Page 10

Tofu Pad Thai

I’m not going to lie, this recipe intimidated me! It wasn’t a lot of work, but there were a lot of steps. It was so worth it though! I’d suggest making it in a wok like my All Clad wok, as a regular pan might not have enough room to stir fry the noodles and tofu together. My husband thoroughly enjoyed this meal and has asked me to make it again soon.

Ingredients
9 oz./250 g. pad Thai rice noodles
1 block extra firm or firm tofu
1.5 Tbsp. soy sauce
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. grated galangal OR ginger
4 green onions (scallions), sliced (keep white separate from green)
1 egg
1 cup bean sprouts
1/3 cup dry roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped
2-3 Tbsp. vegetable oil for stir-frying
lime wedges for serving

Pad Thai Sauce:
1/3 cup good-tasting chicken stock
3 Tbsp. rice vinegar OR white vinegar
1 Tbsp. lime juice
3-4 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. white pepper

Adapted from: About.com

I prepared the sauce to marinate the tofu.

I added the rice noodles to a pot of boiling water, and followed the recipe directions exact.

I sauteed the white part of the scallions.

and added the tofu.

I then added the rice noodles and the rest of the marinade.

I then topped the pad thai with chopped scallions and peanuts.

This recipe was so amazingly delicious that I never even took pictures of it in our bowls before we sucked it down!

I will definitely be making it again!

Directions
Place diced tofu in a bowl and toss with soy sauce (1.5 Tbsp). Set aside. Combine ‘Pad Thai Sauce’ ingredients together in a cup, stirring to dissolve sugar. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Dunk in rice noodles and switch off heat. Allow noodles to soak approximately 6 minutes, OR until soft enough to bend easily, but still firm and ‘undercooked’ by regular standards (this is key to good pad Thai; noodles will finish cooking when you stir-fry them later).

Drain and rinse noodles briefly with cold water to keep from sticking. Set aside.

Heat a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle in the oil and swirl around, then add the garlic, chili, galangal/ginger, and the white parts of the green onion (reserve green tops for later). Stir-fry 1 minute.

Add marinated tofu and stir-fry 2 minutes. When pan becomes dry, add 1-2 Tbsp. of the pad Thai sauce – just enough to keep ingredients frying nicely.

Using your spatula or cooking utensil, push ingredients to the side of the pan (if pan is dry, drizzle in a little oil). Crack egg into center and stir-fry quickly to scramble. Then add noodles plus 3-4 Tbsp. of the pad Thai sauce. Using two utensils, lift and turn noodles to stir-fry with other ingredients. Continue in this way, adding more sauce every minute or two, until all has been added and the noodles are chewy-delicious and a little bit sticky (8-10 minutes).

Take 1 more minute to gently fold in the bean sprouts (they will soften down into the heat of the noodles while remaining crispy). Remove from heat and taste-test, adding more fish sauce until desired taste is achieved (I usually end up adding 1-2 Tbsp). Portion out onto individual plates and add a lime wedge on the side. Top with remaining green onion and a small heap of chopped nuts. ENJOY!

This post may contain affiliate links.

Recipes

Dairy Free, Soy Free, Gluten Free, Peanut Butter Cookies

January 29, 2013October 28, 2014

Dairy Free, Soy Free, Gluten Free, Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies use only FIVE ingredients!!! I followed the recipe exact, from here, and I wouldn’t change a thing!

Ingredients
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling the cookies in
1 large egg – lightly beaten with a fork
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350ºF. In a bowl, mix together the peanut butter and sugar…

Add the remaining ingredients.

Roll the dough into a ball and dip into a small bowl of sugar.
Place the balls on the baking sheet, and press down with a fork, rotating 90º.

Bake for 10 minutes…

These cookies came out insanely delicious!

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicon baking liners. (I used my Silpat.)

In a large bowl mix the peanut butter with 1 cup sugar. Stir until well blended. Add the egg, baking powder and vanilla. Stir well.

Pour some additional sugar in a small bowl, and take 1 tablespoon the dough and roll in a ball. Roll the dough ball in the sugar and place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Take a dinner fork, stick it in the sugar and gently press down each dough ball to flatten, then turn the fork 90 degrees and gently press again, making the traditional hatch markings of a peanut butter cookie.

Bake for 10 minutes. Take the cookies out of oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Gently transfer the cookies to a rack to finish cooling.

Recipes

Olive Goat Cheese and Eggplant Ravioli

January 29, 2013October 28, 2014

Olive Goat Cheese and Eggplant Ravioli
1 4oz package of goat cheese (I used Fig & Olive goat cheese)
1 package of wonton wrappers
1 medium eggplant
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise, and rub with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Place the egpplant in oven cut side down and bake. Start to sautee the chopped garlic.

Remove the garlic from the heat before it starts to brown.
Remove the eggplant from the oven once it is thoroughly cooked.

Scoop out the inside of the eggplant until only the skin remains…

Place the eggplant in a bowl to mix with the sauteed garlic and parsley.

Then, place the eggplant into a food processor (I used my 4 cup chopper/grinder) and blend until somewhat smooth.

This is the goat cheese I used…

I placed the goat cheese in my chopper on it’s own, as I didn’t want the eggplant mixture to taste like mush.

I put a small spoonful of the cheese onto the wonton wrappers…

and topped with the eggplant mixture.

I sealed the wonton wrappers with egg whites.

I placed the ravioli into the pot of boiling water about 4-5 at a time.

As soon as they float to the top, they’re done!

YUM!!!

Directions
Preheat oven to 425ºF. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise, and rub with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place the eggplant face down and bake for 35 minutes or until eggplant is tender. While the eggplant is cooking, sautee the chopped up garlic cloves and remove from heat before they brown. Once the eggplant is done cooking, remove the meat from the skin and mix with the garlic. Place the eggplant, garlic and parsley in a food processor or chopper, and process until smooth (but not too smooth.) Remove the eggplant mixture and add the block of goat cheese. Process until cheese smooths out. Boil a pot of water to cook the ravioli in.

Lay out your wonton wrappers about 10 at a time, and place a spoonful of cheese in the middle of each. Top each dollop of cheese with a spoonful of eggplant. Seal the wonton wrappers by using egg whites and placing another wrapper on top. Boil a few at a time until they float to the top and the wonton wrapper is fully cooked.

These ravoli are so full of flavor that I only served them with a but of butter and grated pecorino romano. They were delicious!

Recipes

Peanut Butter Heath Cookies

January 14, 2013October 28, 2014

So, I bought a bag of Heath bits by accident. Well, not really an accident. I bought a bag because it was on sale (isn’t that good enough reason??) and I thought, “one day I might need these!”

That day never came and I eventually had to search for a recipe to rid myself of this bag of Heath bits. Best part is that I’ve never had a Heath bar, so I could only assume what these bits tasted like. Luckily they were delicious, and I found this awesome recipe that used the entire bag. My husband described these as “the best cookies ever.” Personally, I’d probably add more chocolate chips, but these are the most amazingly moist and sweet cookies!

Cream together the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar.

Add the eggs and vanilla.

With a whisk, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.

Combine both mixtures and add the toffee bits and chocolat chips.

Mix until well combined.

Form into 1 1/2 inch balls on a greased baking sheet.

I baked these for 12 minutes, the original recipe said 10.

What came out was an AMAZING, OOEY GOOEY cookie!!!

Just delicious and insanely soft!!!

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, slightly softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/3 cup (8 oz bag) Heath Toffee Bits
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together the butter, sugar, and peanut butter. Add in the eggs and vanilla. Gradually stir in the flour, baking soda, and salt until just combined. Stir in toffee bits and chocolate chips. Roll cookie dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and drop them on a baking sheet. Bake about 12 minutes. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Recipes

Butterball Cookies

January 11, 2013October 28, 2014

A handwritten recipe for these butterballs has been in my family for years, but I used this recipe as guidance as my handwritten recipe is missing some measurements. Those Italians never measure! (Including myself, which is why I’d rather cook than bake!)

I grew up eating these cookies never knowing there were walnuts inside. I’m definitely not a walnut fan, but they’re very subtle in this cookie and taste delicious with the amazing texture!

Ingredients
1 cup butter
2 cups flour
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
powdered sugar for rolling

Start with the butter, sugar and vanilla.

Once combined, add the flour and walnuts.

Mix well and form into balls.

I made mine on the Silpat, but I wouldn’t suggest doing so.

The oddly close but only picture of the finished product:

Directions
Cream the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla. Blend in flour and chopped nuts. Roll the dough into balls on a baking sheet. Bake at 325 for 22 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and roll into powdered sugar.