Ginger Fried Rice

Fried rice is one of our favourites, be it for lunch or dinner, either cooked at home or when dining at Chinese restaurants. This week, at Cook The Book Fridays, the selected recipe from Dorie Greenspan's cookbook, Everyday Dorie, is Ginger Fried Rice.

Any vegetables can be used, but I've followed the recipe, using cabbage, bok choy and carrots. For the add-ins, I've used Chinese sausages, which I've pan-fry lightly and added to the stir-fry later. I've used more ginger than the recipe calls for, about 1/4 cup, we love ginger, and more garlic, of course. Did not have ponzu sauce, so I've used soy sauce and have also used more gochujang paste.

I've made some crispy fried ginger, which we sprinkled some over our plates of fried rice. After all it is ginger fried rice. And more ginger is always good for you. This ginger fried rice makes a nice filling lunch!

Sheet-Pan Supper : Balsamic Chicken with Baby Potatoes And Carrots

I love the ease of sheet pan suppers. Dorie's Sheet-Pan Supper is simple, easy, quick to put together, with just a few ingredients for flavour ; garlic cloves, rosemary and thyme, salt, black pepper, and balsamic vinegar. The main ingredients are, of course chicken, potatoes, onion and mushroom. But I could not find any brown or white button mushroom on the day that I plan to make this dish for dinner, so I grab a couple of carrots instead.

I did not use thyme, using only rosemary, from my garden pot. And instead of using only 4 garlic cloves, I use all the cloves from one large bulb.  And I have added an extra 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar to the chicken. Mix everything and bake!

Bake for 1 hour at 220C, the chicken was perfectly done, and the potatoes and carrots are tender. We enjoyed this sheet-pan supper very much. Delicious! 

This post is linked to :
Cook the Book Fridays
Cookbook Countdown #50

Chickpea-Tahini Salad

Chickpea-Tahini Salad is the recipe selected at Cook The Book Fridays. This very easy and quick salad recipe is from Dorie Greenspan's cookbook, Everyday Dorie.

I've used about less than 2 cups of cooked chickpeas which I had frozen a couple of months ago. Thawed them and refresh in simmering water for a few minutes and they are ready to be used. Time to use up my homemade tahini too.

To make the salad dressing, whisk the tahini with a little warm water until smooth, then stir in lemon zest and lemon juice, finely minced garlic, grated ginger, ground cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder (recipe uses cayenne powder), and salt to taste. I have omitted the honey.  To make the salad, stir into the dressing the following ingredients ; cooked or canned chickpeas, finely chopped red bell pepper, finely chopped red onion, chopped fresh cilantro and fresh dill. I did not have any dill, so I've used more cilantro. Stir everything well and season with more salt and pepper to taste.

I have added two finely chopped jalapenos to the salad. And a sprinkling of sumac over the salad just before serving.

I like this salad. It is very tasty and delicious! I would make this again with other veggies add in ; tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, olives.... 

Pasta With Cabbage, Winter Squash And Walnuts

This is the second pasta recipe selected this month at Cook The Book Fridays, from Everyday Dorie cookbook. 

The main ingredients are winter squash, green cabbage, dried cranberries, walnuts and pasta. Flavour from this pasta dish comes from cider vinegar. I've used regular pumpkin and napa cabbage.

The squash is first cooked in a little oil, season with salt and pepper until tender, then stir in the vinegar followed by the honey. Dish out and keep aside. The pasta is boiled in salted water, and the dried cranberries are thrown in during the last one minute of the pasta cooking time. Drain the pasta and retain a quarter cup or so of the cooking water. The cabbage is cooked in a tablespoon of oil, season with salt and pepper, with a tablespoon of cider vinegar, stir until it is absorbed. Pour in about a quarter cup of the pasta cooking water, stir for a minute, then add the pasta with the cranberries and a tablespoon of olive oil, Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, topped with walnuts and Parmesan.

We thought this pasta dish was just OK. The cranberries and walnuts added a nice touch and texture to the dish, but this is not in our list of favourite pasta dish. The family prefers the previous pasta we made two weeks ago, Pasta with Shrimp, Squash, Lemon and Lots Of Herbs, of which there's a request to make again. 

Pasta With Shrimp, Squash, Lemon And Lots Of Herbs

The first recipe selected in this new year 2020 at Cook The Book Fridays, from Everyday Dorie is Pasta With Shrimp, Squash, Lemon And Lots of Herbs. 

A delicious and colourful bowl of pasta. I like everything about this pasta; the shrimp which gives a delicious umami taste, the fresh citrus taste of the lemons, the bright colours from the yellow and green squash (delicious too!), and that burst of sweetness from the ripe raw tomatoes. Chopped fresh dill and spring onion greens sprinkled over, makes it complete.

And I love Dorie's take on using the squeezed lemon half, dropping it in the pot of water to cook the pasta. So lemony nice.

There is no heavy sauce for this pasta. It is  simple, fresh and delicious. We love it. Will definitely cook this again. Yum!

Cook the Book Fridays
Cookbook Countdown #49