Monday, January 17, 2011

Bang Bang Shrimp

BANG BANG SHRIMP

Taste just like Bonefish Grill

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
3 drops Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (or to taste)
1 pound shelled and deveined shrimp
Dry cornstarch
oil for frying
lettuce
chopped scallions

Directions:

Mix mayonnaise with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. Add hot sauce to taste. Dredge the shrimp in cornstarch. Deep fat fry the shrimp until lighty brown. Drain on paper towel, put in a bowl and coat with the sauce. Serve in a lettuce lined bowl, top with chopped scallions

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka Masala
From recipezaar.com #25587
2 hours | 1½ hours prep
SERVES 4
• 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken, cut in 1 inch cubes
Marinade
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground red pepper
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 piece minced ginger (1-inchinch" long)
• 6 bamboo skewers (6-inchinch")
Sauce
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (buy in Indian market)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Soak bamboo skewers in water.
For sauce, melt butter on medium heat.
Add garlic& jalapeno; cook 1 minute.
Stir in coriander, cumin, paprika, garam masala& salt.
Stir in tomato sauce.
Simmer 15 minutes.
Stir in cream; simmer to thicken- about 5 minutes.
Thread chicken on skewers, and marinate (in the refrigerator) for an hour or so.
Discard marinade.
Grill or broil chicken, turning occasionally, to cook through- about 8 minutes.
Remove chicken from skewers; add to sauce.
Simmer 5 minutes.
Garnish with cilantro Serve with basmati rice, naan or pita bread.
Note: You can make your own garam masala.
McCormick also makes garam masala; it's available in super markets.

Individual Oreo Cheesecake

Individual Oreo Cheesecake
These are so good and very easy.. I topped them with strawberry sauce.

From Kraftfoods.com

• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Servings: 24
Ingredients
o 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
o 3/4 cup sugar
o 3 eggs
o 24 Oreo cookies
o 1/4 cup chocolate chips ( melted)
o whipped cream (optional)
Directions
1. Line 24 cupcake tins with cupcake wrappers.
2. Place 1 Oreo Cookie at the bottom of each wrapper (or chop oreos into coarse pieces and place at bottom).
3. Mix cream cheese and sugar until well blended.
4. Add eggs one at a time and mix well.
5. Spoon cream cheese mixture into cupcakes.
6. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.
7. Place in refrigerator for at least one hour to firm up.
8. Drizzle with melted chocolate.
9. Top with a spoonful of whipped cream (optional).

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Homemade Samoas Bars

My friend Anne makes these and they are awesome.. :) gotta try them.. better then the girl scout ones..
Homemade Samoas Bars
Cookie Base:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
First, make the crust.
Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.
Topping
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk
10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)
Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.
Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.
Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.
When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).
Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.
Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.
Makes 30 bar cookies.
Note: You can simply drizzle chocolate on top of the bars before slicing them up if you’re looking for yet an easier way to finish these off. You won’t need quite as much chocolate as noted above, and you won’t quite get the Samoas look, but the results will still be tasty.

Spicy Crispy Beef

Spicy Crispy Beef
Have never found a recipe for crispy ginger beef like the
ones in the restaurants. Have experimented, and have found
something pretty close. Serve with rice and some steamed
veggies.
Prep Time: approx. 20 Minutes. Cook Time: approx. 20
Minutes. Ready in: approx. 45 Minutes. Makes 4 servings.
Printed from Allrecipes, Submitted by Brent

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tablespoon salt
black pepper
12 ounces flank steak, thinly sliced
1 quart oil for frying

4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon rice wine
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
7 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 tablespoon chile paste
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons chopped fresh
ginger root
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup sliced onion
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper


Directions
1 Heat oil in deep-fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2 Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine cornstarch, salt
and pepper together. Mix thoroughly. Toss the steak slices
in the cornstarch mixture and coat well.
3 Deep fry the coated steak slices until golden brown.
Check to make sure they are cooked through. Remove from oil,
and set aside.
4 In another mixing bowl, combine the soy sauce, rice
vinegar, rice wine and honey. Add sugar, chili paste, water,
and ginger. Mix well and set aside.
5 Heat a wok or deep frying pan over medium high heat.
Add 1 tablespoon of oil, and quickly saute the onion,
garlic and red pepper for 30 seconds. Add the sauce mixture,
and cook another 30 seconds. Finally, add the strips of
fried steak and toss to heat through and coat with sauce.

Editor's Note:
We have determined the nutritional value of oil for frying

Banana Nut Bread

Banana Nut Bread- so simple and so good..
From Real simple
Serves 16
Hands-on Time: 05m
Total Time: 50m
Ingredients
• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 package Jell-O Instant Banana Cream Pudding & Pie Filling
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup chopped pecans
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350° F.
2. Mix all the ingredients well. Pour into 2 large or 4 small greased loaf pans.
3. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. (For those allergic to nuts, this recipe can be made without the pecans.)
Tip
Use a paring knife to cut fruits and vegetables.
Nutritional Information
Calcium 57mg; Calories 307; Carbohydrate 36g; Cholesterol 54mg; Fat 17g; Fiber 1g; Iron 1mg; Protein 4mg; Sat Fat 2g; Sodium 326mg