Gambas Al Ajillo

Gambas Al Ajillo or shrimp/prawns with garlic is a simple and easy recipe that remind me of those delicious little plates of Spain called Tapas. Here is a quick and easy recipe highlighting the flavors of Spain: good extra virgin olive oil, garlic, parsley, and fresh shrimp.

1 pound of large shrimp (shell on and deveined)
2 tablespoons of roughly chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley(just the leaves)
2 cloves of freshly minced garlic
3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

A pinch or two crushed chili flakes
kosher or sea salt and freshly cracked peppercorn

Heat extra virgin olive oil in a large fry pan. Saute garlic, crushed chili peppers and parsley for 2-3 minutes until fragrant and garlic is lightly toasted. Add shrimp and stir fry until shrimp is fully cooked(another 5 minutes or so). Season with salt and pepper. This is another peel and eat shrimp recipe so peel, eat and enjoy. Bien provecho!

Lentil Soup, Two Ways.

My husband loves lentil soup and I love making it for him. I like to make Tibetan and European style lentil soups and sometimes I create lentil soups that don't belong to any specific cuisine. Lentils are super healthy, flavorful, versatile and cheap! These soups were totally impromptu and both were well received by the family(the little guy included). Here's a quick summary of lentil soup, two ways.

Sometime in September~
Type of Lentils: French lentils (I love the way they retain their their shape and form even after you cook them for a long time.)
Flavoring agent: sauteed apple wood smoked bacon, cherry tomatoes
Aromatics: homemade sofrito(onion, garlic, celery, carrots, green pepper, flat leaf Italian parsley)
Spices: Paprika, cumin, and sumac.
Cooking time: 1 hour 10 minutes


Sometime in October~
Type of Lentils: Organic black lentils
Flavoring agent: smoked turkey necks and homemade chicken stock.
Aromatics: Cajun trinity: onions, green pepper and garlic.
Spices: cilantro, chili powder, Mexican oregano
Cooking time: 1 and a half hours.

Macadamia and Panko Crusted Orange Roughy Fillets

During a trip to Hawaii, we stumbled upon a Macadamia nut farm on our way to the North Shore of Oahu. The farm had a store where you can sample and buy native Hawaiian macadamia nuts grown at that farm. It was kismet because I just love Macadamia nuts. This recipe is a way for me to use macadamia nuts in my everyday cooking.

Fish breaded and sauteed in oil is good. Fish sauteed in a macadamia crust is better. For this recipe, I used orange roughy fillets and coated them with crunchy and buttery macadamia nuts and Japanese Panko bread crumbs. The orange roughy's mild and white flesh is perfect for this dish.

1 egg beaten plus two tablespoons of milk

1/2 cup of Japanese Panko bread crumbs

1/2 finely crushed Macadamia nuts

3 Orange Roughy fillets

salt and pepper to taste

Extra Virgin Olive Oil for sauteing

Green Onions for garnish

Beat egg with milk in a shallow dish and then set aside. Combine Panko bread crumbs, macadamia nuts, salt, and pepper on another plate. Dip one fish fillet in the egg mixture and then dredge both sides of the fillet in the Panko and macadamia nut mix. Repeat the process with the other two fillets. Saute the fillets in hot oil until both sides of the fish have a lovely golden brown color. Garnish with green onions and serve with lime wedges.

Fast Forward to Summer: Watermelon Grand Marnier Granitas

Watermelon balls

Watermelon Grand Marnier Granita

I usually like to cook with the seasons but I found a beautifully ripe watermelon at the market the other day so I decided to make something that reminds me of summer. Watermelon is one of those things that reminds me of Fourth of July picnics and endless summer BBQs. Watermelon is the main ingredient in this Granita. Granita is a type of flavored Italian ice or coarse grained sorbet and does not usually contain alcohol but this one did. I used the creme de la creme of triple secs, Grand Marnier. I found that if you limit the amount of alcohol you add to the flavored liquid, the granita will freeze nicely.

1 cup of pureed fresh watermelon
1-2 tablespoons of extra fine sugar
1 jigger or 1.0 fluid oz of Grand Marnier
1 jigger of Arbor Mist tropical fruits chardonnay or some other fruity chardonnay
1/2 cup of pineapple juice

Mix everything in a glass bowl. Pour into a plastic container with a tight lid. Freeze overnight in the deepest and coldest part of your freezer. Scrape flavored ice with a fork. Refreeze for another 6 hours or so before serving. Scrape ice again with a fork and then serve in margarita or martini glasses. It has a grainier or grittier texture than sorbet because the flavored liquid is frozen and then manually scraped or raked with a fork.

The Improvisational Salad of the Day: Iceberg Lettuce, mangoes, Mcintosh apples, and oven dried grape tomatoes.

Sweet Red Mangoes from Brazil

You can take the girl out of the tropics but you can't take tropics out of the girl. I can eat about 10 mangoes in one sitting. I love mangoes in salads too. It has the taste of perpetual summer and my childhood in the Philippines. This salad has another interesting addition --oven dried tomatoes, one of my husband's favorite salad toppings. When grape tomatoes bake in the oven with extra virgin olive oil and good quality coarse sea salt, they get a concentrated tomato flavor and a chewier texture. Yum.

1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted and cut into big chunks

2 cups of hand torn iceberg lettuce

1 Macintosh apple cut into 1 inch cubes

Oven dried grape tomatoes, about half a pint

* Cut tomatoes in half

*drizzle with extra virgin olive oil

* liberally season with salt and pepper

*bake for 20 to 30 minutes until they shrivel up.

a couple of sprigs of chopped cilantro for garnish.

Put a handful of lettuce on a plate. Place apple and mango chunks and cilantro on top of the lettuce. Salads look pretty when they are pilled high on a plate. Arrange oven dried tomatoes around the salad. Dress with your favorite lime or lemon based vinaigrette.

Philly Cheesesteaks, my way.

A Philly cheesesteak sandwich with a twist.

My version uses a different type of bread. I use Vietnamese baguettes. This type of bread is tradionally used in Bánh mì or Vietnamese subs. I use this bread because it is delicious and crusty. It stands up to the robust flavors of the beef, onions and peppers and never gets soggy. I use a tender and well marbled cut of beef and char it to perfection. This has no cheez whiz. I use colby jack and provolone, caramelized onions, green peppers and lots of mayo.

Young Coconut or "Buko" Panna Cotta

You might have seen them the last time you went on vacation. You probably even had one. It's the symbol of a holiday on a warm island paradise. What am I talking about? A young green coconut. It's the perfect sustainable cool drink that even comes with its own biodegradable container. All you need is a straw. I grew up with young coconuts or "buko", as Filipinos would call it. Now that I'm older, I still crave the sweet, distinctive flavor of young coconuts. During our trips to Hawaii and the Caribbean, we saw them everywhere. Young coconuts are sold to tourists thirsty for that real tropical experience. Unfortunately, coconut trees don't grow here in the East Coast. I buy them frozen. This is not the desiccated coconut you find in your supermarket. When I eat a young coconut dessert, I am temporarily transported back to the islands. Maybe that's why I like cooking with it.

Young coconut panna cotta is simply a creation of two of my favorite things: panna cotta and young coconuts. It's a perfect marriage of east and west. Panna cotta is one of my favorite Italian desserts. It translates to "cooked cream" in Italian. For this dessert, I combined traditional panna cotta ingredients like cream, sugar and unflavored gelatin with young coconut flesh and water. The coconut juice separates from the cream, creating a terrine. The result is a refreshing new way of eating a beloved classic Italian dessert.