Breakfast for Dinner, part 1

Morel Mushroom and Asparagus Eggs Benedict

Warning - this is such a rich, decadent, and delicious meal that you might not want dessert afterwards.

For some reason I got really excited when I read that Morel mushrooms are special because they are a spring mushroom and not cultivated year round.  I searched for the perfect recipe to celebrate spring and give honor to the Morel mushroom.  Well, what do you know...those little guys are tough to find.  Since I was drooling over this recipe for at least 24 hours, I decided to just sub crimini mushrooms instead and guess what, the recipe came freaking amazing!  Who needs Morel mushrooms - no one! Love this recipe because it made me instantly impressed that I 1: poached an egg and 2: made a mushroom sauce. 

Because I can't say no to Hollandaise sauce, I also made some to accompany this dish.  I also plated the toast on a bed of Mache greens to make me feel like I was eating healthy.

I dedicate this meal to my friend Emma who taught me breakfast is good any time of the day.

 

 

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2-3 large shallots, finely diced
• 2-3 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme, chopped
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 8 ounces morel mushrooms, halved or quartered depending on size
• 1/4 cup white wine, or broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 slices multi grain or sourdough bread
• 2-3oz of greyer or Swiss cheese
• 12 spears asparagus, blanched
• 2-3 roasted red peppers
• 4 poached eggs

 

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.
2. Pre-heat oven to 250F (this is for the bread, you're going to place it in the oven to lightly toast it and melt the cheese)
3. Add the shallot and cook until tender, about 2-3 minutes. Removed half the shallots and set aside for later.
4. Add the garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
5. Add the butter and let it melt.
6. Add the mushrooms and cook until they release their moisture, about 3-5 minutes.
7. Add the wine or broth, deglaze the pan and cook for 2 minutes.
8. Add the cream and simmer until it thickens, about 2-3 minutes and reduce the meat to minimum.
9. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and reduce the heat to medium.
10. Swirl the water in the pot.
11. Crack an egg into a bowl and pour the egg from the bowl into the water. Repeat with another egg.
12. Let the eggs cook until the whites are set but the yolks are not, about 2-3 minutes and fish them out. Repeat with remaining two eggs.
13. Sprinkle cheese, remaining shallots, and roasted red pepper on bread slices and place in the oven for 10-12 mins or until cheese is melted
14. Place the toast on plates, top with the asparagus, poached eggs and creamy mushroom sauce.

 

adapted from Closet Cooking

Honey Lime Talapia

Yum yum yum...soo good. This is how I felt while eating this delicious fish.  I always think of talapia as a cheap fish, it is that but its also a delicious, tender, and tasty little friend of the freshwater "sea".  I didn't realized that I needed to marinade this fish for 1-4 hours so the fish sat in the marinade for about 5 mins.  It was so good even after just 5 mins, that I can only imagine that a little extra time would only bring out the sweet and tangy flavor of the marinade even more. I served it with my favorite Trader Joe's pilaf.

 

I didn't only re-connect with talapia again, I also reconnected with Mad Men.  I'm back on the wagon and I think I'm the last person (along with Lucas) to watch season 4.  I wish I liked Betty more because I would have congratulated her for leaving Don and invited her over for a Honey Lime talapia dinner but since she is so lame and annoying, I will not.

 

Enjoy this fish, its the best dish!

Marinade

4 tilapia fillets (about 4-5 ounces each)

2 tablespoons lime juice (from 1 large lime)

Zest of 1 lime

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

3 clove garlic, finely minced (recipe called for 1 clove but I always toss in a few more)

Coating and Cooking:

1/2 cup all-purpose or whole wheat flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, lime zest, olive oil, honey, salt, pepper and garlic. Place the tilapia in a gallon-sized ziploc bag and pour the marinade on top of the fish. Press the air out of the bag and seal. Refrigerate the fish for at least an hour and up to 4 hours. It helps to lay the bag in a flat dish and turn it over once or twice during the marinading time since the marinade won't completely cover the fish.
2. Before cooking, whisk together the flour, salt and pepper in a shallow dish like a pie plate. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until rippling and hot. Dredge each tilapia fillet in the flour, coating both sides lightly. Cook the fillets for 3-5 minutes per side without moving the fish while it cooks on each side; this will ensure a more even browning. Adjust the cooking time as needed depending on the thickness of the tilapia and the heat of the skillet and work in batches if necessary so the skillet isn't overcrowded.
3. Serve immediately with lime wedges.

 

adapted from Mel's Cafe

Stuffed Eggplant with Lamb and Pine Nuts

 

One night I had a dream where I was searching for the perfect eggplant recipe.  I was searching a forest for eggplants and trying to think what would pair well with it.  I woke up around 4am not being able to fall back asleep so I decided to search recipes in real life.  I found this one from Jerusalem: A Cookbook and as soon as I saw it, I knew that it was the perfect one. 

 

I made a couple changes to the recipe: Since lamb isn't cheap, I used the extra carved out eggplant so I could use less lamb and still have plenty of stuffing.  I also cut down the cooking time and made the sauce on the stove rather than in the oven. 

 

This was complete heaven.  We gobbled it up so fast that I totally forgot to snap a photo of the finished product so I used the one from Serious Eats website.  

 

 



Ingredients

2 medium eggplants, halved lengthwise

6 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

2 medium onions (12 ounces/340 grams in total), finely chopped

1/2 pound ground lamb

7 tablespoons pine nuts ( I just tossed in a handful)

2/3 ounces flat-leaf parsley, chopped

2 teaspoons tomato paste

3 teaspoons superfine sugar

2/3 cup  water

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon tamarind paste  (I could only find a tamarind chutney but it still worked our perfectly)

4 cinnamon sticks

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C.

Hollow out eggplants, set aside filling. Place the eggplant halves, skin side down, in a roasting pan 
large enough to accommodate them snugly. Brush the eggplant with 
4 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with 1 teaspoon salt and plenty of black pepper. Roast for about 20 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool

Dice extra eggplant filling into small cubes, lightly toss with olive oil.

While the eggplants are cooking, you can start making the stuffing by heating the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large frying pan. Mix together the cumin, paprika, and ground cinnamon and add only half of this spice mix to the pan, along with the onions and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes, stirring often

Add the lamb, diced eggplant, pine nuts, parsley, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon of the sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and some black pepper. Continue to cook 
and stir for another 8 minutes, until the meat is cooked.

Place the remaining spice mix in a small pot and add the water, lemon juice, tamarind, the remaining 2 teaspoons sugar, the cinnamon sticks, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; mix well.  Gently simmer and reduce volume by 1/2. 

Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F/195°C. 

Spoon the lamb/eggplant mixture on top of each eggplant. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil, return to the oven, and roast for 30mins, by which point the eggplants should be completely soft. At least once or twice while the eggplants roasting a second time, remove the foil and baste the eggplants with a spoonful of sauce.

Serve warm, not hot, or at room temperature.  Serve with sauce on the side.

 

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

All I could think while I was eating these stuff sweet potatoes was "holy cow, I just made my own chili beans - they actually taste good".  Since I'm just cooking for two, I decreased some of the ingredients so we wouldn't have a ton of left overs.

Ingredients

• 3 Small Yams/Sweet Potatoes
• 1 1/2 cup Pinto-type Beans
• 2 tsp. Olive Oil
• 1 Yellow Onion
• 2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. Chili Powder (I only used a tsp)
• 1 Tsp. Cumin
• 1/2 Tsp. Paprika
• 1 Tsp. Smoked Salt
• 20 oz. Crushed Tomatoes

Garnish

• Cilantro
• Chopped Red Onion
• Avocado
• Sour Cream or Yogurt

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 400. Pierce holes in the sweet potatoes/yams, lightly wrap them in foil, and bake on the middle rack for about 45-55 minutes.
• Put the beans in a pot and completely cover with water, plus 2 extra inches. Bring to a gentle boil and cook for 45-60 minutes until the beans are cooked through.
• While the beans cook, thinly slice the onion. Over medium heat, warm the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot and cook the onions and garlic until softened. Add the spices and the jar of tomatoes. If the tomatoes are whole, just smash them to a puree. Bring to a simmer and reduce for about 20 minutes while the beans finish cooking.
• When the beans are cooked, drain and add them to the tomato mix, cook another 10 minutes for all the flavors to marry. Taste for salt and spices, add more if desired.
• Split open the baked sweet potato/yams and create a little cavern down the middle by removing some of the filling. Fill the cavern with the chili beans and add toppings as desired. I like a bit of avocado, sour cream and cilantro. You could go with a bit of shredded cheese and minced red onion... something tells me you've had chili before and know the drill

 

adapted from sprouted kitchen

Family Secret - Spinach Pie

So the story goes when my mom was younger, she did a favor for a neighbor and as a thank you, they made her this Spinach Pie with the recipe as a thank you.  I've been making and eating this dish since I was kid so it always brings up good memories.

This is every one's favorite - its hearty, filling, cheesy, with a golden flaky crust. Its more than just a simple quiche - its more shiny and special than that. Its amazing as a winter dish to warm you up inside and tastes just as good as left overs.  We always serve it with a Hollandaise sauce, whether its from scratch or just from a sauce packet.

Ingredients

• 1 pound Italian Sausage
• 6 Eggs (Reserve the yolk from one of the eggs)
• 2 10 ounces Chopped Spinach - you can use frozen as well, make sure it is thoroughly thawed and drained
• 16 ounces of Mozzarella Cheese Grated
• 8 ounces of Ricotta Cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt, 1/8 teaspoon Pepper, 1 teaspoon Garlic Power
• **Pastry for bottom and top of pie--I get Pillsbury Pie Crust

Directions

• Cook Sausage, allow to cool and cut into bite size pieces
• Combine the Sausage and all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix 
• Place a pie crust at the bottom of a 10 inch pie plate
• Place all mixed ingredients in the pie plate and put on top pie crust 
• Mix a teaspoon of water with the reserved egg yolk and spread on the top crust (this gives it that beautiful golden brown color
• Make several slits on top with a knife.

Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes at 375 degree oven

Chicken Mango Lettuce Wraps and Thai Peanut Noodles

This was an easy fun recipe.  It does take some prep time chopping and shaving all the veggies and chicken but well worth it. The peanut noodles was another story. I will never....ever...never not ever cook with rice noodles again.  Its a hard noodle to master.  I've tried doing several things but they always come out sticky and mushy.

Ingredients - Mango Chicken Wraps

1 pound ground chicken (I couldn't find any ground chicken so I chopped chicken breasts in small cubes and I think it tasted better)

4-5 teaspoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon corn starch (or potato or rice starch)

1 teaspoon cooking oil (a high smoke point oil would be best such as rice bran oil, grape seed oil or canola oil)

4 green onions, chopped

4 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1-2 teaspoons seasoned rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 large mango, diced

1 head of butter lettuce, rinsed, leaves separated

 

**Why the corn starch? It's a cooking trick that you often find in Chinese recipes. The corn starch helps the chicken hold in its moisture and keep it from drying out in the high heat of the stir frying**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients - Thai Peanut Noodles

 

1-2 carrots, sliced thinly or shaved

1 cucumber, sliced thinly or shaved

1 package of rice noodles (but try soba, egg noodles, or whole wheat noodles)

1/2 Cup Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup Light Coconut Milk (regular milk will make it too thick)
1/2 Cup Water
1 tbsp. Tamari/Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
2 tsp. Lime Juice
2 tbsp. Agave
1 Shallot, finely chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp. Canola/Peanut Oil

 

Saute the the garlic and shallot in the oil to soften, whisk in the peanut butter, coconut milk, water, agave and soy sauce and mix to combine. Sprinkle in the red pepper flakes. When all ingredients are warmed through, add the lime juice. Add spices as you wish here

 

Toss peanut sauce with noodles, carrots, and cucumbers. Garnish with cilantro.

Living butter lettuce