Asian Cooking School Classes - Seattle, WA

Cooking Ideas

Baking Ideas

Toast nuts before using them in recipes. Toasting makes them more flavorful and complex. It is worth the trouble and time!

To toast:
1. Place in baking sheet and into 350ºF oven for 5-10 minutes or until the nuts become fragrant. You do not need to have them turn brown. Be careful not to over cook, nuts burn easily.
2. Place in a dry skillet on top of your stove over medium heat. Toss and heat until nuts are fragrant.

Ideas for Everyday Meals

Recipes

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Cranberry-Ginger Vinegar

This beautiful red vinegar blends well in salad dressings and is a flavorful marinade for chicken, pork, and white fish. Makes five cups

1 pound fresh cranberries
4 slices pealed fresh ginger root
4 cups distilled white vinegar
1 cup water
¼ cup honey

Combine all of the ingredients in a non-aluminum pan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat. Let stand, covered with a piece of cheesecloth, overnight. Use a fine-meshed sieve to strain the mixture, pressing solids to extract all juices. Pour into sterilized jars or decorative bottles. Refrigerate for up to three months.

Cranberry-Ginger Vinaigrette

Wake up your salads with this light and tangy vinaigrette. Makes 1 cup.

¼ cup Cranberry-Ginger Vinegar
½ cup olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon salt
Dash of liquid red–pepper seasoning

Whisk ingredients together and refrigerate.

Betty’s Best Mushrooms

These easy and savory stuffed mushrooms are a crowd pleaser. Just stuff ahead, refrigerate, and slide them into the oven as your guests arrive.

Large button mushrooms, stems removed
Olive oil
Brie cheese
Basil pesto
Grated Parmesano Reggiano cheese
Toasted pine nuts

Wash mushrooms and remove stems. Brush outside lightly with olive oil. Fill mushroom cavity with a dab of brie and cover with a dollop of pesto. Sprinkle with parmesan and pine nuts. Bake in 350ºF. oven for 10-12 minutes or until mushrooms are hot and cheese is melted.

Entertaining

Party Planning

Wondering how many will come? If your RSVP’s seem a bit spotty, just plan that about 2/3 of your invitees will attend.
For your cocktail party--plan on 8-12 hors d’oeuvres per person if replacing a meal.
Balance your menu. Offer hot kebabs alongside room-temperature dips, rich cheese straws next to low-fat poached shrimp. Spicy quesadillias beside delicate crab salad.
Provide at least one vegetarian offering.
Don’ t overload your kitchen equipment. Serve a combination of stovetop, baked, raw, room-temperature and cold foods.
Choose a few make-ahead dishes to keep your sanity.
Decorate platters with whole spices or colorful dried bean compositions. Think about peppercorns, salt crystals for underlays.

Cheese Board Tips:

Plan ¼ pound per person for appetizer if only having a cheese board and bread; plan 1/8 pound per person if you are having 2 other appetizers with the cheeses.
Because most cheeses are white or light yellow, use a plate or tray with a dark background to create contrast.
Make room for space between cheeses.
Use any type of wooden cutting board, a slab of granite or marble, ceramic tiles, plates or trays made of wicker, straw or reeds. Also a cake pedestal can work well and give some height to your arrangement.
Choose 3-4 different types of cheeses for your display.
Select diversity in appearance, texture, milk source and flavor
Have round, wedge, pyramid, log shapes; contrasting colors; those coated with herbs; or covered with ash.
Have cheese which are moist and creamy with cheeses that are firm and dry
Vary from cow’s milk, goat’s milk, or sheep’s milk
Provide mild to pungent flavors
Large herb leaves, fruit or edible flowers make great garnishes.
A variety of sizes and shapes of cheeses make for the best presentation.
Try slicing and fanning one kind of cheese for aesthetics.
Don’t place a strong cheese next to a mild one as the flavors can mix.
Use a tray or plate large enough to keep cheeses from touching each other.
Each cheese should have its own knife. Be sure to provide enough space between cheeses for easy cutting.
Cheese should always be served at room temperature (70º F).
If you have a large piece of cheese and you don’t plan to serve it all, it’s best to cut off only what you plan to serve. Moving a cheese back and forth from the refrigerator causes it to spoil more quickly; the longer a cheese stays at room temperature the more moisture it looses.
After arranging the cheeses on a tray, it is a good idea to loosely cover them with plastic wrap or a barely damp clean dish towel until serving time to keep them from drying out.

Books to check out:
“The Cheese Course” by Janet Fletcher, Chronicle Books, 2000