few short, with Chris combating wild-fires, Kelly tending to the infirm, and Meg at a kegger for her mother's 50th birthday, those in attendance persevered and produced some fantastically tasty treats.

Our kind host for the evening, Patti, set the theme for the evening as Vietnamese food. Without further ado, the recipes:

Banh Bung (warm noodle salad with beef)
Prepared by Suzy & Nigel. Recipe from Cooking Light Magazine. Yields 4 servings.

Ingredients:
1 (3/4-pound) beef tenderloin
1 tbsp. oyster sauce
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. sugar
8 oz. uncooked fine rice vermicelli or spaghetti
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tsp. vegetable oil
Cooking spray
1 cup yellow onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
4 cups bean sprouts
2 cups cucumber, julienne-cut and peeled
1 cup green cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup carrot, julienne-cut
20 basil leaves
2/3 cup Lime-Vinegar Sauce

Lime-Vinegar Sauce:
1 cup hot water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 tbsp. white vinegar
1 tbsp. fish sauce
1 lg. garlic clove, minced

Directions:

1. To make Lime-Vinegar Sauce, combine first 3 ingredients in a small bowl; stir well. Cool completely. Stir in juice and remaining ingredients. Yields 1 1/4 cups.
   
2. To make the salad, first trim fat from beef. Cut across grain into thin slices; set aside.
3. Combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir well; set aside.
4. Bring 3 quarts of water to a simmer in a large Dutch oven. Add rice vermicelli; simmer 2 minutes or just until tender. Drain and return rice vermicelli to pan. Add coconut milk; toss well. Set aside; keep warm.
5. Heat oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet coated with with cooking spray over medium-high heat until hot.
   
6. Add onion; stir-fry 2 minutes.
7. Add beef; stir-fry 3 minutes.
   
8. Add oyster sauce mixture; stir-fry 30 seconds. Remove from heat. Set aside; keep warm.
9. Combine bean sprout, cucumber, cabbage, carrot and basil in a large bowl; toss gently. Spoon bean sprout mixture into each of 4 large shallow bowls; top with beef mixture and 1 cup rice vermicelli mixture. Drizzle with Lime-Vinegar Sauce.

Spring Rolls (er, spring rolls)
Prepared by Kim & Leit using the following recipe.

Ingredients:
1 package spring roll papers
1 package vermicelli rice noodles

Fillings:
Halibut, cooked
Tofu, marinated & fried
Fresh cilantro
Fresh mint
Daikon radish
Blanched yam
English cucumber
Red leaf lettuce
Carrot
Bean sprouts

Dipping Sauce:
Sweet chili sauce - find in any grocery store international aisle
Peanuts, crushed / chopped

Directions:

1. Prepare all your fillings by chopping into matchsticks. Set aside in close proximity to your roll wrapping assembly line.
2. Boil water then cook rice noodles ~6min or until soft. Drain. Rinse with cold water and set aside.
3. Submerge your chopped yams into boiling water for 3 minutes to soften.
4. Boil a pan of water and reduce to medium-high heat. Submerge one wrapper at a time into the water. Cook for 10 seconds. Use spatula to pull out wet wrapper and lay flat on a clean plate to fill your rolls.
5. Stuff each wrapper like you would a mini burrito. Wrap it like a burrito too by tucking the short ends in before you roll it closed and sealed. Place finished rolls on a serving plate or on saran wrap for stage. Do not let rolls touch or they will stick and rip.
6. Crush peanuts and sprinkle on dipping sauce.
7. Rolls will last 1-2 days as long as they’re in Saran Wrap.

Cha Que (cinnamon paté)
Prepared by Zach from the recipe listed at vietnamese-recipes.com.

Ingredients:
1 lb. lean leg of pork, cut into 1 inch cubes

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

3 tbsp. Vietnamese fish sauce

1 tsp. Palm or golden granulated sugar

1 tsp. corn flour (I substituted all purpose flour)

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 tsp. groundnut oil (I substituted olive oil)

Handful basil and coriander leaves, finely chopped for garnishing

Directions:

1. Oil the loaf tin. Put all the ingredients into a food processor and process until they are very finely ground. You can add 2-3 tablespoons of cold water if the mixture is difficult to process.

2. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and bake in a preheated oven, 350^oF for about 45 minutes until cooked through and firm to the touch.

3. Allow the pate to cool in the tin, then turn it out on to a plate. Sprinkle the top with the chopped herbs.

4. Serve the pate in thin slices, with salad leaves and French bread.

Dau Phap Voi Toi Nghien (french beans with crushed garlic)
Prepared by Zach from the recipe listed at vietnamese-recipes.com.

Ingredients:

3 tsp. vegetable oil

1 onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 lg. green chilies, deseeded and sliced thinly diagonally

1 tsp. Ground coriander

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

2 ripe tomatoes, blanched, skinned,

1 lb french beans, washed, trimmed and halved

1/2 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

2 tbsp. fresh coriander, chopped

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a wok and stir fry the onion, garlic and green chilies, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.

2. Add the coriander and cumin, stir vigorously and add the chopped tomatoes and French beans.

3. Stir and cover the wok for 5 minutes.

4. Remove the cover, add the sugar and a little salt, and stir again for 1 minute.

5. Add the coriander, stir for 30 seconds and transfer to a warm serving dish.

Pumpkin Soup with Lemongrass & Cilantro
Prepared by Patti using a recipe from Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. peanut oil
2 tbsp. shallots, minced
2 tsp. ginger, minced
2 hot Thai chilis, minced
4 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp. lemongrass, finely chopped
2 tbsp. fish sauce
2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp. palm sugar
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/3 cup cilantro root or stems and leaves, chopped
3 tbsp. roasted peanuts, chopped (for garnish)
3 tbsp. scallions, sliced (for garnish)
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat oil in medium sauce pan.
2. Sautee shallots, ginger and chiles over moderate heat, stirring, for three minutes.
3. Add the stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, fish sauce, pumpkin and sugar. Bring to a simmer, then cook, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
4. Add lime, cilantro, salt and pepper. Puree with a stick blender until creamy (strain if you want it with no chunks).
5. Serve immediately and sprinkle with peanuts and scallions.

Mango Cheesecake (soufflé?) with Vietnamese Coffee
Recipe forthcoming. Prepared by Karen.

I daresay that every dish served at the meal was fantastic (certainly better than the borek I attempted last month). Hopefully, pictures will be on the way from Karen at some point soon, so until then, happy eating and please offer your comments.

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

How do you start your Sunday mornings off?

Fill highball (or pint glass) half-way with ice
Add vodka
Add 2-3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
Add celery seeds
Add heat (cayenne pepper, chili garlic sauce, tabasco, etc..)
Add sliced pickles
Add tomato/clamato/V8 juice
Garnish with celery / olives / more pickles / as you see fit.

Drink and enjoy!

A couple of great dessert blogs and a recipe

If you have some spare time, check out this great cupcake blog (thanks! Karen) and the Joy of Baking link on the right. I know with temps beginning to drop I have the urge to bake more and more, or at least ask Zach to whip up some tasty baked goods. Yum, the house smells so good while making the treats from these websites.

Here's another great recipe. Good ol' fashioned peanut butter cookies. The recipe is adapted from The New Best Recipe from the editors of Cooks Illustrated. Definitely one of our go to cookbooks.

2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup extra crunchy unsweetened all natural peanut butter
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add sugars, beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl. Beat in peanut butter until fully incorporated, then the eggs one at a time, and then the vanilla. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture.
4. Working with generous 2 tablespoons each, roll the dough into 2-inch balls. Place on baking sheets spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart. Press each dough ball twice with a dinner fork dipped in cold water to make a crisscross design.
5. Bake until the cookies are puffed and slightly browned around the edges, but not the top, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom half way through. Cool cookies on the baking sheets until set, about 4 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Good fall comfort food

Zach's birthday was about a week ago and I made a Spiced apple, carrot cake with goat cheese frosting from the Sunset Magazine October 2007 issue, a recipe Karen was kind enough to share. It was delicious, so I thought I would pass on the recipe. Here's a picture as well and as you can see the frosting had some trouble staying on the sides of the cake. As a result, see the edits to the recipe that will hopefully give you more success in frosting your cake.

Prep and cook time: 2.5 hours, including cooling and chilling time.

Makes 10 servings

2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups packed coarsely grated carrots (about 3 medium)

1 1/2 cups packed coarsely grated tart apples, such as Granny Smith (about 2 medium)

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, plus more for garnish

Frosting

10 ounce fresh, mild chèvre (goat cheese), at room temperature

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease three 9-in. round cake pans and set aside. In a large bowl, combine flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, spices, cocoa, pepper, and salt. Whisk to combine, then stir in oil and eggs. Stir in carrots, apples, and 1 cup walnuts.

Divide batter among pans and bake until cakes pull away from pan sides and a cake tester inserted in each center comes out clean, 25 minutes. Transfer cakes to cooling racks and let cool 10 minutes. Turn out onto racks and let cool completely.

Beat goat cheese, cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Gradually add powdered sugar and mix until combined. (Note: Make frosting ahead and chill so its thick, that way it will stick to the sides of the cake when applied)

Once cakes are cool, arrange first layer on a large plate or platter. Spread some frosting over it, then top with second layer. Frost second layer and top with the third. Generously frost top and sides of cake with remaining frosting. Chill cake at least 1 hour. Before serving, press walnuts lightly into sides of cake.

Ready to drink coffee in a can

Zach and I while at Sagaya couldn't help ourselves and bought three iced coffees in cans to try. We typically buy the Hello Boss brand, but decided to branch out. It's now three months later and we still haven't tried the new coffees, but Zach did take this picture of the cans. I love the illustration on the American Coffee can.

Thoughts about Food

In the past year I have read two books about food that have really impacted my thinking about the way I eat. The first was The Omnivore's Dilemma and most recently The Year of Eating Dangerously: A Global Adventure in Search of Culinary Extremes. While the first examines the way we eat and at least to me the ethics behind our food choices, the other does as well in a more oblique fashion by examining local foods and customs but all the while illustrating the dilemmas faced in making food choices. I highly recommend both books.

As a result of reading these books, I am seriously questioning my omnivore status and wondering if there is any ethical way to eat meat. Going to the grocery store with Zach over the weekend was for him putting up with my hemming and hawing over whether buying even the organic chicken was okay, knowing that it still may not have been treated in a humane manner. On the other hand, buying a pot roast that was neither guaranteed to be organic or cruelty free. So, as I continue to face my own omnivore's dilemma, I invite you all to think about the food you buy and choose to eat. I think that pondering these issues not only improves our overall culinary experience, but in the end may just lead to better eating.

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