The Chef's Corner

[justin]

Nothing brings people together better than wonderful food. The smells, the tastes can all take you back in time. Like many of the wonderful things in life food is meant to be shared with others. 'The Chef's Corner' is the place to share all of your favorite recipes.

Allow me to share my favorite Pesto recipe.

Fresh basil leaves 2 qt.
Olive Oil 1 1/2 cup
Pine nuts 2 oz.
Garlic 6 cloves
Salt 1 1/2 tsp.
Freshly grated parmensan cheese 5 oz.

Note: Add more or less of these to suit your taste. Also, you can roast the pine nuts for faint smokey flavor.

Procedure

1. Wash the basil leaves and drain well.
2. Put basil, cheese, nuts, garlic, and salt into a food processor. Blend into a paste, slowly add oil as you blend. It should have a coarse texture.
3. Mix in cheese.
4. Enjoy!

The pesto is great for sandwitches and pastas. To thin the pesto add hot water or warm cream. I like to use cream since it adds flavor smoothness.

"Don't come for the food. Don't come for the drink. Come to be part of the family. Bon appetit!" - A dumb Justin saying

 

[Mars Man]

Interesting subject indeed--and since we otherwise only had the 'Japanese' one (as far as I know) this should prove good.

If I find the pine nuts, I'll try it.

 

[misa.j]

Good thread Justin, since you are a professional chef, I'd love to get many ideas from you!

This pasta recipe of mine almost reqires no cooking, and bright colors of the vegetables catch people's eyes for BBQs or summer parties. You can have this as a sidedish by itself or a main meal by adding grilled chicken or other types of protein.

Spaghetti 1lbs
Soy sauce 1 cup
Rice vineger 2/3 cup
Sesame oil 2 tbsp
Olive oil 2 tbsp
Cayenne powder 1 1/2 tsp
Toasted sesame seeds 3 tbsp
Peppers(red, orange, yellow or green) 1 of each, seeded and sliced
Green onions 5~6 stalks sliced

Cook the pasta, run the cold water to cool it down.
Mix all the other ingredients and toss the pasta.
Keep refrigerated before serving, stirring occasionally.

 

[Kinsao]

Oooh nice! I don't cook much, but recently I feel really inspired to cook! One of my birthday presents was a blender, and I want to try to make cheesecake! Does anyone have any good cheesecake recipes? :liplick: ... I'd like to make it as a surprise for my boy... he is a really good cook and enjoys it too, and almost always cooks for me, but I'd like to do this.

 

[ChibiSara]

Ah, I like cooking n.n
Well, here's a classic from East Finland, mustikkakukko. I personally like it very much and if you don't like blueberries, you can replace them with strawberries (wich then will make the dish mansikkakukko :O)

The dough:
125 g butter
1 dl sugar
2-2 1/2 dl rye flours
1/2 teaspoons of baking powder

The filling:
2-3 dl blueberries (or strawberries)
1/2 dl sugar (or more if you like sweet stuff)
2 teaspoons of potato flours

Instructions:
1. Take a small, round pan (a one you can put into an oven, not a frying pan) and some butter then grease the pan with the butter.
2. Mix the butter (125g) and sugar together.
3. Mix the flours and the baking powder together, you can leave some of the flours out.
4. Tap about 3/4 of the dough on the bottom of the pan and a lil bit on the sides too.
5. Mix the ingredients used in the filling together and put them in the pan, on the dough.
6. Tap the rest of the dough into a 'lid' on a table, you can use the extra flours if the dough sticks on your hands or the table.
7. Put the 'lid' on the filling and the dough on the sides.
8. Bake the kukko in an oven (200ﾂ≫?ｹC) for about 30 minutes.

Great with ice cream, vanilla sauce, or cream

 

[justin]

Oooh nice! I don't cook much, but recently I feel really inspired to cook! One of my birthday presents was a blender, and I want to try to make cheesecake! Does anyone have any good cheesecake recipes? :liplick: ... I'd like to make it as a surprise for my boy... he is a really good cook and enjoys it too, and almost always cooks for me, but I'd like to do this.

Here's one for you kinsao,


Ingredients

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup margarine
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups sour cream

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon and melted margarine. Mix all ingredients well and press into bottom and sides of a 9 inch springform pan.

2. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Blend in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and salt. Fold in the sour cream.

3. Pour batter into springform pan. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Turn off oven and leave cake in for at least 30 minutes.

This is a great basic cheese cake that can be covered with your favorite topping. Enjoy!

Thanks everyone for the posts!

Food fact: Crepes Suzette was an accidental master piece created by Henri Carpentier when he lit the dessert on fire by mistake. He was preparing it for the future King Edward VII.

 

[Kinsao]

^ Oooh thank you Justin! I will have to give that a try. :liplick:

 

[Gazerocks]

Interesting way to share receipes! We have community centers in our country (singapore), where we can take up different types of enrichment lessons. I'm currently attending a Japanese cooking course. I'll try to cook them soon...to see if they succeed.

 

[Kinsao]

I made something yesterday, it's kinda like a cheesecake but it isn't quite I had made it before, but not for many years so I gave it another try!

200 g (8 oz) gingernuts/ginger cookies
100 g (4 oz) unsalted butter
4 level tablespoons cornflour
1/4 pint of water
juice and grated rind of 2 lemons
100 g (4 oz) sugar
2 egg yolks

Crush the cookies to a fine crumb. Melt the butter in a saucepan and mix with the cookie crumb. Use the mixture to line a loose-bottomed tin/flan ring. Chill until firm. Blend the cornflour and water. Add the lemon juice and rind. Bring to the boil slowly, stirring until the mixture clears and thickens, then add the sugar. Beat in the egg yolks and return to the heat for 1 - 2 minutes. Pour into the crumb crust and leave until cold.

This is really lemony and yummy! :liplick:

 

[justin]

Sorry for the lack of posts! Here's the one and only soup I'll ever eat. It was a big hit at my grad.

Water Melon Gazpacho

Makes 6 servings, generous 1 cup each

8 cups finely diced seedless watermelon (about 6
pounds with the rind)
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons minced shallot
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt

Mix watermelon, cucumber, bell pepper, basil, parsley,
vinegar, shallot, oil and salt in a large bowl. Puree
3 cups of the mixture in a blender or food processor
to the desired smoothness; transfer to another large
bowl. Puree another 3 cups and add to the bowl. Stir
in the remaining diced mixture. Serve at room
temperature or chilled.

This a great soup for a warm night! Enjoy!

 

[SushiShin]

Spaghetti a la Bolognese

INGREDIENTS
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 pound sausage
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 cup milk
3/4 cup Red Cooking Wine
3 beef bouillon cubes
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 pound spaghetti, cooked

DIRECTIONS
Chop ground beef and sausage until well minced. Cook onion, beef and sausage in a larger skillet over medium heat until pink is gone, about 6 minutes.
Add milk and simmer until almost evaporated, about 4 minutes.
Add red cooking wine and beef bouillon. Simmer about 4 minutes.
Add canned tomatoes and tomato paste. Simmer about 15-20 minutes until sauce is thick. Serve with cooked spaghetti.

 

[Anohito]

Many of my recipes use ingredients that may not be easy to find in some areas (such as the brands of Latino bouillon that I use, or the dried, ground chile peppers), but the ingredients in this recipe should be available in most places. In place of the pork hock, you can use pork shanks or pork neck bones. I do not recommend any hocks/shanks/neck bones that are cured using sugar.

Split Pea Soup III (yellow or green)

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

1 pound dried yellow or green split peas
2 tbsp canola oil
1 1/4-1 1/2 cups onion, finely chopped
3/4-1 cup carrot, sliced thin
1 cup celery, chopped
6 cups water
1/2 tsp dried summer savory
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 pork hock
1/2 tsp dried marjoram

Sort and rinse peas. Soften the onion, celery, & carrot in the oil at medium heat. When the onion is thoroughly softened, combine all the ingredients except marjoram in a 6-8 quart pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer. After an hour, peas will start to sink to the bottom. Add marjoram. Stir often to keep peas from sticking. Add a little more hot water if necessary. Cook for about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, depending on how quickly peas get done.

 

[SushiShin]

Delicious im gonna try it when i have spare time.

 

[justin]

Here's something I did at work that was a big hit: Watermelon Fruit Salad

Pick a watermelon that has a firm texture and sounds hollow when you tap it.

Take your chef knife and slice a bit off the underside so the melon rests flat.

Use your paring knife and cut a hole the length of the melon.

Take a melon baller and hollow out the melon (don't forget to drain the juice inside).

Next, grab your favorite fruit (grapes, honey dew, pineapple, ect.) and toss it with the melon balls in whipped cream.

Place inside the watermelon and granish with orange slices.

Wish I had a picture to share, but I only have one on my cell phone.

 

[justin]

Turkey Burgers

It sure has been awhile seen I last posted anything on this thread. :sorry:

Here's a little something I came up with the other night. Enjoy!

Turkey Burgers

1 and 1/2 pounds of lean ground turkey
1/4 of an onion chopped (white, yellow, or red)
1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper (more or less depending on how hot you like it)
1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon of dry oregano leaves

How to:

Mix onion and spices in a bowel until you can't see any patches of spice (an even mixture means good flavor). Throw on the grill or in a pan and cook until the juices are clear.

Top with your favorite condiments on a whole wheat bun.

Justin's toppings: Longhorn BBQ Sauce, lettuce, roma tomatoes, green onions, leftover onion, and Muenster/Pepper Jack chesse

Enjoy my friends!

 

[Tsuyoiko]

I never saw this thread before! I love cooking too. I prefer to make it up as I go along rather than use a recipe, and most of the stuff I make works out pretty well.

Here's my recipe for ratatouille:

One large aubergine
Two or three courgettes
One each of red, yellow and green bell pepper
Two or three red onions

Cut the vegetables into large chunks, mix together and split into four double portions. Freeze three, and use the fourth to make the ratatouille.

Fry the vegetables in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil until the onions look transparent, but don't let them brown. Add two crushed cloves of garlic and some herbs - I usually use basil and oregano. Stir fry for a few seconds. Add a large tin of chopped tomatoes with the juice and a squirt of tomato puree or ketchup. Simmer until the vegetables are just starting to go soft.

You can serve this in so many different ways, with pasta, rice, jacket potato, couscous, chips or whatever. You can mix it with cooked pasta, top with cheese and bake, or layer it with lasagne sheets, top with white sauce and cheese and bake. You can puree it and add some vegetable stock to make soup. It would serve four as a side dish to a main meal. Or, you can drain off the liquid, mix it with cheese and use to fill sandwiches. And, there are three more portions in the freezer for a quick meal another day