Hot Pot

After our trip to Portland last February, we've become addicted to hot pot! Hot pot is kinda like fondue (not the thick cheesy or chocolate kind)! We made ours in our electric fondue pot with a vegetable broth base with some sesame oil, garlic, and ginger and chopped up some broccoli, bok choy, mushrooms, zucchini, and snow peas (okay, we didn't chop the snow peas!). You toss a few pieces into the broth to cook and then take them out and eat them. We made a dipping sauce with soy, garlic, ginger, hoisin, and sriracha. We also made some rice vermicelli, and at the end of enjoying our veggies we tossed the noodles into the broth and ate them. Of course, we were so full by then that we didn't need the noodles. Eating at such a slow pace means filling up on less food. It's also a ton of fun!

Kale and Mushroom Fried Rice

We made this a while ago when we were going to the drive in theater! Okay, maybe it's not your typical movie food, but it was yummy! This works best if you cook the rice ahead of time and chill it in the refrigerator. Heat a pan with some sesame oil. Chop up the kale and mushrooms and add to the oil when it's hot (really hot). Stir fry for a few minutes until the kale gets crispy (mine never did, but I think that's because I didn't get the pan hot enough). When it's just about done, add the rice and flavor it with soy or tamari. I also throw in some minced garlic and ginger frozen into cubes for convenience (you can usually find these at the store). We made this again earlier this week. Definitely one of our new favorites! Based on the recipe found at http://appetiteforchina.com/recipes/crispy-kale-and-mushroom-fried-rice.

Brussels Sprout Salad

We eat Brussels sprouts on a weekly basis. We are kinda addicted to them! Usually we make them as a side, but Matt decided to make them as a salad topper! They taste delicious on top of a bed of lettuce and other veggies with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar! We vary how we make our sprouts. Matt like to cut them in half and I like to shred them. But we both saute them in a pan with olive oil until they get nice and brown. We season with salt and garlic powder. Lately we've also been adding some white truffle oil in while cooking (soooo yummy). I like to add capers and Matt likes to add bacon. I could probably eat sprouts every day!

Avocado Salsa

I think I found this recipe on Pinterest. It's pretty similar to guacamole, but not all mashed up! I like this chunky dip better. It's just avocado chunks, red onion, tomato, corn, cilantro, a little lime juice, garlic powder and sea salt. Easy and yummy!

Avocado Grilled Cheese

Where have you been all my life?! This is the greatest grilled cheese sandwich EVER!!! Tomatoes, avocado, basil, cheese - heaven between two slices of bread!

Baked Tofu

I usually like to pan fry my tofu (with no oil) but I decided to try out baked tofu. Maybe it was the spicy sauce that made it so good, but I really loved it! The hubs said he prefers the pan frying but he liked it as well. After pressing, I cut the tofu into chunks and baked it at 450 for about 25 minutes with just salt and garlic powder. Toward the end I put a little sesame oil to make it a little crispy. While the tofu was in the oven, I whisked together a sauce with soy, hoisin, sriracha, fresh garlic and ginger, a little brown sugar, just a pinch of flour (to thicken), and sesame oil (though I would leave it out next time since I put it in the oven with the tofu). When the tofu was ready, I poured it over the tofu and put it on broil for a couple minutes to thicken up. Served over steamed kale (seasoned with olive oil, salt, pepper, and fresh garlic) and a bed of bean sprouts. This is adapted from this recipe: http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/dynamite-tofu-with-rice-and-broccoli.aspx

Pho and Spring Rolls

Matt and I love to eat pho, so I thought I'd take a stab at making it at home. I found this recipe at Bon Apetit for "faux pho" and it's what I used to base my soup off of. Here's how I made mine: Ingredients Olive oil Small yellow onion Garlic cloves Ginger Veg broth Star anise Cinnamon Sliced mushrooms Green onion Sea salt Rice vermicelli Bean sprouts Basil leaves Sriracha and hoisin Preparation Slice yellow onion thinly, but leaving the entire circle intact. Heat oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add onion slices and cook until it starts to get golden. Add minced or crushed garlic and thinly sliced ginger. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden, 3–4 minutes. Add broth (and water, until it's the desired strength you want it), star anise, and cinnamon; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer until flavors meld, 7–8 minutes. Add mushrooms; simmer 2 minutes. Add scallion. Season with salt. Meanwhile, cook rice vermicelli. Make enough to have some extra to put inside your spring rolls! Put the vermicelli into the bottom of each bowl, then pour broth into bowls. Top with raw mushroom slices, bean sprouts, basil, and green onions. Add sriracha and hoisin to season to taste. This is a HUGE bowl (the one we use for popcorn). So you can't see much of the broth, but it was so good. I would even dare to say it was better than the pho we got at the local restaurant! We may never order out again! Spring rolls are super easy, and you can put just about anything in them. We used rice vermicelli, spinach, carrots, basil, and cucumber (I think another time I used zucchini). The basil is key, though, because it adds so much flavor. You just soak the rice paper for about 5 seconds, add your ingredients, and roll. For the sauce I just used some hoisin, sesame paste, and I think a dash of soy sauce. Maybe some rice wine vinegar or sriracha. It changes every time I make it! These are super easy and so delicious!