Red Velvet

I have never been much for cake. Hence the picture of the cupcakes we had at our wedding that were yummy and beautiful! Stuffed with strawberries and peanut butter... Anyway, I needed to make a dessert for a wedding party we had for a co-worker of mine... So I decided to make her favorite~ red velvet cupcakes... Thank you Martha Stewart for the cake recipe and Obsessed with Baking for the frosting. They turned out perfect and were a hit- even with the hostess' 3 year old!

Menu for 5/17/10-5/24/10

Menu for the Week

*Wonton Soup
*Greek Chicken Kabobs with
grilled Zucchini, Onion, and Tzaziki Sauce
*Fish Tacos with salad
*Ham and Bean Soup with Spinach Pie
*BBQ Pork with baked beans and coleslaw

A few things to note....

As a kid, I always remember being in the kitchen. I remember my grandma and my mom telling me to "add more pepper" (must be a southern thing) and to "keep stirring". Both of these amazing woman instilled in me a love for cooking and creating so much more than food. They taught me to create something beautiful to look at and tantalizing to taste. Even if ingredients that were not written down were added and forgotten.

One thing I have learned from my mom over the years, is to start with a recipe, and let it take you somewhere. I know baking is all about measuring and following the instructions, which has its own kind of satisfaction- but cooking lends itself to freedom. Substitutions can be made, cottage cheese for ricotta, or ground sunflower seeds for bread crumbs, half and half for cream~ sticking to the recipe is not necessary for something wonderful to be created. Not to make baking sound like a drag, it is its own masterpiece, one of which helps my round figure more than my shapely one. I digress...

One thing I hope I can portray in my endeavor to write about food, is the wonderful adventure it can take you on. Dare to try new things, new flavors, new recipes. Learn to think outside the box, and be ok with it. And above all, remember that cooking is FUN!

As a side note, if you do happen to make something delicious. Write it down. I always forget to write it down and sometimes I can't remember how to re-create it!

Yum-Wonton Soup

Tonight I made Wonton soup. I love eating ethnic food and try to plan themed meals from different places each night of the week. It keeps things interesting and makes for some exploratory meal planning and recipe reading. Tonight was obviously Asian themed and tomorrow is Greek...

In an attempt to eat healthier, I have substituted a lot of store bought ingredients for homemade, and Braggs Amino Acids for soy sauce. Fresh is best, or at least it makes me feel better.

I got this Emeril recipe from FoodNetwork, which is a great website and was often my first go-to before exploring other sites. . . Now that I am realizing there is a whole world of food blogs where people have tried recipes and talk about the experience of making them, I am in love with them as a source too. I digress...

WONTON SOUP~ adapted from Emeril Lagasse
6-8 servings

Note: If you plan on saving any of this soup for leftovers, you might consider cooking the wontons in a separate pot of boiling water before adding them to the broth for serving. Because the wontons themselves are coated with cornstarch, they will make the soup cloudy, thick, and starchy, if allowed to sit in the soup for any length of time. You won't have this problem, however, if you choose to serve the soup immediately. You can also freeze the extra wontons for another night.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions, plus 3 tablespoons finely chopped
• 10 cups canned low sodium chicken broth (I make my own)
  
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce (I use Braggs Amino Acids)
• 1/2 tsp fish sauce
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• About 30 wonton wrappers, thawed if frozen
• 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced bok choy
• 1/2 cup sliced shiitake mushroom caps (I have used canned mushrooms)
  
• 1/4 cup sliced bamboo shoots

Directions

In a large saucepan or soup pot heat the oil over medium high heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon of the garlic and 1 tablespoon of the ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the 1/4 cup of sliced scallions and the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low so that the broth just simmers. Allow broth to simmer for at least 20 to 30 minutes while the wontons are being assembled.

In a small mixing bowl combine the remaining teaspoon of minced garlic, remaining tablespoon of chopped ginger, 3 tablespoons of finely chopped scallions, the pork, egg yolk, soy sauce, fish sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and crushed red pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Working on a flat work surface, lay out a few of the wontons. (Keep remaining wonton wrappers covered with plastic wrap.) Fill a small bowl partially with cool water and set aside. Using a teaspoon measure, place a heaping teaspoonful of the meat filling in the center of each wonton. Using your fingers, lightly wet the edges of the wonton. Bring 2 opposite corners of the wonton together to form a triangle and enclose the filling, pressing edges firmly around the mound of filling to eliminate any air pockets and seal. Moisten opposite corners of the long side. Curl moistened corners toward each other, overlapping one on top of the other, and press the edges together to seal. You should now have a rounded stuffed wonton with a triangle poking up at the top. Assemble the remaining wontons in the same manner. When the wontons are all assembled, set aside.

Add the sliced bok choy, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots to the broth and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Using your hands or a slotted spoon, gently add the prepared wontons to the simmering broth. Increase the heat slightly so that the broth returns to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally (very gently), until the wontons float and the pork filling is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.