August's new food: Young Thai coconut pina cooladas

I have a friend who is Asian, and as such eats some foods I, as an American, have not yet tried. I was over her family's house, and I was offered coconut milk. I said sure, not realizing they meant a real coconut, which her aunt promptly chopped open with a giant butcher knife, stuck in a straw and handed to me. Fresh, raw coconut water is strange at first, but very refreshing. It has a hint of sweetness, and is supposed to be helpful in reducing inflammation and fever because of its cooling properties.

So now my friend and I had two young coconuts to take home, and I had to make something out of them. I considered coconut cream pie (not the kinda cheater version I made earlier) but it usually uses a more mature coconut because the flavor gets stronger with age. So the other thing that naturally comes to mind (for those of age) was pina cooladas. I'd never liked them much, but hey, it's probably better when I make it, most things are. =)

 Ingredients:
Meat of 2 young coconuts
1 can pineapple chunks with juice
~1/4 cup lemon/lime juice
~1/3 cup cherry rum
Lots of ice

 Step 1: Cut at an angle around the top of the coconut. Then stick a knife point into the hull, and cut a circle out of the top. Pop the top off with the knife and enjoy the tasty juice, or use it in the drink or other smoothies.

 Step 2: Scoop out all the meat with a spoon and put it into a bowl or right into the blender.

 It might be difficult, so use the spoon to pry the meat from the edges first.

 Step 2: Add the coconut meat, pineapple, lemon or lime juice and rum. (To taste)

Step 3: Add ice and blend well. Pour into a beverage container and enjoy!

This would be adorable for a party with some pineapple wedges or maraschino cherries. I read some recipes that used cherry juice or cherries too, hence the cherry rum. The coconut is smooth and cool, the pineapple acidic and bright, the cherry sweet and tart and the lemon juice adds that citrus zing. A great summertime beverage, and quite healthy for you too (minus the booze part).

Supercharged Turkey BLT!

I had some turkey lunchmeat that needed used, plus 1/2 an avocado, salad makings and turkey bacon. I had wanted to make a BLT, but now I knew that I could make it super-extra delicious!

You need:

2 oz turkey meat

2 slices whole wheat bread

1 slice cheese

1/2 tomato

Handful torn romaine

3 slices turkey bacon

1/4 avocado

4 slices cucumber

Step 1: Cook the turkey bacon, turning once.
Step 2: While cooking, pile on the meat, cheese, tomato slices. On the other piece of bread, add the greens, cucumber, avocado chunks and lettuce.

Step 3: Add the cooked bacon. Very carefully, flip the pieces of bread together. Excellent combinations of flavors, lots of fiber and vitamins from the veggies! As always, just omit the turkey for a vegetarian lunch option.

Shrimp & Bell Pepper Linguini Alfredo. Bonus dessert: Peach Soup

This is a recipe invented by my boyfriend and I last year. We were in his apartment and starving. Red bell peppers had recently gone on sale, so we had about a dozen. Plus some pasta like most college kids, a jar of alfredo sauce, and half a bag of shrimp in the freezer. That's how this came about, and it was so good, it remains one of our favorites. 

It's easy to customize too, you can use any kind of fresh veggies, and if you don't want meat then you don't need to add shrimp. Also you can flavor the shrimp with whatever you want. This recipe makes about 4-6 servings.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb linguini

1/2 lb shrimp, thawed

2/3 jar Ragu alfredo sauce

1/2 red, yellow and orange bell pepper

1 tbsp butter

pinch Thai spices

garlic powder

Step 1: Boil the noodles in salted water with a tbsp oil to keep the noodles from sticking.

 Step 2: Add the butter to a frying pan, begin cooking the shrimp. Add whatever spices you like, and stir occasionally.

 Step 3: Once boiled, drain the noodles and return to the pot. Add the alfredo sauce and mix. Set aside.

Step 4: Once the shrimp are pink, with a slight brown crust on both sides, add the diced peppers. Mix and put the lid on, cook for ~5 minutes or until tender.

 Step 5: Once cooked, add to the noodles and mix everything well. Enjoy!

Bonus dessert: Peach Soup
             From: Cooking for 2, summer 2008, pg. 25.
1 1/2 cups fresh peaches
1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/8 tsp almond extract

Blend all ingredients together until smooth, and refrigerate until serving. Add a dash of cinnamon on top. Makes 2 servings.

Peach soup: cold, sweet and refreshing!

Radish, onion & herb cheese dip

Sadly I don't remember where the inspiration for this dip came from, but I read on another blog about putting fresh raw radishes into a dip, and decided to make my own version based on what I had in my house. 

Dip:

1 package cream cheese

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup radishes, diced very small

1/4 cup red onion, diced small

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tbsp dried onion

~1/2 tbsp sea salt

Step 1: Mix room temperature cream cheese and sour cream in a bowl until blended. The dip should be spreadable but a spoon could stand up in it.

Step 2: Add in all the other ingredients, and mix well. Serve with whatever crackers you like. This was a hit at a small gathering I had!

Addictive farm fresh dip!

Kohl-slaw!

I work on a CSA farm (http://www.facebook.com/schoonerfarms) and this week we harvested a TON of radishes, red, pink and French breakfast, plus I got a spare kohlrabi. I've never had it before, so I googled recipes, and found this gem on the goodbowl.com which makes a coleslaw from kohlrabi, turnips and radishes. I still had some turnips left from 2 weeks ago too. I decided while making it to make it a little more colorful, so I threw in some carrot and cucumber too!

Slaw:

1 cup shredded kohlrabi

1/2 cup shredded radish

1/2 cup shredded turnip

1/3 cucumber, shredded

1/2 large carrot, shredded

Dressing:

1/4 cup miracle whip

1 1/2 tbsp honey

1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp mustard

pinch black pepper

 Shredding the kohlrabi was a bit difficult, I did not know how stringy the interior was. Maybe mine was too young or too old, or I should have cooked it first? Put all shredded vegetables in a large bowl.

Mix all ingredients of the dressing, and pour over veggies. Mix well.

 This makes about 4 small servings. Refrigerate before serving. The dressing is deliciously tangy, and it's a good mix of textures.

Bonus: My tomato plants that I've been growing in pots outside for months have produced their first tiny ripe tomatoes! They were amazing, and tasted like my childhood. =)

Chili dogs!

Well, now I am all moved in to a new apartment, and ready for a new semester. I will do my best to keep up with posting between teaching a different class, juggling 3 jobs and school, and as always trying my hand at anything and everything in the kitchen. Now that the weather has taken a turn for the colder, it's time to shelve the hazy days of summer and start enjoying one of the few benefits of fall/winter: chili, soups and stews! Most people gain a little weight over winter not only because it is too cold to run outside (because that IS the only reason we aren't out there training for a 5K right?) but also because winter is stick-to-your-ribs type food to warm us up. Comfort food at its best.
And what better as a comfort food than chili? There are a million ways to tweak a basic chili to make the recipe your own, and I will put my own personal version up soon. However, I will first tell you what poor college kids do with left over chili: slather hot dogs with it! The best way to fancy up an all-American winter treat:
2 hot dogs
1 cup of chili
1/4 cup (or more) shredded cheese
2 buns or pieces of bread
Cut the hot dogs long ways, but not all the way through, so it's like a hinge. Put them in a pan and cook about 4 minutes on each side, till they just turn brown where they touch the pan. Put the dogs on the bread or buns. You can also toast the bread/buns first in the pan. Pour the chili on top, and top with shredded cheese of your choice. Enjoy!