The Menu

CHECK OUT MY NEW FOODIE WEBSITE, "What's on Parker's Plate?"

The Mistress' NUT FREE PESTO

2 cups basil leaves

3 Tb parsley

1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan

1/3 cup + 3 Tb olive oil

1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds

4 fresh garlic cloves

1/2 ts of salt (salt to taste since the parmesan adds quite a bit of saltiness)

Blend all ingredients in food processor. Add a Tb or two of water if you want to thin it down. Spread on fish before baking, or mix into pasta....or dip pieces of pita into it! DELISH!

HOLY DELICIOUS HUMMUS

2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained

1/3 cup tahini

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

4 cloves fresh garlic

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 pinch paprika

1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

1/2 jalapeno pepper with seeds

1 small habanero pepper with seeds

Combine in a food processor.  Add additional oil and salt for desired taste and consistency.

PARKER'S PITA BREAD

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1 tablespoon of sugar

1/2 cup of warm water

4 cups of bread flour

2 teaspoons of salt

1 cup of warm water

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Preparation:

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in 1/2 cup of warm water and set aside, covered, for 15 minutes. Dissolve salt in the remaining 1 cup of warm water.

In a large mixing bowl, add flour and make a well in the center. Add yeast mixture and salt water. Knead with hands for 10 minutes in the bowl. Add olive oil and continue to knead until all oil is absorbed. Shape into a ball in the bowl, cover, and place in a warm area to rise until doubled in volume, approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Punch down the dough and knead for 5 minutes more.

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C), and lightly oil baking sheets.

Take pieces of dough slightly larger than an egg and roll out on a floured surface to a thickness of 3/8 to 1/4 inch. (For larger or smaller pita bread pieces, take more or less dough). Prick the bread with a fork in several places.

Place on baking sheets and bake at 350°F (175°C) on the lowest oven rack for 2-3 minutes, then turn the pitas over and bake for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from oven and saute in a frying pan with 1 Tb of olive oil until lightly browned.  When thoroughly cooled, pitas can be stored in plastic bags in the refrigerator, or frozen.

Before using, brown in a lightly oiled frying pan for a few minutes until browned on both sides.

Spicy Orange Zested Cashew Chicken

1 onion diced

4 garlic cloves diced

1 (9.4 oz) jar of Kikkoman Hoisin Sauce

3 Tb Chili Garlic Sauce

2 Tb Red Curry Paste

1 Tb fresh Ginger (I like the tubes of Gourmet Garden)

1 Tb Soy Sauce

1 fresh jalapeño diced

Juice of 1/2 an orange

1/2 an orange zested

1 cup coconut milk (regular, not low-fat)

sprinkle of salt

chopped cilantro and cashews

Saute onion and garlic until soft, about 7 minutes. Add the rest of ingredients and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. If you don't want the dish to be super spicy, go easy on the chili garlic sauce and red curry paste. Omit if necessary.

Separately saute chicken breasts while sauce is simmering:

Dry off chicken breasts with paper towel and sprinkle both sides with paprika and Montreal Steak seasoning. Heat 2 Tb canola oil and 2 Tb butter in a non-stick skillet on medium high heat. When butter is bubbling, add chicken and let sit in uncovered pan for 6 minutes before flipping. Cook on other side (sprinkle some more paprika and Montreal Steak seasoning) for another 5-6 minutes until cooked through. Slice chicken in strips and pour sauce on chicken (with or without rice). Top with chopped cilantro and cashews.

Best Banana Bread EVAH

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. butter

3 very ripe bananas mashed
2 beaten eggs
2 c. flour
1 tsp. (teaspoon) baking soda
1/2 c. chopped pecans

Cream butter and sugar. Add bananas and eggs. Combine baking soda with flour and stir into banana mixture. Top with chopped pecans. Bake in greased bread pan 1 hr. in preheated 350 degree oven.

Honey Lime Ginger Glazed Chicken

Glaze:

3 cloves of fresh garlic smashed and chopped

Between 1/3 to 1/2 cup honey (I poured it in and am guesstimating here)

juice of one lime

1 heaping Tb of fresh chopped Ginger (*I love the tubes of Gourmet Garden-- no chopping or food processor needed. You get it in the produce section of the grocery store near the fresh herbs.)

2 Tb spicy chili garlic sauce

sprinkle of Cumin

sprinkle of crushed red pepper

sprinkle of salt

fresh chopped cilantro (to top on chicken after cooking)

Stir above ingredients to combine.

Prepare Chicken:

Preheat oven to 350.

Dry off chicken with paper towel (it browns evenly if it is dried off) and season with paprika and sea salt. (I normally use a sprinkle of Montreal Steak seasoning instead of sea salt, but I didn't have any)

Heat 1 Tb butter and 1 Tb oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium/high heat. When butter is bubbling (but not browning), put chicken in pan, seasoned side down. Sprinkle other side of chicken with paprika and salt/Montreal Steak seasoning. Do not move chicken around in pan-- let it caramelize and brown for about 6-7 minutes. Then flip over. Cook for another 6-7 minutes uncovered.

Take chicken out of pan and put on a baking sheet sprayed with some Olive oil/Pam, etc... Pour glaze over chicken and bake for 10 minutes until cooked through and glaze is bubbling. Toss some chopped, fresh cilantro on top of chicken.