Simple Stir-fry Sauce

A simple stir-fry sauce is handy to
have in your pocket for a quick meal using any combination of veggies, protein, and garnishes you have on hand.

I usually tackle stir-fry with a simple method:

1. cook the starch first--rice, soba noodles, rice or egg noodles, leaving it covered warm in the pot
2. saute and set aside your protein--chicken, pork, shrimp, beef, or tofu
3. saute your veggies and ...
4. reintroduce everything into your pan, adding your sauce and a splash of broth until thickened and heated through

Tonight I found some Lap Cheong in the freezer (affectionately known as "Meat Treasure" in our house as it is a sweet, salty, almost candied meat that can be found nestled inside traditional sticky rice, which is a family favourite at dim sum and a childhood comfort food for my husband; I decided to cook it for a treat.

I tucked the sausage into the pot of brown Basmati rice I made. Basically when your rice is tender, your sausage will be cooked, and you can slice it and garnish your stir-fry with whatever makes it past the cutting board!

I sauteed a bag of Man's Rainbow Salad with sliced onions, sweet peppers, and mushrooms, threw in some left-over roast chicken (but cubed tofu tastes great here too!), and when everything was heated through, I added my stir--fry sauce and a splash of veggie broth.

Stir-fry sauce:

4 Tablespoons of maple syrup
6 Tablespoons of soy sauce
6 teaspoons of sesame oil
3 cloves of minced or grated garlic
a generous tablespoon of grated ginger root
1 tablespoon of chili-garlic hot sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons of cornstarch (depending on how thick you like your sauce)

Whisk all the ingredients and add to your pan once your veggies are tender-crisp.  I usually add a splash of veggie broth or water to increase the sauciness a bit.  Depending on how many veggies and how much protein you have in your pan, you may not need all of your sauce.

Dinner prep simplified by using pre-cut veggies and left-over roast meat; elevated by the sausage, green onions, and roasted black sesame seed garnishes.

Veggie Burgers: Don't Be Afraid To Catch Feels

Food often provides a restorative, creative outlet for me, and this morning, amidst a storm cloud of "stuff" mixed in with a busy night ahead and a beautiful sunny day that makes me feel like eating healthy, I am "cooking my feelings today" (#IloveyouRandalPearson andIcookmyfeelstoo).

My goal was not to create something that mimicks a hamburger (because let's face it, you don't eat veggie burgers because they taste like Big Macs!), but to create a patty that holds together, is crispy on the outside, is healthy, and tastes delicious.

I typically bake my veggie burgers in the oven, but tried these in the Actifry.  The result was a nicely-browned, firm patty.

Gather:
1/2 cup TVP
1/2 cup veggie broth
TBSP each soy sauce, olive oil and maple syrup
Large minced onion
5 cloves of garlic grated,
2 cups of Mann's rainbow salad, pulsed course
1 16 oz can black beans drained, dry and pulsed course



1 large egg
A handful each of sharp cheese and green onion
A tsp each, Italian seasoning blend, garlic powder, onion powder and a generous grind of sriracha salt and/or any others seasonings you like
1/4  to 1/2 cup of almond flour, ground oats or leftover cooked grains

Do It:
Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil and add the tvp, broth, soy sauce, maple syrup, and spices, blending until reconstituted; dump into a big mixing bowl.
Pulse the Mann's; toss into the mixing bowl.
Pulse the beans and toss them into the bowl with a handful of sharp cheese, the almond flour, green onion, and egg.
Form the mixture into patties on a parchment-lined baking sheet; chilling/freezing before baking can be helpful to obtain a patty that holds together well.
Brush the patties with oil and bake in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes (flipping half way) or until nicely browned OR for 20 minutes in the Actifry (remove paddle), flipping gently after 15 minutes and cooking for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the desired doneness has been reached.

Pile high with whatever toppings you love -- fresh lettuce, sprouts, tomatoes, red onion caramalized mushrooms or onions, roasted veggies, goat cheese-- whatever!  Serve on traditional hamburger buns, or grilled portobello mushrooms or crumble in a grain bowls with some greens and roasted vegetables.

Dress and plate that burger and "storm cloud be gone!" (or at the very least, a little less stormy) with the delicious and comforting distraction of food cooked with purpose!  Even better if cooked for or shared with someone you love!  For any fellow curious-information-nerds, a brief read here provides abundant inspiration to cook it out in case this recipe did not inspire you to do that already.

Falafel Collides with Potato Latkes!

It has been awhile since I have made the time to record any of the delicious food we are eating.

These days I find myself looking for things I can freeze and send home with the oldest, grown-and-flown member of the family at university that does not require too much effort for her to prepare and provides even marginally more nutrition than a bowl of Ramen noodles or a box of KD!

 This recipe fits the bill and is too good not to share!

I came across a post for something called "Kartoffelpuffer-Crispy Potato Tahini Patties" here and was intrigued.

I have since learned it is a delicious fusion between German, Morrocan, Arab, and Israeli cooking, vegan, gluten-free and delicious mounds of potatoey goodness!

We ate the patties alongside a fresh salad but I think they would taste great wrapped in pita with lettuce, red onions, tomatoes, and a drizzle of tahini, or drizzled with some tzatziki sauce or garlic yogurt sauce.

I also intend to try these for breakfast topped with a poached egg, avocado, and tomato!

The patties are baked, not fried, and have a nice, crispy exterior without deep frying.  I changed the recipe a fair bit to suit our tastes and ingredients, as follows:

Gather:
A generous 6 cups of grated russet potatoes (next time I'll throw in some sweet potato, too) rinsed and squeezed of all excess moisture
A generous cup of grated carrot
A large handful of chopped green onion
A 1/4 cup of chopped, fresh parsley
6 large cloves of garlic, grated
1 teaspoon each of garlic powder, tumeric, and onion powder
2 teaspoons of cumin
A generous sprinkle of dried chili peppers
Course, ground black pepper
3/4 of a cup of tahini paste (or more if needed to hold it all together)

Do it:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
Place 1/2 cup portions of the mixture, flattened and evenly spaced on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.
Flip the patties and bake for about 10 to 15 minutes more until golden and crispy.
Serve warm and enjoy!

Beef Slaw Bowl

We have been eating a lot of
"dinner-in-a-bowl"-type meals lately.

Tonight I had some ground beef and a meal that needed preparing, but not a lot of inspiration.  My Google search led me down a rabbit hole of recipe ideas for something called "crack slaw."  Interest peeked!

This is my version of what appears to be a protein-rich, delicious slaw of beef, cabbage, and garlicky-ginger goodness that we served over spinach and alongside some roasted sweet potatoes.

This was so delicious and quick to make. Sadly, no leftovers, but I'm guessing it reheats well and might even taste good cold.

Gather:
1lb ground beef
Medium red onion, sliced thinly
2-4 large cloves of garlic, chopped
A generous knob of ginger root, grated
1 tablespoon each of chili-garlic hot sauce, onion powder, and garlic powder
2 tablespoons each of maple syrup and sesame oil
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 (397g bag) of coleslaw
(this saved some prep-time chopping--feel free to sub in an equal amount of chopped cabbage and shredded carrot)

Do It:
Brown the beef, onions, and garlic together in a skillet.  I had just enough fat from the beef to saute the onion and garlic and did not need to add or drain any fat from the pan.

Once the beef is starting to brown, add everything else to the skillet and saute until the cabbage is soft and the mixture is fragrant.

Line a bowl with a handful of fresh, chopped spinach, spoon your meat on top, and surround with roasted sweet potatoes.  The greens start to wilt a bit underneath the warm slaw.

Other similar recipes subbed in ground pork or leftover shredded pork for the beef and added green onion for more of an "egg roll-in-a-bowl"-type of a dish, which also sounds delicious. (Perhaps served with a handful of thin rice noodles and greens?)

Grain-free Waffles

We bought a mini waffle-maker for Mabel for her birthday because she loves to eat and make waffles.  We picked up this version by Dash, in Aqua, for 10 bucks at Winners, and it is quite the gem!  It makes fluffy, perfect waffles fast!  It works better than our stainless steel Cuisinart!

Today I experimented with a grain-free waffle that was packed with protein and healthy fats.  It is not the cake-like version of your typical buttermilk variety, but it tasted really good, was quite filling, and didn't make you feel quite so guilty!

I played with this recipe and came up with the following:

Gather:
1 1/2 cups almond flour
a scant 1/4 cup arrowroot powder
a pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of each baking soda and cinnamon
1 small ripe banana, mashed
1/4 cup almond milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 Tablespoon of maple syrup
1 Tablespoon of coconut oil melted



Do:
Combine the dry ingredients and set aside.
Whisk the eggs, vanilla, almond milk, mashed banana, and maple syrup and add them to the dry ingredients, stirring to combine.
Add the melted coconut oil (if you add it to the cold, wet ingredients, it will solidify and clump up) and stir.

Add the batter to your waffle-maker and cook to your individual appliance specifications.

Serve warm with fresh fruit and maple syrup.

Check out here and right here for oodles more waffle experiments to try.

15 Minute Coconut-Curry Noodle Bowl

This was ridiculously easy to make, but it tasted amazing!

I pretty much followed the recipe found here.

With a few simple ingredients and some chopped peanuts and green onion to garnish, this noodle bowl is next-level eats fast.

I rehydrated some dried shiitake mushrooms, had my noodles cooked and ready to add to the broth, along with peeled, raw shrimp and some thinly sliced sweet peppers.

I made the broth according to the recipe directions, added the mushrooms, peppers and shrimp, stirring until the shrimp were just pink.

Bowls were assembled with a handful of noodles covered in broth and topped with chopped peanuts and green onions.

I will definitely make this again with firm tofu or leftover roast chicken if I don't have shrimp on hand.
This was so satisfying, and it tasted as good, if not better, than any Thai soup I have eaten at a restaurant.

Pizza Pasta Salad

Pizza Pasta Salad made a quick, fresh dinner that was perfect on a night of multiple activities requiring a grab-and-go meal.

This really can be as simple or as boosted as you choose.  Use what you have or what you love, toss with your favourite homemade or readymade Italian dressing, and serve with some giant homemade garlic croutons or garlic bread.

Gather:

Pasta, cooked, drained, and cooled
Thinly sliced red onion
Thinly sliced green pepper
Pepperonchi rings
Cherry tomatoes sliced in half
Pepperoni, sliced
Bocconcini
Grated parmigano regiano
Fresh basil
Salt and pepper
Italian dressing

Do it:

Toss everything together and serve on some arugula, if you want to get fancy.

Add roasted red pepper, olives, or marinated artichokes.

Sub in pancetta for the pepperoni or leave the meat out all together.  This dish is completely customizable and is perfect for serving a big crowd as you you can just add more of everything to accommodate the number of people you are feeding.