Back in Time - Popcorn

For those of us who grew up in the Microwave Popcorn generation, having freshly made popcorn at home is a bit of a novelty and very rare. But in today's economy, finding ways to save money is on everybody's mind, and the cost of a bag of popping corn is several dollars cheaper than a box of microwave popcorn and you can season it yourself and lower salt and lower fat ways, that appeal to your unique culinary preferences.

It takes approximately 4 minutes (the microwave usually takes about 2 1/2, so not much of a difference there) and the benefits way outweigh the additional minute 1/2 - lower cost and healthier, depending on how you choose to flavor it.

In a large pot (like a Dutch oven), place 2 tablespoons oil (I use peanut oil which adds even more flavor) and 1/2 cup popping corn in the pot. Make sure the pot has a tightly closing lid and put the stove on high heat. Just let it go - just like the microwave version, as soon as the popping slows down, turn off the flame.
In order to cut the fat, instead of using melted butter, I use a seasoned salt (salt, cayenne pepper, and dried parsley).
Delicious and kids will love it - For a sweet version you can use brown sugar and cinnamon.

So travel back in time, before microwaves, and pop some fresh popcorn today!

Enjoy!!



Chef Mireille
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Thai Corn Fritters

Corn is natural sweetness. To us Americans, nothing says summer like the smell of fresh roasting corn on a barbecue. You can be creative by using different flavored butters. My favorite is to add about 1 tablespoon of chili paste to 1 stick of butter - Absolutely delicious!!

But Southeast Asia has some different ways of using corn and one of my favorites in Corn Fritters. Here is a recipe for Thai Corn Fritters. To make them Indonesian Corn Fritters, just add some chopped shrimp to the batter.

Ingredients:
3 corn cobs
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 red chili, finely chopped
1 scallion, finely chopped
1 small bunch cilantro (aka coriander), finely chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon red curry paste
3/4 cup rice flour
2 eggs
4 tablespoons water
salt and pepper, to taste
oil, for frying
Sweet Chili Sauce

Directions:
Using a sharp knife, slice the kernels from the cob and place in large bowl. Add all the other ingredients, except the oil and Chili Sauce. Stir well to mix thoroughly. The batter will be fairly loose.

In a large skillet, heat oil for shallow frying, about 1/2" deep. Add spoonfools of corn batter. As you place the batter in the oil, flatten the fritters using the back of a spoon. Cook about 2 minutes on each side until cooked thoroughly and golden brown. If the fritters begin to brown too much before they are cooked, lower the flame.

Serve with Sweet Chili Sauce. If you do not live near a Chinatown or where you have access to International products, it can be purchased online here.

Enjoy!!!



Chef Mireille
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Empanada Mama

This little eatery has a huge variety of empanadas to satiate any palate - not just your usual beef or cheese that you usually get at most Latin eateries. Everything from Empanada Reggaeton (caribbean style roast pork with sofrito seasoned yellow rice and grandules) to the Polish Empanada with sausage and sauerkraut. This place epitomizes fusion cuisine with American Empanada stuffed with hot dog and American cheese or how about a Beef and Broccoli Teriyaki Empanada?

In addition there are soups, salads arepas and unique tapas like cassave (yuca) stuffed with beef and pork. And traditional Latin meals served with rice and beans like Pollo Guisado and Chuleta Epanizada.

All natural cooking - no trans fats and the empanadas are all made with whole wheat or corn flour. $2.50 for most of the empanadas - the most expensive is the Viagra, stuffed with a seafood stew. These empanadas are truly stuffed - For $5.00 you can have a delicious lunch and be full until dinnertime. They deliver, so the next time you want to eat in for lunch, I highly recommend Empanada Mama.

• A lot of bang for your buck
• Delicious Fusion Cuisine
• Natural Cooking

Empanada Mama is a hit in my book!!




Chef Mireille
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The other Twin Towers

As a New Yorker, we all miss the Twin Towers and are waiting for the day when they will be rebuilt. There is an empty space in our skyline. Until they are, there is another place where you can view superb architectural talent - Kuala Lampur's Petrona Towers. Built by Agentinian American, Cesar Pelli, they are currently the tallest Twin Towers in the world and were the tallest building in the world from 1998-2004. The designs on the towers are based on geometric patterns common in Islamic architecture. Special features include the double-deck sky-bridge and double-decker elevators.

In addition to business offices, the Petronas Towers house the Petronas Philharmonic Hall, home of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as shopping arcades, restaurants, and a science museum.

Whether or not you are able to come with me on our Malaysian Cuisine and Cultural Tour in August, Malaysia should be on your list of vacation destinations to see this architectural masterpiece and the wonderful sights and experiences available throughout the country.



Chef Mireille
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Urban Organic Lacking in Customer Service

Although this is a company blog, all entries are written by one person me - the President. As my name is behind everything I endorse, I do not endorse anything without trying it on a personal level - I take my endorsements seriously.

Several months ago I advocated Urban Organic as a wonderful resource for organic produce which is delivered to your doorstep either weekly or bi-weekly. I am going to have to retract my endorsement, due to their lack of customer service.

Starting with delivery, they change the day of delivery at times without notice. So if you are not home on the new date of delivery, the box will sit on your doorstep until the next day, causing some of the products to lose quality - lettuce gets very limp after sitting out in a box all night. Which leads to next problem - the delivery itself.

When you sign up for the service, you are asked if you need an afternoon or an evening delivery. Your request is not honored - so I don't know why they bother. My box would repeatedly arrive before I am home and sometimes when I happened to be home early, my box would usually be delivered around 3. It is just left on my doorstep or sometimes in the lobby of my building. There were even times when I was home and they did not bother to ring the doorbell. I was discussing this with a neighbor of mine in my building and she would repeatedly find the box outside her door, when she had been home the entire day. We live in a decent neighborhood with decent neighbors - but anybody could come and pick up the box of fresh, organic produce!

I have sent email requesting substitutions for items in my box that I do not like. My requests were not honored and since getting a live person on the phone is virtually impossible, after several attempts, there is no way to verify they receive your request.

The latest problem which is causing me to write this blog entry - I decided to stop service since I have recently joined the Food Coop where I have a variety of organic products at a convenient location. I called and left a message - a live person NEVER answers the phone. You are not given the option to wait to speak to someone. You leave a message and usually do not receive a return call until the next day. I was at a trade show that day at a location without cellphone coverage, therefore, I did not receive the message until it was after office hours. The message said they did not understand if I just wanted to next delivery canceled or if I wanted to permanently cancel. Instead of canceling the next delivery until they received a confirmation from me, they disregarded my message and made the delivery, causing me to have a ridiculous amount of produce because I had gone shopping at the Coop, thinking I would NOT be receiving a delivery.

Although it is a great service for those where fresh produce is not readily available, their lack of customer service may be worth you going out of your way to do your shopping - so that your box does not get stolen off of your doorstep!!

OK - enough venting - I promise my next blog will be back to the normal cheerful mode!!




Chef Mireille
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Fusion Cuisine with Leftover Bananas

So I had some ripe bananas and went about creating something different. I realize most of you wont have the variety of international food products located in my pantry, so use substitutions when appropriate, but the variety of flavors produced by the variety of products is one of the things that makes this stand out - I haven't thought of a name yet for this recipes - Suggestions are welcome - Please post!!!

It is a wonderful low sugar dessert, having fruit and honey provide the sweetness, instead of processed sugar.

1/3 cup plantain flour (Caribbean)
1/3 cup manioc flour (Brazil) - aka as cassava or yuca
1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup fig paste (Middle Eastern/Greek)
1/3 cup honey
14 oz. can peaches in pear juice
2 bananas, sliced
1 egg
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons grated coconut (not the flaked, sweetened stuff but the dessicated freshly grated)
non fat cooking spray

Combine all dry ingredients. Whisk in egg and buttermilk. Add honey and fig paste. Add 1/2 cup pear juice (from can of peaches). Mix well - make sure there are no clumps of fig paste.

Spray a casserole dish with non stick spray. Pour half of the above mixture in casserole. Place the peaches on top and then the sliced bananas. Cover with the rest of the batter. Top with coconut. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until knife inserted comes out clean.

Serve warm!!

Substitutions - Use 1 cup all purpose flour, instead of the variety of flours.
Any flavor preserves can be used as a substitution for the fig paste (strawberry would be wonderful)



Chef Mireille
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Cocoa - Caribbean Style

Hot Cocoa - one of those comfort drinks that automatically remind you of your childhood - while sometimes my mother served the packaged stuff that comes in the envelopes for speed and convenience, when she served Caribbean Hot Cocoa, that was our special treat!!

This is still something you can't find in the US , so she used it sparingly because it was only when we went to the Caribbean or when someone we knew went, were we able to get fresh cocoa from the Caribbean. Boiled with evaporated milk and spices - it is Heaven on Earth!!

So the next time you go to the Caribbean, instead of coming back with another T-shirt or keychain you don't need, go to any grocery store and buy some cocoa. It is sold either in cones or sticks and sometimes comes in a little bag with the cinnamon and bay leaf.

I still had some cocoa and fresh cinnamon bark left from my last trip to Dominica, and so here is my recipes for Caribbean Hot Cocoa. If you can't get any fresh cocoa from the Caribbean, use a dark chocolate bar - as pure cocoa as you can get.

1/2 cone cocoa, grated, about 2 cups
3 cups evaporated milk
1 cup water
2 pieces cinnamon bark (or cinnamon sticks)
1 bay leaf (if it is fresh, use 2 if it is dried especially the ones sold in the US which tend to be a lot smaller)
2 star anise (optional)
sugar, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir thoroughly to make sure all cocoa is melted. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes so that the flavors can infuse. Add sugar, to taste. Serve immediately.
As it cools, a skin will form on the surface. Just stir it back in or remove, if desired.

Enjoy!!



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Malaysian Highlights - Roast Sugar Cane Chicken

Malaysia is a diverse country with a diverse cuisine.  Due to my Indonesian part of the family, the flavors are very familiar to me.  It's always a battle for me to decide which I prefer.  I can only tell you I prefer the both of them to Thai.




Roast Sugar Cane Chicken
2 teaspoons galangal, chopped (you may substitute ginger, if you can't find galangal)
2 tablespoons lemon grass, chopped, bottom 6 inches only
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
2 fresh red chiles, seeds removed, chopped
3 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/4 teaspoon fennel powder
3/4 teaspoon cumin
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 cup sugar cane juice
1 2-2 1/2 pound chicken

Pound or process the galangal, lemon grass, garlic, shallots and chiles to a smooth paste. Heat the oil in a pan. Add the paste mixture and stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes on moderate heat. Be careful not to allow the mixture to burn.

Add the turmeric, fennel, cumin, bay leaves, lime juice and sugar cane juice. Bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes to reduce the sauce by half, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Rub the chicken inside and out with the cooked sauce, reserving any extra sauce.

Preheat oven to 425 F. Place the chicken breast-side down on a rack in a roasting pan. Roast for 10 minutes. Brush the chicken with the sauce and turn the chicken over. Baste the breast with the sauce and roast for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 F. Brush the chicken with the sauce. Cook the chicken for 15 minutes. Turn over the chicken and brush with the sauce. Continue cooking the chicken for another 15 minutes or until tender and juices run clear when the chicken is pierced by a fork.

Serve with steamed rice. (Jasmine rice would be ideal)





Chef Mireille
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Food Coop Dinner

I recently joined my local Food Coop - the Park Slope Food Coop which is the largest in the country, in existence for more than 30 years. 100% member supported - the members work at the coop. With the decrease in paid labor, the coop is able to keep the prices very low - cheaper than your local supermarket and the added bonus of mostly organic products.

With the new year, many of us have made the resolution to eat better and lose weight in 2009. Shopping at the food coop is a great aid in accomplishing this by having a very large selection of organic products and especially fruits and vegetables - things like jicama, celery root, fresh tumeric and curry leaves just to mention a few.

Just because you live alone, that is no excuse not to make yourself wonderful, healthful meals that you enjoy. You do not have to be like the Diane Lane character in Must Love Dogs, eating a single chicken breast, standing up in your kitchen alone, EVERY NIGHT.

Make interesting meals for yourself and you will enjoy eating healthy meals, instead of pizza and Chinese food. This was my dinner tonight - just an idea to get you started to making delicious meals for yourself, even if you are single!!

The perimeter of the place is arranged with slices of fresh buffalo mozarella, then a dollop of fig spread and topped with slices of fresh tomato. A sprinkling of any spice blend you like and then freshly chopped tarragon (you can use any herb you like).
In the middle of the plate is a simple vegetable salad - this is what I used - but you can use any vegetables you like. This recipe serves about 4.:
1 bunch asparagus, boiled until tender but still crisp and then chopped into bite size pieces
1 small can of kernel corn
1 tomatillo, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
10 grape tomatoes, halved
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoons of unsalted sunflower seeds
2 tablespoon dried currants
Dress the salad simply with about 2 teaspoons of olive oil and the juice of 1 lime

Place a little of this salad in the middle of the plate and top with grilled chicken sausage (I used Applegate Farms organic Fire Roasted Pepper sausages made of chicken and turkey).

If you like, you can eat this with a few water crackers.

This is a wonderful low fat meal to make you enjoy your, healthy dinner!!

All the ingredients were from the Park Slope Food Coop - a coop I highly recommend if you live in the NY area!



Chef Mireille
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