Char Siu Pork

 Char Sui Pork

Ingredients:

• 1 Pork Should Roast, bone, skin, excess fat removed
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon Mirin
• 4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 3 Tablespoons Hoisin Sauce
• 1/2 Tablespoon Peanut Butter
• 2 Teaspoons Chinese Five Spice
• 2 Tablespoons Miso
• 2 Cloves minced Garlic
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
• 2 Tablespoons honey

Instructions:

1. Slice the Pork shoulder into 1 inch wide strips.
2. In a small bowl mix together sugar, rice vinegar, Mirin, Soy Sauce, Hoisin Sauce, Peanut Butter, Chinese Five Spce, Miso, Garlic, Salt and Pepper. 
3. Pour 1/2 cup of the marinade mixture made in step two into a small, sealable container. Add the two tablespoons of honey and combine. Set aside.
4. Add the pork strips and marinade to a sous vide bag. Seal and marinate the meat at least 3 hours, but overnight would be better.
5. Follow sous vide instructions for pork, (long slow cook is better.)
6. After cooking in sous vide, line a baking tray large enough to accomodate a cooling rack with tin foil. Remove the Pork from the sous vide bag, place on rack, and broil for 3-4 minutes until pork is almost dry looking.
7. Brush the reserved marinade with honey glaze over the top and return to broiler, turning every 3-4 minutes, and brushing with more of the glaze.  Continue to broil until glaze is bubbling and there are some charred edges.
8. Rest for a few minutes, then thinly slice the pork and enjoy.

Gluten Free Fish Batter

 Fish Batter

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup potato Starch 
• 1/2 Cup Potato or Corn Starch
• 1 Egg
• Two Tablespoons lemon Juice
• 1/2 Tablespoon Ground Coriander Seed
• Salt and Pepper
• Cold Water

Instructions:

1. Cut fish to desired size, pat dry.
2. In a large bowl add 1 Cup potato starch, lemon juice egg, coriander season heavily with salt and pepper. Add 1/2 cup cold water stir until smooth. Add more water until batter is smooth, no lumps. Batter should flow easily without being too watery.
3. On a large plate scatter the 1/2 cup of corn or potato starch, season heavily with salt and pepper. Sift together so salt and pepper are evenly distributed.
4. Heat deep fryer to 375°F.
5. Dredge fish pieces in seasoned starch, then in batter and directly into the preheated fryer. fry for 3-4 minutes until fish is cooked through and batter is golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack over a paper towel lined tray. Repeat until all fish is cooked.

Enjoy!

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

 Homemade Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Chicken Breast Ground
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Pepper
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Corn Starch

Crunchy Coating

• 1/2 Cup Potato Starch
• Salt and Pepper
• Gluten Free Panko, or cracker, or chip crumbs, Optional.
• 1 Egg

Tools:

• Parchment Paper
• Rolling Pin
• Food Processor

Instructions:

1.  Add the ground chicken to a food processor, and pulse several times to blend the ground chicken together. Add the salt, pepper and garlic powder. Pulse to blend in spices. Sprinkle the corn starch over the chicken mix, and pulse until the corn starch blends in.
2. On a large sheet of parchment, transfer the chicken paste from the food processor. Cover with another sheet of parchment and roll to a scant 1 cm thick.
3. Transfer parchment covered, flattened chicken mix to a baking tray and chill in fridge for two hours, or freezer for 30 minutes. Until chicken is firm.
4. Lift off top sheet of parchment, and cut chicken paste into desired shapes. Transferring cut shapes to a parchment lined tray.
5. Scraps can be rolled back together and re-rolled into a sheet to cut additional shapes. 
6. Once all shapes have been cut, freeze the shapes in a single layer on baking trays until completely frozen.
7. When ready to cook, prepare a bowl with a beaten egg and water. another with seasoned potato starch and finally one with the crumbs.
8. Take the desired shape, dredge in the egg wash, the potato starch, then back int he egg wash finishing with the crumb.
9. Heat oil in a skillet, fry nuggets for roughly 2-3 minutes per side. Transferring cooked nuggets to a plate lined with paper towels.
10. Repeat process for desired number of nuggets.

Enjoy!

Korean Style Fried Chicken

 Korean Style Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 Whole chicken, butchered into two breasts, thigh, leg, wing. Butcher each breast half in half again.
• 2 Cups Buttermilk
• 2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
• 1 1/2 Cup Potato Starch
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Celery Seeds
• 1 Teaspoon Thyme
• 1 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Chilli Flakes (More for extra spicy)
• Vegetable Oil for Frying, either deep fry or shallow fry. But you must fry in oil for best results.

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl stir together the buttermilk and garlic powder. Submerge the chicken pieces in the brine for at least 2 hours, or as long as overnight.
2. When ready to fry, remove chicken pieces from marinade, and let excess drain off.
3. In a medium bowl sift together the potato starch, teaspoon garlic powder, celery seeds, thyme, paprika, baking powder and chilli flakes.
4. Heat oil to roughly 350°F. 
5. When oil is heated, dredge each piece of chicken in the flour blend. Until evenly coated, shaking off excess.
6. Gently lower chicken into oil, and fry for 5-8 minutes in a deep fryer, or 4 minutes on one side before turning for another 3-4 minutes.
7. Use a meat thermometer to ensure chicken is cooked through. Transfer cooked chicken to a wire rack over a sheet tray so excess oil can drain off. Keep cooked chicken warm in a barely warm oven while frying the rest of the chicken.
8. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes:

Seriously, potato starch is the key to crispy fried coatings. and its GF! 

Sweet and Sour Tofu Stirfry

 Sweet and Sour Tofu Stirfry

Ingredients:

• Vegetable Oil
• 1 block Extra Firm or Firm Plain Tofu
• 1 Zucchini
• 1 Bell Pepper
• 1 Can Crushed or Diced Pineapple(I prefer crushed for texture, husband prefers diced)
• 1/3 Cup White Vinegar
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Ketchup
• 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 1-3 Teaspoons Sriracha Sauce *
• 1 Tablespoon Corn Starch

* 1 Teaspoon to help balance the sauce, up to three or more if you want a spicier sauce.

Instructions:

1. Drain the tofu, and pat dry with paper towels. Cut tofu into small cubes, season well with salt and pepper.
2. Slice the bell pepper into thin strips. Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, then each half in half again length wise, and cut each quarter strip into 1cm wide chunks. Set bell pepper and zucchini aside.
3. In a medium bowl whisk together the entire can of pineapple (juice and all), vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, sriracha and corn starch. Set aside.
4. Get a large skillet over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, and fry tofu 4 mins on each side until each side is golden brown. Might take longer than 4 mins per side. Once tofu is browned, transfer to a plate and set aside.
5. Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet, and add the diced vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Saute veggies for 5 minutes, or until they are cooked to your liking. I like my veggies pretty well done, husband prefers closer to raw.
7. Add the tofu and sauce to the skillet, reduce heat to low and stir to combine everything.
8. Sauce should thicken slightly after 1-2 minutes.
9. Once sauce is thickened, bubbling slightly around the edges and tofu has reheated the stir fry is ready to serve.
10. Serve over rice or rice noodles, garnish with sesame seeds and diced green onion if desired.

Enjoy!

Sweet Mustard Glazed Ham

Sweet Mustard Ham

Ingredients:

• 1 Ham
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Cup prepared Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Cider Vinegar
• 2 Teaspoons Mustard Seeds
• Whole Cloves

Instructions:

1. Score the ham with shallow cuts about 1 inch apart, then again thw other way to create a diamond pattern.
2. Stick cloves where two score marks intersect. 
3. Place ham in a roasting dish with about 1 inch of water. Bake for 2 hours at 350°F.
4. In a medium bowl whisk together the sugar, mustard, cider vinegar and mustard seeds. Set aside, this is the glaze. 
5. After ham has been roasting for two hours, remove from oven and glaze ham all over with 1/2 of the glaze. Return ham to oven for 15-20 minutes, then glaze again with remaining glaze mix.
6. Finish roasting ham for another 20 minutes.
7. Remove ham from oven, and let rest at least 20 minutes.
8. Remove cloves from ham before carving or serving. 

Channa Masala Curry

Channa Masala Curry

Ingredients:

• 4 Clove Garlic
• 1 inch Ginger root
• 2 Jalapeno or about 4 Thai chili
• Juice of 1 lemon (2-3 Tablespoons)
• Salt and Pepper
• Vegetable oil
• 2 Teaspoons Mustard Seeds
• 1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
• 1 large Onion, diced
• 2 Teaspoons Ground Coriander
• 1 Teaspoon Turmeric
• 2 Teaspoons Garam masala
• 1 (14 ounce) Can Whole Tomatoes
• 2 (14 ounce) Cans Chickpeas, Drained
• 1 Cup Chopped Cilantro leaves

Instructions:

1. In the bowl of a small food processor pulse together the garlic, ginger root, chilies, lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Pulse until a paste forms with no large chunks remaining.
2. In a large sauce pan, heat about 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, add the mustard seeds and cumin once oil is heated.
3. Mustard seeds will sputter a bit like popcorn. Don't panic.
4. Once you can smell the spices bloom, add the diced onion, and stir-fry cook for 5-10 minutes until onions are soft, and starting to brown. If things are going to quickly add a few tablespoons of water to slow it down. We want slow carmalized onions.
5. Once onions are browned, add the spice paste from the food processor. Stir to combine.
6. Add in the coriander, turmeric, and garam masala. Stir until very fragrant, about 1 minute.
7. Add the entire contents of the can of tomatoes, and either mash with a potato masher, or use an immersion blender to pulse until relatively smooth.
8. Stir in drained and rinsed chickpeas, and almost all of the chopped cilantro, reserving a little bit for garnish.
9. Add about 1/2 cup of water to the curry and stir to blend.
10. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve with rice, and naan bread, garnishing with a little of the remaining cilantro.

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Taco Salad

Vegetarian Taco Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup cooked Pearl Couscous, or rice, or another grain
• 2 cups Spinach or Salad Greens
• 2/3 cup Pico de Gallo or salsa
• 1/2 Avocado, diced
• 2 Ounce Shredded Cheese

Instructions:

1. add the pearl couscous, spinach, and pico de gallo to a medium bowl and toss all ingredients together.
2. Divide salad into two serving bowls, top with cheese and diced avocado, and serve.
3. Garnish with extra cilantro or green onion if desired.
4. Enjoy!

Notes:

Made this for lunch so many times over the past few months that I lost count. Its a great salad, low calorie, but filling and fairly balanced in nutrients. Plus with the pico de gallo and avocado there is so much flavor that I barely even notice there isn't a true protein in it. 

Garlic BBQ Pork Chop

Garlic Pork Chops

Ingredients:

• 2 Pork Chops, bone in or boneless
• 2 Cloves Garlic
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Heat  BBQ or a grill pan to medium high heat. While allowing the pork chops to rest at room temperature for at least 10 minutes.
2. If you have a mortar a pestle, smash the garlic cloves into a paste. If you don't have your own mortar and pestle finely mince, grate, or crush the garlic cloves.  Add the olive oil, stir to mix and set aside.
3. Season Pork Chops on both sides with salt and pepper.
4. When grill is heated, place pork chops on grill and cook for about 4 minutes on the first side. Turn and baste cooked side with the garlic olive oil blend. Cook for an additional 4 minutes, turn and baste other side with garlic olive oil blend. Cook for an additional 2 minutes, turn and cooked for 2 more minutes.
5. Ensure Pork is cooked through, rest on a plate for 5 minutes before serving.
6. Cooking times may vary, these are the times I used when cooking a boneless pork chop that was about 1/2 inch thick.

Enjoy!

Chicken Udon Stir-Fry

Chicken Udon Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

• 1 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast or two Thighs, cut into thin strips
• 3 Green Onions, chopped
• 1 Onion, diced
• 1 Carrot, julienned
• 1 Bell Pepper, sliced
• 4 Mushrooms, chopped
• Vegetable Oil
• 1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Honey
• 2 Clove Garlic, minced
• 2 Teaspoons Gochujang or Sriacha 
• Black Pepper
• 2 Servings Udon Noodles

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl combine soy sauce, garlic, honey, gochujang and season with pepper.
2. Add the sliced chicken, and stir to evenly coat chicken all over. Marinate chicken for about 30 minutes before cooking.
3. Bring a medium sized pot of salted water to boil. and cook the udon noodles according to package direction. Set aside once cooked
4. Heat a large wok or high sided skillet over medium heat, add about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil.
5. Stir fry onions until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes.
6. Add the chicken and marinade, and stir fry cook until the chicken is no longer pink, and is cooked through.
7. Transfer cooked chicken, sauce, and onions to a clean bowl for now.
8. Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet.
9. Add the carrot and bell pepper and stir fry cook for about 5 minutes.
10. Add the mushroom and cook until mushroom just begins to cook, about 3 minutes.
11. Return the chicken, sauce and onions to the skillet and stir fry cook until everything is coated in sauce, hot, and well blended. Turn off heat.
12. Add the udon noodles to the skillet and toss to bring everything together.
13. Serve hot, in bowls and garnish with the sliced green onion.

Enjoy!

Notes:
This dish could easily be made vegetarian by subbing tofu for the chicken, or you could change it up and use beef or pork strips easily as well. Basically whatever meat and whatever veg you have on hand can be used in this dish without hurting the final results. The key feature of this recipe is the marinade/sauce which has all the salty savory notes typical in Chinese cooking, but with a spicy Korean kick from the gochujang paste.

If you don't have access to gochujang or siracha you could just about between 1/2-1 teaspoon of crushed chili flakes depending on how spicy you like things.

Red Lentil Curry

Red Lentil Curry

Ingredients:

• 2 Cup Red Lentils
• 1 Onion, diced
• Olive oil
• 2+ Tablespoons Curry Paste*
• 1 Tablespoon Curry Spice Blend
• 1 Teaspoon Ground Turmeric
• 1 Teaspoon Ground cumin
• 1 Teaspoon Chili Powder
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 Clove Minced Garlic
• 1 Inch Fresh Ginger, minced
• 400ml Can Crushed Tomato*

I used Taste of Thai Red Curry Paste, and Hunts Herloom crushed Tomatoes, and my own Curry spice blend which I have linked above.

Instructions:

1. Rinse the red lentils under running water for several minutes until water is running mostly clear.
2. Place the lentils in a pot and cover with at least 2 inches of water. Season well with salt and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 8-12 minutes until lentils are tender.
3. Be careful to not overcook the lentils or they will be totally mushy.
4. While the lentils are boiling, start the curry sauce.
5. In a large skillet, heat some olive oil over medium heat and stir fry cook the onions until golden brown, 10-20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 
6. Add the curry paste, curry spice, turmeric, cumin, chili powder, ginger and garlic to the pan and stir with the onions until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
7. Reduce heat to low/simmer.
8. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and stir well to blend everything together.
9. If needed, drain the lentils, then add lentils to the skillet and stir everything together.
10. If desired, chopped spinach, corn or other veggies can also be added to the curry.
11. Serve with rice, or naan, or pita chips, or however you like to eat curry.

Next time I think I will add some crunchy roasted chickpeas to the curry for extra texture.

Enjoy!

Notes:

This was so good my husband, who is never really into my experiments with vegetarian cooking, actually wanted to try it! He ate a whole serving for dinner last night! and said he might eat it again tonight! That is a solid marker of success in my book.

Falafel Wrap

Falafel Wrap

Ingredients:

• 1 Recipe for Falafel
• 1 Recipe for Tahini Garlic Sauce
• 1 Recipe for Quick Pickles, Radish or Carrot
• 6 Pita or Tortillas
• 1 Zucchini
• 1 Bell Pepper
• 1 Cup chopped Tomato
• Lettuce

Instructions:

1. Prepare Falafel, or used store bought.
2. Prepare Tahini Garlic Sauce 
3. Prepare pickled carrots or radish.
4. Slice the pepper and zucchini into thin slices.
5. In a nonstick skillet over medium heat, without oil, char-grill the zucchini and pepper, for about 3 minutes a side. Trying to get a nice dark char on at least one side of each veggie slice.
6. Roughly chop about 1-2 cup of lettuce or spinach leaves.
7. Open the pita pocket, or lay the wrap out flat, arrange 4 falafel in the center, drizzle some of the tahini garlic sauce over the falafel. Sprinkle some chopped lettuce into the wrap, then a few slices of pickle, zuchini, bell pepper and tomato.
8. Wrap everything up, if desired, toast slightly under the broiler in oven.

Enjoy!

Bokchoy Stir Fry

Bokchoy Stir Fry

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Bok Choy
• 2 Clove Garlic, minced
• 2 Green Onion Stalks, sliced into small rounds
• 2 Tablespoons Miso Paste or Soybean Paste
• 2 Teaspoons Gochujang
• Splash Mirin
• 2 Teaspoons Sesame Seeds
• 2 Teaspoon Sesame Oil

Instructions:

1. Slice the root base/bottom off the bokchoy, and then roughly chop the bokchoy.
2. In a pot of boiling salted water, blanch the bokchoy for about 2 minutes, strain and rinse the bokchoy to prevent over cooking.
3. Mix the minced garlic, sliced green onions, soybean paste, gochujang, mirin and seasme oil together in a small bowl to create our dressing.
4. Toss the cooked bokchoy in the dressing, garnish with sesame seeds, and serve.

Enjoy!

Stove Top Mac n' Cheese

Stove Top Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Elbow Pasta, or other small pasta shape
• 1 Cup Milk
• 1/2 Cup Butter, divided into 8 cubes
• 5 ounces Cheese
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1.  Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve at least 1 cup of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and set aside for now.
2. In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse the cheese into a fine crumb, or finely shred it. I like to use about 2 ounces of Parm and 3 of a sharp cheddar for this recipe, but any cheese will work.
3. Heat 1 of the butter cubes in a medium sauce pan over medium heat, until it is melted, and foamy, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the milk and whisk to blend in the melted butter.
5. Continuing over medium heat, whisk the milk and butter, add one cube of butter and whisk until completely melted and incorporated into the milk sauce. Only add the next butter cube when the previous one has been fully emulsified. Repeat with remaining butter cubes.
6. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
7. Pour the cooked pasta into the milk sauce, add the cheese and about 1/4 cup of the pasta water.
8. Stir to melt the cheese, and coat the pasta. If it seems dry, add another little bit of the reserved pasta water to help the sauce reach your desired consistency.
9. The mac n' cheese is ready to eat, or you can pour it into a casserole dish, top with more melted cheese and bake for a more traditional macaroni and cheese.

Enjoy!

Mediterranean Salad- Meal Prep

Mediterranean Salad

Prep for about 4 servings
Ingredients:

• 1 Lemon
• 1 Cup Cherry Tomatoes
• 1/4 Cup Chopped mixed Olives
• 1/2 Cup Chopped Cilantro
• 1 Cup Pearl Couscous
• 2 Cups Veg or Chicken Stock
• 2 Cups Shredded Lettuce or Spinach
• 1/2 Cup Olive Oil, plus extra
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 can Chickpeas, drained
• 1 Tablespoon Paprika
• 4 Small Naan Breads
• 2 Zucchini
• 250g Halloumi Cheese

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl add the chopped olives, 1/4 cup of the chopped cilantro, 1/2 cup olive oil.
2. Zest and juice the lemon, and add both to the medium bowl.
3. Grate 1/2 of one of the zucchini, add the grated zucchini to the medium sized bowl.
4. Stir everything together, season with salt and pepper, stir again and set aside for now, this is our dressing for the salad.
5. Slice the remaining zucchini into thin rounds. Grill zucchini rounds on a grill pan or BBQ, about 3 minutes a side until lightly charred. Season with salt and pepper, and once done set aside.
6. On a baking sheet, toss the drained chickpeas with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and the paprika. Roast in an oven set to 450°F for about 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. once cooked, set aside.
7. Toss cherry tomatoes on a pan with olive oil, salt and pepper. Broil for about 5 minutes in oven, until skins are just starting to pop. remove from oven and set aside.
8. Slice the halloumi into bite sized cubes, and grill in a nonstick frying pan, without any oil for about 2 minutes a side over medium heat, until all sides are golden brown on all sides. Set aside.
9. In a small sauce pan, heat a splash of olive oil over medium heat, add the couscous and toast for about 2 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer covered for about 10 minutes. Set aside once cooked.
10. To prepare our to go lunches, get 4 covered togo containers ready.
11. Divide the dressing between the four togo dishes.
12. Divide the cherry tomatoes between the four togo containers.
13. Fluff the prepared couscous with a fork, and divide between the 4 togo containers.
14. Arrange the zucchini over the layer of couscous so it kind of acts like a ceiling, keeping our "wet" salad ingredients apart from our "dry" salad ingredients.
15. Divide the Halloumi between the 4 togo containers.
16. Divide the roasted chickpeas between the four togo containers.
17. Divide the remaining cilantro between the 4 togo containers.
18. Divide the shredded lettuce or spinach between the four togo containers.
19. To enjoy, take one of the togo containers we just prepped and layered, as well as one of the naan breads. Invert the salad onto a plate, if possible toast the naan in  a toaster, and either eat the naan along side the salad or tear it up and use it like croutons in the salad.

Enjoy!

Notes:

This is vegetarian but it is so loaded with protein and good fats that it will fill you up and keep you full through a long afternoon at work, without being too heavy. I truly love this meal and have it as a lunch at work often.

Pasta e Fagioli

Takes a few ingredients to pull this one together, but it is so worth it

Ingredients:

• 4 Scrubbed Carrots
• 1 Medium Onion
• 3 Celery Stalks
• 6 Good Sized Garlic Cloves
• Olive oil
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 Can Crushed Tomatoes(28oz), without tomato concentrate or puree
• 8 Ounces small or medium dry white beans
• Chicken stock
• 8-10 Ounces Chopped Spinach Leaves
• 8 Ounces small dried pasta shapes
• Parm Rind (optional)
• 2-3 Bay Leaves
• Pork hock
• 2 Slices Bacon, uncooked
• Fresh Parmesan to serve

Instructions:

1. The night before planning to make soup, set the beans to soak in a large bowl. Cover beans with at least one inch of water, set in fridge and soak overnight.
2. To start the soup, scrub the carrots and roughly chop, peel the garlic, roughly chop the Celery and onion. In the bowl of a very large food processor, or in batches, pulse all the vegetables until they are fine chopped but not a puree.
3. Heat a large stock pot over medium low heat, and heat about 1/3 cup olive oil. Add the finely chopped garlic, carrots, onion and Celery, season well with salt and pepper. Slowly cook the veg down, without adding color. If things are cooking too quickly turn down the heat and continue to cook. The goal is to sweat down the veg until they are soft, juicy and reducing in volume without browning yet. Cooking the veggies down should take 20-30 minutes.
4. Once the veg base is looking good, add the ham hock. Roughly chop the raw bacon and also add it to the pot. Continue cooking an additional 10-20 minutes until it seems like the veg has reduced in volume by half.
5. Add the beans and their soaking liquid to the pot along with the crushed tomatoes and at least four cups of chicken stock. Add more stock or water to ensure that the beans are always fully submerged.
6. Bring everything to a boil, add the bay leaves and the Parmesan rind if using. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 1-2 hours. Add in the spinach and stir well.
7. Cook pasta in a separate pot of well salted boiling water, 1-3 minutes less than package instructions indicate. The pasta should be slightly toothsome as it will continue to cook a bit in the soup.
8. Pull the pork hock out if the soup and shred any available meat off the bone. Discard skin, bones and fat chunks. Return usable shredded meat to the soup. Fish out the parm rind and bay leaves and discard.
9. Once the pasta is cooked to desired doneness, drain the pasta and stir into the soup.
10. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with fresh shredded parm and a drizzle of olive oil. Goes excellent with a bit of crusty toasty bread.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Holy goodness, this soup was so tasty! The veg base that we start with is called a sofritto and that is the ticket to flavor town in this recipe.

This soup is amazingly rich, hearty and so comforting on a cold winters night. Plus since it is so veg heavy, with beans it'll fill up hungry tummies so well and keep them full!

* update, froze some, added some extra chicken stock as the pasta had taken in more liquid while cooking and it was just as delicious reheated after being frozen, still had lots of flavor.

Greek Rice with Spinach

Greek Rice with Spinach

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup long grain Rice
• 2 Cups Chicken stock
• 3 ounces chopped wilted Spinach(2-3 frozen spinach nuggets)
• 1 small Onion
• 2-3 cloves Garlic
• 2 tablespoons Greek dressing
• Lemon, zested and juiced
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic. 
2. Heat a medium pot over medium heat. 
3. Add the Greek dressing, chopped onion and minced garlic. 
4. Season with salt and pepper. Stir occasionally until onions begin to soften, about 3-5 minutes. 
5. Add the uncooked rice and stir for two minutes to toast the rice. 
6. Add the chicken stock, bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. 
7. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. 
8. Stir in the spinach, and cover and continue to simmer until all the water is absorbed. 
9. Remove pot from heat and keep covered for 5 minutes. 
10. Add lemon Zest and Fluff with a fork before serving. Drizzle lemon juice to taste.
11. Can also be garnished with fresh herbs, feta, olives etc.

Enjoy!

Sesame Stir-Fry Sauce

Sesame Stir-Fry Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Mirin
• 4 Cloves minced Garlic
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• 3 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
• 1-3 Teaspoon Sriracha
• 1/4 Cup thinly sliced green onions, green and white parts

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl stir together all ingredients and allow flavors to blend together for a few minutes, or while you make the stir-fry.
2. Quick fry, chicken or tofu with a mix of veggies until chicken is cooked through. Turn off heat and add sauce, stir to coat and serve over rice or noodles.
3. Optional to garnish with sesame seeds and fresh green onion slices.

Enjoy!

Galbi Marinade

Galbi Marinade 

Ingredients:

• 3/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 3-4 Cloves Garlic
• 2 Green Onion Stalks
• 2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
• 1 Asian Pear
• Pepper to taste
• 2 Pounds Steak, short rib or small roast

Instructions:

1. Season steak all over with pepper and set aside.
2. In a medium sized bowl add the soy sauce, brown sugar, and sesame oil. Whisk to dissolve brown sugar. If the brown sugar won't completely dissolve, add a few tablespoons of water.
3. Mince, grate or crush the garlic, finely chop the green onions from top to about 2-3 centimeters from the root. Discard the root, add everything else to the bowl.
4. Peel the Asian Pear. Discard the peel. Grate the Asian pear over a small bowl. Add the grated pear and pear juice to the marinade.
5. Add the steak to the marinade. Cover or transfer to a sealable container and marinate the steak for at least an hour or two, or overnight.
6. Allow steak to return to room temperature and drain off excess marinade to drain from steak before grilling to desired doneness.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Galbi is a South Korean BBQ style dish.

If you read this far, here is a secret, you can just add all the ingredients except the steak to a food processor and pulse a few times to create the marinade.

My husband spent a year and a bit living in Korea and traveling around Asia. I have made this marinade a lot, or used in to slow cook and he liked it ok. But this week I used the BBQ and he was much more impressed with how close it was to what he remembers. So at least for me, it's husband approved.

Argentinian Inspired Marinade for Grilling

Argentinian Inspired Marinade for Grilling

Ingredients:

• 6-8 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Orange
• 1 Lemon
• 1 Lime
• 1 Tablespoon Coarse Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Peppercorns (Black or mixed or 1/2 tablespoon ground pepper)
• 1 Small Onion
• Olive Oil
• Steak or chicken or pork

Instructions:

1. If you have a mortar and pestle, crush the garlic salt and Peppercorns into a paste together, transfer the paste to a small bowl. If you do not have a mortar and pestle, grind the peppercorns, and in a small bowl mix together the salt and pepper. Mince the garlic and add it to the bowl.
2. Finely chop the onion, stir into the bowl. Juice the orange, lime and lemon and add the juice to the small bowl, stir to mix everything together. You can also add a little zest from the lime, lemon and orange to the marinade for a stronger citrus flavor.
3. Stir in a few tablespoons of olive oil and set marinade aside for now.
4. Dry the meat, season with salt and pepper on all sides.
5. Rub the marinade all over the meat and transfer to marinading vessel. Something like a shallow dish with a lid, or large ziplock bag. Transfer any excess marinade into the dish with the meat. Seal or cover and marinade for at least 30 minutes to two hours, or as long as overnight.
6. Remove excess marinade from meat before grilling.

Enjoy!