Shrimp with Basil and Coriander

More Shrimp! I have to say...shrimp is such a convenient little protein to keep in your fridge. (I'm talking to you now, Bi2.) You can just grab a handful each day and spice it up however you like it. And it cooks super fast. So here's it is!

7 pieces of shrimp (soaking in some salted water)
2 tsp olive oil (just coat the pan)
1 tomato
1 clove of garlic
1 sprinkle of sugar
1/2 tsp of salt (more to taste)
1 heaping tsp of coriander pwd
1 Tbsp + 2 Tbsp of fresh basil
a splash of water

Cut up the garlic and fry it in the olive oil until golden over medium heat. Add tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes are smushy. Then add coriander powder, sugar and salt. Finally add 1 Tbsp of basil and a splash of water (if the sauce is looking kind of dry.) Cook until the basil is fragrant.

Add shrimp and cook until the head of the shrimp barely touches the tail. Add the rest of the basil... and you're done!

How easy was that?!?

Curry Shrimp with Fresh Basil and Fettuccini

I made this yummy shrimp pasta a couple of days ago and bragged about it to my mashi. Having done so, I had to post it. 

• 1/3 lb of fettuccini (or whatever pasta you like) 
• 1 Tbsp of olive oil
• 1 Tbsp of butter
• One medium onion cut into long slivers
• 2 - 3 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 tsp of chili powder (or a good shake of red chili flakes if spicy ain't your thang)
• 1/2 pound of shrimp
• 1 roma tomato or 1/2 cup of cherry/grape tomatoes
• handful of pine nuts
• 1/2 cup of white wine or 1/2 cup of chicken stock
• 1 cup of heavy cream or 1/2 cup cream and 1/2 cup milk
• 2 heaped Tbsps of fresh basil, chopped
• Shake of chives
• salt and pepper
• A sprinkle of Parmesan Cheese

Boil pasta with a little olive oil and salt until done. ( I prefer mine a little al dente, but really it's whatever your preference is.)

While the pasta is boiling, soak the shrimp in a little salt water.

In a large wok or saucepan, throw in the olive oil and butter. Once the butter starts to bubble, add onions and garlic. Saute over medium heat until the onions are nice and brown. Sprinkle a little sugar on top to help brown the onions a little faster. Then add tomatoes, pine nuts, and a little chili powder. Cook until the tomatoes for about 3 minutes on low heat, or until they are slightly mushy.

Next you are going to add the shrimp and saute it until the shrimp are mostly opaque but haven't curled up yet. Take all that goodness that you've just made and set it aside in a bowl.

In the same pan, add chicken stock/white wine and cream and bring to a slow boil allowing the mixture to thicken. Once the sauce has thickened, add the basil, salt and pepper. Stir until the basil becomes fragrant.

Finally, add the shrimp mixture back to the pot and cook until the shrimp curl.

I usually dump in the pasta so that it takes on the flavor of the sauce, but you can always serve the curry over the pasta.

Top with chives and Parmesan cheese.

Grated Zucchini and Quinoa Salad

I also had some leftover zucchini from my Chocolate Zucchini Bread so I made a grated zucchini and quinoa salad for lunch. I was hungry after all that baking.


Before I get started, a little bit about how I cook. I hateeeee being precise, which is why baking is such a challenge for me. (Let's see how this being an attorney thing works out...) Anyways, so I cook by smells, feelings, and textures. It's probably why cooking is so calming for me. BUT, this airy fairy way of cooking is not so good for the whole cataloging my recipes business that this blog was set up for. Needless to say, approximating these measurements has been... challenging.  

• 1/3 cup of quinoa
• 2/3 tsp of chicken bullion
• 2/3 cup of water
• 1/8 tsp of oregano  (one or two shakes) (or any other herb you like...basil, thyme, rosemary)
  
• a drizzle of olive oil
 

Soak the quinoa in 2/3 cups of water for about 5 minutes. Add the chicken bullion, oregano, a pinch of salt and drizzle of olive oil and put on low heat to simmer. (OK. So I know chicken bullion is not the same as chicken stock, but it's convenient and doesn't go bad!)  Let that simmer for about 10 to 12 minutes. Then turn off the stove and let it continue to steam for 5 to 10 minutes (Don't PEEK! You'll let the steam out!)

• 3/4 cup grated zucchini
• 1 Tbsp or 1 1/2 Tbsp depending on how acidic you like your dressing)
• 1/2 garlic clove or a 1/4 tsp of garlic pwd
  
• 1 Tbsp of olive oil
• A Shake of red chili flakes
• 1 small tomato
• 1 purple shallot (or small onion if you don't keep shallots on hand)
• Feta Cheese (or any cheese you like - Maybe mozzarella would be good!)
  
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Sprinkle of Pine nuts (optional)
  

While your quinoa is cooking, mix lemon juice, olive oil, red chili flakes, and garlic. Let this sit for a little bit.  Chop the tomatoes and onions/shallots and set aside. 


Once the quinoa is done, mix the quinoa, the lemon juice business,  the zucchini, the onions/shallots and the tomatoes. Sprinkle the feta and pine nuts on top. Add salt and pepper. (Do this last. The feta is kind of salty, so you don't want to put too much!)

(You should allow the quinoa to cool before you mixed the two, but I was too hungry to do that. The warm quinoa melted the feta a little, which was nice.)

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

So today is my cousin, Roby's, birthday. In honor of his 15th birthday (ahhhhhh I'm OLD.), I baked two kinds of cake/bread. One chocolate zucchini bread and one is oh-so-chocolatey coconut chocolate cake! I would post a picture, but my camera battery, along with some other very important things, are stuck in storage. And the DSLR, well, it's in Africa.

I made about three mini-loaves, two regular loaves, and one 8 x 8 cake.

This recipe is adapted from one on epicurious.com. 

• 2 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
•  3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature (not melted)
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups grated unpeeled zucchini (about 2 1/2 medium)
• 3 ozs (about 1/2 cup) white chocolate chips
• 3 ozs (about 1/2 cup) dark chocolate chips
• chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 325°F. 

Butter and flour baking pan. I made these into mini bread loaves, but you can regular loaf pans.

Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt into medium bowl. 

Beat sugar, butter and oil in large bowl until well blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. 

Beat in vanilla extract. 

Mix in dry ingredients with buttermilk.  I didn't have buttermilk but I soured some milk with 1/2 tsp of distilled white vinegar.

Mix in grated zucchini. (If you want the loaf to be more chocolatey, then add a handful of chocolate chips to the batter.

Pour batter into pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips and nuts over. 

Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. 

Cool cake completely in pan.

The last time I made this cake (4 days ago) I finished it all by myself...in 2 days.

~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Helllo!!!!

Hi friends and family!
I've finally done it. Broken down and started a food blog. The purpose really is rather selfish. It's to catalog the recipes that I initially come across on websites like tastespotting.com and then tinker with to my liking. 

As I was reading Ram Dass's Paths to God, I stumbled upon a quote from the Book of Tao. "By letting it go, it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try, the world is then beyond the winning." If you are going to make a meal right, you can't be worried about making it perfect - can't be trying to make it right. In doing so, you lose that elusive present moment that we, mindful practitioners so seek. 

As I understand it, karma yoga is the practice of letting go of your attachment to the outcomes of your actions.


Cooking is my karma yoga :)