Recipes Cooking

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

SANDRA’S ADDICTING BAKED TROPICAL JALAPENO SPINACH DIP

This rich and cheesy baked tropical jalapeno
appetizer offers a popping flavor surprise
and is great served with
warm and crispy herb pita chips...

Servings: (10)

Prep: 10 Mins.

Bake: 25 to 30 Mins.

INGREDIENTS

Dip:

1/3 cup finely chopped yellow onion

2 tablespoons finely chopped jarred sliced pickled jalapeno peppers

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup sour cream

½ cup mayonnaise

4 oz. cream cheese, at room temp.

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

½ cup shredded medium cheddar cheese

1 (9 oz. pkg.) frozen chopped spinach thawed, drained and squeezed dry, then chopped finer

1 (8 oz. can) can crushed pineapple, drained

½ teaspoon old bay seasoning

Topping:

¼ cup Japanese panko breadcrumbs

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Garnish:

2 slices of jarred pickled jalapenos

METHOD

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 2-quart (round/square) ovenproof baking dish, and set aside.

In a small skillet over medium heat with a bit of olive oil, saute onion for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds.

In a medium bowl, combine all the dip ingredients, including the onion/garlic mixture. Spread mixture evenly in the prepared baking dish.

Mix together the topping ingredients in a small bowl, and sprinkle mixture evenly over dip.

Bake until the sides are bubbling, the cheese has melted and turned golden brown on top, about 25 to 30 minutes. ~ Enjoy!

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Click here for Sandras Baked Whole Wheat Herb Pita Chips

Tip: For spiciness levels of dip, feel free to use the following finely chopped jarred sliced pickled jalapeno pepper amounts as a gauge:

MILD: 1 tablespoon

MEDIUM: 2 tablespoons

HOT: 3 o 4 tablespoons

Monday, April 14, 2014

SANDRAS ORIGINAL ORANGE MANGO PORK RIBS

I prepared these Orange-Mango Ribs

for our Friday night family get-together

and they were a hit, along with my

Smokin Baked Beans

and Coleslaw...

Servings: (10-12)

Prep: 10 Mins. |

3 hrs. 45 Mins.

INGREDIENTS:

Pork Ribs:

6.5 lbs. (2 racks) seasoned pork ribs -- [We purchased ours from Costco]

Marinade:

2 cups orange/mango juice

-- (I use Naked brand)

2 (1.06-oz.) pkts. dry teriyaki marinade mix

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

Sauce:

1-1/2 cups orange/mango juice

1-1/2 cups prepared barbecue sauce (I used Bull’s-Eye Original)

1 tablespoon dark brown sugar

METHOD:

Trim ribs, and place in large, shallow non-reactive glass baking dish,

then set aside.

In a small bowl, combine marinade ingredients,

and pour over ribs in baking dish.

Cover, and let marinate at room temperature for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (or with grill over in-direct heat).

Remove ribs from marinade mixture, but do not discard marinade.

Cover baking pan tightly with heavy-duty foil, and bake for 2 hours

(or over in-direct heat on a covered grill).

While ribs are baking/grilling,

make the sauce by first adding the leftover marinade to a small saucepan.

Bring to a boil for 5 minutes over high heat.

Reduce heat to medium and add the sauce ingredients.

Simmer, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes to reduce and thicken,

then remove from heat.

Pour half the sauce into a small bowl for basting ribs while cooking.

Reserve the other half in the covered saucepan separately for serving.

Remove ribs from oven, then uncover.

Carefully baste par-baked ribs

with the designated sauce in the bowl.

Continue baking/grilling, uncovered, for 30 minutes longer,

then re-brushing half way through baking with designated sauce.

Cut ribs into serving portions and place on a platter,

along with the other designated serving sauce from saucepan

that was reheated, then poured into a small bowl for dipping.

Enjoy!

Optional sides:

Smokin Baked Beans Recipe

Best Coleslaw Recipe

Traditional Icelandic fish soup halibut soup Fiskisúpa lúðusúpa

This soup is among the oldest recorded Icelandic recipes. Its sweet-sour taste is unusual for fish-based soups.

Traditionally, the recipe is given for halibut, but you can also use salmon, trout, wolf-fish or lumpfish, or other fatty fish.

1 1/2 kg fresh fish with bones, cut into pieces to fit in the pan
1 1/2 litre water
2 tbs white vinegar
2 tsp salt
2 bay leaves

50 g flour
100 ml cold water

1/2 lemon
20 prunes
1-2 tbs sugar
200 ml water

potatoes
parsley

If the prunes are dry, soak them in water for an hour or so, or cook them in a little sugar-water with the zest of the 1/2 lemon until soft. Keep them whole.

Put water, salt, vinegar and bay leaves in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the fish. skim off the scum when the liquid boils again. cook the fish until it loosens from the bones. Strain the cooking liquid into another saucepan, leaving a little in the pan with the fish to keep it moist.

Mix together the flour and cold water into a smooth paste. Bring the strained cooking liquid to the boil and pour in the flour paste in a thin stream, stirring constantly. Cook for 5-10 minutes.

When the soup is fully cooked, add the lemon juice and prunes, and if they were cooked, the prune cooking liquid with them.

Arrange the fish on a serving dish and surround with boiled potatoes, sprinkled with chopped parsley. Serve on the side with the soup.

Hummus Recipe

Hummus is a thick dip consisting of chickpeas, lemon juice, garlic and tahini. Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds.

There are many ways and variations of making a hummus recipe. It can be made with many vegetables and pulses and all different kinds of dressings.

Hummus can be served with bread and salad.

Chickpeas are very high in protein and vitamins and very tasty too.

I pressure cook my chickpeas from fresh but you can use tinned chickpeas if you like.

Ingredients for Jeenas Kitchen Hummus Recipe
Approx 250g Dried Chickpeas
1 Garlic Clove
1-2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp Tahini
Salt to season
Olive Oil or Virgin Rapeseed Oil

note...Using a pressure cooker you can soak chickpeas for a few hours only before cooking, if you are not using a pressure cooker then chickpeas must always be soaked over night and cooked until soft.

How to make Hummus

Soak chickpeas from 5 hours to over night in fresh boiled water.

Rinse chickpeas and place into a pressure cooker.

Cover with water.

Do not add salt here.

Never fill the pressure cooker past half way.

Place on the lid and cook at full pressure for 20 minutes.

Carefully place cooker under the cold water tap and release the pressure by removing the lid.

Add salt to season.

Place chickpeas in the blender with lemon juice, garlic, oil, tahini and enough of the chickpea pan water to make a thick loose paste.

Serve in a bowl or flat plate and drizzle with olive oil.

Enjoy your delicious hummus recipe.

See my caramelzied onion hummus recipe for more delicious ways to eat hummus.

Food Blogroll

All about food blog rolls.

There are many different kinds of blog rolls on the internet today. You can get a blog roll for all hobbies including fishing blog rolls, crafts blog rolls, foodie blog rolls, cooking blog rolls and even art blog rolls. A lot of people sign up for these scripts so that they can become part of the blog roll community.

Yes there are many people who are so into the blog roll community that they take on lots of different kinds of hobbies. Some start of on a food blogroll then end up on a fishing blog roll just so that they can talk more about cooking fish recipes.

The food blogroll is the biggest blogroll around. Lots of people go to the food blogroll to become part of the food blogging community. They share lots of different food recipes with each other from all around the world. This is particularly interesting as you will find food blog roll communities ranging from an Indian food blog roll to Italian food blogroll or Mexican food blogroll or even Chinese food blog roll. The wide range of different worldwide cuisines is fantastic. You can truly understand why people want to be part of these food blog roll communities.

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Libyan Potato Fritters with Cumin and Coriander Aqras Batata Mabshura أقراص بطاطا مبشورة

These fritters are easy to make and virtually fail-proof, unlike the more finicky hash browns. They are also very versatile: as a side dish, as part of a selection of finger-foods, or with a salad as the main meal. Harissa or yogurt dips (mild or spicy) are great sauces to serve alongside the fritters. This is the sort of recipe that is easily adapted to taste, or what you have in your store cupboard: vary the seasonings and herbs, add vegetables (e.g peas, paprika, leek, cauliflower) or use up leftovers (e.g chopped cooked chicken, cheese).

Makes about 30 fritters
Ingredients
3 medium potatoes, grated
1 large onion finely chopped
2 red chili peppers, finely chopped (optional)
1 cup finely chopped parsley
1 cup finely chopped fresh coriander
2 large garlic cloves grated

3 eggs beaten
3 heaped tablespoons flour
3 teaspoons cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Vegeable oil for frying

Grate the potatoes using the largest holes of your grater, then combine with the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl.

Mix well.

Each fritter should use one heaped tablespoon of the mixture.

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Fit in as many fritters as you can at a time. Fry on medium heat until golden on each side.

Remove from oil and put on kitchen towel to remove excess oil.

The fritters should be crisp on the outside and soft on the inside and must be served warm. If you have not used the optional chilies in the recipe, or if you like extra-spicy food, serve with harissa. Otherwise, serve with yogurt dips: either mild cucumber and mint yogurt sauce or spicy garlic, chili and coriander yogurt sauce.

Chettinad Chicken Kuzhambu Authentic Chettinad Chicken Gravy

However much variety of chicken we cook, nothing can take the place of the traditional kuzhambu being made form the time old days. It is compatible with anything we have at home i.e., rice, dosa, idly, roti, chappathi or parotta.If you want the chicken recipe from a grand old lady of chettinad she will be well aware of this recipe only. This is the most favorite chicken item that I cook for all in my home. I too is very happy to cook this as I can escape without cooking anything else for the night and next day’s breakfast side dish. Moreover this is very easy to prepare also. So the younger people can have a go at this recipe. I am sure it won’t turn bad whatever mistake you make.
I have already mentioned in my previous blogs on chicken that chicken was never marinated in chettinad before. It was because they used the regular chicken which took much time to cook and the there was time for the masala to get into the chicken pieces. Now we use broiler chicken which gets cooked very fast and if we do not marinate, the pieces will be blunt without any salt or hot taste. So we have to marinate the chicken for any kind of preparation. This Kuzhambu is very easy and tasty if prepared in the pressure cooker. So cooker can be used. Chicken will be cooked soft and the children and the old people will love it

Ingredients
Chicken-1/2 kg
Small onion-30 or big onion-2
Tomatoes-2 (small size)
Garlic-20 pods
Ginger garlic paste- 2 teaspoons (I have shown ginger and the garlic needed)
Chili powder-1 table spoon
Coriander powder-2 to 3 table spoons (depends on the qty of gravy you need)

lemon juice-2 teaspoons
For Marination
Curd-2 table spoons (if there is no curd a teaspoon of lemon juice can be used)
Turmeric powder-1 teaspoon
Chili powder-2 teaspoons
Salt-2 teaspoons
Ginger garlic paste-1 teaspoon

For seasoning
Cardomom-2
Cinnamon-2 small pieces
Clove-2
Birinji leaf-small piece
Star anise-a small piece
Mint leaf-little
Curry leaf little
Fennel seed-1 teaspoon

For grinding (Too much of coconut will spoil the taste and will make the gravy look like kurma)
Cocunut-2 table spoons
Cashewnut-5 (Kas Kas was used traditionally, since it is difficult to grind cashews are substituted)
Fennel seeds-1 teaspoon
Method
Wash the chicken pieces nicely
Marinate with the items given in ‘To marinate’
Let it stay for 1 hour
Mince the onion, garlic and tomatoes
Grind the items in “to grind to a smooth paste
Keep the cooker in the stove
In 1 table spoon of oil season the kuzhambu with the items in ‘To season’
Sauté the onion, garlic, ginger garlic paste and tomatoes one by one nicely
Add the marinated chicken and sauté nicely for 3 minutes
Add the chili and coriander powder
Add 2 to 3 cups of water (if gravy is thick water can be added latter also)
Put the salt needed (Remember 2 teaspoons of salt was added while marinating)
Mix everything well
Close the cooker and put the weight
Once the steam starts coming reduce the flame to medium
Cook for 8 to 10 minutes
Wait for the pressure to get released
Open the cooker and add the grinded paste
Let the gravy boil for 5 minutes
Now if the gravy is very thick than the consistency you need, water can be added
Check for the salt and hot taste and if any correction has to be made it can be done now
If you find the gravy too watery even after 5 to 8 minutes of boiling little coriander powder can be added

Once everything is well mixed and the gravy looks perffect
Switch off the stove

Add the lemon juice and mix well (Note that lemon juice should be added after switching off the stove else the gravy will turn little bitter)
Your chettinad chicken gravy is ready
Garnish with coriander leaves while serving