Thai Satay Rice Bowls

This meal has been our family favorite for at least a year now. I'm not even sure how we started putting it all together?! We had all these parts and ideas we loved so we just started putting it all together to create something new. This is the result. You know I never blog anymore, but I've found myself having to piece all the parts together into texts when I'm giving others the recipe. Isn't that why I started Market to Meal to begin with? To have a place to share what we were figuring out? So here you go...Choose any or all of the toppings! Chicken should be marinating 6-24 hours ahead. 

Thai Satay Rice Bowls

To build a bowl: 

Base: Coconut Rice

Protein: Chicken Satay

Sauce: Peanut Sauce

Toppings and garnishes: diced mango and/or pineapple, sautéed green beans, strips of cucumber and bell pepper, cilantro, green onion, chopped peanuts, limes, microgreens...

When ready to assemble, place cooked coconut rice, diced chicken, and desired toppings in a bowl. Top with a drizzle of peanut sauce and a squeeze of lime. The combo of warm rice and chicken with cool veggies as well as the sweet and spicy mix is just perfect! 

Satay Marinade:

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 Tbs soy sauce

2 1/2 tsp yellow curry powder

1 1/2 tsp turmeric

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 Tbs red curry paste

~1 inch ginger root, grated

1 Tbs brown sugar

1 Tbs fish sauce

1 Tbs oil

 2-3 boneless chicken breasts (or thighs) pounded to an even thickness

Combine everything for the marinade in a bag or container. Add chicken and marinate for at least 6 hours, overnight is even better. When ready, grill the chicken pieces and dice for the bowls. 

Coconut Rice

Cook 2 cups of rice in 3-4 cups of coconut milk, 2-3 pinches of salt, and a dash of olive oil. I do not use canned coconut milk usually--if you do, you can do part coconut milk and part water since it's thicker. I usually buy a box of unsweetened coconut milk off the shelf or something like unsweetened Silk brand in the refrigerator section. Rice will take 15-20 minutes covered over low heat on the stovetop to cook. Just like if you did it in water! 

Peanut Sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce
3 Tbs coconut milk
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 Tbs oil
1 Tbs vinegar
1/2 Tbs honey
1 tsp sugar
1 inch fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic
1 small red chili, seeds and ribs removed
1/3-1/2 cup salted peanuts

To mix together sauce, put all ingredients except the peanuts into a blender or food processor. Pulse until garlic, ginger and chili pepper are pureed in. Add peanuts and pulse until they are crushed to desired amount. This can be made ahead and refrigerated til ready to use. 

The satay recipe is adapted from here.

Mardi Gras King Cake Cupcakes

It is Mardi Gras season in Louisiana! This is a favorite time of year for our family, and we love when visits to the US coincide with Mardi Gras parades! We are SO sad the parades are cancelled this year, but that hasn't dampened the spirit I'm seeing around town. A dreary, grey Thursday had me in the kitchen messing around with a few recipes for these cupcakes. This was the family favorite of the taste tests, so I wanted to document it here in order to not forget what I did! Ha! Enjoy! Laissez le bon temps rouler! 

Mardi Gras King Cake Cupcakes 

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

3 egg whites

1 2/3 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

1/3 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream

1/2 cup whole milk

Cinnamon Swirl

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

4 1/2-5 cups powdered sugar

Bring all cake ingredients to room temperature! Preheat oven to 350F (180C).

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Make sure to fluff your flour and gently fill your measuring cup, scraping the excess off the top. In a separate small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon for the cinnamon swirl. Set aside.

 In a large bowl, beat together softened butter and sugar. Add vanilla and the egg whites, one at a time, completely blending after each one. Incorporate half the flour mixture. Blend in the milk and yogurt or sour cream. Finally add the remaining dry flour mixture. 

Put 16-18 paper liners in muffin tins. Using a Tablespoon or a small cookie scoop, place one spoon into each liner. Top with about 1/4 tsp cinnamon sugar mixture. Repeat. Finish with a third spoon of the batter on top. Do not fill more than 2/3s full. Bake at 350F (180C) for 18-20 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick to see if it comes out mostly clean. It may have a crumb or two and that's ok! Remove cupcakes to a cooling rack. 

While cupcakes are cooling, make the cream cheese frosting. Beat together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla. Add powdered sugar a cup at a time until it reaches a texture that can be piped on to the cupcakes. 

Once cupcakes are cool, pipe on the frosting using a large decorating tip and bag. Sprinkle with purple, green, and gold sugar or drizzle with those same colors of icing glaze (see below). Enjoy! 

For the colored icing glazes, I mixed about 1/2 cup powdered sugar with a very small amount of milk and food color to get a fairly thick consistency I could drizzle or pipe on using a small bag with the corner barely nipped off! 

If you can't buy colored decorating sugar, you can make your own! 

Grandma Terrill's Rum Cake

 My Grandma Terrill passed away earlier this year. She was a feisty lady, to say the least. Quite opinionated to boot. I still remember a day I was visiting her while still in college. I believe I might have been moving from the dorms into an apartment. She told me no kitchen was complete without a pretty bundt pan, so she took me to buy one. In her own kitchen, the bundt pan was used primarily to bake rum cakes. It changed through the years whether she made the cake part with a mix or from various recipes, but no matter what, that cake was well soaked in a rum glaze and we'd all finish it quickly. She always had homemade cookies in a cookie jar, too, but her rum cake was always the favorite. Enjoy! 

Grandma Terrill's Rum Cake

For the cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 small box vanilla instant pudding*

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup whole milk

4 eggs

1/2 cup rum

2 tsp vanilla

Pecan halves, opt

For the glaze:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1/4-1/2 cup rum

2 pinches of salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

*I do not usually have access to instant vanilla pudding mix, so I add the following ingredients as a substitution into my dry mix:  3 Tbs sugar, 2 1/2 Tbs cornstarch, 2 1/2 Tbs dry milk powder, pinch of salt, 1 tsp vanilla powder. In this case, I would omit vanilla powder and just add 1 Tbs vanilla to the cake.

Bring cake ingredients to room temperature prior to beginning, including the butter, eggs, and milk. 

Begin by greasing and flouring a bundt pan and set aside. You can place pecan halves in the bottom of the bundt pan once it is greased and floured. The batter will be poured over them and add a pretty touch in the final product. Bites with a pecan are a treat, but omit if you don't like nuts. This was just the way my Grandma always did it. 

Place all dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and whisk together. Add the softened butter and oil to make a crumbly mix. Add milk and mix well. Beat in eggs one at a time. Gently combine in the rum and vanilla. Place cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 325F (165C) for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Test for doneness with a toothpick. When it is inserted and comes out clean, remove the cake and set on a wire rack to cool. 

Meanwhile, mix together the glaze. In a small saucepan, melt together the butter, sugar, rum, water and salt until combined and boiling. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. 

While cooling, the cake will have separated slightly from the edge of the pan. Using a long, thin skewer, poke holes all over the cake. Pour hot glaze over, allowing to soak through holes and around edges of cake. Let cake continue to cool. When cooled, turn cake out onto a plate. The cake may stick and not easily release. You can try gently running a knife between the cake and pan, but this can be difficult with some bundt pans (this could also be made in 2 small/medium loaf pans). 

Enjoy! 

Buttery Homemade Biscuits

 Homemade biscuits have been a simple, humble affair my entire life. My grandmother and my mom do not do anything fancy--they just throw together some self-rising flour, oil and milk, cut, bake, and eat. So easy and quick! And these biscuits really work wonderfully for about anything. That said, sometimes a nice, layered, buttery biscuit might be more what you want. I'd call these more "restaurant" style. I've been throwing them together a lot in recent weeks--they require a bit more thought and a few more minutes, but they are well worth it and still easy! Grating the partially frozen butter, rather than cutting it in, is a simple hack that saves a lot of time. Enjoy! 

Buttery Homemade Biscuits

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 Tbs baking powder

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 tsp sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 - 1 1/4 cups cold, whole milk

*It will help if you place butter in freezer for 15-30 minutes prior to making!

Measure dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir until well combined. Working quickly, grate in the butter and stir to coat. Add 1+ cup of the cold milk. Stir gently and add an additional tablespoon or two if there is still flour in the bottom of the bowl. The dry ingredients should be completely added and the dough should only be a tad sticky or wet looking. Lightly flour the counter and place dough ball down. Gently flatten a bit, fold over, turn 90 degrees and repeat 2-3 more times. Be very careful not to overwork the dough. After folding 2-3 times, use hands to flatten to about 3/4-1 inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter or glass to cut out biscuits. Place on a cookie sheet with Silpat, parchment, or lightly greased. Bake at 425F (210C) for 10-12 minutes. Brush with melted butter after baked if desired.

This recipe will yield 9-10 large biscuits, or 14-15 smaller sized.

Lightly simplified from this Bacon, Cheddar and Chive Scone recipe! 

Jambalaya

Never did I think back in January when we made "quick" visit to the US that I would be displaced here for many months. I'm missing my notebook of recipes. I have a few things I've been making over the past few years which just remain scratched in a notebook in my kitchen. Luckily I found a photo of the jambalaya recipe I wished I had with me archived in an old group chat. Now I'm feeling the need to post a few recipes so I have them in this digital collection. So I can access them when I'm not home, when I didn't think I'd be gone so long I'd need to be cooking so much. Too bad all the crazy of this season can't be fixed by looking back in an old chat. But I'm enjoying the slowness to ponder and think about it. Let us not be found worried about the bombs...rather lets be found doing good and loving well. For me that is with food.

Jambalaya
1 medium green bell pepper
1 small-medium onion
3-4 stalks celery
4-6 cloves garlic, peeled
1 1/2 cups water
--
1 lb andouille sausage (other smoked beef or pork sausages work as well)
1-2 chicken breasts
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning (I like Tony Chacere's, but you can make your own as well)
--
2 cups chicken stock
1 Tbs Worchestershire sauce
1 tsp Cajun seasoning
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme (1/2-3/4 tsp if ground)
3 bay leaves
2 cups rice

1-2 diced tomatoes (Or one can, drained)

Wash and roughly chop celery, onion, bell pepper, and garlic cloves. Place all these in the blender with the 1 1/2 cups of water. Puree together. Chop the chicken and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, and 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning. Slice the sausage into bite size rounds.

In a lidded pot large enough to cook all the ingredients together, put a teaspoon or two of oil in with the chicken and lightly sear. It does not have to be fully cooked through. Add in all remaining ingredients except the rice. Bring to a boil. Stir in the rice. Put a lid on the pot and reduce the heat to low/simmer. Cook about 20 minutes, until the rice is done.

Variations: 

*Just use one meat if you want. Just chicken or just sausage is great.

*This is also wonderful with shrimp!

*In China, if I'm using sausage, I like using this Cajun-style sausage I get stuffed at markets in the winter.

Cajun Red Beans and Rice

For an expat, the question of "home" gets tricky. I was just thinking as I sat to write up this recipe that I've lived more of my life as an expat than I have in my passport country. I was going to start this by saying we call Louisiana home in the US. But we don't... We come from Louisiana, maybe? But I don't actually...just married in. My home is here. This place in China at this time. My kids don't really identify with anywhere in the US when they think of "home." But there is a whole lot of back story that brought me to now. There is a whole lot of southern US and western Africa and Asia that has influenced who I am and how I cook. Cajun food has become a bigger part of the picture too; as I said I married into that one. But you won't hear my husband say we're going "home" when we visit Louisiana. I think the Chinese for this is actually the perfect word--Louisiana is his 老家 (lao jia). Literally "old home." But the meaning is far deeper. Its where your family is from, maybe even where you grew up. It influences your story and who you are, but you are somewhere different now. I love making sure our family gets a taste of Louisiana culture here and there. We all know how to enjoy a good Mardi Gras parade and eat Cajun food at least. This red beans recipe is nothing pretty to look at, but it tastes great. I especially love making it in winter when I've been able to go to the local markets and get a Cajun sausage stuffed into casings. This has been one of our best china cooking hacks! But even meatless, this meal is good! Its pretty adaptable on the method--I usually do the slow cooker, but I'll tell you how to do it stovetop and you could easily do a pressure cooker too. Hope you enjoy!

Cajun Red Beans and Rice
1 lb (or 500g) dry kidney beans, washed
1 medium onion
1 medium green bell pepper
3 stalks of celery
1/2 head of garlic cloves, peeled
3 cups chicken stock
3 cups water
1/4 cup red wine, opt (or omit wine and sub a 12 oz beer for part of the water! An amber lager is my favorite.)
2 bay leaves
2 tsp cajun seasoning
1 tsp salt
~1 lb sliced andouille or cajun style sausage

In a blender, puree onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic along with the 3 cups of water. Pour this mixture into a slow cooker and add the dry beans, chicken stock, wine (if using), and bay leaves. Cook this on high for about 7-8 hours. You will need to check it after about 6 to see if you need to add extra water--even up to 2 cups. You can always cut the temperature to low as well. Once beans have softened, about 30-60 minutes before serving, stir in the salt and cajun seasoning. Adjust to taste from there. You can stir in sausage at this time as well. Serve over hot rice and enjoy!

Stovetop method: Presoak the beans overnight, then follow recipe accordingly. It will take it 2-3 hours to cook on the stove, covered and over a low heat.

Notes: You can use the slow cooker with soaked beans as well--maybe only need 6 hours on low if the beans have been soaked. You'll just have to watch liquid and know how your slow cooker does with other recipes. They aren't all created equal!

A good Louisiana native would simmer the beans with a leftover ham bone! I've tried that, but thanks to the hacking nature of butcher shops here, we ended up with a lot of bone chips in the sauce. 

All Things Pumpkin Spice

Its our first rainy, cool day of fall. I've been thinking for a few weeks that I was ready to roast some pumpkin for baking with. I bought a big Chinese pumpkin/squash (南瓜）last night and got it in the oven first thing this morning. It roasted in an hour or two and I quickly pureed it and got started. I chose Pumpkin Butter first. It is perfect for biscuits, toast, and bagels. My son dipped apples in it today. I had to follow the pumpkin butter with bagels. I even tried a batch of bagels substituting 1/2 cup of water with 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree and adding 2 teaspoons of Turmeric Twist, my current favorite spice blend from iHerb. Its a sweet blend of turmeric, cinnamon, and other chai type spices. The savory blend is equally amazing. You could also do about 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.

While I had a Vitamix full of pumpkin puree I decided to task a kid with making pumpkin bread. And if they kids make it, you can guarantee it will have chocolate chips added in. By this point I decided we should go all in and make some pumpkin spice syrup so I could have a latte too. My house has had all the wonderful smells today. And I still have about 1 cup of puree I could make something else with. Granola maybe? I haven't decided. But for today, my work is done. Just wanted to leave you with some inspiration for your own pumpkin spice making and baking and fall creations.

Start with making Pumpkin Puree. My nearly 4 kg pumpkin cost less than 8 rmb.

Try some of these:
Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin Spice Granola
Pumpkin Spice Syrup for lattes or drizzling on about anything!
Pumpkin Butter 
Pumpkin Spiced Doughnut Muffins
Caramel Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Doughnuts
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bars
Pumpkin Creme Caramel

These are the Chinese 南瓜 (nan gua) which I have always used. Pumpkins as we'd know from the US are harder to find and often only in more rural areas in the fall, but these are available year round. They work great for pumpkin puree. 

Bosnian Cabbage Slaw

I love how our meals and food favorites are being influenced by The Balkans since my sister lives there. My kids love cherry or strawberry Slatko more than jelly and beg me to make it when those fruits are in season. On my mom's most recent visit, she made a Bosnian cabbage slaw to go with one of our meals. She'd had it during her Sarajevo visits and had been making it some at home. It's about the most simple thing in the world to throw together. I like it so much more than a mayo-based slaw. We've recently been making the following version anytime we have BBQ sandwiches. Its a wonderful side dish or even as a topping on the sandwich. Enjoy! 

Bosnian Cabbage Slaw

400-450g (~1 lb) shredded cabbage

2 Tbs chopped green onion, optional 

--

3 Tbs vinegar, cider or white

1 Tbs water

1 Tbs olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp coarse ground black pepper

Prepare cabbage by chopping, slicing, or grating and pace in a bowl. Add onions if using. In a small bowl, mix the dressing ingredients together. Pour over the cabbage and mix well. Enjoy! 

*This works with regular or purple cabbage. I usually use cider vinegar but white vinegar also works. 

Quick-Pickled Purple Onions

These quick-pickled purple onions are an even simpler version of a recipe my sister shared with me from The Kitchn. We make them just about any time we do Middle Eastern wraps with shish taouk or shawarma chicken, or even just veggies and hummus. They add a wonderful flavor. And believe it or not, even most of my kids love them!

Quick-Pickled Purple Onions
1 large purple onion
~3/4-1 cup vinegar (rice, cider, white wine, or white all work)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 garlic cloves
a few whole or cracked peppercorns, optional

Begin by peeling the onion, cutting it in half, then slicing the halves into about 1/4 inch slices. Place all these in a strainer and pour hot water over them. Place all the onion slices into a jar with sugar, salt, garlic cloves and any other spices you might want to throw in (peppercorns, allspice berries, celery seed are all options). Pour the vinegar into the jar until the onions are covered. Place a lid on and gently turn upside down and right side up to mix a bit. Allow onions to sit about 30 minutes before using. Can be stored in the fridge for a month or more.  Enjoy!

*I often use rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar in mine--or mix one of them with white vinegar. The specialty vinegars will lend a nicer flavor than just plain white vinegar, but its fine if that's all you can get. My large onion can usually fit in a repurposed 16oz/450g jar.

Bacon, Cheddar & Green Onion Scones

Hands down. These are one of my favorite things. A few years ago I met a friend for breakfast at a local coffee shop in Louisiana. They had a version of these savory breakfast scones using bacon, cheddar and chive (apparently that's not the same as a green onion, but oh well). I decided I could make them just as well on my own. So I've adapted a recipe from King Arthur Flour just a bit. We make these for breakfast and brunch using bacon, but we also like just making them as a bread side to go with dinner using only the cheddar and green onion. They are perfectly tender and fluffy! We love them. And in case you didn't know, we love all things yeti and all thing bike, so this towel from my friend Mary is beyond perfect for my family. In fact many of our yeti and bike gifts come from her. She has a gift for finding cool stuff. Enjoy, my friends!

Bacon, Cheddar & Green Onion Scones
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp sugar
70g (or 5 Tbs) butter
1/3-1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 cup chopped green onion
2-3 slices of cooked bacon, crumbled (opt)
3/4 cup whipping cream and whole milk*

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Cut in cold butter using a pastry blender or two knives (you can also grate it in) until butter is uniformly cut in and resembles course sand.  This can be done in a stand mixer as well. Stir in grated cheese, green onion, and bacon. Add cream/milk mixture until it all comes together and is slightly sticky. You may or may not quite use the full 3/4 cup. Dump out onto a floured surface. Pat into a circle about 1/2-3/4 inch thick. Cut like a pie or pizza into 8 triangles. Place on a Silpat or parchment lined baking pan. Separate the triangles so they have room to rise as they bake. Bake at 425F (220C) for about 20 minutes, until risen and tops lightly browned. Enjoy!

And for my southern American friends, yes, scone is just a fancy way of saying biscuit. I often cut them out with my biscuit cutter as well. Or cut them into a big grid of squares for more bite-sized. Any which way works!

*The original recipe calls for all whipping cream. I cut it back to about 1/3 cup cream and the rest whole milk with no problem. I also sometimes use a mix of plain yogurt and milk. It works well too!

Cajun Chicken and Veggie Pasta

This Cajun chicken and veggie pasta has been a go-to family favorite for many years now. Its quite a bit different than the other Cajun Chicken Pasta already on this blog. That was has a LOT of whipping cream and is more of an Alfredo-esque sauce. This one is much lighter and packed with a rainbow of veggies. And while we don't eat this too often, it is much more reflective of how our family chooses to eat now than 5 years ago when I posted that other recipe! Its fun how we change and grow. Hope you'll enjoy this one like we do! Add a salad and French bread and its even more awesome.

Cajun Chicken and Veggie Pasta
250g pasta--linguine, spaghetti, penne, rotini, shells--they all work!
2 large chicken breasts, sliced thinly
1 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning (Tony Chachere's is best, or make your own)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 Tbs olive oil
Half of one red onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 small head broccoli, chopped to bite size
1 tomato, deseeded and chopped
2-3 Tbs finely chopped green onion
~1/8 tsp salt
~1/8 tsp black pepper
1 cup chicken broth*
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 Tbs flour
Parmesan Cheese, optional

Begin by prepping all the veggies and set aside. Slice the chicken breasts and sprinkle them with the Cajun seasoning and also set aside. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and prepare the pasta according to package directions.

Heat about 1/2 Tbs olive oil in a large skillet. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and garlic. Cook through and remove from skillet--let chicken sit on a plate. Add another 1/2 Tbs or so of olive oil into the skillet. Add red onion, bell pepper, and broccoli. Allow to cook a few minutes until starting to become slightly tender. Add tomato and sprinkle all the veggies with the salt and pepper. Stir the flour into the veggies. Add whipping cream and chicken broth. The flour on the veggies will make it slightly thicken. Add the chicken and an juices it collected on the plate back in. Cook until sauce is hot, thick, and just coming to a boil. All of this really moves fairly quickly--especially if you are like me and don't like overcooked broccoli!  Drain pasta and toss it all together along with green onions and parmesan if you are using. Add extra Cajun seasoning to taste-- I almost always add a little more! Add salt if it needs something but you don't want the added spice from the Cajun seasoning. Enjoy!

* Substitute 1/3-1/2 cup of chicken stock with white wine for a nice flavor! 

* You can also make this with shrimp instead of chicken and it's wonderful!! 

Brown Sugar Mustard Glaze for Baked Ham

Easter is almost here, and I'm on my way to the market today to buy our hams for curing this coming week. This is such a simple process and costs far less than buying hams from Ikea or Metro (where I live) or going without. For several years, when serving sliced ham as the main meat at a meal, I used this glaze. Then maybe last year sometime I made it, had it cooking on the stove, forgot about it, and nearly burned down my kitchen. I didn't have more pineapple to make it again, so I ended up scrambling a bit and finding this mustard brown sugar glaze on the Food Network as an alternative. I think I like it better. So, try either one on your hams and see what you think! Here is a whole list of ideas for your Easter dinner this year!

Brown Sugar Mustard Glaze for Baked Ham
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup Dijon or grain mustard, any type will do--even yellow in a pinch
2 Tbs Cider or white vinegar
1/8 tsp ground cloves

Whisk together the ingredients. You can drizzle this over whole hams at the end of the baking or when you reheat them, or you can also slice your hams onto a platter and drizzle this all over them. It really just comes down to how much you want of it on your meat. This works best over hot hams so that the glaze heats and spreads over them. 

Thai Khao Soi

Ah, Chinese New Year trips to Thailand and warm, sunny beaches. I only wish that were true for me this year!  Instead I'll be here in the dreary, cold, polluted air. So thankful for my friend, Anita, who is guest posting one of my absolute favorite Thai dishes today! 

Our family has spent a lot of time in Thailand over the years since we began living overseas. It’s basically like a getaway and retreat for us. You could even go so far as to say it’s our second home! We love the weather, the culture, the wildlife, and the landscape. And of course, the food. One of our favorite Thai meals to eat is Khao Soi (or coconut curry noodle soup), which originates from northern Thailand. There’s a quaint guesthouse that we stayed at when our boys were born (on two separate occasions). The ladies in the kitchen learned that we loved it so much that they offered to teach me how to make it. Like any good Asian grandmother’s recipe, they didn’t measure out proportions and so I had to guess, eyeball, and quickly scribble down the recipe as they were making it. It was so much fun. It’s been nice to be able to take this recipe back home and make it in my own kitchen. I’ve since adapted the recipe according to our family’s tastes so here are some rough proportions for you to go on. I hope that as you make this you will consider channeling your inner Thai grandma and feel the freedom to adapt the amounts according to your tastes and what you have on hand. Have fun and enjoy!

Khao Soi (Thai Chicken Coconut Curry Noodle Soup)

Yield: about 8 to 10 servings 

2  (400-ml) cans coconut milk

1 L  (about 4 cups) water

4 ½ Tbs curry powder

½ tsp Thai chili powder (or cayenne pepper), to taste

1 ½ tsp salt (to taste)*

1 to 2  Tbs chicken bouillon (to taste)*

2  Tbs sugar (to taste)

½ to 1 kg chicken breasts, thinly sliced into bite-size pieces (I usually use 4 chicken breasts)

~3 lbs fresh egg noodles 

Chili Sauce

Hot oil (for frying noodles)

Red pepper flakes, about 2 to 3 Tbs (plus roughly 1/2 to 1 tsp sesame seeds, optional)

Garnishes

Cilantro, minced

Green onion, minced

Limes (or lemons), cut into wedges

Sugar

Heat a Dutch oven on med heat; add about a ½ can of coconut milk.   Add curry powder, Thai chili powder (cayenne pepper), salt, and chicken bouillon.  Stir together until fragrant.  Add chicken pieces; cook until no longer pink, stirring frequently.  Add the rest of the coconut milk, water, and sugar.  (You could also do less coconut milk and more water.)  Bring to a boil; lower heat and simmer until meat is tender. 

Heat oil in a wok on high heat (about 2-3 inches deep) until extremely hot; gather 3 handfuls (about half a pound) of the fresh noodles and deep-fry them in the wok, one bunch at a time, for about 3 minutes or just until slightly golden brown (flip them over about halfway through). (You can do a test noodle first to make sure it’s hot enough. Don’t let them get too dark brown or they will taste burnt even if they don’t look burnt.) Use a slotted spoon to ladle them out and drain on a plate covered with paper towels.

Put a few tablespoons of red pepper flakes in a heat-safe bowl (and sesame seeds too if you want).  Pour a small ladle of hot oil over top (the oil that you used from frying noodles - do this while the oil is still hot!). It will sizzle nicely. This will be your hot chili sauce.

Cook remaining fresh noodles in boiling water for about 2-3 minutes (they cook pretty fast!), then drain in a colander and rinse with cold water so they don’t stay clumped together in a massive heap.   

To serve, put soft noodles into bowls and ladle soup on top.  Add crunchy fried noodles, and garnish with chopped cilantro and green onion, a squeeze of lime, hot chili sauce, and sugar.  Enjoy!

*You can interchange salt for chicken bouillon or vice versa depending on your preference.

Mint Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes

So I had a pack of chopped up Andes mints in my freezer. Do you have things like that? Things you forget you have that someone sent you in a package? Or maybe you've been hoarding it. Christmas is the perfect time to use up your chocolate stash, right? I decided to use some of those Andes mint bits to top a last minute variation of my easy, cheater cheesecake in a bite size for a party. They turned great and my kids loved them. The mint and the green were perfect for Christmas! Maybe you have a party you can take these to?

Mint Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes

2 8oz packages cream cheese (450g), softened
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar

3/4-1 tsp mint extract

green food coloring (opt)1 recipe chocolate pie crust*

Chopped Andes Mints (or mini chocolate chips?)

Press the Oreo crust into a 9 inch pie plate or into 12 regular sized muffin cups or about 36 mini muffin cups (I love making these smaller sized!). In a large bowl, cream together cream cheese, sugar, and eggs. Add mint extract and the green food color to make the batter a nice minty green. Pour mixture over Oreo crust. Bake at 325F (160C) for 30 to 35 minutes until set (less time for muffin sized). Remove from oven to cool. Sprinkle on chopped candy bits or chocolate chips when still slightly warm--press in slightly. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

*I probably used about 20 Oreos and maybe only 2-3 Tbs of butter for my crust. 

Variation--If you are making regular sized muffin cups, why crush Oreos and melt butter at all?? Just put a whole Oreo in the bottom of each muffin liner. It makes a perfect little crust on the bottom without all the fuss! 

**FYI packs of Andes mints are found easily and cheaply on Taobao, China people. Just search "Andes." 

Homemade Chili

Our days are cooler and drearier. Even when the sun is peaking out, the haze mutes it. I wake up every morning and check the air quality--only to be disappointed its not good enough for me to go for a run. When did I become this person?! I don't even really like running, why am I disappointed I can't go?! But chili? Chili is comforting on a dreary day. I've been working on this recipe for years to get it how we like it. It doesn't take a pretty picture in that winter grey light at dinnertime, but it sure does taste good. How do you like yours? With rice or cornbread or Fritos?

Chili
500g (~1 lb) ground beef
250g (~1/2 lb)bulk Italian sausage (any casings removed)
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 tomatoes, pureed (28 oz can)
3/4 cup tomato paste (6 oz can)
1 cup water *
1 Tbs chili powder
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbs diced jalapeno (opt)
2-3 cups prepared kidney beans (1-2 cans)

*Omit 1/2 of the water and use some salsa instead!

Prepare kidney beans ahead of time if you are using dried beans.

Begin by browning the ground beef, sausage, onion and garlic (you can use all beef if you prefer). Drain of any excess grease. Add in all remaining ingredients. Cover and allow to simmer at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, on the stove top. You can also let it simmer on low in a crockpot for 3-4 hours. Add extra water if you want it soupier.

*If you are using canned ingredients, you might want to start with less salt and then adjust it as needed--most canned items already contain salt. These measurements are based on using fresh tomatoes and dried beans I've prepped myself.

Serve with cornbread, over rice or topped with Fritos or corn chips and cheese! Enjoy!

iHerb Discount!

I know its been a month of deal shopping for all us China expats. 11-11, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and 12-12 is still coming up! I noticed today that iHerb is running a great deal through 10am PST on November 30th--which is actually mid-day on Friday for us in China!

https://www.iherb.com/?rcode=VKW965

Follow this link to to get 10% off your order,. You'll also gift me 10% as well! Its #givingTuesday, so why not?! And for orders over $40 you generally get free shipping to China, with some exceptions.

What are your iHerb favorites?

I love Peanut Butter and Co peanut butter, lots of Bob's Red Mill products--coconut, steel cut oats, whole grain flours, vitamins, Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day cleaning supplies, Clif Bars, Molasses, Nestle or Ghiradelli chocolate chips....

You can also plug my rewards code in during check out--VKW965.

Happy Shopping!

Snickerdoodle Cookies

When our oldest--who is nearly a teenager now (insert wide-eyed emoji here)--was little, I wanted to begin establishing Christmas season activities that we would go back to every year. My husband and I figured out how to use a Jesse Tree before Jesse Trees were cool. There were no resources readily available 10 years ago so we created our own. We continue to use our own even though there are so many out there now--please feel free to contact me about how we do that if you'd like to know more. Not all of us are as flowery and poetic as Ann Voskamp or as creative and crafty as Pinterest would have us believe we should be (insert woman with her hand raised emoji here). But teaching our kids? Yes, that's important, and we embrace simplicity and our own tendencies and gifts in that. But back to the food side of this, because that's what you came for right? I decided I wanted there to be a few foods that were part of our Christmas preparation and celebrations. Ones the kids just knew would be there and that they looked forward to. Ten years into this, and I think we've accomplished it. My kids know to expect that when we decorate the Christmas tree there will be Snickerdoodle cookies and hot chocolate in Christmas mugs. In fact they volunteered to get it all ready this year! I chose Snickerdoodles because I wanted the house to smell like cinnamon as we decorated. I only make them once a year! My kids also know to expect this breakfast casserole every Christmas morning. I make it the day before and it bakes while we open gifts. So these are just a couple of my tastes and smells of Christmas. What are yours?

Snickerdoodle Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp cream of tarter
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
--
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Cream together butter and sugars and until fluffy. Add in eggs and vanilla and mix well.  The dough will look a little separated. Add in the cream of tarter, soda, salt and flour. Blend well. *If your dough is not thick and easy to roll, place it in the fridge for half an hour to firm it up a bit. Meanwhile mix together 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Scoop or break off pieces about 1 Tablespoon in size. Roll gently into a ball. Roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar and then place them on the baking sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes. Be careful not to overbake.  Remove to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

*Cream of tarter and soda work together to give Snickerdoodles their unique, traditional taste. If you don't have the cream of tarter you can omit it and the soda and use 2 tsp baking powder.

A few years ago, I wrote this post about establishing holiday traditions in our expat homes on the Taking Route blog. While its about Thanksgiving, the same is true of Christmas. You might enjoy reading it! 

Taking Route Podcast Episode!

Would you believe that I got interviewed for the Taking Route podcast? I sort of find it hard to believe. I've listened to most of the other episodes these ladies have done and the women they are interviewing have some great stories, lives, experiences, and passions to share. It sure is fun to be a part of encouraging other expats to live healthy lives wherever it is they are at. I hope you'll take time to listen, but also to subscribe to this podcast so you can listen to more than just me! This Global Life isn't easy. Be encouraged as you listen to others and figure out what works for you where you are at--to go deep in the culture around you, love people well, and stay healthy in the process!

Listen to the whole podcast in one of these ways:

Taking Route Blog

iTunes

Stitcher

Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread

I know, I know. There are already like 3 banana bread recipes on Market to Meal! But, oh friends, you know I like to meddle with good things. This is just one more example of that which turned out for equal goodness rather than doom! I think I mentioned that I've been ordering Bob's Red Mill coconut from iHerb. If you live in China (and likely many other countries in Asia) you should really check it out--they have very reasonable if not free shipping. And even better, if you order, please use my rewards code VKW965 to give yourself and me 5% on orders! iHerb plug over. Back to banana bread. This is just a simple variation on our go-to banana bread usually made by my kids. Our favorite recipe is all butter-based and while amazing as it is, the oil one is slightly easier on the budget and really quite good, too. So if you've got plenty of shredded coconut around, give this one a try!

Chocolate Coconut Banana Bread

1 ½ cups flour

½ cup shredded coconut

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ cup chocolate chips (opt)

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

½ cup oil

3 medium sized ripe bananas

½ tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9x5 in loaf pan or two 7x3 in pans; set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, coconut, baking powder, baking soda, salt; set aside. In another mixing bowl, beat eggs until light and frothy. Add sugar and oil, mixing well. Beat in the mushy bananas and extract. (Note: you can pre-mash the banana or you can just break into the bowl and let the mixer do the work, which is what I prefer to do) Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture along with chocolate chips and stir just to combine. Do not over mix. Spoon into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before removing from pan. Cool on wire rack. Wrap tightly to store. 

Note:  Banana Bread works wonderfully with alternative flours! You can use part oat or wheat flour. Or you can even make it gluten free by using all buckwheat flour with excellent results! 

Basil & Balsamic Orzo Salad

This recipe has by far been one of my favorite summer side dishes for a couple of years now. Last year I successfully kept a little bit of basil going in a pot on my roof. This year, I planted seeds and then they actually grew without me doing much. Thank goodness! Because if I try very hard I just kill plants. We really aren't gardeners, but we try to keep mint alive for putting in sweet tea, and I really love having a basil plant. I like being able to add leaves to sauces and soups or sprinkle some on pizza. And I really love this pasta salad, which pretty much NEEDS the fresh basil. I adapted the recipe from here--hope you enjoy it as you hold on to a few more summer days! 

Basil & Balsamic Orzo Salad

250g orzo pasta (or other smallish pasta choice)

~15 mini grape tomatoes, sliced in half

mozzarella cheese, cut in small cubes OR fresh grated parmesan cheese

handful of fresh basil leaves, cut

Balsamic Dressing

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tsp honey

2 tsp Dijon mustard (I've also used yellow mustard, whole grain, and Creole--all work!)

1 clove garlic, finely minced

1/2 tsp salt

~1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions in lightly salted water. Meanwhile mix together your dressing in a small jar. Drain pasta and place in a bowl. Cool slightly. While still warm, toss with about half the dressing and put in fridge to chill. Just prior to serving, add tomatoes, cheese, basil and as much of the remaining dressing as you'd like and toss it all together. I usually use all of it. Serve cold! 

Notes: I just put as much diced mozzarella or tomatoes as I want and looks about right mixed in the pasta. Same with the basil. I've also used about 1/3 cup grated parmesan instead of the mozzarella bits with tasty results!