Banh Mi Rice Bowl

We are in the middle of this year's Whole 30, but due to COVID, I just can't bring myself to be as strict as I have in years past. If we can't go hang out at bars/restraunts, go to concerts, travel, I am not going to deprive myself of everything that is good. 

But this was a good compromise. I left out the sugar in the pickling juice, and it still tasted delicious. I used 1 T soy sauce and 1 T coconut aminos to add a little sweet instead of the brown sugar. I used brown rice instead of white, but if I was being strict Whole 30, I would use cauliflower rice. You could use the sauce as a marinade for a full pork tenderloin, too. Its adaptable!

For the pickled vegetables:

Shredded carrots

Red onion

Rice vinegar

Sugar

Salt

Mix together in a bowl and let sit for at least one hour.

For the rice bowl:

White, brown or cauliflower rice

Cucumber, thinly sliced or matchsticks

Green onion

Jalapeno slices

Cilantro

For the Sriracha mayo:

1/2 cup mayonnaise 

1 T sriracha

1 t soy sauce

Mix together and let sit for about an hour.

For the pork:

Sesame Oil

1 lb ground pork (or thinly sliced pork tenderloin)

1 T soy sauce (or coconut aminos for Whole 30)

2 T fish sauce

2 T brown sugar (or see above for alternative)

1 T lime juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 t ground ginger (or fresh)

Black pepper

2 t olive oil (leave out if not marinating)

1. If marinating, place ingredients in bag and marinate for at least 1 hour. 

2. Heat sesame oil in pan over high heat. Cook the pork (ground or slices) until brown. Pour the marinade over the pork and cook until reduced. 

Peanut Butter Cookies with Reese's pieces

 I got a new stand mixer for Christmas and this was the first thing I made because I love peanut butter, chocolate and Reese's. It was a no brainer.

Not going to lie, these cookies are really sweet and need to be tweeked. But here is a starting point to perfect.

Note to myself: Everything should be room temperature!

1 cup butter (room temp)

1 cup creamy peanut butter (Regular Jif is best!)

1 t vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs (room temperature)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

1/2 t kosher salt

Reese's pieces and chocolate chips to taste

1. Beat the butter until smooth and creamy.

2. Mix in the peanut butter and vanilla until well-combined, about 2 minutes.

3. Add in sugars and beat until well-combined, scraping down the sides as needed, about 2 minutes.

4. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. Stir in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

6. Add candies and chocolate chips, and stir to combine.

7. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheet with parchment paper.

9. Scoop 1 1/2 T of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet, spacing cookies 2 inches apart.

10. Bake for 9-13 minutes, until the edges are golden and the centers are set.

11. Cool cookies on the cookie tray before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

Great for soup and panini night.

9 Roma tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise

Extra virgin olive oil

2 T unsalted butter

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 T fresh thyme, minced

Salt and pepper

1 28 oz. can San Marzano tomatoes, crushed

1 cup fresh basil, torn

1 T sugar

2 cups chicken stock

2/3 cup heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Spread tomato slices on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes for 1 hour. Remove from oven and set aside.

3. Heat oil or butter in a large pot over medium high heat (I like to use both).

4. Add onion and saute for 5 minutes.

5. Stir in the garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Saute for another minute.

6. Add crushed tomatoes, basil and sugar. Lower the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

7. Add the stock and roasted tomatoes into the pot. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

8. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup. 

9. Stir in the cream and heat through. 

10. Top with homemade croutons or dippable panini/grilled cheese. 

Fish Taco Slaw x 2

 Awhile ago, Keith and Marsha had a group of us over for fish tacos and they asked me to make coleslaw. I don't eat coleslaw. Passionately hate cabbage. But I made it and Keith loved it. Then I completely forgot how I made it. 

Flash forward a few months, and they invited us over again. And asked me to make slaw again. The second batch was no where as good because I couldn't remember how I did it.

Flash forward again, and they invited us over again. I did some research and refreshed my memory and came up with these two versions. Everyone seemed to like them, so I am preserving them for memory sake.

Mix all ingredients together per recipe. Prepare in advance to allow breakdown of cabbage.

Cilantro Slaw

A bag or two of shredded green cabbage or coleslaw mix/purple cabbage mix

Handful of cilantro

Juice of 1 lime

1/2 T honey

Salt and Pepper

Cilantro Lime Slaw

A bag or two of shredded green cabbage or coleslaw mix/purple cabbage mix

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/2 cup tightly-packed fresh cilantro

1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lime juice

1/2 t ground cumin

Salt and Pepper

3 green onions (just the green parts)

2 garlic cloves

Jalapeno or serrano pepper, stemmed and cored, chopped