Shrimp Potato Salad

During Mother's Day dinner, my mom reminded me about a family recipe of a refreshing summer shrimp potato salad that she had sitting in her refrigerator. I completely forgot about this dish, and many other family recipes we grew up with because I told myself that I would start new traditions with my family that I could pass down. But I couldn't resist making this dish.

 

It inspired me to recreate this dish from my childhood which is perfect for the summer heat. It has to be eaten really cold!!!

Ingredients:

2 cups cubed potatoes, cooked and cooled 

1 cup shrimps, peeled and deveined, poached and cooled

3 cage-free eggs, hard boiled and chopped

2 Tbsps celery, chopped

2 Tbsps white onion, chopped 

1/2 cup pineapple chunks, drained

2 tsps pickle relish

3 Tbsps Kewpie japanese mayonnaise

Salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients together gently, season to your liking and put in the chiller. Serve cold.

Kalitiran with Mushroom Gravy

Rice! My favorite source of carbs in the whole wide world of food! You can take away all kinds of carbs and starch from me, just don't take rice away! I can even eat rice with salt alone, or when I was a child, I used to eat rice with Knorr seasoning or rice with bagoong.

I believe that my love for rice is the reason why I love cooking stews. Saucy stews! From the Spanish cocido, fabada and lentejas, to the Filipino adobo, kare kare and kaldereta, to the French bouillabaisse, pot-au-feu and boeuf bourguignon...the list goes on and on with the endless possibilities of what stew to make and eat with rice!

Today, I felt like making stew! I had a 1.2 kilo piece of oyster blade (kalitiran) in my freezer. It is taken from the shoulder blade of the cow that is rich in connective tissue and a lot of fat marbling. You can use it to replace ox tongue. 

Kevin loves a creamy mushroom sauce, so I decided to experiment a little bit on this one. I came up with a sauce so rich and creamy, that you would need a whole tub of rice to eat with it!

Marinate all together in the fridge overnight. If you don't have the luxury to do so, marinating for an hour or two is fine.

1.2 kilos kalitiran or oyster blade, whole

oyster sauce

laurel leaves

black pepper, freshly ground

After marinating, drain the sauce and coat the whole piece of beef in flour. Heat olive oil in a heavy pot then sear the meat on all sides. 

When brown, add the following to the pot:

2 cups of mushroom broth (beef broth is ok)

2 laurel leaves

black peppercorns

Let it simmer and cook until the beef is very tender. Remove the beef and set aside until it is cool. When it is cool, put it in the fridge and forget about until the next day!

Now, for the sauce!

Add two cans of cream of mushroom to the remaining stock that you used to boil the kalitiran. Add whole mushrooms, carrots and potatoes.

 When the vegetables are cooked, thicken the sauce just enough to coat the back of a spoon and adjust the seasonings.

When ready to serve, slice the kalitiran in very thin slices. This is why I told you to refrigerate it overnight, it makes for easier slicing. Mix with the sauce, heat and serve. With LOTS of rice!

Enjoy!!!

Herbed chicken and portobello mushrooms in coconut gravy, zucchini noodles and bell pepper salad

HERBED CHICKEN AND PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS IN COCONUT GRAVY

Ingredients:

Chicken thigh fillets, trimmed of all fat and cut in strips

Himalayan salt

Cracked black pepper

Mixed dried herbs

Mix everything together and marinate overnight.

Olive oil 

Portobello mushrooms, cut in strips

Coconut milk

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Cherry tomatoes

Stir fry the chicken strips in olive oil. When half cooked, add the rest if the ingredients. Simmer until chicken is cooked thoroughly and coconut milk has thickened. Adjust seasoning to your liking.

ZUCCHINI NOODLES

Ingredients:

Zucchini

Salt

Mixed dried herbs

Olive oil

Salt and pepper for seasoning

Shred zucchini to resemble noodles. You can do this with a serrated peeler, a mandoline or use a knife to julienne the zucchini.

Add salt and let sit for 15 minutes. You will notice a lot of water coming out from the zucchini. Drain that, rinse in water then strain for 30 minutes.

Boil water in a saucepan and cook the zucchini noodles for a minute, make sure it is not soggy. 

Strain the noodles and put in cold water to stop further cooking.

Season with olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper.

ROASTED BELL PEPPERS

Bell peppers, in a variety of colors

Torch

Olive oil

Garlic, chopped

Vinegar 

Salt

Pepper

Use a torch to char the outer skin of the peppers. Put it all in a bowl and cover for 30 minutes. The steam will help loosen the skin for easier peeling.

Do not rinse the bell peppers. Scrape charred skin with a knife, deserts and cut in strips. Marinate in olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.

Arrange everything on a plate and enjoy!

Almond flour pancakes - paleo

Ingredients:

1 cup almond meal

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

3 eggs at room temperature

1/4 cup pure coconut milk

1 Tbsp virgin coconut oil

1 Tbsp pure maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

Put all the wet ingredients in a blender followed with the dry ingredients. Blend all together for a minute or two. 

Cook on a preheated greased griddle or pan. (Use virgin coconut oil)

Serve with pure maple syrup or golden agave syrup. 

You may serve with fruits.