Created on 9/16/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Add ice to a glass, pour in pomegranate juice, seltzer water and lemon
Carrot Pineapple Juice
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Scrub and rinse the carrots well. If the tops are clean-looking, you can leave them on. If not, trim off the very top 1/2 inch or so. If you use carrots with leafy green tops, you can juice the whole thing, but the color of your juice may change.
Notes: The juice will stay in an airtight container for up to 48 hours in the fridge but is best fresh within a few hours. Give a good stir before drinking. Makes about 2 cups.
Story: My dad recently was diagnosed with cancer, so I went down the rabbit hole of finding wellness shots that are good for our respiratory system. I had to buy a new juicer (of course!) and this recipe is a fan favorite at work and home.
Pork Potstickers
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Add pork, cabbage, garlic, green onion, hoisin, sesame oil, ginger and a large pinch of salt and pepper to a large bowl. Mix until well combined
Step Two: Fill a small bowl with water. Lay out a dumpling wrapper and use your finger dipped in water to wet the entire edge of the wrapper. Scoop about a tablespoon of filling into the center of the dumpling wrapper. A cookie scoop works well for this
Step Three: Fold the wrapper and press the edges together to seal the dumpling into a half-moon shape. Place the dumpling onto a baking sheet, gently pressing it down so the bottom flattens and it can stand on its own
Step Four: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Working in batches of about 6-8 (depending on the size of your pan) add dumplings, flat side down, and cook for about 1-2 minutes or until the bottom is a dark golden brown. You can also use an Asian steamer basket, just remember not to overlap the potstickers because they will stick together
Step Five: Carefully pour a 1/4 cup of water into the pan and cover immediately. The mixture of oil and water will cause the pan to spit and spatter oil everywhere, so be sure to have the lid handy before pouring the water. Cook the dumplings, covered for 3-4 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed
Step Six: Remove the lid and cook for another 30 seconds until the bottoms are crisp again. Repeat with remaining dumplings. Add more oil as necessary so that the bottom of your pan is always coated in a thin layer of oil
Step Seven: Serve with soy sauce and garnish with sliced green onion and sesame seeds
Notes: Do not overlap the potstickers when cooking them in the pan/steamer. They will stick together and ultimately rip apart.
Story: Dumplings, gyoza, bao, potstickers. These tasty, pillowy, savory pockets of joy are my absolute favorite. Eat a couple and call it an appetizer. Eat twenty and call it dinner. Save the leftovers in the freezer for a special treat – your future self will thank you!
Created on 7/8/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Place pork, jalapeños, garlic, salt, oregano, pepper, coriander, and cumin in Instant Pot. Toss with your hands until well combined. Seal lid and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes
Step Two: Release pressure manually. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pork to a large bowl; fish out jalapeños and garlic and discard. Shred meat with two forks or your hands. Pour cooking liquid over meat and toss to combine
Step Three: Working in batches, transfer shredded pork to a large nonstick skillet set over high heat and cook, undisturbed, until underside is well browned, about 5 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until some of the edges are caramelized and crisp, 5–7 minutes longer. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel–lined baking sheet. Cover with foil to keep warm and moist
Created on 7/8/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Toss 1½ lb. skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 6) with 2 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning, 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a medium bowl to coat
Step Two: Toss 2 ripe peaches, peeled, cut into ½” pieces, and remaining ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a mesh sieve set inside another medium bowl to combine; set aside
Step Three: Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium. Cook chicken in a single layer, turning halfway through, until charred in spots and cooked through, 12–16 minutes. Transfer to a platter
Step Four: Discard (or drink; it’s delicious!) any juice in bowl. Transfer peaches to bowl and add zest and juice of 1 lime and 1 cup cilantro leaves with tender stems and toss gently to combine. Taste peach salsa and season with more salt if needed. Spoon over chicken thighs
Created on 7/8/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions
Step One: Heat a dry large nonstick skillet or wok over high. Add 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil, then 1 lb. hot Italian sausage, casings removed. Using a wooden spoon, break up sausage into bite-size pieces and cook, stirring every couple of minutes, until sausage is mostly cooked through with some golden brown edges, 6–8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a plate. Pour fat in skillet into a small heatproof bowl or measuring glass
Step Two: Add 1 Tbsp. fat back to pan and cook 1 medium onion, thinly sliced, tossing every 30 seconds or so, until softened but not floppy, about 3 minutes. Stir in 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced, and 1 small jalapeño, thinly sliced, and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 2 minute. Transfer to plate with sausage
Step Three: Heat another 3 Tbsp. fat (or vegetable oil if you’ve run out of fat) in same pan. Add 1 lb. brussels sprouts, halved, season with kosher salt, and toss to combine. Arrange brussels sprouts so each piece has as much contact with pan as possible. Let cook, undisturbed, until golden brown around edges underneath, about 3 minutes. Toss and pour in 2 Tbsp. soy sauce and ½ cup water. Reduce heat to medium, cover pan, and cook until brussels sprouts are just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat and return sausage and onion mixture back to pan if you have room. Add 1 Tbsp. sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar and 2½ tsp. five-spice powder and toss to combine. (If you don’t have enough room in the pan, toss everything together in a large bowl.)
Story: Drew and my work schedules are so crazy right now. He is working 60 hours weekends, and I had to find a recipe that comes together in under 30 mintes, tastes delicious, and is good for Drew’s lunches.
Created on 6/21/2024
Ingredients:
To Serve:
Instructions:
Step One: Remove the chicken meat from the rotisserie chicken. Shred and set aside until ready to serve
Step Two: Place the bones of the rotisserie chicken in a large microwave-safe bowl. Add the onion, ginger, cinnamon stick and star anise. Top with 2 litres (2.1 qt) of water. Microwave on high (1000W) for 10 minutes. Crumble in the beef stock cubes and stir to combine. Microwave on high for a further 5 minutes. Remove from the microwave and strain the broth, discarding the solids. Taste and season with the fish sauce and salt to taste
Step Three: In the meantime, soak the noodles in room temperature water for 10-15 minutes or until softened slightly. Cook in boiling water for 2-3 minutes or until the noodles are just tender. Drain and divide among serving bowls
Step Four: To serve, top the noodles with onion slices, chicken meat and spring onion. Ladle over hot broth (reheat in the microwave if you need). Serve with the bean shoots, Thai basil, lemon, chilli, hoisin and sriracha
Created on 5/28/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt
Step Two: In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, bananas, sugar, applesauce, oil and vanilla
Step Three: Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until moistened
Step Four: Pour the batter into two greased 8×4-inch loaf pans. Sprinkle the tops of each with the walnuts
Step Five: Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes. Cool the loaves in their pans for 10 minutes. Remove the loaves from the pans and put them on wire racks. Let them cool completely to room temperature
Story: I recently made a promise to myself to always have at least one baked good in our dessert display. I’ve been making this recipe for Drew on repeat and only crumbs remain after a couple days!
Created on 5/13/2024
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: First, prep all of your ingredients, including your aromatics–ginger, garlic, cilantro, and scallion. Prep the beaten eggs as well and set them aside. Only when you have all the ingredients prepared and ready to go should you start cooking
Step Two: Heat the cooking oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the ginger first, stirring for 30 seconds. Then add the garlic. When the garlic is just cooked (before it starts to turn golden), add the cooked rice to the wok, and turn up the heat to high. Stir fry the rice for 3 minutes or so until it’s thoroughly combined with the ginger/garlic mixture and/or warmed through if you’re using leftover rice
Step Three: Now for the flavorings: add the white pepper, fish sauce, soy sauce, and shaoxing wine to the rice. If it’s not quite salty enough for you or if you know you won’t be eating it with added hot sauce, now is the time to add salt to taste. Stir-fry to combine
Step Four: Using your spatula, spread the rice out into an even layer along the surface of the wok. Pour the beaten egg evenly over the rice. Stir the rice until all of the egg is cooked and incorporated. The egg coats the rice and makes for a most excellent savory experience. Much better than broken up bits/huge chunks of scrambled egg throughout
Step Five: Before adding the crab, use your spatula to once more spread the rice evenly in the wok. Add the crab to the rice and stir fry thoroughly. When the crab is warmed through, add the scallion and cilantro and stir-fry briefly until the herbs are just wilted. Serve and finish with a squeeze of lime and your favorite chili oil
Created on 12/28/2023
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Step One: Preheat the oven to 325°F and set a rack in the lower middle position
Step Two: Pat the beef dry and season with the salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or heavy soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Brown the meat in 3 batches, turning with tongs, for about 5 minutes per batch; add one tablespoon more oil for each batch. (To sear the meat properly, do not crowd the pan and let the meat develop a nice brown crust before turning with tongs.) Transfer the meat to a large plate and set aside
Step Three: Add the onions, garlic and balsamic vinegar; cook, stirring with a wooden spoon and scraping the brown bits from bottom of the pan, for about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute more. Add the beef with its juices back to the pan and sprinkle with the flour. Stir with wooden spoon until the flour is dissolved, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the wine, beef broth, water, bay leaf, thyme, and sugar. Stir with a wooden spoon to loosen any brown bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, transfer to the preheated oven, and braise for 2 hours
Step Four: Remove the pot from the oven and add the carrots and potatoes. Cover and place back in oven for about an hour more, or until the vegetables are cooked, the broth is thickened, and the meat is tender. Fish out the bay leaf and discard, then taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Serve the stew warm — or let it come to room temperature and then store in the refrigerator overnight or until ready to serve. This stew improves in flavor if made at least 1 day ahead. Reheat, covered, over medium heat. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired
Notes: The stew can be frozen for up to 3 months. Before serving, defrost the stew in the refrigerator for 24 hours and then reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot