This is a recipe from my childhood, one that we learned from a family friend, Yvonne Francis, who hosted us at her Cranston, RI home for a memorable Thanksgiving in the 1980s. Using a stockpot, bring about 12 cups of water to a boil, adding a little (about 1 tsp) salt. Peel 6 medium-large Russet… Continue reading Simple mashed potatoes
Mashed sweet potatoes
This is another recipe from my childhood, one that we learned from a family friend, Yvonne Francis, who hosted us at her Cranston, RI home for a memorable Thanksgiving when I was in elementary school. Using a stockpot, bring about 12 cups of water to a boil, adding a little (about 1 tsp) salt. To… Continue reading Mashed sweet potatoes
Stuffed pepper with minced beef, rice, and lentils
Recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/lightened-up-stuffed-peppers-recipe.html. We used uncooked basmati rice. In lieu of ½ tsp cinnamon (which I sometimes find cloying in savory dishes), we used ¼ tsp each nutmeg and cinnamon. We even had enough stuffing to fill a fifth bell pepper. (Note: we used the five leftover pepper tops for a Lebanese farmer’s salad, which… Continue reading Stuffed pepper with minced beef, rice, and lentils
Persian-style sweet and sour eggplant and chickpea stew
The key ingredient is pomegranate molasses. Recipe from Martha Rose Shulman at the NYT: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013763-sweet-and-sour-eggplant-tomatoes-and-chickpeas I added juice from half a lemon at the end for brightness. (Nov. 2015)
Curried yellow split pea soup
Straightforward recipe that takes less than an hour to make. It tastes creamy yet is dairy-free. For the 1 Tbsp curry powder, we used 1 ½ tsp McCormick curry powder and 1 ½ tsp Jamaican curry powder. If you use vegetable stock instead of chicken broth, this can be vegetarian. We used an immersion blender… Continue reading Curried yellow split pea soup
Lebanese meatball soup (shorba keema)
For the meatball mixture, combine 1/3 cup minced onion (patted dry with paper towels), ¼ cup finely chopped Italian parsley, 1 ½ tsp balsamic vinegar, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp each black pepper and allspice, 1/8 tsp cinnamon, and 1/16 tsp each cloves and nutmeg. Mix by hand, then using a mounded tsp, form by… Continue reading Lebanese meatball soup (shorba keema)
Pan-seared king oyster mushrooms
Cut 2-3 large king oyster mushrooms lengthwise into ¼ inch Slices. Heat 1 Tbsp oil (here, a 2:1 ratio of toasted sesame oil and grape seed oil) in a pan, then brown slices on both sides. Lightly season with salt and black pepper. (Nov. 2015)
Korean cucumber salad (oi namul)
Slice two cups of cucumber lengthwise, then into ¼ inch diagonal slices. Mix with 1 ½ tsp salt and let sit for 30 minutes, then rinse and drain well. Combine the drained cucumber with 1 Tbsp each sugar and rice wine vinegar, ½ tsp each toasted sesame seeds and red pepper powder (kochu garu), 1/8… Continue reading Korean cucumber salad (oi namul)
Baked salmon in puff pastry
We used store-bought frozen puff pastry that we defrosted in the fridge for 2-3 hours. Recipe and useful video here: http://livewellnetwork.com/My-Family-Recipe-Rocks/recipes/Salmon-Stuffed-Puff-Pastry/9263020. We used about 1 lb salmon and baked it for 45 mins. We also served mixed green salad with a honey dijon mustard vinaigrette. The vinaigrette recipe is here: http://www.onceuponachef.com/2011/03/roasted-beet-salad-with-goat-cheese-walnuts-honey-dijon-vinaigrette.html. We added an extra… Continue reading Baked salmon in puff pastry
Chinese pickled broccoli stems and carrots
I had pickled broccoli stems at a Chinese restaurant many years ago, and they were delicious - tangy and crunchy. I recently purchased a sprouting broccoli with lots of side shoots as well as the main stem, so I decided to try this recipe for Chinese sweet and sour pickles. I peeled the broccoli shoots… Continue reading Chinese pickled broccoli stems and carrots
Cooking Adventures 