Thai basil chicken w/ Thai sticky rice

If you have never cooked with Thai basil here is a wonderful way to use it. Now, not all local grocery stores carry this particular type of basil, so you may need to look for an Asian market and you'll be glad you did. Many of the recipes I make consist of unique ingredients that will expand your menus is a great way.

Thai Basil

7 spears asparagus

1 tablespoon Grated lemon grass (white part)

2-3 Cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon Oil

1 1/2 pounds Boneless skinless chicken thighs or breast

1 tablespoon Oyster sauce

1 tablespoon Fish sauce

1 cup or 4 stems Thai basil

4 Servings

Prep 10

Cook 20 min

Skill Level  Easy

Trim end off of asparagus and discard.

Cut at an angle and set aside.

Zest lemon grass on a micro planer or use

cheese grater.

Peel and smash garlic with the back of your

knife releasing the yummy oils.

Chop into small pieces.

On medium high heat preheat pan or wok if you have one

Add oil and garlic.

Add chicken and lemon grass cook until brown on both

sides.

Add oyster sauce.

Add asparagus & fish sauce. At this time you could add

Thai chili's, I left them out to keep it mild for our

little one.

Add Thai basil give it a stir and plate.

Serve with jasmine or Thai sticky rice.

Thai Sticky Rice

Thai sticky rice also known as glutinous rice is soaked then steamed vs.

the traditional way of boiling. After the rice is soaked for a minimum of

1hr it's put into a bamboo steam basket then inserted into a pot that has boiling water.

Placing a lid over rice keeps all the steam in cooking the rice.

It generally takes 15-20 min on medium high heat for the rice to fully cook but half way through you will want to turn your rice so that it steams evenly. You can buy these unique pots,steaming baskets and

rice containers for serving at your local Thai market.

Enjoy!

The best scones ever!

  

    I’m so excited to share this scone recipe with you. After many, I mean many failed attempts to find the perfect one, this is it. When cooking and baking you'll find yourself needing an array of kitchen gadgets and tools, well don’t fret. I have found ways to turn the average whisk into a pasty cutter.

   I like to make these sweet and savory by just changing up a couple of the ingredients.  For a sweet scone add fresh or frozen fruit to your dry mix. But for a savory scone hold the sugar and add thyme, rosemary or parsley to your dry mix. I even make these cheese scones with Colby/Cheddar or Parmesan/Pecorino Romano.

Scone combos:

· Blueberry w/lemon curd

· Cranberry Orange

· Raspberry

· Plain scone w/Strawberry Jam filling

· Whole Wheat ( substitute all purpose for wheat)

· Rosemary

· Cheese w/Parsley

· Thyme w/Garlic

Scones

2 cups all purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup dried, fresh or frozen fruit (optional)

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

Yields 8 large or 16 small

Bake 450'

10-13 min

Skill Level: Easy

Add dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl

When cutting butter into flour you can use a traditional

pastry cutter or a whisk in a chopping motion.

After cutting in butter it should look like small peas.

Toss in dried cranberries or you can add

frozen/fresh berries.

Add egg and milk stir until dough forms.

Be careful not to over mix

The key to a successful scone or biscuit

is to leave as many whole bits of butter

creating those fluffy tender layers.

Gentally roll out to 1/2 inch thick.

You now can cut into traditional triangles or your favorite shapes.

Place on cookie sheet and bake 450 degree

for 10-13 minutes, take out when golden brown.

Serve plain or with your favorite preserve.

It's a New Orleans style dinner for Fat Tuesday

.

Here is a menu to complete your Mardi Gras celebration. What a better way than to make Gumbo, green salad and homemade beignets. In southern Louisiana it's tradition for the men to go door to door begging for the "Gumbo" ingredients, similar to Christmas caroling. Well, lucky for Jermaine I bought everything we needed. This brings me to one of the main ingredients, Okra. Jermaine doesn't care too much for okra so I left it out. Since its "done my way" it'll taste great just the same. In order to make gumbo you'll need a deep pot, I prefer to use cast iron, but any deep pot will do. When making Gumbo it's all about the roux. A roux is the thickening agent to most dishes consisting of equal parts oil/butter and flour, when done right it will give your dish a nutty rounded flavor. You'll get to the point when you think it's ruined because it looks burnt but, Stop! Your almost there, that’s when it gets happy.

Whatever you do don’t get overwhelmed with all the steps to this dish. I will be adding many dishes that are freezer friendly, which means you will no longer be tempted to cruise down the frozen entree aisle. Yep, that’s right the only "TV" dinners you’ll be heating are out of your freezer that you made.

Gumbo

3 andouille sausage links

1 1/2 lbs chicken breast or tenders

1 lb shrimp 31-35 count

1/2 cup oil plus 1 tablespoon

1/2 cup flour plus 1 tablespoon

1 cup green bell pepper

1 cup yellow onion

1 cup celery

3 cloves garlic

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons creole seasoning  (located in sauces etc. tab)

8 cups chicken stock

1 tablespoon file powder

Prep 1 hr

Cook 1 hr

8 Servings

Skill Level       Intermediate

Cook Sausage on grill or in a skillet, slice up and set aside.

Cut chicken into cubes and toss in creole

seasoning.

Add 1 tablespoon flour to a plastic bag and toss

 coating the chicken .

In a pre-heated pan add 1 tablespoon oil

then add your coated chicken. Stirring occasionally

cook until browned. Set aside.

Peel and devein shrimp by cutting along the back side

of shrimp. (Save shrimp shells for Stock by freezing

them in a freezer or vacuum seal bag).

Be sure to get it all! Yikes

Cut an onion in half then turning it on the flat side

cut off ends. Make vertical cuts throughout.

Then cut horizontally.

Do the same to celery.

Discard stem, inner white flesh as well as

seeds.

Using same technique as onion, cut pepper

into similar pieces.

In same pan chicken was cooked, add 1/2 c.

oil & 1/2 c. flour. Cook over medium low heat.  

    

 Stirring every 8-10 sec allow roux to cook to
 a dark brown.

Add bell peppers,onion and celery aka

Holy Trinity

Add garlic and stir well.

Add 8 cups chicken stock and

bay leaf

You'll notice your gumbo

start to thicken, stir

occasionally.

Add sausage and chicken to mixture.

Then give it a good stir. Let cook

on medium low heat

1 hr.

Add shrimp and file right before serving. Serve with white

or brown rice. If you like it Hot add more Cayenne!

Bon Appetite!

Ginger orange vinaigrette

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons white vinegar

1/4 cup orange juice

2 teaspoons sugar

1 tablespoon fresh ginger (zested)

1/2 cup olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

In a container with a tight fitting lid add all ingredients

and shake vigorously until thoroughly mixed. About 5 min.

Beignets

1 cup scalded milk

2 tablespoon shortening

2 tablespoon sugar plus 2 teaspoons

1 pkg active dry yeast

3 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1teaspoon kosher salt

1 egg

oil for deep frying

2 cups powder sugar

In a sauce pan over med heat scald milk,remove from heat add shortening and set aside to cool to

100 degrees.

In a measuring cup sprinkle yeast over 1/4 cup warm water plus 2 teaspoons sugar.

let yeast double in size.

In a large mixing bowl add dry ingredients, then  pour wet ingredients over flour mixing with a wooden spoon until dough forms.

Cover bowel with towel and let rise doubling in size.

Knead gently on floured surface.

Roll out 1/4 inch thick, cut into diamonds shape.

Place on cooking sheet and let rest for 15 min.

Fry in 385 degree oil until golden brown.

In a brown bag or bowel coat beignets in powder sugar.

Then enjoy!

Sweetheart Menu

In lieu of Valentine's Day I thought I would start out with a Sweetheart menu. I've purposely posted it after the holiday. I myself do not care for this particular holiday. I know all of you are gasping! But, it’s just that one day society and retailers tell us we need someone to shower us with gifts of chocolate, flowers and most likely an over priced dinner consisting of lobster. As we all know women are raised to be hopeless romantics, so when this doesn't happen we’re crushed! That's why I’ve asked my husband from day one to bring me flower on a Wednesday in June, purchase a mixed bouquet other than roses and cook me dinner. Now that is someone who really loves their significant other. It’s the non stereo typical things that really mean something. So, please remember to show someone you care in the middle of whatever month other than one day a year.

Cheesecake

Cheesecake



Crust

2 pkg graham crackers

1/3 cup butter melted

1 tablespoon sugar

Bake 350 degrees  10 min

Filling

(all ingredients room temperature)

32 oz cream cheese

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon vanilla

4 large eggs
Bake 325 degrees 1hr

Place graham crackers & sugar in blender or food processor

Pulse until resembles a fine crumble. Pour butter in mixture

and blend.

    Empty crumbs into a spring form pan. Evenly

 press mixture on the bottom.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.

Take out and set aside to cool

In a stand or hand mixer, blend cream cheese on med speed

  for 10 minutes

Occasionally scape bowel down w/spatula

Add heavy cream and sour cream. Mix for 30 sec

consistency should be silky.

Add sugar blend for

 3 minutes on low

Add eggs one at a time blending after each one

Pour batter into baked crust. Place spring form into another

cake pan . Now here is the secret to a perfect cheesecake

put your pans into a larger pan, such as a roasting pan

with about 2 inches of water (water bath). This ensures a

perfect cheesecake every time.

Bake in a 325degree oven for 1hr. After the timer goes off

turn off oven leaving cheesecake to cool in oven. Once cooled

refrigerate over night.

 

Enjoy