Mango and Avocado Salad

 

Ingredients

• 1 T balsamic vinegar
• 1 T lime juice
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 mangoes cubed
• 2 avocados, cubed
• 1/2 small red onion, diced
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. In a large serving bowl, whisk together vinegar, lime juice, salt and pepper to taste. Slowly whisk in oil. Toss in mangoes, avocado and red onion to coat. Serve immediately.

  

Mango Cucumber Rice Salad

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 C rice blend
• 1/4 C quinoa
• finely grated zest and juice of one lime
• 2 T oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• pepper
• 1 C chopped mango
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced
• 1 red jalapeño, seeded and thinly sliced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 C chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 C chopped salted roasted peanuts

Directions

1. Cook the rice and quinoa.
2. Drain the grains and rinse under cold water until cool; shake off the excess water.
3. Whisk the lime juice and zest, oil, sugar, 1 tsp salt, and pepper to taste.
4. Add the rice, mango, cucumber, jalapeño, scallions, cilantro, and peanuts and stir to combine.  Season with salt.

Mango Habanero Salsa

 Ingredients

• 1 garlic clove
• salt
• 1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 ripe mangoes, peeled and diced
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 habanero Chile, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
• juice of 2 limes
• tortilla chips, for serving

Directions

Finely chop the garlic, sprinkle with 1 1/4 t salt, and mash into a coarse paste.  Mix the garlic paste with cilantro, oil, mango, scallions, habanero and lime juice.

Set aside for at least 15 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.  Season with additional salt and serve with tortilla chips for scooping.

Crispy Tofu

 

Ingredients. I made this on June 9, 2022.  Excellent!  I'll make it again!

• One block firm tofu, drained
• 2 T shoyu
• Juice of one lime
• 2 tsps honey
• 2 scallions (green onions)
• 1/2 tsp sriracha

• 1/2 C panko
• 2 T sesame seeds
• 1 T cornstarch
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp onion powder
• Salt and pepper
• 3 T olive oil

Directions

1. Wrap tofu in a clean dish towel and place on top of a wire rack set inside a rimmed backing sheet.  Place a heavy pan on top of the tofu and let it sit for 5 minutes to release as much moisture as possible.  Unwrap and slice lengthwise into 1/2" thick by 1 1/2" wide planks.
2. Whisk the shoyu, lime juice, honey, green onions and sriracha together in a small bowl and set aside.  Mix the panko, sesame seeds, cornstarch, garlic salt, onion powder, 1/2 tsp salt and a few grinds of pepper in a pie dish or shallow bowl.  Press the tofu planks into the panko mixture to coat on all sides.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the tofu and cook, undisturbed, until deep golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Flip the tofu with a spatula and continue cooking undisturbed until a deep golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes more.  Transfer to a platter.
5. Reduce heat to low and add the shoyu mixture to the pan.  Cook until bubbling and slightly thicker, 1 to 2 minutes.  Pour the sauce over the tofu and sprinkle with the green onions.  

My husband, Gerald, is a gardener!  I used his first onion (and stalks) to make this crispy tofu!

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

 

I made this on Dec. 6, 2021.  It wasn't very soupy; next time I'll add more broth?  Perhaps the wild rice soaked up more of the liquid.  Plus, I opened the Instant Pot after it had started so I could add the beans.  I think that messed it up, unfortunately.  

Ingredients

• 2 pounds chicken 
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 T olive oil
• 3 large celery stalks, sliced 1/4" thick
• 2 large carrots, sliced 1/4" thick
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped (I used 5 because I LOVE garlic :)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary  ] Of course, you know I don't have fresh herbs, well, perhaps
• 2 tsp finely chopped fresh sage          ]  I do have fresh rosemary outside, but I didn't use it.  I used
• 2 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme       ]  dried herbs :)
• 1/2 C white wine (or broth)
• 4 C chicken broth
• 1 C uncooked wild rice
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 T butter
• 2 T flour
• 1/2 bunch kale, bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 C half and half
• 1 T fresh lemon juice 

Directions

1. Season the chicken with 1 tsp each salt and pepper.  Add the olive oil to the Instant Pot and set to sauté.  Working in batches, add the chicken to the pot and cook until browned.  Remove the chicken to a plate.
2. Add the celery, carrots, garlic, onion, and herbs, stirring for 1 minute.  Add the wine and stir, scraping up the bottom of the pot.  Cook until the wine is reduced by at least half.  Add the broth, rice and 1/2 C water and stir.  Add the chicken; add the bay leaf.
3. Put on and lock the lid.  Set to pressure-cook on high for 25 minutes.  Vent, unlock and remove the lid.
4. Remove dot chicken from the pot and shred the chicken.
5. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mash together the butter and flour with a fork to make a paste.
6. Return the chicken to the pot.  Add the butter mixture, stirring to thicken.  Set the Instant Pot to sauté.  Add the kale and cook two minutes.  Stir in the half-and-half and bring to a simmer, then press cancel.  
7. Just before serving, remove the bay leaf, add the lemon juice and stir.  Season with salt and pepper.

Other comments:

• Can use broccoli or some other vegetable.
• Use more liquid to really make it a soup.
• Could add mushrooms or a different kind of bean.
• Some other people used beef instead of chicken, or could make it vegetarian.  

Chinese Scallion Pancakes

I made this on Sunday, Nov. 28 because I had A LOT of green onions to use up.  I had bought a lot for our pre-Thanksgiving feast with all the Scannell family here.  Pretty tasty but a lot of work!  Here's the website:  https://omnivorescookbook.com/chinese-scallion-pancakes/

Ingredients

Dough

• 2 cups (300 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1/4 cup cool water

Filling

• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (50 g) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup peanut oil (or your favorite oil like olive oil, melted coconut oil, melted butter, or melted chicken fat etc.)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 to 10 green onions , split down the middle and chopped (yield 1 cup)

Cooking

• Vegetable oil for pan frying

Dipping Sauce (Optional)

• 1 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chinkiang vinegar (or rice vinegar)
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar

Instructions

Make the dough

• OPTION 1 – USING YOUR HANDS: Combine the flour and salt in a big bowl. Stir to mix well. Slowly drizzle in the hot water while mixing it with a pair of chopsticks (or a fork), until the water is fully absorbed. Slowly drizzle in the cool water, continuing to stir until many dough flakes form. Press the dough together, and try to combine the wet dough with the dry flour. Drizzle in a little extra water if there is any dry flour remaining. Knead until a firm ball is formed, about 5 minutes. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
• OPTION 2 – USING A MIXER: Combine the flour and salt in the mixer bowl with the dough hook attachment. Turn it to the mix setting and slowly drizzle in the hot water followed by the cool water. After a minute of mixing, drizzling in a little extra water if there is any dry flour remaining. Turn to setting 4 and knead until a ball of dough is formed, about 3 minutes. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.

Make the filling

• While the dough is resting, combine the flour, oil, and salt in a small bowl. Mix until a smooth paste is formed.
• If making the dipping sauce, combine all the ingredients with 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl and mix until the sugar is dissolved.

Form the scallion pancakes

• When the dough is done resting, knead for another minute until it is smooth. Cut the dough into 6 even pieces, about 76 grams per piece. Form the dough into balls using your hands.
• Work on one dough ball at a time, covering the rest with plastic wrap to prevent drying out. Roll each dough ball into a thin rectangle with a rolling pin, aiming for around 6×10” (15×25 cm). Lift and turn the dough regularly as you roll it to prevent sticking. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the filling onto the dough and spread it evenly with the back of a spoon, leaving about 1” (2.5 cm) on top and the left end without the filling. Sprinkle 2 heaping tablespoons of green onions onto the paste, concentrating most of it towards one side of the length and one side of the width, creating a loose L shape (see the blog post above for the step-by-step pictures).
• Begin rolling the dough from the longer side of the dough where the green onions are concentrated, until you have one long tube. Lightly flatten the tube using your hand. Pinch the side with more green onion to seal it. Take the sealed side and gently pull and roll it towards the unsealed side, using your hand to smooth out the dough to push any large air bubbles out. Tuck the loose end under the rolled bun. Gently press down on the round disk with your hand to seal the pancake.
• Set the formed pancake aside and cover it with plastic wrap. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until each pancake is ready.

Roll out the pancake

• Roll each prepared pancake into a circle, about 7-8” (17-20 cm) wide. Flip and move it as you do to prevent sticking. Don’t worry if air bubbles burst through or some green onions fall out.
• If you plan to store the pancakes and cook them later, place each pancake onto a piece of parchment paper and stack them. Transfer the pancakes to a large ziplock bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and seal the bag. You can freeze the pancakes for up to 3 months.

Cook the pancakes

• Heat a 9” (23 cm) cast iron pan (or a nonstick skillet) over medium-high heat and add enough oil to fully coat the bottom. Once the oil is hot, add a pancake. Use a pair of chopsticks (or a spatula) to swirl the pancake around to spread the oil and prevent sticking, for a few seconds. Cover the pan and turn the heat down to medium. Let the pancake cook, covered, for 1 minute. Remove the lid and flip the pancake, cover, and cook for another minute. Remove the lid. Use a spatula to press the pancake, to ensure even browning. Continue to cook, flipping regularly, until both sides are crisp and browned, about 3 minutes. Turn to medium-low heat if the pan gets too hot. Transfer the pancake to a cooling rack or a cutting board to cool. Repeat to cook all the pancakes you plan to serve.
• Once the pancakes are slightly cooled enough to handle, cut into 6 pieces and transfer to a serving platter. Serve hot with the dipping sauce as an appetizer.

Cook frozen pancakes

• Let the frozen pancakes thaw for 10 minutes then proceed from step 8.

Store and reheat cooked pancakes

• Place the leftover pancakes in a ziplock bag by stacking them together. Store in the fridge up to 3 days. To reheat, add a pancake to a pan and heat over medium heat, cook, flip occasionally until the pancakes turn warm throughout.

Wild Rice Soup and Popovers (from Tastemade Struggle Meals)

Ingredients

Mushroom Wild Rice Soup

• 1 cup wild rice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 butter packets
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 12 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
• Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Popovers

• 5 tablespoons melted butter
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup milk, warm
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp thyme leaves

Steps

Mushroom Wild Rice Soup

1. Rinse the wild rice with cold water in a strainer. Drain the water and pour the rice into a large saucepan. Cover the rice with 4 cups of water and add 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cover with a lid. Simmer for 45-50 minutes. Rice should be chewy but tender when done. Drain the remaining water if needed.
2. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and mushrooms and sauté until tender and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the white wine to deglaze and release flavor from the bottom of the pan. Add the chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups of water, carrots, thyme, and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and stir in the heavy cream and cooked wild rice. Finish with the vinegar. Serve with popovers.
3. Cook’s Tip: Wild rice is a tough seed that absorbs water slowly. It can take 45 minutes to an hour for wild rice to fully cook and no longer be crunchy. Since the cooking time can vary it’s easiest to cook the rice like pasta.

Popovers

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place the empty muffin tin in the oven to heat for 5 minutes.
2. Mix the eggs, milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter, salt and thyme in a medium bowl. Add the flour in 1/4 cup increments, whisking well after each addition. The batter should be smooth without lumps.
3. Carefully remove the hot muffin tin from the oven and drizzle 1/2 tablespoon melted butter into each cup of a 12 cup muffin tin. Fill each cup with 1/4 cup of batter, about half full. Bake for 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 degrees F and bake until popovers are puffy and golden brown, about 10 more minutes. Remove from the pan and serve hot.