Thai Steak Salad with Sesame-Chili-Lime Cashews

Kate was putting together a delicious-smelling steak salad the other night for dinner, when I happened to show up early for girls night.  And being the sweetheart that she is, she fed me :)  A mound of fresh spinach, beautifully glazed grape tomatoes, perfectly seared medium rare steak, and a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  With really crusty bread.  It was to die for.

So it's not surprising that the next day when I was brainstorming dinner ideas, the first idea that came to mind was a steak salad.  I thought I better try something a little different though, just to keep things interesting.  But don't get me wrong, Kate's salad was perfect, and I will most definitely be copying her sometime soon!

I turned to my trusty recipe source: foodgawker.  I used to favor tastespotting, because their layout is just more aesthetically pleasing, but the search function on foodgawker is just so much better that it has become my default when I need cooking or baking inspiration.  Plus, it doesn't have the annoying adds interspersed throughout.

After just a few seconds of browsing through the "steak salad" search results, I found the recipe.  It was from HALF BAKED harvest; the beautiful photos (seriously, you need to go visit Tieghan's website to just to see the mouth-watering photo) and abundance of fresh ingredients just pulled me in.  Plus, this salad had cashews!

I basically follower her recipe to the t, just omitting the hard boiled eggs, the lemon grass (only because it's so tough... the flavor would have been a great addition!), and the Thai chilies (if they had been listed in the ingredients, I definitely would have included them, but I only noticed them afterwards, in her pictures).  I also substituted half of the baby kale with savoy cabbage, because I happened across it in the Loma Linda Market, and really just couldn't help myself.

The only thing I would change for the next time I make this:  Carsten and I are more into the veggies than the steak, so I only cooked one steak for the whole 4 person salad.  The downside: there wasn't enough hot meat to warm the salad.  This kind of salad really needs to be warm.  So next time, I would either add more steak, or very quickly sautée the whole salad in a giant wok before serving.  Or maybe just the greens....

Alright, here is the recipe, [slightly] adapted from HALF BAKED harvest:
serves 4 as a main dish, or 6 as a side
Ingredients
For the Cashews

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp chili powder

1 1/3 cups raw cashews

2 Tbs honey

zest of 1 lime

For the Dressing

2 limes, juiced + the zest of 1 lime

1 Tbs fish sauce

2 Tbs ponzu sauce (or soy sauce, but ponzu sauce is best and works better here)

3 Tbs sweet thai chili sauce

1-2 cloves garlic, minced or grate

1 Tbs fresh ginger, grated

3 Tbs tahini (sesame seed paste) (Tieghan suggested you can substitute peanut butter, if you prefer) 

For the Salad 

2 cups baby kale or other dark leafy greens 
2 cups savoy cabbage (or just use all kale) 
10 oz frozen shelled edamame 
2 carrots, julienned (to the best of your ability) 
1 bell pepper (red, yellow or orange), sliced thin 
1 cup fresh or frozen mango, chopped into chunk 
4 green onions, chopped 
3/4 cup fresh basil 
3/4 cup fresh cilantro 
1/2 cup fresh mint 
1/4 cup black and/or white sesame seeds, toasted (I used half and half)

Procedure 

For the Cashews 

Heat a small skillet over medium heat and add the sesame oil, cashews and chili powder, toss well. Cook over medium heat until lightly toasted and browned, about five minutes. During the last minute of cooking add in the honey (I used 2 tablespoons). Remove from the heat and add the lime zest and 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds. Toss well and set aside.

For the Rest 

Add the steak to a glass pyrex dish or gallon size ziplock bag.

In a glass measuring cup or bowl whisk together the lime juice + zest, fish sauce, ponzu sauce, sweet thai chili sauce, garlic and ginger (DON'T add the tahini yet!). Pour about 1/4 -1/3 of the dressing over the steak, cover or seal the bag and place in the fridge while you prep the rest of the salad, at least 15 minutes (the longer the better).

Meanwhile add the tahini to a small bowl and microwave until melted and smooth, about 15-20 seconds. Add the melted tahini to the dressing, whisk until smooth. Taste and add more tahini or sweet thai chili sauce to your liking, set aside.

Place the frozen edamame in a microwave safe bowl, and cover with water.  Microwave on high for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, until edamame is slightly warm.  Drain well.

In a large bowl add the kale, cabbage, edamame, carrots, bell peppers, mango chunks, green onions, basil, cilantro, and mint. Give it all a good toss.

Heat a grill or grill pan to high heat.  Once hot sear the steak for 3-4 minutes, flip and sear another 3 minutes or until your desired doneness is reached. Remove the steak and allow to rest 5 minutes. Slice steak thinly against the grain and add to the salad. Add the dressing, cashews, and remaining sesame seeds. Toss to coat and massage the dressing into the veggies for 1-2 minutes.  Serve warm.

 

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Meatballs... and Raspberry Tarts

"These meatballs are really good!"

I never, never thought I'd hear those words come out of his mouth.  And as one who loves a good meatball or meatloaf, I was delighted.  Carsten found this recipe at the ever-trusted smitten kitchen, and it is definitely a keeper.

We've made them twice now, and it seems like spaghetti and meatballs will continue to be our go-to dinner menu when we have a couple over for dinner, and had enough time to cook together.  The boys are in charge of making the pasta - they've got it down to a fine art, so who am I to come in and mess that up?  And the girls are in charge of the meatballs and sauce.  The guys can cover the salad, and the girls are all over the dessert.  Dessert is, after all, my favorite part to make.

This time, we had the Sharps over for dinner, and for dessert we made raspberry tarts.  I finally got to pull out the cute little individual tart pans that Mom got me a while ago.  I'd been waiting and waiting for the perfect opportunity to use them :)  I just threw together a whole wheat pie crust, then Michelle and I filled the tarts with a combination of whipped cream, mascarpone cheese, a couple spoonfuls of an italian sparking wine, a tablespoon of powdered sugar, and some lemon zest.  Then we piled them with fresh raspberries.  Yumm.

But as good as dessert was, the fresh pasta and homemade meatballs were the star of the evening.

Ingredients
serves about 8
1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb italian sausage (unwrapped)
3-4 slices bacon
1 1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/3 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste
1 teaspoon onion powder

Procedure
In a large skillet, cook the bacon until almost crispy.  Set the bacon aside to cool, leaving the grease in the pan.  Finely chop the bacon, and combine it with the ground beef, italian sausage and breadcrumbs.  Mix with your hands until well combined.  In the bacon grease, sautée the onion and garlic, then add to the meat mixture, again leaving the grease behind in the pan.  Whisk the egg, then add it to the meat, along with the parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and onion powder.

Form the meat into 2-inch balls.  Set the pan with the bacon grease over low heat, and add as many meatballs to the pan as you can, without having any touching each other.  Cover, and let them cook for a couple minutes on each side.  You want them to brown, but you also want them to cook fully before they burn on the outside!  When cooked, remove from the pan and let drain on a paper towel.  Continue cooking in batches until all meatballs are cooked.



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Avgolemono: Lemon Chicken Soup

Two meals that I only ever tasted once during my childhood stick out vividly in my mind to this day.  They were that good.  First, an incredible peanut soup that I had at a friend's house.  Her mom set steaming bowl in front of me, and I'll admit, I was wary... peanut soup?  It was unlike anything I had ever tasted before, and it was amazing.  The second was also a soup.  And it was also at a friend's house.  My best friend growing up had the most amazing cook for a mother.  And I spent so much time at her house that I started calling her mom Auntie Suzanne.  One day she set a bowl of lemon chicken soup in front of me, and I've dreamed about it ever since.

Yesterday Carsten requested soup for dinner.  He knows I love soup, and they are relatively quick to throw together.  When I don't follow a recipe though, my soups all turn out about the same: delicious but not entirely exciting when you just ate it a week prior ;)  So I decided to look for a recipe, and Auntie Suzanne's lemon chicken soup immediately came to mind.  I have no idea why it has taken me this long to try to make it.  It's maybe the easiest soup I've ever made, and if you're craving soup on a hot summer day, this one is refreshing, even though it's piping hot.  I found this recipe at Katie at the Kitchen Door, and adapted it only very very slightly.  Enjoy!


Ingredients
(serves 2, with maybe a bit for leftovers)

6 cups chicken broth (I use low sodium)
2 chicken legs
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed or finely minced
1/2 cup brown rice
1 can cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 eggs, separated, at room temperature
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
salt and pepper to taste (I didn't feel the need to add any salt)

Procedure
In a large pot over medium-high heat, combine the chicken broth, chicken, minced/crushed garlic, and brown rice. Bring to a boil, then cover, and reduce to a simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until both the rice and the chicken are fully cooked – the rice should be tender and the chicken should be cooked through, with no pink in the middle when you cut into it.

Remove the chicken from the pot and place on a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, discard skin and bones, tear meat into bite-sized pieces, and set aside.

Beat the egg white with a whisk in a medium bowl until it is white and thick. Lightly beat the egg yolk, then add the egg yolk to the beaten egg white and whisk together. Slowly pour the lemon juice into the egg mixture as you whisk. The mixture should be pale yellow and fairly thick. Slowly add a thin stream of the hot broth-rice mixture to the egg-lemon mixture, whisking the eggs vigorously as you do so, to temper the eggs, using about 2 cups of the broth mixture. Pour the tempered egg-lemon mixture back into the pot, whisking the soup as you do so. Continue to stir, and add the chicken pieces, chickpeas, and dill to the pot. Cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring, to heat all ingredients through and slightly thicken the soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve hot.


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Stuffed Chicken and Sautéed Radishes with Peach Arugula Salad

We just got home from our vacation in Spain with all of the married Hamanns - including the newlyweds, who joined us straight from their honeymoon!  As a family, we spent a few days on the beach in Sitges and a week in Barcelona, enjoying the sun, beautiful sites, and amazing seafood... probably too much of it.

Now that we're back, Carsten is into full-on study mode for Boards part 2.  He's got a strict schedule he follows, including his breaks for lunch and exercise and dinner.  That's my job for this month: making him a yummy and healthy dinner each night.  Full of veggies and protein.  It's only been one week, but I'm enjoying the challenge of coming up with a delicious and healthy well-rounded meal day after day.  As we normally eat vegetarian when it's just the two of us, it's proved even more challenging to mix up the protein sources...

Tonight was definitely a success.  I know, because he suggested I blog it ;)

The stuffed chicken I adapted from a recipe I found at From Calculu∫ to Cupcake∫.  Maybe I was drawn to it because I relate to math and baking name, or maybe it was just the mouth-watering picture, that looks like anything but a boring chicken breast.

The sweet sautéed radishes I found over at The Endless Meal.  The fabulous photographs are definitely what got me on this one.

And the peach salad I threw together because I was lucky enough to find some fabulous peaches at the grocery store.  I could eat this salad all day... it's like a healthy dessert.

Stuffed Chicken
Ingredients
serves 2
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 oz cream cheese (I used fat-free)
4 oz frozen spinach, thawed
4 oz mushrooms, chopped into small 1/4-inch pieces (I used mini porcini mushrooms)
1 Tbs drained and chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 tsp cooking olive oil
salt and fresh black pepper to taste
paprika
any other seasoning of your choice

Procedure
Let the spinach thaw enough to separate out 4oz.  Return the remaining spinach to the freezer for later use.  Place the chicken on parchment paper, and using a meat tenderizer mallet, pound each chicken breast until about 1/4 inch thick.  Fold the paper over the chicken, and place in the fridge until ready to use.
Add olive oil to a pan over medium heat, and sautée the mushrooms until most of the moisture has been released and evaporated.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes and the cream cheese, and stir until the cheese is melted and well-incorporated.  Squeeze all of the liquid out of the spinach, and add it to the pan.  Mix well, and add salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside to until cool enough to handle.
Remove the chicken from the fridge, and evenly distribute half of the filling onto one end of each breast.  Roll up the breast, taking care not to let the stuffing fall out the sides.  Secure the chicken with tooth picks or kitchen twine.
Drizzle or spray each roll with a little olive oil, then sprinkle with salt, pepper, paprika, and any other seasoning you desire.  Return chicken to the fridge until ready to cook (you can prepare these up to a day in advance).

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place chicken rolls on a baking sheet, and bake until chicken is fully cooked but still moist, about 15 minutes.  Remove tooth picks or twine before serving.


Sweet Sautéed Radishes
Ingredients
serves 2-3
1 bunch of radishes, about 10 in total
1/2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp butter
1 Tbs honey
1 Tbs sherry vinegar (or vinegar of your choice)
dash of sea salt

Procedure
Twist the leaves off the radishes and wash the radishes well. Thinly slice 2 radishes into rounds and set them aside. Then cut the remaining radishes in half lengthwise. Wash the leaves well, place them in a large bowl and set them aside.
Heat the olive oil in a cast iron or non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Add the radishes, cut side down, to the pan. Sautée them for 3-4 minutes, or until the bottoms are brown. Remove them from the pan and place them in the bowl with the radish greens.
In a small sauce pan, heat the butter, honey, vinegar and salt over medium heat.  It will come to a boil.  Cook until the glaze thickens, then pour the glaze over the sautéed radishes and radish greens.  Toss well to coat.
Transfer the sautéed radishes and greens to a serving plate, scatter the thinly sliced radishes around the plate and sprinkle the top with a little extra sea salt.


Peach Arugula Salad
Ingredients
serves 2
2 handfuls arugula
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1 Tbs crumbled goat cheese
1 ripe peach, peeled and chopped

olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Procedure
Assemble the ingredients on two plates in the order listed, top with a light drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

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Tiramisu Cupcakes

 April seems to be birthday month around here, and I love it.  Last weekend I got to spend all Saturday afternoon baking cupcakes with Clare, and helping Jake (along with Clare, Stewart and Alicia) prepare an amazing gourmet pizza party for Michele.  If you're looking for a good party idea, this one turned out splendidly.  We were expecting twenty guests around 7:30.  So at 4:00 we started 6 recipes of this pizza dough.  It's my absolute favorite pizza dough recipe (although beware, it needs more flour than it calls for).  We let the dough rise while we made a trip to the grocery store for the sauce ingredients, then began the sauce.  About an hour later, I divided the dough into 24 equal personal-pizza-size portions, and began rolling them out while Jake and Stewart fired up the grill.  We grilled each dough for just a couple minutes, until they were about half cooked.  Then all the guests brought different ingredients with them, and everyone got to make their own personal pizza!  Once the toppings were arranged to each person's liking, it was just popped back on the grill for less than 5 minutes, and voilà! delicious, gourmet, piping hot personal pizza!  It was a blast.

And these cupcakes were the perfect way to round off the meal :)  Clare and I discovered the recipe over at the BrownEyedBaker.


Ingredients (makes 18 cupcakes)

For the Cupcakes
1 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted (I didn't have any, so I made my own using this tutorial)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved
4 Tbs unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
3 whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar

For the Coffee-Marsala Syrup
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon freshly brewed espresso
1 ounce sweet marsala wine
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the Mascarpone Frosting
1 cup heavy cream
8 oz mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
Unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting

Procedure
For the cupcakes

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Heat milk and vanilla-bean pod and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat just until bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat. Whisk in butter until melted, and let stand 15 minutes. Strain milk mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, and discard vanilla-bean pod.

With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk together whole eggs, yolks, and sugar. Set mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water, and whisk by hand just until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm, up to 6 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. With an electric mixer on high speed, whisk until mixture is fluffy, pale yellow, and thick enough to hold a ribbon on the surface for several seconds when whisk is lifted.

Gently but thoroughly fold flour mixture into the egg mixture in three batches.  Stir 1/2 cup batter into the strained milk mixture to thicken, then fold milk mixture into the remaining batter until just combined.  Don't over mix, or the batter will deflate!

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full (they rise a lot!). Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until centers are completely set and edges are light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

For the syrup
Stir together hot espresso, marsala, and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Let cool.

Brush tops of cooled cupcakes evenly with coffee-marsala syrup; repeat until all syrup has been used (don't worry, they won't be soggy!). Allow cupcakes to absorb liquid 30 minutes.

For the frosting
With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk heavy cream until very stiff peaks form (be careful not to overbeat, or cream will be grainy). In another bowl, whisk together mascarpone and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gently fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated.  Do not beat further after the cream and cheese are combined, or the cream will break. Use immediately.

To finish, dollop or pipe frosting onto cupcakes; refrigerate for an hour or up to overnight in airtight containers. Dust generously with cocoa powder just before serving.

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Crustless Spinach Quiche

Photo Credit: Jay Eads

Last month, my dearest Oma passed away.  She came into my life when I met Carsten, and she adopted me as another one of her granddaughters when Carsten and I were married.  Every minute I had with her over the last seven years was treasured.  There was more love and selfless generosity, more adventurous spirit and zest for life packed into that one tiny lady than I'm likely to find in another person in this lifetime.

On Easter weekend, every single family member joined together to celebrate her life, and the moments we were blessed enough to share with her.  Many emotional tears were shed, and laughs were expelled as we reminisced over our memories.  The morning of the memorial service, everyone gathered at Uncle Gregg's house for a family breakfast.  This recipe I discovered there, and I've slightly adapted it (adding spinach), just to fit my personal taste.  But this quiche will always remind me of that family gathering.

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
3/4 cup milk
1 1/4 cup cottage cheese
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp salt
5 eggs
6 oz cream cheese (low fat works just fine!)
6 oz Jarlsberg or Emmental cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 10oz pkg frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove all moisture

Procedure 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth, then gradually add the milk while continuing to whisk. Bring up to medium heat, and continue to stir.  When it begins to bubble, continue to cook for 2 minutes, until thickened. Remove from the heat and let cool for 15 minutes. 

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the cottage cheese, baking powder, mustard and salt. In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat eggs. Slowly beat in the cream cheese, then cottage cheese mixture and roux (butter/flour/milk mixture) until well combined. Fold in the Jarlsberg and Parmesan, then the spinach.

Pour into a greased 9 inch pie pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes before cutting. Serve warm.



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Grapefruit Old Fashioned

This is definitely my new favorite mixed drink.  It combines (one of) my favorite fruit(s) with my favorite smelling alcohol, and is beautiful and refreshing.  I made an entire punch bowl of it for a party, and the ladle was scraping the bottom of the bowl by the end of the night.  Everyone loved it.

I stumbled across the recipe over at one of my favorite food blogs, A Cozy Kitchen.  Adrianna is always posting delicious and beautiful looking food, desserts and drinks.  And every so often I just can't resist trying out one of her recipes.  This was one of those times.

My camera has been acting up, so unfortunately these photos are straight off my phone... hopefully I'll be back to better pictures soon.

Ingredients
makes 4 cocktails
for the sage syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
3-4 sprig fresh sage

for the drink:
4 ruby red grapefruits (fresh squeezed is worth it!)
Angostura bitters
Bourbon of choic
Sage syrup
Sparkling water
Ice

Procedure
In a saucepan over medium heat, add the water and sugar; stirring until sugar dissolves. Add the sprigs of sage and bring the mixture to a simmer, cooking for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the syrup to steep while you compile the rest of the drink, about 10 minutes. After it’s done steeping, remove the sprigs of sage and discard.

Before you juice the grapefruits, slice off four grapefruit rings for garnish. Juice the grapefruit juice into a measuring cup.  Feel free to strain the grapefruit juice, if it's too pulpy for you.  I ended up straining about half of it, and leaving the other half with all it's pulp.

To build the cocktail, add about 4 liquid ounces of grapefruit juice and two tablespoons of the sage simple syrup to a glass. Add two dashes of bitters, 2 liquid ounces bourbon, a splash of sparkling water and ice. Stir until combined, and garnish with the grapefruit peel. Repeat the process until all the other cocktails are assembled.

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