magic spicy peanut sauce

Aww yeah, this is where the magic happens. 4 burners on a tiny electric stove in dark and tiny galley kitchen. I definitely dream of the time when I'll have a truly beautiful kitchen with a window, a dishwasher and a gas-powered stove. But this is what I've got. It ain't fancy and it certainly isn't a hindrance when it comes to cooking creatively.

Now what you are looking at may not look pretty, but boy oh boy, eating this made me feel like I unlocked some ancient life-changing secret. This is a peanut sauce and while I've made quite a few delicious peanut sauces, this one knocked my socks off. When I set out to make this sauce, I was just thinking of adding something simple to the tofu and veggie stirfry that I was making for dinner. An almost empty jar of peanut butter in the fridge held my attention. And while I didn't set out to re-create something magical, it just happened that way.

You see, there's a local unassuming Chinese restaurant in Vancouver called Szechuan Chongqing and they have a wonton dish in spicy peanut sauce that is my absolute most favorite thing to order. The sauce is spicy and peanutty and oh-so-perfect and never in my right mind did I think that I could create that kind of magic at home in my dingy little kitchen. But somehow this sauce was revelatory. It was just like the version I know and love. Better even, because my peanut sauce wasn't greasy like Chongquing's version. So toss this up a sauce to mix in with your stir fry or use as a dipping sauce with chicken or tofu. Or go all out and use as a sauce for some pork-filled wontons and let the magic happen to you.

magic spicy peanut sauce
3 T chunky natural peanut butter
1 T sriracha
juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 c water + more
2 T chili garlic sauce
2 T honey
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1 T soy sauce

In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients over med-high, adding extra water by the tablespoon when or if it gets to thick. Don't use sparingly.

the magical mysterious chimichurri sauce and 2 easy recipes

I've been wanting to try a chimichurri sauce for a while now. From what I had read, it's a traditional Argentinian sauce and marinade for grilled meats, but is used in many Latin American countries. It's traditionally made with parsley or cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, onion and paprika with a huge glug of olive oil thrown in for good measure. I decided to try my luck with this sauce since I had a very nice looking grass-fed and organic slab o' rib eye in the fridge. But I didn't want to only try it out with meat. Surely, this chimichurri would be great as a salad dressing too! So I improvised with what I had and made a very delicious and maybe not so traditional take on this Argentinian classic.

The sauce itself was really easy to prepare. I just gathered the ingredients together and whizzed them up with my immesion blender. In less than a minute, I had a heavenly scented sauce that tasted like the heat of summer. It's a really fresh-tasting condiment that tastes as green as it looks (in a very, very good way!)

chimichurri sauce
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro
4 cloves garlic
1 hot pepper, de-seeded
lemon zest & juice of 1/2 lemon
large pinch of salt
1 - 3 large glugs of olive oil
1 shallot, roughly chopped
water, if needed to thin things out

Whizzz up all ingredients in a blender. Taste and adjust seasonings & measurements if necessary. Done. Makes almost a cup of sauce.

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So while the main reason for the making of the chimichurri was as a marinade and sauce for the steak, I had sauce left over and decided that it would make perfect salad dressing. I was right. Once, the dressing is prepared, the rest of the salad is a breeze. I decided to peel the carrot into ribbons and it was a nice touch, though you could easily dice them for a different texture.

chimichurri chickpea salad
1 can of chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1 carrot, peeled into ribbons
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/2 spicy red pepper, minced & deseeded
1/4 c chimichurri sauce (recipe above)

Mix up all the ingredients and serve in a pretty dish. Serves 4. Easy.

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Okay, now for the main event! If you are a meat-lover, bask in this meaty love, please. If you are not, there's a reason I stuck this at the end of the post! Avert your eyeballs! The secret to a good steak? Start with a good steak! Really, don't buy some cheap-ass cut from your supermarket. Splurge and get one really nice steak, grass-fed organic if you can afford it. You really don't need a steak each...just share one steak. Trust me, with some wine, a nice loaf of bread and a salad, you've got a perfect meal and no one will want for more. But back to the chimichurri sauce for one last time...the quick marinade packs a punch. Reserve some of it to serve as a sauce to drizzle over top. You won't regret it.

chimichurri rib-eye steak
1 T butter
1 rib eye organic grass-fed steak (or other fine cut)
1/4 c chimichurri sauce (recipe above) + extra for serving

Slather sauce over rib eye and let sit for a few minutes. Heat up butter in a cast iron pan. When it's good and bubbly, add steak. Cook on 1 side for 6 minutes. Flip and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from pan and let rest for 8 minutes (I just made up that amount but it sounds about right). Dig in and serve with remaining chimichurri sauce. Serves 2.

spread the love: maple apple butter

I mentioned last week that I was smitten with apples and my love of the fruit is still holding strong. I've been snacking all week on the delicious Newtown Pippins that I purchased at the UBC Apple Festival but after spying this recipe for Maple Apple Butter at Aimée's blog, Under the High Chair, I knew that it was time to get those apples into something new.


Apple butter! It sounds more decadent than it really is....but it is luxurious, nonetheless. I remember making and eating butter as part of a grade three class activity and that delicious memory has stayed with me. Aimée's recipe requires preserving and while I have neither the counter space or the equipment for such an endeavor, I decided to make half the recipe so that it could keep quite comfortably in the fridge. While my apple butter didn't turn out quite as dark as I remember it being from my elementary school days, it is still thick, spicy and just the right amount of tart. You could definitely increase the maple syrup to increase the sweetness, but I like it just as it is. It's delicious spread over a homemade scone for breakfast and it makes for a lovely late night treat by the spoonful.

Want to read about my adventures at the apple fest? Check out my new post at the Food TV blog, Food for Thought. As an added treat, you'll even catch a photo of me mugging it up for the camera. Oh boy!


maple apple butter
3 Jonamacs (or any red sweet apple)
3 Newtown Pippins (or any green tart apple)
1/2 c apple juice
1 cinnamon stick
2 T maple syrup

1. Cut apples into quarters. Add apples, juice and cinnamon stick into a pot. Simmer until the apples become soft and fragrant, about 25 minutes.

2. Remove cinnamon stick and reserve. Put the mixture through a strainer to remove seeds and peel.

3. Return the apple puree and the cinnamon stick back to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for another 30 minutes stirring occasionally until the mixture thickens. Add maple syrup and cook for another 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. This should keep in the fridge for 4 weeks.

fudge-a-licious

Love and leftovers can make you do the darndest things. Cornelius loves ice cream. So much so that he once was tempted to officially change his middle name after his most favorite dessert. I'm so glad he didn't. I think we both would have died of embarassment at our wedding ceremony if the officiant had said, "Do you, Cornelius Ice Cream Bergen, take this woman to be your wife..." Indeed!

When it comes to ice cream, I'm more of a purist. I like my ice cream hard and icy without much fuss or muss. And while I appreciate the asthetic retro charm of a nicely composed sundae, I can do without the overly sweet sauce and day-glo cherry. Cornelius, on the other hand, keeps his sweet tooth at the ready all the time. So when I had a small amount of leftover whipping cream in the fridge, I figured I would do my best to meet his sweet tooth half way. Spying a recipe from Entertaining for a Veggie Planet, I figured I would do my best to make an ice cream topping worthy of the prettiest ice cream sundae. Although, I made a few changes to the recipe to cut down some of the fat and sugar, the recipe didn't suffer from the changes. Cornelius downed his first bowl in record time and while eating his second bowl of hot fudge topped ice cream, demanded that we buy larger bowls! Rich, sweet and guaranteed to satisfy any sweet tooth.

world's best peanut butter - hot fudge sauce
Recipe adapted from Didi Emmons' Entertaining for a Veggie Planet

1/4 c heavy cream
1/4 c milk
2 T unsalted butter, cut into small peices
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c good quality cocoa powder
1/4 c natural crunchy peanut butter
pinch of salt

1. In a heavy saucepan, heat the cream and butter over medium heat. When the mixture simmers, add the sugars and stir until dissolved.

2. Reduce heat to low and add the cocoa powder, peanut butter and salt. Whisk until smooth. If you find it too thick, add some more milk and combine until smooth. Remove from heat. Serve immediately or keep warm.

This sauce can be kept for up to 3 weeks in the fridge. Reheat in microwave or in a heavy saucepan over low heat, adding water if too thick.

hooray for autumn!

Last night I was cheering that it had only rained one day this past week. I spoke too soon and I managed to get all soaking wet from my bike ride today. I've been busy this past week volunteering my time at the Vancouver International Film Festival during the day and working on some freelance design work at night, so updating this blog and planning recipes hasn't been a priority. Yesterday, I had my day free, so after a quick ride to get groceries, I got down to business. After looking through the lastest Martha Stewart Living mag, I figured I'd make some spicy squash pasta. However, I didn't have any ricotta cheese or parmesan, so I decided to make a few modifications to her recipe....

Jeannette's Spicy Squash Pasta
1 acorn squash
4 large cloves of garlic still in their papery skin
2 T olive oil
salt & pepper

Cut squash in half, remove seeds and place on cookie sheet. Add 2 cloves of garlic to each half and drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake at a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes or until tender. Let squash cool slightly and then scrape out the fleshy insides and discard skins. Remove skins from garlic and set aside.

1 lb pasta (I used fresh tortalini)
When the squash is out of the oven, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt. Add pasta; cook until al dente. Drain well.

2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt
1 t rosemary
1 t sage
1/2 t red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
1/3 c prepared tomato sauce
1/4 c light cream

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, a large pinch of salt, red pepper flakes, and a teaspoon each of sage and rosemary. Cook, stirring, until garlic is golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add squash; cook, stirring and mashing with a spoon, until heated through. Add the tomato sauce and cream and stir until combined and smooth in texture. You may need to add a bit more sauce or cream if you feel the sauce is too thick.

I loved this sauce and I kept it rather thick. I served this along with some steamed broccoli and I just loved dipping the broccoli into the squash sauce! So tasty!! I'm definitely making this again my way....and I just might try ol' Ms. Stewart's version one day soon.

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I was tagged by culinary in the desert to do the 23rd post meme thingy. I felt kind of silly after counting out all my posts to discover that my polenta post from a couple posts down was actually my 23rd post! I guess I've got a long way to go. Luckily the cooler weather is here and I can bake and cook to my hearts content. Be forewarned, that there will be lots of squash recipes in the near future. I've got some butternut squash and a few cans of pumpkin to play with! Heck, I've got some yams to throw in there as well. Enjoy autumn, I think I will. Well, once I can get used to the idea of bike riding in the rain again.