Sunday, March 12, 2017

Soy Glazed Sugar Snap Peas

A favorite at our house, these soy glazed sugar snap peas are quick and tasty, the perfect side dish when time is short.


We eat these every week or two as a side dish with pan-fried salmon and these fresh bright crunchy green peas go perfectly with that tender, rich fish. But I’ve got to tell you that these are so tasty you can even set them out as an appetizer, kind of like the fried Padrón peppers so popular at tapas bars.

Sometimes I add cherry tomatoes or those little fresh baby corn on the cobs often used in Asian cooking, or even some chopped carrot, depending on what’s in the vegetable drawer. Of course, the soy glazed sugar snap peas are perfect on their own as well.

Ingredients
1 lb or 450g sugar snap peas
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
8 oz or 226g baby roma or grape tomatoes

Method
Remove the strings from the sugar snap peas by bending the stem end and pulling gently so the strings on both sides peel off. Discard the strings.



Mince your garlic finely.

In a large frying pan, drizzle in the sesame oil and add the sugar snap peas. Cook over a high heat for about 3-4 minutes, tossing or stirring the peas to coat them with the oil. They should start browning in spots.

Add the minced garlic and soy sauce to the pan. Turn the heat down to medium high and continue cooking until the soy sauce has almost all evaporated, tossing the peas or stirring them frequently.



Add in the baby roma tomatoes and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are just toasted and the sugar snap peas are cooked but still crunchy. Stir or toss frequently to prevent them from scorching on only one side. A little all over scorching adds flavor.



Enjoy!



This week my Sunday Supper group is sharing healthy green recipes for St. Patrick’s Day, but really, from the looks of the list, I could eat these all year round!

Best Breakfasts

Must Make Main Dishes

Scrumptious Salads

Stunning Sides

Dreamy Desserts


 Pin Soy Glazed Sugar Snap Peas!

A favorite at our house, these soy glazed sugar snap peas are quick and tasty, the perfect side dish when time is short. #SundaySupper

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Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Easy Mixed Paella #FoodieExtravaganza

This easy mixed paella takes the guesswork out of cooking rice on the stovetop by moving it to the oven in a covered pan. Add in chicken, chorizo and shrimp for flavor, plus saffron and peas for color and flavor. 

Spanish purists may recoil in horror at 1. cooking paella in the oven instead over a wood fire, 2. covering the pan and 3. the lack of the traditional semi-burned crusty rice at the bottom of the paella, but I’m not even a little bit apologetic. My easy mixed paella tastes delicious. And that’s more than good enough for most of us.

I’ve heard paella called Spanish jambalaya and jambalaya called Cajun paella. Whichever side you hail from, it’s all about the rice on center stage with the other ingredients varying from household to household, recipe to recipe, cook to cook. Even in Spain, there are as many differences of opinion about what must be - or cannot be - in paella as there are for jambalaya in southern Louisiana.

What that tells me is that these are dishes you can feel free to make your own. Whenever I think of paella, I imagine three ingredients. Chicken, shrimp and, of course, chorizo. For that gorgeous saffron-hue, only the best saffron will do. In my case, I was lucky enough to be invited to a cooking class by the Spanish saffron, Taj Mahal, which is sold here in Dubai. It puts the saffron I’ve bought before to shame with its vibrant, brilliant yellow. I used to think that Iranian saffron was the best but I am now a convert to the Spanish stuff.

This was right after I poured in the hot water. Check out the image below where I add this to the pan. So much darker! 


Note: I just checked and you can buy it on Amazon! Here's the affiliate link for anyone who is interested. This is not a sponsored post, by the way. I just mention the brand because I love it.

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon Spanish saffron
1/4 cup or 60ml hot water
6 small chicken thighs (about 1.1 lbs or 500g)
Salt
Black pepper
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
250g pack chorizo sausage
1 1/2 cups or 300g paella rice (Good sub: Arborio rice)
1 onion, sliced
1 large ripe tomato, chopped
3 3/4 cups or 890ml hot chicken stock
1 cup or 130g freshly podded or frozen peas
12 medium shrimp, peeled and cleaned (about 5 1/3 oz or 150g)

Method
Pour the hot water over the saffron and leave to steep. Preheat your oven to 325°F or 165°C.

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a skillet that has a tight-fitting lid and can go from stovetop to oven.

Brown the chicken on both sides in the hot oil – this takes just a few minutes. You’ll know it’s ready to turn when it releases easily. Remove the chicken from the pan to a deep plate that will catch any juices that run off.

While the chicken is browning, use the tip of a sharp knife to cut open the casing on the chorizo and peel it off. Slice the chorizo into circles.



Once the chicken has been removed from the pan, add the chorizo and fry until it releases its oils. Scoop the chorizo out and add it to the chicken plate.



Stir in the rice to coat it with the oils, then add the onions. Cook a few more minutes, until the onions soften.

Pour in the saffron water and stir.

See what I mean about the color?!


Add the chopped tomato. Tip the peas in along with the chorizo and any juices that have accumulated on the chicken/chorizo plate. Give the whole thing a good stir.



Now put the chicken in the pan, gently pushing it down into the mixture a little bit. Pour in the stock and raise the heat a little bit under the pan.

Bring to a boil, cover tightly and put in preheated oven for 25 minutes.


Remove from the oven, add the shrimp and put the lid back on the pan. Do not stir.


Turn the oven off and return the covered pan to the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave covered until ready to serve.



Enjoy!


Many thanks to our Foodie Extravaganza host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. Check out the other creative paella dishes we have for you today:


Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook group Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out here.

Pin it!

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Posted by at 6:14:00 AM 0 comments
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Monday, February 27, 2017

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins #MuffinMonday

Just the right sweetness and oh, so tender, these strawberry yogurt muffins are a great breakfast or snack. Decorate them with sliced strawberries for an extra pretty touch, especially if you bake them on National Strawberry Day.



Happy National Strawberry Day and Muffin Monday to you all! In honor of convergence of these two special days, I've baked you some delicious golden muffins. And while these are perfect with strawberry yogurt, I should point out that you can easily substitute your favorite yogurt flavor.

Make sure you scroll down to see what my fellow Muffin Monday bakers are sharing! After you make these strawberry yogurt muffins, of course.

Ingredients - 12 muffins
2 cups or 250g all purpose flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup or 60ml milk
3/4 cup or 185g strawberry yogurt
1/2 cup or 113g butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg

Optional, for decoration: 3 red strawberries, cut into four slices each

Food Lust People Love - Just the right sweetness and oh, so tender, these strawberry yogurt muffins are a great breakfast or snack. Decorate them with sliced strawberries for an extra pretty touch.


Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it or lining it paper muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.



In another bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, butter and egg.



Pour your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold them together until just mixed.



Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and top each with strawberry slice, cut side up, if using.



Bake in the preheated oven about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.



Cool on a rack for a few minutes and then remove the muffins to cool completely.



Enjoy!

Check out all the other delicious muffins my Muffin Monday bakers are sharing today:


#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board.

Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday, can be found on our home page.

Pin it! 


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Sunday, February 26, 2017

Piquant Shrimp Balls

Made with spicy seasoned shrimp and no fillers, piquant shrimp balls are the perfect Mardi Gras or party appetizer. A little dipping sauce with pickled okra completes the dish.


I feel sorry for folks who don’t grow up near an ocean. It’s not just that they seldom, or sometimes never, felt the sand between their toes or built dribble castles as children, but they also often missed out on seafood as a normal, typical dinner option. It’s saved for special occasions and restaurant meals. Which is a shame.

At our house, we eat a lot of seafood! Everything from fancy-ish main course recipes like Trout en Croute, Fennel Orange Cod en Papillote and Meyer Lemon Butter Sauce Prawns to appetizers like Mini Party Crab Cakes and Squid with Garlic Chili Oil, to down home favorites like Pan-Fried Fresh Sardines, Ceviche and Spicy Salmon Shrimp Burgers. Oh, and since it's Mardi Gras time, I should mention my Louisiana Barbecued Shrimp and Shrimp Creole! Those are just a drop in the bucket. I could go on but I think you get the point. These piquant shrimp balls are one of my favorites.

Making piquant shrimp balls is super easy! The secret to making balls with no fillers or egg is to use a food processor on half of the shrimp, then stir in the remaining shrimp, roughly chopped. Pan-fry the balls with a little olive oil for a golden exterior and your family and friends will be asking you to double the recipe next time. I promise.

Ingredients - for 2 dozen piquant shrimp balls
Good handful flat leaf parsley leaves and tender stems (pinch off hard stems and discard)
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1-2 red hot chili peppers
2 medium cloves garlic
1 lb 2oz or 510g peeled, cleaned fresh shrimp
Olive oil for pan frying

For the dipping sauce:
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon whole grained mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
1 hot pickled okra, stem end removed, finely minced (sub small cornichons or capers, if desired)

Method
Make the dipping sauce by combining all ingredients. Store covered in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Cut the peppers and garlic into pieces then process with the parsley and salt until finely minced.


Add in half of the shrimp and process until chopped fairly finely. You are looking for a chunky paste.


Use a sharp knife to cut the rest of the shrimp into four or five pieces, depending on size.


Tip the seasoned mixture out into a mixing bowl. Mix the cut shrimp well with the seasoned chunky shrimp paste.


Cover a plate snugly with cling film (this makes it easier to get the shrimp balls off the plate) and use a tablespoon to divide the mixture into about 24 pieces.

Dampen your hands with water and roll the pieces into balls and place them in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of olive oil.


Cook over a medium high heat with a splatter guard on top. Once the shrimp balls are cooked enough to be firm, turn them over and keep cooking, shaking the pan occasionally, until all sides are golden and the shrimp balls are cooked through. This takes just a few minutes.


Serve hot with toothpicks and the dipping sauce. Sprinkle on a little extra chopped parsley for color, if desired.



Enjoy!

This week my Sunday Supper tastemakers are sharing their favorite easy Mardi Gras recipes. Whether you are hosting or attending a potluck, we’ve got you covered!

Sunday Supper Easy Mardi Gras Recipes

Appetizers

Main Dishes

Sides

Desserts


Pin these Piquant Shrimp Balls!


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Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Keralan Yeast Appam #BreadBakers

Keralan appam are easy to make, blending soaked rice with coconut milk to make a rich, thick batter. These delicious lacy pancakes taste fragrantly, inexplicably, of butter.



Appam is popular in certain regions of India, particularly the south and the state of Kerala. It’s made with raw and cooked rice, often fermented with toddy or kallu, an alcoholic drink made from palm or coconut sap. If you don’t have toddy, you can let the batter ferment naturally or add some yeast. Fresh grated coconut and/or coconut milk are frequently present in the ingredient list, as is flattened rice – a sort of rice flake.

This month our Bread Bakers are making pancakes. Our host Mayuri of Mayuri’s Jikon assured us that there were pancakes of all sorts and from every part of the world. I had never really thought about it but she is absolutely right. If you search “pancakes” the list is so loooooong and varied! Who knew?

Even if you just search for “appam,” the name I chose out of the main list, you will find countless recipes for naturally fermented, toddy fermented and yeast fermented versions. Everybody seems to think their family recipe is The One. Isn’t that always the way? I must confess to the same conceit about some of my Cajun dishes, even when my mom informs me later than my grandmother never made something the way I do. Clearly one of us remembering wrong. Yeah, I know it’s probably me, but here we are.

Some links to check out - these are just a drop in the immense Keralan appam bucket!
http://www.kothiyavunu.com/2016/02/kerala-appam-recipe-palappam-recipe.html 
http://www.kurryleaves.net/2014/07/kerala-appam-recipe-palappam-kerala.html
http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/appam-recipe-kerala-appam/
http://mariasmenu.com/vegetarian/palappam
http://www.recipesaresimple.com/appam-palappam-traditional-riceflour-no-yeast-3methods/
http://www.cookingandme.com/blog/2014/05/29/how-to-make-spongy-appam-with-yeast/
http://www.archanaskitchen.com/no-yeast-kerala-style-appam-recipe

Anyway, I’ve taken several of those recipes and come up with this one. First of all, I didn’t have toddy. Secondly, I couldn’t find flattened rice. But some recipes called for neither one or the other so I figured I could mix and match. I do have freshly grated coconut but I know many of my readers will not, so I went with a coconut milk version. I used the stuff from the can.

Before we get started cooking appam, let me tell you how good these were. I served them with a Keralan pork chop recipe seasoned with cinnamon, cloves, coriander powder and cardamom. It had lots of onions and tomatoes that made a rich gravy for the pork chops and potatoes. Perfect for eating with appam! Even after my husband and I were full, we were picking up pieces of the appam and nibbling on them.

How is it that something that contains no butter at all, indeed were cooked on a non-stick skillet with just a little canola oil, can taste so buttery? It made no sense. But buttery they are. We both declared them delicious and worthy of the make-again-soon list.

Note: Start one day ahead of when you want to serve the appam.

Ingredients
1 cup or 190g raw rice – I used extra long grained basmati.
1/2 cup or 60g cooked rice
1 cup or 240ml thick coconut milk
½ teaspoon dry active yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
oil as required

Method
Rinse the raw rice in cool water until the water runs almost clear. Cover the rice with ample cool water and set aside to soak for 5 hours.

Drain the water off of the rice in a sieve or colander. Put it in the jug of your blender with the cooked rice, the coconut milk, the salt and all but 1 teaspoon of the sugar.

Mix that teaspoon of sugar with a couple of tablespoons of warm water in a small bowl. Add the yeast and set aside to proof. You are looking for foam to start forming. If it doesn’t, start again with new yeast.

Blend the rice and coconut milk on high until you have a smooth batter. Add in the yeast mixture and mix again briefly. The batter will have the consistency of crepe batter or thick cream.

Pour the batter into a large bowl and cover loosely with cling film.

Leave overnight to ferment. In the morning, if you are not cooking your appam immediately, you can put it in the refrigerator.

You can see that the fermented batter really thickens up.

At this point, I thinned mine with a little water because it wouldn’t spread out at all. You want to be able to pour it in the pan with a measuring cup or ladle, not just spoon it into the pan.

Heat your non-stick skillet over a medium flame and add just a drizzle of canola or other light oil.

Pour in about 1/4 cup or 60ml of the batter and shake the pan so it spreads around. Cover the pan with a lid and cook until the bottom is brown and the top is completely cooked. Do not flip the appam.



Continue until all the appam are cooked. These are traditionally served as a breakfast or snack with vegetable stew.



Enjoy!

Many thanks to this month’s host, Mayuri of Mayuri’s Jikoni. Check out the pancakes from different parts of the world that our fellow Bread Bakers have baked this month:
BreadBakers
#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Pin it! 

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Posted by at 2:02:00 AM 0 comments
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Sunday, February 12, 2017

Ham and Mustard Spirals

Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.


As I mentioned last Sunday, I love puff pastry. It’s such a versatile ingredient! If you have puff pastry in your freezer, you can make a quick appetizer out of just about anything in your cupboard or refrigerator.

A number of weeks ago, I bought some very finely sliced French ham from the deli counter of my nearby supermarket to make ham and cheese baguettes. The following Monday morning, I was going to a Christmas get-together with friends and wanted to bring a treat to share. I had four or five slices of ham leftover and a package of puff pastry in the refrigerator.

Ham and mustard are a classic combination so you can see how I got here, but you could use chutney or pesto or whatever other sauce you’ve got on hand. The important things to keep in mind is that 1. you don't use ham that is too thickly sliced and 2. that you don’t add too much of your chosen sauce, both of which might make your spirals soggy.

Ingredients
4-5 slices of French ham, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1 package ready rolled puff pastry - 8 oz or 230g
1 oz or 28g Parmesan, freshly grated

Method
Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C and line a baking pan with parchment or a silicone liner.

Unroll your puff pastry and spread it evenly with the mustard. Lay the ham out in single layer, covering the whole pastry. Start rolling on one side, all the way to the middle.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.


Repeat with the other side. If you are working in a warm kitchen, roll the whole thing in cling film and pop it in the freezer for five minutes before slicing it.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.


Use a sharp knife to cut the roll into 1/2 inch or 1 cm slices. Place the slices on your prepared pan.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.


Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and sprinkle on the Parmesan.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.

Bake for an additional 5-7 minutes or until they are golden all over and the cheese has melted.

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.


Enjoy!

This week my Sunday Supper group is sharing fancy appetizers for your red carpet award-watching party. Dress up, make a cocktail and get some of these ham and mustard spirals in the oven!

Or make one of these other fancy appetizers. Many thanks to our host Wendy of Wholistic Woman and our event manager, Cricket of Cricket’s Confections.

Finger Foods

Hors d'oeuvres

Seafood

Veggies

Sweets


Pin these Ham and Mustard Spirals! 

Food Lust People Love: Ham and Mustard Spirals. Flavorful ham and sharp whole grained mustard bake up crispy in puff pastry to create these lovely ham and mustard spirals. They are a quick and easy appetizer for your red carpet party.
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