Stuffed Green Peppers

Prep time: 35 minutes

Cooking Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes

4 servings

Inspired from Pillsbury Cookbook

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup uncooked rice
• ⅔ cup water
• 4 large green bell peppers. Choose fresh, spot-free, firm, and large enough peppers of a uniform size; so, they can hold a good amount of filling and cook evenly. 
• 1 lb. ground beef
• ¼ cup celery, chopped
• 2 tablespoons onion, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon garlic, minced
• Dash of salt and pepper
• ¼ cup ketchup
• ⅔ cup beef bone broth or au jus
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon basil leaves, chopped or dried
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup to 1 cup mild cheddar cheese, shredded (topping)

Directions

1. Cook rice in water as directed on package.
2. Meanwhile, pre-heat oven to 350°F. Cut the tops off from the bell peppers and remove the membranes and seeds.
3. In a large saucepan, add water and steam bell peppers over a steamer on medium heat covered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let it rest uncovered.
4. Preheat a large skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add in the ground beef, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Combine the celery, tomato, ketchup, beef broth, and Worcestershire sauce with the beef. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is thoroughly cooked.
5. Add the cooked rice, and mix well with the beef. Spoon a part of the beef mixture into the peppers. Layer the mozzarella cheese in the middle over the mixture. Spoon another part of the mixture into the peppers. Add the tops of the peppers to cover the mixture.
6. Place the bell peppers in an ungreased shallow baking dish or pan.
7. In a small mixing bowl, combine the tomato sauce, basil, and sugar to mix well. Spoon over the bell peppers. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top
8. Bake between 30 and 40 minutes or until peppers are tender. Sprinkle remaining cheese as desired

Boiardi’s Spaghetti

1. 2 lbs (1 kg) canned peeled tomatoes, or fresh if they’re in season
2. 6 tablespoons (90 ml) extra virgin olive oil 
3. 1 cup (140 g) diced onion
4. 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
5. 1/2 cup (70 g) diced carrot
6. 1 lb (1/2 kg) lean ground beef
7. 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
8. 5 medium basil leaves, sliced into strips
9. 1/2 cup (40 g) sliced mushrooms
10. 8 ounces (225 g) dried spaghetti
11. 2 tablespoons (28 g) butter
12. 3 tablespoons (20 g) grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions

1. Chop the tomatoes, put them through a food mill, or press them through a conical sieve. You want to separate all the juice and pulp from the seeds. Set the tomato sauce aside.
2. In a deep saucepan over medium heat, add the oil. Add the onion and the salt. Stir frequently for about 3 minutes. Turn the heat down if the onions start to brown. 
3. Add the carrots and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent. 
4. Add the meat and break it up into small pieces. Sprinkle the rest of the salt and the pepper over it. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the meat is no longer pink. 
5. Stir in the tomato sauce and the mushrooms. Raise the heat a bit and bring the sauce to a boil. Let it boil for a few seconds, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Place the lid on the pot, slightly ajar and let it cook for about 40 minutes. 
6. After the 40 minutes are up and the sauce has thickened, stir in the sliced basil, put the lid back on (ajar), and cook for another 5 minutes. 
7. Cook the spaghetti according to the package’s directions. Drain it and return it to the pot. Add the butter and the parmesan. Toss to combine.
8. Dish up the spaghetti and ladle the sauce over it. Sprinkle it with more parmesan and serve it forth.

Lamb Curry

 Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp minced ginger or 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• pinch of salt 
• dash of ground black pepper
• 1 green apple, sliced thinly
• 1 lb of lamb, cubed
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup seedless raisins

Directions:

In a skillet, over medium heat, preheat oil for 2 minutes. Sauté onion and garlic until aromatic. Add ginger, coriander, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon, chili powder, turmeric, salt and pepper. Stir well. 

Add lamb and mix thoroughly with the spices. Remove from heat and cover for 30 minutes to marinate.

Add apple and vegetable stock to the lamb. Cook over medium heat to boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 hour. Add raisins and cook for 30 minutes.

English muffins

Ingredients:

One cup water 

2/3 cup skim milk, hot 

2 tsp sugar 

1 package active dry yeast 

4 cups flour, divided 

3 tbsp butter, softened 

half teaspoon salt 

vegetable oil spray

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine water, milk, and sugar. Mixture should feel quite hot, about 105°F, but not too hot to the touch. Stir in yeast. After about 5 minutes, when mixture bubbles, using a wooden spoon, gradually beat 2 cups of flour into milk mixture. 

Cover bowl with cloth. Allow dough to rise in a warm place for one and a half hour or until dough collapses back into the bowl. Beat in butter and salt. Gradually beat in remaining 2 cups flour. Knead in flour as dough becomes harder to work with.

One a lightly floured surface, pat or prest dough to a half-inch thickness. Cut dough into 3-inch rounds until all dough is used. Arrange rounds on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet. 

Spray vegetable oil onto a skillet. Preheat a skillet for 2 minutes over medium heat. Carefully transfer muffins to skillet one at a time, using a pancake spatula. Reduce heat to low and cook muffins uncovered until lightly browned for about 10 minutes. Turn to cook the other side for about 10 minutes. 

Using 2 forks, split muffin horizontally. Toast until lightly browned. Top with favorite spread, if desired. 

The uncooked muffins can be wrapped and freezed to be kept within 2 days

Crab Gumbo

Ingredients:

1 tsp canola oil 

half cup chopped green bell pepper 

half cup sliced green onions 

one clove garlic, minced 

3 cups low-fat low sodium chicken stock 

2 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped 

1/8 teaspoon ground celery seeds 

1/8 tsp dried thyme, crumbled 

1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce 

1 cup sliced okra 

6 oz crab meat 

half cup diced turkey sausage 

2 cups cooked rice

Directions:

In a saucepan, preheat oil for 2 minutes over medium heat. 

Add onions and garlic to saute approximately for 3 minutes – stirring frequently until aromatic. Add green pepper.

Stir in chicken stock, tomatoes, celery powder, thyme, and hot pepper sauce. Bring gumbo to boil over medium heat. 

Stir in okra. Cover pan and cook gumbo for 10 minutes by reducing heat to low or until okra is tender. 

Meanwhile, flake and remove cartilage from crab meat. Increase cooking temperature to medium heat. Stir in crab meat and turkey sausage. Cook meat thoroughly. 

Serve over hot rice in a soup bowl. 

Har Gao (Prawn Dumplings)

From Marion's Kitchen

PREP TIME: 50 minutes

COOK TIME: 10 minutes

SERVES: 18

Ingredients:

200g (7 oz) raw prawn meat, finely chopped

½ tsp finely grated ginger

½ tsp sugar

¼ tsp salt

⅛ tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp pork lard

⅛ tsp sesame oil

Dough:

112g wheat starch*

1 tsp fine salt

6 oz boiled water

30g cornflour (cornstarch)

4g pork lard

soy sauce, to serve

Chinese chilli sauce, to serve

Directions:

Step 1: To prepare the dough, add the wheat starch and salt to a large mixing bowl. Pour in the boiled water. Give the ingredients a mix until well combined. Set aside for 5 minutes.

Step 2: After 5 minutes, the mixture will appear crumbly and will have firmed up somewhat. Turn the dough out onto a clean bench. Flatten it slightly with your hands, then sprinkle over half of the cornflour. Using your hands, mix and knead the dough to incorporate the cornflour until smooth. Flatten the dough again and repeat the process, kneading the dough for 3–5 minutes until smooth.

Step 3: Add the pork lard to the top of the dough, then continue kneading for another 2 minutes until you have a very smooth and soft dough. Roll the dough into 3 logs and place into a slightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 15 minutes to rest.

Step 4: To make the dumpling filling, place the minced prawn, ginger, sugar, salt, pepper, lard and sesame oil into a mixing bowl. Mix until combined. Set aside.

Step 5: Place a steamer basket on a pot of boiling water. Turn off the heat and place the bowl of rolled dough in the steamer basket.

Step 6: Lightly oil your benchtop. Take out one log and cut a 2cm-thick (about ¾ inch) piece of dough from it (you’re aiming for about 6 pieces from each log). Return the log to the steamer. Oil a small rolling pin and the piece of dough you cut, then roll it out into a roughly 5cm (2 inch) round piece of 1mm (less than 1/16 inch) thickness. 

Use a pastry scraper to help lift the wrapper from the benchtop and place it carefully into the palm of your hand. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the centre and then gently place the wrapper back onto the benchtop. Start with folding the edge of the wrapper nearest you over the filling. 

Just working with the top layer, make small pleats working from the centre outwards. Repeat on the other side. Once that top layer is pleated, press down to seal it and enclose your filling. 

Use a pair of scissors to cut off the extra top of the dough, then pinch with your fingers to thin out the top of the dumpling edge and add a subtle curve to your har gao. Transfer your cute-as dumpling to a clean tray lined with baking paper. Continue with remaining dough and filling. At this point, you can freeze the dumplings if you like, or carry on cooking. 

Step 7: Steam the dumplings for 5-6 minutes or until just cooked through. 

Serve with the soy sauce and chilli sauce.