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I cook as a hobby, and I maintain this blog primarily to keep track of recipes that my family has enjoyed over the years. I started blogging back in 2015, in response to requests from friends for recipes they had seen me post on Facebook (but that I couldn’t easily catalog). My original blog was on another platform that became less user-friendly over time. I migrated my blog to WordPress earlier this year, and I’ve spent more time than expected reformatting the migrated posts.
This blog is and always will be a work in progress. For example, I currently provide Tags for posts, but I have not coded for Categories. I also generally try to share the recipes themselves in my posts, but in cases where the recipe is not available online, I try to identify the source (e.g., the cookbook title and author) as needed. In some cases, such as where a family has shared their recipe with me but hasn’t authorized me to share it widely, I post a photo of the dish with that proviso.
I recently added a Search widget to this blog. On the desktop version, the Search bar appears prominently on the left hand side. But for some reason, it is hidden on the mobile app. If you’re on your phone, tap on the SHOW tab at the top left of the home page. That will reveal another screen with the Search bar.
I hope you enjoy exploring my blog and find some recipes to try.
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After having this dessert beverage at Korean restaurants for years, I finally tried making it at home. Recipe from Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking cookbook. Similar recipe on her blog: http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/sujeonggwa. The directions were the same, with only slight differences in ingredient proportions. Her cookbook calls for 10 cups water, 5 cinnamon sticks, 3 oz ginger, 1 cup sugar, and 6 dried persimmons (I used 5). (June 2015)
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This involves two separate steps:
Anchovy Broth: Place 3 ½ cups water, 8 oz daikon radish (peeled and cut into ¼ inch rounds), and 1 large onion (sliced) in a large stock pot, cover, and bring to a boil. Cook over medium-high heat for 45 mins. Add 20 large dried anchovies (heads and guts removed) and 1 (7×10 inch piece) dried kelp (dashima or kombu), then cook for an additional 15 mins. Remove pot from heat, strain, and then add 2 ½ tsp kosher salt. This yields 10 cups of mother broth. You will need about 3 ½ cups of the anchovy broth for the noodle soup.Noodles and Topping: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add 8 oz thin wheat flour noodles (somyeon). Cook until al dente (about 3 mins), then drain and rinse under cold water. Separately, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp neutral oil, 1 minced garlic clove, 4 pieces packaged fried tofu (sliced into thin pieces), and a pinch of salt. Saute until garlic is crisp and golden brown (about 1 min). Add 1 tsp sugar and 2 tsp toasted sesame oil. Saute until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat.
To Serve: Place the noodles in a two bowls, then pour the hot anchovy stock, then garnish with the fried tofu mixture. Drizzle with toasted sesame oil and garnish with some red pepper powder and chopped scallion greens if desired, then serve immediately.Recipe from Maangchi’s Real Korean Cooking cookbook. We did not make enough mother broth, so we had to supplement with some instant anchovy broth, which was not as tasty. (June 2015)
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The peanut butter provides surprising depth to this soup. Sauté 2 chopped onions, a few cloves minced garlic, and ¼ cup chopped parsley in oil until fragrant and lightly browned. Add 1 tsp each cumin and cumin seeds, 2 cups stewed tomatoes (here, I added 15 oz canned stewed tomatoes with juice and 1 ripe, thinly sliced tomato), 8 cups water or broth (here, we used chicken broth), 30 oz drained chick peas, and 15 oz drained navy beans. Season to taste with a dash each salt, black pepper, cayenne, and baharat (middle eastern 7 spice seasoning). Bring to a boil, then let simmer for 20 mins. Add 2 heaping Tbsp peanut butter to balance out acidity (I also added some sugar). Let simmer for another 10 mins, then serve. This recipe is loosely based on a bean soup from Classic Vegetarian Cooking From the Middle East and North Africa and from this online recipe: http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/12889/peanut-butter-vegetable-chicken-soup/ (June 2015)
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We could not resist trying this recipe, and it was delicious: https://savorysweetlife.com/peanut-butter-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies/#more-10566 Our modifications: first, we used 1 cup smooth peanut butter (Simply Jif) and white sugar instead of turbinado. Because our peanut butter was lightly salted already, we reduced the added salt to 1/8 tsp (from ¾ tsp). Second, we used dark chocolate chips instead of milk chocolate chips. (May 2015)
Note: In a later version, we used light brown sugar instead of turbinado. We reduced the dark chocolate chips to ¾ cup and supplemented with ¼ cup roughly chopped unsalted roasted Virginia peanuts. We placed a whole peanut or peanut half in the center of each cookie before baking. (Aug. 2020)
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Preheat oven to 350 and lightly oil a 2 quart baking dish (7×11 or 8×8). Soak 1 cup fine bulgar wheat in warm water for 10 mins, then drain in a fine-weave strainer, press out water, and set aside. Combine 1 cup raw cashews, 1 chopped onion, 2 Tbsp flour (which we forgot), 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper, ¼ tsp each allspice, cumin, and cinnamon, 1/8 tsp cayenne, 2 Tbsp olive oil, and the drained bulgar in a food processor; process until the mixture forms a paste. In the meantime, sauté 2 chopped onions and 4-5 minced garlic cloves in 4 Tbsp olive oil until lightly browned. Spread half of the cashew-bulgar mixture into the baking dish, then layer the browned onion mixture, then top with the remainder of the cashew-bulgar mixture. Cut into squares (I cut 9 in an 8×8 baking dish), then drizzle with 2 Tbsp olive oil. Bake for 40 mins. Recipe from Classic Vegetarian Cooking From the Middle East & North Africa by Habeeb Salloum. (May 2015)
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Amazingly, we made this from frozen broccoli. The recipe is here: http://lifeonthefoodchain.blogspot.com/2013/05/yes-you-can-roast-frozen-vegetables-yes.html?m=1“>http://lifeonthefoodchain.blogspot.com/2013/05/yes-you-can-roast-frozen-vegetables-yes.html?m=1 (May 2015)
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Place 1 ½ cups whole raw cashews in a small pot. Add enough water to cover by 2 inches, bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 15 mins, then drain, cool, and dry with a paper towel. Using a large high-rimmed saute pan, heat 3 Tbsp oil on medium-high heat, then add 1 tsp brown or black mustard seeds. When seeds start to pop, add the drained cashews, 15-20 curry leaves, 1 jalapeño pepper (seeded and julienned lengthwise), 1 cup frozen green peas, 1 ½ tsp salt, and ¼ cup water. Mix well, bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer for 5 mins. Recipe from Madhur Jaffrey’s World Vegetarian cookbook. (May 2015)
Note: Our pantry sometimes runs out of curry leaves, in which we use a handful (5-6) bay leaves instead. The photo above is from a bay leaf day. (Jan. 2023)
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We used sea bass filet for this recipe from Entice With Spice by Shubhra Ramineni. We also added a dash of fish sauce at the end of cooking. Details to come. (May 2015)
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We made this sauce to go with a steamed artichoke dish, which is here: http://piglettedc.tumblr.com/post/119235552216/artichoke-steamed-in-flavored-broth-this-was-my Here is the sauce recipe, except that we omitted the 2 Tbsp of water and added about ¼ tsp sugar: http://www.drsinatra.com/healthy-heart-recipe-eating-artichokes This was enough sauce for 2 artichokes. (May 2015)
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This was my first time making artichokes at home, and we tried this recipe by Tyler Florence: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/steamed-whole-artichokes-recipe.html. This recipe calls for chicken broth, but you can make it vegetarian by using water or vegetable broth instead. We made a dipping sauce from a separate recipe, which I write about here: http://piglettedc.tumblr.com/post/119235761636/artichoke-dipping-sauce-we-made-this-sauce-to-go
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