scallions

Sauteed Red Beet Leaves With Steamed Swai Filet, Aji Amarillo Sauce, Parmesan Shavings & Scallions

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Today’s post on “Hans’ Lighter, Healthier Comfort Food”

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Week One – Wednesday Dinner
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Sautéed Red Beet Leaves With Steamed Swai Filet, Aji Amarillo Sauce, Parmesan Shavings & Scallions
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Click here to see all pictures and Cooking Instructions
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Who would have thought that red beet leaves are so yummy? !
Definitely not me, having never even considered cooking them before. But now that I have been looking into a more balanced, healthier diet, I have discovered a number of ingredients I will use in the future which will both expand my repertoire and at the same time improve my nutritional values.
Some of you might wonder why I have added cheese to this dish, since parmesan and fish does not usually end up on the same plate, but here , in my opinion, it just goes perfect with the vegetable, so in this case it won against traditional restrictions.
And as far as the Aji Amarillo Sauce is concerned, because of its versatility, the bottled version has become a bit of a go-to condiment for me, convenient and oh-so-good 🙂 .
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Bon Appetit ! Enjoy a Healthy, Happy Life !
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Sauteed Red Beet Leaves With Steamed Swai Filet, Aji Amarillo Sauce, Parmesan Shavings & Scallions

Sautéed Red Beet Leaves With Steamed Swai Filet, Aji Amarillo Sauce, Parmesan Shavings & Scallions

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Pork Soup With Pork & Leek Dumplings, Baby Bok Choy And Scallions

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This will be my last meal in 2014. It fit’s the occasion of a New Years Eve Diner well for me, since I adore pork dumplings in soup and it is the perfect dish to devour while watching TV . Bella and I are spending the evening watching movies and every hour on the hour the fireworks from around the world. It started of with Sidney a couple of hours ago, which, as usual, had one of the most spectacular displays. Later when the clock strikes midnight here in Florida, we’ll go outside and watch the fireworks at the nearby airport live from our backyard. Not as glamorous as the one in Sidney, but………..
After that we will enjoy a night cup of hot chocolate and doughnut holes with caramelized pineapple and banana.
Boy, how things have changed for me from just a few years back :-).
Nowadays, I leave the wild partying to the kid’s and the kid’s at heart. Strangely enough, I don’t miss the partying a bit. (Yet?)
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Happy New Year ! God Bless !

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Pork Soup With Pork & Leek Dumplings, Baby Bok Choy And Scallions

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Preparation :
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To read instructions, hover over picture
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: for dumpling filling, mix ground pork, grated ginger, garlic paste, finely diced water chestnuts, salt, cayenne pepper and sesame oil, wrap with dumpling wrappers, simmer in pork broth until done, about 4 minutes

: season broth with kosher salt, chili oil, sesame oil, grated ginger and garlic paste, ass bok choy

: simmer bok choy for no more than 2 minutes, to serve, add sliced scallions

: Pork Soup With Pork & Leek Dumplings, Baby Bok Choy And Scallions

: Pork Soup With Pork & Leek Dumplings, Baby Bok Choy And Scallions

: Pork Soup With Pork & Leek Dumplings, Baby Bok Choy And Scallions

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Tomato Soup With Spicy Sausage & Pasta

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Comfort food – the moniker say’s it all – it gives you comfort and leaves you in a better state than you were before you consumed it.
And the best thing about it is that not only does it make you feel good and satisfied, it usually is also uncomplicated and easy on the wallet.
I have included spicy Italian sausage “meatballs” here since I had leftovers from yesterdays dinner. Frozen tomato soup is a staple in my freezer, since I usually make a large batch and freeze whatever I don’t eat right away. ( Empty” Crystal Light” containers are perfect and free for this). So all that was needed for this beauty of a soup was to cook the pasta, heat the soup and saute the sliced sausages in garlic oil.
Voilà – instant great comfort and happiness 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for Tomato Soup Recipe
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Tomato Soup With Spicy Sausage & Pasta

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Preparation :
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: follow link to tomato soup recipe

: defrost / heat or freshly prepare tomato soup, saute spicy italian sausage, cook elbow maccaroni

: plate mac

: top with sausage

: sprinkle with sliced scallions and grated parmesan

: top with tomato soup

: Tomato Soup With Spicy Sausage & Pasta

: Tomato Soup With Spicy Sausage & Pasta

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Sauteed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

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Cod used to be the cheapest fish you can buy – but look at it now : 4 pieces for $ 38.00 at the fishmonger ! 😦
But once in a while I have to splurge a bit and this cod just fit the bill 🙂
Tomorrow we’ll have dry bread again……
Not really, but I really wish basic food items would be priced a bit more affordable. Shops get fancier all the time, advertising cost’s millions and all these costs have to be covered by the food we consume.
But then again, we are blessed to have this abundance available to us, unlike many (most?) folks in the world who consider them self lucky just to fill their belly every (some) day with whatever scraps they can find.
So with that in mind, on to last nights feast –

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Bon Appetit ! Live is Good (For some of us at least, blessed as we are)

P.S.
if you wonder what happened to the other 3 pieces of fish – Bella had one and I had three 🙂
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Sauteed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

Sautéed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

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Preparation :
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To read instructions, hover over picture
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: Carrots & Scallions

: season cod filets with granulated garlic, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, dust with rice flour

: saute in butter until just done but not dry

: meanwhile, simmer carrots in perrier water and butter with a bit of sugar, kosher salt and cayenne pepper until perrier has evaporated

: saute carrots in the remaining butter until starting to caramelize, set aside

: add scallions, saute one more minute

: almost……..

: serve cod and carrots with fresh lemon wedge and thai chili sauce

: Sauteed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

: Sauteed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

: Sauteed Cod Filet & Honey-Glazed Carrots

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BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS # 43 – Rib Eye & Mushroom In Cream

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Aaaahhhhhhhh……, the bliss of being able to sleep in on a Sunday morning, amplified by the fact that summer day light saving times ended and we set back our clocks one hour before going to sleep 🙂
But, somehow, Bella was not aware (or maybe she just choose to ignore) of these little facts, so guess who was moaning in front of my bedroom for me to get up at 4.00am this morning, demanding to go for a walk?
So, when we came back at 5.00am, a decent breakfast was called for (by both of us). Steak and mushrooms pacified my shattered nerves and put both me and my lady back on good terms 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Have A Happy, Sunny, Sunday !
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top with mushrooms, sprinkle with scallions

Rib Eye & Mushrooms In Cream

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Preparation :
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soak cepes, shiitake and wood ears in boiling water for 20 minutes

meanwhile, season steaks with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper

saute in garlic oil until cooked to your preferred doneness, remove from pan, set aside to rest

in same pan, saute onions until lightly caramelized

add drained mushrooms and garlic paste

add heavy cream, salt and pepper

simmer until cream has reduce to desired texture, add scallions, check / adjust seasoning

plate steaks and rustic bread to mop up the sauce and juices

top with mushrooms, sprinkle with more scallions

Rib Eye & Mushrooms In Cream

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Asian Style Glazed Pork Ribs With Fermented Black Bean Sauce

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This dish will suit everybody with a taste for Asian flavors but no great desire to spend a lot of time prepping food in the kitchen 🙂
Although this will take about 3 – 4 hours to cook, the actual prep-time is only about 10 minutes, the rest is waiting patiently for the ribs to become tender. You could blanch them in simmering salt water before roasting to save about two hours, but the texture and flavor would be very different.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Asian Style Glazed Pork Ribs With Fermented Bean Sauce

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Preparation :
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season ribs with kosher salt, cayenne pepper, granulated garlic and five spice powder, cook at 230 F on a rack above a wter filled baking pan until very tender, about three to four hours, depending on the size and quality of the ribs

season ribs with kosher salt, black pepper, granulated garlic and five spice powder, cook at 230 F on a rack above a water filled baking pan until very tender, about three to four hours, depending on the size and quality of the ribs

remove tender ribs from oven, heat oven to 420 F

meanwhile, make a basting sauce by whisking together fermented bean sauce, sweet chili sauce, soy sauce and sesame oil

basting sauce

baste ribs generously with the sauce on all sides, bake until starting to caramelize, baste again, caramelize again

when nicely caramelized, remove from oven, sprinkle with sesame seeds

to serve, sprinkle with finely sliced scallins

to serve, sprinkle with finely sliced scallions

Asian Style Glazed Pork Ribs With Fermented Bean Sauce

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Lamb Meat Balls In Harissa/Tomato Sauce, With Garlicky Pearl Pasta And Feta Cheese

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Last month my friend Curtis introduced me to a store which I have been missing all my cooking life. It’s the “Foodtown Supermarket” in Davie, corner sterling/dairy rd extension. Here I can find EVERYTHING my culinary cravings will ever desire as far as Asian and Latino food ingredients are concerned. EVERYTHING !!! 🙂 – Live frogs, live crabs, live shrimps, fresh fish heads, intestines, you get the idea.
(You can check it out online by clicking this link, especially read the comments) 🙂
Although Merguez sausage is neither Asian nor Latino, Foodtown has a great quality one on offer, as well as a small selection of other African/Mediterranean items.
So yesterday after work I stopped by there for a few goodies and amongst other stuff I got merguez sausage, harissa and pearl pasta (Piombi)
So here is what I had for lunch today :

Click here for more on MERGUEZ SAUSAGE

Click here for more on LAMB MEAT BALLS

Click here for more on HARISSA
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

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Lamb Meat Balls In Harissa / Tomato Sauce With Garlicky Pearl Pasta And Feta Cheese

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Preparation :
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cook pearl pasta in salted water, strain, reserve some of the cooking liquid in case you need to thinnen the sauce

cut mild chilies, onion and blanched carrots into triangels

cut mild chilies, onion and blanched carrots into triangles

saute carrots and onions in a generous amount of herb / garlic butter and olive oil until starting to caramelize

add chilies and sliced scallions

add pearl pasta, mix well, check / adjust seasoning

add pearl pasta, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, mix well, check / adjust seasoning

remove merguez sausage from casing, form into small balls, saute in olive oil until medium, add 1/3 of harissa and 2/3 of tomato sauce. If too thick, add some of the pasta liquid, simmer for one minute, check / adjust seasoning

plate pasta, leaving a well in the center

add lamb meatballs and harissa / tomato sauce

sprinkle with finely crumbled feta cheese and sliced scallions

Lamb Meat Balls In Harissa / Tomato Sauce With Garlicky Pearl Pasta And Feta Cheese

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EASY DOES IT # 14 – Fondue Au Fromage Sec #2

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Click here for all previous EASY DOES IT recipes

Click here for previous Fondue Au Fromage Sec recipe
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This is a dish you want to share with your best buddy or closest family on that special, informal occasion. That time when you just want to have a few drinks and eat good, without spending too much time in the kitchen (- or non at all – you can prepare this the day before without baking it, keep it in the fridge and then just jugg it in the oven 15 minutes before you are ready to eat).
Goes great with cold beer, cold white wine or slightly chilled red wine.
P.S.
Although there is a knife and cutting board in the picture below, the whole thing is even more agreeable if you just grab a piece and rip it from the loaf 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Fondue Au Fromage Sec #2

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Preparation :
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mise en place: Sour dough loaf, sun dried tomato, sliced chives, sliced asiago cheese, crumled gorgonzola, mustard, sriracha, olive oil

mise en place: Sour dough loaf, sun dried tomato, sliced chives, sliced asiago cheese, mascarpone, crumbled gorgonzola, grey poupon mustard, sriracha, olive oil

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score bread in a criss-cross pattern about half way down, in a bowl, mix all remaining ingredients, then stuff them into the breads cavities.

score bread in a criss-cross pattern about half way down, drizzle a good amount of mascarpone over bread and into the cuts, in a bowl, mix all remaining ingredients, then stuff them into the bread’s cavities.

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bake at 375 F until cheese has melthed and center of bread is at 165 F

bake at 375 F until cheese has melted and center of bread is at 165 F

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EASY DOES IT # 14 – Fondue Au Fromage Sec, #2

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Fondue Au Fromage Sec #2

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Chicken Liver Congee

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Usually, I have congee for breakfast, but today I just wanted a big bowl of this culinary marvel for lunch.
It is one of the most satisfying dishes out there, as long as it is properly seasoned and has the ingredients you long for at the moment. As far as congee goes – anything goes 🙂
Even the texture has no right or wrong. As long as you like it – that’s the right texture. I like mine fairly thick, tasty, spicy and with lot’s of “stuff” in it. I happened to have fresh chicken livers today, but you can use any protein you like, shrimps, scallops, chicken or whatever is handy. Maybe just vegetables? With egg or without? Many condiments or none?

Today I cooked my rice in a rich chicken stock, flavored with lots of grated ginger, garlic paste, kosher salt and ground chili pepper and a splash of fermented bean sauce. Once the porridge had the desired texture, I added medium-fried chicken livers, Chinese black mushrooms, cooked ham, corn, black beans, sesame oil, finely sliced chilies and scallions.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for more Congee recipes
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Chicken Liver Congee

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Chicken Liver Congee

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Preparation:
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season with granulated garlic, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, five spice powder, add cornstarch, mix well

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fry in peanut oil until medium, remove to absorbent paper

fry livers in peanut oil until medium, remove to absorbent paper

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almost ………

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to porridge add livers, beans, corn, mushroom, chilies, scallions and sesame seed oil, check/adjust seasoning

to the porridge add livers, beans, corn, mushroom, chilies, scallions and sesame seed oil, check/adjust seasoning

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Chicken Liver Congee

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Chicken Liver Congee

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Chicken Liver Congee

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Dear Friend’s, to help support this blog,
please be so kind and click on the video on the bottom of this page. Thank you 🙂
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Szechuan Hot & Sour Soup 酸辣汤

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Spicy lunch (I made it VERY spicy), washed down with lemon ice tea while
watching “The Great Gatsby”.
Perfect Saturday so far 🙂

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

Saute shrimp, dried shrimp, squid, garlic paste and grated ginger in peanut oil for one minute. Add chicken stock, salt, chili sauce, soy sauce and sesame oil. Bring to a simmer, add sliced water chestnuts, soaked and cooked wood ears and small amount of cornstarch slurry. Add whisked eggs, stir slowly in one direction only. As soon as eggs have set into long, thin strands, remove soup from fire. Check/adjust seasoning. Add cubed tofu. To serve, sprinkle with sliced scallions and fried onion julienne.
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