Crack Slaw

So a friend of ours (hi Heather!! Big wave!) posted a picture and recipe for a dish called Crack Slaw. It looked like a simple and delicious dish so we decided to give it a try.  Heather said that it’s one of those dishes that you adjust the amounts to make it your own and that’s just what we did.  Here is our delicious version of Crack Slaw.  Crack Slaw

• 1 lb. ground beef 
• 2 tsp. Red Boat Fish Sauce
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 TBS. toasted sesame oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 scallions (green onions,)  white and green parts sliced in rings
• 1 TBS. minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes, more or less to your desired heat
• 1 lb coleslaw mix with carrots
• 2 TBS. coconut aminos
• 1 tsp. kombucha vinegar, or white vinegar

In a large skillet brown the ground beef and season with the fish sauce and ground pepper.  Remove from pan and set aside.  In the same pan, heat the sesame oil and sauté the garlic, green onions, ginger & red pepper flakes until fragrant.  Add the coleslaw mix and cook until desired tenderness. (I like it so that it still had a bit of crunch.)  Stir in the coconut aminos and the vinegar and add back in the reserved beef and any accumulated juices.  Serve hot or cold, great either way!.

Enjoy!

Coconut Carrot Soufflé

A delicious personal-sized side dish or grab-and-go snack.  These petite soufflés have all the flavor of carrot cake with the texture of a light baked custard.  With no added sugar it’s decadence with none of the guilt!

Coconut Carrot Soufflé (adapted from here)

• 1 lb. carrots, cut into chunks
• 2 cups 100% carrot juice
• 1/4 cup coconut butter
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp. ground vanilla
• pinch of Himalayan salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. unsweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line six muffin cups or custard cups (placed on a baking sheet) with foil cupcake liners.  Place the carrots and carrot juice in a pot and bring to a simmer.  Cover partially and cook until the carrots are very tender.  Remove the lid and bring to a boil.  Cook until all of the carrot juice has been absorbed and evaporated.  Add the carrots and all the other ingredients except for the shredded coconut to a food processor or blender and process until smooth.  Divide the batter equally between the six cups.  Sprinkle the shredded coconut on the tops of the carrot batter.  Bake for 30 minutes, until slightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool slightly and then remove the foil liner.  Enjoy hot or cold.  Reheats easily in the microwave.

Enjoy!

Carrot & Sweet Potato Pancakes

It’s that time again and this month for Secret Recipe Club I was assigned Shannon’s wonderful blog, Searching for Dessert.  Shannon’s blog is filled with just hundreds of gorgeous recipes for breads, brownies, cookies, cakes, pies and other delicious looking and sounding sweet treats.  I was totally drooling over her Lime Meringue Bars, Flourless Fudge Cookies and her Light Meyer Lemon Sugar Cookies but I really couldn’t make any of them because Maisie has her allergies to wheat, egg and dairy and I’ve been avoiding gluten, wheat, sugar, sweeteners both natural and artificial, and a whole host of other items and Eammon, well he just doesn’t really need any sweets so I didn’t want anyone tempted...boohoo… So after all my drooling over forbidden sweets, I checked out Shannon’s Meatless Monday recipes and found her recipe for Carrot & Potato Pancakes and I knew that I could easily adapt it to fit all our dietary restrictions.  I will say that I was being strong and really, really good by not baking any of her sweet and delicious treats and I totally admit that I did wallowed in self pity for a while but after making my version of her Carrot & Potato Pancakes, not once, not twice, but three times, I was crying no more and was a very happy camper. 

 

I really just made some small changes to the original recipe, I swapped out the white potato with a sweet potato, l left out the flour and increased the egg in the version that Eammon and I enjoyed and used chia seed gel in place of the egg in the ones I made for Maisie.  Also because I used sweet potatoes I decided to add a bit of roasted cinnamon because it just goes so perfectly with both sweet potatoes and carrots.

 

I served these Carrot & Sweet Potato Pancakes as a side dish with dinner and I also enjoyed snacking on them cold but my favorite way to enjoy them was nice and hot with a perfectly cooked over-easy egg on top which added just a wonderful creamy richness to the already delicious pancakes.  Check out Shannon’s blog for the original recipe. 

 

Carrot & Sweet Potato Pancakes (adapted from here)

• 1 3/4 cups shredded sweet potato
• 3 TBS. shredded carrot
• 2 TBS. minced onion
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt  
• 1/8 tsp. roasted cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
• 2 eggs, (or 2 TBS. chia seed in 6 TBS. warm water)
• coconut oil

In a medium bowl, stir together the sweet potato, carrot, onion, salt, roasted cinnamon and black pepper.  Stir in the eggs until the mixture is evenly combined.

Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium heat and add just enough coconut oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan.  Using about a 1/4 cup measure place the sweet potato mixture into the pan and flatten patties to about 1/4-inch thick.  Cook until first side is golden brown and then carefully flip and cook the second side until golden.

Serve hot or cold. 

Enjoy!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts:

Chicken Burgers with Spinach and Mushrooms,

Paradise Mango Curried Shrimp

Laura Goodenough’s Apple Coffee Cake

Loaded Potato Soup

Lemon Almond Biscotti

Creamy Mints

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings

Fried Green Tomatoes ‘

Chicken Satay Noodle Salad

Double Chocolate Mousse Cake

Candied Popcorn

Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad

Broiled Sushi

Health(ier) Peanut Brittle Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites

Texas Chicken with Lime Butter

Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens

Thin Mint Irish Coffee

Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

Welsh Cakes

Nutella Crêpes

Cilantro Lime Chicken

Holy Guacamole

and

Home Style Chicken Curry

 

Honey Spiced Game Hens

Cornish Game Hens are a delicious alternative to everyday chicken.  When cooked properly they are tender, sweet and juicy and because they are small they cook quickly.  I know that it looks like a giant chicken half on the plate but it’s actually a salad plate in the picture.  Anyhow, this is a delicious one pan meal that has the perfect balance of spice, sweet and sour and from start to finish takes less than an hour .  Also, because it’s made in one aluminum foil lined pan, clean-up is just as quick and easy, a perfect weeknight, or any night meal.  This of course could also be made with chicken pieces if Game Hens aren’t your thing.

Honey Spiced Game Hens 

• 2 Cornish game hens, cut in half (or four pieces of chicken, breasts and/or thigh quarters)
• vegetable oil or oil of your choice
• 1 lb. baby carrots
• 20 cloves fresh garlic
• 1 lb. fresh button mushrooms 
• 2 tsp. granulated garlic powder 
• 2 tsp. dark chili powder 
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder 
• 1/2 tsp. coriander 
• 1 tsp. sea salt 
• 1 tsp. cumin 
• 1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder  
• 1/2 cup honey 
• 3 TBS apple cider vinegar 

Preheat oven to 450F.  Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.  Add the carrots and whole garlic cloves to the pan.  Drizzle with one Tablespoon of oil and toss to coat well.  In a small bowl combine the garlic powder, chili powder, onion powder, coriander, salt, cumin & chipotle chili powder and mix well.  Sprinkle one Tablespoon of the spice mixture onto the carrots and garlic and toss to coat well.  Place the roasting pan into the oven and bake for 20 minutes, stirring once at the 10 minute mark. 

In a microwave safe measuring cup, heat the honey slightly, until runny, and stir in the apple cider vinegar, set aside.

Wash the game hen pieces and pat dry. Drizzle a small amount of oil over the game hens and rub it in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Sprinkle the remaining spice mixture over all sides of the game hens.  Once the carrots and garlic have cooked for 20 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and add the mushrooms, stir to mix all the vegetables.  Place the game hen pieces on top of the vegetables, skin side up and return the pan to the oven.

Bake for 30 minutes.  At the 10 and 20 minute marks, drizzle one Tablespoon of the honey mixture over each of the game hen pieces.  Once plated drizzle a little more of the honey mixture over each piece.

Enjoy!

Mom’s Beef Vegetable Soup

 “Peas and Carrots, Carrots and Peas.  Book come out, please, please, please!”  That phrase of Princess Pea’s from Super Why has been haunting me like the March of the Toreadors, It’s a Small World and the music from Peter & the Wolf.  Don’t you just hate when a song gets stuck in your head and drives you crazy?  So you ask why is that phrase haunting me?  Well this month for the Improv Cooking Challenge our hostess Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker has challenged the participating bloggers to make any recipe of their choosing using the two specified ingredients of, you guessed it, peas & carrots, carrots & peas, let me figure this out, please, please, please! 

If you don’t have a child or have never seen Super Why, what happens is that Whyatt, the main character gets a call on his computer in which he discovers that one of the other characters has a "super big problem". After investigating the problem Whyatt calls on all the "Super Readers" to come to the Book Club.  There the four characters, Whyatt, Pig, Red Riding Hood, and Princess Pea gather.  Whyatt plugs in his Super Duper Computer and uploads data about the problem and they all discuss it.  Once the problem is discussed, Whyatt says, "When we have a question, we look ... in a book!" Pig always asks, "Which book should we look in?" and in response, Princess Pea casts a magic spell to summon the appropriate book: “Peas and Carrots, Carrots and Peas.  Book come out, please, please, please!”  The book then magically descends from the shelves.  Whyatt, invites the audience to read along, summarizes the problem faced by the book's characters and drawing a parallel to the problem the Super Readers are trying to solve. The Super Readers follow the storyline to solve the problem applying their literacy skills to change the story when needed to overcome any obstacles.  Throughout the story they are rewarded with red glittery "Super Letters" which are uploaded into the Super Duper Computer, eventually forming the words that make up the solution to the "super big problem."  Yes I know, for those of you who have never experienced the show you now feel like you have a “super big problem” and have missed out…or maybe I have a “super big problem” as I know oh-too much about this show.  I’m just glad that Maisie’s outgrown the show…even if it is still haunting me there’s hope that the haunting will end. 

So now that you’ve read this far, let me tell you that I could have used Whyatt, the Super Readers and a magical book as I was at a complete loss as to what to make using peas & carrots.  That was until I had my DUH… moment.  I seriously for an entire month had been wondering what on earth to make using peas and carrots and then I just wasn’t feeling well, our weather was cold and stormy and I wanted to make some comforting soup, my Mom’s Beef Vegetable Soup.  I was writing out my shopping list, beef, split peas, barley, string beans, yellow squash, parsnips, carrots, lima beans, mushrooms… and light dawned on Marblehead… peas & carrots, carrots & peas, I had found my recipe, please, please, please!

My Mom doesn’t remember if it was her Mom or my Dad’s Mom who originally made this soup but either way it’s been made my entire life and has always been a favorite of mine.  Of course the recipe below can be cut down but just like my Mom does, I make the recipe as written which makes a huge, and I mean HUGE pot of soup.  I then freeze individual sized portions so that anytime I crave this delicious, comforting soup, it’s there in the freezer, ready to be eaten after just a few minutes of defrosting and heating in the microwave.  

Peas & carrots, carrots & peas, try & enjoy this soup, please, please, please!!

Mom’s Beef Vegetable Soup

• 6 lbs. beef (flanken, beef short ribs, chuck steak)
• 2 – 3 lbs. beef marrow bones (optional)
• 1 lb. dried split green peas
• 1/3 lb. barley
• 6 oz. dried baby lima beans
• 1 1/2 lbs. fresh string beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3 lbs. fresh baby carrots, cut into coins
• 3 lbs. fresh yellow summer squash, cut into half rounds
• 3 small fresh parsnips, peeled & cut into coins
• 1 lb. fresh white button mushrooms, sliced
• Better than Bouillon beef soup base
• sea salt to taste

In a very large stock pot add the meat and marrow bones and cover with 3x the depth of water.  Add the peas, barley & lima beans to a cheesecloth or put into a colander and suspend into the water.  Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.  Cook at a simmer for 1 1/2 – 2 hours, until the meat is tender and the peas, barley & lima beans are soft.  Skim the soup as needed.  Once everything is soft, empty the contents of the cheesecloth/colander into the beef stock and add the string beans, carrots, summer squash, parsnips, mushrooms and soup base to taste.  Simmer until the vegetables are cooked and soup has thickened to desired consistency.  Add salt to taste. 

Enjoy!

My previous Improv Cooking Challenge entries:

February 2013  Hearts & Flours:  Three Ingredient Fudgy Nutella Brownie Bites
January 2013  Bananas & Nutmeg:  Baked Bananas 
December 2012  Chocolate & Marshmallows:  White Chocolate Marshmallow Cranberry Cashew Bark    
November 2012  Sweet Potatoes & honey: Sweet Potato Glass Noodles with Honey Garlic Lime Shrimp 
October 2012  Oatmeal & Raisins:  S’mores Granola Bars   
September 2012  Zucchini & Brown Sugar:  Zucchini with Onion & Brown Sugar 
August 2012  Tomatoes & Peppers:  French Fries Hash Browns 
July 2012  Corn & Butter:  Fritos Crusted Pollock 
June 2012  Cherries & Almonds:  Dried Cherry Almond Tart 
May 2012  Strawberries & Cream:  Strawberry Soup 
April 2012  Peanut butter & Jelly:  Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars 
March 2012  Potato & Cheese:  Loaded Potato & Buffalo Chicken Casserole 
February 2012  Ginger & Carrots:  Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing 
January 2012 Lemon & Sour Cream:  Ponderosa Lemon & Sour Cream Tart 
December 2011 Eggnog & Cranberries:  Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter 
November 2011 Pumpkin & Cream Cheese:  Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake
October 2011 Caramel & Apples:  Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

Braised Beef Short Ribs

Back in August  for my Secret Recipe Club assignment I was assigned Barbara’s blog, Barbara Bakes and I for my post I decided to make her Chicken Satay Noodle Salad but a number of her other recipes caught my eye including her Braised Beef Short Ribs.  I couldn’t get the rib recipe out of my mind but as our temps were in the high 90’s & 100’s I just couldn’t bring myself to run the oven for 2+ hours so I saved the recipe and tried to put it out of my mind.  As soon as the temps took a little dip though, my thoughts returned to her ribs and I just had to make them.

Even though the recipe takes two days to make, it’s not a lot of hands on time.  The  first day the ribs are browned and braised and then chilled overnight to not only allow the accumulated fat to congeal on the top so that it can easily be removed but also allowing the ribs to soak up all the wonderful flavors.  Then on the second day the ribs are cooked in the braising liquid on the stovetop as the liquid is reduced to a wonderful glaze. 

Barbara said that these ribs were fall off the bone delicious and we all agree but I would add the word “rich” to the description as well.  I didn’t make any ingredient changes to Barbara’s recipe but I did adjust my amounts slightly.  So were these ribs worth a two day cooking process…heck yes!!  I will be making these again and I’m thinking that next time I am going to make one addition to the recipe, I’ll add some fresh mushrooms because they would soak up the flavor of the sauce and be absolutely wonderful with the the beef.

Braised Beef Short Ribs (adapted from here)

• 5 lbs. beef short ribs, bone-in
• Salt and freshly ground pepper 
• 1/4 cup olive oil 
• 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1 750-ml bottle good dry red wine (I used a merlot)
• 6 cups beef stock

Preheat oven to 350°F. Season ribs to taste with the salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large, heavy bottomed ovenproof pan over high heat. Add ribs and brown on all sides. Work in batches if you need to so that the ribs don’t get crowded (this will help with browning).

Transfer ribs to a plate. Pour off excess fat. Add the onions, celery, and carrots to the pan and sauté, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove the vegetables from the pan, set aside. Then add the wine to the pan, deglazing the pan, scraping off any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Reduce the wine by three-quarters until thick and slightly syrupy, about 15 minutes.

Return the ribs to the pan, add the beef stock and enough water to cover the ribs. Bring to a boil, cover with the lid or foil and place in the oven. Braise, cooking in the oven until the meat is fork-tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. During the last 1/2 hour of cooking add back in the vegetables. Allow the ribs to cool in the liquid, then cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day remove the excess fat that has solidified at the top from the overnight chilling. Place the pan with the ribs and cooking liquid over medium heat, uncovered. Cook until the liquid has reduced by three-quarters, about 1 hour. Continue to cook, spooning the sauce over the ribs, until the sauce is thick and ribs are glazed. Take care not to burn the glaze; move the ribs around in the pan to keep them from burning.

Serve over saffron rice (Maisie’s request), mashed potatoes, noodles, or rice.

Enjoy!

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

It’s Secret Recipe Club time again, so you know I’m excited, I love this time of month!  This month I was assigned Jessie’s blog Vanderbilt Wife.  I really loved reading her blog, seeing her adorable children and all her wonderful recipes, of which there are many so be sure to click on over and check them out.  I debated back and forth as to which recipe to make but in the end I decided on her Toddler Thai:  Noodles in Peanut Sauce with Chicken.  Jessie’s son is lactose intolerant and she makes this recipe for him and as my Maisie is allergic to wheat, egg & dairy, it was just a simple change of pasta to also make it gluten free and safe for my girl. 

I sautéed up two chicken breasts as I had them defrosted and thought that I would use the second one in a chicken salad…but Maisie had other ideas.  Somehow between the time I started cooking this recipe and the time Maisie started eating it, she decided that she no longer liked the taste of peanut butter…but that of course could change tomorrow…and can we say finicky little girl???  She ate a little of the noodles and then asked for plain noodles with some of the chicken and ketchup…OY!!  I think she’s seven going on tween and definitely has become much more opinionated and picky.  Oh well, all was not lost with this recipe as I spiced it up a little with some Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce and a bit of Sriracha and what was to be Maisie’s, became Eammon’s dinner.  Maisie’s loss was Eammon’s gain as he absolutely loved the pasta and all the flavors.  And little Miss Picky enjoyed her plain bean thread noodles, chicken and ketchup…oh well at least she ate and got some protein and calories into her…even if she did miss out on a delicious meal!

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

• 3 oz. bean thread noodles or noodles of your choice 
• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
• five spice powder
• ginger
• sesame oil
• peanut oil
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup soy sauce 
• 2 TBS. honey 
• 1 TBS. sesame oil
• 1 TBS. Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce
• Sriracha to taste 
• 1/2 cup julienned carrots
• Cilantro for garnish

Prepare the noodles according to package directions.  Drain, rinse and set aside.

Season the chicken with the five spice powder and ginger.  Heat a large cast iron skillet and add a thin layer of half sesame oil and half peanut oil.  Once the oil is hot, add the chicken and sear on each side, then cover the pan and remove from the heat.  The residual heat in the cast iron pan will continue to cook the chicken and it won’t get over cooked and dried out.  Once the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the pan and slice thinly.  To the now empty pan, add the the peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, 1 TBS of sesame oil, Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce, Sriracha and carrots and heat, stirring to blend well.  Once hot, stir in the noodles and the sliced chicken breast.  Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Enjoy!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts:

Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings 
Fried Green Tomatoes 
Chicken Satay Noodle Salad 
Double Chocolate Mousse Cake 
Candied Popcorn
Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad 
Broiled Sushi 
Health(ier) Peanut Brittle 
Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites 
Texas Chicken with Lime Butter 
Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens 
Thin Mint Irish Coffee 
Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies 
Welsh Cakes 
Nutella Crêpes 
Cilantro Lime Chicken 
Holy Guacamole 
and
Home Style Chicken Curry

Chicken Satay Noodle Salad

I have been participating in The Secret Recipe Club since June of last year and still each month I’m excited to receive my assignment so I can immediately start stalking my assigned blog searching for the recipe I want to make and feature.  This month was no different and when I received my assignment of Barbara’s Barbara Bakes I immediately started perusing her extensive list of recipes.  Finding the “one” recipe that I wanted to make was quite difficult as Barbara’s recipe list is quite extensive and so many caught my eye including zucchini bacon & cheese fritters, her braised beef short ribs and funeral potatoes (because the one time I had them they were oh-so-delicious) or one of her Daring Cooks recipes, boeuf bourguignon…yum!  Then there was her Cafe Rio sweet pork barbacoa which really called my name because I LOVE eating at Cafe Rio when I’m out visiting friends in Utah, it’s my favorite and one day I will make Cafe Rio’s sweet pork barbacoa as well as the other recipes which I bookmarked from Barbara’s site.  In the end I decided to make Barbara’s chicken satay noodle salad, a perfect meal for a hot Georgia summer night. 

Because I can never leave any recipe as it is, I did make a few changes to Barbara’s recipe but really so that it fit better with our diets and just little taste changes.  For the taste changes I used cilantro instead of parsley because I love the flavor of cilantro with satay and then as Barbara didn’t specify a hot pepper sauce I decided to use two different ones, Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce and Sriracha.  To fit better with our diets I omitted the oil, used sugar free honey and I switched out Barbara’s whole wheat spaghetti for Shirataki noodles as I’m avoiding carbs and with Maisie and her allergies, the Shirataki noodles fit both our diets.

This dish easily came together as I had most of the ingredients in the house and this recipe was a perfect way to use some of the chicken I froze the last time I made my “Rotisserie” Chicken.  Also, since I decided to make this as a cold noodle salad it all came together in one bowl so my clean up was easy-peasy.

This recipe was simple and delicious with the wonderful contrasting sweet, sour, salty & spicy flavors that I love in Thai food.  This salad was a hit with all of us and I can see it gracing our table many nights to come.

Chicken Satay Noodle Salad (adapted from here)

• 1/3 cup peanut butter, softened
• 2 TBS. sugar free honey 
• 1/4 cup tamari, or dark soy sauce  
• Juice and zest of 2 limes
• 1 tsp. Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce 
• 1 tsp. Sriracha 
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 – 7 oz. package Shirataki noodles (I use the thin vermicelli), drained and rinsed very, very well
• 1/2 cup julienned carrots   
• 2 cups skinned and shredded “rotisserie” chicken
• 1 cup packed fresh spinach, thinly sliced
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped peanuts, plus extra for garnish 
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus extra for garnish

In a large bowl whisk together the peanut butter, honey and tamari.  Add the lime juice & zest, hot pepper sauces and garlic then whisk until smooth.  Add the noodles, carrots and chicken and fold to mix.  Gently fold in the spinach, green onions, peanuts & cilantro.  Top with additional cilantro and peanuts for serving.

Enjoy!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts:

Double Chocolate Mousse Cake 
Candied Popcorn
Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad 
Broiled Sushi 
Health(ier) Peanut Brittle 
Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites 
Texas Chicken with Lime Butter 
Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens 
Thin Mint Irish Coffee 
Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies 
Welsh Cakes 
Nutella Crêpes 
Cilantro Lime Chicken 
Holy Guacamole 
and
Home Style Chicken Curry

Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

This is my fifth month participating in the Improv Cooking Challenge which is hosted by Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker.  As always I looked forward to participating and finding or coming up with a great recipe which included the two theme ingredients.  This month the participating bloggers were asked to make any recipe of their choosing using the two given ingredients of ginger and carrots.  At first I was going to make a soup, being that it’s winter…supposedly…as our temperatures had been balmy and gorgeous…well until this past week when we hit the deep freeze…but even so, I decided to make something light, healthy and fresh, thus my Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing.  I loved this salad so much and as I had plenty of dressing, I ended up eating it for lunch five days in a row,.

This Carrot Ginger Dressing is very similar to what is served in Japanese restaurants so if you enjoy it out I’d suggest making it at home as it’s super simple and it keeps in the fridge for about a week.

My previous Improv Cooking Challenge entries:

January 2012 Lemon & Sour Cream:  Ponderosa Lemon & Sour Cream Tart 
December 2011 Eggnog & Cranberries:  Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter 
November 2011 Pumpkin & Cream Cheese:  Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake 
October 2011 Caramel & Apples:  Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies 

Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

raw shrimp, peeled & deveined, tail left on
Shichimi togarashi
chia seeds
baby salad greens
avocado, peeled & sliced
tomato, sliced
carrot, julienned

Dry the shrimp well and then lightly sprinkle with the Shichimi togarashi and chia seeds.  Cook the shrimp under the broiler or in a lightly oiled hot pan until they are opaque and just cooked through.  Arrange the salad greens, avocado, tomato, cooked shrimp and carrots on a plate and drizzle on the Carrot Ginger Dressing.

 

Carrot Ginger Dressing

1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 TBS. chopped peeled fresh ginger
fruit pulp from 1/2 of a lemon
1 TBS. ketchup
1/4 tsp. Shichimi togarashi 
2 TBS. water
1/2 cup Grapeseed oil

Put all the dressing ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Will keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator for about a week.

Enjoy!

Thai Chicken Noodle Soup

It’s Crazy Cooking Challenge time again!  Each month our hostess, Tina of Moms Crazy Cooking challenges the participating bloggers to search non-celebrity blogs looking for the ultimate recipe of the month.  We are then to make and feature that recipe and the blog where we found it.  This month the challenge was to find the ultimate chicken noodle soup recipe.  I almost passed on participating this month because my mind wasn’t thinking past traditional chicken noodle soup which isn’t a favorite for me as I generally strain the noodle out so to just enjoy the soup.  As a rule noodles in soup isn’t a favorite and now with Maisie’s food allergies, well I just wasn’t feeling the challenge.  Then I saw a recipe for Thai Chicken Noodle Soup on Lesa’s blog Edesia's Notebook and I knew I had found the ultimate chicken noodle soup recipe and I just had to make it.  Lesa’s soup looked delicious and simple to make and with a few little changes I knew that it could be made “Maisie safe,” delicious and perfect for us…and it was.  Maisie loved the soup as I made it and Eammon and I enjoyed it spiced up a bit with a squirt of Sriracha.  Mild or spiced up, this IS the ultimate chicken noodle soup.

My previous Crazy Cooking Challenge entries:
Mac & Cheese Challenge: Velvety Mac & Cheese
Chocolate Chip Cookie Challenge: Chocolate Chip Gingersnaps
Mashed Potato Challenge: Aloo Tikki
Fudge Challenge: Biscoff Fudge 

Thai Chicken Noodle Soup (Adapted from here)

1 TBS peanut oil
2 carrots, julienned
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 TBS fresh grated ginger
1 tsp dried lemon grass powder 
1/2 tsp turmeric 
1/2 tsp red pepper powder 
4 cups Cheaters Chicken Soup 
3/4 cup lite coconut milk 
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter 
1 lb cooked chicken meat (I used the meat from when I made my “Rotisserie” Chicken and Cheaters Chicken Soup)
3 oz dry vermicelli rice noodles, prepared according to package directions
1 TBS sugar
2 TBS fresh chopped cilantro
2 TBS fish sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Sriracha 

In a medium stockpot, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the carrots and cook until slightly softened.  Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute until it is fragrant.  Add the lemon grass powder, turmeric and red pepper powder and stir fry it for 1 minute.  Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, peanut butter, chicken meat and cooked noodles.  Bring to a low boil, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.  Stir in the sugar, cilantro and fish sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve and add Sriracha to taste.

Enjoy!