Month: December 2012

Garlic Noodles & Pickled Cucumbers

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Hardly can you prepare a more simple, tasty and satisfying meal then this one.
On top of that, it is fast and easy to prepare and light on the wallet.
What’s not to love about that ? 🙂
The recipe I used today included only the seasonings in the photo on this page.
The version at the link below is a bit more complex. I love both versions equally.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

P.S.
Long noodles (longevity noodles)are a symbol of good luck.
Let’s hope they work for 2013 🙂
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Recipe for “GARLIC NOODLES ” Here

Recipe for “CHINESE CUCUMBER SALAD” Here

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2012 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

19,000 people fit into the new Barclays Center to see Jay-Z perform. This blog was viewed about 74,000 times in 2012. If it were a concert at the Barclays Center, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

“Breakfast Of Champions # 15 ” – Scrambled Eggs…..

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Don’t you just hate it when you go to bed real late because you don’t have to work the next day and you look forward to sleeping-in in the morning, just to have your sweet dreams shattered by your inner alarm clock at your regular get-up time (3.30am). Why does my inner alarm clock not work when I forget to set my electronic alarm or when there is a power-out during the night ??? Anyway, since I was up and was going to watch a movie ( Amour, by Michael Haneke ), a good breakfast was in order :

” Scrambled egg’s with naan, greek yogurt, Argentinian chorizo and sauted grape tomatoes, corn and peppers in herbed garlic butter ”

Good start for the last day of 2012 🙂

Have a great day ! Live is Good !
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P.S.
Make sure you cook your eggs in the rendered chorizo fat after sauteing the sausages.
They’ll loose a bit of their bright color but they gain so much flavor 🙂
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Afternoon Coffee On The Terrace – Life Is Good

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Today was a perfect afternoon to enjoy a cup of hot coffee on the back terrace. (Too cold for an iced beverage). My neighbor’s Freddie and Maureen have turned me on to a product they are distributing, ” Organo Gold Coffee ” . They say it is very healthy for me because of the added “ganoderma extract”. I am not sure of any of that stuff (at least for now), but what I really like about it is the fact that in order to get a good cup of coffee, all I have to do is add hot water to the coffee powder, instant coffee style. I also add a small amount of instant chocolate powder and voila ! Instant good hot beverage. (I never claimed to be a coffee connoisseur , although I enjoy my Cuban coffee and the occasional espresso or cappuccino)
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Cheers !
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NO ! I am NOT affiliated with Organo in any way. I just like the stuff 🙂

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Chinese Pickled Cucumber

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Chinese cucumber salad. 涼拌黃瓜 (liáng bàn huáng guā)
This is a dish I make often at home. It is easy to prepare, economical , (say cheap if you want :-). It holds up well in the fridge for a few day’s and I use it as appetizer, side dish or snack during any time of the day, but mostly late at night when I want something tasty, fresh and spicy.

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Ingredients :

Cucumbers, cut into batons
White rice vinegar,
Garlic, paste
Ginger, grated
Chili , diced (substitute peper flakes if you must)
Soy sauce, just a small amount, so as not to discolor cucumbers
Sesame oil,
Kosher salt,
Sugar,

Method :

Salt the cucumbers, cover and let stand for 30 minutes. Discard the salty juices which have collected. Ad all other ingredients, adjust seasoning if necessary.

Note: For a variation add a teaspoon of finely diced ginger. You can substitute the cucumber with another vegetable such as radish, jicama, cabbage or Chinese cabbage.
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Curried Lentil Soup With Pork & Pork

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” Curried lentil soup with pork, vegetables, potatoes, sun dried tomatoes, chilis and chicharones (the other pork) ”

Last night it was a bone chilling 68 F outside, (this is Florida, folks),
so this one-pot meal provided much needed heat and comfort 🙂
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Ingredients :

Pork butt, diced
Chicken stock,
Lentils, any color will do
Bell peppers, diced
Onions, diced
Potatoes, diced
Celery, diced
Carrots, diced
Sun dried tomatoes, chopped
Garlic, paste
Chicharones,
Butter, substitute with olive oil if you prefer
Kosher salt,
Cayenne,
Maggi seasoning,

Method :

Saute onions, carrots, celery, sun dried tomatoes and garlic in butter until onions are translucent. Add curry powder, saute slowly for 30 seconds. Add pork, chicken stock and seasoning. Simmer until pork is tender. Remove pork, set aside, cover so it does not discolor. Add lentils to stock and simmer for 15 minutes. Add potatoes and peppers. Simmer until tender but not falling apart. Blend one quarter of the soup until smooth and thick. Return to pot, add pork and heat through. Adjust seasoning if required. To serve, sprinkle with chicharones.

Bon Appetit ! Stay Warm !
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More Udon

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” Udon Noodles, Broccoli Rabe, Shrimp and Shiitake Mushrooms In Spicy Beef Broth ”
I still had some fresh udon noodles and the beef broth from a few days ago, so what better midnight snack (1.30 am actually), then a nice noodle soup. Obviously, this would be fine for any time of the day, breakfast, lunch, dinner or any time in between 🙂
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Ingredient’s :

Beef stock, ( from beef ribs, see HERE )
Udon noodles,
Broccoli rabe, blanched
Shiitake mushrooms, soaked
Onion, sliced
Shrimp, peeled and deveined
Chilis, sliced
Garlic, paste
Ginger, grated
Cilantro, chopped
Chili flakes,
Lime, juiced
Kosher salt,
Soy sauce,
Sesame oil,
Sriracha sauce,

Method :

Saute onion, garlic, ginger, mushroom and shrimp.
Add all other ingredients except cilantro and sesame oil,
simmer for one minute. Remove from heat, adjust seasoning
if necessary. To serve, drizzle with sesame oil and sprinkle
with cilantro and chili flakes .

Bon Appetit ! Life is good !
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Parmesan Encrusted Pork Cutlet, Sauteed Potatoes & Chili Butter

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Merry X-mas Everybody 🙂

After I jumped out of bed at 3.30am, thinking I’ll be late for work and realizing only after a quick shower and an even quicker breakfast (one banana and one cup of tea) that it is sunday and x-mas to boost, I took a long walk with Bella while pondering what to have for lunch. I was so hungry by mid morning that I had an early lunch (late second breakfast ?, or as we call it in southern Germany, “Vesper”)
Wonderful tasty breaded pork cutlet with spicy sauted potatoes and Scotch Bonnet & Garlic Compound Butter.
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Ingredient’s :

Pork cutlet, seasoned with salt, cayenne pepper, roasted garlic paste and lime juice
AP flour,
Whole egg, whisked
Bread crumbs, mixed 50/50 with grated parmesan cheese
Peanut oil, to saute
Butter whole, to saute

Potatoes, sliced, blanched
Red peppers, diced
Scallions, sliced
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,
Peanut oil, to saute
Butter whole, to saute

Method :

Season pork cutlet, dust with flour, dip into egg wash and bread with bread crumb / parmesan mixture. Saute in oil until almost done and golden brown. Replace oil with butter and saute until pork chop reaches 162 0n the bone. Remove absorbent paper.
Saute potatoes in oil until light golden and crisp. Add diced peppers, salt and cayenne. Drain oil and replace with whole butter. Saute until butter starts to foam and slightly changes color. To serve, sprinkle potatoes with scallion and top chop with chili butter.

Bon Appetit ! Live is Good !
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Ziti, Shrimp, Asparagus And Salame In Garlic-Cream Sauce

A quick and easy dinner the night before x-mas 🙂

Saute Salame, garlic and chilis in butter until fragrant.
Deglaze with white wine, add cream and reduce
until thickened. Add ziti, poached shrimp and
blanched asparagus. Simmer until all ingredients
are well heated. Season with kosher salt, maggi
seasoning and cayenne pepper.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Happy Holiday’s

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Dear Friend’s,

as this year draws to a close, I wish you all a very happy holiday season
and a prosperous, healthy, happy and content new year.
May your God keep you healthy, your love for all good thing’s
growing and your every need’s and wishes come true.
Happy Cooking, Eating & Sharing

Best Regard’s, Hans Susser

Life is Good !
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