Grated Carrot Kohlrabi and Herbed Salad

I'm on yet another carrot craze.  I want to put them everywhere.. desserts, roasted, raw, alone, with friends, but most importantly, in my welcoming mouth.
After hand grating a bunch of carrots for the halwa cookies, I switched grates and started on these.  I have no idea what motivates me sometimes..
I had a few slices of that delicious spinach thing over there to finish and I'm quite enjoying the contrast of warm/cold on the same plate.
Then this salad was born.. and the mint leaves wanted join the fun!

Serves 3-4 as a side

Ingredients

3 medium carrots, coarsely grated

1 small kohlrabi, coarsely grated

juice from 1 lime

2 Tbsp EVOO

pinch fleur de sel

some freshly cracked black pepper

1 handful chopped cilantro

1 handful chopped mint leaves

3 Tbsp pitted sliced olives

1 tsp caraway seeds

1/4 chopped red onion

few more olives for garnish

few marinated anchovies for garnish (optional)

Directions

Toss together and serve cold.

The mint gives it a nice bite and mixes well with the sweetness of the kohlrabi.

This was another perfect side to my slice of Spinach Feta Quiche.. and if I had more feta I would have added it to the salad as well!

Carrot Halwa Cookies

I love halwa.  I love all the sweet cardamom nutty goodness that leaves a long lasting aftertaste.

Halwa, however, is not very portable or easily distributable, and it's usually best after having eaten Indian cuisine.  Cookies are appropriate anytime, anywhere, are and don't need to be refigerated or heated.

So...I created the halwa cookie.  The carrot halwa cookie.  And let me tell you, I'm very happy I did since I don't have any Indian cuisine ready to eat after which it would be appropriate to eat normal carrot halwa.

Ha!
Yield 44 cookies

Ingredients:

100g (3.5oz) room temperature butter

300g (10.6oz) sweetened condensed milk
200g (7oz) finely grated carrots (about 5 medium)

1/4tsp cinnamon

8 cardamom pods, dry roasted and ground (about 2 tsp)

140g (5oz) whole wheat flour (or just 1 cup of each)

100g (3.5oz) almond powder
100g (3.5oz) chickpea flour
pinch of salt
2 handfuls raisins

toppings:

pistachios

unsalted cashews

Directions

1.  Sift together the flours, almond powder, and salt.  Set aside.

2.  In a separate mixing bowl, cream the butter and add the condensed milk, cardamom, and cinnamon.  Beat well.

3.  Get rid of your whip and switch to a wooden spoon or spatula.  Fold in the finely grated carrots.   Then add the dry mixture little by little into the wet mixture until all incorporated.  The end result should be very sticky, but not as if the dough had eggs in it.  This is eggless.  Fold in the raisins.

4.  Get your toppings ready.   Take a tablespoon sized amount of dough and kindly shape it onto your cookie sheet.  Press on the pistachios and cashews (or whatever other nuts you see fit) and repeat for the rest of the batch.  I didn't have enough pistachios so half of the batch has both pistachios and cashews, and the other half has cashews only.

5.  Bake at 185°C 350°F for about 20 minutes.  Carefully remove and let cool on a wire rack.

These were exactly as I imagined them to be.  Chewy yet structured, bursting with bits of different flavors at a time with that happy aftertaste of cardamom that lingers...

Tahini Fig Muffins

This morning I woke up with 3 ideas floating around..

I need a meat grinder

I want carrot halwa

I need to try putting tahini in a muffin

As I'm writing this, my snazzy meat grinder will be arriving on thursday.. (Major event), I have a batch of Indian fusion cookies finishing up in the oven, and my tahini muffins are staring at me from the table, inviting me to nibble their earlobes.

Yes..they are a major success!  I might not be the first person in the world to do it, but I freestyled the recipe from beginning to end, hoping they would come out like a muffin (and not like custard as the avocado ones did) and I'm very proud to say that they are rather delicious, especially with those baby dried figs hiding inside them!

Yield 16 muffins
Ingredients
2 eggs, well beaten
100g (3.5oz) cane sugar
1 packet vanilla sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup milk
1 plain yogurt
200g (7oz) tahini (I used Cortas)
60g (2oz) canola oil
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
150g (5.3oz) whole wheat flour
chopped dried figs for filling
Sesame seeds for garnish
Directions
1.  Beat together the eggs, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, milk, yogurt, oil, and tahini.  Beat it well.  The mixture should not be pasty.  If it is, add just a bit of milk.  The tahini will cramp up at first, and then relax.  You need to be gentle with her.. she's new to muffins..
2.  Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Carefully stir in the flour mixture until just combined.
3.  Fill your buttered muffin tins 3/4 full, drop in some chopped figs (and make sure they are covered by the batter), sprinkle some sesame seeds on top and bake for 18-20 minutes at 180°C 350°F.

Tahini can almost be used interchangeably with peanut butter, so I was almost sure this would work, but I had no idea how delectable and addicting these would be!

Spinach Feta Quiche in a Sumac-Laced Shortcrust

It is officially quiche season!  It's actually always quiche season, but as the weather warms, it's nice to be able to sit down to some not so steaming hot food with a nice cold salad.  That is exactly what quiche brings into the picture.  It can be made ahead of time, then eaten when slightly cooled, or cooled completey, especially when that quiche has festive ingredients such as spinach, feta, red onion, and mint!
Here I used finely chopped frozen spinach, but tis the season for fresh.. go for it if you have it:
I also did a little twist on the shortcrust.  Instead of paprika, I added sumac and za'atar.  Since it's been a while, I've reposted my shortcrust ingredients with the new little twist.  The only thing I change is the spices and egg to water ratio.  When I use the whole egg, I use less water.  When I make a dessert shortcrust, I usually add about 1 Tbsp sugar.

Serves 6 as a meal, 8 or more as an appetizer
Ingredients
For the Sumac-Laced Shortcrust:

125g (4.4oz) buckwheat flour

125g (4.4oz) whole wheat flour

100g (3.5oz) room temperature butter

1 Tbsp yeast extract (non active)

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp sumac

1 tsp za'atar

1 egg yolk

approximately 5 cL water
use the method and precook at 200°C (400°F) for 10 minutes

For the Quiche:
1 slightly precooked shortcrust

350g (12oz) thawed spinach (or lightly cooked fresh)

200g (7oz) feta, crumbled (I used Gazi)
1/4 red onion, sliced
1 Tbsp chopped cilantro
3 Tbsp chopped mint leaves

3 beaten eggs

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1 tsp piment d'espelette
pinch nutmeg
fresh cracked pepper
pinch of salt

Directions
1.  Beat the eggs very very well until they become bubbly, then add in the cream, milk, piment d'espelette, pepper, and salt and beat well.
2.  In your delicious precooked shortcrust, place a layer of spinach, then sprinkle on the cilantro, some of the red onion, and most of the feta.  Add the rest of the spinach, red onions, and feta, and sprinkle on the mint leaves.
3.  Pour the beaten egg mixture "appareil" all over the filling into the shortcrust.
4.  Bake for 45-55 minutes at 180°C (350°F).

Remove and let cool at least 20 minutes before tearing it apart.

I absolutely loved this.  I cut it into 6 and 1 slice was more than enough (along with a tomato salad and all the raw veggie and anchovy happy hour business that preceded this).  It's funny how something so simple can be so satisfyingly filling!

Sichuan "Fish Flavor" Eggplant and Zucchini

While perusing different Sichuan recipes, I found one that called for eggplant without frying.

Oooh give it to me!  Eggplant is so darned sexy it's something I never pass up on when I get a chance.

Sort of like mango.. or shrimp.. or asparagus..

Anyway, although the title says "fish flavor" there is no fish or animal involved here.  The "fish flavor" is used to describe the mix of soy, vinegar, ginger, and garlic, often used on fish.

Inspired by ChinaSichuanFood

Serves 3-4 as a side

Ingredients

1 long eggplant, cut into sticks, soaked in a bowl of salted water 10 minutes, then drained

1 zucchini, cut into sticks, soaked with the eggplant, then drained

2 green chilis, whole

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1 inch ginger, grated

1 shallot, sliced

1/2 Tbsp doubanjiang

2 Tbsp oil

chopped scallions for garnish

Sauce:

1 tsp corn starch

2 Tbsp black vinegar

1 Tbsp light soy sauce

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp sugar

Directions

1.  Heat the oil in a wok and cook the eggplant and zucchini until colored and soft, about 10 minutes.

2.  Push the eggplant and zucchini to one side and add the garlic, chilis, and ginger and cook until the nice smell starts wafting to your nostrils.

3.  Add the doubanjiang and stir well.

4.  Add the sauce, mix well, then remove from heat.  The sauce should almost instantly caramelize.

Serve garnished with scallions.

Sichuan Pepper Chicken

As I continue my Sichuan cuisine discovery, I uncover another recurring technique which may not be the healthiest idea, but gives excellent texture, especially when using white meat.

The quick shallow fry and drain before stir frying chicken with the rest..

and

the sauce at the very end, stir once, then turn off heat.

It's like.. magic

Here is one dish similar that brings out the Ma in Ma La, but I didn't go too crazy on the La because I'm not alone and I didn't feel like making another option (for wimps).

The Ma, though, is quite strong and makes for an interesting party on your tongue.

For those not familiar with Ma La, it is the description of a numbing spicy feeling.  The numbing comes from the sichuan peppercorns and the spicy from the red chilis.  It's really a match made in heaven and the best part is that they don't hit at the same time, so you can really enjoy them separately, then together as one wears off and the other kicks in.

That whole concept is a masterpiece on its own, which is probably one of the reasons I enjoy Sichuan cuisine so much... plus I'm addicted to the Doubanjiang now.

Inspired by ChinaSichuanFood

Serves 4

Ingredients

8 oz (about 250g) chicken breast, cut into cubes

3 Tbsp Sichuan pepper, soaked in warm water 20 minutes, then drained

3 Tbsp oil

2 tsp corn starch

1 scallion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, sliced

2 dried red chilis, whole

Marinade:

1 tsp rice wine

1 small egg white

1 tsp light soy sauce (or GF alternative)

Stir fry:

1 tsp black vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1 Tbsp light soy sauce (or GF alternative)

1 tsp corn starch

Directions

1.  Mix the marinade ingredients together and rub all over the chicken cubes.  Marinate for about 15 minutes.

2.  Right before cooking, add the 2 tsp corn starch to the marinating chicken, then heat the oil in a wok and fry the cubes in batches, reserving on a paper towel.  You want the cubes to get a nice color.. probably about 3 minutes.  Set aside.

3.  Dump the oil but leave about 1 Tbsp.  Add the drained Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilis and fry until it starts to smell lovely.

4.  Add the garlic and scallions and cook for another minute.

5.  Add the chicken back in along with the stir fry sauce.  Cook on high and mix well, then serve hot.

I served with some Fish Flavor Eggplant and white rice.
The numbing feeling is just amazing.. I love the Ma La two-step!

Eggs in the Bamboo Steamer

There is a well known Chinese dish called steamed eggs where they are beaten with a custardy end result.

This post is not about that.

This post is about how I will never boil an egg again in my life.  The steaming method is much easier, more economic, and yields a perfect result with an easy to remove peel, thus a pretty egg.

Why oh why have I never done this before?

Steam on high for 8 minutes to get an almost hard egg with a slightly runny center (perfection by my standard).

To hard boil a medium egg with a solid yolk, 11 minutes.  An extra large egg, 13 minutes.

To soft boil a medium egg, 6 minutes.  An extra large egg, 8 minutes.

No mess!

I used this method (and did not photograph because, well, we all know what a whole peeled egg looks like) and then sliced the eggs to use in a sandwich with feta and red onions.
mmmm
This has motivated me to test some Deviled Eggs, especially since I just stocked up on some farm fresh young hen eggs from the market!!!!

Marinated Sardine Filets

Natural chemistry has been an integral part of cuisine history, but it also has its place in cuisine present and future.

Cooking meat or fish in coarse salt or lemon juice is still done today.  How do you think ceviche is made?  Here I did a little mix of both methods with some sardine filets;

First, I laid a bed of coarse salt (I used sel de Guerande) on a plate.

Then, I laid my sardine filets skin side down..

and covered them with some more coarse salt.

I left them like this for about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Then, I rinsed them well.. very well, in cold water.  You don't want that salt to stay on there.

Pat them dry.  By now the flesh has firmed up.

Then, I laid them in another dish and squeezed the juice from 1 lime over the filets and added some olive oil until just covered.  I added a bit of piment d'espelette and swirled it all around to mis it well.

I placed this in the fridge for another hour.

Then I served alongside some roasted asparagus and a salad of mango, shrimp, lime, and cilantro.

This hot/cold deal was very refreshing, and cooking sardines this was is a great way to go if it's raining and you can't light up the bbq or plancha... and you don't want the fish smell in the house!

Roasted Eggplant vs Gazi Feta

Having all of this on my plate was too much for me to handle as a sane "normal" person.

I'm not saying it was too much food, but I couldn't help going back and forth from the salad to the eggplant and saying "you win me over each time" and "how interesting I'm so happy I finally met you" and then trying not to mix the two but then happily mixing them while contemplating the other plates at the table, hoping there would be more eggplant... err I mean Gazi feta.. no I mean eggplant..

aaaahhhh!

This amazing duel make an exquisite duo.
So Gazi feta is Turkish and comes from a refrigerated can..

.. but don't let that fool you!  This feta is tender, not too salty, almost sweet, and extra tangy.  It is the most incredible feta I've ever had, and I can't stop putting it everywhere.  Eggs, asparagus, salad (well, that's standard) and then I sprinkled it all over the grilled chicken and roasted eggplant.

I had a similar thing going on with the eggplant.  First I scraped it out of its skin, then quickly retrieved the skin and cut it up and sprinkled it over the feta.  It was like a tug of war between the two hemispheres of my brain.

Here is the composition of my insanely delicious plate:

half of a Roasted Eggplant with Za'atar

handful home fries tossed with olive oil, fleur de sel, and za'atar

griddled chicken rubbed with olive oil and za'atar

salad of chopped bok choy with sliced tomatoes, scallions, chopped cilantro, a squeeze of lime, some fresh pepper, that addicting Gazi Feta and a drizzle of olive oil

I may have gone a bit over the top putting Za'atar in everything, but it really connected everybody in a way that was so simple yet almost spiritual...

Spicy Apricot Basil Muffins

Here's a muffin I conceptualized while making.  I knew I was going for apricot, but I didn't use any recipe for proportions and right before adding the flour, I decided to add some dried basil and chile powder.  Those things go together well when fresh, why wouldn't they work in a muffin?
Well, they work very very well, although the basil is not overwhelming.  I may double the amount next time.
Yield 16 muffins
Ingredients
2 overripe bananas, mashed
1 packet vanilla sugar
200g apricot jam (mine was 65% fruit)
80g canola oil
2 eggs, well beaten
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 Tbsp dried basil
1/4 tsp chili powder (mine is extra spicy, but use more if yours is not)
1/8 cup milk
150g whole wheat flour
Poppy seeds for garnish
Directions
1.  Beat together the eggs, bananas, vanilla, apricot jam, oil, salt, baking soda, baking powder, basil, milk, and chili powder.  Beat it well until there are little bubbles.
2.  Carefully stir in the flour until just combined.
3.  Fill your buttered muffin tins 3/4 full sprinkle some poppy seeds on top and bake for 18-20 minutes at 180°C 350°F.

That's it.. eat warm or cold but don't tell anyone what's in them.. make them guess!
The small addition of spice is what makes these special.  It will have you think
"OooOooh"
and then realize you said it out loud!