Tropic Thai Chicken Salad

I have a confession to make: I'm a salad snob. Those of you who can munch on a big bowl of leafy greens for dinner and feel satisfied, I commend you. I cannot. I require texture, flavor, protein - elements which are lacking in the humble, everyday salad. This is the main reason I am helplessly in love with Thai food. The complex, yet delectable marriage of a variety of flavors never fails to blend harmoniously in Thai cuisine. Salty, spicy and sweet - all mix together in one dish, unique in their own taste but somehow combining effortlessly. By adding fresh fruit, crunchy cashews, and tender chicken, this meal is one that will please even the harshest of herbivores - I dare you to make this salad.

Ingredients:

½ lb lean chicken
½ cup diced onion
1 cup diced red bell pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons soy sauce

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons sesame seeds

2 tablespoons oregano




½ cup cubed pineapple chunks
½ cup chopped mango
2 cups baby spinach
4 teaspoons crushed cashews

 Directions:
+ Mix lemon juice, soy sauce, salt, and oregano in small bowl. Set aside.
+ Heat oil over medium-high heat in a medium skillet. Saute the chicken, onion, and red bell pepper for 5 mins until onions begin to brown.

+Add the lemon juice mixture and continue to saute on low heat  for 15-20 mins or until chicken is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.





+ Drain any remaining juices from skillet

+ Toss sesame seeds and crushed cashews into pan

+ Serve 1 cup of tropic chicken on bed of baby spinach

+ Top with pineapple and mango cubes

+ Eat up!

Serves 2

Brunchy Bread Bowls

Ah brunch, my one true love. That lethargic weekend feast which often develops into a full-day activity. Of course, I appreciate brunch for the food, but it is the concept behind this leisurely repast which excites me. The essence of this meal is conversation. It's a time for chatting; for catching up about your week (your life, your family, your new shampoo) in the company of good friends over a delicious table. This weekend was no exception. I recently enjoyed a dinner of lobster bisque served in a bread bowl, as I ate my soup the limitless potential of this doughy vessel dawned upon me. After further research, I stumbled on the baked egg bread bowl and decided to take a stab at this savory concept - while keeping the recipe healthy and simple.

Ingredients:

2 sourdough rolls

1 tablespoon margarine

6 large tablespoons cheddar cheese, shredded

2 eggs

1 pinch of salt and pepper

2 tablespoon parsley

6 asparagus (optional)

Serves 2

Directions:

+ Preheat oven 350°

+ Slice top of the sourdough roll and save top

+ With fingers remove the inside of the bread, hollowing out to bowl shape

+ Be sure to leave at least 2-3 inches of bread along the bottom (do not make bowl too deep)

+ Place 2 tablespoons of shredded cheese in each bowl

+ Crack egg into bowl, and top with pinch of salt & pepper and 1 tablespoon cheese

+ Place bread bowl onto cooking sheet and bake for 12 mins

+ (Optional) Add asparagus and roll top on same cooking sheet and set back in oven

+ Bake another 10 minutes (22 mins total) until egg has set and white of egg is cooked

+ Remove from oven and garnish with parsley

+ (Optional) Add asparagus to bowl or serve on side

+ Devour with a friend!

Spiced Almond-Carrot Muffins

I read once that cooking is a game you can eat. For me the game is usually: what can I make without leaving my apartment? This game is especially fun to play when baking something as versatile as muffins. You whip up the flour, sugar, eggs and then stare at it. That's when the game starts. As you may remember friends, we used shredded carrots and almonds to garnish our Ginger Chicken Lettuce Wraps. Assuming you still have these ingredients on hand, you are ready to make Spiced Almond-Carrot Muffins! Still slightly traumatized from my recent attempt at vegan muffins, this recipe is not vegan, but still fabulously tasty.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup sugar
⅓ cup brown sugar
⅓ cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup shredded carrot
¾ cup milk
½ cup crushed almonds

Directions:

+ Preheat oven to 375 & grease muffin pan
+ In  large bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and baking soda
+ Add sugar, brown sugar, and canola owl, mix with beater until smooth
+ Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until incorporated
+ Pour in half the milk and mix in shredded carrots
+ Add second half of milk 

+ Using rubber spatula, fold in crushed almonds
+ Divide batter evenly among muffin cups
+ Bake for about 20 mins

+ Remove your delightfully aromatic muffins
+ Spread with a little butter or enjoy au naturel

Chickpea & Tomato Curry

I love curry, I really do, but most good curries require an exorbitant amount of time and a pantry the size of my apartment stocked with exotic spices and pastes. This recipe will not send you into the depths of a secluded specialty market in Queens searching for the perfect lemongrass stalk. A simple recipe in every way, this dish is hearty without the heavy. It has become my new weeknight staple, and you can easily add more vegetables to make it your own. Curries aren't the most photogenic of foods, but what it lacks in visual appeal it makes up for in savory perfection.

Ingredients:

(Adapted from Food & Wine)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 small onion, diced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon curry powder

¾ tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 can diced tomatoes

1 15oz. can chickpeas, drained, and rinsed

1 tablespoon plain greek yogurt (optional)

fresh parsley (garnish)

Directions:

+ In a deep skillet over high heat, add oil, onions, garlic, and ginger until onions start to sizzle

+ Reduce to medium heat and cook until onions begin to brown, and garlic becomes fragrant

+ Add cumin, cayenne, curry powder; cook for 1-2 mins and cover onions with spices

+ Add tomatoes and simmer until thickened

+ Add chickpeas and simmer for another 10 mins or so

+ Serve on bed of basmati rice

+ Garnish with greek yogurt and fresh parsley

+ Chow down!

How to NOT make Muffins (The story of how the Awkward Apple Tart came to be).

As I openly admit on my "About" page, I am an aspiring chef, emphasis on aspiring. In the true spirit of culinary exploration I intend to showcase not only my successes in the kitchen, but my failures as well. This recipe, would fall under the latter category. Having taken on a ton of new recipes lately and achieving savory results, I won't deny...I'd been feeling a bit presumptuous. Leave it to banana muffins to bring me back to reality. I encourage you to learn from my mistakes, and not try this at home. 

Mistake: Did not measure anything. Seasoned bakers can do this with success, ambitious newbs cannot.

Mistake: Tried to veganize. Vegan baking takes a specific grace and  finesse that I have not yet developed.

Mistake: Underestimated the power of sugar. If you want it sweet, you need to put enough sugar in, sometimes substitutions just don't cut it.

Step 1: Everything seems to be going okay at this point. I have my crushed ripe banana, oats, honey, vanilla, a little baking soda, baking powder, flour, cinnamon, and a little sugar. Looks good to me!


Step 2: Bake at 375 for 25 mins. Smells good! Sprinkle with a little cinnamon for good measure. Looks good!.....Tastes like play-doh. Awful.


Step 3: Improvise with roomie (Allison).


Step 4: Crumble up dough-like muffins and use as crust for apple tart!

 Step 5: Cut apple into thin slices and lay over crumbled banana muffin. Sprinkle with more cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 for 20 mins.


Step 6: Apples = good. Muffin crumble = still play-doh. Awkward.


Step 7: Humbly admit defeat.


Step 8: Salvage cinnamon apples.

Don't lose hope my little culinarian, we will soon taste sweet, sweet victory again!

Ginger Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ginger is my favorite flavor, so this will be one of many ginger-centric recipes my friends. I'm also a huge fan of one pan dishes, for both clean-up convenience and the restrictions of my very tiny Brooklyn kitchen. As far as I'm concerned the less counter/burner space required, the better. After discovering that my favorite lettuce wraps from P.F. Changs were not so healthy (630 calories and 12 grams of fat), I set out to create my own version. This is my first attempt at an Asian fusion wrap; all sorts of flavors, lots of crunchy almonds and big chunks of fresh chicken.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup diced portabella mushrooms
½ cup diced red onion
6 scallions sliced thin on the diagonal
¼ cup chopped fresh ginger
1 lb ground chicken
Handful sliced almonds
½ cup shredded carrots
½ head iceberg lettuce, cored, quartered, and peeled into individual leaves
4 tablespoons ginger teriyaki sauce

Directions:

+ Heat a large skillet or wok with olive oil
+ Add the red onion, ginger and green onions to the pan, and stir fry for a few seconds, just until fragrant
+ Add the ground chicken & mushrooms, breaking into small pieces, and cook until almost cooked through
+ Mix in ginger teriyaki sauce and cook 2-3 mins
+ Add sliced almonds and toss to coat
+ Remove pan from heat

+ Spoon the filling into lettuce “cups” and top with shredded carrots
+ Wrap lettuce into burrito shape and serve with side of soy sauce
+ Enjoy!

Hello, beautiful!

Welcome to Sweet Smidgen, your new spot for daily nosh. Here begins my journey into the culinary unknown…care to tag along?