Category: Produce

Figuring It Out Myself…Bok Choy and Squid Soup

This weekend I totally hibernated. I had some events projects to work on.In my perusal of blogs I noticed one of my favorites Jen had a link to recipe calculator. I always wondered how people calculated the nutritional information especially if they made up the recipe themselves, like I always do.Most of us has seen thinner days and watch what we eat. However in shunning packaged processed foods, I have only a vague idea of what I’m really getting.So I decided to play around. On Sundays I like to a make a big pot of something to eat off all day. But I wasn’t really hungry. I had some leftover frozen squid defrosting in the fridge . I immediately though of a light soup to go with some Bok Choy I purchases. My veggie box is postponed until tomorrow due to my travelling. Squid was cheap and low fat, so why not? Plus Certain Someone doesn’t return until tomorrow.Here is a link to this great site called Sparks Recipes. You can share or keep your recipes private. But the Nutritional tool is invaluable.
Ingredients
2 cups shredded Bok Choy

Squid( cleaned and sliced) and its tentacles

1 tsp olive oil

1 cup chicken broth( homemade preferably but if not a low sodium one)

2 tbsp white vinegar

Chili Pepper Flakes

3 cloves minced garlic

1 can whole Tomatoes

1 tsp salt

3 cups of water

Wilt Bok Choy in a pot with olive oil. Add garlic.Add tomatoes with juice and chicken broth.Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add squid which has been sliced into rings,spices( chili pepper flakes, cayenne pepper,) salt.Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.Number of Servings: 6

Nutrition Facts
Bok Choy and Squid Soup
Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories
85.7
Total Fat
3.0 g

Saturated Fat
0.5 g

Polyunsaturated Fat
0.5 g

Monounsaturated Fat
1.7 g
Cholesterol
110.1 mg
Sodium
623.9 mg
Potassium
336.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate
6.2 g

Dietary Fiber
0.8 g

Sugars
2.5 g
Protein
9.3 g
Vitamin A
22.5 %
Vitamin B-12
10.2 %
Vitamin B-6
5.9 %
Vitamin C
27.2 %
Vitamin D
0.0 %
Vitamin E
5.5 %
Calcium
4.6 %
Copper
48.2 %
Folate
2.2 %
Iron
6.5 %
Magnesium
6.8 %
Manganese
5.8 %
Niacin
8.1 %
Pantothenic Acid
3.8 %
Phosphorus
12.2 %
Riboflavin
13.8 %
Selenium
30.7 %
Thiamin
3.2 %
Zinc
5.7 %
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Royal Foodie Joust…Mango Ketchup/Catsup

So little time ,so many events, and have to watch all that calorie consumption.When Michelle at Thursday Night Smack Down won last months Joust and got to pick the ingredients, she chose Mango,Cardamom, and Brown Sugar. She said.. “i want to see everyone’s mad pastry skillz.”She then relented and stressed culinary skills. Most people naturally think of sweets. Condiments I’m sure were a thought as well. As much as I love a mango salsa, I was going to turn it up a notch. Michele brings out my competitive spirit as is a joy to read!Always leaves me with a grin.The choice for me was a Mango Tarte Tatin or this, Ketchup. I don’t need a lot of left over pastry laying around, but Ketchup is the worlds favorite condiment.Who knew all this about a sauce. I decided to put a Asian spin on this.I hope you like it spicy hot, , tangy and sweet!

 

Coco’s Mango Ketchup
4 mango’s
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
2 -3 pieces of Star Anise
2-3 dried Thai Chili Peppers
3 cloves
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons curry
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon garlic minced

 

Equipment needed: Blender, spice/coffee grinder
Remove flesh from Mango’s. I used a melon baller to scoop out flesh once mangoes were cut in half.Put in Blender.Place Star Anise, Cloves, Cardamom,Thai Chili Peppers,Ginger, curry and salt in grinder. Grind until a fine powder. Add to Blender. Add Brown Sugar, Vinegar, salt, and garlic. Blend until pureed. Add to sauce pan and bring to boil. Cover pan immediately.( Mixture is thick and will start to bubble). Simmer on lowered heat for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Mixture may caramelize on the bottom. Take off heat and add back to a clean blender. Mix once more to puree. Pour in containers and bottle. To last longer you can take additional canning measures to preserve, otherwise refrigerate and try to consume within the week or so. Its enough to fill a bottle.

 

Imagine what you can add this to! Grilled Chicken, turkey,sandwiches, meatballs, shrimp, fish, burgers,veggie burger, turkey burgers,fish sticks,onion rings,etc…………
So bring your mad skillz to the event . Jen’s away getting married so Ben’s the Crown Prince this month.

Banana Chipolte Pineapple Tamales…Tamale Open

Banana Chipolte Pineapple Tamales! Yes that’s what I came up with. I’m not a expert in Mexican food but I love this way of cooking. Sort of a meal in one. So why cant it be sweet. Most often we think of the tamale as savory and spicy. But one can envision so many sweet combos. My colleague M tells me of the best pineapple tamales. I haven’t tasted one , but decided to play around. Oddly I got 6 tamales, where the proportions I cut down from the recipe for Masa (originally 16).Because I added sugar and extract that changed things. .So based on this I should have gotten 8-10 tamales. Perhaps next time I’ll spread the mixture thinner. Also the leftover pineapple filling was made into a sauce with condensed milk. What you get is sort of steamed banana cake.The sauce makes it very sweet, so it can be omitted. But a nice cup of plain black coffee can balance that out.

Equipment needed:

A Steamer or some sort of large pot and steaming device.

Masa

1 1/2 cups of Maseca for Tamales

1/1/2 cups luke warm water

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup of shortening

1/2 teaspoon of Banana Creme extract from LoRAnne Oils*note this is more concentrated . If using regular extract use more.

1/2 cup natural cane sugar
Filling

10 oz dried pineapple

1 tablespoon rum or Malibu coconut flavored rum

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup natural cane sugar

1/4 teaspoon Chipolte powder

Banana Leaves (Whole Foods or frozen sections in Hispanic Markets)or corn husks

1/4 cup Condensed milk *optional for sauce
In a sauce pan combine pineapple,sugar,water, rum and Chipolte. Boil down until mostly reduced. The dried pineapple will be chunky still. Remove from heat and take a immersion blender to smooth out mixture to a paste like texture.Set aside.
Mix dry ingredients and add your water.A moist paste should from. Fluff up shortening in a separate bowl. Add Masa mixture, and extract. Blend to combine.

Take Banana leaves and spread Masa. Add filling down the middle.Fold over long ends, and then the short ends to make a square packet. Tie with Banana Leaf strips.Place in Steamer. Place Steamer on large pot of water and steam for approx 30 -45 minutes.

If you have leftover filling , take some condensed milk and combine over low heat. Some caramelised bits may form. Use immersion blender to smooth out.

All in all this took about 1 1/2 hours to prepare.But that’s me . If you like Banana bread you’ll love this . It can stand alone without the sauce.

So I hope this inspires you to enter the Tamale Open. Ben and I have a great Prize offering, so what are you waiting for?I even heard from a reader in the UK and shes giving it her all. So no excuses.

I’m Back..Tomato Stuffed with Tilapia with Roasted Cauliflower

I had a very busy and productive time in Ft.Lauderdale. The trade show I attended was devoted to ‘The Americas’ and had a strong Latin feel. Everyone looked so sleek and polished and spoke Spanish, French, Italian , and English.I was fortunate to get upgraded to a suite ( my absent bosses influence).Check out what was parked outside my balcony.
Our Distributor for the Caribbean took a group of us to a great restaurant called Michaels in the Design District of Miami. Outstanding! I took bad picks that I wont even post. But the menu was divided by small, medium, large, and extra large plates to share. I had a yellowtail tartar to start, a slow cooked pork shoulder with cheese grits,and tangerine pot de creme served with baklava on the side.This was a very popular place worthy of the fine reviews. My only beef was the slow service. But my dinner companions were animated and fun ,so it was no biggie. I love great conversation with people from other countries.We then wrapped up the evening at the club set up for the show attendees. Many a deal is done with a drink on the dance floor.I finally got away and made it to bed well past midnight to begin round two of meetings.
So arriving to a chilly wet Chicago made me long for warmer climes. Certain Someone wont move to the islands, so I can only dream. I see he had ate the ‘smokey’ butterscotch puddings he protested about. I decided to make fish for dinner as he was at work. At Michael’s I had a side of roasted cauliflower in this wonderful sauce of oil and basil I think. The market was out of basil so I purchased mint and parsley. I had a head of cauliflower and tomatoes from the box last week begging to be used. I just pureed a bunch of parsley with some cloves of garlic,lemon juice,olive oil, sea salt,oregano, black pepper,and a few leaves of mint. It wasn’t the one at Michael’s but it was pretty good and packed with flavor. I seasoned and rolled my Tilapia fillets in hollowed out tomatoes. Oiled the pan . Then I added the cauliflowers florets and baked on a high temp of 450 degrees until finished. I also took the tomato pulp and lightly cooked it down with a squirt or two of tomato paste. The parsley sauce was artfully squirted through a bottle.
This was great light dinner loaded with flavor.

A Lazy Saturday Meal

I’m getting ready to go to sunny Ft Lauderdale on a trip related to my new role in the company. I cant wait. Its only for a few days, but I worry about my Certain Someone. Normally he’s away, not me. Then the following week I’m flying up to Toronto for some more work,and will get to meet Peter hopefully.Anyway Certain Someone and I were totally lazy and exhausted. We slept in but had some familial obligations and errands to run.Before we knew it half the day was gone. I was determined to make a meal revolving around some items that needed to be used quickly from this weeks organic vegetable box. My beets were getting soft and some onions were calling to be used. I got like 6 large onions . I immediately thought of caramelizing and cooking down four of them. I planned to toss them in a plain buttered linguine.I also peeled,cubed my beets and roasted them with a splash of oil, brown sugar, and balsamic. I planned to serve them along with some sliced cucumber and radish( in the box) and some feta cheese.I don’t even think we need to dress this cold salad. Its so warm and lovely out today. I wasn’t planning on a meat course, but Certain Someone requested the cheese breaded pork chops encore!For dessert I made a quick one from my newly delivered Baking From My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan. Yes Ive joined the cult following after the recent Daring Bakers exercise. She had a Real Butterscotch Pudding that caught my eye. I had all the fixings and Certains Someones fine single malt collection at my beck and call. Ssshhh. Don’t tell. I used a wee dram of his Bowmore Mariner aged 15 years. I also topped it with buttered pecans.He raged afterwards and asked if I was nuts. From now one I’m regulated to Glenfiddich . At least he didn’t take back the new burgundy Blackberry Curve he just bought me. He said he tasted the smokiness of the Bowmore and I should have used one not known for smokiness.Like I would know the difference!

Carmelized Onions and Rosemary
4 large onions
2 sprigs fresh Rosemary
olive oil
butter
1/4 sherry or brandy
salt
pepper

Slice onions.In a large skillet add a tablespoon of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter.Add onions and slowly brown, This should take a awhile.Add the rosemary.Stir occasionally do the onions don’t stick and burn. About after 20 minutes add some sherry. Continue to slowly brown the onions as they wilt and turn translucent. Add the remaining sherry in stages to deglaze the pan.Season with salt and pepper. Onions should be golden brown in color.
You can toss with pasta, use in cheese tarts, add to meat,top with pizza, etc.

Real Butterscotch Pudding ,Baking From My Home To Yours ,by Dorie Greenspan
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons water
1 3/4 cups of milk
1/2 cup of heavy cream
1/4 cup of cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
3 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons butter ,cut into 4 pieces
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons Scotch Whiskey,preferably a strong single malt
Whipped Cream and Buttered pecans optional.

Place brown sugar and water in sauce pan. Heat on medium and bring to a boil stirring occasionally. Lower heat and and boil for 2 minutes.
ADD 1 1/2 cups of milk and cream and bring to a boil. The mixture will curdle .
While the milk is heating mix cornstarch and salt in a food processor.Put on a piece of wax paper and set aside. Add sugar and yolks to food processor and blend for 1 minute,Scrape down sides of bowl and add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk. Add the dry ingredients and pulse a few times to blend. Very slowly pour in the hot liquid as the machine runs.Process and pour it all back into the sauce pan. Whisk until thickened. Do not boil. Scrape the pudding back into processor and add the scotch , vanilla, and butter. Pour pudding into ramekins and chill for at least 4 hours. Add plastic wrap to keep film from developing.