Eggplant Victory

I have a confession to make: eggplant was my Achilles heel.  My Everest.  My other thing that means difficult challenge.  Since what my former roommate and I call the "Eggplant Incident of 2005" I have been fearful of cooking this gorgeous flavorful veggie.  I tried grilling, baking, casserole, all to no avail.  I would eat eggplant at restaurants, in the homes of friend's, and silently bear my shame.  But today, I have conquered the Solanum Melongena.  And it.  Was.  Delicious.

The impetus for conquering my fear came from my dear friend Beckham, he like me is a food lover and thanks to his lovely wife, a master of vegetarian delights.  He sent me a text last week that would forever change my eggplant-cowering life, "Last night's dinner: asian-y twice baked eggplant and roasted bok choy."  This text lead to a gchat exchange that piqued by curiosity.  Beckham is a natural cook: his paraphrased food philosophy being "take things that taste good, and apply heat and seasoning."  I generally need a safety net, ie recipe, in the kitchen, but decided to try his style and wing it based on an idea, and some basic Beckham tips.  Equipped with his instruction and inspiration, I set out to conquer my culinary albatross. Eggplant, consider yourself vanquished.

Twice-baked Asian Style Eggplant with Arugula and Edamame Salad
Serves 1 (with leftovers for later.  Yum)

For Eggplant
2 Japanese eggplant

2 large pieces of fresh ginger - peeled and finely diced

pinenuts

peanut butter (organic)

dark soy sauce

sesame oil

sriracha

aji-mirin (sweet cooking rice seasoning)

Chinese five spice


For Salad

edamame - cooked and shelled

arugula

ginger dressing

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Slice the eggplant in half length-wise and brush with olive oil.  Season lightly with salt and paper and bake for about 30 minutes or until eggplant is tender.  While the eggplant is baking, combine the next eight ingredients in a bowl and reserve.  For quantities, just eyeball it and remember: non-recipe cooking is liberating and makes you feel like a super hero.  Just trust me.  (The only reason I ended up using peanut butter was because I started out with too much soy and it was a wonderful correction.  If you haven't used these ingredients before, use a light hand with the sriracha, aji-mirin and sesame oil, and an abundant amount of soy.)

Scoop out the delicious eggplant meat and combine with all other ingredients.  (Accidentally cut through 3 of the 4 eggplant skins and don't sweat it.)  Place the eggplant mixture back in the eggplant skins and bake until warmed through, about 10 more minutes.

While this is baking plate a generous portion of arugula with the edamame and just a splash of ginger dressing.  Top the salad with two eggplant halves and enjoy.

Optional: Get so excited that you call your friend who inspired the dish when you are only halfway through eating.

Grilled pork chop with pineapple relish

Well hello, Saturday.  So nice to see you!  It's been a long week, and I am over the moon to be sitting on my sofa in my pjs.  I sat down several times this week to blog this recipe but never got around to it, but  c'est la vie.  I would love to say that I'll be more timely in the future, but sometimes life gets in the way.  I'm going to focus on quality in my posting, and not worry about quantity.  In fact, I think I'm doing readers a favor because it gives you less to read, and life is so busy as it is: you are welcome!  (See what I did there?)

Anyhoo, enough of my weekend rambling: on to the food!  This is a great example of how something really simple can dress up a dish in your regular meal rotation and give it new life.  I have made these teriyaki pork chops more times than I count: they are definitely a favorite for my fella.  We typically don't buy bone-in chops, but I follow the marinade recipe although I don't measure: life is too short to be that precise!  

I've also made the blueberry relish and it is great, but this week I tried something different: pineapple!  I have been famous in the past for wasting food so I'm really trying to be more conscientious about buying ingredients that I can use in multiple ways and pineapple is something we already love.  So take a recipe you love, tweak one or two ingredients, and give new life to an old standard.  This relish was great for two recipes: chops and quinoa early in the week and pork lettuce wraps later in the week.

Pineapple relish

1 cup of pineapple, coarsely chopped

1/2 jalapeno, seeded and minched

1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1 tbsp lime juice

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

sprinkle of kosher salt

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate.  Can be served immediately, but flavors will deepen if given time to chill.  Cover and refrigerate leftovers.

Crispy Skin Salmon with Fiery Asian Slaw

Salmon is one of my favorite fish to cook, although (fun fact) it's one of my least favorites in sushi form.  This recipe in particular is a big hit in my household and one that I picked up from the September 2009 issue of Cooking Light magazine.  It has secured a spot in my permanent dinner rotation: quick, delicious, and healthy.  What are you waiting for?

I make the recipe pretty much as is and serve with rice as a side.  For tonight's version my fella made the basmati rice and slaw while I dealt with the salmon.  I also threw together some pickled onions and used a wheat tortilla to put all the ingredients together to make one slammin' fish taco.  The first five times I made this dinner I would say, without fail, "This would taste great as a taco," at which point I was reminded that I said the exact thing the last time I made this dish. Eventually, my taco dream came to fruition and it was fabulous.

Taste the slaw as you go and adjust quantities of ingredients to taste.  I wouldn't even bother measuring: life is to short to clean tiny spoons.  This slaw would be great with other proteins, or taste delicious the next day for a work lunch, accompanied by a salad.  In fact, I try to think up other things to make to go with this slaw, much like I go to Deli Tini (a lovely sandwich shop on Youree Drive) for the avocado potato salad and then try to find a sandwich to go with it.  And yes: I said Avocado.  Potato.  Salad.  Swoon!  But I digress.

Crispy Skin Salmon with Fiery Asian Slaw (4 servings)
4 (6 ounce) salmon fillets
Salt and Pepper
Cooking spray
1/4 cup of orange juice
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp Sriracha
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp honey
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 (16 ounce) package cabbage-and-carrot coleslaw
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle salmon fillets evenly with salt and pepper.  Coat pan with cooking spray.  Add salmon to pan, skin side down; cook 4 minutes.  Turn salmon over; cook 3 minutes.  Add orange juice to pan; cook 30 seconds or until liquid almost evaporates and fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

While fish cooks, combine rice vinegar and next 5 ingredients (through honey) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.  Add a pinch of salt, cilantro, and coleslaw; toss well to coat.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds

Under the weather? Chinese chicken soup time!

So I'm feeling a little meh today: scratchy throat, sneezy, that sort of fun.  I decided to make some chicken soup to combat whatever is trying to get me down.

I have a confession: I've never really been a chicken soup fan because it either seems too bland or is filled with too much celery.  (Note: I like celery two ways: cooked beyond recognition in southern dishes or 1st grade snack/ant on a log style).  Well, this soup has made a believer out of me.  The asian flavors make this not your average chicken soup, and it only takes about 25 minutes to throw together!

I used a recipe from the September 2011 Food Network magazine and since it was the first time I've made it, didn't steer to far from it to see how it would turn out.  Verdict: Love the flavors and ingredients but the soup was a little bland.  I added sriracha at the end for some spice and next time I'd probably throw in some ginger and lime juice to kick it up.  Some simple modifications could make this a vegetarian dish: swap veggie stock for the chicken stock and tofu for chicken.  Tah-dah!

This is really what cooking for me is all about: taking a basic concept and tweaking it to make it your own.  Don't be afraid to try something new, just make sure you at least have PB&J on hand if you go down in flames (figuratively.  I hope.)

Chinese Chicken and Rice Soup (Serves 4)
Food Network recipe: modifications by Ashlie noted with "A says"
4 large eggs                                                   2 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil (A says: extra virgin)
2 large tomatoes, halved and thinly sliced     4 cups low-sodcium chicken broth
1 bunch scallions, sliced                                1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce (A says: use low sodium)     1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken, skin removed
4 cups baby spinach                                      1 1/2 cups cooked rice (white, brown or wild)

1. Whisk the eggs with a pinch each of salt and pepper in a small bowl. Heat the oil in a wok or pot over high heat.  Add the eggs and cook, undisturbed, until bubbles form on the surface and the bottom is set, about 1 minute.
2. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring gently to break up the eggs, until the tomatoes begin to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the chicken broth, 3 cups water, the scallions, sesame oil, soy sauce and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.  Partially cover and simmer 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the chicken, spinach, and rice and warm through.  Season the soup with salt and pepper.

Health facts per serving: Calories 417; Fat 22 g; Cholesterol 297 mg; Sodium 1,282 mg*; Carbs 27 g; Fiber 3 g; Protein 29 g (*Note: original recipe used regular soy sauce, so my version would have loads less sodium)