Phõ Party

I had a Pho party.
 Pho king good!

Pascale made a  Chocolate Caramel Cake for dessert with Mango Ice cream.
Go check it out.

O' Breakfast of Champions

Organic Oats, Milk & Honey, slightly warmed, followed by an Intense feeling of satisfaction.

I recently learned that eating warm oatmeal increases the glycemic index.  Being used to maple and bown sugar Quaker Oats growing up, I didn't even know people ate them raw.
Next time I will let them soak in my O milk for a while instead of zapping them in my molecular transformer.  I wonder if my O honey will blend in or coagulate in the cold milk?

Each day is sweeter than the day before...

*update:
absolutely no issues with blending the O honey into the cold O milk and raw Oats.  I just had to stir a little longer.  The texture is different but just as enjoyable.
I actually dreamt of this last night, except in my dream I added goji berries instead of O honey.  My goji berries were alive and crawling around in my bowl, but I found all this quite appetizing.  I may have just crossed over to the dark side...

**update #2:
I tried this with dried cranberries in cold milk with cinammon and nutmeg.  I went to work "on stage" the next day and felt completely euphoric while giving my usual technical speach.  Euphoria with healthy food without drugs?
I oualide this.

***update #3:
I found real Canadian made 100% pure maple syrup.  A spoonful of this deliciousness in the oats put a huge childhood smile on my face.

Fibonacci Cauliflower

Nature makes things so naughty.  This roman Fractal Cabbage is almost too beautiful to dismantle.

Yet, tonight, it is looking at me with hungry eyes...

Fibonacci product from the Earth, I have not yet decided what to do to you;
Enjoy you raw, so I can appreciate your mathematical perfection tickling my senses,

Steam you for a warm meal to help me fight this cold?  Who would you like to be mixed with to bring out your flavors?

I must decide...


 My decision was to soup you, to let you cater to my needs.  I did break you off a bit to taste you raw at happy hour before making my final judgement call.  Your texture is so intriguing.
Serves 3
Ingredients:
3/4 head of Fractal Goodness
1/2 Zucchini, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
1 Tomato, chopped
1 Handful frozen peas
3 Tbsp Organic Oats (I will increase this next time.. I'm rediscovering the wonders of Oatmeal)
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 Chicken Bouillon Cube (or Vege bouillon to keep it Vegetarian)
some Saffron
Lots of fresh pepper
Some extra special tangy sauce
Some EVOO for sautéeing
2 Cups water
Red Pepper Flakes

 

Top with a chopped Thai chili and some Parmesan and you have yourself a mindblowing throat healing magically mathematical meal. 

Frozen Choco Banana

Bling your fruit. Boom.

Insert stick into base of fruit. Freeze overnight. Dip in melted chocolate. Sprinklize.

Freeze again. Yum.

Credits to Mr. D'Anza.

Tiger Wok

I was blown away by this fusion concept of a wok restaurant:

pile on what you want, then choose your pulp, sauce, noodle, and topping.

The picture doesn't do it justice, but here's how mine went:

Pile: Mango, Bells, Salmon, Shrimp, Calamari

Pulp: Ginger

Sauce: Galangal and Hot Chil

Noodle: Rice noodle

Topping: Cilantro

Wow.

The best part is, when the pictogram near the description of the sauce shows multiple chili peppers, there is actual HEAT behind them!!  Not like all those other Europeanized "ethnic" restaurants around here.  Seriously, who has mango as an ingredient in a wok line?  They must have spied my eating habits before letting me wok in.  Teeheeee.

There are very few people on this side of the lake who could share my enthusiasm for this type of thing...I need to keep those ones close.  Very close.

Patel Talk

Papa:  You absolutely have to taste these mangos from the tree in the yard!  They're organic, home grown smell sweeter than anything in the world, and taste amazing!

Me:  Can you describe the texture?

Papa:  Orgasmic

The abricot didn't fall far from the tree did it...

Balsaamic Basil Quinoa

I popped my Quinoa cherry.  

I was warned by some that it was "too" healthy to be any good, and by others that it would be a pleasant discovery.

I vote for the pleasant side.  It felt naturally smooth and earthy, yet filling and satisfying.  I customized it to suit my instant insane gangsta desires.

Serves 1.5 (wtf?)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quinoa

1 cup water

1 tomato, chopped

1 yellow bell, chopped

1/2 bunch basil

3 large cloves garlic

1slice of turkey, chopped

1 tbsp something tangy spicy

2 tbsp balsaamic vinegar

some EVOO + more EVOO

fresh ground pepper

a little salt

red pepper flakes

grated parmesan

Directions:

1.  Rinse quinoa and pour into the 1 cup boiling water.  Lower heat and cook until all the water is absorbed.

2.  While waiting, sautée the bell and tomatoes in some EVOO, then add a drizzle of the something tangy spicy.

3.  While the sautéeing is happening, blend the basil, garlic, basalmic, and some more EVOO together.

4.  When quinoa is done, transfer to the sautée pan and add the blended mixture.  Heat through, then serve topped with ground hot flakes and parmesan.

This was very good.  Interesting texture, and very little leaves you full (hence the 1.5 servings - I was planning on only 1 serving).

Although this is all new to me, it felt so natural to grind the little quinoa seeds in my teeth and feel the beads slip on my tongue.  Quite an experience.  I will definately do this more often.

Lettuce Wraps

I got this idea and recipe from Amber and merged with some other recipes.

Butter Lettuce
Ground Turkey
Onion
Garlic
Soy Sauce - 1tbsp
Hoisen Sauce - 1/4 cup
Vinegar - 1 tbsp
1 can water chestnuts
Sesame Oil - 1 tbsp
1 package Ramen Noodles

Brown the ground turkey in oil. Drain, set aside. Cook chopped onion. Add garlic, soy sauce, hoisen sauce, vinegar, chopped water chestnuts, sesame oil. Return Turkey to pan. Finishing cooking meat. Add Ramen Noodles - stirring around to crunch them up. But, don't let them get soggy.

Add mixture to Lettuce.

Anchovy Pesto Shells

I may have already posted something like this.  I cannot think straight today.  My brain is in sensory overload and is unable to process simple input for the moment.  Not sure how long this will last.

Ingredients:

1 lb pasta shells, cooked al dente in salted water

1 container marinated anchovies (o my the best things in life...) drained and halved

2 Tbsp leftover Sardine Dip (I needed to finish it)

1 large handful broccoli florets

1 large handful cauliflower florets

2 chopped tomatoes

some EVOO

2 Tbsp secret special spicy sauce

2 Tbsp heavy cream

1/2 cup reserved pasta water

Pesto:

1 bunch basil

5 cloves peeled garlic

4 handful parmesan

1/4 cup (I admit I didn't measure) EVOO

Blend it

Directions:

 1.  Heat some EVOO and sautée the broccoli and cauliflower.

2.  Add chopped tomatoes, cover and simmer a bit so the juices start flowing.

3.  Add the secret special spicy sauce and the leftover Sardine Dip.

4.Turn off heat and stir in the anchovies, pesto and cream. 

5.  When pasta is al dente, drain and reserve some of the water before draining.  Pour in the mixture and stir into the pasta, adding some of the pasta water for extra creaminess.

Serve with extra parmesan and red pepper flakes.

That hit the spot.  

Makes me Want to Break Free again and again, forever and ever...

Italian Poached Eggs

This was such a yummy breakfast. Plus, I found these really cool nautical dishes that used to be my late Grandmother's (Stef, the one who used to call you 'little gypsie'). Russ found the recipe on MrBreakfast.com who credits MamaMia (need to place credit where deserved). =)

Ingredients: 

12 ounces canned tomatoes

6 large eggs

1 medium onion -  sliced

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese

1 Tablespoon dried parsley

1 Tablespoon dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute until tender. Add tomatoes, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Cook until slightly thick and most of the liquid has evaporated (about 15 minutes). Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Break each egg - one at a time - in small bowl (so the yolk won't break) and gently transfer to the top of the sauce. Cover and simmer until eggs (including the yolk) are set (about 15 to 20 minutes). **Here's the tip. Stef, you are much more familiar with poaching eggs, but I overcooked. Just because they look a bit raw, they have actually fully cooked. The pic below looks runny, but they were actually too hard and overcooked. Still delicious, nonetheless. But, next time, I won't overcook.