Tag: garlic cloves

Tofu and Broccoli Stir Fry with Blood Orange Sauce

Perfect thing to make for Meatless Mondays- and it has blood oranges which are in season!

1 cup blood orange juice
2 tablespoons low sodium soy
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Thai chili paste
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, grated

Bring the juice, soy, honey, vinegar, chili paste, ginger and garlic to a boil. Simmer and reduce by half. Keep aside.

4 tablespoons extra light olive oil
1 large yellow onion, sliced
1 cup Cremini mushrooms, sliced
3 cups broccoli florets
1 package firm tofu, cut into cubes
2 teaspoons corn starch

Heat a wok like pan with 2 tablespoons oil. Add the onions and sauté on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and sauté for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the florets and sauté on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Take the vegetables out, add the remaining oil to the pan and reheat. Sprinkle the cornstarch on the tofu cubes. Brown the tofu on high heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the vegetables back to the pan. Add the sauce and bring to a boil. Mix well and check for seasonings. Serve with brown rice.

Mushroom Pasta with Marsala Sauce

I’ll start off the New Year with a delicious mushroom pasta- my daughter loves, loves mushrooms- she sneaks away some as I am slicing them to prepare the dish… she loved this one…

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
10 ounces Cremini mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup Marsala wine
1 cup chicken/mushroom or vegetable broth
1/3 cup heavy cream
½ pound farfalle, cooked al dente with ½ cup pasta water spared
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
½ cup parsley, chopped

Heat a large frying pan with butter and olive oil. Add the onion and sauté on medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the shiitake mushrooms and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the Cremini mushrooms and sauté on medium heat for 6 to 7 minutes. Add thyme, garlic, salt and pepper. Saute for another 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl. Add the Marsala wine and scrape off the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Take off heat and add the cream and mix well. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Add the cooked pasta, cheese, mushrooms and parsley and cook over medium heat until pasta absorbs most of the liquid, about a minute or two. Adjust consistency with spare pasta water. Taste for seasonings and serve.

Coconut Shrimp

Coconut Shrimp This dish is worth reposting. I used the recipe this past weekend for a dinner party I was having. I thought it would be fun to post the dishes I made… next time you want to have a dinner party and cook Indian food- you may want to use this menu…I changed it up a bit by adding sliced onions- made it super delicious…

This dish is truly delicious! I made it the other day- concocted it in my head the day before I was supposed to cook and take it to my friend’s house.

She was having a get together and wanted to know where to get a few meat snacks for a cocktail party. I suggested we cook at home instead. It is so hard to find a place that makes and delivers yummy food. Also, by the time they bring the food over, it’s cooked and cold and doesn’t taste the same reheated. We decided I will cook the shrimp and take to her house. I decided to do a stir fry style dish which will taste good room temperature as shrimp is not so tasty reheated.

There used to be a South Indian restaurant in Edison, NJ that served delicious seafood. We would go once in a while and make it a point to order a shrimp stir fry for appetizer. It was yum! It had cumin and fennel seeds amongst other ingredients. I started to think of that dish and got inspired to make the coconut shrimp.

I roasted the cumin and fennel seeds and powdered them in a spice grinder. I also had fresh frozen shredded coconut which I roasted as well- just to give it more of a crunch in the dish. Store bought, packaged coconut can be substituted for the dish.

The overall flavor was enhanced by the marinade- which was simply lemon juice, garlic, salt and olive oil. I sauteed the marinated shrimp with the spice mix and added the coconut. Very simple, yet very tasty.

It was a big hit at the party. This dish will definitely be part of my repertoire going forward. Give it a try- you won’t be disappointed!
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Pork and Vegetables Stir Fry Ramen Noodles

This was a huge hit! Everyone loved it and wanted me to make it again!

1 pound boneless pork chops, sliced
¼ cup Szechuan peppercorns, ground
1 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon peanut oil

Marinate the pork slices with the peppercorns and salt for 2 to 3 hours in the fridge. Take out half an hour before cooking.

Heat a frying pan with the oil and add the pork slices. Cook on a high heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Take out and keep aside.

2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 red chili, deseeded and chopped
2 cups Cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 medium red pepper, sliced
1 cup green beans, trimmed and cut in half
½ cup green onions, chopped
½ cup cilantro, chopped

Sauce

¼ cup oyster sauce
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon Shao Shing Hua Tiao cooking wine
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon ponzu sauce
1 packet of Ramen noodles, cooked according to package instructions

Transfer the oyster sauce, fish sauce, cooking wine, dark soy and ponzu sauce to a medium bowl. Mix well and keep aside.

Heat a wok like pan with the peanut and sesame oil. Add ginger, garlic and red chili and sauce for 1 to 2 minutes on medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook on high heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the red pepper and green beans. Sauce for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the noodles and cooked pork slices. Mix well and add the sauce. Toss and garnish with green onions and cilantro. Serve warm.

Mushroom Turkey Swiss Chard Whole Wheat Lasagna

This is a great, delicious recipe I came up with. No one could tell it was super healthy. I bought whole wheat pasta sheets and layered them with mushrooms and ground turkey. I bought a big bunch of Swiss chard which I sautéed it up and added the greens to the ricotta filling. The lasagna was yummy and it was gone in no time…

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bunch Swiss chard, greens and stalks separated and chopped
1 cup cremini mushrooms, chopped
1 cup shitaki mushrooms, chopped
½ pound dark meat ground turkey
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups marinara sauce
Salt

Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil. Add the shallot and garlic and sauté for a minute on medium heat. Add the Swiss chard whites and sauté for a minute. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes on high heat. Add ground turkey and separate with the back of wooden spoon. Stir and cook for a minute or two. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute. Add the marinara sauce and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Adjust seasonings and let the mixture cool off.

1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt

Heat a medium frying pan with the olive oil and add the greens from the Swiss chard. Saute on high heat, stirring consistently till the greens have wilted. Add salt and let the mixture cool off.

Ricotta Filling

1 cup ricotta cheese
2 cloves garlic, grated
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
½ cup Mozzarella, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten

Transfer the ricotta cheese, garlic, Parmigiano, mozzarella, salt and the egg to a medium bowl. Add the Swiss chard greens and mix well.

6 to 8 whole wheat lasagna noodles, cooked

Start to layer the lasagna by starting with a small ladle of the turkey mixture at the bottom. Add the noodles on top and spread a third of the turkey mixture on top. Add half of the ricotta filling. Repeat the process and top with noodles and then the last third of the turkey mixture. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 to 45 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Mushroom and Olive Meatballs

Here is another version of my delicious meatballs. Everyone loved them. I took two of my daughter’s favorite pizza toppings- mushrooms and olives, and added them to the turkey meat. I also added garlic and parsley. Of course the homemade tomato sauce helps with the taste factor. This is a good one!!

1 pound dark meat turkey
1 cup Cremini mushrooms, shredded
½ cup kalamata olives, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup parsley, chopped
1 egg, beaten
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup panko bread crumbs soaked in ½ cup milk (for 10 minutes)
2 cups tomato sauce

Transfer the tomato sauce into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer.
Transfer the turkey, mushrooms, olives, garlic, parsley and cheese into a medium mixing bowl. Mix well and add the egg, salt and panko crumbs. Mix well and form meatballs and slide into the simmering sauce. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer and cook meatballs covered with a lid for 15 minutes. Taste for seasonings and serve with pasta.

Meatballs with Smoked Paprika

Here is another meatball recipe. They are so easy to make and I like to make mine with different flavorings. I also like to make them really healthy and generally make them with ground turkey meat. These particular ones have my favorite flavors- smoked paprika and dried ancho chilies. They both have a delicious, smoky flavor with a bit of kick.

I added the paprika in the meat itself including onion and garlic. For the sauce I reconstituted a few ancho chilies, blended them with crushed tomatoes and cooked it. I then formed the meatballs and cooked them in the delicious sauce.

1 pound ground turkey meat
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 egg beaten
½ cup cilantro, chopped
½ cup yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
1/3 cup milk

Transfer the meat into a large bowl. Add the paprika, salt, thyme, beaten egg, cilantro, onion and garlic. Mix well. In the meantime soak the breadcrumbs in the milk for ten minutes. Add the soaked breadcrumbs into the meat mixture and mix well. Keep aside in the fridge for at least 2 to 3 hours.

Sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 dried ancho chilies
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Salt

Soak the dried chilies in the boiling water for half an hour. Blend the soft peppers (and the water) with the crushed tomatoes until all blended well. Add the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the tomato mixture into the pan and bring to a boil. Cook for about 15 minutes on high. Simmer while forming meatballs and gently dropping them in the sauce. Add the cinnamon. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes. Check for seasonings and serve with rice or bread.

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