Cooking The Way to Your Own Heart (Recipes Included!)

Years ago, women sat their daughters in the kitchen and told them things like "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." That little tidbit of advice was enough to have young girls watching wistfully in the wings, taking mental notes of the secret recipes Mommy and Gram never wrote down. The promise of possessing a culinary prowess that no man could deny and all desired such a characteristic of his wife-to-be was tantalizing. But somewhere along the way, maybe with less of such a focus on "love and marriage" and an overt presence of ready-made meals, the power of such a skill lost its luster to many, but not all.

I'd be lying to say that the thought of being able to cook well, keep a nice home, and embodying the hostess with mostess might make me a stand out amid the swarm of other girls that don't know how to turn the oven on, serve meats atop paper plates and without cutlery at that, hadn't crossed my mind. But even more prevelant than that, I was simply bred with the taste for fresh and finely prepared foods. Some call it spoiled, I call it exposed, but it's unlikely you'll know the correct pronunciation of filet mignon without it being announced and served nearby, or on a screen these days, I guess.

Nonetheless, not sure my parents meant to, but all their fine dining, reared a foodie. A foodie who went to college in and decided to make one of the best food cities in the US her semi-permanent home. And what does a foodie on a recent grad budget have to do? Learn to make the masterpieces herself. 3 times the meal, for a 1/3 of the menu price, that's quite the deal. Say yes to leftovers!



There is in fact nothing more simultaneously liberating and truly tantalizing than taking the first bite of your own creation and it elicits a visceral, sometimes audible reaction to the yuminess. Aside from the fancy presentation and it tasting superb (this takes some practice), you no longer need to depend on another human being to provide your sustenance. Whether that person be the pizza chef at Dominos or the factory worker that cans the tuna you spread on your sandwich, don't depend on them! Learn to cook from scratch with fresh (maybe even organic?) ingredients and watch your life change. Seriously, treat your body like the temple it is, because you only get one, so not only are you cooking your heart's desires, you're taking care of that heart too, not letting hidden sugars, cholesterol, and preservatives (all those ingredients you can't pronounce) strain it.

Don't get me wrong when I'm tired or deprived myself of sugar or sodium for an extended period of time, I do crave fast or prepared foods, and everything is ok in moderation. But it's so much better when you know what's in your meals, and can share the wealth of knowledge and yuminess with those around you. Who knows? It might even land you a boo who knows whatever you cook will be "nutritious and delicious"  - 10 pts to anyone who can name that movie ;)

Speaking of boos, they also make great sous chefs. It can get lonely in the kitchen sometimes, getting a little help will make everything, including the meal taste better. Here are a few meals the beau and I whipped up this week, with a little inspiration from Pinterest:

Crab Cakes with Mango Salsa

 

I served the crab cakes over a bed of mixed greens and topped them with an easy mango salsa.



(Pinspiration - Sugar & Spice's "Crazy Good Crab Cakes")
Ingredients:
1 lb. Lump Crab Meat
4 Slices Whole Wheat Bread (toasted & processed in blender)
1 Egg, beaten
2 tbsp. Mayo
1 tsp Seafood Seasoning (such as Old Bay Seasoning)
1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1 tbsp. Dried Parley Flakes (I used freshly chopped cilantro, instead)
2 tsp. lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil or butter (for sauteing)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients except the crab meat in a bowl. Gently fold in crab meat and chill for one hour before forming into three ounce cakes. If the cakes are too wet (not sticking together), feel free to add some bread crumbs or flour to help them stick.
Drizzle 1 tbsp of olive oil or butter in the bottom of a medium skillet.  Saute the crab cakes over medium heat for 2-3 minutes per side, adding more olive oil or butter as needed.

Easy Mango Salsa
1 Ripe Mango
1 Tomato
1/3 Red Onion
2 tbsp of freshly chopped cilantro
Juice of 1/2 lime
Salt and Pepper to taste

Chop and Mix. Told ya' it was easy :)

Left over crab mixture was formed into small cakes and placed in the freezer for lazier evenings.

Pan Fried Dumplings & Mongolian Beef with Broccoli

Pinspiration (Romance of the Three Kitchens Pan Fried Dumplings & Pink Bites' Mongolian Beef)
Dumplings
Filling:
1 lb ground pork
1/3 head of cabbage, finely chopped
2-3 green onions, minced
1 inch ginger, minced
1 tsp of Shaoxing rice wine
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1/2 tsp of sesame oil
a dash of ground pepper
1 tsp of cornstarch
2 oz of water

1 pack of dumpling wrappers (I used northern Shanghai style)
1 egg, gently beaten
2 tbsp of cooking oil
1/2 cup of water

Mix together filling ingredients in a large bowl. Ensure your working area is lightly dusted with flour to keep dumplings from sticking together when you're done, also have a wet paper towel ready to cover unused dumpling wrappers as you fill one at a time.

Place a dumpling wrapper in the palm of one hand, dab a finger of the other hand into the egg and lightly spread around the edge of the wrapper. Then spoon a small amount of the filling into the center of the wrapper and fold your dumpling closed, pleating the edges as you wish. Fill as many wrapper as you'd like, you can store any cooked or uncooked in the freezer.

Coat the bottom of a pan or skillet with cooking oil and line the dumplings inside. Fry on med-high heat for 2-3 mins or until golden brown on the bottom. Then add water, turn heat down and cover pan. Let the dumplings cook for about 4 minutes or until the water is steamed off. Uncover and Flip dumplings once and continue to cook on second side for another 2-3 minutes.

Drain (if you'd like) and serve!

Mongolian Beef (w/broccoli)

Ingredients:
1 lb of flank steak, thinly sliced crosswise
1/4 cup of cornstarch
3 teaspoons of vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon of grated ginger (about 1/2 inch piece)
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic (about 2 -3 large cloves)
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
2 tsp of red chili paste
2 crowns of broccoli
3 large green onions, sliced crosswise into thirds

Prepare the meat:
First, make sure the steak slices are dry (pat them dry) and mix them with the corn starch. Using your hands or a spoon, move them around to make sure all pieces are coated. Place beef slices in a strainer and shake off excess corn starch

Make the sauce:
Heat half of the oil in a large wok at medium-high and add the garlic and ginger. Immediately add the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl. Don't worry if the sauce doesn't look thick enough at this point. The corn starch in the beef will thicken it up later.

Cook the meat and assemble dish:
Turn the heat up and add the remaining oil to the wok. Add the beef and cook, stirring until it is all browned (this is a quick thing). Pour the sauce back into the wok and let it cook along with the meat. Now you can choose to cook it down and reduce the sauce or leave it thinner. Add the broccoli green onions on the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy.

Serve it hot with rice.