Green Onion Pancakes

Chinese green onion pancakes are also called scallion pancakes.  If you make these ahead of time and freeze them (each pancake should be separated by parchment paper.), then they are quick to cook.

hot water blanched dough
minced scallion
salt
oil

Prepare hot water blanched dough. Lightly oil the surface of the dough and let sit for at least 30 minutes.

Grease the work surface with oil. Roll out a piece of dough until it is very thin. Brush with oil and sprinkle with minced scallions and salt. Roll the dough into a snake and pull it out as long as possible without breaking the dough. Wind the snake into a coil and tuck the end underneath. Let sit for at least 10 minutes. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Flatten the coils with the palm of your hand. Roll the pancakes into disks about 0.3 cm thick. If you do not want to cook all of the pancakes now, then you can place them in between pieces of parchment paper (paper that is coated with silicone) to prevent them from sticking and freeze them. They can be cooked right out of the freezer.

Heat oil in a pan on just-below-medium heat. Place a pancake in the pan and cover. When the pancake is golden brown on the bottom, remove the cover (be careful to avoid any splatter that occurs when the condensed water on the lid falls into the oil) and turn the pancake. Cover and cook until the other side is also golden brown. Salt the pancake immediately after you remove it from the pan, so that the salt sticks. You want them to be greasy, salty, crunchy on the outside, and have soft layers in the inside.

Chinese Egg and Scallion Crepe

hot water blanched dough
minced scallion
eggs
salt
oil

Prepare a hot water blanched dough. Let the dough rest for at least 30 minutes to overnight. Cut off a small piece and press into a disk. Use a rolling pin to make the crepe as thin as possible.

Add some oil to a pan on medium-low heat. Place the crepe in the pan. Flip the crepe over after it bubbles. Cook for a minute or so, or until both sides are cooked through but still white. Set the crepe aside until you have cooked all of them.

Beat eggs, scallion, and salt together (you will need approximately one egg for each crepe). Normally eggs are not cooked with salt, because the salt can make them tough. However in this recipe, it is easier to mix the salt into the raw eggs than to sprinkle salt on top of the eggs while they cook in the pan because the eggs cook very quickly. However, if you are quick enough you can use this second method.

Place a pan on medium-low heat add some oil. Spoon some of the egg mixture into it. Roll the egg mixture around in the pan to make a thin egg crepe (if it is cooking to fast you can remove the pan from the heat). Place a flour crepe on top of the egg crepe, while the egg is still liquidey. Gently press the crepe into the egg so that they stick together. When the egg has set, flip the crepe over and fold into thirds. Turn the heat to just above medium and fry the outside of the crepe until it browns. Remove from heat and immediately sprinkle with salt. Cut into sections.

Chinese Hot Water Blanched Dough

In a hot water blanched dough, boiling water is used to partially cook the gluten so that the cooked dough will not have a hard skin. It is used to make pot stickers and green onion pancakes.

Sift about 2 cups of all-purpose flour. Add enough boiling water (about 3/4 cup) and stir until the mixture looks like below.



Add enough cold water (approximately 1/4 cup) and 1 Tbsp oil (olive oil is not used in traditional Chinese cooking but I sometimes use it anyway) to make a smooth soft dough that is not sticky. Cover the dough, and let it rest for at least 30 min. The dough will become even softer if you let it rest in the refrigerator overnight.

Roasted Red Pepper and Eggplant Spread

1 large eggplant or 2 medium eggplants
2 red bell peppers
1 yellow onion (optional)
3 smashed garlic cloves
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 Tbsp tomato paste

Preheat over to 400 degrees F. Skin the eggplant and onion and cut into 1 inch cubes. Separate the onion layers. Mix the eggplant, onion, garlic cloves, olive oil, salt and pepper and spread out on a baking dish. Place the two red bell peppers on top of the mixture, uncut and stems intact. (The bell peppers are going to be roasted similarly to the technique used here.) Roast for 45 minutes, tossing the ingredients once.

When the vegetables are done roasting, place the bell peppers in a paper bag. Close the bag and let the peppers steam for at least 10 minutes. After the peppers have steamed, remove the skin, seeds, and stem but do not wash the peppers under water since this removes the flavor.

Place all of the vegetables in a food processor and add the tomato paste. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper as necessary.

This would probably be good with goat cheese.

Modified from a recipe from Barefoot Contessa.

Sausage, Pepper, and Onion Sandwich

Receipe available at Everyday Italian by Giada De Laurentiis for the Food Network.

Peel-and-Eat Hot Pepper Shrimp

In this picture, I used large Key West pink shrimp (they are pink even when they are raw), which I think is very appropriate for a Caribbean recipe. They are very sweet and have a nice texture.

2 cups water
4 Scotch bonnet chiles or habanero chiles, halved
3 green onions, coarsely chopped
a handful of finely minced green onions for garnish
1 tsp thyme
3 crushed garlic cloves
2 Tbsp salt
1 bay leaf
1.5 tsp whole allspice
1 pound uncooked large shrimp, devein but leave the shell on

Combine all ingredients except for the shrimp into a large pot. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the shrimp. Cover and return the liquid to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the mixture sit for 20 minutes, shaking the pot every so often. When the shrimp is cooked through, drain and discard the liquid. Transfer the shrimp to a plate and garnish with minced green onions. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Bon Appetit, May 2006 ("321 Reasons to Love the Caribbean" issue), contributed by Virginia Burke (author of Eat Caribbean)

Curry Ginger Roasted Zucchini, Yellow Squash, and Onions

2 small zucchini or 1 large zucchini, cut into disks that are 1/4 inch thick
1 small yellow squash, cut into disks that are 1/4 inch thick
1/2 yellow onion, cut into slices that are 1/2 inch wide and approximately 1.5 inches long
1/4 cup curry ginger oil
several smashed garlic cloves
several slices of peeled ginger
1/2 tsp salt
pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the zucchini and yellow squash into disks and salt. Let the salted vegetables sit for at least 30 minutes to draw out some of the water.

Since the zucchini and squash cook quickly, you should separate the onion layers and cut the onion pieces smaller if you prefer your onions thoroughly cooked.

Mix the vegetables with the garlic, ginger, and curry-ginger oil. Spread out the mixture on a baking pan, and bake for 30-40 minutes, turning every so often. In the last 10-20 minutes of roasting, you can turn the heat up to 400 degrees to help caramelize the onions.

Meyer vs. Eureka/Lison Lemons

The lemon at the top is either a Eureka or Lison lemon (the kind that are typically found at most supermarkets). The two lemons at the bottom are Meyer lemons, which are a natural hybrid between a lemon and either an orange, tangerine, or mandarin. Meyer lemons have a sweeter fruitier taste and a golden color.

Eurochoke

The stem of this type of artichoke is edible, but its flesh is slightly less flavorful than regular artichokes. Since it has a large heart, I think this type would be best used in recipes such as soups, purees, dips, etc. Other types of artichokes are green globe and big heart. Baby artichokes are just artichokes that grow lower on the stem.

Moules Mariniere (Mussels)

1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 minced garlic cloves
1 minced shallot
1 fennel, bulb sliced thinly and fronds chopped
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp thyme
1 pound debeared mussels
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
minced parsley

Saute minced garlic and shallots on medium high with the olive oil and butter for 1 minute in a large deep saute pan or pot. When fragrant, add the sliced fennel bulb and saute for 5 more minutes. Add the white wine, salt, pepper, and thyme. Turn the heat to high. Taste and adjust the seasonings. When the liquid is boiling, add the mussels and cover tightly. Steam the mussels until the shells open, shaking the pan occasionally (about 5 minutes). Garnish with minced fennel fronds and parsley. Serve immediately.

Serve with French bread to soak up the liquid.

Note: Most mussels are farmed. However, if the mussels are wild then Emeril Lagasse recommends soaking the bearded mussels in a mixture of 1/4 cup all-purpose flour and a large container of salt water for 2 to 3 hours, so that the mussles will eat the flour and purge themselves of debris such as sand and mud and plump up.

Roasted Red Potatoes and Carmelized Onions

red potatoes
1 yellow onion cut into large sections
5 smashed & peeled garlic cloves
unsalted butter
olive oil
salt
pepper
1 rosemary sprig, chopped into large pieces
minced parsley, preferably Italian flat-leafed

Leave the potatoes whole if they are fingerlings but if they are medium sized quarter or halve them (this will help them to absorb the oil and butter). If you use red potatoes or fingerlings, then keep the skin on. If you use another type of potato (such as a russet or baking potato) then peel the skin. Soak in the cut potatoes in cold water while you prepare the other ingredients to keep them from browning and to help remove some of the starch so they will be easier to crisp.

Pat the potatoes dry with a clean kitchen towel. Peel the dried skin of the onion, and cut the top and bottom off. Cut the onion into wedges that are similar to orange slices in size and shape. Do not intentionally separate the onion layers; this will help the onions to not burn too quickly, and the layers will naturally separate later when you turn the ingredients.

Toss all ingredients together except the parsley. Spread the ingredients out on a baking tray so that it will have room to crisp, except for the garlic which you should place underneath some potatoes or onions. Bake at 350 for about an hour or until the insides of the potatoes are cooked on the bottom rack so that it does not become too browned. Turn the ingredients once or twice during the baking.

Change the heat to 400 degrees. Toss the ingredients and make sure that all the onion layers have separated and are spread out on the baking sheet. Place the potatoes on the top rack. Bake for 10 minutes or until the outsides of the potatoes are slightly crispy and browned and the onions are carmelized. Taste and adjust the salt. Add a fresh pat of butter and return the dish to the oven for 30 seconds or until the butter melts. Remove rosemary sprigs, stir the melted butter around, and garnish with minced parsley.

Can be served hot or at room temperature.