101 posts and a seriously life changing soup

I just noticed that the last post was the 100th! How great is that? I love this blog. Keep sharing the recipe love, everyone!

And on that note, the following recipe has some serious love to give if you are a fan of Thai food. A spinoff of the popular and delicious tom kha gai, this soup is to die for. If I could make all my favorite Thai dishes as easily as this one, and have them all turn out this yummy, I'd never have to venture to a Thai restaurant again. And I'm saying that after I didn't even succeed in my quest for lemongrass. Darn you, Asian market, for only selling a weird package of freeze dried lemongrass. (Well, darn myself, really, for waiting until the last minute to try to find some.)

Here it is.

8 c. stock (chicken or vegetable-- I used organic chicken stock)

2 shallots, peeled and halved

6 one-inch pieces of unpeeled fresh ginger

1 stalk lemongrass, bruised and cut into chunks (as noted, this soup will still be delicious sans lemongrass)

2 kaffir lime leaves, or 1 t. lime zest (I used lime zest)

1/2 t. sea salt

1 15 oz. can coconut milk (I used reduced fat coconut milk with great results)

3.5 oz. rice noodles, broken into 2" pieces

1 c. peeled and finely diced carrots

pinch of cayenne (or to taste)

1-2 chicken breasts, cut into 1/8" thick diagonal slices

2 T. freshly squeezed lime juice

1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

2 T. sliced scallions, for garnish (didn't have these)

Combine the broth, shallots, ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, and 1/4 t. salt in a soup pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium low and simmer for 20 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, scoop out all of the solids and discard. Stir in the coconut milk and continue to simmer, being careful not to boil, for another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the rice noodles into a bowl of hot water and soak until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Stir the carrots and cayenne into the soup, simmer for 3 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer for 7 minutes, until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Stir in the noodles, lime juice, and the remaining 1/4 t. salt. Do a taste test now and, if necessary, add a bit more salt. You may want to add a small amount of sugar-- I added 1/4 t.

Finish it off by serving it in bowls with the garnishes, if desired.

Variations: for an extra immune booster, add 1 c. of stemmed and sliced shiitake mushrooms when you add the chicken. Tofu can also be used in place of the chicken for an awesome vegetarian version.

Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 45-55 minutes.

Storage: refrigerator for 3-5 days, freezer up to 2 months.

Per serving: 290 calories; 15.5 g fat (13.5 saturated), 35 g carbs, 6 g protein, 4 g fiber

Thai-style Black Bean Salad

Friends, friends, friends. Seriously. I made this salad tonight before mutual, let it refrigerate for about 2 hours (okay, 1 hour, because Mark got it out of the fridge at 7 and forgot about it...), then tried some, and I couldn't wait to post it on here for your viewing (& eating) pleasure. So good!! And so healthy. I got the brilliant idea to eat mine with tortilla chips and it was a perfect match. Here goes:

1 c. frozen corn

1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained

1 small onion, chopped

1 celery rib, sliced thin

1 small sweet red pepper, chopped

1/4 c. minced fresh cilantro

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped fine

2 T. sesame oil

1 T. rice vinegar

1 T. lime juice

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 t. minced fresh gingerroot

1/2 t. salt

Modifications: I doubled it, but left out the celery and jalapeno, and only used 1 medium red pepper instead of 2 small ones.

Directions: heat frozen corn according to package directions. Add beans, onion, celery, peppers, and cilantro. In a small bowl whisk together the last 6 ingredients. Pour over bean mixture and mix to coat. Chill for at least one hour to allow the flavors to marry.

Hallelujah for this recipe. It really hit the spot for me tonight! I hope you will try it.

Spring Rolls

Spring Rolls are surprisingly easy. With fresh veggies and herbs--how can you go wrong, really? I use these measurements as a guideline based on my preference, and you should too.

Spring Rolls
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 thumb-size piece ginger, grated
• 2 green onions, sliced into matchstick pieces
• 1/2 cup shredded or finely chopped cabbage
• 4-6 shiitake mushrooms, cut into matchstick pieces
• approx. 1 1/2 cups bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
• Optional: 1/2 C chicken or tofu, diced
• 2 Tbsp. oil, plus more for deep-frying
• 1 pkg. small spring roll wrappers (thawed if frozen)

Stir Fry Sauce
• 2 Tbsp. regular soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. fish sauce (if vegetarian, substitute vegetarian oyster sauce, or extra soy sauce)
• 2 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1/4 tsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. sake or sherry

Serve with
• Thai sweet chili sauce
• or 2 parts soy sauce to 1 part rice vinegar with sriracha to taste
• or 1/3 cup plum sauce with 3 Tbsp. soy sauce. Add cut fresh chili or cayenne pepper if desired.

Directions

1. Place 1 Tbsp. oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium to high heat. Add garlic, ginger, and shallots. Stir-fry until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add a little water to the pan if it starts to get dry.
2. Add cabbage and mushrooms (and chicken or tofu if you choose). As you stir-fry, add the sauce. Stir-fry 1-2 minutes, until vegetables have softened.
3. Remove from heat and add bean sprouts, coriander and basil tossing to mix in.
4. Do a taste test for salt, adding 1 Tbsp. more fish or soy sauce if not salty enough.
5. Set up for assembly--have a bowl of water for your fingers and a clean, dry working surface for the rolls. To assemble rolls, place a spring roll wrapper on the clean working surface. Place one heaping Tbsp. of the filling on the wrapper (if using large wrappers, you will need more). Spread the filling lengthwise along the spring roll wrapper nearer the end closest to you. Also, try not to include too much of the liquid left in the bottom of your wok/pan (a slotted spoon works well for this - drier filling is better.
7. Fold the left and right sides of wrapper over filling, then lift up the wide end nearest you and tuck overtop. Roll to the other end. Secure the roll by dipping your fingers in some water and wetting the end, "pasting" it shut.
8. To fry spring rolls, place some oil (about 1 inch deep) in a wok or deep-sided frying pan over medium-high heat. Oil is hot enough when you flick water at it with your fingers, and the water dances.
9. Using tongs, place spring rolls in oil, allowing them to fry a little less than 1 minute on each side. Spring rolls are done when they turn light to medium golden-brown (see photo). Place on paper towels (or a clean dish towel) to drain while you finish frying the rest. It might take one or two rolls to get the oil at just the right temperature--you don't want the rolls soaking in the oil, but you don't want them burning, either.
10. Serve spring rolls while still hot with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, or your own dipping sauce.

Grilled Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

This is one of the few recipes I can call my own. After much trial and much more error, I have reproduced one of my favorite things to order at Thai restaurants. This was a great relief for me last year as I was far too poor to actually go out to eat more than once in a blue moon, and it has served me well ever since.

4 boneless skinless small chicken breasts (or 2 of the huge ones from Costco)

Marinade:
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 in. piece of fresh ginger, grated
2 tsp fish sauce
2 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS honey
1 TBS sweet red chili sauce


Peanut sauce:
6 TBS crunchy peanut butter, preferably the kind you grind fresh at various hippie stores.
1 red chili, seeded and finely chopped or Thai red curry paste to taste (start small)
Juice of 1 lime
3 TBS coconut milk
1 TBS sweet red chili sauce

1. Rinse chicken breasts. Cut them into strips about 1" wide x 2" long x 1" thick (about the size of two bites).

2. Mix all marinade ingredients remembering to make the spiciness to your taste (but don't completely forgo it, trust me. I'm a wimp.)

3. Marinate chicken for a few hours or overnight, rotating breasts occasionally. While you marinate the chicken, soak your skewers in water by setting them in a cookie sheet or another lipped sheet full of water.

4. Heat grill to medium-high heat.

5. While grill is heating, thread the marinated chicken strips on your skewers, 2-3 strips per skewer, depending on the size of your skewers. If you didn't soak your skewers, you will want to cover as much of the skewer as possible to prevent it from burning on the grill.

6. Once grill is heated, grill skewers 3 1/2 to 4 minutes on each side until chicken is cooked through.

7. While chicken is cooking, prepare the peanut sauce by blending the sauce ingredients in the blender until grainy but not super chunky. You may need to add some salt if you have fresh-ground peanut butter. Adjust to your taste preferences, adding more hot/sweet/or salty as needed.

Serve with sticky rice, curry, or veggie kabobs.

Thai Grapefruit Salad

The flavor combinations seems like they should be so wrong, but they are just so right! Salty, sweet, tangy, and a little spicy: all the things I love about Thai food. Very refreshing!

Thai Grapefruit Salad

2 c. bite-sized chunks of peeled grapefruit
1/4 c. shredded coconut
3 Tbsp. crushed salted roasted peanuts
1/2 c. chopped fresh mint
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
2 Tbsp. fish sauce (no, really . . . use the fish sauce!)
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots
1/2 tsp. dried red chili flakes

Peel the grapefruit and put into a bowl. You can cut out the sections with a knife if you like, but the big red grapefruit that are fairly easy to peel work best. Toast the coconut until lightly brown and a little crispy in small pan on medium heat and set aside in a bowl. Crush the peanuts and set aside. Chop the mint and set aside. Mix the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, shallots, and chile flakes in a bowl. Use small bowls or cups for serving the salad. Just prior to serving, drain off the excess juice from the grapefruit and pour in the lime juice mixture and chopped mint and stir well. Scoop into bowls/cups and sprinkle the toasted coconut and crushed nuts over the top.

We find that the timing is important. Get everything ready and do the last bit of mixing right before you eat the salad. If you mix it too soon, the mint goes limp and the coconut and peanuts get soggy.

The quantities shown above make about four servings.