Best Recipes of 2010

This year I have shared a lot of recipes...Here are my personal favorites...

Home-style Grillades and Cheese Grits
 A Cajun classic and the ultimate comfort food.

Baked Angel Hair Pasta with Italian Sausage and Rosemary Alfredo Sauce

 This is one of my "go to" recipes.

Grilled Chicken with Chopped Greek Salad

My favorite summer meal.

Banana Nut Muffins with Maple Syrup Glaze 

The glaze really makes these!

Italian Sausage and White Bean Soup

The perfect cold weather comfort food.

Fried Green Tomatoes with Guthrie's Sauce 

Oh so good!

Green Chile Chicken Pasta

 A simple to prepare meal your whole family will love.

Sweet Balsamic Grilled Chicken

 My favorite grilled chicken marinade.

Hoppin John

This is a must for every New Year's Day menu, but it is too good to only eat once a year.

Porcupine Meatballs

Just like my mom used to make.

Spicy Tomato Soup

I hate cold weather.  Wednesday when it was so icy, I slipped off the sidewalk and fell off of a four foot retaining wall.  It was dark and No!  I was not drinking.  I was OK, only a couple scrapes and bruises.  I'm just glad nobody saw me fall....So I hate cold weather, but when it's cold outside there is nothing I crave more than a bowl of tomato soup and a grilled ham and cheese sandwich.  Most tomato soups are bland, but the jalapeno in this one gives it plenty of heat.  Perfect for keeping you warm.

Spicy Tomato Soup

2 32-35 oz cans whole tomatoes
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped seeds included
3 tbs olive oil
1 tsp cumin
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup cream
2 tbs sugar
2 tsp  kosher salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Drain one can of the tomatoes and discard the juice.  Then in a blender puree both cans of tomatoes, then set aside.  In a heavy pot heat the olive oil and saute the onion, garlic, and  jalapeno.  Add the cumin.  Then stir in the tomatoes, chicken broth, sugar, salt, and pepper.  Bring to a simmer and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.  Then blend the soup with an immersion  blender.  Then stir in the cream.  Taste and season with additional salt to taste.

**If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender.  Just be sure not to fill  over 1/3 full, as hot liquids expand when blended.

You might also be interested in Italian Sausage and White Bean Soup and Roasted Zucchini Soup.

Beef Stew In Onion Flavored Sauce - Malaysian Monday

I am no Malaysian food expert, so I will not pretend to be one.  A year ago the only Malaysian dish I had even heard of was satay, but  thanks to some of my blogger friends' Malaysian Monday posts I have learned Malaysian food is so much more than satay.  Just like Malaysia it is very diverse, a mix of Indian, Chinese, and Thai flavors.  So for the past several months I have been planning on participating in Malaysian Monday, but I keep putting it off...I decided it was just easier to go ahead and do it, than keep thinking about doing it. 

So I went to the bookshelf got my copy of Martin Yan's Asia, flipped to the chapter on Malaysia and just picked a recipe.  I actually picked this recipe because all of the ingredients besides the curry leaves are easy to find.  You might be able to find everything  at a regular grocery store.  If you can't find curry leaves, just leave them out.  There is no good substitution.

Now even before I cooked this recipe I knew it was going to taste good, since by themselves all these ingredients taste good...and cooked together...The meat is so tender and the spicy, lemony, salty broth is so good over rice.

Beef Stew In Onion Flavored Sauce
adapted from Martin Yan's Asia

1 & 1/2 lbs boneless beef chuck
2 tbs soy sauce
6 small dried chilies
1/4 cup warm water
2 medium onions, diced
2 stalks lemongrass
2 tbs oil
4 cups water
juice of a lime
3 inch cinnamon stick
1 stalk of curry leaves
2 tbs black bean garlic sauce
2 tbs oyster sauce
1 tbs sugar

 Cut the meat into 1 inch cubes.  Toss the beef with soy sauce and cornstarch.  Let stand for 30 minutes.  Then crumble the dried chilies in a blender add the warm  water.  Let stand for 20 minutes.  Blend until smooth and set aside.  Remove the outer green leaves from the lemongrass and crush the bottom 6 inches of the lemongrass stalks.  Then heat the oil in a 3 quart pan over medium high heat.  Brown the meat on all sides.  Then remove the meat from the pan.  Reduce the heat to medium.  Add the onions and cook until they are soft.  Then add the pureed chilies and cook for 1 minute.  Return the meat to the pan and add the water, lime juice,cinnamon stick, curry leaves, lemongrass.  Bring to a simmer.  Cover the pan and allow the meat to simmer for 1 to 1 & 1/4 hours or until the meat is tender.  Stir in the black bean sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar.  Simmer for about 10 to 15 additional minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly.

Serve this with plenty of rice.

We actually really enjoyed this and I look foward to cooking more Malaysian recipes.  I am really hoping that some of my Malaysian friends will email me some recipes...hint...hint!!!

Sending this to Suresh @ 3 Hungry Tummies for Muhibbah Malaysian Monday.

If you are interested in Muhibbah Malaysian Monday click HERE to find out more.

Gong Bao Chicken - "Kung Pao Chicken"

Last week I ordered Kung Pao chicken at a Chinese restaurant. What they served me was a plate of stir-fried celery and zucchini with just a tiny...I mean a really tiny bit of chicken. I was pretty disappointed, OK I mean really disappointed. Probably because I have gotten used to cooking this recipe at home. Tonight was it's third appearance at the dinner table. It is much better than any Kung Pao chicken I have ever eaten in a restaurant. This recipe comes from my friend Suresh over at 3 Hungry Tummies.

  
The first time I made this I did not heed the warning about the chillies.  I used all twenty.  Boy was it HOT!!!  TOO HOT!!!  and I like spicy food.  Ten chillies is perfect.  Still spicy, but not so hot it is painful to eat.

Asian markets can be intimidating for us Non-Asians, all the packaging looks nearly identical.  So I hope this picture helps.

Gong Bao Chicken or Kung Pao Chicken
adapted from 3 Hungry Tummies

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp Chinese cooking wine
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cornstarch
1 inch piece ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
6 garlic gloves, sliced
1 bunch green onions, white parts only, cut into 1/4 inch rounds
1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
10 small dried chillies, stemmed and cut in half
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
3 tbs peanut oil

For the sauce:
6 tbs sugar
2 tbs dark soy
2 tbs light soy
6 tbs Chinkiang black vinegar
2 tbs sesame oil
2 tbs chicken broth
2 tbs cornstarch

Cut the chicken into 1 inch cubes.  Then marinate in 1 tsp soy, 1 tsp Chinese cooking wine, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tsp of cornstarch.  In a bowl mix together the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.  In a wok over high heat add 2 tbs oil and brown the chicken.  Remove the chicken and set aside.  Then add the 1tbs oil and fry the dried chillies and Sichuan peppercorns for 30 seconds.  Then add the ginger, garlic, and green onions.  Fry for another 30 seconds.  Then return the chicken pieces to the wok and cook for an additional 30 seconds.  Pour in the sauce mixture and mix well.  Then turn off the heat as soon as the sauce has thickened.  Toss in the peanuts.  Serve immediately.

If you are even slightly interested in authentic Asian cooking, I highly recommend you check out 3 Hungry Tummies.

Cashew Cookies

Today has been a lazy Sunday, which was nice because this week has been pretty busy...but after watching two Christmas movies on TV...I needed a break from that.  So perfect time to make cookies.  Several months ago I saw these cookies on one of my favorite blogs, Magic Flavours.  I thought they would make perfect Christmas cookies...Well tis the season to make Christmas cookies.

Now I've eaten lots of cookies, but this was my first time having cashew cookies.  They are so good.  The cashews give their distinct sweet nutty flavor to a not too sweet cookie, that is just screaming to be dunked into a cup of hot chocolate.  Since there are so few ingredients in these cookies, they all need to be of the best quality.  This is a perfect time to use a European style butter.  It really does make a difference in the taste of what you are baking.

Cashew Cookies

adapted from Magic Flavours

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioners sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract
2 & 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup raw cashews, plus more for topping each cookie
turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
1 egg yolk
1 tbs water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  On a cookie sheet roast the cashews until they are fragrant.  Allow the nuts to cool.  Then pulse 1 cup of the cashews in a food processor, until they are ground fine.  In the bowl of a mixer cream together the butter, confectioners sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.  Then mix in the flour, baking powder, and ground cashews.  Mix until well combined.  The dough will be soft.  Form the dough into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap and chill for a couple hours.  Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface.  Using a 2 inch round cutter cut out the cookies and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Make an egg wash by mixing together an egg yolk with 1 tbs of water.  Brush the egg wash over the top of the cookies.  Then sprinkle liberally with turbinado sugar and press a whole roasted cashew  into the top of each cookie.  Bake for about 7 minutes or until they are golden brown.  Cool the cookies on a wire rack.

This recipe makes about 4 dozen cookies.

You might also want to bake up a batch of Alabama Cookies or Neiman Marcus Cookies.

Italian Sausage and White Bean Soup

Since every morning this week there has been ice on my car window I think I will officially declare that winter is here, even though the calendar says it is still a couple of weeks off.  This is perfect weather for making a big pot of soup and this soup is my all time favorite.  This recipe makes a big pot, so be sure to invite the neighbors over.

This soup is so hearty, just give me a bowl and some crusty bread and I am in heaven.  You could use bulk italian sausage, but by using the links and cutting them into small pieces you end up with little meatballs.  I'm also a big believer of seasoning as you cook, so instead of adding all the salt at the end I add a little during each stage of cooking.  It just makes the finished pot of soup taste better.

It might just be in my head, but I think whole canned tomatoes taste better than crushed ones...maybe because they are less processed, but again it just might be in my head.  Since I buy the whole ones instead of crushed, the best way I have found to chop them is with a pair of clean kitchen shears.  This way you don't lose any of their juice and you don't have to wash the food processor.

Italian Sausage and White Bean Soup


1.5 lbs hot italian sausage, about 5 links
1 medium onion, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 bay leaves
35 oz can whole tomatoes
2- 15.8 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
5 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup fresh torn basil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper, to taste

Remove the sausage from the casing and cut into bite sized pieces.  Then in a large dutch oven over a medium flame add 2 tbs olive oil and brown the sausage.  Be sure not to crowd the sausage in the pot, you may need to brown it in two batches.  Then add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, red pepper flakes, thyme, oregano, bay leaves, and fennel seeds.  Season with a little salt and pepper and saute for about 10 minutes.  Then add the chopped tomatoes with their juice and the cannellini beans.  Season with a little salt and pepper.  Then add the chicken broth.  Cover and simmer for about an hour or until the vegetables are tender.  Then stir in the basil and parmesan cheese.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.

If this recipe looks familiar...Well it should I shared it a while back, but some recipes are worth sharing twice.

You might also be interested in Spicy Tomato Soup and Roasted Zucchini Soup.