Happy Birthday to My Mom

 

This is me and my awesome mom about five years ago. I found the pic when skimming through photos, and I just love it. I love you mom, and I hope you have a wonderful birthday! See you in a month! :)

Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad

I know it's not quite summer yet, but it sure feels like it in Beijing! Our apartment gets pretty warm throughout the day, and the last thing I want to do is stand over the stove for a meal. Let's just say, we've been eating a lot of sandwiches lately. This pasta salad however, I can handle. If you can stomach the thought of boiling water for pasta, then you have a pretty tasty lunch awaiting you. With real summer heat on the horizon, this salad would be great for barbecues and picnics, not to mention, a great way to take advantage of summer's wonderful produce. 

The recipe below indicates the veggies I chose to use, but you can really use any veggies you have on hand, as this is of course a highly adaptable recipe. Just try to make it as colorful as possible! The vinaigrette is also quite tasty, and is much lighter then it's creamy cousin, so it doesn't feel too heavy.

One a side note, I bought my plane ticket back to the states last night, and couldn't be more thrilled. I'll be home just in time for the 4th of July, and am looking forward to grilling, swimming, and being around family and friends. I've already demanded we have hot dogs, baked beans, and cake. It will be glorious. 

Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad

Ingredients

Pasta 

12 oz. pasta (smaller shapes work best)

2 medium Roma tomatoes

1 medium zucchini

1 medium broccoli crown

1/2 medium red onion

1 bell pepper (I used 1/2 red and 1/2 yellow, because that's what I had on hand)

1/2 bunch parsley (I used a good pinch of dry parsley, as I can't find fresh here)

Vinaigrette

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon dried oregano, or herb of choice

1 large clove garlic, minced

3/4 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Add the pasta and cook al dente according to the package directions. Drain in a colander and let cool.

While the pasta is cooking, prepare the vegetables. Wash them, then cut into bite sized pieces (especially the broccoli). 

In a very large bowl, prepare the vinaigrette by simply whisking all the ingredients together until fully combined. Add cooled pasta and veggies, and stir until everything is coated in the vinaigrette. 

At this point you can either dig in, or put in the fridge to cool completely and let the flavors marry. I prefer my pasta salad cold. 

Recipe Source: adapted from Budget Bytes

Dal Nirvana

I am so excited about this dish. I have been craving Indian food for the better part of a year, and could finally wait no more. It is one of my favorite cuisines. You may be surprised, but when I was living in Cincinnati, I could get incredible Indian food at about 3 or more different restaurants within walking distance of my apartment. Incredible Indian restaurants in the midwest? Yes, I kid you not. I don't know why, but I never complained. Wow, just thinking about it is making me excited about being back in the Queen City.

My favorite dish is chicken tikka masala, and I order it every time. It's probably one of my most favorite meals on the planet actually. Though this isn't tikka masala, this dal nirvana is...well...nirvana. It completely hit the spot. It was just spicy enough, though could set your mouth on fire if you wanted it to, and was ever so flavorful. I also had barely enough lentils left in the cabinet, so this was perfect, as I'm trying to use stuff up since we're moving back to the states next month.

If you're not really familiar with Indian food, I urge you to give this dish a try. It was incredibly easy to make, and I just loved it. I wish I had more leftover! It fed me and Chris, and we'll probably have just enough for a meal tomorrow, or *ahem* maybe even dinner tonight. Also, see that beautiful stack of naan? Yeah...I made them (does happy dance). I want to play around with the recipe more before sharing, but for now, here is the recipe for this divine meal. Enjoy!

Dal Nirvana

Ingredients

1 cup dry brown lentils

2 gloves garlic

1 inch fresh ginger 

1/2-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (the amount depends on how spicy you want it...I used 1/2 teaspoon)

1/2 teaspoon turmeric (this spice isn't as common I guess, and is optional, but I loved the addition)

4 tablespoons butter

1 15oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes

1 cup water

Salt and pepper to taste

1/3 cup cream

Chopped fresh cilantro, to garnish

Directions

Pick through lentils, and remove any stones if you find any (I've never found any until today!). Place lentils in a pot and cover with a couple inches of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, and boil until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the lentils in a colander.

While the lentils are boiling, mince the garlic, and peel and grate the ginger (using a small hole cheese grater).*

Over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the garlic, ginger, cayenne, turmeric, salt, and pepper, and cook for about 1 minute. Add the lentils, tomatoes, and water. Stir it all together. Bring it to a simmer, then reduce heat to low, and cover. The mixture should be soft and thick after a half hour. If it's not, continue to simmer, adding more water if it dries out. You want the end product to be thick, not watery.

Once cooked, remove from heat, and stir in the cream. Garnish with cilantro, and serve over rice or with naan for dipping. Or better yet, both like we did!

*I started keeping fresh ginger in the freezer, as I could never seem to use it all. Just pull it out, peel the amount you plan to use and you can grate it while frozen. When you're done, throw it back in the freezer for later use. Alternately, you could grate all the ginger, then freeze, pulling off chunks as you need it. No more wasted ginger! :)

Recipe Source: adapted from Budget Bytes

Carrot Cake Pancakes

Cake for breakfast? Um...yes please! These pancakes were incredible. I just devoured a bite that was probably twice as big as it should have been, and I may or may not have spooned on more cream cheese topping en route to my mouth.

Though these are carrot cake pancakes, health-wise I'd say they get a gold star. There are a whole lot of beautiful orange carrots, barely any sugar, not too much flour, only one egg, and zero oil or fat in the batter. You do however, have to watch out for the cream cheese topping, which I could eat by itself with a spoon.

Actually, I'll be right back. It's within arms reach, and I need to move it before it disappears.

Done. There, that's better.

Though the topping is incredibly addicting, I think these would also be excellent with plain old maple syrup, but then maybe they'd just be carrot pancakes? Hmm. Either way, make them. I changed the spices a bit from the original recipe. I reduced the nutmeg by half, doubled the ginger, and added a pinch of ground cloves, just cuz. I also didn't add the nuts or raisins, but would like to try it out next time. I was also thinking it would be fun to try and add some pineapple to the batter. If you try it, let me know how it goes!

I was thinking about my mom the whole time I was making these, and how much I think she'd like them. Most years on her birthday, we have carrot cake, as it's one of her favorites. Her birthday is coming up and if I were home, I would totally make these for her, AND a carrot cake. Overboard? I don't think so.

Carrot Cake Pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon table salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch of ground cloves (optional)

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts (optional)

2 tablespoons golden raisins (optional)

1 large egg

2 tablespoons packed brown sugar

1 cup buttermilk*

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups finely grated carrots (about 3/4 pound carrots)

Butter for the griddle

Cream cheese topping

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted

2 tablespoons milk, more if you want it to be thinner

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dash of ground cinnamon

Directions

Place a rack in the upper third of your oven, and preheat to 200F. This will keep your pancakes warmed as they're fried in batches.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices, and if using, nuts and raisins. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, sugar, buttermilk, and vanilla. Stir in carrots. Add flour mixture to the carrot mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Let rest for five minutes, while you make the cream cheese topping.

To make the cream cheese topping: In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy and lump free. Whisk in the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. You may be able to see in the photo, but mine came out ever so slightly lumpy. I have no idea why. This was obviously not an issue.

Over medium heat, melt the butter in a cast iron skillet or a griddle. Spoon 1/8 cup batter into the pan. This may seem like a small amount, but the batter is a bit jiggly, and the smaller pancakes are much easier to cook. Cook pancakes until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer pancakes to a serving dish or tray, and keep warm in the oven, while repeating the process with the remaining batter, adding more butter as needed.

Serve warm with cream cheese topping. 

*If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own sour milk by adding 1 tablespoon white vinegar to 1 cup of milk. Let it sit for 5 minutes, and it's ready to go!

Recipe Source: seen here, originally from Joy the Baker Cookbook

Cauliflower Fritters with Lime Yogurt Sauce

Fritters...what a funny name. The word sounds sort of like critters, which makes them seem totally adorable. I guess you could say these fritters were adorable. They're cute in an ugly kind of way if that makes any sense, and are kind of like a thick, hearty, savory, pancake. I couldn't quite finish the serving you see in the picture above. 

In addition to being both cute and ugly, they were also very tasty, and quick and easy to make. I loved the spice combination (turmeric...where have you been all my life?), though I did have to make a few adjustments to suit my own taste. The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin. I like cumin just fine, but to my taste buds it can quite easily take over a dish, so I reduced the amount to only 1/2 a teaspoon. This worked for me, as I knew it was there, but it wasn't overpowering at all. I also think that next time I would reduce the lime juice by about half in the yogurt sauce. It was a tad too tart for me, but Chris thought it was just fine, so I again think it's  up to personal preference as to how much to use.

I love finding hearty vegetarian dishes like this, especially since in China, you don't really know the quality of the meat that you buy. Plus, they are usually very inexpensive to make! I hope you enjoy these little fritter critters as much as we did!

Cauliflower Fritters with Lime Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients 

1 small cauliflower (about 320g or roughly 3/4 lb.)

1 cup all purpose flour

3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 large clove of garlic, crushed

2 shallots, finely chopped

4 eggs

1/2 teaspoon-1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin, depending on your preference

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Sunflower or other neutral vegetable oil for frying, enough to cover the bottom of your skillet.

For the Lime Yogurt Sauce

1 1/4 cups Greek yogurt

2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

Grated Zest of one lime

1-2 tablespoons lime juice, depending on preference

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Make the yogurt sauce by whisking together the ingredients in a bowl. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.

Prepare the cauliflower by removing the leaves and dividing into small florets. Cook in a large pan of simmering salted water for about 15 minutes until soft. Drain.

Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, cilantro, garlic, shallots, eggs, spices, salt, and pepper. When mixed well, add the soft warm cauliflower and stir, breaking down the cauliflower into the batter.

Heat the oil in a wide pan. Once very hot, carefully scoop the batter into the oil to cook (I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup). Avoid overcrowding them, cooking maybe three at a time. Fry for 3-4 minutes per side, then remove from the pan and allow to drain on paper towels.

Serve immediately with yogurt sauce and garnish with more cilantro if desired.

Recipe Source: seen here and here, both adapted from Ottolenghi: The Cookbook

Chewy Skor Toffee Bits Cookies

When I first moved away from home I was sad to leave my mom and sister, but was more excited then anything else about being on my own. That was nearly 8 years ago (seriously?). Now I’m half a planet away from my family, and I wish more then anything I could have spent mother's day with my mom. We skyped a bit after she had her mother's day brunch (including blueberry stuffed French toast and mimosas...jealous). At any rate, I’ll be home soon enough (sometime next month), and we can celebrate mother’s day and her birthday (June 1) together then. 

Back in December, my awesome mother sent me a Christmas happy package along with a few gifts from my sister. Knowing that I can't find many ingredients in our normal grocery (especially for baking), my mom sent me a giant bag of chocolate chips, and my sister threw in a bag of Skor toffee bits. Did I mention how much I love my family? The chocolate chips have been long gone, mainly because we couldn't get enough of my favorite chocolate chip cookies, but the toffee bits were still hanging out in the cupboard. I'm starting the process of cleaning out the cabinets, since we're returning back to the states somewhat soon, so expect to see more baked goods as I need to rid myself of this year's collection of baking ingredients. This was my first cleaning out the pantry recipe.

A quick google search led me to these amazing cookies. Think: browned butter (aka heaven), toffee, caramel-y goodness. They are awesome, and deserve your immediate attention. I really should have halved the recipe, because I'm worried about getting ill over them. I just ate two for breakfast with a banana. That's healthy, right?

Looks healthy to me!

Chewy Skor Toffee Bits Cookies

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1 10 oz. package Skor English toffee bits

Directions

In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. 

In a metal skillet, brown 6 tablespoons butter. It should be dark golden brown, foamy, and have a distinct nutty smell. If you're nervous, this site is helpful. When browned, remove from heat and place in a large heat proof bowl. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. When melted, beat in granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until well blended. Add eggs and blend thoroughly. Gradually add flour mixture and beat well. Stir in the toffee bits.

Place cookie dough in the fridge to firm up a bit, about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, you can preheat your oven to 350F. 

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a parchment lined baking sheet. I think parchment is vital in this instance, as even on the parchment the cookies wanted to stick slightly. Blame the toffee.

Bake 9-11 minutes of until lightly browned. They will look WAY underdone, but trust that they will finish cooking on their own. Cool on the pan for about 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe Source: adapted from Food.com

Peanut Soba Noodle Bowls

In the past month, I think we've had about three days off, so I've had little motivation to cook. We're tired! Plus, what I have cooked hasn't been blog worthy. That is, up until now. 

I first fell in love with soba noodles with this soup, and have been itching to try them in different recipes ever since (I think I just love buckwheat, because I've also found I love buckwheat tea). I thought a peanut sauce sounded perfect, plus, I've never made one myself. I found this recipe on Eat Live Run, and made my own adjustments that I felt were necessary. First, I added garlic to the peanut sauce, and also decided to garnish the noodles with green onions in addition to the cilantro. So delicious, and good for you. The more colorful the plate, the better it is for you! The peanut sauce yields a lot, so feel free to half the sauce recipe. I made the full amount, so I think maybe I'll use it for a salad, or another batch of soba.

Peanut Soba Noodle Bowls

Ingredients

Peanut Sauce:

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1/3 cup soy sauce or tamari, whichever you have on hand works

1/3 cup warm water

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 teaspoons honey

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 knob fresh ginger, chopped or grated (about 2 tablespoons)

1 clove garlic

Noodles:

8 ounces soba noodles

4 small bok choys, rinsed

2 bell peppers (she used 2 red, I used 1 red and 1 yellow, as that's what was cheapest)

16 ounces firm cubed tofu*

1 tablespoon canola oil

Green onion and freshly chopped cilantro for garnish

Directions

Make the peanut sauce by combining all ingredients in a blender or food processor, blending until smooth. If a thinner sauce is desired, add more warm water.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and heat up the oil. Once the skillet is very hot, add the tofu, and sear for about 8-10 minutes. Don't stir, but toss with the pan instead.

In a large bowl, add the tofu slices to the bell peppers. Bring a large pot of water to boil, and quickly blanch the bok choy for about 30 seconds. Remove, and carefully squeeze away extra water (I used paper towels). Coarsely chop, and add the the bell pepper mixture.

Using the same pot of boiling water, add the noodles and cook according to the package directions. When ready, rinse under cold water and add to the bowl of veggies, and combine.

Divide noodles amongst four bowls, and add about a tablespoon of peanut sauce to each bowl. Top each bowl with fresh minced cilantro and green onions.

*Tofu. It's not my favorite, though I do like it fried and crunchy. I could live with or without it in this recipe, so feel free to leave it out if tofu isn't your thing. That being said, Chris thought there could've been more tofu!

Recipe Source: adapted from Eat Live Run

My First Yeast Bread

A few days ago I made my first real yeast bread, and quite frankly, I'm surprised I pulled it off in the easy bake! It was dense and chewy on the inside, and crispy crusty on the outside...perfect for paninis. Speaking of paninis, I totally miss my panini maker/griddler (aka..my most prized and cherished possession other then my flute). I seriously used that thing at least three times a week. I don't really consider myself a materialistic person, but man do I miss my stuff. My panini maker/griddler is on loan to my sister, with the understanding that it must be returned immediately upon my arrival in the states. I'm not even sure she's using it (for shame!). I also miss my beautiful ceramic muffin pan, and I'm pretty stoked about using my new vintage sifter my mom and I found in an antique store during my visit a few months back. Anyways, back to the bread...

This side was obviously facing the back of the easy bake...can you tell?

Other side...major difference.

As you can see, it's not going to win an award anytime soon for the world's prettiest loaf, but I'm very proud of what I made. I'm not providing a recipe just yet, as I would like to make it in a real oven instead of the easy bake before providing my two cents. Mostly, I just wanted to document this, so I can look back and see where I started, and I think this bread is an excellent place for me to begin. I was telling my mom the other day that I want to be able to make all of my bread from scratch. It's cheaper, tastes better, and as I'm already beginning to see, very rewarding.

By the way, mom, if you're reading this, can we make jam this summer? No girl should have to go back to graduate school without homemade jam she made with her mom. xoxo

I wish I had an actual recipe for something I've made recently, but to be honest, I sadly haven't made anything worth documenting. I can't wait to be back cooking in America, where I can actually find ingredients, and not bake in my easy bake.

Hopefully I'll have something worth posting in the next few days, even though we're super busy. Le sigh.