Pad Thai & 3 Years of Blogging

I keep on missing my blog birthday! About three years ago on June 3, I started this blog. Who knows how long I'll continue blogging for but I still love it and I'm so happy to be part of the food blog world.

I love pad thai and while I'm not going to be crazy and say that I've found the perfect recipe, this one comes as close as any recipe I've tried. I'm sure we all have some preferences about whether we want it more wet or dry or tomatoey or not. But this one is just right for me. The important parts of pad thai for me are that it's got enough tomato, extra lime before serving, and crunchy peanuts. If you have a good pad thai recipe, please share it with me - I'd love to test it against this one!

Jacqueline of Tinned Tomatoes has started a new blog called The Food Blog Diary to keep track of what food events are going on, which I know I'll find really helpful because I always seem to be finding out about things too late! So go check it out.

Some of you might recognize Abby's newest "toy" - the cat emery board, as seen on TV. We bought it from one of those stores that sells all the stuff from infomercials naively hoping that it would actually help keep her claws trimmed. Sadly she's barely used it, but she did enjoy the toy that was stuck into the side of it, which you can see her playing with here.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Tofu and Broccolini in Peanut Sauce
Szechuan Tofu Triangles in Triple Pepper Sauce
Fresh Pear and Curry Pasta
Peanut Sauce

Pad Thai
Adapted from ExtraVeganZa

Serves 5-6

2 tbsp rice vinegar
5 tbsp reduce sodium soy sauce
4 tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 tbsp peanut butter
1/4 cup ketchup

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb firm tofu, cut into small cubes
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups carrots, sliced (original recipe uses sweet potato which take too long to cook)
1 red pepper, diced
1 broccoli crown
1 cup (1 can) water chestnuts, sliced
1/2 lb rice noodles, cooked and drained

2 tbsp lime juice, freshly squeezed (plus more for serving as desired)
2/3 cup peanuts, toasted and chopped
1/4-1/2 cup green onions, finely chopped

In a small bowl, combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, maple syrup, peanut butter and ketchup. Stir together thoroughly and set the sauce aside.

In a wok, add olive oil and saute the tofu, garlic, ginger, chili, salt and carrots for several minutes, stirring frequently to prevent them from sticking to the pan. When the carrots begin to soften, stir in the red pepper, broccoli and water chestnuts. Continue sauteeing for several minutes, then pour in the prepared sauce and cooked noodles. Gently stir the noodles into the vegetables and sauce. Remove from heat and add the lime juice. Garnish with toasted peanuts and green onions.

Grandma Jennie's Date and Nut Bread

A month or so ago we went to visit my grandparents, who I unfortunately don't get to see very often because where they live requires a few hours to get to (including an hour and a half ferry ride). I wanted to bake something so that my family would have something to eat on our trip over and throughout the day, and also to have something to give to my grandparents. So this bread/loaf was perfect for that because it makes 2 loaves - one for us and one for them. (And why do people always call loaves breads?? If there's no yeast in it, it's not a bread! At least that's how I think. Though I just noticed I have a tag on my blog for "breads/loaves" so obviously I'm getting sucked in too.)

I'm not a big dried fruit person and in particular don't really like dates, but I've had some good date loaves and date bars, and my mom loves dates so I went with this date and nut bread (loaf!!!) And I also have the largest stockpile of dates ever for some reason so it was good to use some of them up. The loaf turned out really well - moist, yummy, and everyone loved it. I like lots of spices so next time I would add more. Oh and despite using 2/3 whole wheat flour (and 1/3 all purpose), you can't tell at all that it's mostly whole wheat.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Garden Harvest Cake
Mom's Banana Apple Bread
bill's Coconut Bread
Pumpkin Bread

Grandma Jennie's Date and Nut Bread
Adapted from Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More

Makes 2 loaves

1 pound pitted dates, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cups boiling water
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, slightly firm
1 tsp grated navel orange zest
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (lightly packed) brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups walnuts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1. Position the rack in the lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 350F. Generously butter two 8"x4" loaf pans, and line the bottoms with baking parchment.

2. Place the dates in a bowl. Stir in the boiling water and the baking soda. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and allspice. Set aside.

4. Cut the butter into 1 inch pieces and place in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the orange zest and mix on medium speed until lightened in colour, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Add the granulated sugar and beat for about 2 minutes. Add the brown sugar and beat for about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary and mix for 1 minute longer.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing for 1 minute after each addition, then blend in the vanilla. Scrape down the side of the bowl.

6. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture alternately with the date mixture, diving the flour into three parts and the dates into two parts, beginning and ending with the flour. Remove the bowl from the mixer, and using an oversize spatula, fold in the walnuts.

7. Divide the batter between the prepared loaf pans and bake for 50-60 minutes. The bread is done when it's firm to the touch, the sides begin to release, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

8. Remove from the oven and let cool on racks for about 20 minutes. Invert each bread onto a rack and gently lift off the pans and the parchment. Turn the breads right side up and let cool.

Carrot Slices in Dill Sauce (Gajar Suva)

I haven't gone back to 660 Curries for a while so one night decided to make a couple of recipes from it. Unfortunately I didn't really like the other one I tried (black eyed peas with mustard, cumin and curry leaves) but that might be due to the fact that I don't like black eyed peas? But I really liked this carrot and pea dish. As with the other recipes I've tried from this book, it was really flavourful and well spiced.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Indian Stir Fried Cabbage
Pink Beans with a Cardamom-Yogurt Sauce
Curried Mushrooms and Peas
Spicy Indian Chickpeas/Chana Masala

Carrot Slices in Dill Sauce (Gajar Suva)
Adapted from 660 Curries

1 tsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 cup finely chopped red onion
1 tbsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1 lb carrots, peeled, ends trimmed, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 cup frozen green peas (no need to thaw)
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
3 tbsp chickpea flour
1/2 tsp salt

1. Heat the oil in a medium size skillet over medium high heat. Add the cumin seeds and cook until they sizzle, turn reddish brown, and smell nutty, 5 to 10 seconds. Immediately add the onion and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook slowly, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the onion turns soft and brown with a deep purple hue, 10 to 12 minutes.

2. Stir in the coriander, cayenne, and turmeric. The heat will be just right to cook but not burn the ground spices, about 30 seconds.

3. Add the carrots, peas, and 2 cups water. Raise the heat to medium-high and simmer the vegetables, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until they are fork-tender and the sauce is somewhat thick, 6 to 8 minutes.

4. Stir in the dill, chickpea flour, and salt. The flour will instantly thicken the sauce. Then serve.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake + Strawberry Sauce

One weekend I got it in my head that I wanted to make trifle. I think because the weekend before, my dad had been talking about what an amazing trifle my grandma makes and how people are always sad when she doesn't make it. So I called her to get her recipe but as it turns out there isn't really a recipe. She told me to just use whatever cake you want to get rid of or pick up from the grocery store. She usually uses canned fruit, and mixes the juice from the can with a bit of alcohol (again she said whatever you want to get rid of - are we seeing a theme here?) and pours it over the cake. And then she said she uses pudding mix. And puts whipped cream on top. Oh and she also mixes jello in with the fruit and cake once it's been layered. The details are a bit fuzzy now, but basically there was no exact recipe. So I just decided to pick a cream cheese pound cake, a white chocolate custard, and the strawberry sauce I've made a few times that my fiance (who I will refer to from now on as E) really likes.

Individually, all the components were really good. The pound cake was so perfectly pound cake-y - really dense and wonderful and you can taste the cream cheese. And it was so soft. The white chocolate custard was adapted from a bittersweet chocolate custard and I didn't adjust the sugar enough so it was way too sweet - especially when combined with the strawberry sauce. The strawberry sauce was perfect though and is good for everything. So I'll share with you the recipe for the cream cheese pound cake and the strawberry sauce and will save the white chocolate custard for when I try again and it turns out better.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Tres Leches Cake
Sour Cream Doughnuts
Strawberry Cream Cake
Orange Cream Cheese Muffins

Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen who adapted liberally from Staff Meals from Chanterelle

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 package (4 ounces) Philadelphia brand cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly butter an 8"x4" pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper.

2. Place the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, at least five minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla, then the flour and salt all at once. Beat just until incorporated.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shake lightly to even out the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 1 1/4 hours.

4. Place the pan on a cake rack and cool for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

Strawberry Sauce
Adapted from All Recipes (Heislord5)

1 pint (454 g) strawberries, cleaned and stemmed
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cut about strawberries in 1/2-1 inch size pieces. In a saucepan over medium high heat, combine strawberries, sugar and vanilla. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Store in refrigerator.

Greek Barley Salad

Main course grain salads are one of my favourite meals and I loved that this salad was so flavourful and full of many of my favourite things - feta, grape tomatoes, basil, onions, pine nuts, lemon, Kalamata olives. Actually this salad was the turning point for me and olives. When I was younger, I hated olives as I think many of us did. Then I got used to the black sliced olives they put on sandwiches and pizza. Which lead to eating the olive that they put with Greek salads in restauants. BUT, I just realized how delicious Kalamata olives are. Yes I know they're the olives that are on Greek salads, but for some reason I didn't develop a full obsession until I bought a jar for this salad. Usually I buy the cheapest brand of canned olives, not really noticing or thinking there would be a difference compared to more expensive or fresher olives. But I decided to buy this fancy jar of olives and oh wow. Definitely worth it. When I took this salad for lunch, I would add a couple of extra olives on top. So very delicious.

So as I was saying, this salad is delicious. The only bad thing about it is that it was too "wet", which I think was due both to the yogurt in the dressing (which I'd likely omit next time) and the barley not being properly drained after cooking. I'd also add less barley next time as I like my dishes more filled with vegetables. And I'd highly recommend using whatever your favourite grain is in this salad (or whatever grain you have in your cupboard). The original recipe uses wheat berries (which are chewy and so yummy) but I had some barley to use up so went with that. Also, I thought a mix of oregano and basil would be better than just basil - but I was wrong. The oregano made the salad taste kind of weird on day 2 and on so next time I'll just stick to basil or maybe dried oregano.

I took this photo on my iPhone so it's a bit blurry but look at her fluffiness!

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Orzo Salad with Chickpeas, Dill and Lemon
Autumn Panzanella
Tabbouleh
French Barley Salad

Greek Barley Salad
Adapted from Phoo-D

Serves 4-6 as a Main Course, 10-12 as a Side Salad

Salad
2 cups pot barley (next time I'd use 1 1/2 cups)
4 cups water
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 lemon, zested
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped + brine from jar (used below)
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 roasted red bell peppers, chopped into bite size pieces
1 1/2 pints grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1 cup basil leaves, julienned (I used a mix of basil & oregano, about 1/4 cup total but would recommend using just basil)
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

Dressing
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
2-3 Tablespoons "brine" from Kalamata olive jar (can be increased to taste)
1/2 cup 2% plain yogurt (next time I'd likely omit this)
Juice of the zested lemon
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Rinse barley under cool water and then drain. Place barley and 4 cups of water into a medium pot. Place the pot over high heat, and bring the water to a boil. Stir, reduce heat to maintain a low simmer, and cover the pot with a lid. Cook the barley, stirring occasionally, for 60-90 minutes or until tender (but not mushy). Once the barley is cooked, drain off any remaining water, and transfer the barley to a large (8-10 cup capacity) bowl. (Make sure you drain the barley really well.)

While the barley is cooking, place a small saucepan over low heat and add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil, red onion, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Slowly cook the onion, stirring occasionally until it is softened and a light brown color. This will take about 40-60 minutes. Once the onion is caramelized, remove the saucepan from the heat and set the onions aside to cool.

Add the lemon zest, Kalamata olives, garlic, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, basil leaves, feta, and pine nuts into the large bowl with the wheat berries. Gently mix the ingredients together with a spoon to combine.

In a separate small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, "brine" from the Kalamata olive jar, yogurt, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Once the dressing is well mixed, pour it over the salad and stir until all ingredients are well coated. Taste the salad and add more salt and pepper if necessary. (Much like rice, the wheat berries will require a decent amount of salt for the flavor to shine through.) Serve the salad as is or plate on top of fresh spinach and garnish with additional feta cheese, tomatoes, and basil.

Salad can be made up to 2 days ahead and stored covered in the fridge. Bring to room temperature and mix well before serving.