Pad Thai

A few weeks ago I was blog hopping and I came across this post from one of my favorite blogs, Dinner a Love Story, and I identified with Jenny for a couple of reasons.  First, I rarely, if ever, follow a recipe to a T.  I am always editing things or substituting things because I never menu plan unless I'm hosting a party.  I fly by the seat of my pants every night and I can not tell you what I am making for dinner most nights until I start cutting up the onions.   Secondly, I  have always loved a good personal challenge.  So the idea of Dinner Party cum Personal Challenge sounds like a great idea.  I'm going to make it a goal to do that very soon.  When I do I will definitely let you know about it.  

Until then I can only tell you that I did copy her and I made the same Pad Thai recipe that she blogged about in that post.   I happened to find myself next door to the Super H Asian Market the very next day, and I took it as a sign that I was supposed to make this Pad Thai recipe as well.  I got every single ingredient on my list and set to work making pad thai from scratch that night.  It turned out a delightfully flavorful, yet light, pad thai.  It had great depth of flavor from the tamarind paste, red chilis, and pickled radish.  To my surprise the kids even devoured it...although, if they had smelled that pickled radish they may not have been so willing!  If you live near an Asian Market, and you like pad thai, I would suggest that you try this recipe.  It was pretty awesome.

Pad Thai

Here is my version from the second time I made it.  I increased it to serve 4 people, omitted the tofu, and simplified the process and the results were still terrific.

10-12 ounces pad thai noodles (rice noodles)

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 Tablespoons pickled radish, rinsed and chopped

2 cups brean sprouts

1/2 cup tamarind water (I mixed wet tamarind with water and then pressed it through a sieve)

4-5 Tablespoons fish sauce

1/2 cup simple syrup, made with palm sugar*

1 teaspoon ground dried thai chiles

1 large handful of garlic chives cut into 2 inch pieces

1/2 cup crushed peanuts

lime wedges

In a large bowl, place the noodles and cover with boiling water.  Soak for 5-8 minutes, until tender but not mushy, drain.  Heat oil in a large saute pan or wok.  Add eggs and stir briefly.  Cook for 30 seconds and then add the shrimp.  Cook 2-3 minutes or until pink.  Add radish and noodles and cook 1 minute more.  Add all remaining ingredients, except lime.  Stir fry for 1-2 minutes or until the noodles have been coated and then serve.  Garnish with more peanuts and lime juice.

* Heat equal amounts of water with palm sugar and bring to a boil.  Whisk until dissolved and slightly thickened.

Cheesy Grits with Shrimp, Leeks, and Asparagus

I liked this combination even better than I thought I would. The fresh corn in these grits was really terrific and everything tasted fresh. It was a big hit at dinner! Is tomorrow too soon to make this again???

Cheesy Grits
I thought I had regular grits in the pantry but when I started dinner I realized I was out. So, I substituted Cream of Wheat style grits that cook in 2 1/2 minutes and they actually worked out perfectly. So I am including this variation.
2 cups water
2 cups milk
3/4 cup cream of wheat
Fresh corn : I cut the kernels from 2 ears and it was the perfect amount
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
3 T butter
3/4 cup sharp cheddar
Bring liquids and salt to a boil. Slowly add grits while whisking to prevent lumps. Add fresh corn and cook for 2 1/2 minutes. Turn heat off and add butter, pepper, and cheese.

Shrimp with asparagus topping
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
3 slices bacon, diced
1 1/2 cups asparagus spears
1/2 cup leeks, sliced thinly
1 T butter
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
In a large saute pan add 1 T oil and 1 T butter. Saute bacon and leeks until bacon begins to brown. Add asparagus and garlic. Add shrimp and cook until light pink on both sides, season to taste.

Grilled Herb Shrimp

Tonight we're having company...yay. I love to entertain. Plus I haven't seen my brother and his family in months, so it should be fun catching up and seeing how much my neice has grown. Tonight I'm making grilled shrimp, mushroom pasta, salad, bread, and lots of Prosecco (yummy sparkling wine) with dinner. Dessert is simple, but lovely - Vanilla Cupcakes with Raspberry Cream.

Grilled Herb Shrimp
Adapted from Food Network's Ina Garten - Barefoot Contessa
2 pounds large shrimp (16 to 20 per pound), peeled and deveined (see note)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium yellow onion, small-diced
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
Combine all the ingredients and allow them to marinate for 1 hour at room temperature or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Skewer the shrimp. I use 3 or 4 shrimp on a 12-inch skewer for dinner. Heat a grill with coals and brush the grill with oil to prevent the shrimp from sticking. Grill the shrimp for only 1 1/2 minutes on each side.
Note: Ina leaves the tails on when peeling the shrimp.

Raspberry Cream Cupcakes
adapted from Food Network's Giada De Laurentiis
1 (18.25-ounce) box white cake mix (recommended: Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe)
1 1/3 cups water
3 large eggs whites
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 (6-ounce) containers fresh raspberries, cut in half or 1 (16-ounce) container fresh strawberries, coarsely chopped
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting
Line 18 muffin cups with muffin papers. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Using an electric mixer, beat the cake mix, water, egg whites, melted butter, almond extract, and vanilla extract in a large bowl for 2 minutes, or until the batter is well blended. Using about 1/3 cup of batter for each cupcake, spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
Bake the cupcakes until they are very pale golden on top, about 15 minutes. Cool the cupcakes completely on a cooling rack.
Using a fork, coarsely mash 1 1/2 containers of raspberries in a medium bowl. Beat the cream and 1/3 cup of powdered sugar in a large bowl until firm peaks form. Fold the mashed raspberries into the whipped cream.
Remove the muffin papers from the cupcakes and cut the tops off of each cupcake. Spoon the raspberry whipped cream atop the cupcake bottoms. Place the cupcake tops on the cupcakes. Dust with more powdered sugar and serve with the remaining berries.

Gumbo

We recently had dinner at our local Heaven on Seven and ever since I have been craving more of their famous gumbo. I found this recipe courtesy of ABC Chicago News station and I have to say it is really good. Even without a few ingredients, namely the okra, clam juice, or lobster base, this was a winner. I'm sure if I had the last few ingredients it would be stellar, but I can still recommend my version. It is a little redder than the original but that is because I added more tomato paste than called for simply because I didn't want to waste it.
I'm simply reposting the recipe as given, however I made less than half a batch for us.

Jimmy Bannos of Heaven on Seven gumbo recipe

2 Pounds Chicken Thigh Meat- Diced
2 Pounds Sausage- sliced
1 Gallon chicken stock
1 Cup green peppers- diced
1 Cup celery- diced
1 Cup onions- diced
32 Ounces clam juice
3 Ounces crab base
2 Ounces lobster base
1/4 Cup cajun seasoning
1/8 Cup cayenne pepper
1 Cup tomato paste
1/4 Cup corn starch
2 Cups cut okra
2 Cups frozen shrimp-medium
Directions:
Sauté diced chicken in sauce pan. Bring chicken stock to a boil. Add green pepper, onion, celery, cooked chicken, and sliced sausage.
Stir in cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper, tomato paste, crab base, and lobster base. Let simmer, then add clam juice. Simmer while stirring occasionally for 30 minutes.
Add okra and shrimp.
Cook for another ten minutes and add corn starch (diluted) and gumbo file.
Serve over rice

A Picnic Celebration

Thursday night we celebrated Joseph's birthday by throwing him a little picnic party in the living room. Gabe and I spent the entire day running around gathering supplies and making lots of finger foods to nosh on. We made these cute little caprese salad bites, toasted ravioli with marinara sauce, coconut shrimp, bacon wrapped shrimp, beef skewers, cheese and crackers, and strawberry margaritas. We moved the furniture out of the way and layed everything out on a big blanket and set to work devouring as much as we could. Later we cleared the way for cake and games. The cake was yummy, but the games were the highlight of the night. We had a little baby pinata and we let Gabe take the first few swings and we nearly fell on the floor laughing because of how cute he looked. I was really amazed by how well he could hit that swinging hat full of candy. I was also delighted by his reaction to Joseph breaking it open and seeing snickers bars fly out of it. He started laughing and he actually ran to collect candy, which was sooo funny.

Coconut Shrimp with Orange Marmalade Dipping Sauce
1 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 c flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 c shredded coconut (I ran this through the food processor to make it a little finer.)

Dust shrimp with flour. Dip each shrimp in the beaten egg and then dip into the coconut. Fry in small batches in peanut oil heated to 375 degrees.

Marmalade Sauce

5 T orange marmalade
1 T Grey Poupoun Harvest Coarse Ground Mustard
1 T Horseradish Sauce

Mix all ingredients and serve with coconut shrimp.

Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

"Would you like to eat this tonight?" I asked Gabe as I pointed to a picture in a favorite cookbook. He nodded and I quickly got to work. I'm so thrilled that my son is starting to understand what we say. It is so rewarding to get a response when I talk to him now. He doesn't say much, but I get lots of nods, pointing, and actions. He can follow simple directions and he learns quickly. Yesterday I pointed to his belly button and said "Look at your belly button." Later on in the day I asked Gabe to show Daddy his belly button and he lifted up his shirt and pointed at it. It was so cute.
This recipe comes from my Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook which I love. Not one recipe has failed yet. I did however alter this one to accomodate a smaller amount and I did have to make a few concessions when making it for an 18 month old. It has less lemon and a little less parsley than the original recipe but amp it up if you wish.

Linguine with Shrimp Scampi
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa Family Style by Ina Garten

Kosher Salt
1/2 lb linguine
1/3 stick unsalted butter
2 T olive oil
2 T minced garlic
1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 t black pepper
2 T chopped fresh parsley
Juice of 1 lemon
1/4 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds

Boil pasta according to directions. In another large pan melt the butter and olive oil. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute on medium-low heat. Add the shrimp, 2 tsp. salt, and pepper. Cook under shrimp are just pink - about 5 minutes. Removed from the heat and add the lemon juice and parsley. Toss together with the pasta, add the lemon rounds, and serve.

Shrimp Wonton Salad

Tonight's meal was full of flavor. We had Shrimp and Avocado Salads, Wonton Wrapped Prawns, and we even had light and crispy Meringues for dessert.  This shrimp and avocado salad is worth the effort it takes to fry the wontons.

Shrimp and avocado salad with crispy wontons
adapted from wok by Vicki Liley

Grapefruit Dressing
1/4 cup grapefruit juice
1/4 cup olive oil
2 t brown sugar
1 T white wine vinegar
1 t peeled and grated fresh ginger

Salad
2 T vegetable oil, plus 3 cups for frying
3 cloves garlic, crushed
20 jumbo shrimp
12 wonton wrappers
1/2 avocado, peeled, pitted, and chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 red onion or 1 shallot, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or parsley

To make the dressing, place grapefruit juice, olive oil, sugar, vinegar, and ginger in a screw-top jar. Shake well to combine and set aside.
To make salad, in a wok over medium-high heat, warm 2 tablespoons oil Add garlic and stir-fry until aromatic, about 1 minutes. Raise heat to high, add shrimp and stir-fry until shrimp change color. Remove. Heat 3 cups oil in wok until it reaches 375 degrees. Working in batches, add wonton wrappers and fry until golden and crisp, about 1 minute. Remove and set aside.
In a bowl, combine avocado, tomato, onion, and parsley/cilantro. Add shrimp and grapefruit dressing and gently stir. Cover and allow to stand for 10 minutes to develop the flavors.
Place one wonton on each plate and top with salad. Add another wonton and layer salad. Top with third wonton and serve immediately.

Meringueadapted from Bills Food by Bill Granger
4 egg whites
a pinch of salt
1 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place the egg whiteand salt in a clean, dry bowl and whisk until soft peaks form. Add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until a glossy, stiff mixture forms.
Spoon out 8 meringues onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake for 1 1/4 hours. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Top with whipped cream, berries, and sauce.

Shrimp Risotto with Sweet Peas and Leeks

This week I'm working from Alfred Portale's (Gotham Bar and Grill's Acclaimed Chef) Simple Pleasures a cookbook that I picked up from the library. I chose it, along with 3 other books, in a matter of minutes as a friend of mine was playing with the little one downstairs. This method of simply ripping down a few cookbooks without much time to ponder has been mostly hit and miss. Lately I seem to have been missing a lot. However, this one seems interesting with it's colorful pictures and stripped down recipes. Yesterday I chose two or three recipes that I wanted to try and went out to gather ingredients. This risotto was my first choice and it sure is a keeper.
It turned out so good that I thought I would submit it to Weekend Herb Blogging hosted by Tomato. This weekly event features recipes containing vegetables and herbs as the focus and this dish fits the bill. The leeks are spotlighted in this wonderful risotto and the opportunity to use a variety of herbs such as parsley, chervil, and basil make it fun to prepare. The leeks in this dish lend a delicate onion flavor. They also have a nice texture and proved to be a great way to sneak in a veggie (not that I really need to "sneak" them in)for my 13 month old who isn't yet able to handle bold flavors.

Shrimp Risotto with Sweet Peas and Leeks
adapted from Simple Pleasures

2 quarts Chicken Stock
Coarse salt to taste
1 cup frozen peas - fresh when in season
4 small leeks, white and green parts only, thickly slices, rinsed, and drained
2 T olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
2 t finely chopped garlic
1 t coriander
2 cups Risotto Rice-Canaroli or Arborio
1/2 cup dry white wine
12 to 14 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 T unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup chopped chervil - I replaced this with basil (a suggested variation)
4 t fresh lemon juice (I omitted this for person preference.)

Pour the chicken stock into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Keep the stock at a low simmer.
While the stock is heating, bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Fill a large bowl halfway with ice water. Add the peas to the boiling water and blanch them for 1 to 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer them to the ice water to stop the cooking and set their color.
Add the leeks to the boiling water and cook until tender, 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the leeks to the ice water. Drain the vegetables and set them aside.
Warm 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot set over medium-low heat. Add the onions and saute for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and coriander, and cook for another minute. Add the rice and saute until coated. Add the wine and cook, stirring until it is almost completely absorbed, 3 minutes.
Add about 1 cup of simmering stock to the rice. Cook for approximately 2 minutes, stirring often, until the stock is almost completely absorbed. Gradually add more stock, a cup at a time, stirring gently until it is absorbed by the rice before adding the next cup. After about 15 minutes taste the rice which should be firm yet cooked through. It should take a total of 18-20 minutes total.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan set over medium heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper, add them to the pan, and saute until firm and pink, about 3 minutes.
Add the peas, leeks, and shrimp to the risotto. Stir in the butter and cream. Stir in the lemon juice, parsley, and chervil. Season to taste.


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Bucatini with Shrimp Skewers and Pesto

Tonight's dinner comes from a cookbook put out by Williams-Sonoma simply called Pasta.  It turned out very tasty and I really enjoyed the shrimp skewers.

Bucatini with Shrimp Skewers and Sicilian Pesto
adapted from Williams-Sonoma Pasta
1/2 cup blanched almonds
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
24 fresh basil leaves
salt
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

3 T extra virgin olive oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/2 t cumin
salt and pepper
1 pound shrimp
1 lb bucatini

To make the pesto, combine the almonds, garlic, and oilve oil in a blender or food processor and grind to a coarse paste. Add the basil and process until just blended. Add cheese and salt to taste. It should have some texture.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Heat a grill pan over high heat.

Meanwhile, combine the oilve oil, lemon zest, juice, cumin, salt, and pepper to taste in a lratge bowl to make a marinade. Shell the shrimp, leaving the tails intact, and devein them if the vein is visible. Add the shrimp to the marinade and miz well. Thread the shrimp on 4 long metal skewers.

Generously salt the boiling water, add the bucatini, and cook until al dente, 10-12 minutes.

Meanwhile, sear the shrmip skweres on the grill pan or in a broiler without moving them until they start to turn pink, 1-2 minutes. Turn and cook the other side until evenly pink, 1-2 minutes.

Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Put the pasta in a bowl. Pour on the pesto and toss, adding a few tablespoons of the cooking water to loosen the sauce, Serve the pasta alongside the shrimp.

Japanese Steak House Dinner

Yesterday I moved a tuna steak from the freezer to the fridge...not exactly sure what I was going to do with it. While out today I passed by a Chinese take-out place which made me think of fried rice. I thought that sounded good and I remembered I had a couple of zucchini I needed to use up. All of this came together to form tonight's dinner. It is closely related to the dinner we had at a local Binihana's a few months ago. (This one's for you Dad.)

Fried Rice
2 cups cooked rice - cooled
2 eggs
2 T soy sauce
1/2 c frozen peas

Heat a little vegetable oil in a large pan (or wok) and add the rice. Fry rice for a minute or two while moving it about in the pan. Make a well in the center and add the two eggs. Let cook for a minute or so before stirring. Add soy sauce while stirring constantly. Add peas and remove from heat.

Onions and Zucchini
1 large sweet onion slice (1/2" x 1 1/2 ")
2 zucchini (same size as onion)
Soy sauce
Pepper

Heat a little vegetable oil in a pan. Add onions and cook until slightly softened. Add zucchini. Move about in pan. Add soy sauce and pepper to taste. Cook until desired texture. (We like this rather firm, so we only cook the entire dish about 5-7 minutes.)

Shrimp and Tuna
1 - 8 oz piece of fresh tuna
1/2 lb fresh shrimp
butter
salt and pepper

Melt 1-2 T butter in a pan. Add tuna, season, and cook for about 1 minute. Turn cook 30 more seconds. Remove from pan, add shrimp. Cook until pink. (I added a little garlic to ours.)

Everything was very yummy. We really like the vegetables. Too bad I forgot to make the onion into an erupting volcano...it would have added some pizzaz. Maybe next time!!