Oodles of Udon Noodles....

Last night while cleaning out my refrigerator, I noticed a ton of vegetables on the verge of spoiling. I tend to go crazy at the farmer's market on my weekly Sunday trips. Therefore, I find myself with a hodge podge of veggies at the end of the week. During my latest cleaning, I found yellow squash, sugar snap peas, red onions, green onions, and broccoli. I instantly thought noodle dish. I reached into my pantry for udon noodles (from my last shopping expedition to Chinatown). I threw this together in literally 20 minutes. My local Chinese take-out restaurant will definitely be losing some business because this noodle dish tasted incredible and took less time than ordering food.

Oodles of Thai Curry Vegetables and Noodles:

1 onion, quartered
1 zucchini or yellow squash, 1/2 in cubes
4 green onions, cut on diagonal
1 crown broccoli (keep florets intact)
15 sugar snap peas
1 package udon noodles
1 tablespoon red curry paste
Salt
1/2 cup of fat free half and half
1 tablespoon EVOO
Salt

1. Cook noodles according to directions. Drain.
2. In a wok, add oil and turn the heat to high.
3. Add all the vegetables and cook for 2 minutes. The vegetables should still be crisp.
4. Add thai curry paste and mix to coat all the vegetables. Cook for an additional 2 minutes.
5. Add half and half and cook for 1 minute.
6. Add noodles and coat with the sauce. Cook for an additional 1 minutes. Add salt to taste.

Variations: Add cilantro if you would like at the end. If you like spicy food, add more curry paste.

Vinoing Again!

Throwing a seated dinner coupled with a wine tasting is an exercise in patience and timing. During a well-executed seated dinner, guests dance from one course to another seamlessly without skipping a beat. I admit that the timing was slightly off during my first seated dinner (for more than four people that is). Typically, I opt to throw appetizer parties or buffet dinners. I expect that subsequent dinners will be easier as I adapt to the timing. The gathering started with smelling, tasting and dialoguing about the five white wines. The object of this class was to differentiate the bouquet and taste in a dry and medium-bodied Riesling and to distinguish the influence of oak in various wines.



We tasted the following wines:

Selbach 2006 Dry Riesling $17
Dr. Thanisch (vdp) H. Riesling Kabinett Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Bernkasteler Badstube 2005 $20
Bouchié-Chatellier Argile à S - 2006. Blanc | Pouilly-fumé $23
Printhie 2006 Chardonnay (Orange, Australia) $17
Taft Street 2007 Chardonnay (Russian River Valley) $16

The two big hits of the night were the Dr. Thanisch Riesling and Taft Street 2007 Chardonnay.



The Asian fusion menu consisted of:

Thai Coconut and Pumpkin Soup with Crispy Spring Onions and Cilantro Oil
Sambar Thyme Corn Muffins
Ribbons of Zucchini and Yellow Squash with Mesclun Greens and Ponzu-Balsamic-Sambal Vinaigrette
Pan-Seared Tilapia, Served on a Bed of Coconut-Ginger Scented Jasmine Rice and Drizzled with Thai Basil Oil and Papaya-Habanero Sauce
Snow Peas with Sliced Almonds and Caramelized Shallots
Molten Chocolate Cakes Served with Coconut Saffron Ice Cream

I gather tasting notes from various sources and assemble them into one description.

Dr. Thanisch (vdp) H. Riesling Kabinett Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Bernkasteler Badstube 2005
Perfumed and marked by vivid acidity, this exhibits nectarine, apricot, and mineral flavors, ,all well-defined and persistent. Light in weight, yet intense and concentrated. Drink through 2012.

Selbach 2006 Dry Reisling
This pale, straw yellow wine is wonderfully refreshing, crisp, and clean. Aromas of apple and citrus are mellow, but the tart flavors of green, Granny Smith-type apples and lemon, explode in your mouth. Bright acidity and a medium-length, spicy finish make this a wonderful wine to serve with your lighter and/or spicier dishes, fish, or garden salads.

Bouchié-Chatellier Argile à S – 2006 - Pouilly-fumé
Made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc, the wine displays the characteristic aromas that one expects in a quality Pouilly-Fumé -- gunflint, minerality, yellow fruit, citrus and grassy notes -- combined with tart acidity and good length on the palate. A long mineral and citrus finish. Quite juicy, lively fruit, very pleasant green apple grassy flavours. Vibrant lively style.”

Printhie 2006 Chardonnay (Orange, Australia)
Pale yellow with green hue. Bouquet is peach and nutty with buttery undertones. A refined palate displaying tropical fruit characters with a creamy mid-palate and finishes long with a twist of lemon acidity and subtle toasty French oak.

Taft Street 2007 Chardonnay (Russian River Valley)
The wine shows graceful notes of tropical melon on a juicy backdrop that stays lively through the finish. A medium gold color in the glass, this wine has a soothing nose of buttercream, lemons, and Nivea (or cold cream). In the mouth it has a nice balance with good acid and primary flavors of lemon zest, minerals, a bit of melon, and a bit of butterscotch. The wine is not too creamy, nor too oaky, and finishes nicely. Only 350 cases produced. Solidly varietal and very much fixed on well-ripened apples in its lightly oaked aromas, this likeable, middleweight effort shows a bit of oily roundness in the mouth and follows with direct, easy-to-taste flavors of appley fruit that are filled out with attractive touches of cream and vanilla.

Recipes:



Thai Coconut and Pumpkin Soup with Crispy Spring Onions and Cilantro Oil, Sambar Thyme Corn Muffin

1 26-oz can of pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie puree)
2 cloves, thinly sliced
2 cans light coconut milk
2-3 tablespoons red curry paste
1 cup fat free half and half
1 tablespoon oil

1. Heat oil in heavy pot. Add garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.
2. Add pumpkin puree, coconut milk and half and half. Stir slowly.
3. Add red curry paste. Add more if you would like it spicier. Add water to thin.
4. Simmer for 20 minutes on low.

Crispy Spring Onions

Use spring onions from the farmer’s market. Those are the best for decoration. Cut the bulb into thin slices so when they are fried, they look like blossoms. Fry in hot oil. Pull them out gently so that the blossoms do not tear apart.

Cilantro Oil

2 cups cilantro leaves, washed and patted dry
2/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Puree cilantro leaves in blender. Stream oil into blender until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste.

Sambar Thyme Corn Muffins

1 box of Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 tsp sambar powder (can be found at Indian stores)
1 tablespoon honey
Small sprigs of thyme

Prepare mix according to directions. Add honey and sambar powder. Pour into mini-muffin pan laying a small spring of thyme on top. Bake according to directions.

Assemble by pouring soup into bowl. Drizzle cilantro oil. Lay a spring onion in the middle and the corn muffin on the side.



Ribbons of Zucchini and Yellow Squash with Mesclun Greens and Ponzu-Balsamic-Sambal Vinaigrette

2 zucchini (long and similar size)
2 yellow squash (similar size)
1 tablespoon ponzu
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
½ teaspoon pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 bag of mesclun greens
1 tablespoon sambal
1 tablespoon honey
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Using a peeler, peel the zucchini and yellow squash in long strokes. You want thin ribbons.
2. Mix ponzu, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, pepper flakes and sesame seeds. Thoroughly mix through ribbons. Chill in fridge.
3. Mix sambal, honey, and balsamic vinegar. Slowly stream in oil until thick.
4. Assemble by placing ribbons on bottom of plate, place mesclun on top and drizzle with sambal salad dressing.

I'll post the rest of the recipes soon.

Surprise Strawberries!!

Yesterday, while trimming my patch of grass (I can't call it a lawn since it's so little!), I came across a wild strawberry patch in my backyard. The plant is so cute and already has two strawberries on it. Check out the pictures.

Another Vegetable Garden in Houston!

My good friend R is sweet, talented, kind, loyal and has an impeccable sense of fashion and decorating style. Friends like her are hard to find and I consider myself lucky to share a friendship with her. This year, our resolution was to dedicate our time to exploring new hobbies together. As you know, I picked up gardening. R is vegetarian so planting a vegetable garden would only seem like a perfect hobby for her to take up also. She mentioned that she has always wanted to plant a garden but never got around to it. She just finished her MBA (Congrats R!) and has more time to devote to hobbies. We plan to take art classes soon too.

Well, she called me today to help plant the long awaited garden. It rained cats and dogs this morning and then cleared up into one of the most beautiful days that Houston has seen in a long time. Today, we planted cherry tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes, swiss chard, mesclun, eggplant, ichiban eggplant, watermelon, kale, arugula, snow peas, papaya and bush beans (so jealous about her backyard space!). I wish her the best and can't wait to eat some watermelon ;-)

Pictures of our gardening adventure:

Starting out. We dug up the grass and discovered a root system from an old tree underneath.



Root system all gone!



We look much better than we feel or is it the other way around?!?!?



The final product:

Recovered and Ready to Grow

I almost broke down and went to Lowe's looking for insecticide. Watching my babies slowly die was too much for this Mommy to handle. However, my Mom called to reassure me that her home-made concoction would work. I should listen to her wise words more often; she is always right. Makes me think that I shouldn't have been such a rebellious teenager. Here is the update on the garden.



I'm happy to report that the swiss chard and kale are starting to take ground. At this point, the color on the multicolor swiss chard is visible. We have a spectrum of colors: red, hot pink and yellow stalks. Typically, when you plant seeds, the rule of thumb is to plant 3 times more seeds than the number of plants you want. If all the seeds germinate, then you need to thin the plants, meaning removing the excess plants. I planted approximately 20-30 kale seeds and ALL of them germinated as you can tell from the seedlings on the right. I am going to wait for them to grow 5-6 inches and move them to the front yard. I hate the idea of throwing away plants. If you don't thin, then there is a risk that all of your plants will die due to insufficent resources.



I anticipate two more weeks to harvest on the mixed lettuce. I planted mixed mesclun lettuce and for the past three weeks, I could not differentiate between the various lettuce types. As of today, we definitely have red leaf lettuce and baby romaine.



Finally, the Pièce de résistance. We have sugar snap peas. There is something satisfying about watching a plant grow from seeds. It feels like you created something although the seed, soil and sun do all the work. This weekend I will need to build a trellis; that will be an adventure on its own.

Expect recipes this weekend. Our second wine party is scheduled this weekend and there are an additional 3 girls in the group.