Friday, July 12, 2013

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp


I'm not a fan of rhubarb alone.  It has to be mixed with something.  Rhubarb is great for adding a good tart element to dishes.  I thought long and hard about what I wanted to do with the massive bag of rhubarb I got from my mother in law.  She has a rhubarb plant that is basically on steroids.  The thing just grows like nobody's business!  The strawberries have been fantastic and I really like them mixed with rhubarb.  I didn't feel like making a pie, so I made this crisp instead.  It turned out fantastic!  I adjusted the recipe a little bit after reading the comments from other people.  You really have to get some ice cream for this dessert.  It's so good  when you warm up these bars and put ice cream on top.

STRAWBERRY RHUBARB CRISP

1 C White Sugar
3 Tbsp Flour
4 C Strawberries, sliced
4 C Rhubarb, diced
1 1/2 C Flour
1 C Brown Sugar
1 C Butter, softened
1 C Rolled Oats

Preheat oven to 375 degrees f.

Mix White Sugar, 3 Tbsp Flour, Strawberries and Rhubarb in a large bowl.  Place mix in a greased 9x13" pan.

In clean bowl, mix 1 1/2 C Flour, Brown Sugar, Butter and Oats until crumbly.  Crumble on top of fruit mix. Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown and crisp.


The original recipe is found on Allrecipes.com by Michelle Davis.  I just adjusted the amount of fruit to use.

Sesame Chicken, Yes Please!


Since I just posted the Crab Rangoon recipe, I am now getting hungry for Chinese food.  My husband and I love Sesame Chicken when it comes to our favorite Chinese takeout dish.  I found an awesome recipe that has showed me the way to making a really rockin' Sesame Chicken dish.  This Sesame Chicken is not as bready as a lot of the kind you get at the restaurants.  It's still crunchy and the chicken comes out juicy and tender every time.  I like to add a little depth of flavor by adding just a little bit of Sriracha to the sauce.  For the wine, I just get those small single serving bottles since I don't need much and won't feel bad if I forget to drink the rest of the bottle of wine.

SESAME CHICKEN

CHICKEN:
2-3 Chicken Breast Halves, cut into bite size pieces
1 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce (it tastes better than normal for some reason)
1 Tbsp Cooking Wine (I use a white wine)
1/2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
1 tsp Sugar
2 Tbsp Flour
1 Tbsp Rice Flour or Cornstarch
Salt and Pepper to Taste

SAUCE:
3 Tbsp Sweet Chili Sauce
2 Tbsp Ketchup
1-2 Tbsp Honey (I usually do 2 to satisfy the sweet tooth)
1 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
2 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce (again, tastes better than regular)
1/4 C Water
Sriracha to Taste (optional)

OTHER:
Cooked Rice of Choice, enough for at least 2 large dishes
Toasted Sesame Seeds

Marinate Chicken with Light Soy Sauce, Wine, Sugar, Sesame Oil, Salt and Pepper.  Let sit for at least 1 hour.

Mix Flour and Rice Flour (or Cornstarch) in separate bowl.  Coat each piece of Chicken with flour mix.  Prepare oil for frying.  Fry Chicken in small batches on medium heat (about 375 degrees f).  Chicken will be done when golden brown and floating to the top. Place chicken on paper towels to drain oil off.  Set aside.

Drain all oil from the pan you used for frying. Mix in all sauce ingredients and bring up to a boil.  Let the sauce thicken a bit.  Take off heat and at chicken.  Toss gently.  Serve over hot cooked rice and top with sesame seeds.


This recipe was found on http://www.mykitchensnippets.com/2008/10/honey-sesame-chicken.html by Icook4fun.  I just added some sriracha to make it better.

Crab Rangoons, See Ya Real Soon!



I love Crab Rangoons.  I can't go get Chinese food and not get Crab Rangoons.  We feel like the amount of Chinese restaurants around us are slim.  Instead of giving into convenience to get Chinese food down the street, we decided we'd try to make our own Chinese food one day. I found this tasty recipe that I would like to share with you.

CRAB RANGOONS

1 Quart Frying Oil (I used Canola)
1 8oz Package Cream Cheese, softened
12 oz Crab Meat, drained and flaked (it's ok to use fresh imitation crab and in small chunks)
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Paprika
2 Tbsp Water Chestnuts, drained and chopped
1-2 Scallions, chopped finely
1 14oz Package Wonton Wrappers

Heat oil to 375 degrees f in a large pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, mix Cream Cheese, Crab Meat, Garlic Powder, Paprika, Water Chestnuts and Scallions.  Place about 1 teaspoon of the mix into Wonton Wrapper. Wet edges of the Wonton wrapper, fold over and seal edges together.

Fry Wontons in small batches until golden brown (about 3-5 minutes).  Serve hot.


Original recipe found on Allrecipes.com by lauvan.  I just added the scallions.  Fresh chives may be used in place of scallions.