Kids and Veggies Don’t Mix

By Andrew Hunter

Kids and veggies don’t mix…or do they? Marilyn and I recently discovered that Ben’s third grade classmates, all professing their distaste for everything green, will actually gobble down more veggies than they realize when stir-fried with rice, ginger, garlic and soy sauce. Yes, fried rice loaded with broccoli, carrots, mushrooms and snow peas was a big hit with eight-year-old boys and girls alike!

A couple of weeks after our fried rice demo in Mrs. Touhey’s class, Ben nonchalantly handed me a dog-eared envelope that had evidently been in his backpack for several days. “Oh here, dad. Some notes about the rice,” he said in his typical dry tone. We read each and every one of them aloud as a family and were thrilled.

Perhaps this quote from one of Ben’s buddies says it best, “I can tell you put lots ‘o’ love into it! It was tres, tres bon!” So the next time you have leftover rice, stir-fry it with a bunch of veggies, soy sauce and “lots ‘o’ love.” Dinner is sure to be delicious!

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Super-Speedy Dinner for One Features Naan Bread

By Lori Powell

My super-speedy dinner for one this week requires the aid of a delicious flatbread such as naan bread, sold in the bread aisle of the supermarket. There's also a whole wheat and roasted garlic version. However any flatbread will work for this recipe.

I try to keep a couple of packages in my freezer and before I leave for work in the morning, I simply place one in the fridge so that it is defrosted and good to go when I get home.

This is a great way to use up whatever leftovers or condiments are in your fridge. Then simply add stuff from the pantry to create a flatbread pizza for one. It's also good as a quick lunch or as appetizers for company and unexpected guests.

I love to cook these on the grill but a grill pan works as well.

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Bread Machine Makes Quick Work of Hot Cross Buns

By Sandy Hu

Do you have a bread machine gathering dust in your garage? I do. It was given to me when I first joined the Fleischmann’s Yeast brand in the heyday of the electric bread maker.

Shortly after, I wrote and co-produced a bread machine cookbook, working with the company’s skilled home economists, who created a wide variety of recipes that they tested in all makes and models of bread machines in the company’s test kitchens.

I’ve baked bread from scratch for many years so I didn’t really need a bread machine. But I’ve kept that old machine, and every Easter, I dust it off and return it to the kitchen to make hot cross buns.

Why the bread machine? These days, I really don’t have time to mix up dough, knead it, let it rise, shape it, let it rise again and bake. With the bread machine, I dump the ingredients in at once, set it to the dough cycle, then take out the dough, already kneaded and risen. I just shape, let rise for 10 minutes, and bake! How easy is that?

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Impress with Panko

By David Hu

Panko, Japanese breadcrumbs, is a hot ingredient these days, having moved out of Japanese kitchens and into the mainstream, appearing on fine dining menus across the country – and now even at Wendy’s! The difference between panko and western breadcrumbs is that panko has ragged, craggy surfaces, making for a crispier and lighter coating.

A classic Japanese dish that is synonymous with panko is tonkatsu – thin slices of pork that is coated in panko and fried until golden. While I often order tonkatsu when I eat out, it is extremely easy to make at home. It only requires five ingredients plus bottled dipping sauce, and shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes from start to finish.

Tonkatsu is usually served on a bed of shredded cabbage with a dip of tonkatsu sauce, available in most Asian markets or in the International products aisle of your supermarket. If you can’t find it, you can make a sauce with ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce as a substitute.

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Rite of Spring

By Marilyn Hunter

Nowruz, or Persian New Year, is a celebration of spring and has taken place on the last Tuesday of every winter for centuries. Nowruz means “new day” and is symbolic of rebirth and renewal.

Last week we celebrated Nowruz at the home of our dear friends, the Zomorodis. Our gracious host, Minou, was there to welcome family and friends to the year’s most extravagant party. The festivities were in full swing by 7 o’clock and went late into the night with a very elegant spread of delicious food, Persian music, dancing and gold coins for the children.

The buffet tables, our favorite part, were overflowing with the bounty of spring. Traditional Nowruz foods, such as Sabzi Polo Mahi, fish served with special rice mixed with loads of fresh herbs, were piled abundantly on long silver platters. This rice is the perfect dish to capture the spirit of such a very special occasion. It represents the greenness of nature at spring.

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