Shrimp Salsa Soup

Hello my little puppies. It's been far too long and far too busy for me recently.  I feel like I should come up with some awesome short post of food to cook. I came up with the concept after going to a Mexican restaurant with my ex forever ago.

Cold Shrimp Salsa Soup

1/2 cup of Shrimp (usually tiny ones)
1/4 cup of Catalina Dressing
1/4 cup of tomato juice
1/4 cup of diced tomatoes
1/4 cup diced red peppers
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1/4 cup diced avocado
3 Tbsp Shrimp Cocktail sauce
Salt to taste
Lime Juice to taste

Saltine Crackers for scooping it up and eating it with.

Soak the shrimp in water filled with a little lime juice and then take them out and squeeze them. Mix everything together and enjoy! It's best to eat it fresh, but it can keep for a little while

GO EAT SOME SCRMIPS NOW!!

Love,
Me

Brussels Sprouts....not Brussel Sprouts

I am sad that I haven't kept up with this blog much, but whateverbugbutterputter... I decided to make brussels sprouts since I bought a small bag at trader joes. 

Leeks and Brussels sprouts in a White Wine Sauce

1 clove garlic

1 leek chopped and de sanded

30 medium Brussels sprouts (preferably halved)

Salt and pepper to taste.

¼ cup white wine

1 tsp Italian seasonings or a mix of Mediterranean herbs

Dash of celery salt

2 Tbsp freshly toasted almond slivers

½ Tbsp apple cider vinegar (optional)

Several Sundried tomatoes for taste (optional)

1 Tbsp fresh parmesan cheese (add in last)

Sautee leeks and garlic for 10 minutes in olive oil.  Add in the rest of the ingredients (except cheese) and simmer everything for 25’35 minutes whilst stirring.  Since it simmers a while…it is a fairly bitter dish…

You can adjust the recipe  as you feel appropriate.  Just remember, if you are making a white wine sauce with brussels sprouts, then you want to keep the number of flavors as low as possible.  I suggest some oregano and rosemary or something.  But, often times I use Herbes du Provence or Italian pasta mix.  Also, if you add in the tomatoes and vinegar, it will be pretty sour, so it's not necessary to add them in.  Be sure all the alcohol cooks out...because it's not a good taste with fresh vegis.

Thanks for your time my little unicron burbies!

Love,

Auntie Kyle

Hot as Hell, Cold as Ice

Today I decided to make something to drink....why you  ask? Because it was hot as hell, so I needed something as cold as ice to cool down. It was 102 degrees outside and felt like the surface of the sun.  Actually there was a fire in our neighborhood and they had to contain it.  We're all going to dry out and die.  But on a lighter note...I came up with two wonderful recipes perfect for summer!

Jasmine Sun Tea

3 Jasmine teabags or 1 big teabag
1 pitcher
3/4 - 1 cups of sugar
water
Saran wrap (or however you spell it)
 OPTIONAL:
Juice from 1 lemon
substitute in some honey for 1/3 of the sugar

Basically when it's scalding hot outside and there is sunlight constantly hitting a spot, take a CLEAR GLASS pitcher (because it doesn't mess up taste) and fill it up with water.  Put in the teabags and cover for about 5 hours or until it turns green-teaish-colored. Then add in the sugar and dissolve it and put into the fridge.  It....is....wonderful.....so do it...

Watermelon Juice

Watermelon Slices (the less cucumber-tasting and the more candy-tasting watermelons are the best)
3/4 - 1 cup of sugar
Juice from 2 limes
Water
An Old T-Shirt or old cloth napkin (something sturdy and cloth)
OPTIONAL:
Rose water to taste (because flowers are kind of my thing)

Take the pieces of watermelon when they are chilled and empty them into a pitcher by squeezing them dry through the shirt/napkin/etc.  In the end you should fill up a pitcher with some beautiful pink juice to the 1/5 mark. Fill the rest up with water and add in the sugar and lime.  Mix well and chill.  It also tastes pretty good with watermelon or other fruit vodkas if you want mixed drinks! Feel free to skim of the gross melon scum. Also...I feel like this would be pretty good with honeydew also.

Sorry if I don't post to often, but y'all have a wonderful time trying this! It is a great counterpart to my Mint Lemon-Limeaide from last year! I will try to post more stuff. I think my next post may be something crazy and new.

Your's Truly,
Kyle

cHIPotle Sauce

So in my town there is a restaurant called Choochoo and they, when I used to work there, they started making tacos that were a fusion of Korean and Mexican...since all the cooks are Mexicans and stuff. Well anyway, by asking around, using basic deductive skills, and experimenting I figured out how to make my own chipotle sauce. It may be a bit too spicy for you, so if you'd like you can mix it with ranch.  It makes a marvelous salad dressing, sauce for tacos, or marinade for many different things.

Chipotle Sauce

1 little little can of chipolte peppers in adobo sauce
1 normal can of peaches with syrup
1 full bottle of thousand island dressing

1 fine mesh sieve

Blend all the ingredients together for about 1 minute to combine well. Next, in order to get rid of gross pieces, strain through a fine mesh sieve very well. Then put back in the bottle (and probably little containers).

ENJOY!!!
KYLIE!!!!

Death Ulcer Tea

So....I got a mouth ulcer....and then it turned into 5.....then I had to talk on the phone for 6 hours nonstop until they turned into bruises and felt like a bloody hell.  I tried using orajel which uses hydrogen peroxide...it worked pretty well...but I found a type of tea specifically medicinal. So I thought I would write down the recipe.  Sage is an antiseptic along with cardamom, and clove is a natural numbing agent.

Mouth Ulcer Tea

3 coffee filters stacked up
1/2 tsp sage
1/4 tsp clove
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp Green tea
2 Tbsp raw sugar

Basically strain the items in a cup by pouring hot water over them...then Squeeze it really well to get all the good chemicals out. It also makes a pretty good tea in general.

Drink and enjoy!

KIMCHI JIGAE!!!

Okay...so not many people are fans of Kimchi...which I can understand.  But, When I worked at Choochoo we came up with a kimchi taco and it was disgusting.  Most people hate pickles or are just scared of the super garlic smell that it puts off.  But still...it's very savory and good for you.  I recently decided to make Kimchi Jjigae, which is a Korean soup made using kimchi.  I liked it and used some of my Homemade

Kimchi Jjigae

1 cup kimchi chopped into small pieces

2 cups pork broth or water

7 slices of pork jowels, bacon, or bork belly sliced into small pieces

½-¼ an onion julienned and sauteed

3-10 mushrooms sliced thin and sauteed

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp gochujaang

1 tsp Chinese soybean paste

1 tsp salt

Rice, corn, wheat, or buckwheat noodles chopped short

8 ounces cubed firm or extra firm tofu raw or sauteed

Basically just cover the bottom of the pot with the pork and cook it until it renders.  Next add in the onion and mushrooms and cook them until they sweat.  Then add in the tofu and kimchi.  Stir to combine well being careful not to break the tofu cubes.  Then add in the water and spices and cook for about 20-45 minutes (just right for tofu). 

Boil the noodles in another pot with some gochujaang and then drain them when they are barely undercooked.  Then strain and combine carefully in the soup.  Lastly cook another 10 minutes and serve hot!

It's really not too spicy and really yummy!

Also...I lost my camera...so...no pictures....gimme time...

Happy Cooking!

Kylie Swayne

Collards, Collards Everywhere and as soul as Yo Mama.....

I thought I would make this Collards recipe because I for some reason decided to attempt collard greens after eating at the Pope house for Christmas.  They made soul food because their mom is a Soul goddess from the south who knows how to make amazing fried chicken...better than mine could ever be.  So I'm kinda pleased with my recipe...not gonna lie...

Kyle’s BBQ Bacon Collard Greens

1 Head of collard greens (like 20-30 leaves??) chopped into ½” x 4” pieces

½ onion diced or julienned

4 pieces of bacon chopped into fine pieces

¼ cup BBQ small pork pieces

2 cups water

2 Tbsp lard, bacon grease, or butter

1 tsp salt

2-5 tsp of chicken bouillon powder or to taste

1 tsp curry powder

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp nutmeg

Cook in a crock pot, stirring every hour to 30 minutes, for about 4-6 hours.  Serve hot.  You can cook as long as you want just as long as the leaves don't fall apart.  Soul food is known for cooking a long time. 

And if you have leftover chicken breast or tenders try this.

Soul Taco

Halved Onion Pita bread

Kyle's BBQ Bacon Collards

Handful of Italian 5 cheeses

slices of grilled or baked chicken breast/tenders

Warm everything up and put it in a warm onion pita.  It's AMAZING!! 

Happy Cooking!

Kyle Swayne

Korean Sauces 101

I decided to finally write a recipe for Korean Gochujang sauce...I eat it all the time with my Bibimbap.  Now I just have to adjust the recipe. I tried it out and it should be fine.  You CAN substitute soy sauce for bean paste if you have none.

Bibimgochujang Sauce

1 Tbsp Gochujang paste

1½ tsp honey

2 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp white or apple cider vinegar

½ tsp Chinese-style soybean paste

1 tsp fresh garlic paste or ½ tsp garlic powder

Dash of cayenne

1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Love and best wishes 

Kyle Swayne

Jam on!

If you know me, then you know I learned to love making jams and pickles....and when I grow my own stuff and put them in a jar, it makes me feel spectacular!  So tonight after working at my call center, I came hope to use up all my cranberries from trying to ferment my own Sauerkraut.  So I then made some cranberry-apple jam.  I also had some left over, so....I decided to add some mango to make some spectacular jam.

Cranberry-Apple Jam

1 small bag of cranberries, chopped in fourths
One Apple finely chopped or minced
3/4 - 1 cup of sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 - 2 tsp of pectin

Makes about 2-3 cup jars

Basically just boil slowly on medium, adding water when needed.  Cook for about 30 minutes. You can puree it with a hand-mixer.  Add to a jar and seal.  Boil covered in water in a caner about 30 min or so.  Take out and place on a towel and let it cook, weak any water from the top or around (gently) with a towel.  Once it pops on top, that means it seals. 

Mango-Cranberry Jam

1 handful of Cranberries, quartered
1 mango sliced and diced
1 tsp pectin
1/8 cup sugar

Makes 1 cup jar

Cook about 30 min in a pot.  Add water when necessary. Place in jars, making sure not to get any on the rim.  Boil about 30 min covered in water in a caner.  Take out and weak water away gently with a towel. Once it pops on top after cooling, then it is sealed.

Have fun playing around and making different fruit or vegi jams!
Love,
Kyle S.

Rotmos

Everyone loves mashed potatoes, but have you ever had mashed....rutabagas? Rutabagas are a great alternative for potatoes, especially for someone on a diet.  They are lower in carbs, they have more fiber, they are higher in vitamins, etc. They also taste, great...or at least I think so...they taste, to me, like a mix between a potato and a turnip.

I wanted to make a recipe for something rutabaga and saw a while ago on wikipedia that there was a dish called rotmos. It means 'root mash' in Swedish and is often served along side ham or cooked swedish sausage like falukorv.

Rotmos

1 Rutabaga peeled and cut into cubes
2 potatoes peeled and cut into cubes
1 large carrot peeled and cut into cubes
Water for boiling
salt for water
salt and pepper for seasoning
(butter is optional)

Basically cut up the roots and put them in a large pot and cover them with water.

Cook the vegis until the rutabagas turn a nice golden yellow. Then you drain the water and mash up the roots!

I ate mine with some nice Italian sausages.

A lot of people it it with nice boiled peas. I hope you try it and enjoy this dish!

Loooooooove Kyle!

KIMCHI!!

So it's been some time since I've written a blogpost. Well, honestly...its been too long.  A recent conversation with one of my subscribers (Shoutout to Jen!) led me to thing about my blog and remember the intense desire to keep writing blogposts...er- at at least one more...at that... Anywho! If any of y'all know me well, then you know that I love things that take time to make through microorganisms (I.e. wine, yogurt, etc.).  So I thought I'd give a good try at kimchi.

For a little back story, I learned to like kimchi after eating a delicious kimchi taco at choo choo when I worked there.  It wasn't the traditional kimchi taco that they usually sold, but a variation that I made.  It was very delicious and suggest you make it.

Kimchi Taco

Flour Tortilla
Sweet bulgogi meat (I believe hangar steak)
Kimchi
Deep-fried tofu
A mayonnaise-based peach chipotle sauce

Now I'll try to explain Kimchi

Kimchi:
1 Nappa Cabbage (cut into bite-sized pieces 2"x2")
1/2 Korean radish or daikon radish cut into thin strips (2 inches long and 1/4 inch think)
3 green onions (cut diagonally into bite-sized pieces)
Salt for salting the vegis

Sauce:
1-2 cups of powdered korean chili peppers
6 cloves of garlic
1/2 onion
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 - 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/4 apple or pear
1 Tbsp gochujang chili paste (optional)
1/2 tsp ginger ground or 1 tsp ginger juice
2 tsp rice-wine vinegar
1 Tbsp of old kimchi juice culture

First you need to take the three vegis (cabbage, radish, and green onion) and put them into a large bowl.  Next sprinkle 1 or 2 big handfuls of salt over them and mix well (depends on how teeny your hands are).  Let them sit for 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours or until the vegis are salty and limp.  Drain off the water and then wash the vegis in three changes of water.

Next you have to make the sauce...it's not hard...basically puree the crap out of it in a blender.  You may have to add some water or something. Then place it into the vegis, once they have been thoroughly drained, and mix.  You may have to wear a glove if it's too spicy. Put it in a covered pot like the one in the picture and let it sit out for a day or so.

Lactobacillus Kimchii is the main agent at work pickling and preserving this food, but works along with other bacterium.

Good luck...and remember...there is risk for contamination or spoilage if not done well...so if you're brave enough to try it, then maybe you should also seek other resources. Luckily mine turned out well. I was surprised because I set it in the sun for several hours and actually heard it bubbling like it was supposed to.  It freaked me out, but apparently it worked. 

Good Luck!
;D Kyle!

Clam Chowder

Hey guys now that school's out for winter break, I have time to get some blogging in. Tonight, to celebrate not having class and being able to eat and cook good food, I decided to make some yummy seafood.  And what's better than scallops? (apart from lobster) It probably didn't hurt my decision that a guy on travel channel was eating clam chowder today!  So here goes! (BTW, I totally recommend this recipe)

Kyle's Clam Chowder

½ pound small bay scallops

3 pieces fresh ham sliced or 6 pieces bacon crumbled

1 clove garlic crushed

1 potato Cubed

½ onion chopped

1 small rib of celery chopped

½ tsp herb and spice mix

¼ tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp bacon grease or drippings from the bacon

¾ cup heavy whipping cream

¾ cup milk

1 Tbsp clam juice

1 Tbsp flour

½-1 tsp salt

Herb and Spice mixture:

1 tsp parsley flakes

1 tsp Turkish oregano

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp rosemary

½ tsp basil

½ tsp dill

½ tsp marjoram

½ tsp tarragon

Pinch of nutmeg

Pinch of allspice

Once you prep the spice mix keep it in an older spice container or such. 

Basically I make mine different in that I brown the stuff before ever so slightly before I add in the liquid.  I first added in the herb and spice mix, bacon grease, garlic and ham.  I fry it up a bit and then add in the onion, celery, and potato.  Once it has fried, I mix together in another bowl (while it's still cold) the liquids and the flour and stir it up until all the lumps are gone. I Next I add it in along with the bay scallops and slow-cook it on medium to medium-low until the potatoes are soft and cooked through. 

Serve it hot with bread or oyster crackers and a glass of gingerale! :D

Enjoy Guys! 

¡Kyle S!