Creamy Peanut Soup

I made this soup for my Mexican cooking class & it turned out yummy. One of my students was lactose intolerant so I replaced the heavy whipping cream with coconut milk which gave it more of a Thai taste but very, very yummy. I didn't have to thicken it because it was thick enough because of the peanuts so as long as you don't add a chicken stock with gluten it is gluten free. If you want it thinner you can add more chicken stock. If you want it lower in fat replace the cream with low fat milk. 

1 ea .......... Onion

1 lb............ Peanuts, skinless

2 to 3 ea... Chipotle Chilies

4 c............. Chicken stock

3 drp......... Tabasco

1 Tbs........ Onion Powder

1 Tbs........ Garlic Powder

1 tsp.......... Thyme

1 tsp.......... Oregano

3 ea........... Bay Leaves

1 c............. Heavy Whipping Cream

To taste.... Salt 

1.   Dice onion.

2.   Sautee onions, peanuts and chilies.

3.   Add stock with the remaining ingredients except bay leaves & cream.

4.   Puree and add bay leaves & cream. 

5.   Salt to taste. 

Thai Chicken & Lemongrass Soup

For those of you that have never had Thai food it tends to be on the very spicy hot side. I am a wimp though so I leave out most of the chilies. In this recipe I’ve used some very traditional ingredients but if you have trouble finding them they can be replaced with others. The lemon grass can be replaced with additional limejuice, the cilantro roots can be replaced with cilantro leaves, fish sauce can be replaced with chicken base. This will change the flavor slightly but will work.


1 ea........... Onion
½ lb........... Chicken Breast
2 Tbs........ Oil
2 c............. Water
1 stick....... Lemon Grass
4 ea........... Cilantro Roots
5 Tbs........ Fresh Limejuice
1 inch........ Fresh Ginger
1 can......... Coconut Milk
to taste...... Chili Paste
2 oz .......... Mushrooms
to taste...... Fish Sauce
to taste...... Crushed Red Peppers

1. Julienne the onions and chicken then sauté in oil until onions are caramelized.
2. Add the water and bring to a boil.
3. Smash the lemon grass and chop. Add to soup.
4. Peel and chop the ginger. Add to soup.
5. Add the coconut milk, chili paste, limejuice, salt and mushrooms.
6. Add the crushed red peppers and serve.
7. Garnish with fresh cilantro.


Be creative, have fun and enjoy!!!

Cobb Salad

The Cobb salad was developed in the 1920’s at the Brown Derby in Hollywood, CA. Sense then there have been other ingredients added or subtracted. The blue cheese is sometimes replaced with cheddar but will never be right in my opinion. I do love blue cheese but if you don’t try going light on some Gorgonzola cheese. This is a milder type of blue-veined cheese. The flavors and textures are all perfectly balanced. If you just can’t do the blue cheese then try another strong cheese like feta.

It would seem that this wouldn't be the healthiest of salads because yes it is high in fat but the fat in this is the really good kind. The dressing made with olive oil and the olives and avocado are all polyunsaturated fats that help control cholesterol.

1 head...... Romaine Lettuce

1 ea........... Avocado

2 ea........... Tomato

¼ c............ Green Onions

½ c............ Sliced Black Olives

½ lb........... Bacon

2 ea........... Boneless Chicken Breasts

4 ea........... Hard Boiled Egg

½ c............ Bleu Cheese Crumbles

Dressing

4 Tbs........ Red Wine Vinegar

½ c............ Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 Tbs........ Dijon Mustard

1 ea........... Garlic Cloves

to taste...... Salt and Pepper

1. Mix dressing ingredients together and chill.

2. Grill Chicken then cool and dice.

3. Cut cleaned and chilled lettuce into 1” pieces and place in a bowl.

4. Chop bacon into ½” pieces and cook until crispy.

5. Dice avocado, tomato and egg into ½” pieces.

6. Chop green onions into ¼” pieces.

7. Place everything in a bowl with dressing and toss thoroughly.

Be creative, have fun and enjoy!

Spanakopita

Most often you will see spanakopita as an appetizer as little triangle wrapped with filo dough but here I have done it as a pie which takes less time to make and works well as a vegetarian meal or a side vegetable with meat such as grilled salmon.  This is a traditional Greek dish that is served at all times of the day, ether served hot or cold. I love this dish in the summer time because it is light. 

½ c................. Olive oil

1 lb................. Cleaned Fresh Spinach

1 c.................. Crumbled Feta Cheese

½ ea.............. Onion

5 ea............... Garlic Cloves

1 ea............... Large Egg

1 tsp............... Dill

to taste.......... White pepper

6 sheets........ Filo Dough (thawed)

1.    Dice onion and chop garlic then sauté in about 3 Tbs of the olive oil.

2.    Chop spinach into large pieces and add to onions and garlic.

3.    Sauté until onions are golden and spinach is just wilted.

4.    Let cool in a bowl then add remaining ingredients except for the filo dough and mix well.

5.    Carefully unroll the sheets of filo dough making sure that they don’t dry out with a damp towel covering them and place one sheet at a time layering them with a thin layer of the remaining olive oil leaving flaps out to fold over the top in a small oiled casserole dish.

6.    Place the spinach mixture in the filo dough and cover with the flaps of dough to incase the mixture.

7.    Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F for about 20 minutes until golden on top. 

Be creative, have fun and enjoy!!!

Fried Fish w/ Coconut

A baby elephant that acted like it was going to charge us in
Tarangire National Park

A few years back my husband a parents had the privilege to go to Africa on safari. It was a dream of mine from when I was a very small girl. And it was more then I could have ever had imagined. We saw everything & lots of everything. We stayed in bush homes which are like Bed & Breakfasts, lodges, & we camped in the Serengeti for 5 nights.


At each place the food was wonderful. One night in particular while camping in the Serengeti we had a very traditional meal. It was so good. This fish dish is one of those things I have tried to match from memory. I will also be doing a cooking class with some of the other items that we had there. If interested it is on July 31. For my cooking class schedule of all my classes it is on the top left of this page.

Fish 

1 lb................. White Fish 

1 Tbs.............. Lime Juice
½ tsp.............. Garlic Powder
1 tsp............... Cinnamon
½ tsp.............. Thyme
½ tsp.............. Paprika
to taste........... Salt & Pepper
as needed...... Flour
as needed...... Peanut Oil

Sauce
2 Tbs............ Ghee
1 ea.............. Onion
1 ea.............. Garlic Cloves
1 can............ Coconut Milk
½ bu............. Spinach
½ lb.............. Shrimp

1. Sprinkle fish with lime juice.
2. Mix dry spices together and sprinkle over fish.
3. Let set in refrigerator for a few hours.
4. Meanwhile, heat ghee in large pan and add diced onion and chopped garlic.
5. Sauté until golden.
6. Place spinach and coconut milk in a pot and bring to a boil then puree.
7. Add to the onions with the shrimp and cook until shrimp are done.
8. Coat fish in flour and fry in oil. 

9. Place on a dish and cover with sauce.


Be creative, have fun & enjoy!!!

Mussels

This is a great quick and easy appetizer but can be used as a main dish served with some pasta.  If you over cook the mussels they can become very chewy so it is very important that you only cook them just until they open.  When buying mussels, make sure they are all closed or when touched they close right away.  Mussels are a living creature when fresh but if they get old they will start to die.


Most mussels are cultured/farmed and are  safe to eat but wild ones can be dangerous at certain times of the year.  There are times of the year when red tide occurs which is a plankton type of organism that will be in abundance and visible as a red mass.  It is typically when the ocean is warmer.  Other shellfish would also be infected and should never be eaten.   

2 Tbs............. Olive Oil
2 ea............... Tomatoes
½ ea.............. Onion
6 ea............... Garlic Cloves
½ c................ Dry White Wine
2 Tbs............. Butter
1 lb................ Mussels
2 ea............... Lemons
to taste.......... Salt
¼ c................ Julienne Fresh Basil

1. Dice the tomatoes and onion.
2. Slice the garlic.
3. Heat the olive oil and a sauté the tomatoes, onion and garlic until caramelized.
4. Add in the wine and bring to a boil.
5. Add in the mussels and cook until they open. Be careful not to over cook them.
6. Add the remaining ingredients and serve.

  

Be creative, have fun and enjoy!!!

Almond Cake

This cake is completely gluten free.  …And it’s good.  ...And, almonds are really good for you.  Traditionally almonds are used in Spain but you could use any type of nuts such as walnuts or hazel nuts.  If you were to use hazel nuts try making a syrup with coffee in place of the orange juice.


 Cake 

5 ea............... Eggs

½ c................. Sugar

2 ea............... Orange

1 c.................. Finely ground almonds

1.    Grate orange rinds of the oranges.

2.    Separate yolks from whites and cream yolks with sugar and orange rind. 

3.    Whip egg whites until stiff peaks form and fold into the batter with the ground almonds.

4.    Pour into a greased 9”x9” pan.

5.    Bake for 35 minutes in a preheated oven (350ºF)

6.    Let cool.

Syrup

2 ea............... Juice of oranges

1/3 c............... Sugar

5 ea............... Whole cloves

¼ tsp.............. Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 Tbs............. Rum

7.    Add all syrup ingredients, except for rum, in a small saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes.

8.    Remove from heat and add rum.

9.    Let cool and pour over cake.

Be creative, have fun and enjoy!!!