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Asian Coleslaw
Serves 6
This light and crunchy slaw makes a great accompaniment to spicy grilled chicken, meat skewers, or fried tofu. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on top of individual servings, or black sesame seeds for a dramatic color contrast. This salad gets better the longer it sits in the refrigerator, making it an ideal food to make-ahead with a friend in anticipation of a weekend barbeque.
5 cups Napa cabbage, thinly sliced
3 cups carrots, peeled and shredded
1 cup green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
2 teaspoons sugar
5 tablespoons rice vinegar
4 tablespoons sesame oil
3 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Combine all ingredients except sesame seeds in a large bowl and toss well. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top of each serving. |
Portuguese Vegetable Soup
Makes 3 quarts of soup
This soup was inspired by many visits to Portugal where vegetable soup is a mealtime staple. It's a versatile soup which builds upon a smooth vegetable stock. Although we use carrots and watercress as our add-ins, you can use whatever vegetables you like. It's a wonderful light meal for a chilly spring evening. If you want to eat this soup in authentic Portuguese fashion, serve it warm rather than hot. Pack it up in a thermos and serve it in cups as a first course at a picnic.
5 Yukon Gold potatoes (about 1 ¾ cups), peeled and sliced thinly
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
4 medium sized carrots, peeled and chopped
1 carrot peeled and sliced thinly
2 cups watercress, washed and stems removed
1/8 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher or sea salt
In a deep pot, combine potatoes, onion, garlic, 4 chopped carrots, olive oil and salt. Add 3 quarts of water. Bring to a boil and boil rapidly for 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender and some of the water has evaporated. Remove from heat and, using a hand blender, blend until smooth. Return the soup to the burner and bring back to a boil. Add the sliced carrots and watercress and cook for no more than 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.
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Summer Rolls
Makes 24 rolls
These delicious, soft rolls make an ideal appetizer. Each rice wrapper holds together a medley of Asian noodles, scallions, asparagus, mint, lettuce and pre-grilled shrimp. Because the recipe has several stages, it's great to share the work with a friend. If you decide to marinate the shrimp, make sure one person gives the cooking date a head start by doing so ahead of time. The Honey Ginger Shrimp is wonderful on its own and can be used alternatively as a salad topper or a first course.
24 Honey Ginger Shrimp (see below)
Asian Noodle Salad (see below)
Dipping Sauce (see below)
24 small rice paper wrappers
2 bunches of scallions, trimmed, washed and cut vertically
12 asparagus spears, tough ends removed and stems peeled
¼ head iceberg lettuce, rinsed and separated
48 mint leaves, washed and stems removed
Honey Ginger Shrimp
1/8 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon fresh ginger
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons orange juice
1/8 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
24 large shrimp, de-veined and tails removed
Whisk soy sauce, ginger, honey, orange juice, canola oil and sesame oil in a bowl. Pour mixture over the shrimp and let sit in the refrigerator for 2-4 four hours (skip this step if you don't have time). On a medium high heat, grill shrimp for approximately 3-4 minutes per side, making sure to baste with all of the marinade. Remove shrimp from grill and cool. When cool enough to handle, slice the shrimp vertically in two pieces. Set aside.
Asian Noodle Salad
½ pound rice noodles (vermicelli)
2 tablespoons peanut butter
¼ cup canola oil
1 teaspoon ginger
3 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
In a large pot, bring water to a boil. Submerge the rice noodles and cook for two minutes. Drain and run cold water over the noodles. Set aside. In a blender or mixer, combine peanut butter, canola oil, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, rice wine vinegar and soy sauce. Blend until smooth. Pour mixture over the noodles and mix together well. Set aside.
Dipping Sauce
1/8 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 crushed garlic clove
1 teaspoon chopped scallions
2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
1 teaspoon honey
In a small bowl, mix all ingredients well. Serve with Summer Rolls.
Assembling Summer Rolls
On a large surface, lay out all of the fillings for the summer rolls in an assembly line fashion. Bring a tea pot of water to a boil.
You will need a plate to soak the rice paper wrappers one at a time in hot water. Working in stages, you will need to soften the rice paper, layer the fillings and roll.
To begin, fill a plate with ½ inch of hot water from your tea kettle. Place the wrapper in the water and smooth it with your hands until it becomes soft for about 10-20 seconds. Remove from the water and place on a non stick surface.
First lay two mint leaves in the center of the wrapper. Next, place a tablespoon of the Asian noodles on top of the mint. Add two pieces of shrimp, a few scallions, asparagus, and lettuce. Fold in the vertical ends and pull one side of the rice paper over the other and roll tightly. Place on a plate and cover with a wet paper towel so that the rice paper doesn't harden. Repeat the process until all the rolls are assembled.
The rolls will keep wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 24 hours. To serve, cut the rolls on a diagonal with a sharp knife and arrange on a plate with dipping sauce.
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Dear Friends,
We think it's time to lighten up.
If you're like most people around the country, you're cooking more at home to save money. As you know, for us, home cooking isn't a solitary chore. It's all about having fun with a friend in the kitchen, allowing time to catch up and share a few laughs. Spring is also a great time to whip up healthy salads, side dishes and light soups, for a picnic lunch or for dinners throughout the week. As someone once said: "If life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Or a lemony pasta primavera, or fish with lemons and capers....
Alison and Shannon
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Cooking With Friends
"Lighten-it-Up" To Do List:
Take on a Freezer/Pantry Challenge with a Friend
Move your Playgroups Outside
Stock Your Pantries with Staples to Create Lighter Foods
Plan a Communal Herb Garden with Your Cooking Friends |
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Freezer/Pantry Spring Cleaning Challenge
Isn't it a good feeling to use things up? That's why we've come up with our Annual Cooking With Friends Spring Pantry Challenge. You can make soups, burritos, salads and many more meals out of seemingly nothing. We are sure you'll find this to be a great way to save money and waste less.
Here's how it works: 1) Choose a friend to take the challenge with you. 2) Select a period of time that works best for you and your friend (we suggest a week) 3) Resist the urge to go to the grocery store, unless it's for something necessary like milk, for that period of time. 4) Plan cooking dates with your friend and create meals from your combined pantries. This will be a fun exercise in improvisational and creative cooking! |
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The Picnic Playdate
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Now that the weather is nicer, we're moving our playgroups outside. If you're hosting for the group and providing snacks, invite one of your friends over a bit earlier to quickly make the goodies. We recommend Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Apple Pie Muffins and Homemade Lemonade (recipes all found at www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com).
Add some fresh fruit, napkins, plates and cups, and don't forget a few big blankets to stake out your spot. You can even make granola parfaits (layer homemade granola with yogurt and berries) as an impressive and light playgroup treat.
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The Cooking With Friends
"Lighten-it-Up" Pantry List
The Farmers' Markets are beginning to open, and our favorite meals are made from the freshest vegetables of the season. You'll find you can be a more flexible and creative home cook when you have a well-stocked pantry. Make sure you have what you need to whip up salads and sides.
Here are our top must-haves for lighter cooking: Olive oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, couscous, Basmati rice, orzo, angel hair pasta, soy sauce, capers, canned diced tomatoes, jarred olives, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, beans (black, navy, kidney), chick peas, dried lentils, Dijon mustard, pine nuts, almonds, and pecans. Keep some edamame, petit peas, corn, shrimp and chicken breasts in your freezer. Once you have a well stocked pantry, all you'll need to do is pick up some fresh ingredients during your weekly grocery shop.
Here are some of the items we recommend adding to that list: lemons and limes, cilantro and basil, garlic and shallots, avocados, scallions and onions, shaved parmesan and feta cheese.
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Plan An Herb Garden With Your Friends
Fresh herbs transform any meal into something much more flavorful. We suggest planning an herb garden with your cooking friends. It's a great way to plan your cooking itineraries and share the cost of herbs -- while seeing your friends.
All you'll need to do is choose a friend (or two or three), select the sunniest spots in your yards and begin digging and planting together. Basil, oregano, chives, thyme, mint, cilantro and rosemary are our absolute favorites. You'll reap the benefits as you snip your way all Spring and Summer long.
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Contest--Cook With Jamie Oliver!
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| We are excited to announce a giveaway from Cookstr.com. The first reader to forward our May newsletter to five friends (press the forward to a friend button on the bottom of the page) and let us know at info@cookingwithfriendsclub.com will receive a copy of the new Atari Jamie Oliver game for the Nintendo DS.
This very cool game lets you try out 100 of Jamie's recipes in 10 virtual test kitchens and play other fun cooking games.
The contest is sponsored by a web site we recommend you check out, Cookstr.com. The site highlights the work of the best chefs (including Jamie Oliver), giving up to date information about their books and restaurants. And, you can search and print out hundreds of their best recipes.
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Tool of the Month: Lemon Zester
A lemon zester is a handy little tool that lets you strip away the delicious zest (the outer peel) from the bitter-tasting pith in citrus fruits. Lemon zest is particularly good in light cakes and pasta dishes, but once you have one of these you'll come up with new reasons to use it. They cost about $7-10 and good versions are made by OXO, Pampered Chef, and Cuisinart.
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Alison Bermack and Shannon Henry
Visit our web site at www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com.
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