Baby Bok Choi with Shitake Mushroom

Eating vegetables is a habit, like practicing yoga - once you get into it, you are hooked. In my house, we eat all kinds of fresh organic/local vegetables. It's always very easy to make especially because I don't believe in overdressing a vegetable dish. Let the seasonings support the main ingredients and bring out the best of the simplicity. 

Ingredients:

• 6-7 cups of baby bok choi, separate the leaves and cut into same size bite pieces.
• 2 cups of sliced shitake mushroom
• 2 tablespoons of canola oil
• 2 pieces of thinly sliced 1" x 2" ginger
• 2 tablespoons of finely diced scallion
• a big splash of low sodium chicken stock
• kosher sea salt and ground black pepper
• about 1/3 teaspoon of turbinado sugar
• 1 teaspoon of dark rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons of fried minced garlic (you can find those from Asian supermarket), or 1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the baby bok choi. Let them stay for 2-3 minutes and then shock in cold water to prevent them from overcooking. Drain well and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat canola oil in a large deep pan on medium high heat. Saute ginger and scallion until fragrant. Add mushroom. Saute for 30 seconds. Add chicken stock and cook for about 2 minutes, or until the mushroom softens. Add 1/3 teaspoon of salt and 1/3 teaspoon of sugar. Add drained bok choi into the mushroom mixture. Cook for 30 seconds. Add another 3/4 teaspoon of salt (or adjust to taste) and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper. Cook for another 20 seconds. Add fried minced garlic (or fresh garlic) and1 teaspoon of dark rice vinegar. Mix well. Turn off the heat. Serve immediately.

Red Cabbage Salad

I sometimes like to nibble on the raw vegetables when I cut them, even on the kinds that I typically don't eat raw, like red cabbage. I had thought it'd be bitter and hard. But it's actually crunchy and sweet, nothing like the regular cabbage which doesn't have the purple hue. A week later, I bought another head of red cabbage and did an experiment on a raw red cabbage salad. I wonder why it took my so long to stop sauteing this delicious vegetable!

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 head red cabbage, cored and shredded
• 1/2 Red onion, or Spanish Onion, shredded
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup champagne vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

1. In a bowl, mix the oil, vinegar, honey, sea salt, and black pepper. Pour dressing over cabbage and onion, and toss to coat. Serve immediately or chill before serving.

Over-easy Asian Cucumber Salad

Asian cucumbers are much smaller than American ones. They are also more crunchy, crispier and juicier. Like English cucumber, they are seedless and their skins are paper thin you don't need to peel off anything. Persian cucumbers are the closest variety I can find in Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. But English cucumbers tend to have a tighter tissue than Asian/Persian cucumbers so they don't work well in this particular salad, because the key to this salad is to smash the cucumbers with the back of a wide knife instead of cutting them straight. It allows the cucumber tissues to get loosen up so that the sauce penetrates into the everywhere of the cucumber. 

If you are like me that likes Asian flavors, this delicious salad fits both the most picky palate and waistline.

Servings:2

Ingredients:

• 7 Persian cucumbers, smashed and cut into big chunks
• 5 teaspoons Liquid Amino (or light soy sauce)
• 1 teaspoon dark rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes

Directions:

1. Mix well all the ingredients except for the cucumbers. Combine with the cucumber chunks. Serve immediately or chill in the fridge before serving.

Garlic Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan

My favorite way to cook asparagus is to roast them in the oven. It's extremely easy and yet incredibly flavorful with simple ingredients. Usually, it involves garlic, shallots or Parmesan cheese. I resorted to Ina's recipe tonight and added extra garlic on top. It was the perfect side dish.

6 servings

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 2 1/2 pounds fresh asparagus (about 30 large), ends trimmed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Lay the araparagus in a single layer on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with minced garlic, salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes, or until tender. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and return to the oven for another minute.Serve hot or warm.

Cauliflower Gratin

Fall is always very brief in New York City. All of a sudden, it's windy and cold outside and vegetables are changing faces at the market. Among other fall/ winter vegetables, Cauliflowers are abundant at my local Whole Foods. I bought two beautiful large heads this past weekend. But when I am about to cook them, I realize for three of us, that's a lot of cauliflowers. My mom made a cauliflower stir-fry with tomatoes with one head. For some very different flavors, I made Ina's Cauliflower Gratin. It was definitely a popular hit! 

4 Servings

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 1 (3-pound) head cauliflower, cut into large florets
• Kosher sea salt
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, divided
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups hot unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1 cup freshly grated Gruyere, divided
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Cook the cauliflower florets in a large pot of boiling salted water for 5 to 6 minutes, until tender but still firm. Drain.
3. Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Pour the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture and stir until it comes to a boil. Boil, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, or until thickened. Off the heat, add 1 teaspoon of salt, the pepper, nutmeg, 2/3 cup of the Gruyere, and the Parmesan.
4. Pour 1/3 of the sauce on the bottom of an 8 by 11 by 2-inch baking dish. Place the drained cauliflower on top and then spread the rest of the sauce evenly on top. Combine the bread crumbs with the remaining Gruyere and sprinkle on top. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and drizzle over the gratin. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is browned. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Beets and Avocado Salad with Balsamic Vinegar Reduction

A bottle of top quality aged balsamic vinegar can cost a fortune. If you have tasted it, you know it's worth every penny. It's like a condensed grape syrup infused with aged red wine, with a hint of molasses in it. The aroma is intoxicating it alone elevates any paired vegetables or fruits to a gourmet level. But I don't always have the super expensive kind in my pantry. When I don't, I have an easy way to create a similar reduction using regular aged balsamic vinegar, at a fraction of cost.

For the body of the salad, I used beets and avocado as the main ingredients. The idea was inspired by the roasted beets and avocado salad I once had at Al Forno in Rhodes Island. It was so good I kept thinking about it after the dinner. The roasted beet tolerates all the richness from the avocado and its relatively sharp flesh compliments the creaminess of the avocado meat. It's such a perfect combination. 

You can certainly roast the beet roots at home. I took a shortcut by using the pre-steamed baby beets to save myself extra three hours roasting, peeling and cooling time. The result is just as mouthwatering.

2 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 package (8 ounce) steamed baby beets, cut into 1" x 1" cubes
• half Hass avocado, cut into 1" x 1" cubes
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 ounce crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
• 2 ounce organic pea sprouts
• 1 teaspoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 1/2 cup aged balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dry red wine
• 1/3 teaspoon kosher sea salt

Directions:

1. In a small sauce pan, heat the balsamic vinegar on medium low heat. Stir constantly with a wooden cooking spoon until it reduces by half, for about 12 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of red wine and keep stirring, for another 3 minutes. Turn off the heat. The reduction should be thick enough to cover a spoon.
2. Put baby beets and avocado cubes together. Add 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice to prevent the avocados from browning. Add Gorgonzola cheese, olive oil, thyme, salt together. Mix well. Be careful not to break the beets and avocados.
3. Take 2 plates. Layer 1 ounce of pea sprouts on each plate. Divide the beets and avocado mixture into two portions and put them on top of the pea sprouts.
4. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar reduction on each salad.Serve immediately.