A Pad Thai Noodle Number

Now that you've got Ramen noodles down, try this - just a tiny bit more complicated - but still done in under half an hour.  The quintessential Asian noodle dish - Pad Thai from Thailand.  Add veggies like broccoli or bok choy to the soaking noodles for  great greens and variety.
8 oz wide Thai rice noodles

1 large weet onion, sliced
1 jalapeño or red chili, thinly sliced

Sauce:
1/3 cup thai sweet sauce
1 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 Tbsp Nam Pla fish sauce
juice of 1/2 lime, about 1/4 cup
1 Tbsp sesame oil

2 green onions, sliced
2 cups cooked shredded chicken breast, or equivalent

lime wedges
1-2 Tbsp crushed peanuts

Drop the noodles into 4 cups boiling water. Remove from the heat and stir gently. Allow the noodles to hydrate, stirring every once in a while. After about 7-8 minutes, when the noodles are soft, drain well. Then toss with a dash of canola oil in a medium bowl.

Get the onions sautéing in a large skillet in a bit of canola oil. Add the jalapeño peppers and cook for about 5 minutes, to just begin to soften.

Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Toss the chicken and half the green onions into the pan and toss with the veggies.

Add the noodles and the sauce, and gently fold together to heat everything through.

Tip into four serving bowls and garnish with remaining green onions, lime wedges, and peanuts if desired.

Serves 4.

Cook’s Note: I used rice and blue corn noodles from Thai kitchens for a colorful change. You can substitute shrimp or tofu for the chicken if you prefer.

Pain Perdu Casserole

Take it from the French - never discard old bread - bake it into a nice casserole!
1 lb ciabatta or other bread loaf, 1 day old, cubed 1-inch, 8 cups
1 brick extra firm tofu, cut into small cubes
2 leeks
2 cloves garlic
5 oz mixed greens
10 oz mushrooms, sliced
2 tsp fresh lemon thyme, chopped (or 1/2 tsp dried)

1/2 lb Gruyere or Jarlesburg cheese, grated

8 eggs
7 oz creme fraiche or sour cream
2 cups half and half
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
dash crushed red pepper flakes
about 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1 tsp dried dill weed

Preheat oven to 350F.

Sauté the mushrooms in a dash of olive oil, over high heat without stirring until they give up some of their water. Stir and cook until the mushrooms are browned and have released what water they will. Set aside.

In the same skillet, sauté the leek in a dash of olive oil and 2 Tablespoons water. Cook until the water is evaporated. Add the garlic and cook another 3-5 minutes, until the leeks are soft and the garlic is fragrant. Add the greens and stir fry until they wilt and release their water. Simmer to dry the greens out, about 5 minutes.

Grease one 9x13-inch casserole or two smaller ones. Lay half the bread and all the tofu on the bottom of the casserole.

Scatter the greens, mushrooms and half the Gruyere cheese on top.

Cover with the remaining bread cubes and Gruyere cheese.

Whisk together the eggs, creme fraiche, half and half, Parmesan, red pepper flakes, nutmeg and dill. Season with a dash of salt and black pepper. Pour egg mixture evenly over the bread mixture. Shake the casserole to distribute everything evenly.

Cover with plastic wrap and allow the bread to soak up the liquid for at least an hour, or even better, overnight in the refrigerator.

Remove casserole from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Spray bread cubes lightly with a just bit of oil. Bake for about 50-60 minutes, until the custard is well set and the bread cubes are nicely browned.

Serves 6-8.

Rigatoni with Artichoke Bolognese

Love it.
1 lb grass fed ground beef
1 onion diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp Herbes do Provence, or Italian herbs
2 Tbsp tomato paste

1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup white wine
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 large jar marinated artichoke quarters, drained
1/2 cup frozen peas

1 lb rigatoni

grated Parmesan cheese
fresh parsley leaves, minced

Sauté ground beef over high heat in a large skillet until beginning to brown, about 5-8 minutes.

Add onion and cook another 5-8 minutes to soften onions and allow them to begin to color. Add the garlic and herbs and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for another 3-5 minutes to color the paste and develop its flavor.

Add the tomatoes, wine and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a gentle bubble. Add the artichokes and simmer for about 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, set about 3 quarts salted water in a pot to a boil. Cook pasta until just al dente. Drain and keep warm.

Add the peas to the Bolognese sauce and heat through.

Plate the hot pasta and top with some Bolognese sauce. Garnish with Parmesan and parsley.

Serves 6-8.

Shrimp and Flounder Quiche

In the summer you may go to the Sea - enjoy and eat from what is fresh.  You can substitute what you find at the fish monger here, and enjoy the best of the coast in a classic, simple quiche.
1 5-oz package (6 cups) baby kale leaves
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 leek, trimmed, washed and sliced

1/2 recipe hazelut crust, or other prepared pie crust

4 eggs
1 cup heavy cream

1/2 lb flounder fillet, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 lb shrimp, shelled and cut into 2-3 pieces

1/8 lb feta cheese
1/8 lb pepper jack, or other favorite cheese

2 Tbsp fresh parsley flakes, minced

Preheat oven to 425F. Toss the leek, a pad of butter, a dash of olive oil and a splash or water into a skillet. Saute the leek until the water evaporates and the leek begins to sizzle in the butter. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Add the kale, and cook another 5-8 minutes, until all the kale has wilted and cooked down. Add the garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes.

Meanwhile, roll out the crust, dusting with flour to avoid sticking, and lay over a very well-buttered shallow quiche pan.

Whisk together the eggs and cream. Lay the cooked kale and leek on the crust. Then scatter on the flounder and shrimp.

Scatter with the cheeses. Now pour the egg mixture over all and scatter parsley on top.

Bake quiche at 425 for 40 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 and continue cooking another 20 minutes, until well browned and set.

Remove from oven. Allow to cool 10 minutes. Slice and serve.

Serves 4.

Ramen Noodles with Cajun Andoille Sausage

True to my enthusiasm for foreign influences and unlikely combinations, I combine the wonder of Asian Ramen noodles in minutes, with the joy of fresh veggies, and the jazz of American Cajun Andouille sausage.

Drink up your Hurricane fast, because you will be eating before you you know it (and well before your room-mate’s take-out delivery ever gets delivered).
1-1/2 cup water
1 package dried Top Ramen noodles, slightly broken up - I used beef
4-inch section smoked Cajun Andouille sausage - I used Dartanion brand
1/3 orange pepper sliced
1-1/2 cups fresh baby spinach
2 Tbsp frozen peas
2 Tbsp frozen corn
dash sesame oil

Black (or golden roasted) sesame seeds for garnish, optional

Heat water to boiling in a medium pot. Add the dried noodles and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring every once in a while. Add the sausage, veggies, sesame oil and the contents of the spice flavor pack (or use 1 Tablespoon soy sauce).

Bring to a boil, toss gently but well (chop sticks work well!), and simmer for about another 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat when the noodles JUST become NEARLY tender to eat. Do not overcook, as the noodles will continue to cook in your bowl.

Tip into a bowl and garnish with sesame seeds (or not).

Serves 1.

Cook's Note:  I adore Ramen Noodles (and noodles in general), and love the fact they are quick,  But let's be honest - they're simple carb and nutritionally banal unless you doctor them up with some veggies and such.  Use what you have in the fridge and freezer and make them at least as much volume as the noodles.  Add some tofu, chicken, shrimp or really any protein you like to bump it as a full meal.

Below I use some leftover NY strip steak, some bok choy, cut up, and some frozen veggies on hand.  Delicious.

Grilled Eggplant Rolled with Fresh Ricotta Mozzarella and Sage

Fire up the summer grill for some eggplant and then roast with Italian wonders as fresh ricotta, tomato sauce and fresh herbs.  Hopefully your sage bush is going wild by now.
2 eggplants, cut into 5-6 slices, lengthwise
2 leeks, trimmed, cleaned and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb fresh ricotta
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1lb fresh mozzarella: 1/3 lb grated, 2/3 lb sliced

24 oz favorite tomato sauce
palmful fresh sage leaves, about 10
2 Tbsp fresh lemon thyme, minced
Crushed red pepper flakes

Heat grill. Slice both eggplants lengthwise into about 10-12 slices.

Lay them out on a sheet pan and brush them with olive oil. Grill eggplants about 4 minutes, brushing second side with some olive oil as well.

Flip and cook other side another 4 minutes, to brown them up and give nice grill marks. Return eggplant slices to the sheet pans when cooked.

Meanwhile sauté the leeks in a skillet with a tablespoon of oil and two tablespoons water. Cook until the water evaporates and the leeks begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook another two minutes.

Preheat oven to 375F. Stir together the leeks with the ricotta, parmesan and 1/3 lb grated mozzarella cheese.

Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Distribute the ricotta filling evenly among the eggplant slices, placing a dollop at the large base of each slice. Roll up each slice around the filling.

Pour the sauce into an oiled large 9x13-inch casserole or two smaller casseroles.

Nestle the eggplant rolls into the sauce. Place the remaining 2/3 lb mozzarella slices around the eggplant rolls. Scatter the sage, thyme and red pepper flakes on top of everything.

Bake for about 45 minutes, until brown and bubbly. Serves 4-6.

Roasted Cauliflower and Haricot Verts

Cauliflower pops when roasted - its sweetness is not boiled away, and the browning adds a sort of five o'clock shadow that gives an otherwise potentially wall-flower veggie, some real character and intrigue.

Pair with some thin haricot vert green beans for a super-quick and easy side dish that you don't have to worry much about as you go about the main dish.
3/4 lb thin (French) green beans, trimmed
3 cups cauliflower, cut into small floweretts
2 Tbsp olive oil
red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 400F. Tip the green beans with the cauliflower into a large bowl.

Toss with the oil and red pepper flakes. Season generously with coarse kosher or sea salt, and freshly ground pepper and toss well.

Tip veggies onto a rimmed baking sheet. 

Roast veggies for about 35-45 minutes, turning once or twice. Roast until the cauliflower begins to brown up nicely.

Serves 4 as a side.

Ginger Bourbon Pineapple Chicken Stir Fry

Fresh pineapple kicks up the earthy and spicy angles of a Chinese black bean sauce, bucked up with American Bourbon and Tabasco sauce. A simple, popular stir-fry kicked up a notch.
Sauce:
2 Tbsp Chinese black bean sauce or hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp ketchup
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Tbsp bourbon
1 Tbsp Tabasco or Texas Pete's hot sauce, or other favorite hot sauce
2 cloves garlic
1/2-inch piece fresh ginger

1 onion, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
3 stalks celery, sliced
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 fresh pineapple, cut into bite-sized cubes
palmful fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

Lesson number one from my old Chinese cooking teacher - get everything ready first!  Cut and assemble all the vegetables in a bowl.

Cut the chicken and set in a bowl. Prepare the sauce by sautéing the ginger and garlic in a bit of canola oil in a small saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, whisk together well, and set aside.

Heat a bit of canola oil in a wok, almost to smoking. Add the veggies and stir fry for 2-3 minutes, tossing often. Remove to a bowl. Add a dash more canola oil and return almost to smoking. Tip the chicken into the wok and stir fry for about 5 minutes, or just until the chicken is cooked through.

Add the sauce and return the veggies to the wok. Then tip in the pineapple and heat through, tossing gently.

Serve over rice, garnished with cilantro leaves. Serves 4.

Cook's Note: you could use most any of your favorite veggies for this, such as peppers, broccoli or cabbage.

Salmon Noodle Bowl with Braised Leek and Endive

Are you getting your Omega 3's?!  Eat salmon.

I know.  How many ways can I possibly prepare salmon while keeping my family's culinary interests peaked?

Easy, try this.  Salmon, noodles, poached veggies and herbs, bathed in a bowl of broth.  Any questions?
12 oz medium egg noodles

2 medium leeks, trimmed and cleaned, cut in half lengthwise and widthwise
2 Belgian endives, cut in half lengthwise
1 Tbsp butter plus 1 Tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, cut into 2-3 inch matchsticks
1 carrot shaved with a peeler
1 quart chicken broth
1-1/2 lb salmon fillet, skinned, cut into 4 serving portions
1/2 lb shrimp, cut in half
palmful fresh mint

Cook the noodles in plenty of salted water until just al dente. Drain and keep warm off the heat.
Brown the leeks and the endive, cut side down, in the butter and oil in a very large pan.

Remove veggies to a plate.

Now add the carrot and zucchini and brown them in a bit more butter.

Return the leek and endive to the pan and add half the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and cover.

Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the veggies are tender to the sharp tip of a knife.  Now nestle the salmon and shrimp into the veggies and dot with the mint.

Pour in the remaining chicken broth and return to a gentle boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook 5 more minutes.

Assemble to noodle bowl by laying down a bed of noodles in 4 or 5 wide soup bowls. Place a portion of the poached salmon, shrimp and veggies on top. Ladle about a cup of broth on top. Garnish with lemon slices, more fresh mint and toasted sesame seeds.

Serves 4-5.