Recipes

Thousand-Year-Old Quail Egg, Potage, Ginger

Make enough brine to generously cover the eggs.

Allow to soak for 12 days.

Rinse thoroughly under running, room-temperature water until the water runs clear.

Dry the eggs, place them in an airtight plastic bag, and store inside an opaque container.

Age for 4 weeks at 68–77ºF/20–25ºC.

To make the pickled ginger
Put the water, vinegar, and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, slice the ginger thinly and place in a bowl.

Pour the boiling liquid over the ginger.

Allow to cool to room temperature, then vacuum pack.

Store in a refrigerator for at least 3 days.

To make the potage
Melt the butter in a pan and sweat the bacon, cabbage, and onion.

Season with salt and cayenne pepper.

Cover with the chicken stock and cream.

Bring to a boil, cover with a lid, and simmer until tender (about 45 minutes).

Remove the bacon and discard.

Purée the mixture left in the pan and pass through a chinois.

To make the ginger cream
Put the cream and water in a pan and bring to a simmer.

Transferto a blender, add the salt, sugar, and xanthan gum, and blend on a low setting for 4 minutes to hydrate the gum.

Add the ginger juice and Versawhip.

Transfer into an ISI canister and charge with 2 cream chargers.

When you’re ready to serve, cook the eggs in boiling water for 1 minute.

Shock in iced water, then peel.

Cut the eggs in half and season with salt and the juice from the pickled ginger.

Chop a little bit of the pickled ginger and put a small amount in the center of each bowl.

Place a dollop of the whipped ginger cream on top of the ginger and place the quail eggs on top.

Serve the potage piping hot.

...

Easy Desserts that Taste Like You Spent Hours in the Kitchen

I love to have something sweet to offer guests with their coffee, but some recipes (yes, Martha Stewart, I’m looking at you) take hours to make and seconds to eat. Here are a few sweets that are easy and fast but will leave your guests believing you took hours to make them. Go ahead, let them.

3 Apple Dips

Fresh fruit with a tasty twist

#1

8 oz. cream cheese

⅓c. brown sugar

Chopped pecans

Caramel ice cream topping

Blend cream cheese and brown sugar. Form into a ball and roll in pecans. Top with caramel ice cream topping.

#2

Mix:

8 oz. cream cheese

¾ c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

½ c. crunchy peanut butter

#3

Mix:

8 oz. cream cheese

¾ c. brown sugar

½ c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

6 oz. heath bits

Note:

Fresh apple slices may be cut ahead and tossed with lemon juice to keep them from browning.

Nutty Cookies

You won’t believe the caramel-almond flavor of these!

42 Club Crackers

½ c. butter

½ c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. sliced almonds

Place crackers in single layer on a foil or parchment lined cookie sheet. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add sugar and bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, boil 2 minutes (mixture looks foamy). Remove from heat and add vanilla (be careful – when you stir in vanilla, the mix splatters). Pour mixture evenly over crackers. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake at 350°for 10-12 minutes, until light brown. Remove from pan immediately and cool on wire racks.

Toll House Bar Cookies

Less time consuming than baking a dozen at a time!

2 ¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 cup butter, softened

¾ c. sugar

¾ c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups chocolate chips

Mix flour, baking soda, salt – set aside.

Mix butter, 2 sugars, and vanilla well – add eggs one at a time

Gradually add flour mixture

Add chocolate chips

Spread in jellyroll pan – lining the pan with foil makes cleanup easier

Bake at 375° for 20-25 min

Monkey Bread

This version of monkey bread uses frozen biscuits so the bread is denser. It’s sliced rather than a pull-apart desert.

14 frozen Pillsbury biscuits - thawed

1 ½ cup white sugar

2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

½ cup margarine

1 cup packed brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease one 9 or 10 inch tube pan.

Mix white sugar and cinnamon in a plastic bag. Cut biscuits into 4-6 pieces. Shake 6 to 8 biscuit pieces in the sugar cinnamon mix. Arrange pieces in the bottom of the prepared pan. Continue until all biscuits are coated and placed in pan.

In a small saucepan, melt the margarine with the brown sugar over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute. Pour over the biscuits.

Bake at 350° for 35 minutes. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a plate. Cut into slices.

Whether you need to throw something together quickly for guests or just don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen, give these simple-yet-delicious recipes a try!

Easy Recipes Using Ingredients from Your Pantry

It always happens. You want to make something tasty to eat, but you haven’t been shopping. Instead of ordering a pizza, try these recipes with ingredients you may just have in your pantry and fridge…

Omelet Roll-Up

Ingredients:

1 egg

Salt and pepper to taste

1 T. milk

1 T. grated cheese

½ T. oil

Green pepper, sliced, if desired

Bacon bits, if desired

1 tortilla

Instructions:

In small bowl, mix egg, milk, salt and pepper.

Heat oil in small skillet over medium-high heat.

Pour in egg and cook 1 minute or until set.

Place egg on tortilla, sprinkle with cheese, and roll up.

Nutrition Information per serving:

Calories 212 Total Fat (g) 14.5, Saturated Fat (g) 4, Cholesterol (mg) 195, Sodium (mg) 123, Total Carbohydrate (g) 11.9, Total Fiber (g) 1.5, Sugars (g) 1.4, Protein (g) 9.2

Barbecue Cups

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained

½ c. barbecue sauce

1 T. minced onion, optional

1 T. brown sugar

1 can refrigerator biscuits

¾ c. grated Cheddar cheese

Instructions:

Add barbecue sauce, onions and brown sugar to the browned and drained ground beef.

Press biscuits into greased muffin pan to form cups.

Spoon beef mixture into the cups and top with grated cheese.

Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Nutrition Information per serving:

Calories 403, Total Fat (g) 24, Saturated Fat (g) 9.4, Cholesterol (mg) 51.9, Sodium (mg) 839, Total Carbohydrate (g) 30, Total Fiber (g) 0.2, Sugars (g) 1.3, Protein (g) 16.7

Mexican Macaroni

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef

1 (16 oz) can chili beans

1 (16 oz) can corn

1 can tomato soup

1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni

½ cup diced onion

1 ½ cups water

Optional: Chili powder, garlic, cumin,salt, pepper, sugar, shredded cheese

Instructions:

Brown ground beef over medium heat and drain grease.

Add optional ingredients and onions. Cook until onions appear clear.

Add beans, corn, soup, macaroni, and water.

Increase heat and stir and cook until boiling.

Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until noodles are tender.

If macaroni absorbs too much liquid, add more as necessary.

Sprinkle cheese on top and serve.

Nutrition Information per serving:

Calories 583, Total Fat (g) 15.5, Saturated Fat (g) 5.8, Cholesterol (mg) 120, Sodium (mg) 1274, Total Carbohydrate (g) 66.4, Total Fiber (g) 10.2, Sugars (g) 14.8, Protein (g) 49.2

Quick Beef and Rice

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef or turkey

2 cups rice

1 pkg. onion soup mix

4 cups water

1 (15 oz) can cream of mushroom soup

Instructions:

Brown and drain ground meat.

Add soup mix, rice, soup, and water and bring to a boil.

Cover and simmer 20 minutes, until rice is done.

Nutrition Information per serving:

Calories 593, Total Fat (g) 10.7, Saturated Fat (g) 3.6, Cholesterol (mg) 101, Sodium (mg) 425, Total Carbohydrate (g) 77.5, Total Fiber (g) 1.2, Sugars (g) 0.9, Protein (g) 41.9

It’s easy to make and enjoy a fast, easy meal if you keep a few staples around. Take a look in your pantry and refrigerator and make sure you have “staple” items. Enjoy!

Kale Muffins with Chive Dip

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C with fan).

Grease the muffin tin.

Melt the butter and stir in the kale and chopped garlic.

Mix the flour and baking powder.

Mix the eggs with the sour cream, salt and butter mixture.

Quickly stir in the flour and baking powder.

Divide the mixture between the holes of the muffin tin and bake in the preheated oven (middle shelf) for 25-30 minutes.

Take out of the oven, leave to cool slightly and take out of the tin.

For the Dip

Mix the sour cream with the chives and stock granules and season to taste with pepper.

...

Mandarin Jam Without Pectin

Halve the mandarins and squeeze the juice. Scrape out the pips and flesh of the mandarins and put them in a pan with about 300 ml water.

Bring to a boil and simmer for half an hour, adding more water if necessary.

Flatten the mandarin skins, put in a pan with 500 ml water, cover and simmer gently for about 2 hours.

Drain the skins, reserving the liquid, and cut them into strips.

Sieve the pip liquid into a heavy pan, add the skin liquid and the sugar and stir over a gentle heat until the sugar has dissolved.

Add the chopped skins, the mandarin juice and lemon juice and cook over a medium heat for about 20 minutes.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes then pour into sterilised jars and seal.

...