Tangy Goats Milk Banana Creme Pie

So I'm a cheater... I prefer to get the pre-made crusts for this kind of thing. Alternatively, you can make your own if you want with graham crackers and butter in a food processor. This is a no fail delicious way to make a tangy, out of the ordinary dessert with many pre-made ingredients to save time. The goats milk and peanut butter bring out the nutty and creamyness that I find delicious in bananas.

Prep time: 10-20 min
Total Time 1.5-2 hours

What you'll need

• Pre-made Graham Cracker crust
• 5-6 Medium bananas ( 2 very ripe, 3-4 just ripe ) 
• 1 package banana creme pudding 
• 1 package vanilla pudding 
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract 
• Here's the tang - substitute cow's milk for goat's milk! YUM! 
• 1 tsp creamy peanut butter 
• 10 cocoa puffs ( or just 1 tsp of dark cocoa powder ) 
• Juice from 1 lemon 

•  Layer the bottom with sliced bananas

•  Mix the banana and vanilla puddings to pie specifications on the package - for Jello puddings, this is 2 3/4 cup goats milk for both packages ( not each! ).

• In a separate bowl, mash the 2 very ripe bananas with the peanut butter and vanilla extract. 

• Fold in the mashed banana mixture into the pudding mixture 

• Cover the bottom layer of bananas with the crushed cocoa puffs or dark chocolate powder 
• WARNING: Don't put whole cocoa puffs instead of crushed because they will turn into gummy balls of doom. NOT TASTY! 

• Cover the cocoa puff layer with the prepared mixture of mashed bananas, peanut butter, vanilla, and pudding until it reaches slightly below the top part of the crust. Keep enough pudding for a second layer.
• Cover the pudding layer with chopped up bananas -(save enough to create another layer on top)

• Layer the remaining banana slices on top of the pudding and brush with diluted lemon juice - this will stop the bananas from turning brown. 

• Cover in cling wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours

• Cut and enjoy!

This can be made a day before, or can be frozen for an extra cool treat. If frozen, take out of the freezer for 1-2 hours prior to serving and put in the refrigerator. This is a nice way to get a creamy cool treat that isn't completely frozen. Not to mention: Pretty! 

Butternut Squash Breakfast Burritos

I was looking for a healthy alternative to grabbing breakfast at Starbucks before I went to work in the morning, so I put all the flavors that I love into one convenient, easy to heat, and easy to eat package. 

I just started working at a fast-paced start-up, here in the Bay Area, and I wanted something that would fill me up through long experiments and provide a good balance of carbs and protein. 

1) I threw some potatoes roughly cubed into a non-stick pan with shredded carrots and about a tablespoon of olive oil.

 2) On medium heat I browned the 1 large russet potatoe and warmed the 1/4 shredded carrots from the Trader Joes salad section. I prefer the carrot strings because they're versatile and add a nice color!

 

3) Who doesn't love chopped green onion?? 1 to 2 bunches does the trick - this is kind of up to you, a sweet yellow onion or caramelized white onion would also work well here. 

4) I like to switch things up when I'm in the kitchen: aka - I look what is around and kinda throw it in if I think it'll taste good - here come the  1/2 cup mushrooms ( 6-9 medium sized baby bellas )! 

5) The best "mistake" of all was adding the butternut squash which I had frozen down a week before after making a lovely roasted side dish. These were the cubes that were not previously cooked - they store well in a ziploc in the freezer for when you need some butternut squash ASAP.

6) After browning the potatoes and cooking down the onions a little, I added 2 cups of water with one chicken bullion cube from Knox to the mix, and cooked everything until the moisture was cooked off and the bullion was absorbed into the veggies. To this mix I also added a couple dashes of cayenne pepper, fresh cracked black pepper, a bay leaf, and 2 chopped cloves of garlic.


7) this is what it looks when things are still a bit raw- You want to take care not to overcook your veggies because if you're like me, you will be warming these things in the microwave - leaving a little bite to them will make them perfect when you heat them up.



 8) You have two options here, you can whip the 6 extra large eggs with a splash of milk and add them to the mixture, or you can cook the eggs separately and then mix everything together before putting the filling in the burrito. I prefer to add the eggs to a hot pan and cook them separately - it makes for the fluffiest eggs.











9) Scramble the eggs up until they are *just* about cooked- ie. mostly fluffy and cooked with just a little wetness to the eggs. Turn off and remove from heat. Sprinkle the eggs with your favorite cheese. I prefer some aged cheddar or a little bit of parmesan.

10) Mix in the veggies and fill a medium sized flour tortilla. Wrap the burrito in parchment paper and keep in the fridge or freezer. When you heat up the burrito ( about 2 min the the microwave ) keep it in the parchment paper. Your burrito will come out perfectly cooked, and the tortilla will be soft and delicious! The parchment works perfectly to seal in the vapors and keep the eggs moist - it also makes it easier to grab and go in the morning!

Ta da! What do you like to put in your breakfast burritos? 

Banh xeo

So this isn't as much of a recipe as more of documenting my first attempt at a Vietnamese dish other than Pho. ( Which I'm totally obsessed with ) I will provide a list of ingredients that you can find at an Asian grocery store... but in the process of making these puppies, things got a bit wild - read - Blackberry liquor and Lychee cocktails!

 We picked up some sweets from Ranch 99 - who doesn't love Panda cookies and YanYan?


Banh Xeo was described as a sweet/savory Vietnamese crepe by my friend, Kevin Tran.

" A bit sweet, a bit crunchy, savory, with delicious shrimps and doused in homemade fish sauce... mmmm... makes me think of home!"

I was sold. Darnit, I HAD to have these crepes. So we ventured to Ranch 99 to pick up various supplies and necessities.

1) Banh Xeo Mix- adapted from a a recipe I found @KitchenChick

• 1 cup rice flour ( only Rice flour will give it that nice texture!)

• 1/2 tsp sugar ( I use brown sugar)

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp turmeric ( I like to be generous with this - gives it the nice yellow color!)

• 2 cups canned coconut milk ( I prefer the Chokoh brand ) Make sure it's the creamy kind - not the water. 

• 1 medium egg, room temp

• 1/4 cup lime juice 

2) Soaked Mung Beans -

• Rinse mung beans thoroughly and put in a glass bowl
• Cover in an inch of water and then microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute - Kevin said that they could be eaten softer or with a little crunch. I tried it both ways and preferred the texture that the crunchy ones added. It also gives a nice, sweet, earthy taste. 
• These are added after the batter is poured into the pan so they end up in the middle of the crepe. 

3) Shrimp / Pork / Beef

• The awesome thing about Banh Xeo is that you can pretty much put any meat in there. We chose shrimp, but thinly sliced pork or pre-cooked beef will work nicely. 

4) Homemade Fish Sauce- (Kind of) 

• Mrs. Tran, Kevin's mum recommended that we choose a stock sauce from the asian market and then add fresh ingredients.
• We added a bunch of fresh ginger, sugar, green onions, and vinegar to Nuc Mam ( Fish sauce ) stock from ranch 99. We have since perfected the recipe and I will be posting the whole thing soon! 

Prepping the Fish Sauce!

Here is the batter, prepared with onions and garlic added. Just mix all the ingredients listed above in a bowl until it looks to have a thin consistency. I used a ladle to spoon in to a hot non-stick pan. It's important to use a non stick pan for all crepes because they are thin and easy to break. You'll get better results adding the batter to a hot pan and then sliding the crepe onto a plate. There is some elasticity due to the rice flour and eggs.

As you can see- we tried putting batter into one of my all-clad pans - this was a terrible idea. The non-stick on the left was perfect and made a HUGE crepe. I liked that there was a bit of a curve to the non-stick pan because the crepe is substantial and my smaller crepe pan would have not have cradled the delicious toppings we put inside.

Here you can see we added chopped white and green onions, shrimp ( pre-cooked ), soaked mung beans, and whatever else you might want to put in there!

• Similar to French crepes, wait until the batter starts to bubble and gets opaque ( instead of transparent ). 

• Take a plastic spatula and loosen the sides- using a spatula and a big spoon, fold the crepe over on itself. 
• Turn up the heat so that you get a nice golden crust on both sides of the crepe. 
• Slide out of the pan and drench with fresh fish sauce 
• Sprinkle with green onions 

Enjoy! 

Super Easy Salted Goat Milk Caramels

I decided to make these beauties because my boyfriend was trying to get through his law school finals and needed a boost of sugar to get him through the long nights of studying. Making some cute, wrapped, homemade goodies really brightened his day! You can also make them and put them into cute boxes as gifts for friends and family, or even wedding favors!

Candy isn't the easiest thing to make, so I wanted to make a recipe that anyone could follow. Here are my "Super Easy Salted Goat Milk Caramels". For those than can't find goats milk, or would prefer to cows milk, the recipe will turn out just fine. I haven't tried almond or soy milk, but I think that would be an interesting chemistry experiment to see if they behave in the same way.

My inspiration to use goat milk happened when I noticed that Trader Joe's carries goats milk - once I had that tangy, clover infused, milky gold - I HAD to put it into a caramel. I prefer a bit of crunch so I roll course grain salt into the inner section of the caramel to get that oh-so-divine salty/sweet combination.

What you'll need

• 2 cups Brown sugar
• 1 cup White sugar 
• 1 cup corn syrup
• 1.5 cup goats milk ( or milk of your choice ) 
• 1.5 cups heavy cream 
• 1.5 tbs vanilla
• 1/2 tbs salt ( fine grain) 
• Coarse grain salt to finish ( I ended up using Himalayan pink rock salt from Trader Joes )
• 1 cup butter
• 1 Vanilla bean ( optional - cut lengthwise and scrape out the insides!) 

1) Prep a pot on the stove, and a baking dish for for pouring the caramel. I like to line my  baking dish with parchment ( much easier than trying to butter the dish, faster cleanup! )

2) Combine the sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, goat's milk, heavy cream, and butter in the pot on the stove. Mixing this mixture and heating it evenly is important to make the candy work.You'll notice that the mixture goes from looking like a frothy delicious caramel sponge to a slightly darker, with less bubbles mixture ( I use this as a guide to know that the temp is starting to get close )

3) Watch the temperature of the mixture with a candy thermometer while stirring. When the thermometer reaches 247 degrees remove the pot from the heat. Add the vanilla and stir.
 
WARNING! Do not let the temperature exceed 250 degrees F. ( 120 C) This is ceiling for the "firm ball" stage when cooking sugar. If the candy goes over this temp you could have problems with forming your caramels.  Please be careful when working with hot sugar. It might not look hot, but it is!


3) Pour the mixture from your pot into the lined or buttered baking pan ( 12X15 works best ) 


4) I let the mixture cool for about 5-7 min and then cut the caramel into 1in X 1in pieces. The caramel will still be warm to the touch and slightly gooey. I sprinkle pieces of coarse grain salt on the pieces and then roll them into balls and wrap in parchment to keep them from sticking together. 


5) Unwrap and enjoy!!

Farmers Market Pictures / Tomato Glory

It's the season for farmers markets, sun dresses, and strawberries!

What kinds of herbs do you plant this season? I've been thinking of thai basil and tomatoes. My obsession with pho has returned and I would like to have my own side of veggies to add to the steaming pot of sumptuous broth!                                   

Rosemary is a good standby for those of us who are overzealous about watering - and perhaps a little slow when it comes to figuring out how much sun certain plants need... ( that wouldn't be me... right?)                                                                          

I've been thinking about Jalapeno's or some other chili as I hear they are easy to grow... anyone have suggestions out there?

 

These glistening gems of goodness were  thrown into the broiler for a couple minutes, and then were carefully placed on top of handmade lobster ravioli. ( Recipe to come ) :) They pop delightfully, spilling sweet juice and pulp in your mouth when you bite down. I like to add them to my white sauce recipes so that you can have the best of both worlds, eating pasta with a white base and with tomato.

It nearly made me want to try an interesting technique from Italy where the tomatoes are picked and then woven into a braid of sorts. The tomatoes are then smoked while on the vine, and then are preserved so they can be used for months and months later. I will probably give this a shot the next time I go because I hear it makes the best pasta sauce.

 Here's a teaser of the strawberries that I made into a triple berry trifle. Homemade  jam with a vanilla and burbon reduction, layered with fresh fruit and scented cream...mmm! I made fresh pound cake to crumble between the layers. Delish!

Super Salad

The Super Salad is inspired by my friends who don't like to cook, but prefer to assemble meals. This salad is easy to put together, balanced, tasty, and filling. I know it's simple... but it appeals to my love of simple flavors, and It's also great for those nights where you don't want to cook something hot!

A balsamic delight, this salad has the tangyness of baby arugula, the sweetness of broiled grape tomatoes, and the crunch of carrots slices. Each bite is a textural and taste adventure.

I added a bit of lemon zest and 1 clove of pressed garlic to equal parts of balsamic vinegar, and apple cider vinegar. Sometimes I add a spoonful Hot and Sweet Mustard ( as seen in Diana's Blog... however, it's not discontinued anymore ) and local honey to add another layer of character.

  

Drizzle just a little olive oil over the tomatoes before you stick them in the oven for 2 minutes in the broiler.

I add a little salt and pepper after they come out of the over and sprinkle on top of the salad. It's all the oil / salt and pepper I need. You can add more oil if you wish, be careful not to over dress the salad!

You can find all the ingredients at Trader Joes.

• Just Chicken 
• Grape tomatoes
• TJ's Arugula mix / Spring mix 
• Tj's Modena Balsamico
• Tj's Extra Virgin Olive oil
• Tj's Shredded carrot

Braised Rabbit with Chimichurri Sauce

I was inspired by Andrew Zimmern's demonstration / recipe for Braised Rabbit. The need for fresh, earthy flavors pulled at me until I drove down to my local butchers and made it happen!

Surprisingly it wasn't too difficult to find rabbit and the butcher was happy to chop it to reasonable sized pieces for me. I was extremely happy to find that he also added in the liver, kidney, and heart.

I pan fried the organ meats to salty, caramelized, medium rare perfection. Being the carnivore that I am, I immediately popped the heart into my mouth with great satisfaction. My boyfriend and I spread the liver on crackers with a bit of cave aged Gruyere ( found at Sigona's Farmers Market). It was surprisingly sweet and less iron-y than calves liver. Sidenote: I love Sigona's- it's a great place to find locally sourced produce and specialty items.

Here's a Californian twist to Chimichurri

• 1 cup fresh Italian parsley
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup avocado
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 Jalapenos, seeds optional for more spice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

I prefer to make it the night ahead so that all the flavors can mix overnight. The jalapenos really add a fresh / spicy aspect to the sauce.

I adore pairing wine with food, and cooking with wine- it was just my luck that I had something in my stores that would go perfectly with this dish. I chose an Argentinian Malbec that gave the dish a fruity, yet characteristic gravel/earthy taste to the tender meat.

Braising Tips

Remember when getting ready to braise the rabbit, choose a deep, large pan. Cast iron or a dutch oven work equally well.

• Heat the pan with a little oil.
• Season your meat and veggies with your choice of spices ( I used black pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper and some garlic )
• Once the pan gets really hot, brown the meat 
• Add the veggies ( 1 cup celery, 1 cup onion,  several garlic cloves )
• Add wine until the meat and veggies are submerged halfway. 
• Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook slowly with the lid on do not let the liquid evaporate.
• I cooked my rabbit for about 1.5 hours on the stove top. Alternatively, I would put it in the dutch oven and cook at 375 degrees for 45 min - 1 hr. Checking to see when the meat looks like it will fall off the bone.
• Enjoy! 

The chimichurri will be a repeat in my house - I've put it on everything from quesodillas to spicy grilled sausages. I also altered it a bit to function as a vinagarette in a cold steak, tomato, basil, and jicama salad.

Let me know if you try it!