ShrimpPadThai

One of my very favorite foods is Pad Thai.  I buy a small container for lunch every time I go to Central Market in downtown Lancaster.  It’s a wonderful comfort food for me, sweet, salty, a little bit spicy–it just makes me feel warm all over.  So, I’ve been searching high and low for an easy, make-at-home Pad Thai, and I think I’ve found it, thanks to a couple of different versions featured at different times on the Food Network.  What I’ve done here is synthesized three different versions into one that, when I made it the other night for dinner, elicited rave reviews from the harshest food critics I know–my children.
The key to whipping up marvelous Pad Thai–it takes only minutes to assemble, assuming you have the necessary ingredients laying around–is preparation and planning.   If you have everything on hand, you could actually create a pretty good Pad Thai on the spur of the moment, but if you want it to be spectacular, plan ahead. Know on Sunday that you’d like to have it for dinner on Friday night, and do the advance work on a schedule.  The advance work takes only minutes at a time, but the end result is well worth the effort, and your eaters will devour the end product.
Pad Thai is a dish you can make over and over again, and family will never tire of it (unless it becomes an every night thing; and that might be a problem of its own), but to do so means having a few key ingredients in the cupboard:  rice noodles, rice vinegar, Chinese five-spice powder, fish sauce, and tamarind paste (all available at any Asian market); and extra-firm tofu (not the silken kind).  These are things I like to have around anyway (except the tamarind paste, which I can pick up when I need it at a local market).  And bean sprouts.  Bean sprouts can be problematic if purchased in grocery stores, so by planning ahead, you can actually grow your own in a jar.  That’s part of the magic of this dish.  At the end of this post, I’ll add the instructions for growing your own sprouts.  Again, worth the effort.

This is going to look like a lot of stuff and a lot of work, but it’s really not. The whole dish will come together in a few minutes once the ingredients are set up and ready.

Here’s the Pad Thai recipe:

INGREDIENTS:
4 oz. medium-thick rice noodles
2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. sugar (if you can find it, try palm sugar)
2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. fish sauce
1 oz. tamarind paste (optional, but it makes a wonderful difference in the flavor)
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. peanut oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten with a pinch of kosher salt
1 lb. peeled, deveined shrimp (I like 26-31 shrimp for this dish)
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 shallots, sliced thin (optional, but a wonderful addition)
6 oz. marinated extra-firm tofu, cubed (recipe follows, along with the bean sprouts instructions)
4 scallions, including the white parts, chopped on a bias
3/4 cup mung bean sprouts
1 Tbsp sesame seed oil
1/3 cup chopped salted peanuts
lime wedges
chopped fresh cilantro

PROCEDURE:
In the morning:  Wrap  the tofu in a tea towel and place in an 8-inch cake pan, cover with a plate, and place a 5-pound weight on top of the plate (a bag of sugar? A bag of flour? If you use one of these, seal it in a plastic bag first). Refrigerate until you are ready to start cooking.

1.  Marinate the tofu (see instructions below).
2.  Place the tamarind paste in a cup and cover with 3/4 cup boiling water, and set aside a while.
3.  Combine the fish sauce, sugar, and vinegar in a bowl and whisk until the sugar dissolves.
4.  Put the noodles in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 25-30 minutes.  Drain and set aside.
5.  Press the tamarind paste through a fine-mesh strainer, add to the sauce and blend well.
6.  Heat a wok or large saute pan over high heat without oil
7.  When the pan is hot, add 1 tbsp. peanut oil, immediately stir fry the shrimp until just pink. Remove and keep warm.
8.  Add another Tbsp. oil, and 2/3 of the scallion, garlic, shallots, and pepper flakes, and stir rapidly for 30 seconds.
9.  Add the eggs and scramble until they just begin to set.
10. Add the following ingredients, in order, and toss once or twice to mix:  tofu, sauce, noodles, and then mix well.
11. Add the shrimp back in, and half the chopped peanuts.
12. Add the bean sprouts and sesame oil, stir once, and turn off the heat.
13. Pour into a serving dish or prepare to serve right in the cooking pan.
14. Sprinkle the top with the remaining scallion and peanuts, serve immediately with lime wedges and chopped cilantro. For an interesting variation, add 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil to the dish before serving, and skip the cilantro.

You can also use up stuff from the vegetable drawer.  When I made it, I added bias-cut sugar-snap peas and some shredded carrot at the same time I put the shrimp back in the pan.

Enjoy!!!

MARINATED TOFU
You can use tofu right out of the package, but drain it first. This way is better:
30 minutes before you need to use the tofu, place the pressed tofu in a 2-cup  container. Combine 1 1/2 cups dark soy sauce and 1 tsp. five-spice powder, and pour over the tofu. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Remove from the bowl and chop into cubes (or matchsticks).

MAKE YOUR OWN BEAN SPROUTS
This is so simple it hurts. It takes about 4 days, so if you plan to use sprouts in the Pad Thai, plan ahead, but use them fresh and use them all.  Keep an empty, cleaned 1 qt. mayonnaise jar for sprouting, along with a 8×8 piece of cheesecloth or wash a piece of pantyhose.
Thoroughly wash 1/3 cup of mung beans (available at health-food stores and some Asian markets) in cold water until the water runs clear.  Then place in the jar with 16 oz. of warm–but not hot–water. Soak overnight, for 8-12 hours, drain thoroughly. Cover the jar with 2 layers of cheesecloth or the piece of pantyhose and a rubber band. Set the jar on its side, shake a little bit to distribute the seeds evenly in the jar, and set aside out of the way, in reasonably low light but not in the dark.  Every 12 hours or so, add 2 cups of cool water to the jar, slosh it around a little bit, and then drain the water out thoroughly. This little procedure will take about five minutes, but fresh bean sprouts are worth the effort.  In somewhere between three and five days, your sprouts will be ready, depending on the temperature in your house and how big or small you like the sprouts. If you are planning the Pad Thai for Friday dinner, I suggest starting the sprouts on Sunday night.  If they get to the size you want before you are ready to cook, remove them from the jar, drain thoroughly on paper towels, wrap them up in fresh paper towels, and store them in the vegetable drawer of your fridge until you are ready to use them.
Wash the jar well and keep it handy for the next time.

I’ve got a salad. It’s a pasta salad. It’s an incredible pasta salad. It’s a cold pasta salad with spinach and feta cheese, and it’s maybe the best cold pasta salad you’ve ever eaten (well maybe next to the cold sesame noodle salad I call “Vicki’s Noodles”, found way back earlier on this blog.  In the meantime, this is the easiest salad I’ve ever made–I always make it when someone tells me to “bring a side dish,” and every time I make it, the bowl comes home empty. I made it again on the Fourth of July for a family picnic we hosted (or should I say, my sweet A hosted–it was entirely her idea), and I swear I caught someone licking the bowl.  Try this one on if you’re looking for something quick and sensational:

Ingredients:
1 bag (8 oz.) baby spinach leaves or 1/2 pound good fresh spinach, stems removed
1 lb. cheese tortellini
8 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup dark balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (use the good stuff for this recipe)
1 tsp freshly-ground black pepper

Procedure:

1.  Prepare the tortellini as directed on the package. Immediately submerse the cooked pasta in ice water and let it bathe at least a half hour. Drain the tortellini and let it sit in the colander until the pasta is really dry.
2.  Wash and rinse the spinach copiously until ALL the sand is gone unless you’ve purchased fresh spinach from Elmer’s stand at Central Market (Elmer’s spinach is always clean and fresh, but l still wash the spinach again). For this recipe, I use a bag of pre-washed baby spinach leaves, and I am thoroughly satisfied.
3. IMMEDIATELY BEFORE SERVING (I mean this!!!), place the tortellini and spinach in a very large bowl, add the crumbled feta cheese and toss well to mix.
4.  Add the balsamic vinegar and black pepper (I’m addicted to good, freshly ground black pepper, so I use more than the recipe calls for) and toss again to coat the salad.
5.  Then add the olive oil and toss again, to coat everything beautifully.
6.  Serve immediately, and then stand out of the way. You might get knocked down in the rush.

This is a chili recipe I often use to enter chili-cook-off contests.  It’s a bit different than what you normally think of as chili, but it’s every bit a chili recipe.  It’s loaded with chiles, chili powder, cumin, and cilantro, and it’s surprisingly good for a chili with no tomatoes.  Imagine, a white chili that is spicy and robust, and goes great with beer or root beer or lemonade or tequila or whatever beverage you favor.  Try this.  You’ll love it.

Ingredients:
2 medium onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized chunks
3 15.5-oz cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
16 oz. chicken or vegetable broth
2 4.5 oz. cans chopped green chiles
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
4 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander
¾ teaspoon dried oregano

1 Tbsp hot chili powder 1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves]
¼ teaspoon ground Cayenne pepper

Preparation:
1.    Sauté onions and garlic in oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and brown, 5 minutes.

2.    Add the remaining ingredients and cook on lowest temperature 4-6 hours.  Uncover and cook 1 hour longer, stirring occasionally.

This recipe is mildly spicy.  If you want to “kick it up a notch,” double the cumin, sub hot chili powder for regular chili powder, and double the green chiles.  And/or add Tabasco Green Jalapeno sauce to taste.

You’ve got to try this one.

We have a load of tomatoes in our freezer, tomatoes we grew last season.  I’ve talked before about keeping tomatoes, and in a day or two, because of a change in my writing schedule, I will do a discourse on tomatoes.  Suffice it to say that the following recipe will be better if you make this with a sauce you make yourself from tomatoes you grew yourself. Come back for that discussion in a day or two.       But for the moment, here’s a story:       I came home from work the other day, and the house smelled absolutely incredible.  It was like there was a barbecue party going on, which I knew couldn’t be the case, since it was about 50 degrees outside, and we really don’t party much anyway.  To my delight, I discovered that the wonderful fragrance assaulting me was that I was in the presence of something special–pulled barbecue sandwiches, something we hadn’t done before, and wasn’t I thrilled!  Well the reality of the sandwiches was even better than the promise when I hit the door.      To my additional delight, thanks to the good folks at EatingWell.com, these sandwiches were even healthy (especially if you skip the bread, but served on really good artisan rolls, one just has to do the sandwich.  And even better, you make this one in the crock pot. Just dump the ingredients in the pot, turn the knob to low, and go to work. What you come home to will warm your heart (and your throat and belly if you make it spicy).  You could even substitute pork for the chicken if you want to go all the way to barbecue heaven, but if you do, make plenty and invite friends. You’ll win hearts with this one.

Here’s what you need:

1   8-oz. can tomato sauce

2. 4-oz. can chopped green chiles, drained

3   Tbsp. cider vinegar

2   Tbsp. honey

1 Tbsp. smoked paprika

1 Tbsp sweet paprika

1   Tbsp. tomato paste

1   Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp. Liquid Smoke

2  tsp. dry mustard

2  tsp. ground chipotle chili (you can get this at most better grocery stores)

1   tsp. kosher salt

3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat

1 small onion, chopped fine

3 clove garlic, minced

Here’s what you do:

1.  Stir the first 11 ingredients (tomato sauce through salt) in a large slow-cooker pot until smooth.

2.  Add chicken, onion, and garlic, stir to combine.

3.  Cover the pot and cook on low until the chicken can be pulled apart easily (about 5 -6 hours).

4.  Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and shred with forks.

5.  Return the chicken to the sauce, stir well, rest, covered, 30-60 minutes (important).

6. Serve over hard rolls with Tequila-lime slaw, on or beside the BBQ. * See note…⬇️

Per serving, this is only (get this!!!) 184 calories per serving and only 8 grams of carbs (not counting the bread). This represents just 1/2 serving of carbs. Eat well!

Source:  EatingWell.com

NOTE: https://jeffskitchen.net/2019/06/16/tequila-lime-and-cilantro-cole-slaw/

Epicure Market’s Cheesecake

You ask for a cheesecake, I give you a cheesecake.  This is one of the richest cheesecake recipes ever. 

It is an amazing cheesecake that everyone always has room for no matter how much they’ve eaten!

True story:  I once went to dinner with my entire family to the famous Embers Restaurant in Miami Beach.

Eddie, the eldest, ordered the cheesecake for dessert (like he always did), and announced that if the cheesecake

was better than the one we sold in the store, he’d fire the baker.

It was better.  According to Eddie.  He announced that it had to be double-whipped to make it that light and fluffy,

while still cheesy and creamy.

He didn’t fire the baker.  He found a way to get their recipe.  I won’t suggest that he stole it, buuuuttttt….

All he did was get the baker to make ours even better.  There’s a secret, and it’s buried inside this recipe.

Ingredients:

Crust:

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

3/4 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted

1 stick (1/4 pound) butter, melted

Filling:

1 lb. ricotta cheese
16 oz. cream cheese
2 cups sour cream
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 extra large eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
3 tbsp. flour
5 tbsp. vanilla
3 tbsp. cornstarch
5 tbsp. lemon juice

Directions:

1. Mix the crust ingredients well, until they bind together and form a ball.

2. Press firmly into the bottom of a 10-inch spring form pan, and about a half inch up the sides.

3.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

While the crust is baking…

1. Combine sour cream and ricotta cheese in a large mixing bowl.  Beating at low speed, add butter, sugar and cream cheese.

2.  Increase speed to medium and add flour, eggs, vanilla, cornstarch, and lemon juice.  Beat for 5 minutes.

3.  Pour into the spring form pan when the crust is cooled to the touch.

4.  Mix one 4 ounces of sour cream and 4 TBSP of sugar until the sugar dissolves completely, then spread the sour cream on top of the cake, leaving a half inch uncovered around the edges.

5.  Bake in preheated 350-degrees-F oven for 1 hour, then turn off oven and leave in closed oven for one hour longer.  Cool on rack.

And if you want to get real crazy, finish the cheesecake with this:

6.  After the cake is completely cooled, place one cup of clear strawberry jelly, 6 TBSP of good Amaretto, and a teaspoon of cornstarch in a small saucepan and heat them together, mixing constantly, until they are completely blended and the sauce thickens to coat a spoon.

Cap two quarts of fresh strawberries, and cut the tops off so that they will sit flat with the points up  Arrange them beautifully on top of the cheesecake, and then drizzle the jelly-Amaretto mixture over the strawberries, then chill until the glaze sets.

Serve and await compliments..

There’s nothing better in the winter than a couple of slabs of ribs, hot and melting off the bone.  Here’s the best recipe I know.  These are slow-cooked Kansas City ribs, to die for… Do cook them slow.  They are much better.  I got this recipe from the folks at Oklahoma Joe’s BBQ in Kansas City.

It’s pretty good!

Two steps:  First make a sauce.  Do NOT use sauce from a bottle.

Make this sauce:
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sweet (like Vidalia) onion, minced VERY fine
1-1/2 tsp. celery seeds, crushed with mortar and pestle or ground with a spice mill
3 garlic cloves, minced very fine
1-1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. finely ground black pepper
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. cayenne
2 cups tomato ketchup
1/4 cup cider vinegar; more to taste
2 Tbs. prepared spicy brown mustard
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
4 Tbs. butter, cubed and chilled

Mix all ingredients except the butter.  Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer for 30 minutes. Cover, set aside.

Second, make a dry spice rub, using the same dry ingredients as in the sauce, in the same amounts.
The night before, or first thing in the morning, rub the ribs (oh, you did that already…)
Cook the ribs in a charcoal kettle grill, with the coals stacked on the sides and a drip pan between the two piles of coals (do NOT use starter fluid on the coals).  Fill the pan with a bottle of beer.  Use only about ten charcoal briquets on each side, and give yourself plenty of time (hours).  Make sure the coals are white before you start cooking.  Once the coals are white, coat the grill with olive oil (cheap oil will do), and place the ribs over the drip pan.  Monitor the progress of the ribs, adding two coals to each side every half hour, until you can stick a fork into the meat and withdraw it without lifting the meat off the grill.  The ribs are not ready until then.  At that point, add six coals to each side, flip the ribs and coat the underside with your sauce.  Cook 1/2 hour.  Flip the ribs again, coat the top side with more sauce and cook for another 1/2 hour. They are done.  Let them rest fifteen minutes covered with foil off the grill, and serve.

If you can find an apple tree, cut a branch about 1 foot long and about 1 inch thick.  A dead branch is better.  (If all you can find is a green branch, forget this.  I keep apple wood around for grill smoking).   Chop it up into tiny little pieces. Soak the pieces in water and a little tequila for about an hour.   Place a handful of the soaked apple chips on top of the coals–both sides–during the last hour, when the sauce is on the ribs.  This will give you the smoky flavor you want, and apple is a little sweeter than hickory, which I personally find a bit bitter.

Every year, I make a cake for our church’s annual spring picnic-outdoor service.  After the service, there is a family picnic, during which we do a “Cake Walk” —  walking around in circles (a normal state of affairs in the Unitarian Universalist sect) stepping on numbers, all done to the pounding of beat of a drum circle. (I played my Djembe–I was one of nine drums).  Desserts are donated, and when the drums stop, a number is picked and whoever is on that number square wins a dessert of his/her choice from the dessert table.  Seven-year-old Morgan won a plate of to-die-for key-lime squares (Florida, after all–just like the lemon squares you all know and love, but better).  At the cake walk, I tasted an incredible Red Velvet Cake, a Lancaster County specialty,  a hit, and I just had to have the recipe.  Here it is:

Traditional Lancaster County Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter
2 ½ cups of sugar
6 eggs
3 cups of flour
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa
¼ tsp vanilla
2 oz. red food colouring
8 oz. sour cream

1. Heat oven to 350. Beat butter and gradually add sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Beat just until blended.
2. Combine the flour, cocoa and baking soda. Add to butter mixture alternating with sour cream and ending with flour mixture. Stir in vanilla and food colouring. Spoon into three greased and floured 8 –inch round pans.
3. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.
4. Frost with vanilla buttercream frosting or cream cheese frosting.

I did cream cheese frosting. OY, what else?…

This recipe is incredible.  It takes some time, but it is worth the effort.  Do it!!

Roast Leg of Pork

Ingredients:

Brine

1.5 liters Coca-cola

1 head garlic, peeled and smashed

5 bay leaves

1/2 cup kosher salt

1 Tbsp whole peppercorns

Herb rub:

1/4 cup fresh sage leaves

4 Tbsp fresh flat parsley

10 garlic cloves, chopped fine

1 Tbsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

Glaze:

1/2 cup apple cider

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp ground cloves

Procedure:

A day ahead, score the leg of pork about 1/2 inch deep to make a diamond pattern on the top half.  In a stockpot, mix the brine ingredients well, place the roast, top side down, in the brine.   Refrigerate overnight.

On roasting day, preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Chop the herbs very fine, mix the herbs with the garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil to make a paste.  Rub the paste generously over the leg of pork.  Place the roast scored side up on a rack in the middle of the oven.  After 20 minutes, turn the oven down to 325 degrees, open the oven for 20 seconds to bleed off some of the heat, and then continue to roast, testing with a thermometer until it reaches 145 degrees in the middle.  It could be anywhere from four to twenty pounds.  It should take at least an hour and a half, and as many as four hours, depending on the size.

While the the roast is in the oven at the high temperature, mix the glaze ingredients in a saucepan and heat slowly until the sugar dissolves, then simmer until it’s time to turn down the oven.  After the oven has reached 325, brush glaze on the roast every hour until it’s done.

When the roast reaches the desired 145 internal temperature, remove from the oven, cover with foil, and allow it to rest for 20 minutes before carving.  It will continue to cook under the tent, and the juices will retreat back into the meat.

Serve with fresh swiss chard sauteed in good olive oil with garlic and toasted pine nuts.

Depending on what part of Italy your recipe comes from, the ratio of flour to potatoes will vary greatly. Some recipes use eggs, some do not.  I do.. To me, the key to magnificent gnocchi is how the potatoes are prepared.  I think this is important.  Don’t boil them, bake them.  They come out drier, and the gnocchi end up much fluffier. And no ricotta.  I think it makes them soggy.  If you want a cheesy product, use a finely grated parmesan–a really good one–and only a little.  The ingredient ratios are pretty critical.

Ingredients:  
2 pounds of russet potatoes
2 cups of flour
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 large egg

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake potatoes until easily pierced with a fork (about 45 minutes).
Let the potatoes cool slightly, then peel.  Pass the potatoes through a ricer or grate them into a large bowl.
Add the egg (slightly beaten) to the potatoes. Mix well with a wooden spoon.

Add the flour to potatoes a little at a time, mixing well with a wooden spoon. Add just enough flour so that the dough doesn’t stick to your hands.  When all the flour has been incorporated, bring the dough together with your fingertips.

Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a slightly floured surface. Knead the dough as you would bread dough.
Press down and away with the heel of your hand, fold the dough over, make a quarter turn, and repeat the process.
Knead for about 5 minutes.

Form the dough into a ball and then divide it into 6 smaller balls.  This next thing is critical:  the touch of your hands on
the dough balls must be VERY light, like you do when you make matzoh balls. A firm touch on the dough ball will result in a heavy product.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough using your fingertips. The rope of dough should be about 3/4 inch thick.
Cut the dough into 1 inch pieces.

You can cook the gnocchi as it is now, but traditional gnocchi has ridges.
To create the ridges, press each piece of dough against the tines of a fork.

With your finger, gently roll the pressed dough back off the fork. This takes a little practice. If you find the dough sticking to the fork,  dip the fork in flour before you press the dough against it.

Place the gnocchi in a single layer on a lightly floured dish.  To cook the gnocchi, place the dough into a pot of boiling water. After a few minutes the gnocchi will float to the top. Continue to cook for one minute then remove and set aside.

Serve the hot gnocchi immediately, tossed with butter and a little Parmesan cheese or with the sauce of your choice.
You can also try serving them with sauteed mushrooms in a beautiful red wine reduction, and then beating in some butter.
This makes an earthy sauce that make an excellent accompaniment to beef.