Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Grilled Island Chicken

*Serves 2-4, depending on how many chicken breasts are marinaded

1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1-2 lemons)
1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
1 clove garlic, finely minced
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2-4 chicken breasts

Stir Fry Basil Chicken

*Serves 4

1 tablespoon canola oil
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon – 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you like it – I used 1/4 teaspoon and it perfectly warm but not too spicy)
1 yellow (or other sweet) onion, cut in half and sliced in thin half moon strips
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pound), cut into bite-size pieces
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 bunch fresh basil (about 1/2 cup), torn into pieces
2 large tomatoes, chopped

Heat the oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly and cook for 30 seconds to one minute, until fragrant (don’t let the garlic burn!). Add the sliced onions. Cook until translucent, stirring every now and then, about five minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 3-5 minutes, until browned and cooked through.

Add the oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and sugar and stir until everything is well coated. Reduce the heat to medium low and sprinkle the tomatoes over the top of the mixture. Tear the basil by hand and sprinkle it over the tomatoes. Over medium heat, let the tomatoes and basil sit, without stirring, for about 5-7 minutes. Stir the mixture until everything is well combined and heated through.

Serve immediately over rice.

Recipe Source: adapted (according to what I had on hand) from Emily, a MKC reader

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze


adapted by Our Best Bites from Cooking Light

2 C flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 C sugar
1/4 C (4 Tbs) real butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 C mashed ripe bananas (about 4 large bananas)
1/4 C sour cream or plain yogurt
3 Tbs apple juice or milk*
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C coconut

Topping: 2 Tbs additional coconut
Glaze: 1/2 C powdered sugar whisked with 1 1/2 Tbs fresh lime juice

*as in: don't go buy apple juice just for this recipe. If you don't already have some, just use milk!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended. Add eggs and beat to combine. Add banana, sour cream or yogurt, apple juice (or milk), and vanilla. Beat until blended.
Add flour mixture and beat at a low speed until just combined. Stir in 1/2 C coconut.

Pour batter into a 9x5" loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Sprinkle additional 2 Tbs coconut on top.

Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until a knife or skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Note: Check bread after about 40 minutes. If the top has browned and the coconut pieces are looking toasty, cover top of bread lightly with a piece of foil. Continue baking until done.

When done, remove pan from oven. Let cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes and then carefully remove from pan. Whisk powdered sugar and lime juice together for the glaze and then drizzle over top. Cool for another 15 minutes before slicing.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Panda Express Chicken with String Beans

PANDA EXPRESS GARLIC CHICKEN BREAST WITH STRING BEANS

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. rice wine
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup onion, peeled, cut in 1/2-in. wedges
2 tbsp. garlic, minced
1 tsp. black-bean sauce
12 oz. green beans, trimmed, cut in 3-in. pieces
1 cup red bell pepper, large dice
hot cooked rice or noodles (for serving)

Slice chicken breasts into 1/4-in. strips; place in medium bowl.

Combine soy sauce, wine, sesame oil, cornstarch and sugar in small bowl; pour over chicken breast; toss to coat. Cover; refrigerate 20 minutes or until ready to cook.

Heat vegetable oil in wok (or large nonstick skillet) over high heat until quite hot. Add chicken; cook, stirring constantly, 3 minutes or until chicken begins to brown and is cooked through. Remove with slotted spoon to serving dish.

Return wok or skillet to high heat; add onion, garlic and black-bean sauce. Quickly stir in green beans and bell pepper. Add 1/4 cup water, cover, and cook 3 minutes or until vegetables are tender-crisp.

Return chicken to wok; stir; toss over high heat until well mixed and heated through; about 2 minutes.

Place in serving dish; serve immediately with rice or noodles.

Servings 4
From: Panda Express, Rosemead, Calif.
Source: Restaurants & Institutions Magazine

Thursday, March 25, 2010

salmon

Oven-Roasted Salmon, Asparagus and New Potatoes Recipe
INGREDIENTS
1 pound small new potatoes, scrubbed clean and halved
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 pound medium asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal, 1-inch long pieces
1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 strip of lemon zest
1 small garlic clove, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 salmon steaks (10 oz each), cut about 1-inch thick
1 lemon, cut into large wedges
METHOD
1 Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large, shallow baking dish (10x14 inch) coat the potatoes with olive oil. Arrange the potatoes, cut side down, in the baking dish and roast for 10-12 minutes, until the potatoes begin to brown on the bottom. Turn the potatoes over and roast another 10 minutes until browned on top. Remove the baking dish from the oven.
2 In a medium bowl, toss the asparagus with the chopped dill, lemon zest, garlic, salt and season with pepper to taste. Add the asparagus mixture to the potatoes and stir to combine.
3 Push the vegetables to the side of the dish to make room for the salmon steaks. Return the baking dish to the oven and roast the salmon and asparagus for 10-12 minutes, or until the fish is just cooked through.

If you want, remove the skin and center bones, and arrange on individual plates before serving. Garnish with fresh dill and lemon wedges.
Serves 4.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Gobi Matar Sabzi

Original recipe from my veggie world
- 1 big onion ground to a fine paste
- 1 big tomato pureed
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp garlic powder (or minced fresh garlic, 1-2 cloves)
- 1 tsp green chili paste
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
- 1 cup cleaned cauliflower florets
- salt to taste (between 1 tsp and 1 TBSP)
- pinch of turmeric
- 1/4 tsp red chili powder
- 3 tsp garam masala powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tbsp oil
- chopped fresh cilantro
- Jane note: this dish would be good with more kick, as well – I liked it mild, but I want to experiment with making it spicier some time

Directions:
In a large skillet, heat oil (mediumish heat). Add onion paste and fry till cooked or until raw smell disappears. Add ginger, garlic (if using fresh), green chili paste and saute for one minute. Add tomato puree and cook till paste is thick. Add powdered spices and salt. Stir then add vegetables. Cover and simmer over medium heat until cauliflower is tender. Add chopped fresh cilantro prior to serving.

Serve with basmati rice, with fresh cilantro added to the rice just prior to serving.

Kiwi-Lime Bars with Macadamia Nut Crust

CRUST

1 c macadamia nuts
1/4 c sugar
1 1/4 c all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
13 Tbs chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
FILLING

2 c plus 2 Tbs sugar
5 large eggs
1/4 c fresh lime juice
1/2 c kiwi puree (about 2 good sized kiwi)
1/3 c all purpose flour
1 Tbs lime zest
3/4 c (packed) sweetened flaked coconut (about 3 ounces)
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Blend nuts and sugar in processor until nuts are finely ground. Add flour and salt; blend 5 seconds. Add butter and process until well blended. Press dough evenly onto bottom of 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan. Bake crust until golden brown, about 28 minutes; cool completely in pan on rack. Maintain oven temperature.

Whisk sugar and eggs in large bowl until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Whisk in lime juice, kiwi, then flour and lime peel. Pour filling over crust in pan.

Bake lime bars 25 minutes (filling will not be fully set). Sprinkle coconut evenly over. Bake until filling is completely set, about 10 minutes longer.

Cool bars in pan on rack. Chill uncovered until cold, at least 2 hours. Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep chilled. Cut around pan sides to loosen bars; cut into 24 pieces. Using small spatula, transfer bars to platter; serve chilled.