I couldn’t tell if they were looks of scorn, or pity, or downright disgust.  I tried not to make eye contact.  I popped in my headphones, cranked up my most motivational cardio playlist, and got to work.  I tried to look very intense, so they would know my time on the treadmill was serious business.  I even kept my warm-up top on the whole time so as not to offend anyone with my holiday jiggles, and I’ll tell you what … that was not pleasant.

Later on I wondered out loud on Facebook about all the freaking mirrors they have at the gym:  “Are they really necessary?” I asked.  My hilarious friend Laurie had this response:  “I pretend that the person in the mirror isn’t me and mock her all through class in my head.”

I’m still laughing over that comment.

Which brings us to today’s chicken recipe, which is frugal in both cost and calories, and I hope you like it. 

CHINESE CHICKEN LEGS
Serves: 6
Source:  Simply Delicious, by Weight Watchers International; copyright 2002.  p.101.

1/2 c. prepared barbecue sauce
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. oyster sauce
2 T. honey
1 T. sugar
2 t. minced fresh ginger
1 t. chili garlic paste or hot pepper sauce
1 clove garlic, minced

2 1/4 lb. chicken drumsticks or thighs, skin removed (Organic Smart Chicken Drumsticks and Thighs are on sale)
2 t. sesame seeds, toasted

Preheat oven to 400.  Line the bottom of a large baking pan with foil or parchment paper.

Combine the barbecue sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, sugar, ginger, chili paste, and garlic in a large bowl.  Add the chicken and toss until well coated.  Place the chicken in the baking pan.  Spoon any remaining sauce over the chicken.  Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake 20 minutes.  Remove the foil, and continue baking until the chicken is browned and cooked through and the sauce is thickened, about 20 minutes longer.  Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and serve.

*NOTES*  To toast the sesame seeds, place them in a small dry skillet over medium low heat.  Toast, shaking the pan and stirring constantly, until lightly browned and fragrant, 2-3 minutes.  Watch them carefully when toasting; seeds can burn easily.  Transfer the seeds to a plate to cool.   For anyone playing the WW game at home, this recipe has roughly 4 points (old points) per serving.

Anyway.

I took these pretty little wonton cups to a cookie exchange last night, and everyone who tried one asked when said cups would be making an appearance on the blog.  Here you go my darlings!

This is the perfect use for the pre-cooked shrimp that are on sale this week, and the filling is a breeze to pull together.  The only slightly futzy putzy part is brushing the wonton wrappers with oil and working them into your mini muffin tins (this is a great job to outsource to any minions you have loitering around).  If you don’t have time for futzy putzy (and you’re short on minions), go ahead and use my friend Liz’s method of putting the filling in little phyllo cups.

Either way, you’ll be glad you have this recipe in your arsenal too.

Merry, merry! 

THAI INSPIRED SHRIMP IN WONTON CUPS
Makes 48 
SOURCE:  epicurious.com

48 wonton wrappers, thawed
Vegetable oil in a little bowl

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (or mint is good too)
5 teaspoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons mango chutney
3/4 teaspoon Thai green or red curry paste
12 ounces peeled cooked medium shrimp, coarsely chopped (cooked CenSea Shrimp are on sale; it doesn’t matter what size you use)

Fresh cilantro or mint leaves

Preheat oven to 350.  Place wonton wrappers on work surface and brush them with vegetable oil.  Place the wrappers (oiled side down) in mini muffin tins, pressing wrappers to the bottom and sides of the tin.  Bake wrappers for 10 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove wrappers from tins and cool to room temperature.  (You can do this step a day or two ahead of time; just wrap them up in an airtight containter and store at room temperature.)

Combine mayonnaise, cilantro, lime juice, mango chutney, and curry paste in a medium mixing bowl.  Add in shrimp and stir to combine thoroughly; season salad to taste with salt and pepper.  (You can make this a day ahead of time; cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge.)

Place wonton cups on a serving platter. Fill each cup with a teaspoon of the shrimp mixture.  Top each cup with a small cilantro leaf and serve.

NOTE:  Find the wonton wrappers in the frozen foods case – they’re near the top shelf by all the egg rolls and other frozen Asian foods.  Find the curry paste and mango chutney in the ethnic food aisle with the Asian and Indian ingredients.  Call me if you need help, you know I live for this stuff. 

When I saw that ahi was coming up in today’s ad, I knew I had to tell you about one of my favorite tuna preparations.  It’s just the thing to get us back IN THE SWIM (sorry) of healthy eating.

Now, with all of that said – I’ll tell you about one little change I made.  I absolutely love the flavors of the ponzu sauce – they’re bright and citrusy and somewhat spicy.  But ponzu sauce is quite thin, and although it tasted fabulous, I wanted it to have a little more body.  So …. I put a little mayonnaise (maybe 3 tablespoons) in a small dish and added an equal amount (maybe a little more) of the ponzu sauce – enough to make it a drizzle-able consistency.  It. Was. DELICIOUS!

By all means, keep it the way it’s written if you’re not into mayo.  But I love mayonnaise and I don’t care who knows it!

Have a great week!

SESAME-CRUSTED TUNA WITH WASABI-PONZU SAUCE
SERVES: 4
SOURCE:  cookinglight.com

1 T. chopped scallions
2 T. low sodium soy sauce
2 T. fresh orange juice
1 T. rice vinegar
1 t. brown sugar
1 t. lemon zest
2 t. fresh lemon juice
2 t. honey
1 1/4 t. prepared wasabi paste
1 t. grated peeled fresh ginger

2 t. neutral cooking oil
4 – 6 oz. tuna steaks (about 3/4″ thick) – Sendik’s Wild Caught Ahi is on sale
1/4 t. kosher salt
3 T. sesame seeds
2 T. black sesame seeds (SEE NOTE)
Sliced scallions for garnish

Combine first 10 ingredients, stirring with a whisk.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat (not too high or the seeds will burn).  Sprinkle tuna with salt.  Combine sesame seeds in a shallow dish.  Dredge tuna in sesame seeds, pressing to down lightly to help them stick to all sides.  Add tuna to pan; cook 3 minutes (undisturbed) on each side or until desired degree of doneness.  Garnish with scallions if desired.  Serve tuna with sauce.

NOTE:  Find the white sesame seeds in the produce department by all the different types of nuts.  Look for the black sesame seeds in the Asian aisle.  I’ll warn you:  these aren’t frugal.  BUT, I don’t mind buying them because this is a favorite dish of mine, so they won’t go to waste.    Feel free to swap in all white seeds if you like!

This recipe could not be more simple to pull together; if you’re in a crunch for time you could probably shorten the marinade time to an hour or so.  I’ll say this:  the hoisin flavor here is intense – I like it a lot, but you’ll need to be a fan to like this dish.  You could probably cut back on it a little – maybe throw in a little oyster sauce instead if you have it on hand.

Have a great Monday! 

HONEY-GINGER CHICKEN SKEWERS
Serves: 6
Source:  weightwatchers.com2 T. ginger root, peeled and grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c. hoisin
1/4 c. orange juice
2 T. soy sauce
1/4 t. black pepper
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 36 chunks (Value Packs are only 1.79/lb!)
2 t. honey
1 T. scallions or chives, minced (for garnish; optional)

In a medium glass bowl, combine ginger, garlic, hoisin sauce, orange juice, soy sauce, and pepper; add chicken and turn to coat with marinade.  Cover bowl and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours.

When ready to cook, soak 12 wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes (or use metal skewers).

Preheat oven to 375.  Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil to catch drippings; place a wire rack over prepared pan.

Remove chicken from marinade; reserve marinade.  Thread 3 or 4 pieces of chicken onto each skewer and place on wire rack; cook for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour reserved marinade into a small saucepan; stir in honey.  Bring to a rolling boil over high heat; boil for at least 3 minutes to kill any bacteria.

After chicken has cooked for 10 minutes, remove from oven and generously brush with boiled marinade.  Flip skewers and bake until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes longer.  Place on a serving platter and garnish with scallions or chives.  2 skewers per serving.

It’s yummy.  It’s easy too.

Why, it’s like a crunchy pan-fried pork chop with a Japanese twist!

My work here is done.

Happy Wednesday!

PORK TONKATSU
Serves:  4
Source:  Food & Wine Magazine, March 2010, p. 76  Recipe by Grace Parisi.

¼ c. ketchup
¼ c. applesauce (Mott’s is on sale)
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. Dijon mustard
1 t. unseasoned rice vinegar
¼ c. all purpose flour
2 egg whites, beaten (Egg-Lands Best eggs are on sale)
1 c. panko breadcrumbs (JFC Brand are on sale)
2 – 8oz. pork tenderloins, cut into 2” pieces and pounded 1/2” thick
Salt
Canola oil
Steamed rice and steamed spinach for serving

In a small saucepan, bring the ketchup, applesauce, Worcestershire, soy, mustard, and vinegar to a simmer; transfer to 4 small serving bowls.  Cool.

Put the flour, egg whites, and panko in 3 separate shallow bowls.  Season the pork cutlets with salt, then dredge in the flour, tapping off the excess.  Dip the cutlets in the egg white, followed by the panko, pressing the crumbs to help them adhere.

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil.  Add the cutlets and cook over moderate heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes.  Add a bit more oil if it’s been absorbed, then flip the cutlets and cook until cooked through, about three minutes longer.  Transfer the tonkatsu to a work surface and cut into strips.  Transfer to plates and serve with rice, spinach, and the dipping sauce.

Despite my carbohydrate sabbatical, I had to make dinner tonight. The DamFam demands it – some noise about being famished after a hard day at school, work, and blahbitty, blah blah. What a lot of nerve they have. I’m kidding of course! I live to serve! It’s just that no crabs makes me carbby. I mean, no carbs makes me crabby. And a bad typist.

Anyway, I’ve had this recipe in my ‘must try’ file for quite a while now, and with the hot and sticky weather this week, it seemed like the perfect time to give it a try. So glad I did – and I’m keeping this recipe around for when things REALLY heat up this summer! The only cooking involved is boiling a smallish pan of noodles (and grilling the shrimp if you go that route). There’s minimal knife work involved, so it couldn’t be easier – and the dressing is TDF!

We had a big bowl of edamame and some potstickers on the side. I highly recommend this easy weeknight meal to anyone who’s not on carb restriction. It’s carb-o-licious. Enjoy! Happy Wednesday!

SHRIMP AND NOODLE SALAD WITH GINGER DRESSING
Serves: 4 -6
Source: foodandwine.com, recipe by Grace Parisi

7 oz. dried udon noodles or fettucine (fettucine broken in half; Creamette pastas are on sale)
12 oz. shredded coleslaw mix
2 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced
1 c. chopped cilantro leaves
¾ lb. cooked medium shrimp, halved horizontally (Censea Cooked Shrimp are on sale, as are Sendik’s raw Shrimp Skewers, *see note*)
¼ c. teriyaki sauce (the thin kind; I used Kikkoman)
2 T. finely chopped fresh ginger
½ t. Chinese chile-garlic sauce (or more to taste)
¼ c. plus 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil
Salt
Lime wedges, for serving

Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until al dente. Rinse and drain under cold running water. Pat dry and transfer to a large bowl. Add the coleslaw mix, scallions, cilantro, and shrimp (*); toss to combine (I find using my hands works best here).

Meanwhile, if you’re using the shrimp skewers, preheat your grill. Grill the skewers for 2 ½ minutes per side, or until cooked through. Slide shrimp off the skewers and allow to cool slightly.

In a blender, combine the teriyaki sauce with the ginger and chile-garlic sauce and puree until smooth. With the machine on, slowly add the vegetable oil in a thin stream and puree until the dressing is emulsified. Season lightly with salt. Add the dressing to the bowl with the udon noodles and toss well. Serve the noodle salad with lime wedges on the side.

*NOTES*

I used four of the sale shrimp skewers because I’ve always wanted to give them a try. I liked them a lot. If you go this route, 1). of course, don’t halve them horizontally. That would be silly; and 2). add them to the salad at serving time. Their teeny little tails end up getting charred on the grill, and black flecks ended up in my salad. Not the end of the world, but not all that attractive either. Hear me now, don’t be like me. Put ‘em on top. At the end. Amen.

Anyway, I LOVED school supply shopping as a kid.  What girl didn’t – it was the best part of going back to school, right?  How fun to unpack and label (in best cursive, of course) the unblemished notebooks and shiny folders, my box of 24 perfectly sharpened Crayola Crayons, and a spotlessly pristine pencil case.  Everyone loves a fresh start, right?

And speaking of fresh, before the Pickle requires me to find her more menial labor, I’ll tell you about this fabulous pork chop recipe!

I’ve been doing a little bit of research about the three main types of Asian cuisine:  North East (China, Japan, and Korea), South West (India and Pakistan, for instance), and South East (Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore).  Today’s recipe, as you can tell, has a definite South East Asian flare, and it is deeeeee-licious!

You can recognize a South East Asian – inspired dish by these key ingredients:  citrus juice (usually lime); fresh herbs (basil, cilantro, and mint); salty, pungent fish sauce (as opposed to soy sauce used in NE Asia); and the all-important fiery chili pepper.  A normal SE Asian meal has no ‘courses’; all of the foods are served and eaten together, which is why I shot the whole she-bang for you today.

The pork chops (on sale, did you really have to wonder?) are pounded thin before they take a swim in an incredibly flavorful marinade of honey, garlic, onion, and fish sauce. Sweet, salty, and sour all at the same time – trust me, this stuff is AMAZING!    I can’t wait to try this on pork tenderloin, or chicken thighs and wings.

After a quick turn on a very hot grill, the chops are served alongside steaming hot Jasmine rice, and topped with a cold carrot slaw.  I thought my kids would turn their noses up at this dinner, but would you believe – there aren’t ANY LEFTOVERS?  My youngest ate every last bite and pronounced it to be “really good chicken”.  Go figure.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did – let me know what you think!

SOUTHEAST ASIAN PORK CHOPS

Serves:  5

Source:  Adapted from foodandwine.com

• 2 T. vegetable oil
• ¼ c. honey
• ¼ c. Asian fish sauce (find this on the top shelf in the Asian aisle)
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
• ¼ c. minced yellow onion (the original recipe called for shallots, but I forgot them!)
• 2 t. ground black pepper
• 6 boneless pork chops (on sale), pounded to about ¼ to ½” thick
• Jasmine Rice and Carrot Relish

In a large glass measuring cup, combine the oil, honey, fish sauce, garlic, onion, and pepper.  Place the pounded pork chops in a large ziplock bag and pour the marinade into the bag.  Press out the air and refrigerate overnight (I only had 7 hours and they still turned out great).

Fire up your grill.  Brush the grill with oil and cook the pork chops over high heat until nicely charred and just cooked through, about three minutes on the first side and two on the second.  Serve immediately with the rice and the carrot slaw.

JASMINE RICE AND CARROT SLAW

• 1 1/3 c. jasmine rice
• 2 1/3 c. water
• 2 T. lime juice (please use fresh lime juice and pass on the green bottle, blech)
• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 1 ½ t. honey
• 1 T. chopped fresh mint, plus additional for garnish if desired
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and shredded

In a saucepan, combine the rice and water and bring to a boil.  Cover and cook over low heat for 12 minutes.  Quickly remove the lid and wipe off any water that clings to it.  Immediately recover the rice and let stand off the heat for 5 minutes.  Fluff the rice with a fork and cover.

In a bowl, combine the lime juice with the vegetable oil, fish sauce, mint, garlic, and chili.  Add the carrots and toss to coat with the sauce.  Serve the carrot slaw over the rice.

I tend to over think things a little bit – that is,  stress out and fret over everything from deciding the perfect menu, to having the proper candles and placemats, to selecting the right music, and even whether the guests will know each other well enough to make friendly conversation….ugh, it’s the entertaining minutia that bogs me down, I guess.  In fact, I’m getting a knot in my stomach just listing off all of these hostessing duties, and I’m not even planning a dinner party right now!  Gah!  I’m a head case, what can I tell you.

Anyway, I love to be invited to Ashley’s house because she puts all of her guests at ease.  She greets each one with a big hug and an even bigger glass of wine, and welcomes everyone in to her kitchen where she resumes prepping, or chopping, or sautéing something that smells delicious.  In the summertime we dine on her pretty patio, and in the winter, there’s always a fire roaring in her cozy familyroom.  The meal is always wonderful, the conversation flows easily (as do the cocktails), and inevitably, the evening ends too soon.

When I call to thank her the next day, I nearly always hit her up to share at least one of the recipes from the night before.  Most recently (just last week in fact), she served this delicious pasta dish that all of us just adored, and she was kind enough to share it with me.

Just a thought – she doesn’t know that I’m blogging about her right now – I hope she doesn’t mind!  After all, I’d sure hate to be kicked off the guest list for her next soiree… so just to be safe, let’s not tell her she’s being mentioned here today.

Some notes on the recipe:  you might notice that my photo doesn’t look a thing like angel hair; that’s because it’s not.  I had a little mishap; not my proudest moment in the kitchen, but I will share my mistake with you.  Please don’t go and sacrifice good pasta like I did!

I neglected to give my pasta a quick little rinse after I drained it.  Therefore, it stuck together in a giant glutenous glob, and there was no way to fix it.  I had to start over with the pasta step, and so it’s a good thing I had picked up the Creamette Pasta, five boxes for $5.00!  Having the extra pasta on hand saved me another trip to the Store, only I had to use spaghetti instead of angel hair.  Worked just fine, by the way, but the moral of the story is to remember to give your pasta a nice little rinse.  Then please drain off all the water you can, or your delicious dressing will not stick, and that would be too bad, because the dressing is fabulous!

I’m looking forward to changing the recipe up a little bit next time I make it. For instance, I think it would be great with baby bok choy (or even purple cabbage) instead of the radicchio; or a little bit of fish sauce and mint to make it slightly more “Thai” flavored.  The tweaks are endless!  Enjoy!

Ashley’s Awesome Asian Angel Hair

Serves:  6-8

• 1 lb.  angel hair pasta (I used the Creamette that’s on sale!)
• ¼ c. peanut oil
• ¼ c. soy sauce
• 1/3 c. rice wine vinegar
• 2 t. toasted sesame oil
• 1 T. sugar
• 1 t. red pepper flakes
• 2 t. minced fresh ginger
• 1 t. minced fresh garlic
• 2 t. salt
• 1 ½ c. coarsely chopped radicchio
• ½ c. chopped scallions (on sale this week)
• 1/3 c. minced cilantro

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.  Drain and rinse lightly so your pasta doesn’t stick together in a big glob!  Place in a large bowl.

Place all dressing ingredients into a blender or food processor and process for 30 seconds or so.  (I used a plain old jar with a lid and this worked out just fine).

Toss the pasta with the dressing and coat each noodle thoroughly.  If you’re making this ahead of time, cover the pasta and chill it in the fridge.

When you’re ready to serve, add in the radicchio, scallions, and cilantro, mixing to blend.  Serve at room temperature.