Inspired by India

There just isn't enough hours in the day it seems to complete the things I want to get done.  I love cooking.  LOVE IT!  However, I have neglected this blog to pursue a full time job outside of the home and I just don't have the "time" to snap the pictures I normally post with my recipes.  In the past couple of years, I have also found a new love...Pinterest.  Meal planning has become so much easier with the convenience of pinning recipes.  I have since retired many of my cookbooks.  I believe I may try a new way of doing things around here.  Since most of the recipes I cook are found on Pinterest (and tweeked to my liking, if necessary), I will post those links here since I am sure most of you recipe junkies out there are hooked on that site as much as I am.

Picture found here

Tonight's dinner was inspired by the spices of India.  We dined on Samosas with Peanut Sauce, Crunchy Baked Okra, Strawberry and Spinach Saladwith Balsamic Dressing, and Garlic Curry Naan.

The Samosas were the most time consuming.  They definitely were not a meal I could come home from work and cook.  For the most part I followed the recipe in full, however, I substituted the phyllo dough with eggroll wrappers.  I cut the square wrappers in half to make rectangle shapes.  The recipe for the Samosas can be found here.  I would also check out this How To Video on YouTube.  The recipe itself doesn't give instructions on how to fold them.  Also, I had quite a bit of the filling left over.  I froze it.  Hopefully, it will hold up.

The Crunchy Baked Okra was something I just threw together.  Lately, I've been making Parmesan crusted green beans and asparagus a lot lately.  With that in mind as well as the Indian influence, I thoughtfully came up with a plan.

I chopped the tops off of the okra and sliced them in half.  I rinsed and drained them.  While they were drying, I took a mallet to what was left of bag of walnut pieces (about 1/4 cup).  I placed the walnuts crumbs into a bowl and added 1 cup of Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) and 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds.  I then added 1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamon, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of tumeric, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper, mixed it together with the breadcrumb mixture and set aside.  In another bowl, I beat three eggs and set aside.  I placed some flour into a Ziploc bag and toss the okra into it.  I shook the okra in the bag until they were coated in flour.

After prepping my station, I preheated the oven to 400ºF and sprayed a large cookie sheet with cooking spray.  In batches, I placed some of the flour covered okra into the bowl of eggs.  When they were coated, I tossed them into the bowl with the breadcrumb mixture until completely covered.  Next, I placed them on the cookie sheet in a flat layer and continued this process with the rest of the okra.

Once all of the okra is laid out on the cookie sheet, place it into the preheated over for 15 minutes.  After which turn them over and cook an additional 15 minutes.  They will be very crunchy,..and super yummy.

Picture found here

I would like to take a moment to say OH MY GAWD cardamom is crazy expensive!!!  Be prepared for a mild heart attack when you buy it.

The recipe for the Strawberry and Spinach Salad with Balsamic Dressing can be found here.

The recipe for the Peanut Sauce can be found here.  I tweeked the recipe slightly by adding a tablespoon of sweet chili sauce to it.  I used this to dip both my Samosas and Okra into.

Lastly, I had some garlic naan on hand.  I melted 3 tablespoons of butter in the microwave and added 1/8 teaspoon of cardamom, 1/8 teaspoon of curry powder, and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and mixed it up together.  I brushed them lightly with the mixture and placed them in the oven at 400ºF for 6-8 minutes.

My family (especially my husband and my son) enjoyed tonight's dinner.  I had fun making it but as I mentioned before it was time consuming.

Enjoy!

Take A Bite Out Of Breakfast

My kids love breakfast.  I do too...after lunch.  Normally, they ask for breakfast and I slide them the Cheerios.  Oh, you want something hot?  Pancakes on a stick are a fabulous invention.

I found a fairly simple breakfast recipe in a recent Cooking Light magazine (Jan./Feb. 2012).  It gave the kids something warm as well as bite size.  They have officially been dubbed "Breakfast Bites" in our house.

What You'll Need:

8 slices whole wheat white sandwich bread, crusts removed

½ cup 2% milk

4 eggs, beaten

1 green onion, chopped

2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (I like my super crunchy.  You can also substitute with bacon bits if you like.)

½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Cooking spray

1.)   Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2.)  Lightly coat both sides of the bread with cooking spray.  Press a slice into each cup of the muffin tin.  

Bake for 10 minutes until bread is slightly toasted.

3.)  Reduce heat to 350 degrees.

4.)  Combine milk and eggs.  Divide evenly into muffin cups.  Sprinkle onions, bacon, and cheese over the cups.  

Bake for 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Rolling With The Egg Rolls

Ask me where I want to go out to eat and at least 7 out of 10 times I will choose to eat at an Asian restaurant.  Some days, I find myself craving an eggroll for lunch and I'm too lazy to run to my local take-out establishment for just one and if I had the audacity to try to get one delivered the employee that answered the phone would probably laugh at me as they told me it was a $10 minimum order...even though they ALSO charge a $3 delivery charge.  Damn, gas prices!

After trying many different recipes and tweaking them to my taste buds, I came up with a yummy recipe that is fairly easy to make.  I have also found that once rolled, they can be frozen for months until the next time I whip out the deep fryer for a yummy snack.

Don't forget to read the whole recipe through before you make your shopping list.  There are also a few dipping ideas at the end.  Enjoy!

What You’ll Need For Savory Egg Rolls:

1 lb. ground pork

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 small head of cabbage, chopped

1 tbsp. garlic, minced

¾ cup carrots, minced

1 cup mushrooms, minced

3 tbsp. soy sauce

½ tsp. ground ginger

1 egg

1 tbsp. water

1/8 tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

20 egg roll wrappers (I prefer spring roll wrappers because they are thinner but I have trouble finding them at most grocery stores.)

Vegetable oil for deep frying

1.)  Heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in skillet.  Once heated, stir fry pork, breaking up chunks. 

Drain meat and transfer to mixing bowl.  Set skillet aside for vegetables.  Preheat deep fryer to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. 

2.)  Add cabbage, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, and ginger to the same skillet that the meat was stir fried.  Stir fry until tender. 

Add salt and pepper.  Mix well.

 

3.)  Transfer vegetable mixture to mixing bowl.  Combine vegetables and meat well.  Stir in soy sauce.

4.)  In a separate bowl, beat the egg and water together.  Set aside.

5.)  Spoon roughly 2 hearty tbsp. of the mixture onto an egg roll wrapper set in front of you in a diamond shape. 

Fold bottom tip up just enough to cover mixture. 

Fold in both side corners. 

Roll wrapper up to top tip. 

Brush a little of the egg mixture onto the edge of the wrapper to seal.

6.)  Deep fry egg rolls in hot oil. 

Allow to drain and cool slightly before serving.

Suggested sauces:

Thai Sweet Chili Sauce (sold in the Asian section of most grocery stores)

Mae Ploy Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

Duck Sauce

Ty Ling Duck Sauce

Tangy Mustard Sauce

1 cup soy sauce

2 tbsp. Chinese mustard

Combine well until mixture is smooth.

Kame Hot Chinese Mustard

Sweet Pepper Sauce

1 cup soy sauce

¼ cup brown sugar

1 tbsp. Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (It is a thick red sauce similar to ketchup and is also known in some areas as spicy chicken sauce because it has a rooster on the bottle.)

Sriracha HOT Chili Sauce (Tuong Ot Sriracha)

Bite Into These Big Balls

Broccoli Balls are a staple at get-togethers in our family.  They are requested, sot after, demanded…no, REQUIRED or they won’t even let me attend the function.  My family can be cruel.

For many years my sister and I would make “dates” to go eat at a restaurant called Copeland’s where we would order and enjoy a few appetizers and I would sip a few grown-up drinks.  My sister was either underage or pregnant most of the time. 

One year, we decided for a Christmas party we would make the balls ourselves.  After a few different attempts I think we have perfected the taste to closely replicate the restaurant’s delicious flavor explosion.   The balls were the easy part to duplicate.  The sauce on the other hand was a bit trickier. 

Theirs

I do not think it is exactly like Copeland’s but I think I’ve gotten it fairly close.  I think ours has a more tangy mustard taste which I think compliments the broccoli balls very well.

What you’ll need for the balls:

not pictured, bacon pieces...oops!

1 lb. bag frozen broccoli cuts, thawed     ½ cup all-purpose flour

1 ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese           ½ tsp baking powder

1 egg                                                         ½ salt

1 cup milk                                                  ½ veggie oil

¾ cup of bacon  pieces                             2 cups of bread crumbs

Veggie oil for frying (depends on deep fryer or pot size)

1.)  Put broccoli into food processor.  Pulse lightly.  Toss in large mixing bowl with cheese and bacon.  Set aside.

2.)  In a separate bowl, beat egg.  Add milk.  Stir.  Add flour, baking powder, and salt.  Combine, beating well.  Add ½ veggie oil. 

Pour mixture over broccoli and cheese and toss to coat well.

3.)  Fill deep fryer with oil, high enough to be able to cover balls.  Preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Form broccoli mixture into balls by spooning mixture into palm and adding bread crumbs.  Once a firmer consistency is formed, roll ball in bread crumbs to coat out layer. 

See video for a demonstration.

4.)  Drop balls in hot oil and fry until golden brown.

What you’ll need for the sauce:

¾ cup Dijon mustard                                     ¼ tsp salt

½ cup honey                                                  1 tsp black pepper

2 tsp horseradish                                          1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1.)  In a small bowl, combine all the above ingredients. 

Mix well.  Best served at room temperature with broccoli balls.

Consider yourself privy to a coveted family (sort-of stolen) secret.  I'll probably be disowned now.  I hope you are proud of yourself.  ;)