Focaccia

Rosemary Focaccia with Caramelized Onions and Olives

Tomato Beef, Okra, and Apple Ragu- Tender Beef Dressed Up in Tomato Love

It's the end of the week and I'm looking through my almost naked refrigerator and freezer.  I found frozen okra, a lemon, tough cuts of beef, and tomato sauce, added a few spices laying around in the cupboard, let them tango with one another and out came a spiced version of a tradition Chinese dish- Tomato Beef.  It's crazy how even in times when it seems as though you have nothing left in your kitchen, that you can come up with such a delicious dish.  Tangy, sweet, tender, spiced beef with apples and okra, this dish is hard to mess up and easy to eat.  

The beef I had on hand is known to be one tough cookie.  You'd either have to marinate it or cook it over a long period of time to tenderize it.  I didn't have time to marinate nor cook it over a long period of time so I decided to take the fail-proof way out: dredge and pan fry.  To finish, I stewed the beef in a tomato base sauce.  The method of dredging in flour and egg is the trick to keeping moisture in, allowing for the beef to become tender.  You can also apply this method to other tough cuts of meat such as pork chops.   

This dish may not be the most enticing looking dish I've made, but I can assure you that it tastes just great! 

*See the white fibers running down the meat? You can cut them out or leave them as is.  They're on the gummy side.  I left the beef as is. They didn't bother me at all.

 

Servings 3; 30min

Ingredients:

• 1tbsp oil
• 1 lb beef round sirloin tip cubed 1/2''(IGA) brought to room temp.
• 1tbsp butter
• 1 medium onion diced
• 1 cup frozen cut okra (or fresh)
• 2 small apples pitted and diced

 Sauce:

• 1/4 cup lime or lemon juice
• 2tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2tsp cajun seasoning
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 3/4 tsp salt 
• 1/2 tsp ground bay leaf powder
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/2 can 15oz tomato sauce

 Flour:

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4tsp salt
• 1/2tsp cajun seasoning or paprika
• 1 egg beaten

Directions:
1.  In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, cajun seasoning.  
2.  Dredge cubes of beef in flour mixture.  Shake off excess.
3.  Dip floured cubes into egg.
4.  Return to flour mixture. Coat well then shake off excess.
5.  Heat non stick pan medium high heat. Add oil.  Spread oil to coat pan.
6.  Place floured cubes in an even layer leaving gaps in between pieces.
7.  Do no Stir. Cook for ~4 min.  Flip and cook for ~4min.
8.  Push cubes to side on pan.
9.  Add butter on empty side. Add onions and cook until translucent.
10.  Add frozen okra, apples, and sauce mixture (lemon juice, sugar, pepper, salt, bay leaf, ketchup.  Add tomato sauce. Mix well.
11. Cover and simmer on lowest heat ~13min. or until meat is cooked.  
12. Serve with white rice and a side salad.
13. As always, Enjoy!

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary.
*Okra has a slimy consistency that many do not favor. Make sure you don't mind slimy textured things although you can hardly notice it in this dish as it blends in with the tomato sauce.

Apple Sausage Rice Burrito - A Mexican Inspired Recipe

warning: don't cut foil with knife. it will get into your burrito lo

I grew up with Mexican food all around me (I'm from San Diego-neighbor of Mexico) and naturally, I ate it all the time.  In turn, I developed Mexican Food taste buds that need to be satisfied from time to time.

Since there are virtually no Mexican Restaurants in Grenada, I decided to attempt to bring Mexico here, into my kitchen.  The recipe below was inspired by Mexican Rice,  a tomato rice that I normally top off with sour cream, hot sauce, guacamole, and shredded meat.  It may not seem like a traditional Mexican recipe, but that's because I decided to put a modern twist on it, adding a few more flavorful healthy ingredients.  If you know me, you'll know that I love veggies and try to incorporate them into all of my recipes when possible.

I hope you try this one out. It's one of my recipes I'm most proud of.  The burrito is jam packed with one heck of a dream team of ingredients, textures, and flavors. With spiced sausage, the sweetness of apple, crunch of celery, and tang of lime, you can't go wrong.

3-4 servings; 15-25min

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 small onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 3 inches Polish Keilbasa (IGA) Diced ~1/3cup
• salt (1/2tsp), pepper (sprinkle), and cajun seasoning (1/2tsp)
• 1 stalk celery diced
• 1 small carrot shredded
• 1 small apple diced (fuji or gala)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbs lime juice
• 1 tbs ketchup
• 1 1/4 cup cold day old rice
• wrap or tortilla toasted
• sour cream and hot sauce (optional)... but oh so necessary for me hahah.

Directions:
1.  Heat up non stick pan. medium high heat.  Add oil. Add onion and garlic. Cook until onions are translucent.
2.  Add Sausage and seasonings.  Stir fry until sausage has browned.
3.  Add celery, carrot, and apple. Cook for 3 min. or until celery shrinks a bit.
4.  Add tomato paste, lime juice, ketchup.  Stir and cook for another 3 min. or until oil starts separating from tomato paste.
5.  Stir in rice and cook till heated through.
6. Shred cheese on top on toasted tortilla or wrap. scoop rice mixture onto tortilla. add sour cream. fold in sides or wrap towards center. flip bottom over and roll. wrap in foil to prevent burrito from creating mess.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary. 

Arroz Caldo - The "Chicken Soup" of the Philippines

That dish is a simplified version of American Chicken Soup.  It's certainly the go-to dish for when people are a little under the weather, though sick or not sick, the flavor remains hearty.  The ingredients are very affordable and there's practically no work involved in making it.  You can easily double the recipe for a bigger serving.   

2 servings; 30-40min
Ingredients:

• 1tbs oil
• 1 small onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1/4 inch ginger slice diced (~1 loose tbsp)
• 1lb chicken drumettes
• 3/4tsp salt
• 2tbsp fish sauce
• 1 cup uncooked white rice rinsed and drained
• 4 cups water
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp dried parsley flakes

Topping: golden fried garlic, boiled egg, diced green onion, splash lemon juice (this is the traditional way of serving, but I didn't have any of these ingredients at the time). 


Directions
1.  Heat a small pot. medium high heat.  Add oil.
2.  Add onion, garlic, ginger. stir until onions are translucent.
3.  Add chicken and salt. cook ~3 min or until chicken is no longer pink.
4. add fish sauce and rice. stir and cook 3 min.
5. add water, parsley, black pepper. bring up to boil.  stir, cover, and lower heat to a gentle simmer for ~25-30min.  this will allow for flavors to develop and soup to thicken.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary. 

Island Tour with the SOs- Ft. Frederick, Ft. Matthew, Belmont Estate, Leaper's Hill, Pearl's Airport

Peanut Butter Smothered Celery Sticks, Sliced Apples, and Butter & Guava Jam Toast

It's inevitable for med students to undergo stress and when they do, they resort to sugar as a quick fix to offset the chemical imbalance.  Unfortunately, most junk foods will alleviate their cravings only temporarily and later make matters worse.  

I don't want to come off as the evil grown up that deprives her husband the only thing to look forward to: yummy snacks, so I decide to keep the peace... not by eliminating all bad foods, but instead sneaking in some healthy complex carbohydrates in addition to his not so healthy snacks (there's a lot more butter on that toast that you would think ahahha).    

 

Jam vs. Jelly? Jelly is more translucent and loose while Jam is thicker and richer in flavor.  I don't understand why Jelly is more expensive than Jam here in Grenada.  Looks like I've lucked out. You gotta give local jelly and jam a try.  It's cheap, available everywhere, and made with simple, plain, non-toxic ingredients.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary. 

A Lighter, But Still Delicious Orange Chicken

This version of Orange Chicken is void of deep fried battered chicken yet still delivers the flavors you have come to love.  If you love Chinese food but don't favor the food comas that usually tag along, then this recipe is for you!

Usually, there's a little fat left on the chicken thighs I normally buy from Foodfair and it cooks up nicely.  You can look at it as a healthier alternative to batter.

If you absolutely cannot live without the batter, then you can easily dip the chicken cubes into egg and flour, deep fry them, and later slap the sauce on top.

Try out the batter-less version.  You'll be surprised. 

~3 servings; 20-30min
Ingredients:

• 2lbs boneless chicken thighs diced into small cubes
• 1tbsp oil
• 3 cloves garlic peeled and minced
• 1 rough tbsp minced ginger (about 1/4inch thick slice)
• 1 medium onion diced
• salt (1/2tsp for chicken)/pepper
• pinch paprika
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 green bell pepper diced
• 1 carrot diced
• 1tbsp dried parsley flakes
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1 heaping tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp fish sauce (Found at IGA)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tbsp white vinegar

Directions
1. Heat up non stick frying pan medium high heat. Add 1/2 oil. Bring up to heat.  Add chicken thighs in one even layer.  Add salt, pepper, and paprika in an even layer.  To help brown, DO NOT STIR.  Otherwise, you will end up boiling chicken.  Let fry ~5 min. or until chicken has cooked 3/4 of the way. 
2.  Stir fry for another 2 min.  Place in a separate bowl. Keep juices.
3. Add other half of oil.  Bring up to heat and add garlic, onions, and ginger at the same time.  Stir fry until onions have somewhat become translucent.
4. In a bowl, add juice, parsley, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce. mix and add into onion.  Add juices from chicken. Bring to a boil. Cook for ~5 min or until sauce has reduced by 1/2.
5.  Add carrots and bell peppers. Boil for another 5min. or until veggies are cooked to desired texture.
6.  Add chicken thighs and boil for another 5min. or until sauce starts sticking to chicken.  Turn off and set aside.  Set aside and wait till dish cools down a bit. This will help sugars settle, making for a more delicious taste.
7. Best served with white rice.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary.