Recipes and food from a Hapa household

this recipe is very similar to my soy sauce chicken recipe, except it isn’t as saucy.  :)  my aunt makes it a lot, as it’s one of my cousin’s favorites, and it’s one of my favorites as well.  the good thing to this recipe is that you don’t have to marinate it as long, and you don’t have to cook it as long either.

serves 2

1/3 C soy sauce
1/8 C sugar (or to desired sweetness, amount of sugar will depend on how salty the soy sauce is)
2 green onions, cut into 2 in pieces
3 slices of ginger
8 chicken wings, cut into 2 pieces each (16 pieces total, 8 drumettes and 8 wings)

1. combine all the ingredients.  coat the wings in the marinade.  let it marinate for at least 2 hours (i usually start marinating it the morning i make the chicken).
2. heat oven to 350.
3. remove wings from marinade and place wings on sheet pan.  (usually i line the pan with aluminum foil for quick cleanup).  bake for 30-40 minutes (or until wings are done), flipping halfway through.

i grew a garden for the first time this year.  i planted basil because i knew i wanted to make pesto.  i made some today and it was delicious.  i also made another batch of arugula pesto, and it was lovely as well. ;)  i like my pesto just tossed with some warm pasta.

serves 4 over 1 lb of pasta

2 C loosely packed basil leaves (you can use arugula as well)
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp salt
pepper
olive oil
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese

1. in a food processor, or blender, add basil, garlic salt, and pepper.
2. turn on the food processor (or blender).  let the ingredients get chopped a little before adding the olive oil.
3. slowly drizzle in the olive oil until desired consistency.
4. add parmesan right before serving.

this is one of my husband’s favorite breakfasts.  i made it for him this past father’s day, and he loved it. :)  enjoy! :)  the recipe comes from my mother-in-law, who is a fabulous cook!

serves 4

1, 8-oz. package sausage patties
italian bread
mozzarella cheese or monterey jack cheese, sliced
4 large eggs
1 C milk
1 tbsp sugar

1. preheat a griddle to 300 degrees or medium to medium-low heat.  spray with non-stick spray.
2. cook sausage patties as per package directions.
3. slice bread into 1 1/2 in. slices.  make a slit in the middle of each slice for a pocket.
4. slice mozzarella cheese - 2 thin slices for each french toast.
5. layer 1 1/2 pieces of sausage between two slices of mozzarella and stuff into pocket in bread; you may have to cut the sausage into small pieces for this.
6. mix eggs, milk and sugar.  dip stuffed bread into egg mixture to coat on both sides.
7. cook toast on griddle until golden brown on both sides and cheese is melted.  i usually flatten the toast with a spatula when cooking.

on sunday, i wanted a quick, but healthy dinner. i flipped through the best 30-minute recipe by america’s test kitchen. i found this recipe, and i found it quite tasty.

serves 4

4, 6 oz. salmon fillets, preferably thicker than 1 in.
1/2 C maple syrup
1/4 C soy sauce
sesame seeds

1. place oven rack so that fish will be 6 inches from broiling implement. preheat oven to broil (high, if there is a low and high setting).
2. combine maple syrup and soy sauce in a small pan. simmer on medium heat until it becomes thick, about 5 minutes.
3. place aluminum foil over baking sheet. spray with non-stick cooking spray. place fish on foil and season with salt and pepper.
4. brush fish with 1/2 of the sauce. broil for 5-6 minutes.
5. brush fish with remaining sauce. and sprinkle sesame seeds on top. broil for 5-6 minutes, or until salmon is barely cooked through.

i haven’t published any asian recipes recently b/c i don’t usually measure when i cook asian food.  but i thought i’d post a “recipe” (and i use the term loosely) for how i cook vegetables at home.  it’s pretty easy and works will most green vegetables.

oil
garlic, smashed and peeled
salt
green vegetable* (bok choy, chinese broccoli, broccoli, cabbage, napa cabbage, etc.), washed
water

1. heat the oil in a pan, i usually use a wok or a saucier pan, on medium.  add the garlic into the pan.
2. just before the garlic begins to brown, add the vegetable.  cook for a few minutes.  add enough water to the pan so it just covers the bottom of the pan.  season with salt.  cook to desired tenderness.

*  if you have a vegetable that has a stem and leaf portion (i.e. bok choy, chinese broccoli), separate the stem and leaf portion.  add the stem portion to the pan first and cook for a few minutes before adding the leaf portions.  the stems usually take longer to cook than the leaves.

this is a delicious cornbread recipe that isn’t quite a cornbread. it has a nice dense moist texture to it, almost like a bread pudding. and like a bread pudding, it’s rich. i have to thank my friend michele’s mom for this lovely recipe. it was a hit a small group!

serves 6-8

1 box jiffy corn muffin mix
1, 8 oz container sour cream
1 stick butter, melted
1 egg
1 can creamed corn
1 can corn

1. preheat oven to 425. grease an 9 X 9 baking pan or casserole dish.
2. whisk together egg, butter, sour cream, and creamed corn until will mixed. stir in jiffy mix and corn.
3. bake for 25-35 minutes, or until center is set and a toothpick comes out clean.

i had always wanted to try the dish, but i thought it would be too much for two people.  last night i had the perfect opportunity.  i wasn’t sure it was going to turn out well, but my husband and kyle said it was better than hamburger helper’s version.  damon also said it was delicious.  thanks guys.  i combined these two recipes from food network.

servers 6

2 lb chuck, cut into 2 in cubes
1 14.5 oz can of beef broth
2 carrots, roughly chopped
1 onion, 1/2 roughly chopped, the other 1/2 finely chopped
9 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
5 tbsp butter
1 lb mushrooms (i used a combo of white and cremini)
2 tbsp flour
1 C (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 C heavy cream
2 tbsp dijon mustard
1/4 C parsley, finely chopped
1 lb egg noodles
oil
salt
pepper

1. heat large dutch oven on medium to medium-high.  season beef with salt and pepper.  add the beef to dutch oven and brown on all sides (you may have to do this in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan).
2. add all the beef back into the dutch oven.  add beef broth, 6 sprigs of thyme, carrots, 1/2 of the roughly chopped onion, 2 bay leaves.  bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to a simmer.  simmer for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, until the beef is tender.
3. remove the beef and reserve 1 C of the beef broth cooking liquid.  discard thyme stems, carrots, onions and bay leaves.
4. clean the dutch oven, and put it back on the stove at medium to medium high heat.  melt the butter.  add finely chopped onions and mushrooms.  let this mixture cook until all the liquid is evaporated and the mushrooms are golden brown; approximately 20 minutes.
5. combine sour cream, heavy cream, beef broth, and dijon mustard.  mix thoroughly and set it aside.
6. add the flour to the mushroom mixture.  let the flour cook for a couple of minutes.  reduce the heat to medium-low.  add the sour cream mixture and the leaves from the 3 remaining thyme sprigs.  let this come to a simmer.  salt and pepper the sauce to taste.
7. cook the egg noodles as per the package instructions.
8. serve stroganoff over egg noodles immediately.  garnish with chopped parsley.

i want to apologize for those that have an rss feed to this site, i just updated almost every single post so that the layout is consistent for each recipe.  :)  it’s the hci (human computer interaction) part of me that craves visual consistency.

so, the layout is basically:  short anecdote about each recipe, serving size (if there is one), ingredients, instructions.

my friend cooked this dish for our missions potluck, and it was DELICIOUS! i’m usually not a huge fan of indian food, but i had 3 helpings of this at the potluck. it has a nice blend of spices, and i love how it’s so creamy. serve this over rice!

this recipe comes from america’s test kitchen family cookbook.

serves 6

2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp grated ginger
1 tsp garam masala
3 C water
1 1/4 C red lentils, picked over and rinsed
1 C coconut milk
1/4 C minced cilantro
3 medium plu tomatoes, cored, seeded, and chopped
salt
pepper

1. heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. add the onion and 1 tsp of salt and cook until softened (about 5 min).
2. stir in garlic, ginger, and garam masala and cook until fragrant (about 15 sec).
3. stir in water, lentils, and coconut milk. bring to a boil. reduce heat to a simmer, partially cover and cook until the lentils break down to form a thick puree (20-30 min).
4. season with salt and pepper to taste. add cilantro and tomatoes right before serving.

this is an asian dish. i know it doesn’t sound asian, but it is. the recipe comes from the island of okinawa, and my friend was kind enough to translate the recipe (from japanese) after we had it at her house. it’s basically a taco salad on top of rice instead of a tortilla bowl with an egg on top. i think it’s a nice change to having tacos.

serves 2

1/2 lb ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic cloved, minced
1/2 tsp cumin
2 tbsp ketchup
2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp steak sauce (like A1)
1/2 tsp tabasco (optional)
1/4 C water
salt
pepper
2 eggs
rice
taco fixings (i.e. tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, etc.)

1. heat a skillet on medium heat. add oil to the skillet. add onions and garlic. let them cook until soft, about 5-10 minutes.
2. add the ground beef, and brown. skim off any fat.
3. add cumin, ketchup, chili powder, steak sauce, tabasco, and water. salt and pepper mixture to taste. let mixture simmer for 5-10 minutes.
4. in the meanwhile, cook 2 eggs, either poached or sunny side up (we like the sunny side up).
5. serve mixture over rice. add your favorite taco fixings (our family likes cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, and avocados) on top of the meat mixture. top it all off with the eggs.