Kugel, Miso, and Apple Crisp

What is any holiday without food? J. and I made some tasty dishes recently and I thought I'd share.

Savory Kugel

ingredients (serves 6):

• 8 oz egg noodle (the pack I got was 16 oz so I just took half) cooked and drained
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup sour cream (small container of sour cream was just this much)
• 1/8 cup cottage cheese (small container of cottage cheese) 
• 1 cup Gruyere cheese grated (if you don't have a grater, just cut it into small pieces. it melts well), separated into two containers. one for mixing and one for sprinkling.
• chopped chive (leave for very end otherwise it will fill your entire house)
• veggies (we used broccoli, you can use whatever vegetable you like)
• chicken (we got some grilled chicken from the hot buffet at the market while picking up groceries. saves cooking time for sure)
• 2 tbsp butter
• salt
• pepper
• bread crumbs

directions

1. preheat oven to 350F
2. mix cooked egg noodles with some melted butter and salt/pepper
3. in another bowl, mix eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, chive, chicken, broccoli, and Gruyere
4. add noodles to mixture above
5. add entire thing to greased pan, then sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of cheese
6. sprinkle topping (bread crumb with a bit of melted butter)
7. bake for 30-40 min until edges are crispy and fork comes out clean 
8. great for dinner or a side

extra props for J. for researching and recommending this recipe. Pretty fun to make and delicious too.
source material: http://food52.com/recipes/7810-savory-noodle-kugel

mixing ingredients 

a square of the kugel with its crispy top

Miso Soup

ingredients

• 1 or 2 tbsp of miso paste (you can get white/red/whatever type you like, I used some type of reduced sodium organic kind from the supermarket)
• half a package of tofu cut up into cubes (silkier the better)
• ginger (sliced or grated)
• seaweed (papery thin kind)
• soup seasoning (I didn't have dashi mix, just used chicken stock. I guess beef stock or vegetable stock is probably fine)
• chopped scallion and/or cilantro (optional garnish, all to taste)
• salt / pepper (to taste)

directions

1. prep soup stock
2. add ginger to soup
3. add tofu and simmer
4. add seaweed until it spreads out 
5. take a soup ladle full of soup and place in a bowl, mix with a table spoon or more of miso paste
6. lower heat, lower above to soup and mix gently, do not boil over.
7. serve with chopped scallion or cilantro or both! You can add spinach or egg if you want. Miso soup is easy to make and always tasty.

Apple Crisp

ingredients

• 3 apples (I was trying to figure out granny smith or fuji tasted better... they were both fine)
• brown sugar (I didn't have this so I just used regular cane sugar) 
• lemon juice
• water
• topping: 
• cinnamon and nutmeg
• graham cracker crumbs (J. made the crumbs by crushing some graham crackers. put them in a ziplock bag and crush under a pan)
• melted butter
• more sugar

directions

1. preheat to 350F
2. cut up apples
3. mix with lemon juice (prevent browning) and sugar
4. put apples into greased pan with water, sprinkle topping on top
5. bake at 30-40min until tender
6. sprinkle more spices if required. 
7. Note: we had it for dessert with some graham cracker. and the next day we had them with pancakes! this recipe also has a nice side effect of spicing up the kitchen/room.

source material: various recipes found online. I didn't like any of them so ended up sort of mixing stuff I liked from various recipes and just baked it. here are some ideas: http://www.epicurious.com/tools/searchresults?search=apple+crisp%2C+ny+times

almost gone!

Matzo Ball Soup

I was craving matzo ball soup and J. didn’t want to go to the local deli. As an alternative, I suggested that we make our own. Having known many people who consume matzo ball soups on a regular basis, J. claims that nobody makes them from scratch and that we may end up with a mess. Since I am always up for a challenge, I conducted some google searches on potential recipes. As I suspected, it really is not rocket science and we have most of the ingredients anyway.

Ingredients

• matzo (3 pieces, we happened to have the Manischewitz brand)
• 2 tbsp chicken broth
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• optional, to taste (Italian seasoning, dry parsley flakes, garlic powder, black pepper, whatever you like from the spice rack)
• more broth to cook the matzo balls in
• other soup ingredients like protein or vegetables (we used chicken sausages in this case)

Directions

1. ground up matzo into crumbles. we broke up the matzo sheets and put them inside a plastic freezer bag. then used the bottom of a pan to mash it up. 
2. in a mixing bowl, mix eggs with broth and oil.
3. add dry matzo meal bit by bit into the egg mixture
4. add optional spices and ingredients (I would add some fresh scallion or parsley if I had them). mix well with a fork
5. boil broth/soup base in a soup pot
6. once soup boils, wet hands a bit, scoop out some matzo mixture with spoon, shape into a round ball in hands, and then drop in boiling soup. repeat for more matzo balls. I made around 7 or 8 but they weren’t all evenly shaped. (and that’s what you call home-made)
   
   
7. add other soup ingredients
8. lower temperature so the soup is not boiling too much, but simmering. the matzo balls should float when they’re done. leave simmering for 15-20 min so they soak up the soup
9. place a couple of matzo balls and soup in a soup bowl and serve

Taste Note
Delicious! Glad I didn’t add extra salt because between the broth and sausages and salted matzo, the matzo balls were quite flavorful. Totally impressed by my resourcefulness but always offering helpful advice, J. says next time we can leave them cooking for 5 minutes more because the center is not 100% soaked through. I really think it’s a matter of preference. Besides, I won the challenge with flying colors, so am quite happy about it. On a side note, I may have caused the local deli to lose our business (at least the matzo ball soup, I doubt I’ll ever take them out of business since they have awesome pastrami sandwiches). Next time, I want to try more vegetables in the soup and fresh herbs in the matzo balls.

Reference:
http://www.cookingforengineers.com/recipe/177/Matzo-Matzah-Ball-Soup

Hale&Hearty

Various locations throughout Manhattan.
http://www.haleandhearty.com/

If you work in Manhattan you probably have tried Hale&Hearty at some point for lunch. Their soups and sandwiches are tasty and the variety keeps things interesting.

Some of my favorite soups:
-7 Herb Bistro Chicken Soup
-Potato Italian Sausage
-Curry Chicken
-Eggplant Tomato
-Ten Vegetable
-Gazpacho (summer)

Some favorite sandwiches:
-Chicken with Sundried Tomato
-Roast Beef

Pasta in a Can

Looking for a change from your normal tomato based pasta sauce? Have too many cans of soup sitting at home? Try this recipe! Inspired by my cousin K. I like using beef soup because the soup by itself tends to be salty, but with pasta it's just right.

Ingredients

-dry pasta (I used the Barilla thin spaghetti)

-salt

-can of soup (I used Progresso beef roast with vegetables), skim off the fat on top with a spoon

-mushrooms and/or other fresh veggies (optional) cut into chunks

-Italian seasoning

-pepper

-cheese topping (optional)

Directions

1. Boil water in pot, add some salt.

2. Cook pasta according to package direction, minus a few minutes. i.e. my pack says 6-7 min, I took them out to drain after 5 minutes.

3. In another pot (or same one after you take out pasta), heat up the can of soup.

4. Place pasta inside soup and cook for a few minutes. Add mushrooms and vegetables and Italian seasoning.

5. Try the pasta to make sure it's the right consistency for you. Cook soup until most of the water evaporates, leaving a nice sauce at the bottom.

6. Serve with pepper and cheese!

Notes:

I guess if you're not worried about overstarching your soup, you can cook dry pasta right in it for 6-7 minutes. When I was looking up the brand of pasta and soup that I used, I found a bunch of recipes! Check them out below.

Other resources:

Progresso Recipes http://www.progressofoods.com/?View=RecipeIdeas/SignatureRecipes

Barilla Sauce Pairing http://www.barillaus.com/home/Pages/Perfect_Pairing.aspx

Barilla Videos http://www.barillaus.com/home/Pages/Video_Cooking_Tips.aspx

Barilla Recipes http://www.barillaus.com/home/Pages/recipes__cooking.aspx

Tomato Oxtail Soup

Unfortunately no photo. but my family liked it! Inspired by a dish from Accord Cafe.

Ingredients
one medium oxtail
1 tomato
1 onion
1 potato
1 large carrot
2 small cans (8 oz. each) of Goya tomato sauce or 1 med. can or whatever tomoto product you have.
1/4 cup of cooking wine
chopped scallions (optional)
salt
sugar

preparation
1. section oxtail. the butcher hopefully would have already done this for you. I didn't have to do anything.
2. Cut potato, carrot, onion, and tomato into chunks/pieces.

directions
1. Cook oxtail in water.
2. Once water boils, remove floating fats/particles.
3. Add vegetables. Cook for nearly 2 hours on low heat. Stir ever so often.
4. Add 2 cans of tomato sauce, 1 tablespoon of salt, and 2 tablespoons of sugar (all to taste). Mix well.
5. Once soup boils again, turn off stove and serve.

Not only is the oxtail delicious, the other veggies taste hearty in the tomato stew too.

Winter Melon Pork Ribs Soup

Winter Melon Pork Ribs Soup
(冬瓜排骨汤)

Intro:
In the summer months, the Cantonese are known for their nutritious soups that help combat the humidity and heat. Here is a very common and simple recipe for the winter melon pork ribs soup. Of course, to begin, you need to figure out if you actually have all the necessary tools and ingredients.

Tools:
-sharp knife for cutting melon and ribs
-clay soup pot (砂锅)


Ingredients:
-winter melon (冬瓜). A small wedge that Asian food markets sell is plenty. Winter melons are usually enormous. There's no way you'd finish a whole melon.
-water (enough to fill 3/4 of the claypot)
-salt. about 2 and a half tablespoons, add to taste.
-pork ribs. Try to find lean ones as the fatty kind tends to grease up the soup too much.
-fresh ginger slices (optional)

Notes:
I have attached a photo of a wedge of winter melon and claypot for your reference. Many people like to peel the skin off, but the real way to make this soup is to leave the skin on, but wash off the dirt. The seeds should be left off although I've read that keeping them in is fine as well.



Directions:
1. Wash the ribs briefly, separate them into individual pieces.
2. Wash melon, then cut into medium pieces (about 3 inches long and 1 inch thick). If you cut them too small they will melt into the soup. But if you cut them too big it'll be hard to eat.
3. Slice up a bit of ginger. 3 or four small slices should be plenty.
4. Put ribs in pot with water, let boil. Once it boils, use a ladle to get rid of the fat that appears on the surface.
5. Put melon pieces and ginger into the pot, boil again, then take it down to medium temperature, let simmer for 1 hour.
6. Add salt to taste.
7. When soup is ready, winter melon should turn somewhat transparent and soft.

End result: