Food Candy - Beef and Shrimp Won Tons

I've saved the best food candy for last. This, my friends, is my absolute favorite thing to eat in the whole wide world. At least, it's been at the top of the pack for as long as I can remember. This is the meal that I requested for every birthday dinner growing up (I don't know why my mom would ask what I wanted every year because I always said won tons) and one of the few recipes of my mother's that I still continue to make. (While my mother is an absolutely fantastic cook, the meals we grew up eating are a bit on the heavier side and David and I generally prefer to eat lighter meals.)

Won tons always seemed like a special treat because my mother didn't make them very often because they can be a little time intensive. They certainly aren't hard to make, but stuffing each won ton and then frying them up does take a lot of time, especially if you're making a lot and we always made a lot. Because we ate a lot of them. Seriously. You just can't stop eating them. Here's our cast of characters and the recipe:

Beef and Shrimp Won Tons

1 beaten egg
1 cup finely chopped bok choy or napa cabbage (I actually use closer to 2 cups)
¼ c. finely chopped green onion
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon grated gingerroot ( I find this a little too much and use less)
¼ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ pound ground beef
1 – 4 ½ oz. can of tiny shrimp, drained
40 wonton skins
Oil for deep-fat frying

In large mixing bowl combine egg, bok choy, green onion, soy sauce, gingerroot, sugar, salt, and dash of pepper. Add ground beef and shrimp; mix well. Wrap, about a heaping teaspoon, of meat mixture in a wonton skin. After all of the meat mixture has been wrapped, deep fry a few wontons at a time at 360° or medium high heat until crispy brown. Dip in hot mustard, cocktail sauce, or sweet and sour sauce.

Won ton wrappers can sometimes be tricky to find at some grocery stores but they're often located in the produce section, next to the deli counter, or by the dairy products. They have to be refrigerated, so look for them there. Most packages contain about 40 won ton skins (which is what the recipe calls for) but that will only feed about 3-4 people. Unless I'm just making this for David and myself, I always double the recipe.

Now some of you may remember from my last post that I don't like shrimp. And I still stand by that claim. I don't like shrimp. Not the big kind you spend lots of money on at restaurants. But these are teeny tiny shrimp. You won't even know that they are there. I didn't know there was shrimp in this recipe until I started making it myself. It's just dang tasty and that's all that matters. (The tiny shrimp in a can are found next to the canned tuna.)

So you chop everything up and mix it all together in a bowl. This is before adding the beaten egg, which helps to hold everything together.

Making the meat mixture is the easy part. Now it's time to fold your won tons. I always like to set up a bit of a workshop. I use a plate or cutting board to lay out several wrappers at a time and spoon out the meat onto each wrapper. You also want to have a bowl of water in which to dip your fingers. The water is used to seal the wrappers together so your meat stays nice and snug inside its new home. I also like to keep a towel nearby because your hands will get wet and dirty. You can wrap your won tons any old way you like, but I use three methods.

Method #1: The Envelope

Place your meat in the center of the wrapper and fold one side of the wrapper toward the center of the meat. Dab with water. Fold the opposite side of the wrapper over and seal each corner with water.
Dabbing more water onto the seal, bring another corner of the wrapper to the center. Be careful that there are no gaps in the skin. Seal with more water if necessary.

Finally, bring the fourth corner toward the center. Make sure all ends are properly sealed. (You don't need a lot of water, just a tiny bit to be effective. Using too much water can make the won tons soggy and stick together before frying and are a pain to pick apart.)

Method #2: The Fortune Cookie (okay so I just made that name up....I don't know what else to call it)

This time you want to place your meat closer to one corner than the other. Wet two sides of the wrapper and fold it diagonally to make a triangle.

The wrappers don't make perfect triangles, but just make sure both sides are sealed.

I then bring both ends of the triangle toward the center and seal together with a little dab of water like so. I think these look the best but do take more time than the other two methods. Plus, you have to get just the right amount of meat or they're impossible to seal. The other two methods will allow you to work with a lot or a little meat.

Method #3: Quick and Easy

Dab water over half the won ton wrapper's borders.

Now just fold over and you're done. See? Quick and easy.

Once you've wrapped all your won tons, you're ready to fry them. I layer my won tons on wax paper but you want to be sure to leave room between each won ton because they do tend to stick to each other if they sit for too long and the skins often break or tear as you try to pry two won tons apart.

Heat oil (vegetable or canola) in a large skillet or wok and fry each side for about 1-3 minutes. My mom had an awesome electric wok that you could set to a specific temperature. I've been on the hunt for a good wok myself and despite the fact that I live in Asia, I still haven't found one I like. Go figure.

Getting the temperature right for the oil can be tricky. You don't want it too low or else the won tons will take forever to cook and you'll be there all night. But you also don't want to heat it too high or else the delicate wrappers will brown very fast and the meat won't get completely cooked. I'm constantly adjusting the temperature as I fry the won tons. You'll eventually get a feel for what temperature your stove needs to be on to get nice, golden brown won tons.

Like this. The won ton skin should be golden brown and crispy while the meat inside is thoroughly cooked.

It generally takes me about 15-20 minutes to fry up 40 won tons. I keep them in a warmed oven as I fry up the rest. (You could also boil them, but I love the crispiness of the fried won ton.)

Once they're all fried, serve with sweet and sour sauce (or other dipping sauce of choice) and watch them disappear.

Man, I really want some won tons right now.

Food Candy - Easy Salmon Cakes

I have two more food candy recipes to share. Next up is one of my absolute favorite meals: salmon cakes. Seriously. I'm not lying. I love them. Loooooooove them. And anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not the biggest fan of seafood. Shrimp, lobster, crab, clams, oysters, squid, octopus, and most types of fish are not within my food vocabulary. But a few years ago, I started trying new seafood dishes and have discovered that there are some creatures from the sea that I actually do enjoy like salmon, sea bass, halibut, tuna, and tilapia. I really love this recipe because 1) it's super quick and easy, 2) I almost always have the ingredients on hand, and 3) I find it delightfully delicious.

The recipe I use is from Eating Well's Serves Two cookbook, which is perfect for just David and me. This recipe makes 4 salmons cakes, two apiece. If you want to make 4 servings (or eight salmon cakes), you can use the recipe at EatingWell.com. The ratios are slightly different. So here are our cast of ingredients and the recipe:

Easy Salmon Cakes

3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup finely diced celery
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
7 ounces canned salmon, drained
1 egg white
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 cup fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 lemon

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in parsley; remove from the heat.
3. Place salmon in a medium bowl. Flake apart with a fork; remove any bones and skin. Add egg and mustard; mix well. Add the onion mixture, breadcrumbs and pepper; mix well. Shape the mixture into 4 patties, about 2 1/2 inches wide.
4. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium heat. Add 4 patties and cook until the undersides are golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a wide spatula, turn them over onto the prepared baking sheet.
5. Bake the salmon cakes until golden on top and heated through, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve salmon cakes with sauce and lemon wedges.

A few notes about the ingredients: I generally use Bumble Bee's 5 ounce can of skinless and boneless pink salmon. The recipe calls for a 7 ounce can but I find the 5 ounce can to be sufficient. Plus, it's so worth your time to buy canned salmon that is already boneless and skinless because it takes forever to pick all the tiny bones out of the other ones. Also, for a cup of fresh breadcrumbs, I generally use two slices of whole-wheat bread. I discard the crusts and pulse the bread in my food processor to get fine breadcrumbs. I know some people complained of the salmon cakes being a little on the dry side and recommend using less than the stated amount of breadcrumbs, but I find the amount to be just right. (But I think I like drier fish than most people.)

After all the ingredients are mixed, you form four salmon cakes on a skillet set at medium heat. After baking just one side, you transfer the salmon cakes to a pan, baked side up, and stick it in the oven for 10 minutes.

Within half an hour, you're ready to eat your salmon cakes. Eating Well says you should serve them with a creamy dill sauce (the recipe is on their website) but we only use fresh lemon juice and I find that that is plenty delicious. I often serve them with rosemary roasted potatoes. Mmmm. So delicious. Even if you don't like seafood or don't know how to cook fish, you should try this recipe. It's very easy and hard to mess up. And I'm not lying when I say it's really good. So good, you'll forget that you're eating salmon.

Food Candy: Pizza Magherita

You can't live in Italy for four months without coming away with an almost sacred reverence for the true Italian pizza with it's delicately thin crust and fresh mozarella. I'd never found a pizza (either homemade or restaurant-produced) that came close to the wonder of a real pizza magherita, until my sister (my recipe provider) sent me Cook's Illustrated's "Italian Favorites" collection. This pizza has quickly become one of David and my favorite meals. So quick, simple, and delicious. Almost, almost as good as the real thing. So it must be shared.

Pizza Dough

1 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 cup water, room temperature
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
2 teaspoons sugar

In a liquid measuring cup, whisk yeast into water to dissolve. In food processor fitted with metal blade, process flours, salt, and sugar until combined, about 5 seconds. With machine running, slowly add liquid through feed tube; continue to process until dough forms satiny, sticky ball that clears sides of workbowl, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. (Add more dough or water as needed.) Divide dough in half and shape into two smooth, tight balls. Place on floured counter or baking sheet, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Here's my dough after rising for about 4 hours. I think the mixture of regular flour and cake flour really allows the dough to retain it's delicate silkiness without becoming too heavy.

Pizza Topping

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes (I prefer Muir Glen organic tomatoes)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 small garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
Table salt
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

In clean bowl of food processor, process tomatoes until crushed, 2 or 3 one-second pulses. Transfer tomatoes to a fine-mesh strainer set over bowl and let drain at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to release liquids. Just before shaping pizza rounds, combine drained tomatoes, sugar, garlic, some of the basil, and 1/4 teaspoons salt into bowl.

Here are my tomatoes draining into a bowl. Straining the tomatoes helps prevent the topping from becoming too liquidy and making the crust too soggy, especially in the center. Could this topping be any easier? It's awesome.

Okay, so now we're ready to shape the dough and get to cooking. Set your pizza stone in the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees. (It takes my oven about 15 minutes to get hot enough.) Dust dough liberally with flour and transfer balls to well-floured work surface. Press one ball into 8-inch disk. Using flattened palms, gently stretch disk into a 12-inch circle, working along outer edge. (I often use a rolling pin as well.) When the oven is hot enough, remove the pizza stone and place the dough onto the stone. (This is made significantly easier if you have a pizza peel, but you can make do without it too.) Spread a thin layer of half of the topping onto the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Put in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and top pizza with half of the cheese chunks, spaced evenly apart. Return pizza to the oven and continue cooking for another 4-5 minutes, until the cheese is melted and started to bubble.

Here's all my ingredients getting ready for the pizza making.

When the pizza is done, transfer to a cutting board, sprinkle with fresh basil and 1 teaspoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Slice and serve immediately. Repeat with the second pizza.

Doesn't it look fantastic? And it's so quick and easy too, especially if you make the dough in the morning and it's already risen and ready to go when you get home from work.

Here's David all excited for his first bite of pizza. (Excuse his cheesy face....he likes to be silly.) Despite its thin crust, the pizza is quite filling. David and I generally only eat one pizza between the two of us (unless we're feeling especially hungry) and save the second one to make for lunch (or dinner) the next day. Two pizzas is more than adequate to feed 2 adults and some children.

Enjoy!

Food Candy: Chicken Tikka Masala and Naan Bread

I already posted the recipe for chicken tikka masala before but it bears repeating because we love it that much. I just wish it weren't so time consuming, otherwise I'd make it every week.

Doesn't it look absolutely delicious? Yes, yes it does. And it is. It's the best kind of food candy there is. Flavorful, comforting and buttery. It just melts in your mouth.

The best part is the chicken because even though it gets the nice, crispy outer skin, it's still moist and delicious inside. You won't be sorry if you spend the time to make the recipe.

Now, on to the second best part: my sister sent me a naan bread recipe (also from Cook's Illustrated) that beats all the other naan bread recipes I've tried before.

2 ½ cups bread flour, plus extra as needed
¼ cup whole wheat flour, shifted
1 package instant yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
2 teaspoons sugar
Salt
1 cup water, at room temperature
¼ cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra for the bowl
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1. Combine the flours, yeast, sugar, and 1 ½ teaspoons salt in the bowl of a standing mixer and mix with paddle attachment until blended, about 15 seconds. Add the water, yogurt, and olive oil and mix on low speed until a shaggy dough forms, about 30 seconds.
2. Replace the paddle with the dough hook and knead the dough on medium speed until smooth and glossy, about 8 minutes, adding additional flour in 1-tablespoon increments, allowing 20 seconds between each addition as needed for the dough to clear the sides of the bowl, but stick to the very bottom. Transfer the dough to a clean work surface and lightly knead by hand for 1 minute.


3. Shape the dough into a large ball, transfer to a large, lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in a draft-free spot until the dough has doubled in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (At this point, the dough can be punched down, wrapped tightly in a plastic wrap, and refrigerated for up to 2 days).
4. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface, cut into 8 equal portions, and roll each portion into a round ball. Set the balls aside on the counter or baking sheet, and let rest for 10 minutes.
5. Working with 1 ball of dough at a time, lay on lightly floured work surface and roll into a 6-inch circle using a rolling pin (sprinkle with flour if dough is sticky). Set the rounds aside on the floured counter or baking sheet.
6. Heat a heavy 12-inch skillet over medium high heat until hot, 5 minutes (if using lighter pan, heat for only 2-3 minutes). Working with one piece of dough at a time, lift the dough and gently stretch about 1 inch larger, and lay it on the skillet. Cook until small bubbles appear the surface of the dough, about 30 seconds. Flip the bread and continue to cook until the bottom is speckled and deep golden brown in spots, about 2 minutes. Flip the bread again and cook until bottom is speckled and deep golden brown in spots, 1-2 minutes longer.


7. Transfer the bread to a wire rack, brush lightly with butter, season with salt and let cool for about 5 minutes. (I usually don’t use the butter and salt unless I am serving it immediately and depending on how I am using it.) Repeat with the remaining dough rounds. Wrap the bread loosely in a clean kitchen towel and serve immediately. (The bread can be kept in an airtight container and stored at room temperature for 2-3 days. Reheat in microwave or in 300 degree oven until warm).

In exchange for teaching my friend how to make chicken tikka masala, she gave me a jar of ghee, which is absolutely delicious on naan bread.

It also makes for great left-overs. Just saying.

Food Candy: Gnocchi with Tomatoes, Bacon and Spinach

Remember how I'm pregnant? Remember how I also live in Korea? It's sometimes not the greatest combination, especially when I'm craving the things that can only be obtained in America. I do crave normal things which can typically be purchased at the Commissary (like ice cream, Doritos and corn dogs.....yes, corn dogs) but what I fantasize about are In & Out cheeseburgers, Chipotle's chicken burritos, Olive Garden's chicken con broccoli, and El Ranchito's rolled tacos.

But since I cannot have these things, I have to turn instead to what I call food candy. Food candy are those few meals that I make on a regular basis that I ALWAYS enjoy eating. It doesn't matter what time of the day it is or how hungry I am, these meals always satisfy and always sound delicious. So, in an effort to minimize my fantasies about In & Out and Chipotle, I'd like to do a series of posts about my food candy recipes.

One of my favorite fast, quick, and easy recipes is Eating Well's Gnocchi with Tomatoes, Pancetta, and Wilted Watercress. Except that I can't find pancetta, so I use bacon instead. And there's no watercress to be had either so I use spinach. And the Commissary here, to my ever-lasting consternation, does not carry gnocchi, so I make my own. Gnocchi are Italian potato dumplings and they are divine (when done right). You can generally find them fresh, frozen, or packaged in the regular pasta aisle. But if you want to try making your own (which is a bit time consuming), Eating Well has another great guide to making homemade gnocchi.

Here's my gnocchi getting ready to be boiled. Whenever I make gnocchi, I make several batches which I then boil and freeze so I always have gnocchi on hand whenever a new craving kicks in. Now onto the recipe (which I've changed a bit to suit my tastes and available ingredients):

Gnocchi with Tomatoes, Bacon, and Spinach

2-4 ounces pancetta, chopped (I use 3-4 slices of bacon)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 large tomatoes, chopped (I find regular tomatoes break down too much and make the pasta a little soupy, so I use cherry tomatoes instead which keep their shape and juices in tact.)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound gnocchi,
4 ounces spinach
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Put a large pan of water on to boil.
2. Cook pancetta/bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, sugar and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until the tomatoes are almost completely broken down, about 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar and salt. Remove from the heat.
3. Cook gnocchi in the boiling water until they float, 3 to 5 minutes or according to package directions. Place spinach in a colander and drain the gnocchi over the spinach, wilting it slightly. Add the gnocchi and spinach to the sauce in the pan; toss to combine. Serve immediately, with Parmesan.

So I gather up my ingredients.

And chop up the tomatoes, bacon, and garlic. By the way, that garlic zoom thingy (in the right hand front corner) is amazing. So fabulous at mincing garlic.

Then I brown the bacon, add garlic and tomatoes until they break down. I boil the gnocchi and then strain it through a colander filled with the spinach and then add it back to the pan with the bacon and tomatoes and top with Parmesan cheese.

And voila! A tasty, delicious, and health(ier) meal. And it takes less than 30 minutes to throw it all together. Plus, it makes the perfect amount to feed both David and me. If it weren't 7am right now, I'd be getting mighty hungry.