Served
Feb 23

Slow-roasted pork belly char siu and crispy turnip cakes with quick pickles and confit shiitake mushrooms
Cooking time: 1 day (marinate) + 3-4 hours (slow roast)
- Char siu marinade recipe
- 3-4 lb pork belly or pork shoulder
- package of turnip cake
- shiitake mushrooms
- 1/2 cup cucumber, peeled and sliced (about 1/4 an English hot house)
- 1 green onion
- salt, sugar, hoisin sauce, rice wine vinegar
- Marinate pork at least 8 hours, but less than 24 hours
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees
- While oven preheats, peel and slice cucumber into rounds.
- Combine 2 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp salt and 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar with cucumbers in a bowl. Mix until dissolved, cover, and refridgerate.
- Place pork into heavy oven proof pan or roasting rack and into oven
- Check pork every hour, making sure to baste pork with its own fat and turn pan sideways for even browning.
- During last hour of roasting, add mushrooms directly into pan to slow-cook.
- Pork is done when you can insert a fork or knife straight through to the other side with little to no resistance. Let rest for 20 minutes while you…
- Add dab of butter/oil into pan and crisp up turnip cakes on medium heat.
- Slice green onions thinly for garnish.
- Spoon some remaining fat/roasting liquid and combine with 1 tbspn hoisin sauce.
- Arrange everything together with alternating rice cake, pickle, pork. Drizzledrop remaining pork marinade/fat sauce over dish and green onions.
Feb 16
californieflanerie asked: Put up recipes so I can do something about the drool pooling in my keyboard.
Will do - editing now!
Feb 15

Almost Bakesale Betty Fried Chicken Sandwich (recipe:http://bit.ly/ijDgid - changed the coleslaw greens, took out jalapenos)

Salmon Tartare - I’m a fan of no-cook dishes. And salmon. And avocado.
Feb 14

Valentine’s Dessert: Molten Chocolate Cake (formerly known as failed Double Chocolate cookies/brownies)
Feb 13

Moules Mariniere - Mussels in White Wine Sauce
- 1 lb of mussels per person
- 1/2 cup dry white wine per lb of mussels
- 1 shallot, minced
- lots of garlic, minced (I used almost a whole clove)
- salt, pepper, parsley
- butter and oil
- a lid or aluminum foil to cover your pan
- Clean mussels, making sure there’s no dirt or “beards” on the mussels
- Heat pan to medium-high and add butter and oil
- Once butter starts sizzling, add shallots and garlics, stir for around 30 seconds
- Add the mussels, spreading them evenly across the pan
- Add dry white wine, and more butter
- Cover pan with lid or drape with aluminum foil so that mussels can steam
- Check the mussels in about 3-4 minutes, if they’re open they are done!
- Turn off the heat, get a spoon and sauce the mussels so that garlic, shallots, and sauce get into all the nooks.
- Sprinkle with some parsley, have a field day eating.
Feb 12

Homemade Pizza: mozzarella, blue cheese, corn, caramelized onions, zucchini, garlic, lime juice
This dough takes 1 advance day of prep so make it the night before and go to sleep. Since toppings are self explanatory, here’s the pizza dough recipe adapted Peter Reinhart and Jim Lahey:
Makes 2 13”x18” sheet pan pizzas, or about 3 12” round pizzas
- 2 1/4 cup bread flour (can use all purpose if that’s all you got)
- 7/8 cup of slightly warm water (almost a cup, I wouldn’t worry too much about this, just don’t go OVER a cup)
- 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast (or instant)
- flour or cornmeal for dusting
- oil (optional)
- Mix the flour, water, yeast, and salt together until there are no flour streaks
- Separate dough into two or three equal pieces, depending on how many pizzas you want to make
- Lightly oil (just a few drops!) bowls to put your dough pieces into so they don’t stick
- Put dough balls into the fridge overnight or for at least 12 hours. Dough should have significantly risen or doubled in size.
- Pull dough out of the fridge and let rest for about 30-45 minutes at room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees
- Shape dough into desired shape, working from the middle to stretch the dough (I use my hands). If dough is resistant and bounces back, rest for another 10-15 minutes and return to it.
- Put all your desired toppings on the pizza.
- Bake for around 12 minutes on the middle rack, or until cheese is bubbling and crust is browned.

Valentine’s Dinner #1: Ribeye and roasted vegetables with bacon and blue cheese.
What you need: Ribeye steak, carrots, brussel sprouts, bacon, blue cheese, butter, salt, pepper, oil
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Toss carrots and brussel sprouts with olive oil, salt, and pepper to coat
- Spread vegetables onto a sheet pan or other oven-proof pan and put into oven for 25-30 minutes, turning and moving vegetables at the halfway point.
- Meanwhile, generously salt and pepper both sides of the ribeye steak.
- Heat cast-iron pan or stainless steel pan to medium high with dab of butter (non-stick pans don’t brown meat too well)
- When pan feels hot and butter is bubbling, add steak to the pan. For about a 1” thick steak, cook 7-8 mins total for medium rare.
- When steak is done, let it rest for 10 minutes. If you cut into it now, all your awesome juices will gush out like a delicious river….but not in your mouth.
- While steak rests , cook however many bacon strips you want (I used 3 for two steaks), and crumble some blue cheese.
- Pull out the veggies from the oven when they are browned and give easily when poked with a fork. Toss the bacon and blue cheese into the veggies and mix it all up.
- Grab yourself a plate and eat.
Feb 09

Soon, I will have a party to make these. Or just eat.
Aug 16
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