Sunday, August 31, 2014

Coconut Chocolate Bars


Ingredients
  • 1 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
  • 1 packet of xylitol
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅓ cup coconut cream
  • semisweet chocolate chips

  1. Mix shredded coconut with coconut cream,1/2 of the vanilla extract and ½ packet of stevia and blend well with a spatula or a spoon
  2. Place the shredded coconut mixture on a small cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
  3. Shape it into a flat rectangle about 4 inches by 6 inches and 1 inch thick (bread pan) 
  4. Place in the freezer for 2 hours, until frozen solid
  5. Remove from the freezer and cut into bars
  6. Now dip the bars in the melted chocolate chips, and turn to all sides to coat evenly. It helps if the bars are frozen solid so they won't break.
  7. Place bars back on the cookie sheet
  8. When all bars are all coated put in the refrigerator to harden.
  9. The bars can be kept in the fridge for harder consistency or at room temperature for softer.



Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Roasted Red Pepper and Cauliflower Soup With Goat Cheese

ingredients

  • 4 red bell pepper, cut in half and seeds removed
  • 1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
  • 1 pinch red pepper flakes
  • 4 cups chicken broth 
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
  • salt and pepper to taste
directions

  1. Place the red peppers on a baking sheet with the cut side facing down, broil until the skins are blackened, about 10 minutes, place in a sealable container and let 'steam' for 20 minutes before pinching the skins off and dicing.
  2. Meanwhile, toss the cauliflower in the oil, place it in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast in a preheated 400F oven until tender and caramelized, about 20-30 minutes, mixing once in the middle.
  3. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat and cook the onion until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
  4. Add the garlic, thyme and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
  5. Add the roasted red peppers, cauliflower, broth, paprika and goat cheese and simmer for 10 minutes before pureeing to the desired consistency with a hand blender.
  6. Season with salt and pepper and serve garnished with goat cheese.

Monday, August 18, 2014

Buffalo Chicken Burgers

Ingredients
Chicken Burger:
              1 lb of ground chicken *** I used 2 packages from Safeway
              1/4 cup finely chopped onion
              2 cloves of garlic, pressed
              1 egg
              1/4 cup plain bread crumbs
              ½ cup blue cheese crumbles
              Salt
              Fresh cracked pepper
              1 tsp minced fresh dill weed
              1 tsp minced fresh parsley
              2 tbs oil for cooking

Sandwich:
              Burger buns
              Chicken Burgers
              Buffalo sauce
              Ranch Dressing
              Blue cheese crumbles
              Tomato slices
              Chopped green onion
              Sliced Mozzarella cheese

Instructions
1.            Chicken Burgers:
2.            Preheat the pan and the oil on medium heat. Combine the ingredients for the chicken burgers in a mixing bowl and mix well. Scoop out the meat mixture (as big as you want the burgers) and form patties with your hands. Cook the chicken burgers, on medium heat, for about 10 minutes of each side.  *** I used the Panini Maker on medium high heat for 8 minutes.
3.            When the chicken burgers are fully cooked, pour some buffalo sauce in the pan and cook the burgers in the sauce for about a minute on each side.
4.            To assemble the sandwiches: spread some ranch dressing on the bottom bun, add some blue cheese crumbles and tomato slices. Add the buffalo chicken burger and top it off with some green onion and Mozzarella cheese slices.


Notes
Recipe from Lyuba @ willcookforsmiles.com

Read more at http://www.willcookforsmiles.com/2013/07/buffalo-chicken-burger.html#30JFGq9S1JsBJbUm.99

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Asian Dumplings - Chloe's SAIT Camp

250 g ground pork
250 g ground chicken
1 c diced mushrooms
1 large carrot brunoise (very fine dice)
¼ onion brunoise
2 green onions, fine dice
1 T minced ginger
1 T minced garlic
2 T soy sauce
2 T sesame oil
salt/pepper

round wonton wrappers

Sauté vegetables until soft.
Sweat the onions, garlic, and ginger until translucent.
Mix all ingredients together.
Cook off a small amount of the meat mixture and adjust the seasonings if needed.
Form meat mix into small balls.
Fold the dumplings.
Cook in boiling salted water until they float.
Remove and enjoy with sauce.

Sauce:

equal parts:
soy sauce
rice vinegar
sesame oil
sugar
green onions
water

Mix all ingredients together.
Heat on stove until sugar has dissolved.
Cook until thickened.

Butter Chicken - Chloe's SAIT Camp

1kg chicken breasts, medium cube
2 T vegetable oil
2 T butter
4 t garam masala
4 t sweet paprika
4 t ground coriander
2 T grated ginger
2 t minced garlic
2 t chilli powder
1 cinnamon stick
6 cardamom pods
1 c cream
1 medium onion, medium dice
400 g pureed tomato
cilantro to garnish

Heat oil and butter in heavy bottomed pan on medium heat.
Add all spices, cook till fragrant.
Add onion, garlic and ginger - cook until soft.
Add chicken, stir a few times.
Add tomato and cream.
Bring to a simmer.
Cover and simmer until chicken is fully cooked.

Add water if sauce gets too thick.
Adjust seasoning: more chilli powder to increase heat. Generally needs some salt.

Serve over rice.

Friday, August 1, 2014

Crispy Tilapia Fingers with Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise

Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds tilapia fillets
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • eggs, beaten
  • 2 cups panko
  • Salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • Olive oil
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges

For the Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise

  • 1 cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
  • clove garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, from 1 lemon
  • Salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

For the Tilapia Fingers

  1. Cut the tilapia into "fingers" by first cutting the fillets in half. Leave the thin sides long, then cut the thicker sides in half on a diagonal so they appear longer.
  2. Set up three large shallow bowls in an assembly line. Put the flour in the first bowl; the beaten eggs in the second; and the panko in the third.
  3. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Dredge the fish fingers in the flour mixture, shaking excess into the bowl so just a light coating remains; dip in the eggs and turn to coat evenly; then dredge in the panko, turning several times to coat evenly. (This can be a messy job...it's best to use one hand for the flour and eggs and the other for the panko.) Set the breaded tilapia fingers on the prepared baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook (this can be done several hours ahead of time).
  4. Line a plate with 3 paper towels and set by the stove. Heat the olive oil in large non-stick sauté pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, place the first batch of tilapia fingers in the pan (do not crowd) and cook until the first side is golden brown, 2-3 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until done, about 2 minutes more. Transfer the fish fingers to the plate with paper towels and let sit for a minute to drain any excess oil. Remove any brown bits out of the pan, add more oil if necessary and continue to cook the fish in batches until done. Season the cooked tilapia fingers with more salt if desired. Serve with lemon wedges and Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise.

For the Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise

  1. Mix the mayonnaise, garlic and lemon juice in a small bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  2. Note: If you want to freeze the breaded tilapia fingers, lay them in a single layer and wrap well with aluminum foil. Place in a freezer bag in the freezer. When you're ready to make them, simply defrost them enough so they'll lay flat in the pan and cook as directed above.