Recipes – Page 2

Turkey Cabbage Wrap With Quinoa

January 17, 2013 by Betty

I have to admit, a lot of Chinese dishes that are in the restaurants now-a-days are not very healthy. They are either deep fried or smothered with sauces and most of the time with added MSG. So, I decided to do my own. I’ve changed and tweaked this recipe from what was originally a Chinese dumpling dish. As it turned out, the critics loved it…I mean my kids loved it.

This healthy turkey wrap is one delicious meal with raw cabbage and a heapful of quinoa. To add flavor and pack the meal with more nutrients, I added black fungus. Growing up, I remember eating black fungus in my egg rolls and some vegetarian dishes that my grandmother cooked, so I tossed in some sliced black fungus and indeed it’s a great complement to this dish. On a side note, did you know that black fungus has been used as a medicinal food in China? It’s got amazingly high levels of iron. To read more about black fungus, see references and my pictures below. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 tsp coconut oil (or oil of your choice)

½ cup uncooked quinoa (makes 2 cups cooked, in this recipe you only need one cup cooked, but I usually double my recipe so this works out wonderfully. Cooking less than ½ of quinoa just seems too little to even bother).

1 cup water

2 Tbsp grated ginger

2-3 tsp finely chopped fresh garlic

½ lb ground turkey

1 ½ cup diced green cabbage

9 small dried black fungus-makes about ½ cup soaked and thinly sliced. (Optional)

½ – 1 Tbsp low-sodium tamari soy sauce

15 cabbage leaves

Instructions:

Soak black fungus for at least 20 minutes, then cut into thin slices. (See pictures below) Set Aside.

Put quinoa and 1 cup of water in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn heat down and simmer until all the water is absorbed about 12-15 minutes. Remove from heat, covered and let it sit for 5 minutes. Set aside.

Heat wok or large sauté pan with coconut oil in medium heat. When pan is hot, add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

Add ground turkey; cook for about 4-5 minutes, stir and crumble meat while cooking. Now add black fungus in pan and cook for about 4 minutes more.

Add diced cabbage and cook for about 2 minutes. We prefer our cabbage crunchy, but if you like your cabbage softer, cook slightly longer to your liking. Then turn off heat.

Add cooked quinoa.

Lastly, mix in tamari to taste. Starting with ½ Tbsp and add more to taste.

Served hot with cabbage leaves drizzled with Orange-Ginger Dipping Sauce. Yum!

Yield: 15 cabbage wraps with 1/4-cup filling or 7-8 wraps with 1/2 cup filling. (for my family of 5, 2 adults & 3 young kids, I have to double the recipe)

Soaked black fungus.

Thinly sliced black fungus.

Notes: You can easily substitute cabbage wrap with lettuce of your choice. My kids’ favorite is crunchy Romaine lettuce.

References:

Chinese Food Health

How to Cook Quinoa

January 15, 2013 by Betty

Quinoa has become a stable in our family for the last couple of years. You might have read some of my quinoa posts in the past. But if you’re new here, you might want to check out some of my yummy quinoa recipes: Quinoa Black Bean Salad and Easy Peruvian Quinoa Chowder. Since our love for quinoa is a growing one, I felt that it deserves a proper introduction!

Quinoa (pronounced Kin-wah) looks and tastes like a grain, but it’s not a grain? Quinoa is closely related to the spinach and beet family that contain antioxidants, heart-healthy fats, and calcium. It’s also high in protein. It can be eaten like rice or barley, but of course, in a hearty soup or salad, quinoa could be served as a standalone meal.

How to cook quinoa:

The ratio of quinoa to water is 1 to 2.

For example:

To cook 1 cup of quinoa, add 2 cups of water to sauce pan.
To cook ½ cup of quinoa, add 1 cup of water to sauce pan.

Rinse quinoa before cooking. Put quinoa and water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Cover and simmer at low heat until quinoa absorbs all the water, about 12-15 minutes. Then remove from heat. Keep the lid covered and let it sit for about 5 minutes.

Yield:

1/2 cup of uncooked quinoa makes 2 cups cooked.

1 cup of uncooked quinoa makes 4 cups cooked.

Note: you can substitute water with chicken or vegetable broth.

Filed Under: Side Dishes Tagged With: how to cook quinoa

How to Make Playdough

January 10, 2013 by Betty

Everyone seems to have their favorite homemade playdough or playdoh recipe. Over the past few years I’ve tried various recipes. But recently, while at my friend Lisa’s house, my little girl and I fell in love with her playdough. It was super soft and it smelled good too. So we decided to make this cooked playdough at home. Here’s what we did.

Ingredients:

2 cups white flour

1 cup salt

2 teaspoon Cream of Tartar

2 Tablespoons cooking oil

2 cups water

5-6 drops of food coloring of your choice

1 Tablespoons vanilla extract

Instructions:

Add all ingredients in a medium pot and heat flour mixture over low-medium heat. Be sure to scrape the bottom constantly. When dough is not drippy, it’s ready to be transferred to a floured surface. We used our big cutting board. Don’t overcook the mixture. It’s okay if dough still seems wet, as long as it’s not dripping water when you try to scoop it. Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead until playdough consistency. Add more flour as needed to ensure playdough is not too sticky.

Here’s Mei kneading some playdough on a big floured cutting board.

Our beautiful playdough art!

Store playdough in ziplock bags or tupperwares and it can last three months or longer.

Filed Under: Indoors Activities, Recipes Tagged With: cooked playdough, playdough recipe

How to Make Homemade Finger Paints

January 2, 2013 by Betty

I came across this recipe on how to make finger paints that is food based and safe for kids. As many of the store-bought paints are lead based and are not safe for kids in the long run, I choose to make my own finger paints. This homemade finger paint recipe is very simple and inexpensive. Refer to the picture above for the recipe.

My thoughts: You might find your paint thickens a bit more over time. Simply add a little water to thin (or add corn starch to thicken). Paint containers are baby food jars. I hope your kids will enjoy some finger paint fun with these colorful homemade paints!

Paint keeps for about one week.

I first saw this recipe on The Honorable Mention Preschool Blog. You can also find it at Easie Peasie homemade finger paints.

Filed Under: Indoors Activities, Recipes Tagged With: homemade finger paints

Zuppa Soup Recipe

December 28, 2012 by Betty

If you have an Olive Garden Restaurant nearby, the chances are you’ve probably tried this soup. The first time I had Zuppa Toscana, or simply Zuppa soup was a few years ago at my local Olive Garden and since then, I’ve tried a few versions of Zuppa recipes. Recently, I found one that my family loves. This defiitely satisfied our cravings for Zuppa soup; hopefully you and your family will enjoy this too!

Ingredients:

2 bunches kale

12 small red potatoes, sliced thin

1 whole onion, chopped

1-1/2 pound Italian sausage

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more To Taste)

4 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth

2 cups whole milk

2 cups half-and-half

4 cups water

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Tear kale into bite-sized pieces and set it aside. (chop up kale ribs for soup or reserve for juicing)

In a medium pot, boil sliced potatoes until tender. Drain and set aside.

In a large pot, crumble and brown the Italian sausage. Drain as much fat as you can using a spoon or paper towels. Stir in the red pepper flakes, chicken broth, milk, half-and-half and water. Bring soup to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes.

Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Add the potatoes, then stir in the kale. Simmer for an additional 10-15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!