Asian Salad

I first had this salad many moons ago at a Christmas brunch at a friend's house.  I asked for the recipe and she shared.  I have since made this salad for many a get-together and at almost every one of those get-togethers, I have been asked for the recipe as well.  Most recently, I made it for a cub scout function and was again asked for the recipe.  My husband was ready to tell the mom about this blog, but I had to interrupt to tell him it wasn't on here yet.  He looked genuinely shocked.  The fact is, I have made it a thousand times, but each time, I forget to take a picture of the final product before we zip out of the house or before people arrive at our house.  So, one day, I will add a finished product picture to this page, but in the meantime, it is about time it got posted!  Enjoy!  (And be ready to share the recipe!)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 head of celery cabbage (I often substitute Romaine and have most recently been using spinach)
• 3-4 green onions, chopped
• 1 package Ramen noodles (broken)
• 1 bag of sweet glazed Almond Accents (there are often newspaper coupons for these)

dressing

• 1/2 c balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 c vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix all dressing ingredients and allow to sit for best results.
2. Mix greens.  Add Ramen noodles, almonds, and dressing right before serving.

Difficulty: very easy

Time: 15 minutes

Source: A friend from aerobics many years ago

Asian Turkey and Veggie Lettuce Wraps

My love affair with lettuce wraps began when I spent some time in South Korea in college.  While there, we would go to restaurants where the meat was cooked right at the table and was served with many wonderful Korean side dishes, rice, and leaves of greens.  It took me a bit to figure out the process, but through observation, I realized what to do - get the piece of lettuce, add some meat, some rice, some toppings and maybe some sauce, fold it all up and pop it in your mouth.  Amazing.  Ever since, I have loved lettuce wraps of all kinds.  This recipe is a very simple one, with the veggies and meat and sauce all cooked together so that there is only one final step at the table - fill the lettuce leaf  - and then enjoy!!

INGREDIENTS:

• ground turkey (~1.5 lb)
• carrot
• red pepper
• mushrooms
• green onion
• 1 cup (cooked) quinoa 
• 2 Tbs Hoisen Sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• Romaine lettuce leaves

DIRECTIONS:

1. Begin cooking quinoa. (I usually add 1 cup uncooked, rinsed quinoa to 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  This makes much more than the recipe needs, but I always have a use for leftover quinoa.)
2. Finely dice veggies (or use a chopper), keeping mushrooms separate.
3. In a small amount of olive oil, saute carrot, red pepper, green onion until beginning to soften.  Add mushrooms and saute a few minutes more.  
4. Add 1/4 cup soy sauce to the veggies, allow to simmer for 5 minutes.  Transfer veggies to a bowl.
5. In same skillet, brown ground turkey.  Once browned, add cooked veggies and 2 Tbsp Hoisen Sauce; mix.  Add 1 cup cooked quinoa; mix well.
6. Serve wrapped in Romain leaves.

Difficulty: medium (the dicing)

Time: 35 minutes

Source: my kitchen experiments

Chicken and Egg Fried Rice

I received the April issue of Parents magazine mid-March and was excited to see an awesome selection of recipes to try.  This one was top on my list as something that I knew my kids would enjoy and since I have been making a lot of pasta dishes lately, it helped me get a bit of variety into the rotation.  I made a couple of slight changes to the recipe as it was written, and I was right - my kids devoured it.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp plus 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 cups cooked brown rice (I used an Uncle Ben's packet that took 90 seconds in the microwave)
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and 1 tsp of the soy sauce.  Set aside.
2. Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium high.  Add carrots and cook 2 minutes.  Add chicken; cook and stir until chicken no longer pink - about 3 minutes.
3. Mix in rice and remaining soy sauce; cook and stir for about 2-4 minutes or until heated through.
4. Add green onions and then move chicken and rice mixture to one side of pan.  Pour sesame oil into the other side of the pan.  Allow to heat and then pour egg mixture in with the sesame oil.  Allow to cook without stirring until beginning to set; then stir gently until completely set.  Mix the eggs in with the rice and chicken.

Difficulty: easy to medium

Time: 25 minutes

Source: modified slightly from a recipe in Parents magazine, April 2014