Not-Your-Average-Grilled-Cheese

By: Bronte Baird


So good. Just trust me on this one. It tastes like Summer!

Take your pick of strawberries or tomatoes (I think the strawberries taste better). I did half and half to test out both. 

Grilled cheese but with cream cheese, fresh basil, and strawberries. 

Grill slowly at medium heat. 

Purple Cabbage Soup

This is a fun idea that needs perfecting if you want to try it and change it with any of your suggestions that make it better.

Purple cabbage, potato, onions- diced and cooked in chicken broth

basil leaves, salt, pepper, garlic

...I think that's all I put in it.

Boiled until cooked. Cooled, Blended.

Topped with cheese.

It's really cool because when it is cooler in the fridge it's more of a blue color- and then when you heat it up it becomes a brighter purple. Fun for kids- so I'm hoping to perfect it so it tastes really good too. 

Japanese Noodles- Copycat Recipe

When I lived in Iwakuni there was this Udon restaurant out by the Kintaikyou Bridge where we used to eat out a lot. One of the days I had this plum-ginger-lemon Udon that was so good I decided to try and make it when I got home. It doesn't taste exactly the same- but it's pretty close. I've shared it with many friends and I've yet to hear of someone who doesn't like it- plus it only takes about 10 min. to make. The combination may sound strange- but it's delicious. I'm also including pictures of the ingredients so if you choose to venture into the Asian Market to find them you wont be lost. 

Boil noodles- the best are Udon (the fat kind) but you can also use somen (skinny kind)

Udon soup packets- mix one in with the boiling water (same water you cooked the noodles in) 

Green onions

Seasame Seeds

Lemon

Plum Paste

Ginger paste (or shredded ginger)

-Squeeze the lemon and stir everything together before eating. 

Plum and Ginger paste

Udon soup packets

Sesame seeds

Orange Cream Salad

This is soooo good.

1. Oranges cut in small chunks ( filet orange ;))
2. Mexican Crema ( like sour cream)
3. Brown sugar

This might work out with a garnish of mint?

Beet Soup

Today I did a variation on the Beet-Ginger-and-Coconut-Milk-Soup by Epicurious.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/beet-ginger-and-coconut-milk-soup-51188420

We ate it with (what were supposed to be) heart shaped biscuits and salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Welcoming in February with pink. <3

2ish bowls of water with 2 chicken bullion cubes

2ish cups of vanilla coconut milk (regular milk would work too- I just needed to use mine up)

Salt

Pepper

Garlic (1-1.5 Tbs)

Ginger (2 Tbs)

--All boiling together--

Add (1/4) onions and (3) beets that have been diced and sauteed in butter and boil for 15-20 min.

Blend--when cool

Add cilantro sprigs after heating soup up

Very tasty and it has a lovely color. :) 

Cilantro Chicken Zucchini Soup

By: Bronte Baird

'Tis the season for soups I guess.
 This one came about to use up some veggies I had in my fridge and ended up very tasty.

Ingredients: 

Zucchini

Chicken

Onion

Carrots

Corn

Cilantro

Garlic

Lime

Spices

Avacado

Diced: zucchini, chicken, onion (1/8 onion), carrots cooked together in vegetable oil- until chicken is mostly cooked.

Add in: thinly sliced carrots, corn, and two bowl fulls of water with 2 chicken bullion cubes

Boil until chicken is cooked all the way.

Add: half a squeezed lime, garlic, chopped cilantro, salt, pepper, celery salt, cumin, a bit of mango chipoltle (optional), coconut milk (optional).

Add right before eating: chopped up avacado.

Hot fudge

I use this for topping chocolate pancakes. It tastes like leatherby's hot fudge if you put it on ice cream. I also put some cold on a peanut butter cookie and microwaved it for 10 seconds. That's the cookie in the picture.

Here it is.
1/2 cup salted butter
3/2 cups sugar
3 T cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
Pinch of salt if it needs it.
1 t baking soda at the end when you take it off the heat. This is if you want it foamy for pancake syrup. Beware, it doubles in size briefly if you do this.


Put everything in a saucepan and bring it to bubbling over medium heat then remove from heat.

This can be refrigerated.

Tomato Turmeric Soup

Tomato Turmeric Soup

By: Bronte Baird

2 cans of diced tomatoes

1 can of chicken broth

1 turmeric root shredded (with a grater)

1/4 onion diced

2 stems of celery diced

4 handfuls of spinach

Milk

Honey

Celery Salt

Black Pepper

Minced Garlic

Italian Herb Paste

I stirred it all together and then blended it so it wouldn't be quite so chunky. 

DO NOT blend hot. Make sure it either cools before you blend it or blend it before you boil it...

Or you may end up with tomato soup all over your kitchen and self. 

And the turmeric dies things yellow for a while.

Just sayin'

Friggin' Good Quinoa

By: Zoie Harker

Cook Time: Approx. 20 min.

Ingredients:

Quinoa	1 cup
Water	2 cups
Salt	1 tsp.
Garlic (minced)
Coriander
Cumin
Sugar
Black Pepper
(Garam Masala-Optional)
Salmon Filet	1
Apple	1 whole
Butter	1/8 cup(ish)
Celery	½ small stalk
Cilantro	handful
Red Pepper Flakes
Lime	1 whole
Green Onion	2 stalks or so
Chicken Stock	¼ cup

Quinoa

Mix Quinoa and water in a sauce pan on high heat and bring to a boil.

Once at a boil, reduce to medium high and stir in salt, garlic, coriander, cumin, sugar, black pepper, and garam masala. Put lid on and let simmer 15 min.

Salmon

Melt butter in a small frying pan on medium high heat. While the butter is melting, slice celery and ¼ of the apple and create a single layer in the butter. 

Once the butter starts bubbling, gently lay the salmon filet on the bed of apple and celery. Turn to high heat, and leave the filet for 3 minutes.

After 3 minutes, sprinkle the salmon with a bit of red pepper flakes and gently flip to the other side. Allow to cook another 3 minutes, not moving the filet at all.

Sprinkle a bit of red pepper flakes on the other side.

Add in half of the cilantro and leave to cook 1-2 more minutes, allowing the apples to char slightly and the butter to turn a dark color.

Both

Squeeze one half of your lime over the salmon and turn the heat off. Squeeze the other half into the quinoa.

The quinoa should have absorbed all of the moisture by now, so turn the heat down to low, and add in the chicken broth. Let cook for 2 minutes or so, then remove from burner.

Place your salmon fillet into a small bowl, and dump the dark butter, apples, cilantro, and celery into the quinoa, and mix. Add in more cilantro, if desired.

Flake the salmon with a fork, and add a pinch more salt and a little bit more of the red pepper. Add your chopped green onion into the mix. Squeeze out any remaining lime juice from your lime into the mixture.

Serve combined, or as separate entrees. Garnish with cilantro, lime, and fresh apple slices.