Nam Phrik Ong

I seriously crave Thai food a few times a week and this time the craving was for spicy ground pork in tomato sauce. This dish originates from the northern part of Thailand and generally uses pork belly. However, I chose to use ground pork loin, and the results were comparable. I cooked chopped shallots, garlic and fresh chilli (the amount of chilli depends on the tolerance of each person) added salt to help them soften faster. I then added ground pork and grape tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes). I usually put the lid on and leave a small gap, so the sauce reduces to half and the tomatoes fall apart. I like to add salt at the end after I taste it. If you can find fermented soy bean (Tua Nao), it will taste the closest to the authentic version. I like to eat with rice and fresh vegetables such as dill, cucumber and string bean. It’s one way to add vegetables to your diet.

Jook (Rice Soup)

It’s time for weekend breakfast, Thai style or Chinese style (I could say). On weekends, I have more time to create this Thai breakfast for my husband. I miss this rice soup that I had often in Thailand. They were everywhere, but in New York it can be found in Chinatown. I usually marinate ground pork one day in advance with mushroom soy sauce, black pepper, grated ginger, grated garlic, tapioca flour and a little bit of water. Adding water in marinated ground pork is a trick that my father taught me that helps soften pork balls. I boil jasmin rice in water and keep adding chicken stock. When it starts boiling, it requires your full attention. You got to keep stirring and adding chicken stock until the rice becomes mushy and thick. I then add a pinch of salt and pepper. I add marinated ground pork rolled as 1 inch balls into the rice soup (jook). Let the pork balls cook through and serve hot with thinly slice ginger (optional), chopped scallion and soy sauce. This dish requires a lot of patience when stirring the rice until it falls apart.

Sauteed Brussel Sprout with Shrimp

My husband’s the least favourite vegetable is the brussel sprout. I felt compelled to challenge myself to come up with something he would eat and enjoy. The words “Brussel Sprouts” itself scared him when I told him that it will be part of our dinner. I made very simple sauteed Asian style with garlic, freshly chopped chilli, oyster sauce and soy sauce. The trick of this sauteed vegetable dish is heat, so the pan and oil MUST BE HOT enough. You want to feel the crunchiness of the vegetables, but also it must cook through. Another important part is that the shrimp needs to be cooked just done (don’t overcook). This brussel sprout dish makes me proud of myself in that I finally killed his lack of faith in brussel sprouts. This kind of sauteed dish makes him taste real vegetables.

Guacamole with Crispy Pork

Once in a while, I will crave avocado.  I buy avocado 2-3 days in advance to avoid getting rotten avocados from supermarket. I slice pork loin in quarter inch slices and make the simple frying batter. I then make spicy guacamole and top on crispy pork that I have already fried. It tastes good with rice or by itself. This dish has a good balance of protein and vegetables even without eating rice.

Balsamic Ravioli

The Balsamic Vinegar sat in the cupboard for a while after I bought it because my husband and I normally use a citrus dressing for salad. Today, I chose balsamic vinegar to be the main sauce for our dinner. First, I made crispy bacon (as mentioned before : my husband loves crunchiness). I sweetened the vinegar with honey and added salt and pepper to balance the vinegary taste. I let it simmer in the pan until the sauce reduced to half. We bought cheese ravioli from the supermarket, but you can choose or make any of your favourite ravioli. After the ravioli was cooked, I added it to the balsamic sauce and topped it with crispy bacon, toasted walnuts and parsley. Now, the balsamic vinegar won’t be as lonely in the cupboard for long stretches anymore.

Pumpkin Macaroni

I had an idea of making mac and cheese, but I wanted to make it healthy. That’s why I came up with the pumpkin idea because it has an awesome yellow colour much like cheddar cheese. All components are light, but it has a creamy texture from the pumpkin. I sauteed diced pumpkin with garlic and white wine and chicken stock, then I pureed it for a smooth texture. In the same pan, when the pumpkin is off to the blender, I sweated sliced shallots in olive oil with salt and pepper. I then added lemon thyme (from my little herb pot). After the shallots became translucent, I poured the pureed pumpkin back into the pan and added low fat milk to thin the sauce. Macaroni was added into the sauce and mixed together. The final touch is julient basil and freshly grated parmesan cheese to top. TA..DA…no guilt eating this healthy pumpkin macaroni.

New Era Falafel

My version of falafel was inspired by the taste of falafel with a twist of health consciousness. So, I made open face falafel in baked potato skin. I know it sounds strange, but I didn’t use pita bread. I also used peeled monk bean instead of chick peas because they are less starchy. I made my falafel in bite sizes because of my previous experience in having falafel that didn’t look very nice with the filling falling out upon taking a bite. With this, I found out how to enjoy eating falafel without a mess on my face and table.

Craving Heroes

I truly made this dessert from a craving my husband was having. Basically, I thought about something crunchy with ice cream because my husband loves accessories to his ice cream. I baked wonton wrappers in a muffin tray as the dessert containers and let them cool completely. I then mixed sliced banana and chocolate spread ( Nutella) and toasted hazelnuts for the topping. I scooped strawberry & vanilla ice cream, and mixed the banana slices into the wonton cups. Then I topped it with toasted hazelnuts. The combination of ice cream, chocolate and nuts made my husband flip. This dessert is well worth a try for your loved one.

Banana Walnut Pancakes with Chocolate Chips

I know when people talk about pancakes, it seems so easy and standard for people around here. I come from a place where people eat rice daily — even in the morning. So making pancakes has become a new experiment for me. I picked the ingredients that I enjoy eating such as: banana, walnuts and chocolate chips. It sounds simple, but my lemon cinnamon syrup is the special surprise twist for these pancakes. The recipe is very basic : equal parts of lemon juice and sugar and one small cinnamon stick. Bring it to boil and it’s ready to go with your pancakes. Woohoo!

Gorgonzola Rosemary Crackers

1/2 cup Gorgonzola

1/2 cup Butter ( room temperature)

2 Tablespoons Finely chopped rosemary

4 Tablespoons Water

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1/2 Teaspoon Pepper

1 1/4 Cups All purposed flour

I recently bought some gorgonzola cheese. I had so much that I had to think of a variety of different uses for it. I came up with the idea of crackers because I’d like to make unsweetened cookies. I left the butter and cheese out in room temperature for a few hours, so the cheese developed a full flavour before I mixed it into the batter. I also added chopped rosemary to perfume the dough. After the dough was ready, I rolled it in an inch size and flattened it at a quarter inch thick.  Bake at 350F for 22 minutes. Let it cool completely before storing in an air tight container.