Caribbean Shiitake

Shiitake mushrooms! This blog is a little different...instead of going to the store to buy my mushrooms, I grew them! Monica bought a mushroom grow kit from Mississippi Natural Products and we grew our own. In about 10 days, you have a harvest of shiitake mushrooms that are grown from a sawdust block.

This mushroom has been cultivated for over 1000 years and is native to China and Japan. You can purchase this mushroom either fresh or dried. If you purchase the mushroom dried you must rehydrate the mushroom by soaking it in water. When cooking, the stems are generally removed because they are somewhat tougher and take longer to cook. If you want to grow your own shiitake mushrooms you can order your own kit at http://www.naturalmushrooms.com/. It does take a while, but it's a neat experience!

Now for the yummy recipe!

Caribbean Shiitake

2 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. brown sugar

2 tsp. white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

2 tsp. cornstarch

1 tbsp. olive oil

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1/2 cup medium sliced scallions, white part only

18 medium to large fresh Shiitake caps, stems removed

1/2 cup cubed fresh pineapple

1/2 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/4" slices

1/2 cup cubed cooked green banana or plantain

1/2 cup firmly packed coarsley chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, cayenne pepper, 1/2 cup cold water, adn the cornstarch in a small bowl and set aside.

2. Saute the scallions and garlic over medium heat in the olive oil in a large saute pan for 30 seconds. Add the shiitake and continue to saute for 2 minutes. If the shiitake do not give off any liquid, add about 2 tbsp. water. Stir in the pineapple, red pepper, and banana or plantain. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

3. Add the cilantro and soy sauce mixture slowly while stirring. Heat until the dish is lightly thickened, add a little more water if too thick. Serve immediately.

**Makes 4 servings. I served mine with quinoa.

Peach Pecan Muffins

Adam and I spent the weekend with Mon this weekend and she made us these super yummy muffins!

Ingredients:

Pecan Streusel
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. melted butter
1 tsp. ground cinnamon





Muffins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup milk
1 large egg
1 cup frozen sliced peaches, thawed and diced
12 paper baking cups

Directions:

1. Prepare Streusel: Stir together pecans and next 4 ingredients until crumbly.


2. Prepare Muffins: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture. Stir together butter, milk, and egg; add to dry ingredients, stirring just until moisteneed. Gently stir in peaches.


3. Place paper baking cups in 12 cup muffin pan, and coat with cooking spray; spoon batter into cups, filling 2/3 full. Sprinkle with Pecan Streusel.


4. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Christmas Goodies!

I had several of my college friends over for a Christmas party Friday night and I made several Christmas Goodies for them to enjoy. I'm going to list 3 of the 4 recipes that I made for Friday. They are all very yummy! To go along with my theme, I have never cooked with or made Red Velvet Cake (Red Velvet Whoopie Pies with Peppermint Filling), creme de menthe (Chocolate Chip Mint Cookies) or Chocolate Chex Mix!

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies with Peppermint Filling

*Recipe from 2009 issue of Christmas Cookies (Better Homes adn Gardens Special Interest Publications)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 oz red food coloring (2 tbsp)

*Peppermint and Cream Cheese Filling

Peppermints, crushed

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, beat the 1/2 cup butter with an electri mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking sode and salt. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Alternately add flour and buttermilk, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Stir in red food coloring.

2. Spoon dough from a rounded measuring tsp 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake in preheated over for 7-9 minutes or until edges are set. Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.

3. Spread Peppermint and Cream Cheese Filling on flat sides of half of the cookies. Top with remaining cookies, flat sides down, pressing lightly together.

4. If desired, before serving, sprinkle each cookie with finely chopped peppermint candies.

*Peppermint and Cream Cheese Filling

In a large bowl, combine two 3 oz packages of cream cheese, softened; 3 tbsp butter, softened; and 1/2 tsp peppermint extract. Beat with an electric mixer on medium-low to medium spped until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in 3 cups powdered sugar. Add milk, 1 tsp at a time, to make a filling of spreading consistency.

Chocolate Chex Mix

*Recipe given to me by Martha Segraves

8 cups of Chocolate Chex Mix

3/4 cups of packed brown sugar

6 tbsp butter or margarine

3 tbsp light corn syrup

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup white almond bark

- Measure cereal into a large microwave safe bowl. Set aside. In a 2 cup microwave safe bowl, microwave brown sugar, buter, and corn syrup uncovered on high 1 to 2 minutes. Stir after 1 minute. Stir until melted and smooth. Stir in baking soda until dissolved. Pour over cereal, stir until evenly coated. Microwave on high for 3 minutes, stir every minute. Spread on cookie sheet. Cool 10 minutes. Break into large bite size pieces.

-In small, microwavable bowl, melt vanilla almond bark uncovered on high about 1 minute and 30 seconds or until smooth. Drizzle over cereal. Refrigerate until set. Store in tightly covered containter.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

*from BettyCrocker.com

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon mint extract
6 to 8 drops green food color
1 egg
1 cup creme de menthe baking chips
1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, extract, food color and egg until soft dough forms. Stir in creme de menthe baking chips and chocolate chunks.
Using small cookie scoop or teaspoon, drop dough 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool 3 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Serve warm or cool completely. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

Bok Choy

So bok choy was my choice a long time ago and then I lost the recipe to put it on here...so I've slacked on my blogging duties! So here's a little about bok choy.

It is a Chinese cabbage that is typically used in Chinese cuisine. It is also known as "white cabbage" due to its white stalk that resembles celery and its green leafy leaves, which look similar to romaine lettuce. When choosing bok choy, make sure the stalk is very firm and the leaves are free from yucky brown spots. Shoppers can typically find this unique cabbage year round at most local grocery stores.

Sesame Chicken and Bok Choy Stir-Fry

from weightwatchers.com

pts per serving: 5

12 oz chicken breast, boneless, skinless, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch strips
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp canola oil, divided

1 tsp dark sesame oil, divided
1 small onion(s), cut into thin strips
1 Tbsp ginger root, fresh, grated
1 Tbsp minced garlic
5 cup(s) bok choy, sliced crosswise 1/4" to 1/2" thick
2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

Instructions:

-Toss chicken with cornstarch in a medium bowl until coated.

-Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon canola oil and 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil. Add chicken and stir-fry until browned and cooked through, about 4 minutes; remove to a plate.

-Heat remaining teaspoon canola oil in same skillet. Add onion and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until golden and almost tender, about 4 minutes.

-Stir in ginger and garlic; cook a few seconds until fragrant.

-Add bok choy and water; stir-fry over medium-high heat until bok choy is crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.

-Add chicken back to skillet; pour in soy sauce and cook, stirring, until chicken is hot, about 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil; toss to coat. Add a few tablespoons more water if you prefer a thinner sauce. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

And the finished product!! It was very yummy...we really like the crispness of the bok choy, it had a very unusual texture, somewhat similar to water chesnuts. Enjoy!!

Anchovies!!

So this week I chose to cook with anchovies! I've always heard of anchovies, but never eaten or cooked with them. I chose to cook with them after watching many a episodes of Rachael Ray at the gym (I usually watch The Food Network while I run...it gives me inspiration for supper :) ) in which she cooked with anchovies...including them in pasta, pizza and even salad. I chose one of her pizza recipes and it was very yummy!

Ok, so enough about me how about anchovy! It is a small fish which is found throughout the world's oceans. It is a green fish with blue reflections. Anchovies are typically caught, salted in brine and then packed in oil or salt. At the grocery you can usually find this smelly fish in the canned fish isle or you can even find anchovy paste at some of your local grocery stores. Anchovies are found in some of your pantry staples such as Worcestershire Sauce, some Caesar salads and as an optional topping to pizza.

Here is my choice for the week-

Puttanesca Pizza by Rachael Ray

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons anchovy paste or 6 fillets flat anchovies
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped pitted good quality black olives
Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 prepared thin crust pizza shell (recommended: Boboli)
3/4 pound very thinly sliced fresh or fresh smoked mozzarella

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, anchovy paste and red pepper flakes. When anchovies (if whole) melt or garlic is tender, about 2 minutes, add tomatoes and olives. Simmer sauce 3 to 4 minutes. Top the pizza with sauce and the sliced cheese. Bake until pizza until cheese melts and crust is crisp, 10 minutes. Cut and serve.

**Anchovies melting in oil..yumm!




Finished product! It was very yummy and very flavorful. FYI...this is smoked gouda cheese on top b/c I couldn't find the smoked mozzarella cheese here in Paris :(

Rhubarb

Ok, so here is my first attempt at cooking something a little out of the ordinary. I plan to take on a new ingredient each week that I've never cooked with, while at the same time giving my readers a little background history about my pick of the week.
This week I cooked a Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler. I have never seen or cooked with this crazy looking so called fruit until this year. I was educated by the nice Kroger produce guy here in Paris.




So, a little background info about rhubarb...it was originally deemed a veggie, but now considered a fruit. It is typically used in pies for its tartness. Rhubarb, a perennial, looks like a red hued celery. When purchasing, beware of limp, blemished, split ended stalks which indicates a not so fresh rhubarb. Rhubarb can be purchased in produce section or in frozen section in a bag. Shoppers usually see this "pie plant" in stores in late spring through mid summer.



This recipe is a weight watchers recipe, so for all you point counters, this desert is only 4 points!


Ingredients:

-16 oz unsweetened frozen strawberries, thawed for 15 minutes

-14 oz frozen rhubarb, or fresh , cut inton 1-inch pieces, thawed for 15 min if frozen

-1/3 cup sugar

-1 Tbsp cornstarch

-1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

-3 Tbsp sugar, divided

-3/4 tsp baking powder

-1/4 tsp baking soda

-4 Tbsp reduced calorie margarine, cut into small pieces

-1/2 cups fat free sour cream

-1/4 cup fat free skim milk

-1 large egg, lightly beaten



Instructions:

~Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.

~In a large bowl, combine strawberries, rhubarb, sugar and cornstarch. Mix well and spoon mixture into bottom of prepared pan.

~To prepare dough, in a large bowl or food processor, combine flour, 2 Tbsps sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Add margarine and mix with your fingers or process in the food processor until mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs.

~Add sour cream and milk and mix until dough comes together.

~Transfer dough to a lightly floured surace and knead 5 times, until blended.



~Divide dough into 16 eqaual pieces and roll eah piece into a small ball. Place balls on to p of strawberry-rhubarb mixture and gently press down to flatten. Brush the surface of dough with egg and sprinkle remaining sugar over top.







~Bake until filling is bubbly and top is golden brown, 45 min. Cool 15 min before serving. Yields about 1/2 cup fruit mixture and 2 biscuits per serving.

Origination of the term "Leanirodious"

Years of growing up around the big unincorporated town of Fruitland, I and the rest of my family members were used hearing the term "leanirodious." If food was good, it was deemed leanirodious by Grandma. Cooking was a passion of hers and for years, the Cherrys and descendants of Cherrys were able to take part in many leanirodious meals!
I am also going to pay homage to Maw Maw as well, I believe she is the queen of sweets and could quite possibly give Paula Dean a run for her money. A many cakes and pies have been shipped out her door to friends and families all over Bolivar. She, a southern cooker, needs no recipe, no internet access or hints from friends about how to cook something..she just does it. No matter what. I have heard stories about cooking coon, squirrel, rabbit and even possum...yes, possum. Like Maw Maw, my dad is also quite an adventurous cook...cooking anything and making me try it at least once...a few memories of good eats forced upon me by dad include, but not limited to bbq goat, gator, frog legs, crawfish, oysters and my ultimate favorite cow tongue. Oh yeah that one was thanks to all the men at Yankee Stadium back in about 1992 at the Field Trials...they all thought it would be a good idea to get the 8 year old to eat cow tongue...I wanted to vomit...ewww!
I now have been married for a little over a year and I am always trying to discover new ways to recreate foods and try any and everything at least once. I even try and harrass a few of my patients at work to find out their cooking secrets. The older ladies that I treat even tease me and have called me and my generation the "recipe cookers." They laugh saying that young girls wouldn't know what to do without a cookbook or recipe. I am going to begin blogging about my cooking journey- all the trial and errors, short cuts, substitues and wild and unusual eats. So here goes nothing!