Thai Fried Rice

2 shallots, thinly sliced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 serrano pepper, seeded and finely chopped

2 pork chops, thinly sliced and dusted in dried ginger

1 egg

2 small carrots, thinly sliced

1/2 cup frozen peas

3 green onions, sliced

3 cups cooked rice, 2-3 days old - mixed with 1 TBS coconut oil

heaping cup of fresh diced pineapple (or use an 8 oz can of tidbits)

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup cashews

2 TBS fish sauce

2 tsps curry powder

juice of 1 small lime

big handful of cilantro leaves

***Drizzle a couple tablespoons of oil in the skillet. Add the shallots, garlic, serrano and pork strips and saute until soft and cooked. Scoot it to the side and scramble the egg. Add the carrots, peas and green onions. Stir-fry a couple minutes. Add the rice, pineapple, raisins and cashews. Stir-fry until hot.

Whisk together the fish sauce and curry powder. Add to the rice and mix well. Toss with lime juice and cilantro.

Eat.***

Got Goat?

A little mistake resulted in a delicious supper. The following recipe was intended for ground chicken, turkey or lamb. We used goat. Amazing.

From A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg - Doron's Meatballs with Pine Nuts, Cilantro and Golden Raisins

Yogurt Sauce

1 cup plain yogurt, whole milk

3 TBS lemon juice

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp salt

*Whisk and set aside to mingle at room temperature while making the meatballs.

Meatballs

1/2 cup minced yellow onion

1/4 cup minced cilantro leaves

1/2 cup chopped pine nuts

1/2 cup golden raisins, roughly chopped

1/2 cup soft bread crumbs (whir a torn slice in the processor)

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

fresh ground black pepper

1 pound ground goat tenderloin

Mix onion - black pepper well. Add goat. Lightly mix with hands. Form into meatballs and fry in a skillet with olive oil until cooked through. I browned mine good and finished them in the oven. Serve with yogurt sauce. Drink the leftover sauce with a straw. Kidding. But you'll want to. Am I not the worst recipe writer ever?!

Ketchup or Catsup. Take your pick.

I strongly dislike bottled ketchup. It's sickeningly sweet and smooth and hits my gag reflex all wrong. There is an amazing place downtown (and Duluth) called Hell's Kitchen. It's on my top five favorite restaurant list. They make wicked awesome ketchup. They also happen to have recently published a cookbook in which they share the recipe. I tweaked it slightly and I'll share that version with you:

1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup minced onion

3 canned pear halves, drained

3 TBS juice from canned pears

1 can tomato paste

1/4 cup brown sugar

3 TBS apple cider vinegar

1 tsp dry mustard

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tsp salt

1 tsp white pepper

1 TBS whole peppercorns

1 whole bay leaf

1 tsp whole allspice

1tsp ground mace

1 tsp whole cloves

Put the first group of ingredients (tomatoes - white pepper) into a food processor and whir it good until smooth-ish but don't overdo. Transfer to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Put the remaining group of ingredients in some cheesecloth and tie it up. Plop it in and let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for at least an hour and up to 3. Squeeze the spice bag good, discard, let it cool and put it in a pretty jar.

Mock Ice Cream

I've recently started a pretty restrictive diet due to digestion issues. Among the many things I can't eat...milk and sugar. Boo. Because those are major ingredients in ice cream. My most favorite indulgence ever. Double Boo. BUT. I came upon this FANTASTIC little disguise today! It. Is. Amazing.

1 frozen banana
a titch of honey
a spoonful of nut butter

Whir in the food processor. I'd recommend doubling it for the processor to be most effective. Eat. Make satisfied noises. Mmmmmmmmmmm. Life is good.

Belly Warming Lentil Andoullie Soup

Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
2 celery stalks, finely diced
2 bay leaves
fresh ground black pepper
dash of Lawry's
*In pot, saute until onions start to brown. Add the following:

1 red bell pepper, diced
4 carrots, diced
2 potatoes, diced
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 cup lentils, rinsed and picked (I always think I can skip this but always find at least two pebbles)
4 cups chicken broth
1 1/4 cups water
*Simmer 30 minutes and then add:

4 Andoullie sausages, sliced lengthwise into fours and then cut into bite sized pieces
3/4 cup frozen peas
3 handfuls fresh spinach
*Simmer 5-10 minutes and ladle into bowls and top with:

freshly ground Parmesan cheese

ENJOY!

My Ultimate Comfort Food - Dried Beef Gravy on Toast

This is the meal that brings me back home. My ultimate fuzzy feel good food. My Dad always poached eggs to go with it. And my Mom always finished the little bit left in the pan with oyster crackers. I don't use a recipe and I'm not sure of amounts. The key is the best dried beef you can find. Lucky for me, my Mom brought me some this past weekend.

Toast
Eggs done your way

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a pan. Add about the same amount of flour and stir until browned and bubbly. Dump in a few cups of milk. Whisk and whisk until the lumps are gone and continue to stir frequently. Add a bunch of fresh ground black pepper. Add desired amount of chopped or shredded dried beef. Eat in PJ's for best results.

Triple Decker of Goodness - Chicken Chipotle

Chicken Chipotle Triple Decker -- from R.Ray's people.

Bacon, fried

1 1/4 cups mayo

5 cloves garlic, minced *if you don't really, really love garlic, I'd cut this to 1-2*

2 TBS fresh lemon juice

1 canned chipotle chile chopped, plus 2 teaspoons of the adobo sauce

1/3 cup cilantro leaves,

1/2 roasted chicken, shredded

toast

lettuce

avocado, sliced

Mix together the mayo, garlic and lemon juice. Reserve 1/2 cup. Mix the chipotle pepper, adobo sauce and cilantro into the remaining mayo. Add chicken. Spread mayo on a slice of toast, add a scoop of chicken salad, another piece of mayo-ed toast, top with bacon, avocado and lettuce and top with another piece of mayo-ed toast. I didn't say it was low calorie. It's deeeelicious.