Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Laotian Fast Food

Since I came back from New Zealand where I consumed the most delicious Asian food, I've had some cravings. So I declared last week Asian food week in my kitchen. Singapore noodles, Vietnamese banh mi, steak salad with Thai salad dressing and Thai hot and sour soup were all on the menu. My repertoire already contains quite a few Asian foods.

I really like getting beyond the stir fry and soy sauce when it comes to Asian food. In fact I didn't even consider making Chinese, though some of the potstickers I made a few months ago were still in the freezer and I popped those into a pan as an appetizer to my noodles. Many parts of Asia are not well represented here. In New Zealand, there was Malaysian and Laotian food at the international food court. I would love to find such a food court here, with the creamy curries, noodles, and spices replacing the hamburgers, fries, and chicken sandwiches.

So it was perfect timing that I found a section of Laotian recipes in a recent issue of Food & Wine. The lettuce wraps I made with ground chicken, scallions, cilantro, shallots, and a surprise ingredient of ground rice powder were delicious. They tasted fresh, with the brightness of lime juice and the bite of raw shallots and scallions. I ground the toasted rice in my new spice grinder - if you have a coffee grinder it should work just as well - and this added a really nice, nutty texture to the dish.

I guess you could say this is the Laotian version of fast food tacos.



Ground Chicken Laap (Food and Wine)
Ingredients
1 tablespoon long-grain white rice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound ground chicken (turkey or duck)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chicken stock or low-sodium broth
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Asian fish sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 large stalks of lemongrass—tender pale inner core only, minced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 medium shallot, thinly sliced and separated into rings
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup chopped mint
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Small romaine leaves and lime wedges, for serving

In a small skillet, toast the rice over high heat, shaking the skillet a few times, until the rice is golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer the rice to a spice grinder and let cool completely. Grind the rice to a powder.
In a large skillet, heat the oil. Add the ground meat and cook over moderately high heat, breaking up the meat evenly, until no pink remains, about 4 minutes. Add the stock and cook, stirring, until bubbling. Remove from the heat and stir in the fish sauce. Season with salt and black pepper and stir in the lime juice. Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir in the lemongrass, scallions, shallot rings, cilantro, mint, crushed red pepper and rice powder. Arrange the lettuce and lime wedges on a platter. Spoon the laap on top and serve.

My childhood friend, Helene

Morning Mist Top in Anthropologie


I have a wonderful childhood friend  whom I have always admired, Helene Florence.  Her sense of natural style in fashion and decorating has been evident since we were children.  She lives in a gorgeous  home near the French Quarter in the deepest of southern states, 
Louisiana, 
and in one of the most romantic and eclectic of cities, 
New Orleans.  
Recently, one of her many blouse creations, has been picked up by the national retailer, Anthropologie.  She frequently uses Japanese obi fabric  to stylize her pieces.  Her look is carefree, whimsical, and romantic.  

Helene has also designed a beautiful and charming chair. Anthropologie is currently  exhibiting it at a showcase at Rockefeller Center (50 Rockefeller Plaza). If you happen to be in NYC any time soon, you can stop by and see this wonderful exhibit, inspired by artists from New Orleans.   The name of the exhibit is


The exhibit will be on display through March 21st.
Anthropologie has included nine artists from New Orleans who have created mixed media artwork,furniture, vintage jewelry, pillows, rugs, and other decor.












Would you rather have worms or chemicals on your vegetables?

Just a random question. Which brings me back to a random day at the start of winter, when I came back home happily from a new farmers' market, with very very cheap organic kale. Suspicious? No, really, these exist, and you support your local farmer at the same time.

HOWEVER.
This bag of kale had hidden surprises.

So, once I got home I happily announced my prized find, opened it, to discover--worms! And not just one, but I saw at least five. Everyone who knows me know I have a phobia of such creepy crawlies-- spiders, worms, ants even, and butterflies are just caterpillars in disguise. I scream, hide under the blanket and come close to tears. So, imagine my horror! Good thing for me, my lovely flatmate bravely came to my rescue and washed these creatures off the kale in the sink, then tossed the "drowned" worms into the bin.

Then we both happily went out, each on her own business. I came home first, and started chopping vegetables for dinner, and then turned round to toss the odds and ends into the bin-- and saw a fat green monster right at the bin. ?! They didn't drown?! At a loss, I just turned back to my vegetables, praying that monster stays put till my flatmate returns. 5 min later, I turned round to check--phew still there-- then almost screamed when I saw a fat black one the size of of my finger on the floor. I did the bravest thing I could do without coming too close to it-- I threw a box over it. There. At least it's caged up. And I went back to my vegetables (I know I'm weird, but the worm was also directly blocking my way out of the kitchen. And chopping vegetables is calming.) 5 min later, I turned round to check again, and saw the wretched creature outside the box, crawling all over it actually. That was it. I hopped past it (yes.), found the insecticide and sprayed the 2 worms so much that another little one I didn't notice near the bin also curled up and died. (I didn't breathe until I opened the windows.) My flatmate came home and was very proud of me.

And that was it. The day I overcame my fear.

And despite still shuddering when I just think about that day (not exaggerating), I'm glad I know my vegetables weren't smothered in that same scary chemical I used to kill those worms.

Gorgeous

I wish I'd thought of doing this. In it's 60 frames per second mode, my Kidak Zi8 could definitely produce this kind of material.

But I keep dreaming...


I'm so so busy and exhauted these days that I'm not bloggind. And I feel so so sorry for that. You know, when I came home, I want to write and post some things... but I'm so tired... oh, my, the past weeks have been so crazy... and my head is full of new ideas, but when I get home I cannot think about it...

Anyway, yes, I'm alive; and we're making a little competition between our shops for an stylish contest. This is my entry for our "Once Upon a Time" collection!


I'll be back shortly, I promise... but now... I must go to sleep!

Spaghetti with Shrimp and Grapes

    

Fire and ice, night and day, sun and rain, there are some elements of nature that if not opposite, seem at odds with each other.  And yet, when they do occur together, they yield wonderful results.  Who can say that the sun peaking through during a rain storm is not a beautiful site.  This duality came to mind as I pulled out my da fiore cookbook of recipes from the restaurant by that name in Venice.  The recent movie The Tourist reminded me of the beautiful scenes and vistas of this city.  I myself have visited Venice on two occasions, and like most tourists, it was during the summer.  Light glitters off the canals, highlights the palazzos, and gives brilliance to the produce in the markets.  You can stroll the narrow alleys and bridges of Venice for hours, turning corners and discovering private little squares and hidden restaurants waiting for you. 
   
Sadly, those days of casual meals outdoors in the warm summer sun are a distant memory this time of year.  Winter in Venice is damp, cold, and overcast - not an inspiration for cabin fever.  To combat such chilling feelings, my fall menus feature warm, comfort food.  But several months of heavy, hearty food leave me wanting something fresher, something brighter.  With the new year, I want to renew and look forward to spring.  Instead of warmth, I am now searching for brightness, the kind of sunlight that peaks through the rain.  This recipe provides that with the addition of grapes to pasta.  I find that it adds a brightness to the dish that inspires me toward fresher feelings, with a pasta base that anchors me to hearty winter needs.  Of course, the Italians eat pasta year-round, as should we all.  But this dish provided me that link, from savory winter fair, to lighter spring fare.  It may be too soon to mix early-spring vegetables into our meals, but try this idea to mix some light into your winter day.  Serves 2.
   
Ingredients:
1/2 lb uncooked shrimp, peeled, deveined and cut in half diagonally
1/2 cup grapes, halved 
1/4 cup olive oil
1 small leek, white part only, cleaned and thinly sliced
1/4 cup white wine
2 plum tomatoes, peeled and diced
2 tsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp chopped chives
salt/pepper
1/3 lb spaghetti
   
Directions:
Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water.  When the pasta has 6 minutes remaining, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the leek and shrimp and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often.  Add the wine and reduce somewhat.  Add the grapes and tomatoes and cook another minute, then stir in the parsley and chives.  Drain the pasta and and add to the sauce.  Add some of the pasta cooking water if needed.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to combine.  Serve.
   

Argh! Audible's Affiliate Program Is Driving Me Crazy

I had a post written in my head about making a huge sale at work after listening to most of a Zig Ziglar book I got on Audible.com. Having met some of the Audible team at Blogworld 2010, I tried to joint their affiliate program so I could get a few shekels if someone clicked on a link in a post. The signup process was a proctology exam delivered in 4pt font. Gaaaaahhhhhh! Now I'm totally out of the positive-blogging mood.

Addendum: In the signup process, it asks you how many hits you get a month on your site. Like most bloggers, I'm in the lowest, "less than 99,000 hits a month" category. Thanks for rubbing my nose in the fact that I'm a pipsqueak. That was great.

Dear Audible: I love your products and wanted to sell them. I apologize for that. It was rude of me to try to help you make some sales. Thank you for letting me know that you didn't want me to do this.


No time for my shenannighenz or my attempts to boost sales, apparently.

Update: Upon reading this a day later, this comes across as a lot of whining, but there it is. Whine whine whine!

Urgent! Indonesia really needs help in LAW system!

For all Indonesian readers, wherever you are, I ask your help to check this link out : http://bit.ly/e8ZNbc it is about an inspiring girl from Indonesia, who did alots for youth, and also makes Indonesia proud, but because EXTREMELY-BAD-LAW she is in hard time. You'll know after read that post (which is I give the link) please, together we fight the unfairness and. Rebuild our multicultural rich and lovely country.



Best regards,

Ketty Tressianah

Sent from my BlackBerry®

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Meat-Stuffed Chard Rolls or Etli Pazı Sarması

Sarma or Dolma?
These are not quite the same although the names are sometimes used interchangeably. These made from Swiss Chard leaves are called sarma because they are rolled. Cabbage and vine leaves can be used in the same way and strictly speaking are also sarma but you do hear them being called dolma.  The term dolma  really refers to vegetables eg courgettes, aubergines, tomatoes, and peppers which can be hollowed out and stuffed. I associate  these with summer when those vegetables are plentiful.
I have stuffed a good many vegetables in my time and rolled a great many sigara böreği, those little cigarette-shaped börek made with white cheese and parsley, so making these was not the challenge it might have been. As with much of Turkish cooking, the preparation can be time-consuming  but the end result is always tasty!

this is how it's sold

Confession time: pazı is a new vegetable for me!  Spinach has always been my winter vegetable of choice but the attractive bright green of these leaves finally persuaded me to buy a bunch.   I was inordinately proud of myself as these sarma worked out beautifully. My husband polished off the lot leaving me wondering if he had been missing them all these years!

Ingredients for Meat-Stuffed Chard Rolls/Etli Pazı Sarması
Serves 6
2 bunches large leaf chard/pazı
300 gr minced lamb (I actually used beef)
½  cup rice
3 onions, finely chopped
4 tbsp cooking oil
4 tomatoes (2 for the stuffing, 2 for cooking in the pan)

small handful each of chopped parsley and dill
½  tsp pepper
½  tsp flaked red pepper
1 ½ tsp salt
2 cups hot water

Method
·         Cut and discard the stems of the chard leaves and then wash the leaves. In order to soften them in preparation for rolling, boil up a pan of water and put them in, a few at a time, and immediately remove and plunge into a basin of cold water. This way the bright green colour is preserved.




 
·         Take the chopped onion and cook gently in the cooking oil till soft.
·         For the stuffing:  wash and drain the rice and put into a large bowl. Add the cooked onion, mince, salt, pepper, flaked red pepper, chopped parsley and dill, plus grated tomatoes and mix together with your hands.
·         Take one chard leaf and spread it out on a hard surface. Cut out the tough central vein with a sharp knife so you have 2 halves.  Make sure the shiny side of the leaf is face-down. Place a small amount of the stuffing  on one half and roll up, folding over the ends first.  Use your fingers to roll it up tightly. 





·         Take your pan and first spread one or two more battered leaves on the bottom. Place the remaining 2 tomatoes in the middle and then arrange the sarma next to each other in layers. Pour the hot water over them and then cover with a plate (see picture).






·         Bring to the boil then lower the heat and cook for about 30 minutes.  When time is up, they can rest quite happily and be reheated if necessary. Serve with garlic yogurt and a sprinkle of flaked red pepper.


Tips
1.    If the leaf is small, cut out the vein and then overlap one half with the other half. This will make it easier to roll.
2.    There is a tendency to put too much stuffing on each half which then makes it impossible to roll. Some of the rolls will be very small but that’s fine!
3.    A friend of mine says her mother-in-law always mixed a little tomato paste/salça in the hot water at the end which sounds like a good idea.
4.    If you have a little bit of stuffing left over, roll it into walnut-sized balls and place them in the pan. They will swell up and be tiny hedgehog meatballs.
5.    These sarma are truly delicious and so authentically Turkish! But you wouldn’t want to make them for a large family unless you had a trusty helper to assist with the rolling!


afiyet olsun!
A little aside about the spelling: you may have noticed that sometimes there is a dot on the Turkish letter i and sometimes not, it’s not just me! They are two different letters and produce different sounds. İ with a dot is pronounced like the i in ‘bit’ while the dotless ı is pronounced  like the er in water (English pron). Their usage depends on vowel harmony but we won’t go into that here!  The final ‘si’  or ‘sı’ that you may have noticed on the end of some of the names of these Turkish recipes, indeed like the one above, is a kind of genitive. Just in case you were wondering!

A Little on Rabbi Daniel Lapin

I just started Rabbi Lapin's book, Thou Shall Prosperafter hearing Dave Ramsey recommend it over and over again. In the first section, the Rabbi makes a very interesting point.

You should try to make more money for the good of everyone around you.

For the most part, you can't make money unless you provide something someone wants. Making money is an indicator that you have provided good things for the rest of us. For example, I want to drive a car to work, so I bought one. When I bought my FredMobile, the seller made money. That was good because without him trying to make money, I'd be walking. Dittos for the food we eat, the clothes we wear and the houses we live in. All came from someone's desire to make money. Therefore, the desire to make money is good.

Hmmm. I like it.