Earthy Spicy Hamburgers

Earthy Spicy Hamburgers

Ingredients

2 lbs of organic ground chuck beef
1 egg, whisked
1 cup minced onions
1/4 cup minced, seeded tomato
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced chili of choice

1 teaspoon of all of the following
ground cumin
ground coriander
ground turmeric
ground cinnamon
fresh ground black pepper

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt to taste

Directions

Whisk all spices together; then place all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together well him hands.

Form in patties and grill to desired wellness.

I serve with a garlic yogurt tomato sauce, onions and tomato on slices of French bread.

Enjoy Cooking

Lemongrass Chicken

Happy New Year, it has been awhile since my last post, but there was so much going with holidays. Also i have been playing with the flavors of South East Asian, it is an area i have not explored before. Here is one of the recipes i recreated from one of my favorite Thai dishes: Enjoy

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, skinned and boned
1/4 cup shredded lemon mint
3 green onions chopped into about 1 inch slices
2 tablespoons of minced lemongrass, from the blub end
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of minced chili of choice
2 teaspoons of raw sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Canola oi

Directions
Cut chicken into bit sizes pieces and place in a large bowl followed by the balance of the ingredients with the exception of the mint and the oil. Toss to coat, cover and place in the fridge to marinate, at least 2 hours, the longer the better.

Place a large skillet over medium high heat with a few table spoons of oil and heat until oil starts to shimmer. Now add the chicken and stir fry the chicken until done, about 3 to 4 minutes. Take a piece and cut open to make sure its cooked through. Serve with a nice spicy cucumber salad.

Enjoy Cooking

Cranberry Sauce

Here is a really simple cranberry sauce.

Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

2 bags of fresh cranberries
3 tangerines, zest of two, and the sections from all
1 1/4 cups of raw sugar
pinch of salt, cardamon and cinnamon

Directions

In a sauce pan over medium heat place all ingredients , reserving a few tangerine sections for a garnish. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes or until the cranberries have burst and the thick sauce has been created. Remove from heat and let cool. Once at room temp, transfer to a serving dish, garnish, cover and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours before serving.

Enjoy Cooking

Raspberry Nut Blondies

Raspberry Nut Blondies

Ingredients

2 2/3 cups fresh raspberries
1 2/3 cup unbleached flour
I cup chopped nuts, i use a mix of walnuts, pecans and almonds
1 cup raw sugar
1 stick of unsalted butter plus one tablespoon
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Next add the eggs and vanilla until combined.

In a large bowl whisk together the remaining dry ingredients, reduce speed on mixer and slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixer. Remove bowl from stand mixer and fold in 3/4 cups of the nuts.

Line a 8 inch square baking pan with two strips of buttered parchment paper with the paper extending 2 inches up the side of the pan.

Pour batter into pan; next sprinkle the berries and the remaining nuts on top.

Bake for about 50 to 60 minutes or until tooth pick comes out clean.

These taste great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream

Enjoy Cooking

Pomegranate Chicken

We had this when we were in Syria and i came across the recipe i had jotted when we were there. It is really good, i did change it a bit when a made this last year since some of the ingredients can not be found here in the states.

Pomegranate Chicken

Ingredients

1 3 to 4 lb chicken cut up
4 cups chicken stock, low salt
2 cups of chopped walnuts
1 stick unsalted butter - you can also just olive instead, same amount (1/2 cup)
2 medium onions, quartered and sliced
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup Pomegranate syrup
1 table spoon raw sugar
2 teaspoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 to 1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

In a deep skillet over medium high heat melt 6 tablespoons of butter, then add the salt, turmeric, pepper and chicken and saute the chicken until golden brown on all sides about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside, reduce heat to medium, add the remaining butter and the onions and saute until onions are soft, about 3 minutes. Now add the walnuts and saute for about 5 minutes. Now add the remaining ingredients with the exception of sugar, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. Taste and if sauce is a bit sour add sugar to taste. Next add the chicken back to the skillet, toss, cover and simmer until chicken is done.

Serve with some pomegranate seeds and a bit of parsley.

Enjoy Cooking

Hungarian Chicken Casserole

Here is an easy one pot meal, enjoy.

Hungarian Chicken Casserole

Ingredients

2 3lb chickens, cut up
1 1/2 cup chicken stock, low salt
2 lbs small new potatoes, quartered
1/2 lb mushrooms of choices, sliced
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
1 red onion diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon paprika
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Place large casserole over medium high heat and the butter and melt. Season chicken, then place the chicken, onions and paprika in casserole and brown chicken on all sides. Now add the mushrooms, potatoes, tomatoes and chicken stock, cover and place in the oven for one hour. Once chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender, remove bay leaf and add sour cream and parsley, toss to combine and serve.

As an option you can switch out the parsley for fresh oregano for a different flavor profile.

Enjoy Cooking

Peanut Butter Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup raw sugar
1 cup chopped peanuts, small dice
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Optional - replace the peanuts with mini dark chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Cream together the butter, peanut butter and sugar. Whisk together the dry ingredients. Now add the egg and vanilla to butter mixture, followed by the dry ingredients. Fold in the nuts.

Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, and press down on the top with a fork. Bake for about 9 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown.

Enjoy Cooking