Thai Coconut Curry Soup



My husband and I have been obsessed with Thai food after we traveled there a few years ago. This dish is one of my weekday go-to-meals as it can be made under twenty minutes but doesn't lack any flavor.

What you'll need:

2-3 chicken thighs, deboned and cubed

1 bell pepper any color, cut into this long strips

1 carrot cut into thin long strips ( I used a mandolin for this)

1 egg plant cubed

1 Jar Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste

1 can coconut milk

1 cup chicken broth

olive oil

Rice noodles

Cilantro

Optional if you have in your kitchen:

Thai chili

Coconut sugar

Fish Oil



Directions:

Cook rice noodles based on package instructions. This normally consists of boiling water-removing pot from heat and submerging noodles in water. Make sure you keep an eye on them and don't over cook.

Next, take a wok, or any large frying pan will do, and drizzle a little olive oil in pan on medium heat. Empty red curry paste jar into pan and stir. Let this slightly caramelize for about a minute.

 Add 1 cup of chicken broth and 1 cup of water to pan and stir to low boil. Add diced chicken and simmer until cooked (approximately 7-10 min). Add eggplants to pan, let cook for 2 min minute. Add carrots to pan, let cook for a minute. Add bell pepper to pan, cook for a minute.

From here you are going to add can of coconut milk and stir. If you have fish oil, add a dash at this point. Add Thai chili peppers for additional heat to your liking. If you want to sweeten the soup, add a pinch of coconut sugar.

To serve, add a decent serving of noodles to bowl and spoon soup and veggies over noodles. Top with a pinch of cilantro.

Here are a few pictures of our Thailand adventure.

Bon Appetit

Greek Quinoa Green Salad

This has become my favorite thing to make lately in different varieties. It is healthy, super easy and quick to make, the flavors are so fun for summer!

What you will need:

1 cup dried Quinoa (cous cous or bulgur wheat; whatever your favorite grain will work)

zucchini

onion

tomatoes

salad greens

Dressing:

3/4 cup Greek yogurt

1/4 cup white vine vinegar

2 tablespoons of tarragon

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

pepper to taste

Combine all dressing ingredients in a blender and blend well. Scrap down the sides as needed to ensure all ingredients are incorporated. Set aside or put in fridge to keep cool.

Combine quinoa with 2 cups of water in a pot and bring to simmer. Cook over low heat till all the water has been absorbed.

Preheat BBQ on low. Slice onions into rounds and slice zucchini in half longwise. Drizzle with olive oil and place on hot BBQ. Cook until little browned and vegetables are tender. Remove from heat and slice into bite size pieces. Mix vegetables with quinoa and salt and pepper to taste. From here, you can serve warm or put in fridge to serve cold. I like a hot salad and my husband likes a cold salad so whatever you choose!

Place a hand full of greens on a plate. Top with quinoa and veggie mixture. Drizzle with your dressing and serve! Easy, healthy, meatless, and fast to prepare! Have fun and play with different veggies. Add some avocado or grilled bell pepper. Let me know what you choose to add to yours!

Bon Appetit!

Easy Lasagna

Steven's Italian grandma taught be how to make Italian lasagna the way her family has been making it for years. Its quite a process and sometimes you just want something a little different and simpler...yet with amazing flavor. I was flipping through Thomas Keller's "French Laundry" cookbook and came across their staff lasagna recipe.

Staff meals are simple meals the chef of a restaurant makes for their crew around 3 or 4pm before the nights service begins. These meals have to be easy enough to whip up quickly without impeding on the restaurants service, but has to be packed full of flavor. I thought I would give it a try

Here's what you will need:
Olive oil
1 1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup tomato paste
8 cups peeled tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped oregano
2 tablespoon basil
1 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
3 eggs
1/2 cup parsley
1 pound lasagna noodles
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper


For the filling:
Combine Ricotta, eggs, parsley and a dash of salt and pepper. Whisk till combined. Cover and refrigerate.

For the sauce:

In a large pot, heat a tablespoon of olive oil. Add onions and garlic and cook about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir frequently till turns oragnish...about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and stir. Let simmer on low for about and hour to let the flavors melt together. Stir frequently to make sure the bottom of the pot doesn't brown. When the sauce is done, it should be thick, chunky, and reduced down a little. Add oregano and basil and let cool to room temperature. 

Cook your lasagna noodles as specified on the box and allow to cool slightly. 

To assemble:

Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of your 9 by 13 baking pan. This will help prevent your noodles from sticking. Lay down some noodles, slightly overlapping. I cut some noodles in half to make the perfect size to cover the dish. 

Spread some sauce over the noodles paying attention to the edges so they don't burn and stay moist. 

Top with your ricotta cheese mixture. Repeat another layer on noodles, then sauce then the remaining ricotta mixture. Add one more layer of noodles, sauce, then top with grated mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. 

Put in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until mozzarella is golden brown. 

I liked this recipe because it was pretty easy to make. I feel like Steven's granny's recipe has more flavor to it and is more moist, but this was a hit and even she liked it when I served it. 

For a traditional Italian feast, why not serve it with a salad and my minestrone soup?

Bon Appetit! 

Stuffed Eggplant

My husband is an Italian so buying Prego or Ragu isn't an option for sauce. Plus, after learning this super easy marinara sauce recipe and tasting the difference, I would never go back!

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pot. Once hot, add 1 diced onion to pot. Once the onion is translucent, add diced garlic. Again, my husband is Italian, so I added 4 cloves but add what you like.

While the onion and garlic cook, get your cans ready and opened.

Add 1 large can of tomato sauce, 1 can diced tomatoes, and i added 2 cans tomato paste as I only had the small ones.

Mix all together. The tomato paste is going to make you sauce thick, which I like because I like to add wine to my sauce. If you don't want to add wine, add less tomato paste. I add about 1/4 cup wine to my sauce. It gives it a nice bite. 

Now come the spices. Add a dash of salt. About a tablespoon of oregano, basil, and parsley. Stir, stir, stir. 

Now comes the secret. I add about 1/8 cup fresh Parmesan cheese. The cheese has the right amount or bite and salt that will help bring out amazing flavors.

That's it! You have amazing homemade marinara sauce! The longer you let simmer on low the better the flavors will melt together. For this dish, I let it simmer on low for about 45 min. 

Now comes the egg plant. Cut both ends of the eggplant. Your going to cut the eggplant 1/4 inch think. I used a mandolin to get even cuts. You should get 10-12 slices.

Lay all the slices of eggplant out and lightly salt both sides. From here, place in a colander and let sit for 30min-60 mins. The salt will help pull all the moisture out of the eggplant. For me, I was impatient and only let rest for 40 mins and it turned out ok. 

While your eggplant is resting, we can make the filling. Mix 1/4 cup panko or bread crumbs, 1/2 cup ricotta cheese, and 1 large lemon zest to a bowl. Then take half the lemon and add juice to the bowl. Mix. Couldn't be easier! The lemon in this really makes the dish. It adds the nicest, refreshing taste to the dish. 

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Heat 1 inch of olive oil in skillet. You have to make sure the oil is HOT so wait till it starts to pop or sizzle a little. Take your eggplant, dab with paper towel to remove any excess liquid then add to skillet. 

You only need to let cook for 1-2 minutes per side. Once the eggplant gets a little color or starts to soften, remove from oil and lay flat on paper towel to remove excess oil. Repeat till all eggplant is cooked. 

Get a baking dish and pour half your sauce into baking dish till fully coded. Take 1 cooked eggplant and lay flat. Take 1 spoonful of filling and place on widest end. Roll. Lay in baking dish with the opening side down. 

Repeat till all slices of eggplant are done. 

Then you are going to spoon heavy cream over each eggplant. This will help keep the eggplant soft and caramelize. 

Place in oven and cook about 20 minutes. The sauce should start bubbling and the eggplant should caramelize a little. I serve over a bed of pasta and with the other half of the sauce remaining in my pot. You can garnish with some fresh Parmesan cheese. 

Everyone at my house really enjoyed this and looks relatively impressive. 

Bon Appetit! Let me know your thoughts.