Coconut Shrimp and Chicken Soup

serves 4 1 T vegetable oil
1 T grated peeled ginger
2 cloves garlic cloves, minced or grated
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
3 carrots, peeled, halved and thinly sliced lengthwise
1 can coconut milk
1 T cornstarch
4~6 oz rice noodles
3/4 lb large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
3/4 lb chicken breast, sliced
2 C low-sodium chicken broth
1-1/2 C water
1 T fish sauce
juice of 1 lime
salt
4 scallions, thinly sliced
cilantro, finely chopped

1. Fill a large bowl with hot water and add the noodles. Let sit until softened (about 10~15 minutes), drain, and set aside.
   
2. In a 3.5 quart or larger saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken on both sides until almost cooked through and lightly browned. Add carrots and cook until they start to wilt. Add ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add coconut milk, chicken broth, fish sauce, and water. In a small bowl combine corn starch and 2 T water; add to the pot, and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium, add shrimp; stir until shrimp is opaque, about 1 minutes. Add noodles, remove from heat and add lime juice; season with salt. Ladle into serving bowls, and garnish with scallions and cilantro. Serve immediately.

Thai Coconut Curry

serves 4

salt and pepper
about 2 T vegetable oil
1 lb shrimp (or chicken or beef tenderloin, cut into thin strips)
1 onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 bell peppers (I used red here, but I think green would also be great), thinly sliced
2 small Japanese eggplant or 2/3 of a big eggplant, diced
1 T Thai red curry paste
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
1 C Thai basil leaves, torn into little pieces
1 T fresh lemon juice

Rice to serve it with

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 T oil over medium-high. Season shrimp (or chicken or beef) with salt and pepper and add to skillet until almost cooked through. (For shrimp, that is when it starts to get pink and opaque, but don't let it got cooked all the way through or it will be over cooked and rubbery later)
2. Put Eggplant in skillet and cook until slightly softened. Add onions, bell pepper, salt and pepper and cook until crisp-tender. 3-4 minutes.
3. Add curry pastes, cook scraping the bottom of the skillet, about 1 minute.
4. Return shrimp to the skillet and add coconut milk. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly, 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in basil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve with Japanese white rice

Vegetable Stir Fry (野菜炒め)

Vegetable Stir Fry (野菜炒め)

12-14 pieces of frozen or fresh shrimp (if frozen, thaw in cold--not warm--water until tender)
1 green pepper, sliced into long, thin strips
1/2 of an eggplant, cut into thin long pieces
1/4 of a cabbage, coarsely cut into similar shapes to other vegetables
carrots, cut into thin long pieces
onions, sliced into long thin strips
4 cloves garlic, crushed, not chopped
canola or vegetable oil for wok/frying pan

soy sauce
hoisin sauce
grated ginger
rice wine vinegar
sesame seed oil
chili oil
white pepper
salt & black pepper
mirin

1. Heat wok/frying pan on high heat and add canola/vegetable oil. Add carrots, onions and cook until slightly tender. Add green peppers, eggplant, and cabbage and cook until cabbage cooks down a bit.
2. Push the vegetables over to the side a little to make room for the shrimp. Add the shrimp to the wok, making sure they all are touching the hot metal. Cook quickly on both sides until slightly pink.
3. Add garlic, and continue to fry. In the mean time, mix all sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Add the sauce to the stir fry and toss.
4. Serve on the side with rice, while still hot.

Tortilla Pizza

Tortilla Pizza
serves 2 (plus left overs?)
4 tortillas*
1/4 C pizza sauce (I recommend Contadina's)
1 C uncooked spinach
1/2 medium onion, sliced thin
12 shrimp
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
1 C mozzarella cheese, diced small
1-1 inch slice of a large eggplant (so it looks like a big circle), peeled
4-5 button mushrooms, sliced
2 small tomatoes, diced
1/4 C olive oil
3 cloves garlic, crushed

*I always buy the uncooked tortillas at Costco. They are a lot softer and work really well for this recipe. If you can't find uncooked tortillas, just normal large tortillas will work fine.

1. Cook onions until golden brown, set aside. Cook mushrooms through until tender (In the same frying pan), but not too soft. Set aside. Cook spinach until wilted, set aside. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper, cook briefly on both sides and set aside. Slice eggplant into long rectangular shapes, and brown on both sides. Set aside.
   
2. In a seperate frying pan, put in 1/4 C olive oil and garlic. Turn heat to medium-low, and keep an eye on it. Don't let the garlic burn, but let it get soft and cooked through in the oil until the oil is well flavored.
   
3. Cook the tortillas on one side only, and don't let it brown. Just cook until it turns a white. Then, take one tortilla, uncooked side down, and place back on pan. put 1/2 C cheddar and put another tortilla on top, uncooked side up. Cook until cheese starts to melt, and set aside on a cookie sheet. Do the same with the other two tortillas.
4. When the quesadillas are made, brush with garlic-infused oil on the top. Sprinkle on the pizza sauce. Layer on eggplant, mushroom, shrimp, onions, and spinach. sprinkle on top mozarella cheese. Place under broiler for 3-4 minutes, until cheese is melted and browned.
5. Once out of the oven, toss on the diced tomatoes. Slice and serve while hot. (It will cool down pretty fast, so do put it in the broiler right before you're ready to serve.)

Coconut Shrimp with Bisquick

1 lb shrimp, uncooked, peeled, deveined, tails removed

1 cup Bisquick mix

1 egg

3/4 cup milk

1 cup oil

2 1/2 cups flaked coconut

1/2 cup apricot preserves

1/2 cup chili sauce

Pat shrimp dry with paper towels. In bowl, mix Bisquick, egg and milk. Add shrimp and gently stir to coat.

In skillet, heat oil over medium heat. In shallow dish, place the coconut, add the shrimp to coat. Cook the shrimp in batches, cooking 3-4 minutes, turning once until crispy and shrimp is pink. Drain on paper towels.

In small bowl, mix chili sauce and apricot preserves. Serve with shrimp.