Black Bean Salsa

The cooking club has Mexican Theme party today and I decided to make a Black Bean Salsa.

Ingredients :

1) 2 cans of black bean, drained and rinsed

2) 1 can of corn kernel

3) 2 cans of diced tomatoes with chilies - partially drained ( I use Rotel Hot)

4) A brunch of cilantro, diced very finely

5) 2 ripe tomatoes, diced

6) 1/2 cup of red onion, diced

7) 3 jalapenos, deseed and diced

8) Lemon juice ( fresh), salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Combined all the ingredients together.

2) Add lemon juice, pepper and salt to taste

3) Chill in the refrigerator at least 8 hours, or overnight, before serving.

~Bel~

Deviled eggs

We had a Halloween Party last night. I decided to make the all time party favourite - Deviled Eggs.

Ingredients:

12 eggs

1/2 cup of mayonnaise

2 table spoon of Dijon Mustard

Lemon juice to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Parika

Direction:

1. Boil the eggs

2. Cut the eggs into half; remove the yolks

3. Mash up the yolks and add mustard, mayonnaise, lemon juice salt and pepper.

4. Fill the mixture back to the egg white

5. Sprinkle with paprika and serve

There are a number of ways to fill the mizture back to the egg white. I used the 'Ziploc bag" method - Filled the mixture to a ziploc bag. Cut a small corner from the bag to create a pastry tip.

~ Bel~

Mizeria

The cooking club met again with October Festivities today.... and theme is German, Hungarian, Russian, Polish...

I decided to make Mizeria which is a very popular cucumber salad in Poland. The term "Mizeria" mean Misery in Latin. It is a dish conceived by the peasants. This cooling salad is a great side with meat.

Ingredients :

(Serve 15)

4 Cucumber - thinly sliced

16oz of sour cream
2 tablespoon of lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

11/2-2 tablespoon of chopped dill

i) Sprinkle salt on the thin sliced cucumber. Set aside

ii) Mix the sour cream, lemon juice, dill together

iii) Add salt and pepper to taste

iv) Pat dry the cucumber and mix with the sour cream.

v) Chill for one hour before serving. Add more dill if desired prior to serving.

~Bel~

Bread- No Machine

I have been trying to look for a recipe which does not require the use of machine. I came across a bread recipe form Allrecipes.com and decided to try it. Quite a challenge here as it require making bread from scratch...no bread mix, no machine.. just flour yeast and hands ( to knead, of course).

I changed the recipe slightly. Instead of vegetable oil, I used olive oil. I also reduced the sugar from 2/3 cup to 1/2 cup

My apartment smells of freshly baked bread now ... ;)

Ingredients :

• 2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup Olive oil
• 6 cups bread flour

Direction :

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam

2. Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until mooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour

3. Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.

4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.


~bel~

Shrimp, Chicken and Okra Gumbo

I bought a packet of shrimps last week and did not know what to do with it. Finally decided to do a Shrimp, Chicken and Okra Gumbo. I found the recipe on Allrecipes.com but made some amendments to the original recipe. The beauty of this recipe is that it does not use roux. Instead, it used vegetables to create a thick stew. Definitely a healthier version of the traditional gumbo.

Ingredients :

1 pound (about 450g) of shrimps
1 pound *about 450g) of Okra, chopped
2 pieces of chicken breast, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 medium green pepper, diced
4 stalks of celery, diced
1 tablespoon of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
1 medium onion, diced
3 stalks of green onions (spring onions)
olive oil
old bay seasons to taste
salt and pepper to taste
chili flakes to taste

Direction :
1. Marinate the chicken and shrimps with old bay seasoning, chili flakes, salt and pepper

2. Heat olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add the okra and saute for 15 minutes

3. Add onion and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes

4. Add green bell pepper, celery, tomato and tomato paste. Saute for 10 minutes

5. Add chicken. Saute till cooked. About 4-5 minutes

6. Add water and season to taste. Bring to boil and reduced heat. Simmer for 45 minutes

7. Add shrimps. Simmer for 20 minutes

8. Add green onions ( spring onions). Stir and cover. Serve.


~Bel~

Mango, Avocado Chicken Salad

I am attending my cooking meet-up group this afternoon. The Theme for today's meet up is "Caribbean". Took me while to decide what to cook. Finally decided on a Caribbean inspired mango, avocado chicken salad. The recipe was "modified" from a friend's chicken salad recipe.

I could not decide whether to buy "ready-cooked" chicken or cook the chicken from myself. Decided to do it myself since it is more fun and I am sure taste much better.

Marinate overnight : 1lbs chicken, soya sauce, chili flakes, salt, pepper and spike seasoning
Cook at 350F for about 30-40 minutes.

Mango and Avocado

I bought two mangoes - one ripe and one not so ripe. The ripe mango provide sweetness to the salad while the "green" mango provide the "sour" taste. The mango and avocado are in season now and are really cheap. I bought the mango at USD 0.79 each from HEB. Avocado at 2 for USD 1.00.

Aren't they beautiful.. the cut mango and avocado

Add the dice chicken to the mango and avacado. Dressed with Mayo, sour cream, salt and pepper

Bingo.. the mango, avocado chicken salad !

~Bel~