All hail the Flatbread!

I'm in love! On my quest to eat in rather than eat out, I've decided flatbreads would be most facile, quick & versatile. You just choose your favorite toppings and voila! Ready to eat in minutes!

Sun-dried tomato, Goat Cheese, Egg & Arugula over Pesto

Ingredients:

1 sheet lavash flatbread (white or whole wheat)

3 T pesto sauce

3 pieces sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

2 T crumbled goat cheese

2 large eggs

salt & cracked pepper

1 C Arugula

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

Spread pesto sauce evenly on lavash bread

Sprinkle evenly with sun-dried tomatoes and goat cheese

Crack an egg on each side of the flatbread & season yolk with salt & pepper

Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until egg is cooked as desired

Take out of oven, cut in half, garnish with arugula. Serve

Variations:

Prosciutto, Brie, Egg, Tomato, Truffle oil & Arugula

Ingredients:

1 sheet lavash flatbread (white or whole wheat)

2 slices prosciutto

4 slices double cream brie cheese

2 large eggs

4 slices tomato rounds

1 T black truffle oil

1 C Arugula

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

Brush truffle oil evenly on lavash bread

Layer flatbread with prosciutto, brie & tomatoes in that order

Crack an egg on each side of the flatbread & season yolk with salt & pepper

Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until egg is cooked as desired

Take out of oven, cut in half, garnish with arugula. Serve

Garlic & Yogurt Spinach Dip

Spinach, good...Yogurt, even better. Fuse them together = best!

Ingredients:

1 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

1/2 C mayonnaise

1/2 C sour cream

2 C plain yogurt

1 pkg dried onion soup

1 C water chestnuts, drained, chopped

1/4 t sugar

1/8 t ground pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 stalks green onions, minced

Directions:

Mix all ingredients until well blended.

Taste and correct seasoning

Chill covered at least 2 hours before serving

Leek & Potato Mash

Bern was making braised short ribs for the party, my job was to make the mashed potatoes. I figured the typical garlic thyme mash would be a bit too strong for the already robust brisket. Using leeks made it the perfect pair.

Ingredients:

9 russet potatoes, peeled & diced

2 bay leaves

1 1/2 stick butter, diced

9 leeks, finely sliced

1 1/2 T fresh thyme, minced

3/4 C cream

1 1/2 C milk

Salt and pepper

2 T butter sliced (for re-heating)

Directions:

Boil potatoes in salted water with bay leaves

Cook until done. toss bay leaves, drain, set aside

In a pan saute leeks in butter until soft, add thyme cook for another minute

season with salt & pepper

heat cream & milk in a saucepan until just about boiling

With a masher, add leeks, thyme and butter to potatoes

Add scalded milk & cream. Season with salt & pepper

Spread potato mixture in a baking dish; chill covered for 1 day

Preheat oven to 350 ° F

Dot potato mixture with remaining 2 T butter

Bake, covered with foil in middle of oven until heated through

or until butter is melted

Easy Spinach Lasagna

It has been years since I last made this dish. Funny how something that used to be a staple has been forgotten and ignored. So easy to make too!

Ingredients:

3 T extra virgin olive oil

half a head garlic, minced

1 medium onion, finely chopped

800 g can crushed tomatoes

27 oz. fresh baby spinach

1/4 t black pepper

2 t chicken granules

1 t italian seasoning

5 oz cream cheese

1 1/2 C shredded italian trio cheese

no bake lasagna noodles

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare spinach while oven is heating up.

Heat olive oil in a sauce pan.

Add garlic and onion, saute until onions are transparent

Add crushed tomatoes and spinach. Mix well

Season with pepper, chicken granules, italian seasoning and cream cheese

Cook until cream cheese melts. Set Aside
In an oven proof dish, layer lasagna noodles

Spoon a layer of sauce according to desired thickness of filling

Cover with noodles again and continue to layer away

Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for 20-25 mins until cheese is golden brown.

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Beef Soup with Spicy Eggplant Sauce: Food for the Filipino Soul

A fairly popular dish found in almost any Filipino restaurant menu in America. In Filipino, this soup is called "Nilaga" which literally means boiled. Although the spicy eggplant sauce is typically not served as a sauce to this soup, I have grown accustomed to pairing it together. It was first introduced to me when a friend served this at a dinner party. Since then I've found it hard to eat one without the other.

Nilaga

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Boneless beef short ribs or brisket, cut in to 2" pieces

2 medium onions, sliced

1 T fish sauce

4 medium potatoes, cut in quarters

1 carrot, sliced (optional)

1 small cabbage, sliced (sometimes I use brussels sprouts)

3 heads baby bok choy, sliced (optional)

a handful of green beans

2 ears of corn, cut in half (optional)

salt & pepper to taste.

Directions:

Place beef in a soup pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and remove scum that forms from boiling.

Add in onions. Season with fish sauce, salt & pepper

Bring to a boil then lower heat to simmer for about 2 hours or until meat is tender.

Add in all the veggies and cook for another 15-20 minutes or until potatoes and corn are done.

Serve with rice and spicy eggplant sauce. (see recipe below)

Spicy Eggplant Sauce

Ingredients:

1 big eggplant, broiled

1 clove garlic, minced

3 T spicy vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

Broil eggplant until soft. Cut off tips, peel off skin and mash with a fork.

Mix in the rest of the ingredients.

Adjust taste accordingly.

Clam & Garlic Stuffed Mushrooms

This recipe was shared to me in secret about 10 years ago. I swore never to tell... until now. 10 years is a long time not to share something this good.

Ingredients:

White mushrooms

Chopped clams

Garlic

Cream cheese

Parmesan cheese

Butter

Parsley, finely chopped

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Wash mushrooms and carefully take out stems. Discard stems

Poke mushroom heads with a toothpick. About 2-3 holes per head.

In a food processor, puree together clam and garlic until smooth.

Stuff mushrooms with the garlic clam puree then cover with cream cheese.

Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.

Arrange mushrooms in a baking pan. Carefully place pieces of butter in between gaps.

Bake for 20 mins or until filling is golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley before serving

Empress Rolls

I miss Ding Qua Qua from Cebu City. Out of all the dim sum restaurants I've tried from all parts of the world, this place still has 1st place in my heart. In fact, this was the first ever dim sum restaurant I went to. I must have been 5 or 6 years old when my folks first took me there. I was so amazed at the carts rolling around and bringing in assorted delicious treats. Since then, we had countless happy memories of family trips to Cebu just so we could eat at this place. One of my favorite from there is called the Empress Roll. It's a simple steamed cabbage roll but oh so good! Since I could never find it served here in SF, I was inspired to recreate it. After looking through countless recipes, I've come up with my version.

Filling:
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 T soy sauce
1/2 t ginger, minced
2T green oninon, minced
3/4 t salt
1/2 t sugar
1 small egg, beaten
1 t semsame seed oil
1/4 t ground white pepper
1 T cornstarch
1 medium carrot, minced

1 head Savoy cabbage, leaves blanched and hard stems trimmed.

1 C water

1/2 C chicken stock
1 t cornstarch mixed with 1 T water

Directions:
Mix filling ingredients well in a bowl.
Wrap in blanched cabbage and seal with a toothpick
Arrange the cabbage rolls in a pan.
Pour water over rolls and cook on low for 45 minutes.
Remove rolls and arrange on a plate.

Do not discard remaining liquid from the pan (should be almost evaporated)
Add chicken stock and cornstarch mix to the remaining liquid.

Bring to a boil for about 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and pour sauce over rolls. Serve warm

Mark's Amazing Dinner

This is easily one of the best home-cooked meals I've ever had. Mark made it all look so simple as he was cooking but I wonder if it's really THAT easy. The Risotto was al dente & savory, the asparagus crisp yet tender and the Swordfish fillet was oh so succulent. Everything was just perfection! I feel very honored to have been invited to partake in this delicious fare and witness first hand, Mark's culinary skills.

Risotto -- requires 45 minutes

1 cup of Arborio rice

1 mushroom bouillon cube

1 small finely diced onion

4 crushed garlic cloves

1/2 cup of olive oil

2 teaspoons of salt & crushed pepper to taste

finely grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon of butter

1/2 cup of white wine

Lightly saute garlic in olive oil until nicely brown (not crispy) on medium heat;

Add onion, let brown slowly and add salt and pepper;

Let onion and garlic mixture cook down until sticky;

Dissolve mushroom bullion into two cups of boiling water;

Begin adding bullion slowing (adding only small amounts at any one time);

Continue adding bullion for 45 minutes stirring consistently (only add bullion as liquid absorbs into the rice);

Once bullion runs-out, continue to add approx. 1 cup of hot water, stirring until rice is cooked (to taste);

3-4 minutes before rice is finished, add white wine, slowly stirring;

Once risotto is ready, add Parmesan cheese to taste and serve (each person can always add more so add just a small amount).

Swordfish -- requires 4-5 minutes

Two 1/2 pound swordfish steaks

Sea Salt and freshly ground pepper

Capers

Butter

1 small lime

Olive oil

20 minutes after you start the Risotto, pre-heat your gas to 550 degrees;

Add cooking pan and place it directly beneath the flame to ensure the pan is hot;

Clean fish in cold water, dry and then add a small amount of good quality sea salt and freshly ground pepper to the swordfish;

5 minutes before the Risotto is done, place swordfish onto pan and place directly under gas flame;

1-2 minutes later, remove swordfish and add a small amount of olive oil (do not cover entire fish - just for flavor), and place back into the oven;

2 minutes later, remove swordfish and squeeze a small amount of lime juice, 1/4 teaspoon of butter and 10-12 capers to each steak and the place swordfish on a lower rack (remove it from being directly next to the flame); Cook for 1-2 minutes and then serve.

Asparagus

1/2 pound of Asparagus

Olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Lemon or Lime juice

20 minutes after you start the Risotto, pre-heat your gas to 550 degrees;

Add cooking pan and place it directly beneath the flame to ensure the pan is hot;

5 minutes before the Risotto is done, place Asparagus onto pan and place directly under gas flame;

Remove after 2-3 minutes and add a small amount of olive oil and lemon or lime juice and then return it to the oven for 1 minute;

Remove, add small amount of Sea salt and pepper and serve.

Leeks Wrapped in Ham au Gratin

One of the many pleasures of living with Hannah was her passion for cooking and good food. This was a common winter dish served at her home growing up. I know it's still summer but really, when the craving hits, there is no season to dictate what one could or should eat when all the ingredients are readily available all year round.

Ingredients:

6 Leeks

6 slices of cooked ham

1/4 c butter

2 T flour

3 cups milk

300 g Gruyere or Emmental cheese, grated (100 g set aside for broiling)

salt

nutmeg

Directions:

Cut off green part of the leek. Wash thoroughly.

Boil in salted water till tender. Discard first layer of the leek.

Roll a piece of ham over each of leek. Arrange in a baking dish.

Cheese Bechamel Sauce:

In a medium saucepan, heat the butter over medium-low heat until melted. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Over medium heat, cook until the mixture turns a light, golden sandy color, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add the milk to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time. Add cheese whisking continuously until very smooth. Bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg. Pour sauce over the ham and leek rolls. Bake at 375 degrees, till sauce is boiling. Add more cheese on top and broil till a light brown crust is formed. Best if served with mashed potatoes.

*Jamon Serrano would be amazing for this recipe as well. Gives it a more robust flavor*

Incredibly Easy Spinach Dip

It almost feels like cheating to make this, but sometimes the basic recipe ends up tasting better than the glamoured version. In my experience, it is so in the case of the Spinach Dip. I've seen so many versions with different twists and turns that nothing beats the most simple and un-complicated version. By fluke, I also found out that the dried leek soup mix is better than the universally used vegetable soup mix.

1 10 oz. Package frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained well)
1 16 oz. tub of sour cream
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 1.8 oz package of dry leek soup mix
2 stalks green onions, chopped
1 4oz. water chestnuts, chopped

Mix together all ingredients in a bowl and chill for 6-8 hours or overnight.

Serve with chips, bread or crackers

Note: make sure to mix everything well and spinach is drained completely. Enjoy!

Jap Chae (Stir Fried Glass Noodles with Vegetables)

This is a favorite Korean dish of mine. I've always been a big fan of noodles, be it sauteed or as a soup, it didn't really matter to me how it was prepared but this one is definitely on my top 3. The Korean vermicelli noodles can be found at the local Korean grocery store.



1/2 pound Korean sweet potato vermicelli noodles. Dang Myun
2 tablespoons sesame oil
¼ lb. thinly sliced mairnated beef

beef marinade :
1 tbsp soy sauce,
1 tbsp sugar,
1 tsp sesame oil,
1 tsp minced garlic,
1/4 tsp pepper

1 onion, julienned
1 carrot, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
3 green onions, cut into 1-inch lengths
1/2 cup dried black mushrooms
2 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (optional)

In a bowl, soak the vermicelli in hot water for 15 minutes. Drain the noodles, drop into a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds, and then rinse in cold water. Cut the noodles with kitchen shears.
Heat a large pan. Add 2 tablespoons sesame oil. Saute beef until a done, Add the onion, carrot, red bell pepper, scallions, mushrooms, garlic, sugar, salt and pepper. Let cook for a few minutes, stirring, until the vegetables are cooked but still a little crisp. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl. To the pan add 1 more tablespoon sesame oil. Add the noodles, salt and pepper. Let cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring. Add to the vegetables with 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds and combine.
Transfer to a platter. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Michi's White Trash Potatoes

Last summer, I went to a pool party with the girls, Michele made this amazing potato dish. It just melts in your mouth, I couldn't stop raving about it after the first bite. I also love how she named it. ;)




Ingredients:
16 ounces sour cream
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
10 ounces of shredded cheese (mexican 4 cheese mix works best)
1 Large Yellow onion (diced)
1 stick of margarine (softened)
Handfull of chopped green onions
1 tablespoon of Black pepper
3 russett potatoes (shredded) or 1 package of frozen hash browns
1/2 cup bread crumbs
handfull of chopped fresh italian parsley

Directions:
Mix shredded cheese, softened margarine, sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, green onions, diced yellow onion, black pepper in a mixing bowl.
Take the shredded potatoes and put them in a casserole dish and spread evenly. Take the mixture above, and spread on top of the shredded potatoes evenly.
Mix bread crumbs and parsley with 1/4 stick of margarine.
Sprinkle the bread crumb and parsley mix on top.
Cover the casserole dish with foil.
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
Bake for 1hr.
Take off foil, and then broil for another 15 min or until the top is golden.

Bern's Savory Mushroom Risotto

Bern made this mushroom risotto for our NYE party. As much I said to myself I'm not going to eat anymore that night, after the first taste, I just caved and gave in. I couldn't help but come back for seconds...even thirds!




Mushrooms:
1 pound sliced mushrooms (any variety will work)
1 large onion, halved, thinly sliced lengthwise
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 tablespoon white truffle oil
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For mushrooms:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss all ingredients on rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until mushrooms are tender and light brown around edges, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Risotto:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, divided
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups arborio rice or medium-grain white rice
1 cup dry white wine
5 cups (or more) hot vegetable broth (I used chicken broth)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons white truffle oil, or to taste
kosher salt, to taste

For risotto:
Melt 4 tablespoons butter in heavy large sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add rice; stir 2 minutes. Add wine and without stirring, let simmer 2- 3 minutes. Stir until almost all liquid is absorbed. Stir 2 – 3 to "toast" the rice. Add 1 cup hot broth and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Simmer until broth is almost absorbed, stirring often, about 4 minutes. Add more broth, 1 cup at a time, allowing each addition to be absorbed before adding next and stirring often, until rice is tender and mixture is creamy, about 20 minutes longer. Turn off the heat and stir in remaining 4 tablespoons butter (cubed), parmesan cheese, truffle oil, and more salt, to taste. You can either add the mushroom mixture to the risotto or use it as a topping.

Thyme & Garlic Mashed Potatoes

This is probably the best garlic mashed potatoes I've tried so far. Recipe below was given to me only as an estimate and I finally had the chance to test it out for the first time last Christmas. Needless to say, it was a big hit! Even my sister who does not like potatoes loved it...believe me, that says a lot!




Ingredients:
5 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
5 whole garlic cloves, peeled & chopped
1 cup (8 ounces) butter
fresh thyme
3 tablespoons sour cream
2/3 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook potatoes about 20 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork; remove from heat and drain.

Melt butter and then throw in a bunch of thyme leaves with it and let it simmer for a bit. It turns into Thyme butter. Also, chop a bunch of tiny pieces of garlic and throw them in a pan of Olive oil and cook until they turn golden brown and crunchy. (Never use a garlic press) Then throw them in the potatoes and mix.

Mash potatoes, add sour cream, and heavy cream; blend until well mixed. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Variation:

Thyme & Leek Mashed Potatoes: Substitute garlic with 5 leeks (white & pale green parts only), chopped, washed well and drained