Asian Pork with Rice Noodle

Ingredients:

1 lb ground pork, turkey or chicken

3 Tb sweet soy sauce

2 tsp ginger, minced (I used ginger in a tube from produce section)

2 TB garlic, chopped

2 tsp fish sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

1 1/2 cup beef broth ( aka stock)

1 TB cornstarch

3 stem of green onions

Broad rice noodles.

How To :

In a pan with some canola oil, add ground turkey or chicken to pan, along with garlic.  Saute until  meat is cooked, breaking pieces up at you saute. 

Add remining ingerients except for cornstarch and about 3TB of beef broth.

In the meantime, cook noodles according to directions on package.

When all ingredients are blended with meat in pan, add the cornstarch mixture to meat and cook over medium heat until it thicken slightly.

Sliced green onions and sprinkle over top of noodles.

ENJOY EVERY BITE !

Tuscan Pork Loin

When you cook a pork loin, it  could possibly end up dry and tough, I think  a lot of people avoid a pork loin for this reason... not this one.  It turned out tender and moist.

Ingredients :

pork loin - approx 2 lbs
1/4 olive oil
6 garlic cloves, kept whole
fresh rosemary leaves
3 dried sage leaves
1 cup of dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
cracked black peper
gray sea salt

How To :

In a dutch, on stove top, add oil to pot, over medium high heat, add  garlic cloves, sage and rosemary.    Saute for about 5 mintes until the cloves become golden brown.
Season the  pork loin with salt and pepper.  Sear on all sides for 4-5 minutes per side.

Remove the loin after all sides have been browned.
Add the cup of white wine to pot, this will loosen the bits browned on the bottom of the pan, cook
1-2 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium, return prok to pot, add chicken stock,  partially cover with lid and cook for about 1.5 hours or until pork is tender.

Turn the pork every 20-30 minutes
.

**** Don't let the sauce get too low, if it does, add more stock or more wine.. or both.

When the pork is ready, remove from pot. 

The sauce in the pot will be somewhat thin,  you can keep it this way or I added a little flour and thicken it to make a delicious sauce.  I also smashed the garlic cloves a little so it will swirl though the sauce

If you buy a pork loin with two sections, see  my diagram on how to keep it together.( at bottom)

ENJOY EVERY BITE !

Gnocchi, Zucchini and Mushroom pan roast

This is delsih !  Makes a great vegetarian dish or even a meal on it's own.

Ingredients:
Prepare your own gnocchi or buy packed imported gnocchi ( most are delish)
2 zucchini, cut down center, and cut into little half moons
about a cup of baby portobello mushrooms
about a cup of white button mushrooms
olive oil
fresh chopped garlic, or jarred Christopher Racnh minced garlic
a sprig of Rosemary, needles swiped off into pan
203 TB of fresh parsley
Cracked black pepper
gray sea salt
2-3 TB butter
Marsala wine

Prepare gnocchi until done, remove from boiling water. Set aside.
In a pan, add olive oil and add mushrooms, saute until almost golden and add zucchini.  Add garlic and herbs.
Add gnocchi to the pan and saute with the zucchini and mushrooms.
Add butter.

Add a big splash of marsala wine and salt and pepper.

Gnocchi with Butternut Squash in a Creamy Porcini Mushrooms Sauce



This is before it goes into oven

I started off thinking I was going to make a butternut squash sauce for this recipe but decided to keep chunks instead.  The sweet, creamy consistency of this dish is delightful.  I wanted to make to gnocchi from scratch but was missing flour at home so used a package of imported gnocchi from Italy, I buy from a massive international marketplace here that specialize in imported foods.  The gnocchi is quite good, very light and fluffy.  I served this with a  Mediterranean braised beef roast - recipe below.

Ingredients :
one butternut squash, cut into cubes, coated with olive oil, bake in 375 oven for about 30 minutes.

1 package of gnocchi, or about 2 cups of home made gnocchi

3 TB olive oil
1 shallot, diced fine

1-2 oz of dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water to soften them
1 tsp of fresh thyme
1 cup heavy cream
juice of one lemon
fresh parsley
a good pinch of nutmeg
about 3 Tb of parmesan cheese
 2-3 Tb butter
salt and cracked black pepper

How To :
First prepare and bake the squash in the oven while you prepare the remainder of the recipe. This will take about 30 minutes.

After 15 minutes of cooking time for the squash,  cook the gnocchi, this takes about 10 minutes after the water has come to a boil.  The gnocchi are done when they start to float to the top of the pot.  Don't forget to add salt to the water.

In a pan, on medium heat, add olive oil and shallots.  Sautee for about 1 minute. Add cream to the pan, the porcini mushrooms, thyme, lemon juice and the nutmeg.  Let cook and reduce some for about 5 minutes. Then add the parmesan cheese, stir well, this will thicken the sauce.  Add fresh chopped parsley.  Add the cooked gnocchi, lightly toss in the cream sauce.  Add the butternut squash gently.
Then place the gnocchi  and cream sauce in a shallow baking dish, sprinkle with parmesan cheese, place in oven, turn on broil and cook until the cheese is golden.

Enjoy Every Bite !

Mediterranean Beef Roast

I made this beef roast to go along with the gnocchi and

butternut squash in creamy porcini sauce.  I love

roast beef and am always trying to come

up with different ways of making it.  I thought I

was taking a chance by adding oilves to

the roast but I was wrong - it turned out

quite tasty, hope you will like it

if you make it.

Ingredients:

1 - 2lb beef chuck roast

1-1/2 cup beef broth

1/2 cup red wine

1 large tomato, cut into chunks

1/4 of red onion, diced

two stems of rosemary, or one long one

about 20 pitted kalamata olives

kosher salt and cracked black pepper

How to :

Season the beef well with salt and pepper

  Add oilve oil to med-high heat pan, let oil get hot

sear beef on both side, about 2-3 minutes per side.

Transfer to a oven pot with a lid

add broth, wine, tomato, onion and lives and rosemary.

If there are any bits left in the pan

you sear the beef in, deglaze it with some beef broth

and add to the roasting pot.

Cook at 375 for about 2-3 hours, or until fork pull apart tender.

Enjoy Every Bite !

Rosemary Crème Brûlée

Don't get turned off by this- you will be  surprised. 

I knowthe idea of herbs and

dessert doesn't sounds thrilling but the flavour

of rosemaryis subtle and pleasant.

Serve slightly warm.

Ingredients :

 2 1/2 cups of heavy  cream

5 eggs yolks ( 6 smaller ones)

3 TB sugar

2- 3 Rosemary sprigs

In a pot, heat cream just before a boil.  Place clean Rosemary

sprig in the pot.  Let stand for abut an hour to infuse

the cream.

In a bowl, place the egg yolks, add sugar and whisk until frothy.

Take out the rosemary, and little by little  add cream to the egg mixture

blend quickly to stop scrmabled eggs from happening.

Place mixture into creme brulee dishes or ramekins. 

Pour HOT water into a large rectangular pan ip to about 1/4 of an inch, then place the

creme brulle filled dishes into the pan with hot water.

This keeps the custard from drying out.

Bake in 325 oven, for about 3- 35 minutes.  Ovens vary so watch carefully.

I test one by place a finger in center of one, if its liquid-y, not done.

If it appears like Jello... voila ! It's done.

Enjoy !