Kabocha Squash Lasagna

I had a craving for kabocha no nimono  the other night, so I bought a couple of kabocha pumpkins and made some. I had quite a bit left over, though, so I had to figure out what to do with the rest. 

After a couple of days of researching, I came across a recipe for butternut squash lasagna. I realized that I could do the same thing with my kabocha. But it was already flavored with soy sauce, dashi and mirin--I couldn't use traditional lasagna flavors with that. So what could I do?

I decided to try making a sauce from the flavors I'd used, but thicken them with a roux. Sure enough, my experiment worked. My husband's only complaint was that there was no meat. Well, it was meant to be a vegetarian dish, so... 

To make this non dairy, simply use a vegetable oil instead of butter. Got a wheat allergy? Use non gluten noodles. Really, this recipe is pretty simple to change up any way you need to. 

Kabocha Squash Lasagna

Sauce:

1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup flour
2 Tbsp mirin
6 cups Dashi

4 Tbsp soy sauce

Filling:

6 cups (720ml) Dashi
2 1/2lb (aka 9 cups) Kabocha (pumpkin)
4 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp mirin

Noodles:

1 package no-boil lasagna



Sauce: Boil the dashi in a pot. Turn off the heat and set aside. Melt the 1/2 cup of butter in a saucepan. When it starts to foam, add the flour. Whisk until it forms a paste. Add the hot dashi, a little at a time; whisk thoroughly after each addition to avoid lumps. Continue to cook the sauce until it coats the back of a spoon, then turn off the heat.

Filling: Cut the kabocha in half and remove the seeds. Cut it into slices and cut those slices into 1' pieces. Get them as even as possible. Boil the dashi in a large saucepan, one big enough to hold the kabocha. When the dashi comes to a boil, toss the kabocha in. Cover the kabocha and cook till tender, which could take up to half an hour. Check after 15 minutes; you don't want to burn this. Add the last two ingredients and gently fold to combine. Turn off the heat and replace the cover.

Assembly: Reserve 1/4 cup of sauce per person. Pour 1/2 cup of the sauce onto the bottom of the pan you'll be using for the lasagna. place three noodles on top of the sauce. Then layer it as follows: 1 cup filling, 1/2 cup sauce, 3 noodles. (Feel free to change the amounts depending on the size of the pan.) Continue layering until you reach the top, then pour the rest of the sauce over the lasagna. Cover it, put it into the oven at 375 and bake for 25-30 minutes. Serve hot, with 1/4 cup sauce over each slice.

Chocolates, Three Ways

 Last year, as part of the Food 52 Secret Swap , I made ninjabread cookies, which were adorable (and I'm pretty sure my giftee liked them too). This year, in the interest of time, I decided to make chocolates instead.
Now, these were supposed to have been one box of simple caramel filled chocolates. I'd already made the first batch, and then my friend Tiffany came over. Tiffany makes her own caramels during the holiday season, and after scolding me for using storebought ("If you'd told me, I'd have made a fresh batch for you!") she took a look at what I'd done, saw all the leftover chocolate, and said, "Hey, I bet we can come up with a few more ideas. You've got some sea salt, right? And what about cayenne pepper?"

Three hours later, we had not only regular caramel chocolates, but chocolates with sea salt and cayenne spiced ones as well. After we packed them all up and tied the boxes together tower-style with a gold cord, I had to admit that it looked pretty elegant. And a heckuva lot more fancy than my one little white box.

The recipe itself is pretty simple. The hardest part is waiting for the chocolate shells to harden up before they're filled. But really, you can knock out a batch of these in an afternoon.

 Chocolate Caramel Chocolates

1 bag chocolate chips
1 bag soft caramels (individually wrapped)
1 candy mold
1 food grade paintbrush

Melt half of the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. To do this, put the chips in for 45 seconds to a minute. Pull them out and check. If the chips haven't started to melt, nuke them again for 15 seconds at a time, checking each time (don't burn them!) Once they start to melt, pull them out and stir like crazy until there are no longer any lumps.

When the chocolate is smooth, put a tablespoon in three of the mold indentations. Swirl the paintbrush around to cover the sides and bottom of the indentation. Do your best to cover as much as you can--remember, this is the shell for your caramel filling. Repeat with the rest of the indentations, and when you're finished, put the mold in the freezer for about 15 minutes or until the chocolate is solid.

As the chocolate is setting, start unwrapping your caramels. Depending on the size of your mold, you may need one half to one whole caramel. Roll each caramel into a ball. Set them aside.

Once the chocolate is set, pull the mold out of the freezer. Take a ball of caramel and firmly (but not too hard!) push it into the indentation so that it spreads out into the shell. You don't want the caramel to go over the edge of the chocolate--preferably, it'll stop just before that edge. When all the indentations are filled, take the leftover melted chocolate (you may have to reheat it) and spoon it over the caramel and the indentation. Smooth it out with an offset spatula (if you have one) or the back of a butter knife (if you don't), and put it back in the freezer to set for another 15 minutes.

When the chocolate has set again, pull the mold out of the freezer and gently twist or push to remove the chocolates. Arrange stylishly or eat them all!

Sea Salt Chocolates

Melt the original half of the chocolate chips with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of whipping cream, stir like crazy, sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt, then set aside to cool.  Use this instead of the caramel. When the chocolates are completed and out of the mold, put them on a plate and nuke them for 5-10 seconds to soften up the top, then sprinkle them with another pinch of sea salt.

Cayenne Pepper Chocolates
Follow the instructions for the sea salt chocolates, but add a pinch of cayenne instead of salt. For the top, sprinkle with red crystals if you've got them, or even a flake or two of red pepper.

Crab Feast!

For the last couple of years, my friend and I have gone to Half Moon Beach's Pillar Point Harbor to get crab at the beginning of the season. This year, we called ahead and reserved crab from the Cricket crab boat . As usual, not only did we plan on making crab rolls, but we put together a pumpkin soup too. I couldn't find my original recipes, so I had to create new ones. But with Google's help (and my friend's expert cleaning and cracking skills), we came up with a really, really tasty dinner.

Here's a few helpful hints for making these rolls:

• Line your crab cleaning station with old towels, newspapers, anything to soak up all the liquid. And there WILL be liquid, even after baking. Personally, I prefer a large bowl or pan. After all, why waste good potential crab stock?
• To kill your crabs as humanely as possible, I recommend putting them to sleep first. We pack our crabs in ice the moment we get them, and then cook them as soon as we take them out. If ice isn't possible, keep them as cool and wet as you can, and put them in the freezer for about 15 minutes before you cook them.  If you can't freeze them, split the head in half, placing the tip of the knife between the eyes and pushing down hard.
• If you don't live in New England and you can't get your hands on Pepperidge Farm Top Sliced Hot Dog Buns (often used to make lobster rolls on the East Coast), find a Fuddrucker's and buy some of their hot dog buns (yes, they will sell them to you straight off the cooling rack). They make a darn good substitute.   
• What do you do if your partner is allergic to crab or other shellfish? Swap out the crab for another meat, like shrimp, fish or chicken, or even surimi, a.k.a. fake crab. (Beef or other red meats may not work as well for this recipe.)  You can also make the sauce as spicy or tame as you wish--my husband's version got an extra dollop of red pepper flakes, as well as some chili sauce.

If anyone is interested, I'll post the pumpkin soup recipe. But however you make it, enjoy!

New England Style Crab Rolls

• 2 2 lb crabs
• 2 to 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoons celery seed
•  1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 top-split hot dog buns 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Meanwhile, put a wire rack on a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet. Set this aside. Place a steamer insert (or a loosely crumpled "snake" of aluminum foil) in the bottom of a large lidded stock pot and add 1 inch of water. Put the lid on the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Open the pot, put the two crabs in as quickly as possible and cover pot. Let steam for exactly two minutes, then transfer to rack set in baking sheet.Bake them for 15-20 minutes.

While the crab is baking, make the crab roll sauce. Combine the mayonnaise, celery seed, lemon juice, salt and pepper and mix well. For a bit of spice, add red pepper flakes, sriracha sauce, or even chili sauce. Set aside. 

Once the crabs are cooked, let them cool off enough to handle, pull off the top shell and pull the body apart. Check the meat and be sure it's a solid white, as opposed to translucent--if it's not white, put it back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes. Once you're sure the meat is done, continue the process of  cleaning the crab.

Once the crab is cleaned, combine the meat with the sauce. Set the filling aside.

Put 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan over medium heat. When it starts to foam, place the rolls into the pan on one side. When that side is golden brown (make sure to check every few seconds--it goes fast!) flip it over and do the other side.

Put the toasted buns on a plate and fill them with the crab filling. Stuff your face!

Vietnamese Pho

I've made pho before, but it was with powdered pho broth and it wasn't very good at all. Then, I discovered a recipe from Cook's Magazine that cut down the cooking time to about an hour, and was delicious to boot. I did, however, have to pass it by my friend Michelle (author of the Mommy Misadventures blog) and The Hubs (tm), her Vietnamese husband.

Michelle loves to cook as much as I do, but when she saw the recipe, she winced. I could almost see it through the Facebook post.  "I gotta call BS on the fundamentals. I'm glad that it tasted good for you guys but I'm sorry, that makes my head spin on the the broth," she told me. "I can see that it's a shortcut recipe but OMG the cook in me is hopping up down saying, 'But, but, but that's not how you do it!' It'd be like making pecan pie with Log Cabin Syrup." She was right--I couldn't argue. The Hubs (tm), being a short-and-to-the-point kind of man, noted that since pho was the national dish of his home country, he was a little sensitive to how Western cooks "seem to love butchering ethnic dishes." Again, no argument from me (collard green eggrolls? Vegan soul food? I'm not too sure about that either...).

But being the generous person that Michelle is, she didn't leave me in the lurch. I was given a from scratch pho recipe to try. Her version makes about four quarts of stock. Both recipes call for meat to be boiled with the broth to give it that delicious meaty taste, but the only meat I had was the stuff I was saving for the pho itself. Not to be outdone, I grabbed my jar of Better Than Bouillon beef stock. As for the rest of the ingredients, you can find them at a specialty store or at a local Asian store. If you're really stuck, do what I did and do a Google search for them.

 I will say that this recipe will take about four to six hours to make, but It. Is. Worth. It. If you start it on a Saturday morning, like I did, you'll be able to set it and forget it, and take care of other stuff. Like laundry. And oven cleaning. And getting melted chunks of plastic off your cooking rack (don't ask).

2 lbs beef bones (you can probably get them from a good butcher, or even at your local Asian store)
1 lb brisket, cut into chunks (or 5-6 teaspoons of Better Than Bouillon beef stock)
1 onion, halved
1 4 inch piece of ginger, peeled
1 cinnamon stick
2 tablespoons yellow rock sugar (or one large piece of yellow rock candy, or two tablespoons of regular sugar)
6 star anise pods
6 whole cloves
Salt (skip if you used the beef stock)
1 teaspoon black peppercorns

Toppings:
1 package thinly sliced beef chuck (or another pound of brisket--see directions below)
1 package dried rice noodles
1/3 cup cilantro (optional)
Lime wedges
Onion slices
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha sauce

Bake the beef bones at about 425 for an hour until browned and charred. 

If you're using the brisket chunks for the broth, add a little oil to a non stick skillet and brown them well on all sides. Set them aside, leaving the stovetop on, and wash and dry the skillet. Cut the onion in half and char the onion and ginger on the stovetop (if it's electric, you'll want to cover your coils with a piece of foil). In the meantime, if you're using the brisket as a topping, place it in the freezer for about half an hour. Pull it out of the freezer and slice it as thinly as possible with a sharp knife, then place the slices on a plate and put them in the refrigerator to stay cold. 

Put the skillet back on the stovetop and toast the spices quickly until fragrant. 

Put the brisket chunks (or the Better Than Bouillon) into your crock pot or large pot and cover with water, roughly four quarts (filtered, if possible). Cover the crock pot and set it on high (or turn your pot on high till it starts to boil, then turn it down to low). Remove the meat after about 4 hours, if using; let the bones and spices continue to simmer up to another 2 hours for maximum flavor. Feel free to add more water if needed. 

Strain out the solids and discard, eexcept for the meat! Save that for the pho. If necessary, season the broth to taste with more salt, fish sauce  and sugar.

To serve as pho, follow the directions on the rice noodles to cook them. Put them into a bowl and add boiling hot broth to cover. Add a few slices of brisket, cilantro, lime, onion, and hoisin and sriracha sauce. Enjoy!

Lugaw, improved

A Filipino friend of mine brought a potful of stew to a party once. It was a delicious mixture of rice and chicken, cooked in chicken broth and seasoned with ginger, fish sauce and soy sauce. "What is it?" I asked after my second bowl. "Lugaw," he said.

Ever since then, I've been trying to recreate that stew. The first time, it was too bland--too much rice, not enough seasoning. The next few times, it was so salty that no one could eat it. Apparently, combining fish sauce, soy sauce and canned chicken broth is a really bad idea.

UPDATE: I made this recipe again, added a few things (people use garlic in their lugaw?) and left others alone (the chicken is still there!).I think I cobbled together a pretty darn good recipe--it's better, and a lot faster, than my previous version. Enjoy!

Lugaw/Arroz Caldo

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 2-3lb. chicken, cut into serving pieces
1/2 a small onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and julienned (or use two teaspoons of ginger powder)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce
6 cups chicken broth
1 cup uncooked white rice, rinsed and drained

Heat the oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the chicken pieces to the pot, along with a cup of water, and then cover the pot. Allow the chicken to cook (covered) over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes, until about a cup of liquid is left in the bottom of the pot.

Remove the chicken and set aside. Add the onion and minced garlic. Saute them until the onion is translucent and the garlic is lightly browned.

Add the julienned ginger, soy sauce, and fish sauce to the pot and stir. Continue cooking for 2 more minutes until the ginger becomes fragrant. If you're using powder, save it for the next step.

Add the chicken  and the broth to the pot (and the ginger powder, if you're using)and water, if needed, to completely submerge all of the chicken pieces. Add all of the rice to the liquid in the pot and cook over medium heat until the rice is soft and the porridge reaches the desired consistency--this can take 20-40 minutes depending on how thick you want the porridge. If the porridge becomes too thick, you can add water to thin out.

For Lugaw, serve the porridge in bowls as is.

For Arroz Caldo, remove the chicken meat from the bones and add the meat back to the porridge. Arroz Caldo can be topped with sliced hard boiled eggs, fried garlic, sliced scallions, additional fish sauce, ground black pepper, fresh kalamansi, anything you feel like.

Okonomiyaki!

So what's okonomiyaki (OH-ko-no-me-YA-kee)? Think pancakes, except more savory and with bacon and veggies instead of blueberries or other fruit. This is one of my favorite dishes in the world, mainly because you can throw almost anything into it.

I live within ten minutes of two different Asian stores, so the recipe I've posted here is fairly traditional. In many of these stores, especially Ranch 99, you might even be able to find okonomiyaki flour or mix-- but there are a number of substitutions you can make if you can't find some of the ingredients. You can use cake flour, potato starch and chicken stock for the wheat flour, nagaimo and dashi, and you can skip the tenkasu (or use panko or even Rice Krispies). For the oko sauce, you can combine 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, 3 tablespoons of ketchup, and 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Use Miracle Whip for the kewpie mayo. And as for the other ingredients, remember, you can use any kind of veggie or meat you want.

Since this process has a few steps, I'm going to try something different...I'm adding more pictures. Let me know what you think!

Okonomiyaki

INGREDIENTS (To Make 2)

1 cup wheat flour
2/3 cup dashi
2 Eggs
1/4 cup grated nagaimo (mountain yam)

STIR INS (bottom, clockwise)
4 cups cabbage, shredded and roughly chopped
2 cups bean sprouts
6 strips bacon, cut in half

Not pictured:
2 stalks green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup tenkasu (Tempura bits)


TOPPINGS (top left to right)
Okonomi Sauce
Kewpie Mayonnaise  
Katsuobushi (Bonito Flakes)
Furikake (dry rice seasoning)

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS (not pictured):
1/2 cup Raw shrimp cut into approx 1cm (1/2") chunks    
1-2 links Chinese sausage, cut diagonally
1 oz Beni Shoga (Pickled Ginger)


INSTRUCTIONS:
In a large bowl, whisk the okonomiyaki flour and dashi/stock until smooth. Add the eggs and combine.

Add the grated nagaimo. (Try to freeze it before you grate it, otherwise you'll have a gooey,slimy mess. The smallest holes on the grater are traditional, but I prefer the bigger ones--it's faster.)

 Add the other items (but not the bacon or toppings!) and mix lightly.

 Heat a skillet on the stove and add a tablespoon of oil to it. Swirl the pan to coat it with the oil. (I add a tiny amount of sesame oil for taste, but it's optional.)

 Add half the mixture to the pan. Press it down to the best of your ability with a spatula. It should take up most of the pan. Let it cook for three minutes or until browned on one side.

 Place the bacon strips on top of the oko and (carefully) flip the whole thing over. You may need another spatula for this, but it's OK if it gets messy.

Let it cook until it's brown on the other side and the bacon is cooked, about 4 minutes. Flip it one more time and cook for another three minutes.

 Slide the Oko onto a plate. But wait, there's more! Drizzle the okonomiyaki sauce and the kewpie mayo over your oko. Sprinkle the furikake and katusoboshi on top.

Eat it while it's hot!

Gumbo Part II--A Confession

So I decided to make gumbo for dinner tonight. In reviewing my recipe, I realized that you, my dear readers, have been bamboozled. Yes, the earlier recipe is my dad's. Yes, he really did put cream of chicken (and occasionally cream of mushroom) in his recipe. But... hang on, I need a moment...

*takes a deep breath and lets it out*

I've only made it that way once.

I have a lot of health issues, and I knew that adding cans of soup to my food was not a good way to manage them. I also discovered that Alton Brown, my favoritest food chef ever, had a recipe for gumbo too. So I decided to take mine and combine it with his and see what we got. So here is my revised and renewed gumbo recipe.

Gumbo...again

1/2 cup, aka 4 oz flour (preferably by weight)

1/2 cup oil

10-12 crayfish, whole (optional)

1 lb raw, head and shell on shrimp

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

4-8 Louisiana hot links, sliced into rounds

1 whole chicken, cut up into parts

1-2 crabs, washed and cut up into quarters, legs removed and set aside

1 package chicken gizzards (no hearts)

½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon file powder (if you made a brick roux)

1 pot of cooked rice

Put the flour and oil into a large, oven safe pot and whisk it together. Place the whole pot into the oven at 350 degrees for an hour, or until the roux has cooked to a dark brown or brick color (peanut butter color is fine too).

While the roux is cooking, take the heads off the crayfish (if using) and the shrimp. Take the shells off the shrimp too, putting the heads and shells into a small pot. Put the shrimp meat and crayfish bodies aside. Cover the heads and shells with water and bring to a boil, then simmer for about an hour.

Prep the vegetables. Set aside. Do the same with the hot links and chicken, as well as the crab (gizzards too, if they need to be cut apart).

Once the roux is done, pull it out of the oven and put it on the stove. Add the spices. Add the vegetables and cook them, stirring, for about seven to eight minutes.

Strain the shrimp stock you just made from the heads and shells. Discard the heads and shells and pour what's left into the pot as you whisk. Add the hot links and chicken, as well as the crab and gizzards. Turn the heat up to a boil, then down to medium for 1 hour, or until the liquid reduces and the meat falls off the bone. Add the shrimp and crayfish. Stir in the file, if using.Turn off the heat and let the gumbo sit for at least ten minutes.

 Serve with a pot of rice.

KFC (no, not the Colonel's recipe)

As a treat for a couple of friends, I made Korean Fried Chicken. The link is from Modernist Cuisine, a site dedicated to the technical side of cooking.  I'd heard about the dish on the Food Network, but I didn't know it could be made at home. After going to my local Asian food store and picking up a few ingredients, I was ready to cook. Instead of doing chicken wings, however, I  quadrupled the amount of ingredients and cooked an entire chicken. This left me with extra sauce, but considering that it's absolutely delicious (I'm going to have to try it on ribs next time), I really don't mind.

The only criticism that I have about this recipe is that it takes a couple of hours to make--this is not a quick night's dinner. The Modernist Cuisine website gives you an idea of this by the exact nature of their recipe; don't get thrown off by the use of both grams and cups as well as percentages (and this is why I didn't want to post the recipe here, since they do a much better job). I'd save this for a good weekend dinner, but in the end, it's worth it.

Hot Chai, Winter in the City..

Back in December, I took a trip to Oregon, where a friend and I had some of the most delicious chai tea I've ever had. Now, spring is here in my little West Coast town, and I've been hit with a sudden craving for chai.  I decided to try to make my own as soon as I could afford the supplies.

My first attempt was OK, but it tasted a bit medicinal--too much cardamom and cloves, not enough of every thing else. My second attempt was much milder and smoother, and that's the recipe I'm giving you today. This makes enough for four people instead of one, because let's be honest--who's really going to drink just one cup? And if you multiply these ingredients by three, you'll have enough for twelve cups, which should get you through the week (or at least a few days, in our house).

Chai tea for four

Liquids:
 3 cups water
2 cups Half-and-Half
 4 full teaspoons / 2 tea bags of British black tea (Tetley seems to work nicely)

Spices:
4 pods green cardamom
1 thumb sized piece (or 2 inches) fresh ginger, crushed up or at least chopped up
4 whole black peppercorns
1/2 a cinnamon stick
1/2 a cup of brown sugar

Combine the liquids and the tea into a pot and set the heat to medium. Get a ziplock bag and put all the spices and ginger together, then crush them either with a pot or a rolling pin ( you can stop when you can see the cardamom pods break open and the cinnamon break up). Dump the spices into the liquid, then stir frequently for 30 minutes, or until the liquid level drops by roughly half an inch. Strain the solids out, add the brown sugar and stir till dissolved. Serve hot or ice cold.

Fabulous Frybread

My students, as part of their final projects, are required to do a Powerpoint presentation on a topic, usually a family dish of some kind. One of my students happens to be Native American; not only did she do her presentation on frybread, but she brought some in for the class. It was a good lunch. :)

I had to attempt this recipe a few times, but I finally got it to work. When you take a look at the ingredients, you'l be able to figure out why this probably shouldn't be eaten very often--yes, I did use both sticks of Crisco. And no, the 2 tablespoons of baking powder is not a mistake. This will make at least six or seven good sized frybreads. Get a big container of honey or taco fixings, because you'll be needing them. 

Fabulous Frybread

4 cups flour

2 tsp salt

2 tbsps baking powder (more if necessary)

1 tbsp powdered milk

1 1/2- 2 cups water

2 sticks butter flavored Crisco

Honey, powdered sugar, or taco toppings

Combine the first four ingredients and stir lightly till blended. Add the water sparingly until the ingredients just come together. Shape into a ball, then let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour. Melt the Crisco in a pan. Pull off  medium size pieces of dough, shape them into balls, then roll them  into flat circles. (Be careful not to make them too thin!) Carefully place each circle of dough into the hot Crisco. Fry on each side until puffy and golden. Serve hot, with either honey and powdered sugar or taco toppings. 

Flapjack Flash

Hey, it's been a while! I've been hesitating to post lately because my camera crashed and burned on me, but then my friend Michelle at delishiono posted an amazing recipe for District 12 cheese buns. So I decided to use pics from my Blackberry instead. By the way, you should go to Michelle's site and check out her recipes. Like, now.

Anyway, before I got distracted by her cheese buns (Ha!) I ended up making flapjacks. those of us here in the US immediately think of pancakes when we think of flapjacks, but the Brits know it as a granola bar type thing--crunchy on the outside, slightly soft and chewy on the inside. Remember that the recipe says the oats should be "coated"--think the process for making Rice Krispie treats. they shouldn't be swimming in the butter/sugar mix (as good as that sounds).

The first time I tried to make these, I burned them. The second time, they came out perfectly (I turned my oven down to 325 instead of 350 and moved them to the middle rack of my oven).I put the original recipe here just to be accurate, but feel free to use my pointers. If you don't have access to golden syrup (aka dark corn syrup), use honey; you can also add dried fruit and/or nuts. Make a big batch for the week!

British Flapjacks (courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine)

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/4 cup golden syrup*
2 1/3 cups quick-cooking oats (not instant or old-fashioned)
Pinch of salt

* A type of syrup popular in Great Britain; available at some supermarkets, specialty foods stores, and British import shops.

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 8x8x2-inch metal baking pan. Combine first 3 ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Stir constantly over medium-low heat until butter melts, sugar dissolves, and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Add oats and salt; stir until coated. Transfer mixture to prepared pan and spread out in even layer.
Bake until top is golden (edges will be darker), about 25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 5 minutes. Cut into 4 squares; cut each into 4 triangles (mixture will still be soft). Cool completely in pan before serving.

Happy Mardi Gras! Shrimp n Grits

So a friend of mine called me at the last minute because she'd decided to throw a Mardi Gras party at another friend's house. "We need Southern food," she said. "What're you bringing?"

Now, considering that my friend is originally from Texas, I personally thought *she* would have been the official judge in that category. My family's Southern, but I was born and raised here in California. But hey, what do I know? I decided to make it easy on myself and make shrimp and grits.

This particular version is pretty and tasty. Just make sure you season the grits before you cool them (a mistake I made on the first batch). This can easily be modified for people with food allergies too. Issues with MSG? Swap the cajun seasoning for good old salt and pepper or come up with your own spicy blend. Can't have shrimp? Cook up some chicken and cut it into pieces. No dairy? Skip the cheese.

Shrimp N Grits

3 1/2 cups water
1 tsp. salt
Cajun seasoning or salt and pepper
1 1/4 cups grits or cornmeal
Shredded cheddar cheese
Cooked shrimp (large, at least 24 of them)

Spray an 8" square pan and a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Set aside. Preheat the oven to "broil" and place a rack at the top.

Combine the water,seasonings and salt till boiling. Slowly pour in the grits or cornmeal, and start whisking as you pour. Continue whisking until there are no lumps. Allow grits/cornmeal to cook for five minutes or until thickened. Once thickened, quickly pour into the square pan and allow to cool completely.

Slice cornmeal into squares and place on the cookie sheet. Add cooked shrimp to the top of each square and add shredded cheese. Place cookie sheet into preheated oven for 3-4 minutes or until cheese has melted. Serve immediately.

More Southern Food Recipes

I just found a new site called Mommy's Kitchen that has killer soul food recipes. Her hot water cornbread recipe is delicious--light, airy and crunchy (I made, erm, a test batch, so I'll have to make another and take pictures). Check out the site, it's definitely worth your time!

Curry, curry everywhere...

I decided tonight to make curry, but all the recipes I'd seen were pretty complicated. I managed to stumble across yet another one in Allrecipes.com that was surprisingly simple. I had to change a few things--the original recipe had tomato sauce, not tomato paste, as well as crushed tomatoes (which I had none of). Nevertheless, the household loves it. Hmm, I guess curry really isn't that hard to make after all...

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 teaspoon salt and pepper, or to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
1 (8 ounce) can tomato paste
8 ounces water
3 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.
Heat oil and curry powder in a large skillet over medium-high heat for two minutes. Stir in onions and garlic, and cook 1 minute more. Add chicken, tossing lightly to coat with curry oil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink in center and juices run clear. Mix the tomato paste with water and blend till smooth.

Pour coconut milk, tomatoes, tomato paste mix, and sugar into the pan, and stir to combine. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, approximately 30 to 40 minutes.

Challah if ya hear me!

So I discovered "Shalom Sesame", which is an adorable little kids's show created by the nice folks who did "Sesame Street". The show is designed to teach American Jewish kids about Israel and Judaism in general. Just like the original, they have a multiethnic cast (I didn't really realize that there were Ethiopian Jews). And also like the original, they have celebrities of all types doing cameos. One was by Cedric the Entertainer. (Yeah, it's a link. I can't do video.)

At any rate, after I laughed till I cried, I ended up making two loaves of challah bread. And it was actually pretty good. My Jewish coworker did point out to me, however, that it really should have been evaluated by Semitic palates. He's right--guess I'll just have to go get more yeast. :) Happy Passover/Easter!

Recipe taken from Allrecipes.com.

Decadent Challah Bread

1/3 cup honey
1 1/4 cups warm water
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2/3 cup olive oil
2 eggs
5 cups unbleached flour, plus more if needed

1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 egg white
1 tablespoon white sugar

Directions

Dissolve the honey in the water in a large mixing bowl, and stir in the yeast. Set the mixture aside until the yeast forms a creamy layer on top, about 15 minutes. Stir in the salt, 2/3 cup of olive oil, and beaten eggs. Add the flour 1 cup at a time until the dough is slightly tacky, but not sticky wet.
Turn it out onto a floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Lightly oil a bowl, place the dough in the bowl, turn the dough over a few times to oil the surface, then let rise until doubled in a warm, draft-free place, about 90 minutes.
To make the loaves, punch down the dough, and cut it into 2 equal-sized pieces. Cut the first piece into 4 equal parts. Set the second piece aside under a cloth to prevent drying out while you braid the first loaf.
To braid the first 4-strand loaf, roll the 4 pieces of dough into thin ropes about the width of your thumb, and about 14 inches long. Make the tops and bottoms of each rope thinner than the middle area. Pinch the tops of the 4 ropes together, and fan the 4 ropes out so they don't touch.
To make an "under-2, over-1 braid," take the left-most rope, and move it to the right to cross underneath the next 2 ropes, then move it left to cross back over the strand immediately to its left. Take the far right strand, and move it to the left and cross it under the two strands to its left (they are already crossed from the previous braid); then move it right to cross back over the strand immediately to its right. Repeat until the 4 strands are braided together all the way to the end, and pinch the ends tightly together. Repeat the steps to braid the second loaf, and let the braided loaves rise for 1 hour.
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Make a glaze by whisking together the milk, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the egg white, and the sugar in a bowl. Brush the braided loaves with the glaze, to make a shiny crust, and bake the loaves on the prepared baking sheets in the preheated oven until they are light golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Meat and Veggie Soup

When I got home today, I realized that I was going to have to get creative since it's almost the end of the month, and the household is starting to run a little low on food. Ransacking the kitchen, I found a bunch of random items and bits of leftover meat in the freezer and refrigerator, so I threw everything into a pot with some water and spices. (My roommate found the bacon and insisted that it be included.) And you know what? It was really, REALLY good.

I'm not sure if these are the exact amounts, but feel free to taste as you go to make sure this works for you. Your ingredients will probably vary anyway. Also, bear in mind that the water level will drop as it cooks. So keep an eye on it--the last thing you want is for this to burn.

Bacon, Turkey, Steak and Veggie Soup

1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups baby carrots, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
2 slices bacon, diced
1 thin steak, diced
4 turkey breakfast sausages, diced
1 small chunk corned beef, diced
2 cups pinto beans
Water to cover
Seasoned salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Saute carrots, onion, garlic, steak and breakfast sausages in olive oil in the bottom of a large pot until meat is browned and vegetables are soft. Add 2 cups pinto beans and cover with water. Add bacon and cook for 1 1/2-2 hours, until beans are done. Add seasoned salt and pepper to taste. Serve as is or over rice.

Erin Go Bragh! St. Patrick's Day

Here's a fun fact: my first name is actually Gaelic. And so is my middle name. I often joke that I should have married a nice Irish boy and been done with it (I didn't, but my married name is Welsh, of all things). Because of this, St. Patrick's Day is my second favorite holiday, right next to Christmas. I decided to make corned beef and cabbage, as I do every year, but this time, I was going to make soda bread as well.

St. Patrick was originally born in England as a pagan, but converted to Christianity courtesy of an Irish marauder, who captured him and brought him to Ireland. He eventually escaped and made his way back to England, where he became a bishop. At that point, he returned to Ireland, and converted many of the people there to Christianity as well. He built schools, churches and monasteries, many of which still bear his name.

Originally, St. Patrick's Day was, and still is, a Catholic feast day. (In certain dioceses, if the day falls during a Friday in Lent, a special dispensation is given so the celebrants can eat a traditional meal.) Now, of course, it's celebrated by everyone, regardless of religious background or lack thereof.

Here's two other fun facts: St. Patrick never chased snakes out of Ireland. In fact, he couldn't have even if he wanted to, because snakes never existed in Ireland. Also, the reason corned beef got its name is because the brisket it was made from was cured with corn shaped kernels of salt.

Making corned beef and cabbage is as easy as following the instructions on the bag of corned beef. I put the beef in my slow cooker, added water, cabbage and carrots, and turned it on low before I went to bed that night. Everything was ready by the time I got home from school the next day. To make my meat last a little longer, I cut it in half and will make barbecued beef sandwiches with the rest. (That recipe may come later.)

The tricky part was making soda bread. I'd only made it once before, but it was so long ago I couldn't remember how I'd done it. Instead, I looked up a recipe in Gourmet magazine and used that instead. Hey, if actor Andrew McCarthy thinks it's great, then it has to be tasty. I didn't realize, however, that I was going to have to knead it as much as I did to make it look decent. With a workout like that, I won't need free weights.

The corned beef and cabbage turned out well. My husband and I ate nearly all of it at once; I do feel a bit guilty that we left our roommate a piece of corned beef the size of half a deck of cards. The soda bread was much denser than I'd anticipated--I didn't really like it, but it was wasn't bad hot and with butter. My search for Guinness or a Finnegan's to drink was in vain, so we finished our dinner off with Twisted Thistle, a good Scottish beer.

Don't be afraid of good old fashioned corned beef, cabbage and soda bread. Save your money next year and make your own Irish dinner on St. Patrick's Day. The leftovers (if you have any) will taste even better the next day.


Crockpot Corned Beef and Cabbage

2-3 pounds corned beef
1 small cabbage, shredded
4 carrots, chopped
Pickling spices (often, these come in the package)
Water to cover

Put everything in a crockpot and cook on lowest setting for 12-14 hours, or turn it up higher and cook for 2-3 hours minimum. Corned beef may fall apart when done.

It's Lent again! Cheater's Gumbo

So my dad, as I may have mentioned before, is from the South. He knows how to make things like hog's head cheese and a few other specialties. One thing he also makes is gumbo. Now, his gumbo isn't a traditional one--he uses canned soup, which is absolute heresy to gumbo enthusiasts--but it's still really, really good.

Tuesday was Mardi Gras, so I decided to make a batch for myself and the household. I had to keep everyone's tastes and issues in mind--the roomie can't handle a lot of spice, and my husband is allergic to crab. With a pot of rice, this filled us up for a couple of days. Don't get turned off by the chicken gizzards, by the way. They add to the flavor and they taste like (what else?) chicken. :)

Cheater's Gumbo

3 cans cream of chicken soup
4-8 Louisiana hot links, sliced into rounds
1 whole chicken, cut up into parts
1-2 crabs, washed and cut up into quarters, legs removed and set aside
1 package chicken gizzards (no hearts)
Water to cover
1 pot of cooked rice

Put all ingredients except rice into a large stockpot. Cook slowly for four to five hours until gizzards are tender, and chicken is falling off the bone. Serve with a pot of rice.

Happy birthday Deka, or the Fried Pickle Extravaganza

A dear friend of mine celebrated her birthday last weekend. She's from Texas, and one of her culinary addictions is fried pickles. Sure, you can get them from your local Hooters, but as good as they are, they're just not the same unless they're homemade.

I brought the pickles to her birthday party, and they were a big hit. I think all the guests tried at least one, and with the ranch dressing, they were awesome. Even the cup of pickles I didn't fry disappeared. They say everything's big in Texas, and I guess fried pickles are no exception.

This recipe was originally found on Foodily. I took out the cayenne, but feel free to add as much (or as little) as you like. Enjoy!

Fried Pickles

2 cups dill pickle chips
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper plus more to taste
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 cups finely crushed saltines
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Method:
In a large plastic food-storage bag, mix together the flour, salt and black pepper. Place the pickle chips in the bag and shake until they are well coated.

Mix together the eggs with the buttermilk. Place the crushed saltines on a plate and mix in the cayenne and dill weed. In batches, dip the flour-coated pickles into the eggs and then lightly dredge in the saltines. Place cracker-coated pickles on a large plate or sheet. Repeat until all the pickles are coated.

In a large, heavy skillet heat 1/2 inch of oil on medium heat until it reaches 350 degrees. Cook the pickles for one minute or until golden brown, turning once. Depending on the size of your skillet will probably have to do in several batches. Drain on paper towels.

Serve immediately with your favorite ranch dressing.

Putting the Soul in Soul Food

My parents are both Southern--Mom's from North Carolina, and Dad's from Arkansas. I go to a Southern Baptist church, which is filled with women who look like my mom and hail from Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas. Many of them, including my aunt, are amazing cooks when it comes to food from the South. Even my pastor is good at it--his collard greens put the ladies' versions to shame.

I, on the other hand, suck at cooking that stuff. My fried chicken is either burned or underdone, and the first two times I tried to make collards, I nearly killed my then roommate with salt overload (I'd forgotten that flavors get more concentrated as water boils off). So I decided to fix it.

After a chat with my mom and my aunt, I decided to attempt chicken and dumplings, candied yams, collard greens (my nemesis!), red beans and rice, and banana pudding. Everything turned out really, really well, except for maybe the red beans and rice (too much water, not enough time).

My mom was very proud of me when I told her how dinner came out. She was glad I'd finally learned how to cook this stuff for myself. So I guess, in general, I've managed to get over my fear of soul food.

Except for fried chicken. I'm coming for you, ya clucker...

Collard Greens

2 bunches collards
1 chicken boullion cube
2 tablespoons pepper
2 cloves garlic
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon tumeric
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

2 slices bacon

Wash leaves and place them on top of each other in a stack. Fold the leaves in half, and slice into 1 inch strips. Fill pot halfway with water and add strips. Add all spices. Cook leaves on medium heat until tender and water has evaporated, roughly 1-2 hours or longer.

Brown bacon in small pan. Just before serving, add bacon and bacon fat to collards. Toss until covered and serve. Serves four.