Hearty Lentil Soup

There’s nothing like a bowl of some good, hearty soup when it’s cold out. I love soup, and after red peas soup, lentil soup is my favourite.

Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 medium sized tomatoes, chopped

4 carrots, chopped

2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 pegs of garlic

1 teaspoon ground cloves

3 sprigs thyme

1 stalk scallion, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

4 stalks parsley, chopped
1 small dried chile pepper

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 

1/2 teaspoon grains of paradise (ground)

Directions:

Saute the salt, onion, ginger, scallion, garlic, parsley, thyme, pepper, carrots and celery in hot olive oil. Next, add the broth, tomatoes, lentils and seasonings. Bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and cover, cooking for about 40 minutes. You may blend for a puree – like consistency. I did not blend mine.

Jerked Turkey!

Happy belated Thanksgiving! I hope it was a good one. 

I know this one is late, but save it to your scrap books for next year. This is an amazing way to prepare a non-traditional Thanksgiving turkey. It's definitely a lot tastier! Thanks to Ms. Eartha Brown for this finger-licking recipe.

Jerked Turkey Recipe

• 1/2 liter (2 cups) of Soy sauce
•  1 hand full of allspice grains or  4 tablespoons of freshly ground allspice
• 1 bunch of scallions or green onions
• 1 head of garlic
• 12 Scotch Bonnet or Habanero peppers. De-seed them, preferably using gloves.
• 2 oz of vinegar - cane or white vinegar
• 1 bunch of fresh thyme
• 4 tablespoons each: Easy Spice Meat Seasoning and Easy Spice Chicken Seasoning, OR:
• 1 tablespoon of paprika
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon white pepper
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 2 oz dark rum (optional) 
• One stick of butter
• One 12lb turkey

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Wash the turkey and rub it with lime halves. Reserve some sauce for basting and dipping. Marinate for as little as 20 minutes or as much as 24 hours.

Heat the oven to 475 degrees. Transfer turkey to a roasting pan. Brush turkey all over with butter, reserving some for basting. Pour 2 cups water into roasting pan and roast turkey, brushing once with more with the butter, for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 350˚ and continue roasting, brushing occasionally with butter. Do this until the meat thermometer reads 150˚ - approximately after 2 hours of baking. Remove turkey from oven and baste completely with reserved sauce. Return the turkey to the oven and continue to cook until internal temperature reaches 165° - approximately 25 minutes more.

Stir Fry Shrimp

I love this dish because it is so easy to make. And tasty! Plus, it is healthy as well. Can’t go wrong there. 

So, this is one way to make this yummy dish:

• 1 tablespoon oil

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce

• 2 tablespoons Chinese cooking wine

• 1/4 cup water

• 1 tsp cumin

• 1 tsp black pepper

• 1/4 tsp sesame oil

• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped or grated ginger

• 1 cup diced onion

• 1 stalk escallion

• 1 cup sliced carrot

• 1/2 teaspoon japones chile pepper or one sliced habanero pepper (without seeds)

• 24 large shrimp, shelled and deveined

• Approx. 2 cups of mixed vegetables

• Add corn starch to thicken sauce if desired

Add the oil to the pot. Then add the black pepper, cumin, sesame oil, the onions, scallions, peppers, garlic and ginger to the pot. Stir for one minute. Add the shrimp and carrots and stir for another two minutes. Add the soy sauce and cooking wine. Cook for about 3 minutes. Add the carrots and mixed vegetables. Place heat on low. Add the water at this point. If you desire a thicker sauce, mix the cornstarch with the water in a cup, then add to the pot. Cook for another minute. Serve over white or brown rice.

Jamaican Stewed Peas

Hi! Foodhedonist's  10 Popular Jamaican Recipes is available for purchase on Amazon.com! It will feature this amazing recipe, along with other popular & delectable delights! 

This is a very tasty Jamaican dish that is relatively easy to make. It is traditionally made with salted pig tails, which can be substituted with fresh beef or oxtail (if you can afford it!). This dish can be converted into a vegetarian meal by bypassing the addition of meat altogether.

[ ]  1 lb kidney beans (red peas)

[ ]  2 cups of coconut milk (one can's worth)

[ ]  1-2 lb of meat, cubed (salted pig tails, fresh beef or ox tail. Ignore if you wish to go vegetarian)

[ ]  1 onion

[ ]  1 green bell pepper

[ ]  2 Scotch Bonnet or habanero peppers, whole

[ ]  1 lb carrots

[ ]   2 stalks of scallions

[ ]  3 medium potatoes, diced

[ ]  6 cloves garlic, diced

[ ]  2-3 teaspoons of cracked allspice grains (approx. 25-30 grains)

[ ]  4 sprigs of thyme

[ ]  black pepper to taste

[ ]  Salt to taste
[ ] Approximately 6-10 cups of water

Directions: 

Rinse beans then bring them to a boil (3 minutes) and let them sit for 1 hour for a quick soak. Otherwise, soak them overnight. 

After soaking the beans, bring to a boil in 2-3 cups of water over a low flame. Boil the beans together with the  with the meat, potatoes, Scotch bonnet peppers, allspice and scallions.

NOTE: If using salted pork tails or salted beef, soak the pork tails or beef overnight in cold water, or boil them in 4 quarts of water for at least 45 minutes to remove the excessive salt content. 

Add the onions and coconut milk when beans have softened (the beans are relatively soft, but still uncooked). This is at the point where the beans are approximately half-cooked.

Make "spinners" (rolled flour and water dumplings) and add to the stew. This can be made by combining 1/2 cup of flour and enough water to bind the flour. The "spinners" should not be too wet nor too dry. They should have the consistency of play dough.

Cut up all other vegetables and set aside. Add vegetables when beans are fully cooked. 

Add flour or corn starch to thicken the stew.

Serve with white rice.

This is when I just added the "spinners." :)

 Finished pot of stew peas

Chinese Mushroom Chicken Recipe

If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a big fan of Asian food. I tried out the recipe below, and it turned out pretty well. Since I also like mushrooms, I will be making the Italian version of this dish as well. Stay tuned.

 Ingredients: 

10 oz. boneless and skinless chicken breasts, cubed

8 oz. of frozen mixed vegetables or zucchini

4 oz. mushrooms, halved

1 teaspoon corn starch

1 teaspoon Shao xing wine, or dry cooking sherry

2 tablespoons oil

4 slices peeled ginger

1 Chinese or unseeded habanero pepper, sliced (optional)

1 stalk scallion

Sauce: 

1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

4 dashes white pepper powder

1/8 teaspoon sesame oil

Salt to taste

4 tablespoons water plus 1 teaspoon corn starch (to thicken the sauce). Alternatively, use 1  tablespoon of flour for the same effect.

Method: 

Marinate the chicken with wine, corn starch and 1/2 teaspoon soy sauce. Marinate for 15 minutes.

Mix the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Heat up a frying pan and add oil. Add ginger, scallion and peppers.  Sautee until aromatic. Add chicken into the pot and stir until the chicken is half-cooked. Add mushrooms and  vegetables into the frying pan and continue to stir-fry. Add the sauce into the pan and quickly stir until the sauce nicely coats the chicken, mushrooms, and vegetables. Continue cooking for about 1 minute or until the chicken is done.

Beer Battered Coconut Shrimp

The ingredients below will make a dish that is reminiscent of Outback's coconut shrimp.

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup beer
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups flaked coconut
• 24 shrimp
• 1 1/2 cups oil for frying

Ingredients for Dipping Sauce:

• 3 tablespoons of orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon of mustard
• 1 tablespoon of horseradish
• 2 tablespoons  of water
• 1 tablespoon oil

 Directions

1. In medium bowl, combine egg, 1/2 cup flour, beer and baking powder. Place 1/4 cup flour and coconut in two separate bowls.
2. Hold shrimp by tail, and drag in flour, shaking off excess flour. Dip in egg/beer batter; allow excess to drip off. Roll shrimp in coconut, and place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Fry shrimp until golden brown. Remove shrimp to paper towels to drain. 

I used coconut flakes that I grated myself to make this dish.

Directions for Dipping Sauce:

• Add 2 tablespoons of water and 1 tablespoon of oil to a small saucepan. Bring mixture to boil. Then stir in the orange marmalade, mustard and horseradish. Serve.