Shrimps Salad With Chipotle Pepper and Mints

I like this recipe since I can conveniently prepare a couple of hours a head before my guests arrive. It is  uncomplicated recipe, and  perfect for any party. It can be serve cold as an hors d'oeuvres, or serve  in a bed of lettuces as salad. It is also nice serve warm with spiced couscous as a main dish.

Ingredients:

16 oz (1 lb) small to medium size shrimps, cleaned (or buy the one that is already cooked)

1 jar (16 oz) garlic marinated button mushroom 

1 pint cherry tomatoes

3 cloves garlic, sliced

¼ cup parsley

½ tbs smoked pimento

1 tbs smoked chipotle pepper flakes

Zest of 1 lemon

Zest of 1 orange

Juice of 1 lemon

½ cup  finely chopped  fresh mint leaves

2 tbs olive oil

salt & pepper, to taste

• Cook shrimp with 1 tbs olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, until pink on all sides. transfer to a large bowl, set aside.
• Return the skillet to the stove, add ½ tbs olive oil, and cook the cherry tomatoes just to soften them a little bit, about 1 minute. Transfer to the shrimps bowl. 
• In the same skillet with medium heat, add the remaining  olive oil, add garlic, fry until fragrant, add the the rest of the ingredients. Cook for one minute, turn off the heat. Pour this mixture to the shrimps-tomatoes bowl. Stir to coat all, season with salt or pepper. Cool, then refrigerate at least an hour to let the flavor deepen. OR, serve right away while it is still hot with steam rice, couscous, or spiced couscous.

Celeriac & Parsnip Soup

It was cold and cloudy Sunday morning. We went for a short hike at Monte Bello open space preserve.

I manage to draged my sister to come with us, we had a great chat. Stopped every minutes just to take some photographs. Sometimes she got impatient, and left me behind.

This soup is a prefect soup for a cold and cloudy day, it's healthy and delicious. Serve with homemade crusty bread. Delicious!

Ingredients:

2 large (about ¾ pounds) parsnip, peeled - cut into big chunk

1 small (about 8 ounces) celery root, peeled - cut in to big chunk

1 medium leek, white part only, cut into two

1 garlic clove

2 tbs olive oil

4 - 5 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock

1 tbs mint 

1 tbs parsley 

1 tsp paprika

salt and pepper

• Preheat oven to 375 F
• Put parsnip, celery root, leek, and garlic in small baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes. Cool slightly, then put them in food mill to make a puree.
• Transfer to a soup pot along with chicken stock or vegetable stock. Continue to cook until the soup is boiling hot. Adjust seasoning if needed.
• Make the mint-parsley oil:  heat oil in a small skillet on a medium heat. Add mint, paprika, and parsley. Shake the skillet. Turn of the heat.
• Serve the soup with drizzle of mint-parsley oil.

Rice Pilaf With Lamb, Vegetables, and Dried Fruit

This recipe is my last entry  for My Kitchen My World weekly event. I'd like to thank you all MKMW member for the fabulous journey that we've taken together, it was real pleasure. I also must thank Susan for creating such a wonderful event, and thanks to Lauren for all of your effort to be a moderator and maintain the site running and interesting. I wish you luck and I hope the group will continue to grow.

Rice pilaf with lamb and dried fruit. Sounds good, no?

The photo really can't do justice of this humble rice pilaf, I can't even explain how good this rice was. It disappeared so quickly, glad that  I managed to save a plate for photograph. So, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 lb ground lamb
3 cup Basmati rice
1 tbs olive oil
½ cup raisins

½ cup dried apricots
½ dried cranberries
1 onions, chopped
1 tsp saffron (dissolve with 2 tbs warm water)
1 tsp caraway seeds
1 stick  cinnamon

1 tbs chopped parsley (optional)

2 baby Italian eggplant, cubed

1 lb green bean, cut into 1 inch long

½ cup frozen  fava bean 

salt to taste.

• Wash the rice until the water is become clear, about 5 times. Put the rice in a large bowl, add 2 tbs salt, and about 8 cups of water. Soak the rice for minimum 2 hours.
• In sauce pan, brown the  onion, and the ground mutton or lamb in 1 tbs olive oil. Cook for 5 minutes, add the rest of the ingredients, but not the saffron water. Continue to cook until the vegetables are soft and the lamb is tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.
• In a large non stick pot bring 8 cups of water and 2 tbs salt to a boil. Drain the rice, and add to the boiling water. Boil briskly for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the rice almost feel soft when you bite. Drain the rice into a large fine mesh colander. 
• Return the pot to the stove, turn the heat to low. Add ⅓ of the meat mixture, ⅓ of the rice, continue until you use up all of the rice and the meat mixture. Ending with the rice, Sprinkle with saffron water. Place a clean kitchen towel on the pot, and cover firmly with the lid to prevent steam from escaping. Cook for 35 to 45 minutes.
• Carefully open the lid, turn of the heat, and transfer the rice to a large platter, garnish with parsley if desire. Delicious!

Spicy Crab with Lemongrass, Ginger, And Chili

I must admit, as much as I love being in the kitchen, when it comes to the actually killing, I really have to give up. I just couldn't bare putting the sharp knife into it while I know the eyes are starring at me. 

So, last week my sister came home with fresh caught crab from somewhere near Monterey Bay, she brought 4 live crabs and they were moving energetically when we put them in the sink. Since she knew  I never done the killing thing before, she did it.  Here she is  in action....

This was the last crab, it huge, and refused to go in to the rolling boiling water. Ouch!

Yes, she was pretty good, considering that she is not that confident in the kitchen.

I was in charge with the cooking, as usual....

Ingredients:

4 medium size crabs, cleaned and cut into pieces

3 stalks fresh lemongrass, white part only, cut into pieces

1½ inches long fresh ginger, peel, chopped

6 shallots, chopped

5 cloves garlic

10 Thai chilies

10 - 15 dried chilies

1 tbs fish sauce

salt

½ tsp white pepper

2 tbs canola or vegetable oil

• Put lemongrass, ginger, shallots, garlic, and Thai chillies in a food processor. Process to make a paste. Add a little water if necessary.
• Heat oil in a large work over medium high, add the dried chilies. Fry for one minute, add the paste, and fry until it releases its fragrance.
• Add the crabs, stir to coat the crab all over with the paste, season with fish sauce, salt and white pepper. Add ½ cup of water, cover the wok with a lid. Turn the heat to medium, add water if its too dry. Cook until the crab is done, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir from time to time. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
• Serve with plain jasmine rice.

Beet Root Soup & Simple Tartine

I love beet, I feel there is something missing if I don't have any beet in my refrigerator. Pickle beet, fresh beet, or roasted beet. I can eat them all, seasoned or unseasoned. In winter I can be satisfied just by having a bowl of beet soup with a slice of homemade bread. in summer, I can eat the soup cold with plain yogurt. Yesterday, after having a nice hiked with my husband and my son, I made this soup, it was delicious! My son thought it was yikes! oh well... husband preferred the beet just like that, not puree, or made into soup.

To make the soup is very easy, just roast the beets with onion (cut in half), add olive oil, and balsamic vinegar, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add a little bit of water, cover them with aluminum foil, roast at a 375⁰F oven for an hour, or until the beet is tender. Cool, then process the whole thing including onion in a blender, add water to get the consistency of a soup. Heat before serving. Simple and delicious. And oh, don't forget to serve the soup with creme fraiche. 

On typical lazy Sunday, what else could be more easier then having a slice of bread, top with what ever you have in you refrigerator. I made a simple tartine with left over chicken breast, tomatoes, fennel bulb (I have to have this in my sandwich), roasted beet, roasted caramelized onion, and top with our favorite "fromager d'Affinois", of course you can put any cheese you fancy. Light (well, unless you put tons of this cheese), and delicious. Honestly, lunch couldn't be better then this!

Murgh Makhani

A friend of mine took me to an Eclectic Modern Indian restaurant in down town Palo Alto last week. I was pretty skeptical when she told me where we were going to eat here. This restaurant is quite a fancy restaurant for an Indian restaurant, which I normally think that the food will be westernized. It all disappeared when our order came. I must admit it was pretty good, and I was really satisfied with the dish that we ordered. This murg or chicken makhani is her favorite dish to order when she go to Junnoon. I thought I'd try to make it at home....

Recipe Adapted from:

The Great Curry Of India

by: Camellia Panjabi

2 lb chicken, cut into pieces

4 tbs oil

Marinate:

2 cups plain yogurt

6 garlic cloves

½" square fresh ginger

⅔  tsp red chili powder

¼ tsp coriander powder

½ tsp cumin powder

½ tsp garam masala

½ tsp salt

2 tsp lime juice

1 tbs oil

• marinate the chicken with the above ingredients for 1 hour, or overnight.

Makhani Sauce:

1½ lb Roma tomatoes

½ tsp kasuri methi, grind into powder

3 oz chilled butter

½ tsp cayenne powder

¼ tsp garam masala

salt

1½ oz heavy cream

• Scald the tomatoes and peel off the skin. Reduce to a semi pulp with fork or potato masher.
• Cook the tomatoes in a large skillet until the liquid evaporated a little. Add chilled butter, cayenne powder, cook for 1 minute. Add kasuri meti, garam masala, and salt. After 30 seconds, add heavy cream, stir. Taste to see if its need more salt. Set aside. 

When you are ready to cook the chicken:

• Heat oil in a large braiser, put the marinated chicken all together including the marinate. Cover and cook on a low heat until the chicken is cooked. Turning from time to time.
• Add the makhani sauce, mix well. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Maple Mustard-Glazed Chicken

When I saw Cathy @ Noble Pig posted the recipe in November last year, I knew that this recipe was going to be my favorite recipe. I must admit that I always have difficulty when it comes to cook chicken breast. I tend to over cook it, since I always get scared that I might under cook the breast and my family will get e-c0li bacteria. It all changed after I tried this recipe. My family was very happy and since then, they always requested this recipe. And my son requested that I should remember to buy maple syrup soon, and try to make it with maple syrup instead of honey. 

Please visit her "Maple Mustard-Glazed Chicken" for the original recipe and the  step by step technique. Or, use my recipe that I've adapted slightly by adding tarragon and marjoram. I've to substituted  maple syrup for honey, because I didn't happen to have it in my pantry at the time.

Maple Mustard-Glazed Chicken

Adapted from Cathy @ Noble Pig, that she

inspired by Cuisine at Home

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded flat

6 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

4 Tablespoons maple syrup

2 Tablespoons whole-grain mustard

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tsp dried tarragon

¼ tsp marjoram

2 eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Tablespoon water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

• Combine dijon mustard, maple syrup or honey, whole-grain mustard, brown sugar dried thyme, tarragon, marjoram. Set aside.
• Prepare 3 plates, on the first plate mix flour with salt and pepper. Place eggs with water in  a second plate, mix well. Then the bread crumb on the last plate.  
• Coat  the chicken into the flour, shaking off any excess, dip into the egg mixture and into the breadcrumbs, making sure to coat completely.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken breasts for 2 minutes on each side, just until browned.
• Place the chicken on a baking sheet, brush liberally with the glaze, bake  in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

PECEL

This was our lunch, it was so delicious and everybody in my family (especially my sisters and I) love it very much. It was a nice change after we indulged our self with all delicious food during christmas and new year's eve.

This recipe is very easy, you can use any vegetables you like, steam them and serve with peanut sauce, recipe follow. Originally come from East Java, and it is also consider a street eaten for breakfast accompany by steam rice, fried tempe, fried tofu, and krupuk. It is simply the best breakfast! 

In Indonesia, there are so many different peanut sauce, they all slightly differ from each other, depending  on what are you going to use it for (for example and the most common well know here in America is Gado-gado, and the peanut sauce for satay), they all have the same basic ingredient which is ground fried peanut, garlic, and chilies.

This one I like more then the other, it is more fragrant, and has that slight aroma that you will not get from other peanut sauce. The aroma of "kencur" (unfortunately there is no substitute for this pungent root, if you do try to substitute it with other let say, ginger, it will give totally different taste to the sauce). Of course, living here in CA, I am so fortunate to be able to get kencur from the chinese grocery, they sold in powder, and you can also get it sliced in a frezzer section. I haven't found the fresh one yet, I know I will one day! Nothing seems impossible in California, you know.

1 cup spanish raw peanuts

2 clove garlic

10 thai chillies

1 tbs palm sugar

½ tbs seedless tamarine pulp

5 kaffir lime leaves

½ tsp kencur powder, or 2 slices fresh/frozen 

salt, to taste

oil for frying the peanut

• Fry the peanuts in oil until slightly brown, transfer to a plate lined with paper towel to absorb all the excess oil. Don't over cook the peanuts, or your sauce will turn bitter.
• In a large mortar and pestle, put the rest of ingredients (without the oil), and pound them in to a paste. Transfer to a jar and keep in the refrigerator until needed, up to three days. 
• When you are ready to use the paste, mix it with a little bit of water to make a sauce, the consistency of the sauce is really up to you. I like mine very thick, so I only add a little water to the paste. It's easy, no?