A funny thing happend when I won a fishing competition........

A funny thing happened to me once when I won a fishing competition with my Dad on Great Barrier Island, off the coast of New Zealand in the 1960's.  We were spending the summer on this wonderful island, in the South Pacific, living off the land, enjoying the company of may friends at a place called Orama.  It was run as a Christian Retreat Center and every summer we camped there and enjoyed the ocean and farm life.  We had to take a small ferry boat or tiny airplane to get there....what fantastic experiences.........watching cows being milked, sheep sheared etc.  

But back to the fishing story............My Dad who worked for a large Toy Company for a living.....was a passionate fisherman.  The camp had organized a fishing competition for the day........my brother John had chosen to go spear fishing with snorkel, fins and goggles.  Dad and I had a small dingy that we rowed out into the bay.  Somehow we managed to put down anchor near a tiny island and began to fish.  Well, little did we know that this was the sweet spot of all time.   Dad couldn't bait the hooks fast enough, while I reeled them in one by one.  Before long we had more than our little boat could handle and we quit long before the fish were done biting.  We won for having the most fish.  And my brother won for the most unusual catch..........he caught a sting ray.

The next day while volunteering in the kitchen, it was my job to assemble a cold steamed fish salad with some of the bounty.  I was instructed to layer the freshly cooked fish with raw onions and cloves.  Having never worked with cloves before, I was liberally throwing them into the salad.  I think I was abut 11 years old at the time..........very confident and not into asking for advice.  So the next day when the layered fish salad was served, people were biting down on  mouthfuls of cloves and spitting them out left and right.  I don't know who invented that recipe, but I'm sure it was never repeated.

I however have a great love of fresh fish.  We had a neighbor who lived down the street from us in New Zealand who was a professional fisherman.  Many mornings he would drop by real early with a couple of fresh snapper or flounder wrapped in newspaper. My mother would simmer the fish in butter and cream and serve it for breakfast with a little parsley garnish.  Or we would buy smoked fish, and she would serve that in a cream sauce over rice.  But, I think my all time favorite was freshly caught rainbow trout that either my Dad or brother had caught, simply using a fly and rod,  wading out in the river or lake. 

Today, my husband and I had Mahi Mahi BBQ'd with a fresh cilantro dressing.  That was pretty amazing too.  I'll share the recipe for the sauce with you here.

Thai Cilantro Sauce 

In a blender place:
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 c cilantro leaves (fresh coriander)
2 Tbsp  Asian fish sauce ( or 1 Tbsp soy sauce)
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 c fresh orange, lemon or lime juice
1 pinch of red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp sugar

Blend until smooth.
 Reserve half for marinading the fish and half for serving over the cooked fish later.
Place the fish in a zip lock bag with half the sauce for about 15 mins in the fridge.
Meanwhile heat up the grill and cook the fish until done.  Depends on the thickness of the fish.
Serve with liberal amounts of the reserved sauce.

This is also a great sauce for chicken or pork.  I made it with chicken just a few days ago.
The secret to keeping cilantro fresh in your refrigerator is to trim the stems a little when you get it home, and place into a couple inches of fresh water in a cup, with a  loose plastic bag over the top.  You will have fresh cilantro for up to two or more weeks this way. 

I love getting your feedback. 

Blueberry Lemon Loaf

 Its blueberry and lemon season.  My lemon tree is full of beautiful fruit as well as my orange tree. ( I will have to get inspired for orange recipes also).  Blueberries are available now in the stores.  These two flavors go together perfectly, so I looked on Pinterest for a recipe to try.  I found one that was an adaption of Ina Garten's, and then I had to do some more adapting of my own.  So here it is.  Can I also say that my husband John has eaten half of it already.  So, I'd say it was a major hit.

 I'm working on learning to take better pictures and do some food styling.  I've been reading other peoples blogs and getting some education along the way.

Blueberry-Lemon Loaf
Ingredients:
1 1/2 c flour (or whole wheat) +1 Tbsp
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 c 0% plain Greek yogurt
1 c sugar (or 3/4 c honey)
3 large eggs (you can substitute 1 Tbsp of ground flax seed and 1 Tbsp water, per egg)
2 tsp grated lemon zest (approx. 2 lemons)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c oil  (or apple sauce)
1 1/2 c blueberries
 (I am listing some healthy alternatives to the sugar, white flour, oil and eggs..... if your diet requires it)

Preheat oven to 350 oF
Grease and flour a loaf pan
mix wet ingredients first then add the dry
In a separate bowl, mix the blueberries very gently with the 1 Tbsp of reserved flour. 
Then gently fold the blueberries into the batter.
Place mixture into loaf pan and bake for 50 - 55 mins. 
Test with a tooth pick, if it comes out clean.
Cool in pan on a rack. 

Soaking Syrup
1/3 c fresh lemon juice
1/3 c sugar

Heat the syrup ingredients in a microwaveable cup for 45 seconds and stir.
While the loaf is cooling, poke holes all over the surface with a toothpick or something larger.
Pour the soaking syrup all over the loaf.  It will absorb completely.
Once the loaf is cooled, remove from pan to a plate, and serve.

 Let me know how  you like it. 

Mothers Day is coming. I can't wait to have Crepes with either Fried bananas and Maple syrup or with Lemon and powdered sugar

 Crepes are always my choice for a special breakfast.  Justin (my son) would opt for eggs Benedict or home made cinnamon rolls.  Or Jenny (my daughter) would opt for Belgian waffles .  My husband also makes some amazing biscuits and gravy (southern style with sausage).  But for me, these thin pancakes represent my childhood delight.  Bring on the fried bananas ......and I'm a happy camper. I was first introduced to this recipe by one of my Uncles in New Zealand.  And have also had it prepared this way in Argentina.  I think its a relative of Bananas Foster.  My mother used to make really thin pancakes and serve them with fresh lemon juice and powdered sugar.  Both ways are 'heaven' to me.  I'm hoping to have this for my breakfast for Mothers Day soon. 

Crepes Recipe
2 Tbsp melted butter
3/4 c flour
1 c milk
2 eggs
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
generous pinch of salt

Mix all together in a blender and set aside in the fridge, covered for 30 mins so the gluten can relax.

 Meanwhile slice up some bananas, either length wise or in disks.

 In a small pan melt some butter and begin by pouring about 1/3 cup  of batter into the pan and swish around until the pan is coated.  Let cook for about 30 seconds until it no longer looks wet.  Then flip it to the other side and cook for another 30 seconds.  Invert the pan over a plate, to remove the crepe.
Put a little more butter in the pan and melt it around and repeat the process pouring in a little of the batter and make crepes until you run out of batter.

You can serve it with lemon juice and powdered sugar.  That's classic.

Or have it with fried bananas and maple syrup.  Im not sure which is my favorite.  I love it both ways.

 Heat another frying pan with more melted butter and add the bananas.  Cook gently until caramelised.

 I've cut my banana both ways.  Its up to you.

Place the banana inside the crepe in a line.  Then roll up the crepe.
Top with Maple syrup.

Let me know if you like it this way.  I know that nutella filled crepes is another favorite.

Easy, healthy pasta for a week night quick dinner.

Are you looking for a quick nutritious dinner in a hurry?
You'll need a jar of marinara sauce or your favorite pasta sauce.  Frozen meat balls or any meat you have.. Any type of dry whole grain pasta. Any vegetables you have on hand in your fridge.  Some cheese and off you go.

I chopped up 1 onion, 1 red bell pepper and some mushrooms. 

 Saute them in a large skillet in some olive oil,  until tender.

 Toss in a bag of baby spinach or any green vegetable, like broccoli or zucchini.  I just wilted the spinach very quickly.

 Add the jar of marinara sauce

 Meanwhile I had boiled a large pot of water and cooked the pasta for 10 mins. And drained.

These are my home made, pre cooked, meat balls that I had in the freezer to spare.  They were thawed in the microwave.

 Mix it all together in a baking dish. Heat the oven to 350 oF.

 Top with cheese.  I had freshly grated parmigiana, but mozzarella would be great also.

Bake for about 15 - 30 mins until heated through and cheese melts.  And serve.
If you don't want to melt the cheese, and the meat balls are already hot, then you can serve immediately and skip the time in the oven.  Should be plenty for 4 - 6 people. 

You could make this with ground beef, sausage, or any left over cooked chicken.
The variations are endless.  The idea is to look into your fridge and just use what you have.

Blogging from Mexico this time

HAM AND BEANS

I'm enjoying myself this week.  (Someone else is cooking for me).  I'm teaching in Bible School in Rosarito Mexico.  So I'm expecting lots of beans to eat and plenty of rice and tortillas too.

Before I left my home in California I cooked up a pot of Ham and Beans for my husband.  This is a recipe his Mom made for him, all throughout his childhood in Illinois..  We had bought a ham on sale right before Easter. I had carved most of it up and frozen it for a later date.  But here's what we did with the ham bone, which still had lots of meat on it.  I soaked 2 cups of great northern beans overnight in 6 cups of water.  Drained the  water in the morning and added 6 new cups of water.  Added the ham bone, a couple of bay leaves, one onion and simmered it all for an hour and a half.  And there you have it.  It didn't need any extra salt.  Oh so yummy comfort food.  I think I'm in that  kind of mood with the weird rainy weather we've had.

Chicken and Dumplings for a rainy day

Chicken and Dumplings is probably one of those comfort foods that remind you of your grandmother.  John (my husband) grew up in the Midwest USA and his Mom used to make a version of this for him.  My recipe is quite different to hers, in that my dumplings are light and fluffy and hers were more like a rolled noodle.  Also, I include lots of vegetables like you'd find in a chicken pot pie.

Today, is a rainy day complete with thunder and lightening......that's pretty rare for Los Angeles, so it inspired me to cook up some yummy comfort food for my husband. 

 Here's the view from my office window.

CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS
1 whole chicken
1 onion for the stock and 1 onion for the soup
8 cloves of garlic for the stock
2 carrots for the stock
and 2 carrots for the soup
bunch of celery tops for the stock, and 2 celery stalks for the  soup
1/2 bag of frozen peas for the soup
1/4 c parsley, chopped
salt and pepper
6 - 8 c water

Start by boiling the chicken, carrots, onion, carrot, celery tops, garlic and water, for the stock. Reduce temperature to simmer  once the liquid starts to boil, add salt and pepper and cook for one hour.
Turn off the heat and remove the chicken to a large plate to cool.  Then once you can handle touching the chicken, remove and discard the skin and bones.
I used an immersion blender to puree the cooked vegetables and combine them with the stock.

 Now to the pot add the additional two carrots, two celery stalks, one onion chopped and bring back up to a simmer for about 10 mins. 

 The chicken should be ready to add back in.

Along with the frozen peas and parsley

 Bring back up to a simmer

Now prepare the dumplings:
1 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil
1/4 c chopped parsley
Mix all together in a bowl until just moistened. It will look very wet. Drop by spoon fulls into simmering stew and cover for 10 mins.  (Don't remove the lid)  Make sure the temperature is on low, and it won't burn.

This made enough for about 4 - 6 people.

Moroccan Burgers

MOROCCAN BURGERS

This is a yummy recipe that I've tried before with ground lamb, but today I did it will ground beef.  It was so good!  Moroccan cuisine is pretty new to me.  I guess its a combination of sweet and spicy that makes it so good.  This version is pretty mellow in flavor.  You may want to double the spices to give it more punch. 

You'll need:
1 lb Ground Beef ( lamb, turkey, pork or chicken would work as well)
1/3 dried apricots, chopped  (or1/3 c apricot jam)
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp coriander
 (sweet chili sauce  or hot pepper jelly for topping)

Assemble all your spices and mix with the ground meat.

 Form into patties or meat balls.

Grill for 5 mins on each side.

Serve on hamburger buns or alone with a side.

Top with sweet chili sauce or hot pepper jelly

Now for the recipe for the side dish of green beans, onions and tomatoes.
You'll need:
1 onion
bunch of fresh or frozen green beans
2 tomatoes or can of chopped tomatoes
salt and pepper
butter and olive oil

 

Start by slicing the onion and frying it in a little oil and butter

 Let them cook for about 5 mins on a medium heat, turning frequently until a nice caramel color.

Meanwhile snap the ends off the fresh green beans, and blanch them in boiling water, then add to the  frying pan with the onions, and stir fry for about 3 mins.  Add the salt and pepper

 Next add the canned tomatoes and heat through, or the fresh tomatoes until just warmed. Then serve.

You can add fresh garlic, or garlic powder to the beans as well.  Balsamic vinegar would go well with it also.