Paneer, Indian Homemade Cheese

Recipe adapted from Foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

Cheesecloth

8 cups of whole milk

1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

1. Line a large colander with a large double layer of cheesecloth, and set it in your sink.

2. In a large wide pot, bring the milk to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to avoid burning the bottom (a nonstick pot works really well for this purpose). This will take a little while so be patient!
3. Add the lemon juice and turn the heat down to low. Stirring gently, you should almost immediately see the curds (white milk solids) and whey (the greenish liquid) separate.  
4. Remove the pot from the heat and carefully pour the contents into the cheesecloth-lined colander. Gently rinse with cool water to get rid of the lemon flavor. 
5. Grab the ends of the cheesecloth and twist the ball of cheese to squeeze out the excess whey. Tie the cheesecloth to your kitchen faucet and allow the cheese to drain for about 5 minutes.
6. Twisting the ball to compact the cheese into a block, place it on a plate with the twisted part of the cheesecloth on the side (this will ensure your block of cheese is nice and smooth!) and set another plate on top. Weigh the second plate down with cans of beans or a heavy pot. Move to the refrigerator and let it sit about 20 minutes.
7. Unwrap the disc of homemade cheese.

I made Palak Paneer with my beautiful disc of homemade cheese.  The only change I made to this recipe was instead of using 2 tomatoes, I used 1 tomato and 1 tablespoon of tomato paste.

Kale Chips

Recipe adapted from Baked Kale

Ingredients

1 bunch kale

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Remove the leaves from the thick stems and chop into bite size pieces.  Wash and dry kale with salad spinner or paper towel.  Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

3. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Moroccan Carrot Salad

Recipe adapted from Alice Waters Moroccan Carrot Salad


serves 4
Ingredients
3 dozen baby carrots, cut diagonally
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
3/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp paprika
3 pinches cayenne
2 pinches ground cinnamon
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp chopped parsley
salt to taste


Directions
Toss carrots and garlic olive oil and salt.  Oven roast at 375 for 10 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl, add cumin, paprika, cayenne, cinnamon, lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, and salt to taste; toss well.

Tofu-Teriyaki-Don

Recipe adapted from 고베 밥상

Ingredients

1/2 block of tofu, cut into squares

flour

vegetable oil

sauce - combine all ingredients in a small bowl

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon mirin

1/2 tablespoon cooking sake

1/2 tablespoon power sugar

Directions

1) Lightly flour tofu squares.

2) Add vegetable oil to a medium size pan.  Pan fry tofu squares till they turn golden brown.

3) Add the sauce and cook for 2 minutes.

4) Serve over brown rice and baby greens.

Pickled Lotus Root

Ingredients

1 medium lotus root, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 medium beet, peeled and clied into 1/2 inch slices

brine:
1 cup very hot tap water
1/2 cup rice-wine vinegar
6 tbsp sugar
2 1/4 tsp kosher salt
10 peppercorns

Boil 2 cups of water with a few pinches of salt.  Add sliced lotus roots and cook for 2 minutes.  Drain and rinse with cold water.

In a large bowl, add 1 cup of water, sliced beets, and lotus roots.  Let it sit for a few minutes.

In a mason jar or plastic container, add above and cover with brine.

48 hours later...

They will look like this! Pretty, huh?

Lotus Root Simmered in Soy Sauce (연근조림)

Ingredients

2 medium lotus roots, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch slices

salt

1 tablespoon vinegar

sauce:

4 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon corn syrup or honey

1 cup water

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions

Place sliced lotus roots in a bowl of water with 1 tablespoon of vinegar for 5 minutes.  Cook lotus roots in a pot of salted boiling water for 2 minutes.  Drain and rinse in cold water.

Using the same pot, add soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and lotus roots.  Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes.  Add corn syrup and sesame oil and cook for another 2 minutes.

Salad with Pickled King Trumpet Mushrooms & Egg

Pickled King Trumpet Mushrooms

Recipe adapted from Momofuku Recipes

Ingredients

For brine:

1 cup very hot tap water

1/2 cup rice-wine vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 tbsp powder sugar

2 1/4 tsp kosher salt

2-3 jalapeno peppers, sliced

15-20 king trumpet mushrooms

Directions

Pack mushrooms and peppers in a plastic container.

Cover with brine.

Weigh down the ingredients with a small plate.

Ready in 24 hours!

Saved some for my parents. :-)

Perilla Leaf Tofu Jun (깻잎두부전)

Pan-fried perilla leaves stuffed with tofu, shiitake mushroom, carrots, and corn.

Perilla leaves from my mom's garden. :-)

Lightly flour each leaf.  Place a spoonful of the tofu stuffing.  (Season the stuffing with soy sauce, sesame oil, and salt & white pepper.)  Fold it into a triagle and dip into egg wash.

 Pan fry over medium low heat.

Fabulous Focaccia

Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence's Fabulous Focaccia

Yields 1 loaf
Ingredients
2 teaspoons rapid-rising dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 to 4 cups flour
1 tablespoon coarse salt
1/4 cup olive oil
Cornmeal, for dusting

Toppings:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
10 Kalamata olives, pitted and quartered
5 Spanish olives, pitted and quartered
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
1 tablespoon coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary

Directions
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook, proof the yeast by combining it with the warm water and sugar. Stir gently to dissolve. Let stand 3 minutes until foam appears. Turn mixer on low and slowly add the flour to the bowl. Dissolve salt in 2 tablespoons of water and add it to the mixture. Pour in 1/4 cup olive oil. When the dough starts to come together, increase the speed to medium. Stop the machine periodically to scrape the dough off the hook. Mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface and fold over itself a few times. Form the dough into a round and place in an oiled bowl, turn to coat the entire ball with oil so it doesn't form a skin. Cover with plastic wrap or damp towel and let rise over a gas pilot light on the stovetop or other warm place until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
Coat a sheet pan with a little olive oil and corn meal. Once the dough is doubled and domed, turn it out onto the counter. Roll and stretch the dough out to an oblong shape about 1/2-inch thick. Lay the flattened dough on the pan and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for 15 minutes.
In the meantime, coat a small saute pan with olive oil, add the onion, and cook over low heat for 15 minutes until the onions caramelize. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Uncover the dough and dimple with your fingertips. Brush the surface with more olive oil and then add caramelized onions, garlic, olives, cheese, salt, pepper, and rosemary.

Bake on the bottom rack for 15 to 20 minutes.

Homemade Pesto

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup packed fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic
1/3 cup pine nuts
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Pecorino cheese

Directions
Combine the basil, parsley, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Farfalle with Golden Beets & Beet Greens

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit
serves 4

Ingredients
1/3 cup pine nuts
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 large onions, quartered lengthwise through root end, sliced crosswise (about 2 cups)
2 shallots, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 bunches 2-inch-diameter golden beets with fresh healthy greens; beets peeled, each cut into 8 wedges, greens cut into 1-inch-wide strips
12 ounces farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus additional for serving

Directions
Heat heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add pine nuts and stir until lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons oil and onions to same skillet and sauté until beginning to soften and turn golden, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to sauté until onions are tender and browned, about 30 minutes longer. Add garlic and stir 2 minutes. Scatter beet greens over onions. Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons oil over; cover and cook until beet greens are tender, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook beets in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer beets to medium bowl. Return water to boil. Add pasta to beet cooking liquid and cook until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Return pasta to pot.

Stir onion-greens mixture and beets into pasta. Add pasta cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls to moisten. Season with salt and coarsely ground black pepper. Stir in 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese. Divide pasta among shallow bowls. Sprinkle with pine nuts. Serve, passing additional cheese.

Hass Avocado + Eggs

Hass Avocado + Hard-Boiled Egg + Lemon Juice + Olive Oil + Salt & Pepper

Poached Egg

Veggie Curry with Poached Egg

Recipe from Elton Brown

Always use fresh eggs. Deliver the eggs to the pan with a custard cup or large spoon. Avoid cracking directly into the pan. When using a non-stick skillet cook in no more than an inch of water. If you don't have a non-stick pan, poach in a deep saucepan containing at least 3 inches of water. Always acidulate the poaching liquid with either vinegar or lemon juice (1 tsp per each cup of water). Bring liquid to a boil, add eggs, then remove from heat and cover. Cook for 5 minutes. Always remove eggs with a slotted spoon. Poached eggs can be refrigerated in ice water for up to 8 hours, then reheated in hot water. Do not re-boil.

Tofu with String & Faba Beans

Same recipe as Tofu & Chinese Broccoli but with string and faba beans. :-)

Sichuan Long Bean Pickles

Recipe adapted from Mission Chinese, SF's New Pop-Up Restaurant

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb long bean, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/4 cup Shaoxing wine, fino sherry or white wine
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
11/2 teaspoons toasted and ground Sichuan peppercorns
1 to 3 teaspoons roasted chili paste, or Vietnamese chili-garlic paste to taste
1 fresh jalapeño, sliced
1 tablespoon finely julienned fresh ginger
1 scallion, chopped, for garnish.

Directions

1. Toss the long bean with 2 tablespoons of the salt. Add the wine and mix thoroughly. Put in an airtight container and leave at room temperature for 3 days.

2. To make the pickles: heat the sesame oil until it begins to smoke, then pour it over the cayenne; set aside. Drain and discard about half the long bean liquid. Add the Sichuan peppercorns, chili paste, jalapeño and ginger and mix thoroughly. Garnish with the cayenne oil and scallions, and serve. Store leftovers in a glass jar or other airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Oven-roasted Mushrooms

Brush melted butter on king trumpet and shiitake mushooms.  Season with salt and pepper.  Squeeze some fresh lemon juice all over.  Roast the mushrooms at 375 for 10 minutes.