"A Luxurious and Deeply Aromatic Noodle Dish"

this is from the 101cookbooks blog- I think next time I will add a little sugar to the broth- its really more aromatic than it is flavorful, but its great for cold weather, and stores well.

A Luxurious and Deeply Aromatic Noodle Dish

For the spice paste:
Chilies - 4 or 5 small, hot red ones
Garlic - 2 or 3 small cloves
Ginger - a small lump, about the size of a walnut in its shell
Lemon grass - 2 or 3 plump stalks
Coriander seeds - a few
Coriander leaves - a few (hs note: cilantro for all you non-brits)
Ground tumeric - a teaspoon
vegetable oil - a little
For the soup:
Stock - vegetable, 500 ml
Coconut milk - 400ml (lite is ok)
A lime - just the juice
Soy sauce
Mint - a small handful of leaves

To finish:
Noodles - I think I used about 1 lb....big, chubby, fresh asian egg ones.

Halve and seed the chilies. Peel the garlic. Peel and shred the ginger. Finely slice the tender, innermost leaves of the lemon grass. Grind the coriander seeds or crush them in a mortar. Blitz it all to a thick paste in a food processor with the coriander leaves and any well scrubbed roots, plus the tumeric. You may need a few tablespoons of vegetable oil to help it go round but add as little as you can.

Place a fairly deep pan over moderate heat, add half the spice paste (keep the other half in the fridge for tomorrow) and fry it, movingit round the pan, for a minute or so, then pour in the stock, coconut milk, and a splash of soy sauce -- let it come to the boil. Turn the heat down and let the soup simer for ten minutes. Meanwhile cook the noodles briefly in boiling water and drain them.

Divide the noodles between four large, deep bowls and ladle over hot soup. Sprinkle with mint leaves.

Serves about 4.

Chicken Gai Yang

this came out DELICIOUS! I used boneless chicken breast and cooked it in the wok, but it would be amazing roasted or grilled. Next time I want to try it with thighs.

Chicken Gai Yang

Ingredients

3 tb Minced cilantro root

3 tb Fish sauce

3 tb Chinese light soy sauce

2 tb Fresh lime juice

1 tb Freshly ground black pepper

1 tb Minced garlic (3 cloves)

2 lb Chicken legs or breasts,

-skin and fat removed

A street and market food served everywhere in Thailand, this chicken is traditionally associated with the Northeast. At the train stations or bus stop, you can get a few skewers and a little bag of sticky rice for a delicious snack or light lunch. The marinade dates back to a time before the introduction of chilies by the Portuguese. Black peppercorns were used in enormous quantities, and they still have an important role in Thai cooking. Combine cilantro root, fish sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, pepper and garlic in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and pour into a shallow, non aluminum dish. Add chicken and turn to coat evenly with marinade. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours, turning occasionally. Preheat the broiler or prepare a charcoal or gas grill. Drain the chicken and reserve the marinade for basting. Broil or grill the chicken on a lightly oiled rack approximately 3 inches from the heat for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken and baste with the reserved marinade. Discard any leftover marinade. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes longer, or until the outside is browned and the inside is no longer pink.

KOMBUCHA

- Boil 1 gallon of water, turn off heat
- add 5-6 teabags (no herbal tea, must be actual tea leaves)* and one cup of sugar
- mix sugar in thoroughly, and let cool to room temperature
- put into a 1-gallon glass jar with the mother
- cover with a cloth and rubber band
- let sit for 2 weeks

*you can ADD herbal tea, but your base must be actual tea leaves (black, green, white, twig). Don't use any teas that have oils in them (i.e. earl greay has bergamot oil)

Melissa's Mac-n-Cheese

probably the best ever.



Yield: 8 to 12 servings.

4 tablespoons butter, plus 2 tbsp, plus 1 tbsp
4 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
salt and ground black pepper to taste
pinch cayenne (optional)
pinch paprika

1 pound elbow macaroni

12 ounces grated cheddar cheese
12 ounces grated gruyere cheese


Mix cheeses together in a bowl and set aside.

In a heavy, medium saucepan melt 4 tablespoons of the butter over low heat. Add the flour and stir to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 minutes. Increase the heat to medium and whisk in the milk little by little. Cook until thickened, about 4 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat, season with the salt, pepper, cayenne, and a handful of the cheese mixture. Stir until cheese is melted and sauce is smooth. Cover and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add salt to taste and, while stirring, add the macaroni. Return to a boil, reduce the heat to a low boil and cook for about 5 minutes, or until macaroni is very al dente (slightly undercooked). Drain in a colander and return the macaroni to the pot. Add the bechamel sauce and stir until well combined. Set aside.

Grease a 3-quart baking dish or casserole with 1tbsp of butter and set aside.

Place one-half of the macaroni in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with one-third of the mixed cheeses. Top with the other half of the macaroni and the rest of the cheese mixture. Top with remaining butter broken into small chunks, and a sprinkle of paprika.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the macaroni and cheese is bubbly and hot and the top is golden brown. Turn heat up to 425 for last 5-10 minutes of baking to brown top. Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Spring to Summer Salad

from the www.amateurgourmet.com

note: we used green beans instead of snowpeas and it was delicious

Ingredients:

beets, string beans or snap peas, radishes, carrots, hard boiled eggs

olive oil, balsamic vinegar, your favorite mustard (optional), salt, pepper

"To make the salad, I just stringed the snap peas (you pull the little tail across the pea until the string is gone), boiled some beets (you drop in boiling water with some vinegar and salt and then, when you can get a knife through the beet, it's done), peeled some carrots, sliced some radishes and then hard boiled those eggs.

To get your eggs pretty, just place the eggs at the bottom of a saucepan, cover with cold water, put on the heat, when it comes just to the boil, put the lid on, turn the heat off and wait 8-10 minutes. Then drop the eggs in ice water, peel under a faucet.

Toss the vegetables with really good olive oil, some balsamic vinegar (or whatever your favorite vinegar is), salt and pepper (we added mustard too).

Kyle's Green Beans

Wash and blanche green beans.
Saute with shallots, lemon juice, lemon zest, and almonds.
yum!

Warm Potato Salad with Beer and Mustard Dressing

This is the potato salad I made for the 4th of July party:

Ingredients

Salad:
3 pounds red potatoes
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped sweet pickles
2 tablespoons beer
2 tablespoons cider vinegar

Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
3/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
3/4 cup beer
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preparation

To prepare salad, place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until tender. Drain; cool. Cut potatoes into 1/4-inch slices. Combine potatoes, red onion, and next 6 ingredients (through 2 tablespoons vinegar); toss gently.

To prepare dressing, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3/4 cup yellow onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add 3/4 cup beer and next 4 ingredients (through pepper); bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 6 minutes). Place mixture in a food processor. Add mustard to food processor; process until smooth. With processor on, slowly pour remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil through food chute, processing until smooth. Pour dressing over potato mixture; toss gently. Serve immediately.

Yield

8 servings (serving size: 1 1/4 cups)