Udon Noodles with Miso and Chicken

I was in the mood for some Udon Noodles and after a quick look in my fridge, I decided to go with the following:

WHAT YOU NEED 

In the above picture: 

• 1/2 a package Udon noodles, ca. 1/2 pound
• 4 scallions
• 1 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 1 tomato, cut in small pieces
• 2 tablespoons of miso paste

Not in the picture:

• 1 tablespoon of peanut oil
• 1/2 pound chicken tenders, cut into pieces
• 1/2 a lime
• Soy and hot sauce to taste

 HOW IT IS DONE

• In a big pot heat water, add a bit salt, once boiling cook the udon noodles al dente, according to the package instructions.
• In the meantime, heat the oil in a big pan and nicely brown the chicken.
• Reduce heat and add the garlic, ginger and tomatoes.
• Cook on low heat.

• Add one or two laddles of the noodle water.
• Add the miso paste.
• Add the udon noodles.
• Add the scallions, and carefully fold everything together. 
• Drizzle with lime juice.
• Let simmer for about two minutes.

Divide into two bowls and serve together with soy and hot sauce.

 Guten Appetit!

-- Elke♥

The Key To A Flavorful Tomato Sauce

For an easy but tasty lunch last Sunday, I just quickly whipped together Linguine with a fragrant tomato sauce. The key to a flavorful sauce are slightly browned garllic and a handful of fresh herbs like basil. Everything else then falls into place.

You basically slightly roast on very low about 4 cloves of minced garlic in a table spoon of good olive oil. Be careful to not burn it! It only may get slightly brown, until it smells nicely. If it burns, start again, seriously.

Then you add a can of diced tomatoes and let it all simmer until the pasta is ready. About 20 minutes.

You finish the dish with a handful of basil, and salt and pepper to taste. If you don't have basil, use rosemary. That's all! Don't forget fresh grated parmigiano.

 Guten Appetit!
-- Elke♥

Gigli with Infused Sun Dried Tomatoes and Chicken

Total: 25 minutes

When they're not marinated in oil, you're supposed to soften sun dried tomatoes for about twenty minutes in hot water. I wanted to do a bit more and added red wine and a bay leaf to the hot water and the result was sensational! The whole recipe is also super easy to follow. Enjoy!

WHAT YOU NEED 

• 1 cup sun dried tomatoes, cut into thin slices
• 1 cup hot water
• 1/2 to 1 cup red wine (the one you'd be drinking to this dish)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 pound organic chicken breast, cut into cubes
• 1 onion, cut into wedges
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper from the mill to taste
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Freshly grated parmigiano (optional)

  

HOW IT IS DONE 

• Heat up a tea kittle or use your electric water boiler, so that you'll have about 1 cup of hot water. Add 1 cup of thinly cut sun dried tomatoes to that cup of water, together with the 1/2 to 1 cup of red wine. Cover and let rest until needed.
• Put a large pot of water on to boil. Once the water is boiling, add a teaspoon of salt and add the pasta. Follow the instructions of your pasta package. I decided on the Gigli which went so nicely with this dish. Make sure to cook them al dente.
• While the water is getting hot, chop the onion, the garlic and the chicken.
• In a large pan, heat the olive oil, add the chicken, the garlic and the onion.
• Brown nicely, until the chicken is cooked through.

• Add the sun dried tomatoes with all liquid (the wine and the water) and stir. Keep the flame on low.
• Once the pasta is ready, drain it into a colander, and add it directly to the pan with the chicken and the sun dried tomatos. Fold everything nicely.
• Dived onto two plates and serve hot with lots of fresh parmesan.

Guten Appetit!
-- Elke♥

Wonton Hearts filled with Spicy Beef

Total time: 45 to 60 minutes

I like to come up with heart shaped dishes for Valentine's Day and thought of filling easily available wonton wrappers with spicy beef, Italian style, meaning I'd serve them with a drizzle of good olive oil and fresh parmigiano cheese.

 

WHAT YOU NEED

 Appetizer for 4 people

• Wonton wrappers
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cube chicken broth
• Freshly grated parmigiano
• Olive oil drizzle

For the filling:

• 1/2 lb lean ground chuck
• 1 table spoon olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
• A pinch cinammon
• A pinch all spice
• A pinch cayenne pepper
• A pinch cumin

HOW IT IS DONE

STEP 1 - Preparing the Filling

1. Prepare the filling by heating the oil in a non-stick pan, adding the garlic and the meat and let brown for about 4 minutes.
2. Add all the spices and herbs and cook for another minute.
3. The meat should be crumbly by now. 
4. Let cool.

STEP 2 - Preparing the Hearts

1. On a non-stick working surface like roul'pat place 12 wonton wrappers next to each other.
2. Place a small amount, less than 1 tablespoon, of the meat filling in the middle of the wonton wrapper.
3. Brush a little bit of the egg around all four sides of the wrapper.
4. Place a wrapper on top of a prepared wrapper and make sure both wrappers stick together.
5. Take a heart shaped cookie cutter and cut out a heart. 
6. Let the cut out heart rest for about 5 minutes.
7. Repeat until all wrappers or the filling are done. 

STEP 3 - Cooking the hearts

1. In a large pot, heat water and add the chicken broth cube.
2. When the water is boiling, add the first batch of hearts. Depending on the size of your pot, cook 10 hearts or less at a time.
3. After about 2 to 3 minutes, take a slotted spoon and carefully (!) remove the hearts from the pot and keep them warm.
4. Repeat the above and work in batches, keep the water boiling.

STEP 4 - Serving

Divide the hearts onto plates, drizzle with olive oil and serve with fresh parmigiano.

 Guten Appetit!
-- Elke♥ 

Spicy Thai Noodles with Fresh Vegetables

Total time: 30 minutes

It's easy to have a couple of Thai staples at home and simply adding a few fresh ingredients for a delicious meal! I was surprised myself how delicious this was.

Try to stock up on low sodium soy sauce, fish sauce, Sriracha (hot chili sauce), peanut oil, sesame oil as well as different sorts of rice noodles. I also always have fresh ginger, garlic, onions and eggs from free roaming hens at home. All I extra bought for the following dish were snow peas and red peppers. You can substitute these two vegetables with any other you prefers. You can even add more vegetables to the dish without loosing flavor. Give it a try!

What You Need

For 2 people

• 1/2 box or 8oz straight cut Thai rice noodles
• 1 red paprika, cut into pieces
• 1 cup snow peas
• 3 small cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon grass, minced

• 2 teaspoons peanut oil
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 medium eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons fish oil
• 2 teaspoons low sodium
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha (hot chili sauce) 
• 1 teaspoon black sesame for decoration 

How It Is Done

• Start by soaking the noodles for 25 to 30 minutes in really hot tab water. If yours doesn't really get hot, you might use some heated water or soak the noodles longer. They have to  be really chewy and flexible before you can stir fry them.

• Heat the peanut and sesame oil in a large pan or wok if you have.
• Add garlic, ginger, lemongrass, peppers and snow peas at medium heat and stir fry for 2 minutes.
• Add soaked noodles and stir for 3 to 5 minutes. Keep the medium heat or turn it a bit down if it gets too hot.
• Season with fish oil, soy sauce and hot sauce.

• Shortly before serving, carefully fold the eggs in and let cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Don't let the egg get too sticky.

Divide onto two bowls, garnish with black sesame seeds and serve immediately. Have extra soy and hot chili sauce at the table.

Guten Appetit!
-- Elke♥