Thursday, May 27, 2010

Tribute to Ye'

Anyone know who ye is? She taught me everything I know about cooking. I am not a 5 star chef, by any means. I am a homey, yummy, feel good, light and semi healthy chef with a serious obsession with lemon and all types of oils.

So here are some of my recipes/tricks:

Eggs ~ to get your eggs just right (whether you like them well done or over easy), make sure to cover them with a lid when they are on the pan. Some of you say duh!! Not so obvious to everyone..
Steak ~ the simplest marinade makes a mean steak: olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic (lots of it) - you can even cheat by buying already chopped garlic
Fish ~ a simple sauté is all it takes. Marinade your fish (i like tilapia) with garlic, mustard, olive oil, and salt/pepper. Never marinade fish for too long before cooking, especially with lemon, because the lemon cooks the fish (i.e.: ceviche)

~Hamburger /Lamb Burger /or Turkey Burgers
1. Mix all these ingredients together:
Ground chuck meat
1 Egg
Chopped parsely
Finely chopped onion
Cornmeal (to keep them sticky)
Salt and Pepper
Garlic powder or fresh garlic (my preference)
Ketchup
2. Pan fry on medium; Turn over a few times

~Any pasta Bolognese (I like spaghetti or shells):
1. Let simmer for a while (15mins):
Diced Tomatoes- Use San Marzano canned/diced tomatoes (purple can;not available at all markets)
tad of olive oil
Finely chopped fresh onion
Finely chopped fresh garlic
Sea Salt and Pepper
A "cubito" (seasoning cube)
If sauce seems thick, add 1 cup of water
2. In another dish, mix chuck ground meat with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and some cornmeal (so meatballs dont fall apart). You can make meat balls, or simply throw in small peices of meat into the simmer. Let cook in simmering sauce for about 10-15 mins(try as you go to make sure meat isn't raw, but also make sure it doesn't dry out). Use a large pot so things do not overflow and the meat has its space.
3. Add Paprika or ketchup @ end to the stew
4. Place on pasta. Make sure to cook your pasta al dente! Top off with parmesan.
You can skip the carbs and just make meatballs.
~Mikey's coconut Thai chick dish:
Ingredients:
Chicken breasts (about 1 breast per person) cut into bite size strips
Scallions, sliced into thin strips, a bunch, half to use while cooking, and half to use for garnish
Cilantro, a handful chopped, save some for garnish (i dont use stems)
Green chilies, about 1-2 deseeded. Don’t fool around afterwards, it stings anything you touch (oucchhhh where the sun don't shine)
Veggies (Broccoli, Mushrooms, Bean Sprouts, Bok Choy all add a nice textural crunch)
Thai fish sauce, about 1-2 table spoons
Osem chicken consommé powder, about 1-2 heaping tablespoons, to taste (check before you add all of amount, its salty)
Coconut milk
Zest of 2 limes (you need to buy a proper lemon zester for this, look for a "microplane" available at your grocery store)
1. In a bowl, add chicken with lime juice and lime zest and try to marinade for an hour, but not necessary
2. Heat up olive or sesame oil (my preference) in a wok , about 2 tablespoons, and add the meat pieces and brown. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until toasty
3. Add green chilies and cook for another minute-on medium -high heat
4. Add any veggies you like (Broccoli, Bok Shoy, Bean Sprouts, Mushrooms). I like to pre-marinade the veggies with salt, pepper, chilli, lemon, garlic salt, and garlic powder)
5. Add coconut milk, fish sauce, consomme cube, half of scallions, half of cilantro and cook until chicken is cooked and tender being careful not to overcook it and not to make the veggies soggie. (About 5 minutes on low heat)

Serve over fragrant Thai rice and garnish with fresh cilantro and scallions.
I have tried this recipe with chicken and veal, and both have been delicious. I have also included broccoli (step3). Feel free to add any veggies to this dish (spinach, bok choy)

~Broiled Veggies:
1. Steam or sauté your veggies adding salt, pepper, garlic, and chilies (just a hint to give it a kick).. Then place them in a pyrex with olive oil or sesame oil (depends on the veggies) and broil them in the oven for about 10 mins til they seem BBQ'd

~Quinoa
1. Heat coconut oil or olive oil in a bowl on high heat
2. Toss in some chopped onions til brown
3. When onion are almost brown, throw in some fresh garlic
4. Add 2 cups of water + cubito
5. When water boils, add 1 cup of quinoa
6. Lower heat to medium, cover the pan. Let simmer for about 10 mins until water is evaporated
*ratio of water to quinoa is 2:1

~Smoothies:
- Easy breezy. Add fresh fruit and coconut water plus ice+ maybe honey. Any fruit goes. Add some rum, for a daiquiri kick.

~Chimichurri
this is a major mish mosh of ingredients and I can't give you exact amounts. Use a food processor to crush up parsley (leave the stems out).. then in a bowl, mix the chopped up parsley, add finely chopped garlic,oil,lemon,white vinegar,salt/pepper. Vuala!! you have now fresh chimmi- makes for great topping over skirt steak,fish,and i love it with quinoa too,.

Oils to experiment with: sesame oil, coconut oil (only with starches, very oily for meat), hemp oil, almond oil, avocado oil (only for salad)..

These are nothing fancy. Simply homey, delicious, quick, and easy.. Bon appétit. Fellow readers, please post your recipes below!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

School's out for Summer!





My apologies for going MIA (no pun intended) in the last few weeks. What can i say, i have commitment issues...

Most people find Miami's summers to be brutally hot and humid. But I appreciate the 4 pm monsoons-gives me a great excuse to let my hair go frizzy. It just feels so sexy to get out of the shower and never dry. That’s one of the ways I got my nickname “Sweaty Broad.” Secret tip: to tame the frizz call The Beauty Factory at(954) 783-7270 for the Brazilian keratin treatment. As natural as it gets (compared to all other salons), and done by only Brazilian ladies themselves. Warning: não fale inglês.

Ive' put together a list of great ways to spend your summer without breaking the bank completely (well, kinda, key word being "completely"):

1. PrayerDanse at "The Sacred Space" Sundays 10-noon; a chance for creative movement and soul cleansing.. Whether you’re just getting off last night's high or starting fresh, prayerdanse has no rules. Show up, open up, danse it off. No dansing experience required. 100 NE 25th St., Miami - Find out more at www.prayerdanse.com
2. Fanagle a membership to Miami's new Soho BeachHouse. Don’t ask how I'll do it- I have no clue? Under 27's get 50% off the "private membership" fee. Samantha Jones couldn't even get in here...hmm
3. Take a yoga weekend off. Check out retreats at the Standard Hotel (Miami Beach), Samasati Hotel (Costa Rica), or Yoga Farm (Costa Rica)
4. Enroll your rugrats in SwimGym Aquatic Sport Camp, Key Biscayne's funnest acquatic sport camp for kids ages 3-17. Counselor positions available. www.swimgym.net
5. Eat latin food: Ceviche 105, La Lupita, SuViche, Casa Juancho, and the South Florida staple, Versailles! (see past blogs for more info on Miami's latin food)
6. Get your festival on: Bonaroo is a road trip away (June 10-13)-- Feel free to stop by my tent and holla... look for my neon tent with 3 hot chickies and a handsome half naked BBQ griller named Alan. http://www.bonnaroo.com/
7. Check out Legacy Fit. Find 4 friends and get personal training for $25/hour/person with former football player Manning Sumpter from Birmingham, Alabama. He's quite the looker, but beware of his Puerto Ricena fisty ladyfriend, scary!. This isn't your usual gym rat workout. You will get a glimpse of what real football players train like. http://www.legacyfit.com/(305) 799 0850
8. Join an organic food co-op. Pick up fresh organic groceries from your local host for only $45. Visit www.AnniesBuyingClub.com for more info. This is a great way to eat right and support our local FL farmers.
9. Paddleboard for charity on June 12th. For $35, you can provide a homeless person food for an entire week at Camillus House. Start your day early (8:30am) at the Purdy Lounge boat ramp. Race begins at 9am. All spectators are welcome to watch from the Standard. Even if you don't wanna race, at least you can play too cool for school at the Standard. Hipster or not, it’s for a great cause.
www.paddle4people.com
10. Summer is always a good time for Blockbuster movie hits! Start the summer off with Sex in the City 2 (the girls are baaaaack, el grupo whose game?)…
how bout the A-team?! (a new rendition of the 80’s TV show…”I pity the fooool”), you want a real thriller, how bout Inception with Leonardo di Caprio and Michael Caine (this comes from the director of The Dark Knight and Memento, even the plot has not been made publicly available yet)…there will be plenty others, but the theater is always a nice way to escape the heat!
11. Check out my favorite fellow blogger www.youngvelveteen.blogspot.com , make yourself cooler. Also visit http://www.daytrotter.com/ for more free music from the finest indi bands!
12. Last but not least, foam parties. Woops, its 2010, not 1996…get your miami pool parties on. Get those oversized sunglasses out, short Villebrequin bathing suits(gentlemen), and take your Euro ass to the W, Standard, Raleigh for a Fantastish time...


Enjoy and don't forget your sunblock!