On a Blog Roll

Part of the reason I started my own blog is because I spend a fair amount of time on other people's blogs, using them as inspiration for my own cooking at home. I hoped that one day other people might find my recipes as useful as I do theirs. This week, I seem to have done a big round up of recipes from some of my favourite blogs and it has really made me realise what a fantastic resource the blogosphere is for cooking. It's now become my number one option when I have an ingredient I don't know what to do with, or an idea which needs fulfilling.

101 Cookbooks - Warm, Nutty, Cinnamon Quinoa Porridge

Starting with breakfast, this is a wonderful recipe from 101 Cookbooks, absolutely one of my top favourite sites ever. Cook rich red quinoa with almond milk and water, flavour it with agave and cinnamon before enriching it with berries and walnuts. I made two batches and had the second batch cold at work.

Corn Pancakes with Tomato Sauce

This simple but effect recipe is from one of my new favourites, Diet Dessert and Dogs. I will admit that I am a bit of a puritan when it comes to the type of ingredients I will cook with and it was fantastic to discover someone with the same beliefs (flax instead of eggs, spelt instead of wheat, agave instead of sugar). Believe you me, there are now plenty of Ricki's recipes on my To Do List. Not only that, but I actually used a half a cup of cornmeal (a newly discovered ingredient) which gave the pancakes a really nice texture. I served them with slices of avocado covered in piri piri spice and freshly cooked corn on the cob, which is just coming into season here.

Mango Peanut Curry

The boy outright sneered at this when he walked through the door tonight. "Oh" he said. "Tofu. You know I don't really like it". "It's homemade!" I said, "it's completely different". He took a bite and grudgingly conceded that homemade tofu was indeed a world away from the slimy wobbly shop bought stuff. He took a second bite, slathered in peanut butter, paused only to say "Oh my god this is good" before actually licking the empty plate a mere nanosecond later. This recipe was from Unique Little Bits, another great inspiration for dinners and light bites. It's basically an easy massaman style curry - peanut butter, coconut milk and Thai curry paste but it's creamy flavours are unbelievably good. I never would have thought of using mango in a curry but this was actually Lisa Rene's entry for the Cinco de Mango and I can definitely testify to its success.

I made my own tofu for this dish following Fuss Free Flavours recipe and am starting to think I really need a tofu press now. Maybe I am just becoming more and more like Chocolate and Zucchini as I'm starting to think I'll soon need to seek professional help for my addiction to kitchen gadgets!

Vegan Brown Rice Sushi

Asian style DIY week continues with vegan sushi. I make these with short grain brown rice, no you don't get the same effect as if you were using proper sushi rice but it's a lot healthier!

Vegan Brown Rice Sushi

1 cup short grain brown rice

tamari

brown rice vinegar

carrot

daikon (aka mooli or Chinese radish)

avocado

alfalfa sprouts

cucumber

nori sheets

wasabi

Rinse and cook the rice in 2 cups of water for about 40 minutes until the rice is soft and the water has all been absorbed. Whilst cooking, add a tablespoon of tamari. Remove from the heat, cover and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Turn the rice out into a glass bowl, add two tablespoons of brown rice vinegar and a tablespoon of tamari, mix well and leave to cool for 15 minutes or so, turning occasionally with a fork.

If you have a sushi mat (it's helpful but not really necessary) place it on the work surface and place the nori sheet shiny side down. Smooth the rice down about half a centimetre thick with the back of a spoon. Leave a two centimetre gap where the end of your roll will be.

Julienne the carrot, daikon and cucumber and finely slice the avocado. Lay the vegetables (not too thick) in a row and top with a row of sprouts. Using the mat, roll the sushi as tightly as possible and with wet fingers, seal the edge. Lay the roll edge down for 5 minutes to sit before cutting with a wet, sharp knife, the thinner the better.

I got the original recipe from Epicurious.

Spinach and Water Chestnut Dim Sum

Dim sum was a regular feature on the Saigon restaurant scene whilst I was living in the Far East (Yeebo is by far the best in town), whilst it wouldn't normally feature in my kitchen here, I'd been inspired to try and make my own wrappers after having seen a few blogs on the subject. It was fiddly of course, this was to be expected, but also quite doughy. I also really knew that I'd been eating wheat flour afterwards as I haven't cooked with all purpose flour in a very long time. It was fun but I think next time I'll buy wrappers from the shop!

Dim Sum Wrappers
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup water

Mix the flour and water together in a bowl and form a dough. You may need more or less water than above but you want the dough to be soft but not sticky. Knead the dough twenty times. Cover and leave to stand for 30 mins. Roll out flat on a floured surface with a rolling pin. Rather than rolling it into neat circles, I just used a cutter to create accurate discs.

Spinach and Water Chestnut filling
1 bag spinach
3 spring onions
1 tin water chestnuts
rapeseed oil
garlic
tamari

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the chopped spring onions and garlic. Add the spinach and a little water and fry until wilted. Finely dice the water chestnuts and add to the pan, along with a splash of tamari. Once cooked, drain in a sieve to remove excess liquid.

Place a pinch of the mixture in the centre of the dim sum wrapper, fold in half and seal the edges using water. Make a series of folds along the edge of the dim sum and steam in bamboo steamers for 5 minutes.

Prawn and Pomelo Salad

We seem to be eating a lot of prawns at the moment, but I do absolutely adore their versatile goodness. Pomelos are often hard to come by (unless you are willing to pay the inflated prices of speciality Thai supermarkets) so when we saw them on offer in Portobello, we leapt at the chance to recreate one of our favourite salads. This is another Asian salad, popular in Thailand where it is known as yam som-o, whose alternately sweet and sharp flavours intermingle to create a light touch which is refreshing on the palate. The original recipe is here. Mark got white rice noodles with his to bulk it up a little.

Prawn and Pomelo Salad

1 packet of cooked prawns

1 head of chicory

1 handful spinach leaves

1 pomelo

juice of one lime

garlic flakes

1 red chili

fresh coriander and mint

Firstly, peel the pomelo. Removing the tough outer rind can be hard work as it is often a centimetre or two thick. Once done, you are then left with the fruit which still has a thinner pith on it like an orange. The easiest way in my mind to get to the actual juicy flesh is to take a sharp knife and literally cut the top and bottom off and then slice as thinly as possible the flesh from all around the sides of the pomelo. It should then be easy to separate each segment and peel the flesh away from the two sides of its casing. I then like to flake mine, rather than leaving it in segments.

Place the pomelo in a bowl with the chicory leaves and the spinach or rocket leaves. Mix the cooked prawns on top. Scatter freshly chopped mint and coriander leaves and garlic flakes (pre-fried garlic available from Asian supermarkets). De-seed the red chili and finely chop it. Mix it in and add the lime juice and a splash of oil such as cold pressed sesame oil.

Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup

When I first stumbled across this recipe on Epicurious, I wasn't sure how authentic it sounded and if the flavours would actually work that well. After having lived in Vietnam for almost two years, I am a huge fan of Vietnamese cuisine but dismiss most recipes as merely a bastardisation of the original or having nothing more than a passing nod to pan-Asian flavours. I was incredibly impressed with how this came out though, as was Mark. He got white rice noodles and cashew nuts in his to bulk it out a bit and we both thought the flavours were fantastic. I didn't add any bean sprouts but would definitely do that next time as I think it would work well.

Vietnamese Chicken and Pineapple Soup

2 red chilis

2 cloves of garlic

1 pineapple

3 chopped tomatoes

Handful of dried shiitake mushrooms, re-soaked and finely sliced

1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded

2 tablespoons of fish sauce

1 stalk lemongrass

Handful chopped fresh mint

Handful chopped fresh coriander

Cut the top and shave the sides off the pineapple. The eyes should still be left on. Next, trim the eyes off in slices, leaving the main part of the pineapple without any eyes or skin left on. Place the shaved sides with the eyes on in a hand blender with plenty of water. Puree this mixture and set aside. Fry the chopped garlic and chili in a saucepan with a splash of olive oil. Add the fish sauce and boil for two minutes until the liquid is reduced by half. This will stink to high heaven but the flavour in the soup is more subtle. Add the chopped sliced mushrooms, tomatoes, beansprouts (if using) and a handful of cubes of the remaining pineapple flesh. Fry for a couple of minutes before placing a fine sieve over the saucepan and pushing the pineapple puree mixture through the sieve directly into the pan. Push hard on the rough bits and discard. Add a little more water if needed. Simmer for ten minutes or so with a stick of crushed lemongrass to add flavour. Just before serving, add the chopped fresh herbs and a grind of black pepper. I cooked my chicken separately and just sprinkled the shredded pieces directly on top. The rice noodles went into the pan just after the pineapple puree and I gave them a good 6 minutes to cook. A sprinkle of cashew nuts on top bring a nice extra flavour in.

I think the original recipe probably explains this better than I have but it is really worth an experiment, especially for us since we picked up a super cheap pineapple in the market and had chicken left over in the fridge.

Sesame Crusted Tuna in a Tamari-Wasabi Marinade

On our usual tour of the market this weekend, we walked up to Golborne Fisheries on Golborne Road. This is a true gem of a fish shop with a fanatastic selection. Apparently they stock some of the big department store foodhalls as well, so the quality is excellent. We bought two beautiful thick slices of tuna and paired it with steamed fresh vegetables which were of course also bought from the market that day. Mark had his with King Soba 100% buckwheat noodles to complete the Japanese feel. Tuna is not a fish we eat regularly (for environmental as well as health eg mercury level reasons) but decided to treat ourselves and it was truly a delicious meal.

Sesame Crusted Tuna in a Tamari-Wasabi Marinade

Two tuna steaks
One tablespoon of sesame oil
One teaspoon of powdered wasabi
Two tablespoons of tamari
Handful of mixed black and unhulled cream sesame seeds

Mix the sesame oil, powdered wasabi and tamari together in a glass and pour over the tuna in a shallow dish, making sure that the tuna steaks are well covered in the marinade on both sides. Leave to marinate in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours. Heat a griddle pan on the hob with a spray of olive oil until hot, then sear the tuna for 2 minutes each side, leaving the middle pinkish.

Carrot and Arame Salad

Not only am I always looking for unusual salad recipes but am always interested to find new and tasty ways to use seaweed for its incredible nutrition. I half invented this recipe and half stole it from something I saw in the salad bar in Whole Foods. It's always a quick but nutritious light bite that's easy to whip up, since I always keep these ingredients in the cupboard.

Carrot and Arame Salad

Two whole carrots - peeled and grated

Handful of dried arame, soaked until soft - around 10 minutes

Sprinkle of black sesame seeds

Japanese Dressing

Two tablespoons cold-pressed sesame oil

One tablespoon brown rice vinegar

One tablespoon tamari

Half tablespoon of rice mirin

Half teaspoon of wasabi powder

It's simple - mix all the solid ingredients, then mix all the dressing ingredients in a glass and pour. I hear if you let the wasabi powder stand for 10 mins or so the flavours get stronger but I never ever have the patience to wait for this! Mark commented that this would be nice with a piece of salmon for a more substantial and Japanese influenced meal. If I make extra Japanese dressing, I always keep it and it tastes great with prawn and avocado, or spinach and sesame seed.

Buckwheat Noodle Tofu Peanut Salad

Unashamedly, I stole my inspiration for this salad straight from 101 Cookbooks but of course I made a few of my own variations since we didn't have any peanut butter in the house. I've become a stricter vegetarian since reading Diet for a New America (although the Merguez were so tasty the other night and I will continue to eat chicken and seafood) so I guess it just seems right that tofu makes a re-appearance in my diet. Yes, I know Mark doesn't like it but I was really hoping that slathering it in delicious peanut sauce would help him force it down!

Buckwheat Noodle Tofu Peanut Salad

Buckwheat soba noodles
Green beans
Beansprouts
Peanuts
Tofu
Closed cap Mushrooms
Spring onions
Fried Garlic Flakes
Coriander

Peanut Dressing

Large handful of peanuts
Sesame oil
Boiling water
Dried red chili flakes
2 garlic cloves
Brown rice vinegar

Whilst cooking the noodles in some boiling water, I steamed the green beans and tofu in my bamboo steamers on top. In a saucepan, I water-fried the sliced mushrooms, spring onions and beansprouts. Meanwhile, I combined the dressing ingedients in my hand blender and blended until they reached a pouring consistency. I coated the noodles in the peanut sauce before mixing in the other ingredients and adding a sprinkle of fried garlic flakes for a touch of authenticity and some fresh coriander leaves for decoration.

Coriander and Cashew Nut Pesto

I wanted to try making an Asian style pesto sauce - thought it would be great over salads. It also turned out to be raw, but this wasn't really deliberate.

Coriander and Cashew Nut Pesto

One bunch coriander

Two tablespoons cashew nut butter

Small knob of peeled ginger

One garlic clove

One tablespoon of sesame oil

One deseeded red chili

Juice of one lime

One stalk lemongrass chopped

I put all of the ingredients in a my handheld food blender and whizzed it up. If the consistency is too thick, just add a little water until it reaches the right consistency for pouring.

Here, I have served it in a salad of steamed cabbage, steamed broccoli, bean sprouts, sliced mushrooms and prawns.

Tamarind Coconut Prawns with Steamed Cabbage and Shiitake Mushrooms

After having spent so many years living and working in Asia, I do have a strong tendency to cook Asian inspired food. The prawn recipe was one the lovely and heavily pregnant Kim cooked for us when we went back to Vietnam in January and it remained one of Mark's best meals in a trip full of amazing meals. She didn't give me the recipe but I kind of made it up and it tasted fine.

Tamarind Coconut Prawns

1 packet cooked peeled tiger prawns

tablespoon of freshly grated ginger

2 cloves garlic crushed

1 red chili

teaspoon of tamarind paste

half block of coconut cream in a cup of water

coconut oil

I like to cook with coconut oil as it is one of the most stable oils you can cook with, as well as being a more nutritious option. It is quite high in fat however so I only use a dessert spoon's worth.

Melt the coconut oil in a frying pan, fry the ginger, garlic and chopped fresh chili. Add the coconut cream or coconut milk. Stir in the tamarind paste. Bring the liquid to the boil and lower the heat, so that the liquid simmers and reduces in consistency. Simmer for 15 mins or so or until the liquid is creamy and full of flavour. Add the prawns in at the last minute just to heat through and serve.

I served this with another Asian style cabbage dish which I was inspired to create after reading this post which I found via the absolutely wonderful and inspirational Tastespotting.

Steamed Cabbage with Shiitake Mushrooms

Half white cabbage

Handful of dried shiitake mushrooms

Sliced red chili

Thinly sliced spring onion

Fried garlic flakes

I simply sliced a half white cabbage in my bamboo steamers and steamed it for about 3-5 mins. I soaked some dried shiitake mushrooms in a cup of hot water for 5 mins, thinly sliced them then combined them with the cabbage in a saucepan along with some more fresh chopped chili, spring onion and a sprinkle of Thai style fried garlic flakes (my new favourite authentic Asian ingredient - although clearly covered in bad oils!). I stirred it all through and served alongside the prawns for a tasty accompaniment.