Chicken Tortilla Soup

I'm almost happy the weather has cooled down so I can justify making soup! I stole this Tortilla Soup from Jess and I think I just fell in love. I didn't offer any to Eric because every time I make something you must eat with a spoon, he starts complaining. When I poured myself a bowl of this, I saw him jealously looking over from his plate of fries, so I gave him a bite. To my happiness, he said: Why don't I get to eat that?
HA!
I used dry black beans instead of canned. Nein on the hominy (not sure I've ever seen that in France.) I didn't have any chilies, but I put in 2 Tbsp La Costeña Arriera salsa. Next time, I will add avocado as well.
My toppings were:
Cilantro
Shredded Cabbage
Tortilla strips (home made)
Green Onions
Cheddar + Swiss=Bliss

* this is fight food if you remove the cheese

The Good Shroomz: Girolles

I am in love with mushrooms. Chanterelles, Cèpes, Pleurotes, Trompettes de la Mort, Morilles... how happy I am when I eat you! This time, I found some Girolles at the market. The best time to go to the market is right before it closes. The vendors practically give away their goods! I got practically 600g for 4€... and these usually go for 20€/kg
Anyway, I used them for my D-Day cutlets.

These go well just sautéed and lightly salted. They give out nice juices that give the sauce an earthy flavor.
I've tried these in an omelet as well. The Bomb.com

Mil's Red Handed Meatballs

While grocery shopping, Eric had a sudden urge for one of his mother's inventions: Meatballs with Flageolet beans, or Boulettes en Flag' as I have so wittily renamed it. It was a test, because it is a family recipe and a childhood comfort food that his own sister was unable to recreate.
Well, I passed the test with flying colors because the hub was indeed very satisfied with my remake!
Serves 4-5
Ingredients:
Meatballs
1 lb ground pork (or 1/2 pork, 1/2 turkey)
1 egg
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
some flour
Dish
1 Tbsp (or more) of margarine or butter
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp thyme
2 bay leaves
6 potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/2" pieces
1 large can of drained flageolet beans (use white beans if you can't find flags)
1 cup water
Directions:
Meatballs
1. Wash your hands and take off your rings. Place the ground meat in a mixing bowl with the egg, and mis around with your hands.
2. Add the parsley, salt, pepper and garlic and keep mixing.
3. Add the bread crumbs a little at a time while mixing with your hands. Keep adding until the texture is no longer gooey, but not all dry either.
4. Separate the meat into 6 big meatballs. Eric likes big big meatballs. Roll each meatball around in flour to keep them from sticking to each other and your meatballs are ready to be cooked.
Dish
1. In a big pot or pressure cooker, heat the margarine and brown the meatballs a little on each side. Remove the browned meatballs and set aside.
2. Sautée the onions and garlic with a sprinkle of salt in the same pot until golden. Add the thyme and bay leaves and stir.
3. Add the potatoes and stir around a few minutes. When the potatoes start sticking to the pot, add a cup of water and the meatballs back into the pot. If you have a pressure cooker, close it and cook this under pressure for 5 minutes. If you don't, simmer for about 15 minutes until potatoes are tender.
4. Open up and add the drained beans. Heat through for 5 more minutes.

You are ready to feast!
I only ate 1 meatball and it was more than enough for me.. but my carnivore husband had 2 and the guests we had each ate 1 1/2. We killed it, and I passed the MIL test!

Thai Masman Curry.. Remix

Considering I have a large amount of Thai Masman Curry paste, I keep remixing this dish and making it better and better.
This time I used pork sliced thinly instead of chicken.
I added baby corn...cute and fun
but the serious secret ingredient here is the mega tablespoon of
PEANUT BUTTER
that I threw into the mix.
I finally got around to buying peanut butter in France!
I found a miniature jar of Skippy PB for the outrageous price of 4€ for 340g, but hey, you cannot replace that taste in an asian dish... no way José.
Ah for all of you living on the WEST SIDE of the lake, this is nothing exceptionnal, but please feel my excitement here, people!

Glass Noodle Japchae

Glass noodles are kind of cool, because they aren't noodles at all. They're made from mung bean thread, so they're actually vegetables! I actually just threw this together using meat marinated for Bulgogi, and then realized it much resembles Korean Japchae.. minus the mushrooms. The hub loved it and voted YES for including it in our monthly rotation. I'm not claiming it is authentic Japchae, but is the result of what I had in the kitchen...
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 bundle glass noodles (250g)
3/4 lb thinly sliced beef
4 leaves of kale, ribbed and julienned
1 onion, julienned
1 zucchini, sliced thinly
1 Tbsp sesame oil
Marinade:
2 Tbsp soy sauce (or GF alternative)
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1 asian pear, peeled and grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp sweet chili sauce
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Directions:
1. Mix the marinade ingredients together and marinate the beef for 20 minutes.
2. Soak the noodles in hot water for 5-10 minutes (until almost tender) and set aside.
3. In a wok or heavy based pan, heat 1 Tbsp sesame oil and stir fry the onion and zucchini until golden.
4. Add the meat with marinade as well as the kale. Cook through while stirring about 10 minutes. Taste the beef and make sure it is cooked. Adjust the seasoning.
5. Add the glass noodles and stir fry until noodles are tender (approx 5 minutes)

Serve and eat with chopsticks to get the maximum pleasure out of it!
I added red pepper flakes to my plate because I love da heat.
I can't wait to buy more of these noodles. They don't get mushy like rice noodles do and they certainly make me feel like I'm eating healthy without the hub feeling like I'm imposing "health food" on him!

Nepalese Chicken Tarkari

This one blew me out of the water. Really really!
I got this one from the Amateur Gourmet who got it from Feeding the Dragon and this authentic untweeked recipe is just what makes it so wonderful. It tasted as if some old village woman in Nepal cooked it for me as I was passing through her village. Luckily I already had everything on hand.
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (find some! they're good for you!)
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 4 dried red chiles, seeded and minced (I used 1 tbsp red chili paste for lack of red chilies)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cups chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• Handful of fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
• 2 cups cooked basmati rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Wearing rubber kitchen gloves so the turmeric doesn’t stain your hands (I did not do this and my hands are fine), rub the turmeric black pepper, and salt all over the chicken and let marinate in the refrigerator, covered, for 30 minutes.
2. In a small skillet over medium heat, dry-roast the mustard seeds for a few seconds, or until they are fragrant, and then remove from the skillet and repeat with the fenugreek seeds. Be careful not to burn the spices. Combine the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds in a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder and grind into a coarse powder.
3. Heat the oil in a wok or large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, ginger, ground spice mixture, cumin, chiles, and bay leaves and stir-fry for 20 seconds. Add the onion and saute for about 6 minutes, or until slightly translucent. Drop in the marinated chicken and stir-fry for 4 minutes, then add the stock and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with the chopped cilantro and serve with the rice.

*WARNING*
It has been 1 week since I made this, and the house STILL smells like curry. Not unpleasant, but good to know.

Mussels n Fries

...Always a hit.
2 kg of fresh mussels for €4.50? Where do I sign!!!
This time I poured a glass of champagne into the mix.. because I was thinking of my homies <3
A French classic. Mussels and Fries.

Mexican Orzo

Here was my dilemma:
I want mexican
I have no access to beans or tortillas today
I want something different
I'm hungry NOW
Bam.. Mexican Bagos
Eric loved this one.
Serves 3
Ingredients:
250g Bagos (Orzo)
Meat off 1 leftover chicken leg
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp leftover tomato sauce (or 1 chopped tomato)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
3 cups chicken stock
juice from 1/2 lemon
Garnish:
cilantro
shredded swiss
dollop sour cream
salsa
Directions:
1. Sautée the onion and bell pepper in the EVOO until translucent.
2. Add the spices, lemon juice and tomato sauce and let cook 1 more minute.
3. Add all the rest, bring to a boil, and let simmer until bagos are tender (about 15 minutes.

Serve with the desired garnish and be happy you satisfied your craving!

Baked Pork Chops

Ingredients:

4 Pork Chops

3/4 tsp Garlic Powder

3/4 tsp salt

2 eggs, beaten

2 tbls flour

1 1/3 cups seasoned bread crumbs

2 tbls EVOO

1 can cream of mush soup

3 tbls white whine

Directions:

1. Preheat Oven to 350

2. Rinse Pork Chops. Pat Dry and season with garlic powder and salt. Dredge Pork Chops in Flour, Dip in Egg, and coat with Bread Crumbs

3. Heat Oil in Skillet over medium heat. Fry Pork Chops for 5 mins on each side. Transfer to baking dish, cover with foil.

4. Bake for 1 hr. While baking, combine cream of mush soup, milk and white wine in medium bowl. After they pork has baked for one hour, top with soup mixture. Replace foil and cook for additional 30 mins.

Magret de Canard (Duck Breast) with Caramelized Turnips

When the sweet old lady at the supermarket explained to us the difference between supermarket heavy cream and farm heavy cream, we dropped the cream and bought this beautiful duck breast from her counter. I had no idea how wonderfully this lovely piece of red poultry would pair with turnips. The secret is to caramelize them in the fat that the duck leaves behind. This is not icky, it is the good, flavorful type of fat (that you don't eat everyday anyway). Here you can actually buy jars of duck or goose fat for cooking. Isn't that crazy? If this sweet old lady hadn't explained to me how to cook it, I would have been missing out big time on some flavaaaaaa.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 Duck breast with skin
1 Tbsp dried thyme
salt/fresh pepper
1 lb (about 8) turnips, peeled and quartered
2 Tbsp basalmic vinegar
1 tsp sugar
Directions:
1. Steam the turnips until just tender. How? I used my steamer basket in my pressure cooker and cooked under pressure for 5 minutes. If you do not have a steamer or pressure cooker, the real directions are to boil for 20 minutes or so. I prefer to steam when I can because it preserves the nutrients in the item being cooked. Set aside.
2. Make criss-cross cuts on the skin of the duck breast. Rub some thyme, salt, and fresh ground pepper on both sides.
3. Place the duck breast skin side down in a frying pan and cook on high heat for 7 minutes.
Turn over and cook for 4 minutes. (This will have it nice and pink in the center. If you prefer more cooking, go ahead.)
Remove the breast and set aside, but keep warm.
4. The frying pan should have some lovely bubbling duck fat in it. Place the quartered turnips in this goodness and cook until golden with the sugar. Deglaze with the basalmic vinegar.
Cut the cooked duck breast in half and serve and be happy that the husband didn't notice they weren't potatoes!

This was just lovely. Next time I see Magret on sale, I will definately buy it. It is way worth a meal on saturday night at a restaurant.