Mango & Tomato: recipe

2/15/18

Tahini Chocolate Chunk Cookies: New Year, New Recipes

Remember my resolution to make more new recipes this year!? Well, Tahini Chocolate Chunk Cookies is the latest one I tried. I literally baked these cookies this morning before going to work.

Here's what happened:
1) I saw a link for Tahini Chocolate Chunk Cookies on The Nosher Facebook which led me to
2) Hey Alma website and to
3) Sonya Michelle Sanford's website and instagram.

I already knew I love tahini cookies, so adding chocolate chunks and salt to them made perfect sense!

The recipe was incredibly easy: I made the dough last night after eating steak/potatoes/asparagus/Prosecco dinner I made for myself for Valentine's day. The dough needed to be refrigerated for 24 hours, but overnight worked out just fine.

I scooped the dough this morning as I was getting ready for work and brewing coffee, and putting on makeup, and attempting to straighten my hair.

These cookies are so good!!! Please use chocolate chunks as the recipe mentions and not chocolate chips. Next time I'll add pecans.

I love when I make a new recipe and it works!!! I brought some to work to share ;)

1/6/18

Sunday Supper: Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon

Need a filling delicious meal to satisfy your taste buds and warm you up on a freezing cold winter weekend? Make Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon (beef stew) for Sunday Supper.

This is only the first weekend of 2018, and I'm already fulfilling one of my resolutions to make new recipes more often!

As I've mentioned in my earlier post, I've never made Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon...until now that is!

I used this recipe from tbsp, but made a few adjustments.

My thoughts:

1. After making the recipe, I think there really is no need for bacon. There is plenty of flavor from the wine, onions, and mushrooms. Also, the recipe called to simmer bacon in 4 cups of water...what? I simply browned mine.

2. 1 carrot for a big pot of stew is ridiculous ;) I used 3.

3. There are a few steps where you cook the stew in 450F oven for four minutes at a time to cook out the flour. No thanks. I skipped those steps and kept the pot on the stove and then put it in the oven for 3 hours at 325 to tenderize the beef.

4. Did you know good stew beef is expensive? That was news to me.

5. I used brown mushrooms instead of white ones because that's what I had.

6. For the pearl onions, I simply sauteed them for 10 minutes without then simmering them in liquid for 40 minutes. Who has the time? Plus, they are small and 10 minutes was long enough for them to be fork tender.

7. Overall, I loved this stew! It wasn't too complicated to make and I'll probably do it again. Plus, it'll keep well in the freezer.

What have you cooked lately?

1/2/18

2018 Cooking Resolutions & Lucky Lentils For New Year

Welcome to 2018! Hope you are entering the new year in good health and with a good attitude! Are you making any resolutions?

I've made a few cooking related resolutions I'd like to share with you:

1) Cook more new recipes: after making chocolate salami for the first time in December, I felt such satisfaction and pride. There are so many recipes out there I'd like to try. Can you believe I've never made Boeuf Bourguignon?

2) Minimize food waste: this doesn't require an explanation, but will take a lot of work!

3) Stop buying bowls and other kitchen items: one of my friends decided to take a vacation from consumerism in 2018 and I'm following her lead.

What's the photo above you might be thinking? Well, it's the new recipe I made yesterday from Domenica Marchetti for Sausage and Lentils Umbrian Style. Turns out lentils are a lucky food to eat for the new year, and who can't use a bit of luck?

I used green lentils and chicken sausage with basil and sundried tomatoes, but otherwise followed Domenica's recipe closely. Don't skip the step of browning the sausages, I kept mine whole, because it adds a lot of flavor to the final dish.

I garnished mine with chopped parsley and celery leaves.

One new recipe down, many more to go!

Share your cooking resolutions with me!

5/17/17

Bon Appetit's Burmese Chickpea Tofu with Spicy Dipping Sauce

Sometime last week my friend Naomi tweeted a link to Bon Appetit's Burmese Chickpea Tofu with Spicy Dipping Sauce and told everyone to make it.

It took me a few minutes to understand why tofu wasn't on the list of ingredients. You make tofu!! In this case, you actually use chickpea flour to make tofu which is incredibly easy, flavorful, especially with the addition of turmeric, and the final result is basically chickpea fries.

This dish is vegan, if that's something you care about ;)

I followed the recipe from Bon Appetit to the t, and was very happy with the results. I added a side of broiled asparagus to make a full meal out of this. I'm sure I'll make it again.

What shall I do with the remaining chickpea flour?

1/15/15

Easy Hot & Sour Soup Recipe: My Take on Food52

When I saw Joanne Chang's Hot and Sour Soup on Food52, I knew I wanted to try it. Unlike a bunch of other recipes that I pin or print out or bookmark, I actually went to my grocery store, picked up the ingredients and MADE IT!

The soup starts by sautéing garlic, ginger, scallions and ground pork in vegetable oil. I used all 16 ounces of ground pork instead of 8 as the recipe called for because the package of ground pork I bought had 16 ounces. My condo started to smell incredible as soon as the ginger and garlic hit the oil.

Then you add a bunch of liquids: chicken stock, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and sriracha as well as tofu and mushrooms.

A word on tofu: it tastes like nothing. After making the soup, I would recommend you leave it out and increase the amount of mushrooms or maybe try sautéing the tofu before adding it to the soup.

One of the changes I made to Joanne Chang's recipe was adding snow peas and water chestnuts. The soup definitely needed some crunch (from both) and color (from snow peas). Add these ingredients in the last minute: you just need to heat them through as they don't require any cooking.

And finally: the eggs. You whisk those in a separate container and then whisk them into the soup. Look: I got a double yolk!!!

I served the soup topped with cilantro and a bit more sriracha. This was such an easy recipe to make and it made great leftovers. I will definitely make it again.

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