Chicken Khao Soi Soup

Blue Apron seems to be on a kick with these Asian inspired dishes. Or maybe it's just that those are the ones I'm particularly into right now. After a few duds with my last couple shipments, I have one that I think I can keep.

Chicken Khao Soi Soup
Originally found at Blue Apron

1/4 cup oil
6 Ounces Fresh Wonton Noodles
3 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs
1 Bunch Kale, stems discarded and thinly sliced
1 Yellow Onion, minced
1 1-Inch Piece Ginger, minced
2 Tbsp Yellow Curry Paste
1 Tbsp Coconut Palm Sugar
2 Tbsp Golden Mountain Sauce
1 can Light Coconut Milk
1 Lime, zested and quartered
1 Bunch Cilantro, stems removed (optional)

In a large, high sided pan (or pot) heat a thin layer of oil (canola is best) on medium-high until hot. Add 1/4 of the noodles, gently separated, in a single, even layer. Cook 2-4 minutes, tossing occasionally, until lightly browned and crispy. Remove to a paper towel lined plate. Set aside in warm place.

Discard all but about 2 tsp oil, then add chicken to pan. Cook 4-6 minutes, until browned on both sides. Add the onion and ginger, and season with salt and pepper. Cook 2-3 minutes, until onions are soft and fragrant. Add curry paste (as much as desired, depending on level of spiciness). Cook 30 seconds to 1 minute, until curry paste is toasted and fragrant. Add kale to pan and cover. Allow to steam for 1-2 minutes, until kale is wilted. Add palm sugar, Golden Mountain Sauce, coconut milk, and a small amount of water. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes. Stir in lime zest and juice of 1/2 lime.

While the soup cooks, cook remaining noodles in a pot of boiling salted water. Cook 2-4 minutes, until tender. Drain thoroughly. Divide cooked noodles and finished soup between two bowls. Garnish with cilantro, crispy noodles, and remaining lime wedges.

My Notes:
The original recipe for this dish was wayyy salty. I'm not into the salty thing so much (it should flavor, but not overpower a dish), so I made some slight modifications. I'm not sure if the particular mix of spices they used in my shipment caused them to be super salty, but hopefully the modifications make that better. I will likely adapt this a bit more the next time I make it (fresh wonton noodles are hard to find, so I'll probably stick with rice noodles and chow mein noodles for the crispy topping), but it's still a delicious dish!

Steaks with Romesco Sauce

Not the best of pictures, but at least I grabbed one. This dish surprised me a bit. I'm not big on red meat, in case you hadn't gathered that yet, but I decided to branch out of my comfort zone a bit to try this. The steak preparation itself is pretty simple--you can grill or sear or whatever to however done you like your steaks. The sauce takes a bit more time, primarily because you spend most of it just roasting the vegetables. The sauce was a bit tangier than I expected it to be, but it was a wonderful complement to the steak. Roasted potatoes round out this meal, but feel free to swap them out for something else.

Steaks with Romesco Sauce
Originally found at Blue Apron

2 top Sirloin steaks
3 cloves garlic
1 red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
1 plum tomato, halved lengthwise
2 Tbsp smoked paprika
1 Tbsp sherry vinegar
2 Tbsp pistachios, roughly chopped
3/4 lb fingerling potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
olive oil

Preheat oven to 475F. Place garlic cloves, bell pepper, and tomato on one half of a sheet pan, and potatoes on the other half. Drizzle all with olive oil and sprinkle with half of the smoked paprika. Arrange bell pepper and tomato skin sides down. Roast 22-24 minutes, until browned and softened. Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly.

Season steaks with remaining paprika, and cook over medium-high heat 2-4 minutes per side (for medium-rare) or to desired doneness. Transfer to a plate and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes.

Once the roasted vegetables have cooled enough to handle, transfer the garlic, bell pepper, and tomato to a cutting board and finely chop. Transfer to a medium bowl, and add pistachios and vinegar. Stir in a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve steaks topped with as much sauce as you'd like, and potatoes as a side.

My Notes:
I had a bit of trouble keeping everything at a good eating temperature. By the time the veggies cooled enough to handle, my steaks were slightly cool, and then adding the room temp vinegar made my sauce fairly cold as well. Keep this in mind when timing everything; I'd recommend waiting to cook your steaks until your vegetables are out of the oven, and keeping them in an enclosed, warm space until ready to eat. The sauce may require some additional heating as well.

All the same, a very interesting dish. Don't know when I'll get around to trying it again, given my lack of desire for red meat, but it is certainly a good enough dish to share.

Enjoy!

Green and Yellow Spaghetti

I know, it's a weird name for spaghetti. But it's far more descriptive than the 'whole grain spaghetti' that this dish was originally named. One of my first meals from Blue Apron, and my first vegetarian meal. It made a lot of food. And it was a nice departure from the typical tomato-based sauces to go with spaghetti. The salty bite of the cheese and the sweetness of the corn make this a wonderful dish, and it's relatively light feeling for a perfect summer meal. Plus, if you actually make it during the summer, you could easily grab most of the ingredients from a local farmer's market. Score!

Note that in the picture, my cherry tomatoes had went bad, so I used a Roma tomato for the tomatoes instead. I'm sure it would be even more delightful with the cherry tomatoes.

Green and Yellow Spaghetti
Originally found at Blue Apron

8 ounces whole grain spaghetti
1 ear of corn, removed from cob
1 shallot, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
5 ounces cherry tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1 bunch basil, stems discarded and roughly chopped
2 Tbsp Mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
red pepper flakes, to taste
olive oil

Heat a large pot of salted water to boiling on high. Add pasta to the water and cook 5-7 minutes, until al dente. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup of the pasta cooking water. Meanwhile, in a large pan, heat 2 tsp oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic, shallot, and corn, and cook 2-3 minutes, until slightly softened. Add tomatoes, half the basil, and crushed red pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Cook 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until well combined and the tomatoes have softened slightly. Add the cooked pasta, Mascarpone cheese, and 1/3 cup of reserved pasta water. Cook 1-2 minutes, until pasta is thoroughly coated, adding more water as necessary to reach desired consistency.

Serve, garnishing with remaining basil and Parmesan cheese.

My Notes:
The original recipe called for adding the Parmesan cheese with the Mascarpone cheese, but I found that it ended up clumping together too much, so I recommend garnishing with it instead. Feel free to add more tomatoes if you'd like more in your dish, but overall, I think it worked well. And it makes for great left overs.

Seared Chicken and Caramelized Fennel

I love when I get the opportunity to explore new vegetables. The fennel was an interesting experience, as I'm pretty sure I've never encountered it before. However, caramelizing it makes it slightly sweet, which is perfect for my ever-craving sweet tooth. This would have been a relatively fast dinner to make had I been a bit more coordinated, but all in all, it only took about 45 minutes to make. And I was very tempted to go back for seconds.

Since this is the second recipe I've tried with sherry vinegar, and I've liked them both, I think that's a staple I'm going to have to add to my pantry. We'll see next time I get around to shopping :)

Seared Chicken and Caramelized Fennel
Originally found at Blue Apron

2 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 cup jasmine rice
1 1/4 cup water, divided
3 ounces cherry tomatoes
1 bunch thyme
1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 fennel bulb, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp sherry vinegar
Olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. Pat chicken dry and dredge in flour. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan, and cook 4-5 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer chicken to plate. Meanwhile, heat 2 tsp oil in a small pot over high, then add rice. Stir to coat the rice with oil, and allow to sit 30 sec to 1 minute, until slightly toasted. Add 1 cup water and heat to boiling, then reduce heat to medium and allow to simmer until rice absorbs all the water. Fluff with fork.

Slice the tomatoes in half lengthwise, then place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle half the thyme, with stems intact, amongst the tomatoes. Drizzle with oil, and roast in preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, Until tomatoes soft. Remove from oven and discard thyme sprigs.

In the pan used to cook the chicken, heat an additional portion of oil, then add fennel and onion. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium high heat until vegetables browned and softened. Add more oil as necessary to keep from burning. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, cooking 30 seconds until fragrant. Add vinegar, an additional portion of oil, and 1/4 cup water. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken back to pan (along with any juices from plate), and half the remaining thyme (leaves only). Cook for 1-2 minutes, until well combined. Add additional water to sauce as necessary.

Divide rice between two plates, top with chicken and fennel. Garnish with roasted tomatoes and remaining thyme leaves.

My Notes:
Lovely sweet and tangy. And a nice portion of vegetables to go with my meat and starch. If I ever get around to finding fennel in the store, this is a dish I would love to make again.

Gnocchi in Mushroom Browned Butter Sauce

I'm not a huge fan of mushrooms. Something about the texture, I think. So when I saw this was my only real choice for my Blue Apron delivery, I was a little disappointed. But, I'm open to trying new things every so often, so I gave it a shot. I fooled myself by chopping up the mushrooms much smaller than the recipe called for, so the texture really wasn't an issue. The bits of mushroom just stuck to the gnocchi and did a great job of flavoring the sauce.

And the browned butter! You have no idea how many times I've unsuccessfully attempted to make a browned butter sauce. It always ends up either burning or being this mess of butter that I then don't know what to do with. It all came together well in this recipe, and it's definitely something I'll try again if I can get my hands on some Maitake mushrooms.

Gnocchi in Mushroom Browned Butter Sauce
Originally found at Blue Apron

10 Ounces Fresh Gnocchi
3½ Ounces Maitake Mushrooms
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Shallot
1 Ear Of Corn
1 Bunch Thyme
⅓ Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
Olive oil

Cut the corn kernels off the cob, strip the thyme leaves from the stems and discard the stems, and finely mince the shallot and mushrooms. Set a medium pot of salted water to boil. Heat 2 tsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes, until browned and softened. Reduce heat to medium and add butter to pan. Stir to melt and allow the butter to foam. Continue cooking 2-3 minutes, stirring and swirling the pan occasionally to prevent the butter from burning. When butter becomes brown and slightly nutty in fragrance, add shallot, corn, and all but a pinch of thyme. Meanwhile, add gnocchi to boiling water and cook until gnocchi begins to float, 3-4 minutes. Remove from water and set aside, reserving 1/2 cup of cooking liquid. Cook corn mixture 3-4 minutes, until softened, then add gnocchi and 1/4 cup cooking water. Stir to coat the gnocchi and allow sauce to thicken slightly.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese just before serving and garnish with any remaining thyme.

My Notes:
This was so delicious, I ate the whole dish. Two servings. But it was worth it. The corn adds a delightful sweetness to the savory taste of the butter and mushroom, and the whole sauce just coats the gnocchi so well. I'm glad I've finally found a sauce to serve with my gnocchi that is not pesto or tomato based. Woot woot!

Summer Pepper Shakshuka

My first time being introduced to Shakshuka was actually in school. I expressed my interest in Judaism to some friends, and one of them became fascinated by the cuisine and insisted on making Shakshuka for me and one of my Jewish friends. I was a bit skeptical when I first saw it, but my hesitance was quickly overcome, and I fell in love with the dish. So, when I saw it as an option for my Blue Apron delivery, I jumped on it.

This is a fantastic vegetarian (not vegan) dish that features a tomato and pepper (as in bell) sauce and poached eggs. Poached eggs have actually become something of a treat for me, as one of my friends now is obsessed with brunch and insists on trying a wide variety of Eggs Benedict.

And, of course, in my delight over this dish, I apparently missed the opportunity to take a picture of it. Next time...

Summer Pepper Shakshuka
Originally found at Blue Apron

3 Eggs
2 Red Bell Peppers
2-4 Sweet Peppers (the smaller, colored peppers)
1 large Tomato
1 Red Onion
½ Pound Fingerling Potatoes
2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1 tsp chili powder (mild)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Olive oil
1 1/4 cups water
1 Large Bunch Parsley
½ Cup Crumbled Feta Cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Dice the peppers, tomato, onion, and potatoes. Remove parsley leaves from stems and roughly chop. In a medium skillet (preferably oven-safe), heat 2 tsp olive oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add the potatoes and cook for 5-7 minutes, until browned and tender. Transfer to a bowl. Add bell peppers and onion to the pan, using more oil if necessary. Cook until softened, then add tomato paste and spices. Cook until fragrant. Add tomato, sweet peppers, cooked potatoes, 2/3 of parsley leaves, and water. Stir until thickened and saucy.

If not using an oven safe skillet, transfer sauce to an oven-safe dish. Create three wells in the sauce, and crack an egg into each well. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle cheese over the sauce and eggs. Bake 6-8 minutes, until egg whites are set. Remove from oven and allow to sit 2 minutes. Garnish with remaining parsley.

My Notes:
Blue Apron sends you enough food for two people, and their vegetarian dishes are often very well portioned. So, I actually ended up making this two ways. I made the sauce and put everything into the oven as the recipe calls for. Seemed to take a really long time to cook, but my yolk ended up being a little more done than I would like, so I evidently left it in too long. The second time, I heated up the leftover sauce in a pot on the stove to boiling, then cracked the egg in and covered. Probably took a good 10 minutes before the egg started to cook, but that might've been because I didn't let the sauce heat all the way through before cracking the egg. None-the-less, both were good, and this dish made me remember how much I love shakshuka.

Play with the spices some too. I've seen several recipes with garlic powder included, and some with some other spices, including dried thyme. You can really make the dish with whatever spices you have available, though.

And, of course, the removal of the feta cheese makes this dish pareve, so adjust to suit your needs.

Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken

So, I decided to try Blue Apron, simply because I am currently on a string of nights and didn't want to try to plan my meals. I got three meals in my first shipment, this being one of them. It's in the same theme as many other dishes I've made the past couple weeks. Apparently, the dish gets its name because the original recipe requested a cup each of soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Obviously, those portions have been adjusted significantly in this dish, but it's nice all the same.

Apologies for the horrendous photo. I promise these photos look much better on the screen of my device than they do on the computer screen... :/

Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken
Adapted from Blue Apron
Serves 2

2 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 pound choy sum
1/4 cup water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-2 inch pieces
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 scallions, sliced thinly
1 inch piece ginger, grated
1 bunch Thai basil, stems removed and sliced
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 cup brown rice, cooked

Cut off and discard the ends of the choy sum stems and half lengthwise. Heat 2 tsp oil on medium-high heat until hot. Add choy sum and water. Cook 5-7 minutes until the leaves are wilted and the stems are tender. Set aside.

Heat 2 tsp oil in skillet on medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken and allow to brown on one side. Flip, then add the garlic, ginger, and the white portion of green onions to pan. Add more oil if necessary to lightly coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute, until garlic is fragrant and soft. Add vinegar and soy sauce. He to boiling, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in half of the basil. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with choy sum and rice. Garnish with remaining Thai basil and green onion.

My Notes:
The original recipe asked for only 3 cloves of garlic, but they sent me a whole bulb, so I got a little excited about chopping it all up. Very garlicy in the end, but I quite enjoyed it. I was a little suspicious of the choy sum, just because most greens I've wilted have been rather bland tasting, but it was quite a nice accompaniment to the saltiness of the chicken. All in all, it is a recipe I will definitely try again, and it's nice to have it in portions that are small enough that I don't feel terribly guilty for wasting so much food when just cooking for me.

And yes, I realize I haven't posted a recipe in over a year... I do actually have a couple in the queue that I never got quite around to getting photos for, so I'll back-date those posts some. Also, apologies for the photo, it isn't all that great, but it looks so much better on my iPhone than it does on the computer screen. One of these days I'll get around to updating my phone and getting a slightly better camera in the process.