Thai Peanut Sauce

This recipe shout out goes to Katie Smith :)  Cooking asian food has always intimidated me a bit.  I think it was because I didn't have the ingredients I needed on hand and to go to the local grocery store to purchase them was always so pricey.  But Katie invited me down to Denver to a large Asian market and we stocked up on a bunch of goodies.  I have made about 4 "Asian" inspired meals since then and am becoming a lot more confident with my wok :)  Here is a great sauce that I use on chicken skewers or as a dipping sauce for Vietnamese Spring Rolls (similar to that link, I don't use the shrimp and add carrots, cucumber and avocado).


Ingredients:
3 small dried red chiles, stemmed and seeded or cayenne or hot red pepper flakes to taste

3 garlic cloves

2 shallots peeled (I've always used onion)

1 lemon grass stalk (white part only) thinly sliced (only if you have them on hand, I haven't used them)

2 tsp ground turmeric (or curry powder)

1 Tbs peanut or neutral oil, like corn or grapeseed

1 Can coconut milk (I think this is about 2 cups)

1 Tbs brown sugar

2 Tbs fish sauce (i usually alway half the fish sauce b/c it is so pewwwy)

2 Tbs lime juice

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup roasted peanuts (approx.)
1 Tbs of peanut butter (approx.)
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro (approx.)

Directions:
Combine first five ingredients in  a food processor and grind until fairly smooth.

Heat oil in sauce pan over med heat and saute the chile, garlic mixture until fragrant, about 1 min. add the remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth. Simmer until the sauce thickens, about 15 min. This may be stored covered in fridge for up to a week, gently rewarm over low heat or in microwave.

Chocolate Guinness Goodness

Puddings is a category of desserts that I have really taken a liking to.  I love the way everything starts off as a liquid and then once you add the egg yolks it slowly transforms into a beautiful silky textured goodness.  I also love how with most homemade pudding, a little can go a long way.  Just a few ounces of rich creamy chocolate is all you need after a meal.
This dessert is a fun one because it adds the element of beer.  Beer and chocolate, really?  The guinness really helps even out the sweetness of the chocolate and give a more mellow laid-back taste.  I did make a few adjustments to the recipe below.

1.  I added an Irish Cream Whip Cream to the top of each pudding verses the Guinness cream.
2.  I didn't have enough whipping cream so I used 1 cup whipping cream and 1 1/4 cup half and half.
3.  I would divide it among 8-10 glasses.  I served this to 8 adults and we still had a bit left over.


Ingredients: 
8 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar
One 14.9-ounce can Guinness Draught
3 cups heavy cream
7 ounces high-quality bittersweet (70 to 72% cacao) chocolate, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

Directions:

In large nonreactive mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar.

Open can of Guinness and slowly pour into 4-cup measuring cup, pouring down side of cup to reduce foaming. Pour half of Guinness (about 7/8 cup) into heavy-bottomed 3-quart saucepan. Add 2 1/4 cups cream and whisk to combine. Set over medium heat and heat, whisking occasionally, until bubbles just begin to form at edges. Remove from heat, add chocolate, and whisk until smooth.

Slowly pour about 1/2 cup of  hot chocolate mixture into eggs, whisking constantly to prevent curdling. Return egg mixture to saucepan and set over moderately low heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and coats back of spoon, about 15 minutes. (Pudding will look separated.) Pour into blender and blend on high for 1 minute. Divide pudding among glasses, leaving at least 1 inch of space at top of each. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled and set.

Meanwhile, pour remaining Guinness into small saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to moderately low and simmer, uncovered, until reduced to 1 tablespoon, about 20 minutes. Pour syrup into small bowl and let cool. I didn't do the above.

Beat remaining cream until soft peaks form. Add Irish Cream or Guinness syrup and beat until combined. Divide cream among 6 glasses of pudding and serve.


Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Chocolate-Guinness-Goodness-234304#ixzz1GzcS9Yb0

P.S.  Another great dessert with that leftover Guinness is Guinness floats.  I know you are thinking beer and ice cream, no way!  But it is really, really good.  The only stipulation is that you have to get good vanilla ice cream, with the little vanilla flakes in it.  No cheap stuff.  Try it, you'll like it :)

Corn Chowder

First off I LOVE cookbooks.  My husband laughs at me because I bring them to bed at night and read them.  I get giddy when Bon Appetit arrives in my mailbox. I could spend hours reading food blogs online.
All that to say that this recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks. Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes by Jeanne Kelley.  You can check out her website here.  Great pics, good recipes and teaching techniques. This cookbook inspires me to cook and this chowder is awesome!

Ingredients:
1 poblano chile
4 slices of thick sliced bacon, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano (or 1.5 teaspoons of dried)
3.5 cups white or yellow corn kernels (about 4 ears) or 16 oz frozen corn
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
1/2 pound of new potatoes, diced
Salt and pepper

Directions:
Char the chile over a gas flame, on a grill or under a broiler until it is blackened and charred on all sides. Transfer the chile to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow it to steam while cooling. Peel, seed, stem and dice the chile. (Can be prepared up to 2 datys ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
Cook the bacon until almost crisp, pour off most of the fat, reserving about 1 tablespoon.  Add the onion to the remaining bacon fat.  Cover and cook until the onion is tender, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.  Stir in garlic and oregano, and then the corn.
In your soup pot add the broth, milk and potatoes and bring to a simmer.  Add the corn mixture, cover and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.  Add the poblano chile and simmer for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. Season with salt and pepper.  Spoon about 1/2 of the soup into a blender, puree then mix back into soup until desired texture is reached.  Add bacon. Enjoy!

*This soup freezes great!  And don't forget to add some delicious crunchy french bread for dipping.

Recipe obtained from "Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes" by Jeanne Kelley pg.62

Opps.. it's been a month!

So much for consistency!  Must be why I only have 2 followers :)  I hate how time speeds up as you get older.  I just realized that today I have a 10 month old!  When did I get old enough to be a mom?
But baby is sleeping, house is clean, sun is pouring thought the window and I just made myself a mug of coffee with a splash of Bailey's left over from last night....

Upcoming recipes:
Corn Chowder
Thai Peanut Sauce
Chocolate Guinness Pudding