August 6, 2014

Personal Chef Dinner with SPIN Inc.

I love churning menus for not just cooking classes but also for
Personal Chef Dinners.  I was recently invited again by SPIN Inc.
for a Personal Chef Dinner. It's pretty awesome what they do.

The reason I was there was for a 'winners' dinner' which is
exactly what it sounds like. A dinner for the 15 winners.

Spin runs fitness challenges and contests for their employees
every few weeks and the winners received a Personal Chef Dinner
along with their certificates!  How cool is that at a work place?!!

I think it's a win, win, win!  It's a great way to motivate your employees
along with building stronger bonds and team work within your co-workers.

Receiving a Personal Chef Dinner after your hard work is cool too!


Their winners dinner was in their work cafeteria. It's a great space with 
a kitchen attached to it which helps tremendously in preparing the food, 
obviously.  I wanted to dress up the table a little bit even though it's a 
work lunch area with a green table cloth (their logo color) and a few 
tissue paper pom poms... which is always an easy way to dress up the table.


The winners participated in a taste test also. For this group- 
the item was cheese.  Each participant was able to taste 4 different cheeses 
and decide from which it came.

Did it come from a  cow,  goat,  sheep or buffalo?  
The results weren't half bad! I think a few people answered a few correctly.  
More often than not...  people guess completely wrong 
but have so much fun guessing!


The menu started with watermelon lemonade with frozen 
watermelon cubes in place of ice and with strawberry basil crostinis 
with garlic and goat cheese.  The strawberries and basil were marinaded 
in balsamic vinegar.  There were also  Vietnamese summer rolls (not pictured)


The main entree was Soba Noodles (gluten-free) mixed with 
shredded carrots,  sauteed garlic mushrooms and cabbage with 
a side salad of tomatoes and spring mix.



As far as the dessert, it was something not too heavy but dessert is dessert
so I cultivated my own banana split and made them into banana split kebabs.

I baked a super moist brownie and a vanilla cake and cut them into
large bite-size cubes.  I skewered a mixture of strawberries, bananas,
brownie and vanilla cake pieces and a pineapple just to freshen it up.
I received many compliments even without the ice cream.
Being it was a hot summer day and it was at a company cafeteria-
I decided to 86 the ice cream and it still worked out well!
Plus, it was a winners dinner from a fitness challenge y'all!



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food.........  day 6 of 31 days

August 5, 2014

Beef and Radish Soup

Soup is a very common side dish to eat along with your rice
and  'banchan' (side dishes) in Korean cuisine.

This morning, I wanted to share a very go-to soup called
beef and radish soup.  Radish is a bit spicy at times and very crisp
when it is raw but in this soup-
you will cook the radish so that is super soft and ever so tender.


The ingredients for this soup are: 
~ 1 pound of Korean radish (which is a large white radish)
    (sliced it into rectangle bite sizes)
~ 4-6 oz of beef (any type of chuck works well for this soup---
   you want to mince it into small pieces)
~ sprouts (a large handful which is about 1/2 a cup)
~ 2 scallions chopped
~ radish stems from smaller radish (optional)
~ 3 TBSP of soy sauce 
~ 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
~ 1/2 a pot of water (about 5 cups)

Start with taking your beef and sauteing it in the sesame oil and when 
the beef has cooked (is a brown color and not the original pinkish color)
you can add all but the sprouts to your pot.

Once your radish has cooked down and is tender-
you can lastly add your sprouts in, turn the stove off 
and add a lid to your pot.

Beef and radish soup is best eaten with a bowl of rice.
You can add a little bit of hot pepper flakes as well if you want to add 
a little spice but this soup is typically enjoyed as a milder beef broth soup.



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food.........  day 5 of 31 days

August 4, 2014

Watermelon lemonade!

Watermelon is perfect for summer.
Everything about this drink screams out.... summer!

From the color to the refreshing watermelon to the chilled
sweetness of the watermelon and slight tartness of the
lemonade combination- you can't go wrong with this drink.

Again, it's SO easy to make.  Your family and friends will be
so impressed that they'll look at you twice!

Let me share with you not only how easy it is to make watermelon lemonade
but a few simple tricks that will really WOW your family and friends as well.

First start off with some cut watermelon.
You can purchase a whole watermelon or you can purchase already cut
watermelon in a clear container from the supermarket.
There's always a debate which is cheaper...
whether to buy the whole watermelon or to buy it already cut.

If you were to literally analyze the weight of the inside, red, edible portion
of the watermelon compared to the price per pound of a whole watermelon...

THEN.... buying already cut watermelon is more often than not cheaper
simply because most people are going to throw away the whites
and rind of the watermelon which is a huge portion of the watermelon
that accounts for the extra $ per pound.


Anyways,  take some cut watermelon cubes and throw it into your blender
and blend it for about 30 seconds. Yup, that's all it takes. Make sure you
add a little bit of water, maybe about a 1/4 cup - otherwise it will not blend.

If you wish to have the watermelon not as pulpy- feel free to run the
blended watermelon through a strainer.  Otherwise, just add your blended
watermelon to your choice of lemonade.  I often prefer
Crystal Light lemonade but feel free to use any kind that floats your boat!

Before you blend all your watermelon cubes, take some of it
(depends on how many people you will be "chilling" with)
and place the cubes into a cup or bowl and throw it into the freezer.

As you serve your summer watermelon lemonade--
you can drop some of the now frozen watermelon cubes and use it
in place of ice cubes. Using the actual watermelon as frozen cubes
will not only keep it more flavorful and enjoyable but it will also
not water your drink down!  Your friends will truly be impressed!

If you add a little wedge of watermelon or lemon or even mint as
a garnish... it looks really nice as well.



Cheers to day 4 of August!


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food.........  day 4 of 31 days

August 3, 2014

Your left overs -------> in Kale Wraps

I think we all get tired of not just eating the same old thing
but in the same old way as well.  There are many food artists
and chefs who really plate their food as a masterpiece and it looks
pretty amazing but realistically speaking....
the average person who just eats food to survive and isn't really
into food for the fun or art of it... they just want to eat it in a pretty
easy way.  Right?!

Today, I've got a pretty easy recipe that is triple duty.
It's one-  healthy. Two- uses your leftovers and three- easy to make.

What could be better than those 3 things? It's easy to make and healthy
BUT! it also uses some of your leftovers.  I'm going to assume
that you enjoyed your leftovers enough to save them
to finish in the next day or two.

Kale wraps.  I know, you might think Kale?
I'm not really into THAT healthy of foods.
My kids or the rest of the family won't eat it.
My advice---- "don't knock it till you try it"



Take some large Kale leaves and steam or boil it in a pot of hot water.
You'll know when it's ready as it gets softer and changes into a
dark forest green from the vibrant super bright green.

Take your left overs and wrap them into the Kale leaves almost
like an egg roll, summer roll or burrito like.
Because the Kale was steamed or boiled and it is soft-
it will be very easy to wrap your filling (leftovers) with.
I used left over brown rice fried rice that had onions, carrots and
beef in it with a little bit of yellow Spanish rice I also had.





You can add any sauce of you choosing of course!
This time around, I used spicy Korean pepper paste sauce.


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food.........  day 3 of 31 days

August 2, 2014

I scream.... You scream.

"I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!"
is a line in an old song written by Johnson, Moll, & King
titled "Ice Cream"

Kids, teens, adults, seniors... who doesn't love ice cream?

Cultivate the ice cream to something maybe a little more fun
for any age and especially good for getting together in the warmer
months. Take any kind of ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet...
whatever floats your boat and scoop it out with an ice cream scooper
into a ball and place it on some parchment paper and stick a stick
into it. Literally. You can purchase wooden popsicle sticks, lollipop
sticks from a craft store like Michael's Crafts, A.C.Moore,
Joanne's Fabrics, etc... or you can simply use wooden throw away
chopsticks. You can roll the ice cream balls in chocolate syrup, slightly
melted peanut butter, strawberry jelly, and so many other things.
You can add chopped nuts, candy....
Once you've scooped your ice cream and have added any
extras you'd like- you want to place it on a tray or plate and put
it back into your freezer so the ice cream freezes with the stick.

This dessert is fun and is a great after dinner snack while
watching your favorite tv show or sitting on your deck/balcony.
It's also great for portion control if you're watching your weight.





Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food   ........... day 2 of 31 days

August 1, 2014

Happy August....!

Can you believe it's August already???
WHAT!?!!!

Where in the world has the summer of 2014 gone?
I remember as a kid especially in elementary school
how loooong the lazy, hazy summer days were.

As August of 2014 has approached us,
many different things have been going on in my personal life.
Almost all good.  
One way I wanted to challenge myself through my food blog 
(that I started in March of 2011) was that I am going to 
write a post every single day in August....  yup. All. Thirty One. Days. 
I took the month of July off to catch up on some things and didn't share
a single post BUT... let's see how far I can go with 31 days ... 31 posts.



Many events are going on in August just like the 15 person
Personal Chef Dinner I just finished last night but I think I can do it!  

right!?!!    Most importantly...  let's all just.....




Let's Do This!   31 days.... 31 posts,  Let's Cultivate Food

June 25, 2014

Coleslaw Burger

Now that the summer is officially here and
with the fourth of July being around the corner...
people are grilling left and right!

What's great about the all american style burger
is that you can make it your own by adding whatever
your taste buds desire..... sweet right!?!

The latest burger we have been devouring
is a hamburger with coleslaw and a thick slice
of cheddar cheese (the cheese didn't make it into the picture)
which actually makes it a cheeseburger rather than a hamburger.

It's as easy as it looks and sounds.
Rather than adding lettuce and tomato--
coleslaw is a great option.

Coleslaw recipe -----> Coleslaw


















Ketchup is optional and so are pickles.


So easy, so yummy Let's Cultivate Food

June 16, 2014

Godiva VS Kahlua .....

dun. dun. dun.

Hmmm.... Who was the winner of this drink taste test?




Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

Kids BIRTHDAY Cooking Class

We certainly do a bountiful amount of Adult Cooking Classes
but did you know that we also do Kids Cooking Classes as well !?!

Adult classes tend to have a sizzling array of occasions
whereas kids cooking classes tend to always be birthdays.

During this birthday party class- the magic number was 10.
Ten 10 year old girls.  They each took turns in having some
hands-on time with helping in cooking food.



As you can see... they were extremely eager to participate.



















The menu consisted of simple mashed potatoes placed into
cookie cutters just to make it a little more fun,
along with nachos,  a chocolate chip cookie dough dip with crackers,
pretzels, strawberries and bananas and personal size pizzas
that each girl rolled out the dough from scratch.




They tried to flip the dough which I didn't even realize
until I saw the pictures that my sous chef took! haha.

These 10 year old ladies were great fun!  
Our kids classes always have personalized chef hats
for the kids to enjoy!  



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

June 10, 2014

Grilled 'summah' Corn

Summer isn't  'summah'  without grilled sweet corn.
(Although it is technically still Spring)

Growing up on a farm in elementary school I remember
the farmer planting and harvesting field corn.



There are a few different types of corn but the 2 most common
and familiar to me are the sweet corn which comes in the yellow
or 'white' color or simply mixed and  field corn.
Field corn is tougher and extremely hard to eat because
it is grown primarily for animal feed- often for horses, cows and pigs.

A super easy way to make delicious corn is ---->

Peel the husk the day you are going to eat your corn
(otherwise it will dry out)
I like to save time and boil the corn first.
Then I put it on the grill towards the end of when
I'm done grilling whatever protein I am grilling.
Placing it it on the grill is to basically finish off the corn along with getting
the charred grill marks- that us, Americans sometimes are obsessed with.

I love to brush the corn with a butter mixture right when it's still hot.
You can easily cultivate your own butter mixture but my go-to one is
about 2 TBSP of butter (per 4-5 ears of corn)
about 2 teaspoons of Old Bay seasoning and some dried cilantro flakes.

This is always a hit whether you're going camping, having a Father's day cookout,
or it's simply a nice summer/spring day.


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

June 4, 2014

What's your favorite kind of hot dog?

Hot dogs are one of America's favorite foods.
During one of our food festivals this Spring-
we were next a booth that sold over 400 hot dogs
in a few short hours.  There are all kinds of hot dogs often by region.

2 of my favorite hot dogs are the 'Chicago Dog' and the Korean Hot dog.
On a trip to Chicago a few years back I remember taking a segway tour
and stopping to grab some Chicago dogs.
I like the flavor of the poppy seed bun, with the tomato, hot peppers,
relish and a spear of a dill pickle.  The combination of everything is great!


Have you ever had a Korean style hot dog?
On the streets of Korea where all the street vendors sell
their delicious, saucy and flavor foods- there is the fried hot dog.

It's basically a hot dog covered in french fries. 
It is deep dried and then drizzled with ketchup. 
So simple yet so good!

It's slightly ironic that this is sold in Korea. 
French fries and hot dogs are SO American but
it's not that surprising since Koreans are quite innovative.



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

May 28, 2014

Barbeque Ribs + Mango Coleslaw + Mixed Mushroom Salad + Cajun Corn = A Family In-Home Cooking Class

Just like the way people and families come in all sizes...
SO. DO. cooking classes!

I just wanted to share a few pictures of a family In-Home Cooking Class.
I truly enjoyed the way this family was able to get everyone involved
with the hands-on aspect of the class.  Each family member
was able to participate and everyone was able to taste and season
as we were cooking each item on the menu.



Getting ready to season and marinate the racks of ribs. 
Both pork and beef. (just so we can taste the difference)



Getting mom and the boys involved!


Even Dad....


Grandma also...



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

May 27, 2014

Watermelon Thirst Quencher

When I think of summer fruits---
watermelon definitely falls under my top 3 summer fruits.
It's beautiful in color, juicy, sweet and a great thirst quencher!

Slicing or cutting your watermelon into cubes to eat is great
BUT what if you were to use the watermelon as a double duty thing?
Use a small watermelon not only as your drink but the actual glass
or drinking goblet!?!    What!?!  sounds like fun right?



It's really easy to make!  The only things you will need are:
a small watermelon, a large spoon or ice cream scoop to scoop
the inside of the watermelon, a colander (with finer holes),
a knife to slice the watermelon top (about 2 inches down from the top)
some fun, large straws and some booze.
(booze is optional and of your choosing of course!)





Once you scoop the inside of the watermelon, it's best if you blend it
to make it more of a juice rather than it being chunky. I like to use a wire 
colander like the one in the picture to get the froth out as well. 


You can add some large straws and an umbrella to make it even more fun to drink!
You can also make fruit skewers to add as a garnish.
Oh! and don't forget to add some ice.


It quenched our thirst Let's Cultivate Food

May 23, 2014

Fruit Pops!

As the hot weather is RIGHT around the corner (if you live in the Northeast)
One of my favorite summer treats... (actually almost all-year round)
is a home made fruit popsicle.  They REALLY are  awesome because of
many reasons.  They are healthy, delicious, refreshing, all-natural (literally),
super easy to make, fun, easy to eat/lick/suck/bite, did I mention
delicious?   What's also sweet about them is that you can REALLY make it your own.
You can cultivate these fun fruit pops by using whatever you, your family and friends
like. If you don't like a certain type of fruit for whatever reason... simply
don't use it!  Use your favorite fruits and mix them up or not!
You can also change it up by pureeing the fruit or dicing them up into small
pieces or both. Whatever floats your boat.... or pops in this case.

















The easiest way to make these is-  to get all your fruit ready.
Get little paper cups out and line them up in a row or 2.
Add your fruit and then lastly add your little wooden popsicle stick at the end.
Lay them on a tray or plate (I just place them on a paper plate )
right in the freezer.  If you are eating them individually-
just take the paper cup wrapper off as you eat it but if you are serving it
to multiple people- it looks attractive if you take off /rip the paper cup
off for everyone and simply lay them upside down so that each person
can just grab their fruit popsicle  by the stick!


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

The Waldorf Salad

I love salads but having the option to enjoy a vast variety of salads
is a luxury!?!  because -  wouldn't it be REALLY boring
to eat the same old garden salad  ALL.THE.TIME. ?

I am fascinated by all the combinations of salads
that one can create and of course eat and enjoy!

Among the many different types... there is the Waldorf salad.

The original Waldorf salad was made of fresh apples, celery
and walnuts tossed in mayonnaise.
It was served as a light meal at the Waldorf Hotel in NYC.
Oscar Tschirky the Maitr d' created it along with creating
Hollandaise sauce with Lemuel Benedict that is used in Eggs Benedict.



The Waldorf salad is often the topping to a bed of greens.
As technology and everything else that is evolving-  so has this salad.
There are often grapes or raisins or dates added to the salad  along with
it often being tossed and mixed with plain yogurt instead of the mayonnaise.
Some restaurants will substitute the celery with cauliflower and call it
the Emerald's  Salad rather than the Waldorf Salad.

Feel free to cut you apples in slices or just dice them.
To keep the apples from browning it's best to squeeze juice from a lemon.


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

May 17, 2014

Korean style chicken wings

Korean style chicken wings......  'finger lickin'  YUM!



procedure for wings ↓
batter the chicken wings in 1 beaten egg  mixed with 1/2 cup of corn starch 
while adding 2-3 TBSP of water as needed to get the cornstarch a little bit 
liquefied, then deep fry fresh room temperature chicken wings with any 
neutral oil in 375 degrees, once they float to the top; take them out and lay 
them on a paper towel for about 5 minutes to capture any excess oil, 
fry a second time for only 2-3 minutes to get that extra crispness 

recipe ↓ in a mixing bowl mix the ingredients below together
3 cloves garlic minced
1.5 inches piece peeled and grated ginger
5 TBSP soy sauce
3  TBSP gojujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
2 TBSP rice vinegar
2 TBSP  sesame oil
3 TBSP honey or apricot preserves
12 chicken wings 

PRO TIP: Once the wings have floated to the top of the oil
it means they are done cooking-
Take them out carefully of the oil and lay them in a mixing bowl, this time 
you want to keep some of the oil on the wings so the sauce adheres better

Take the hot wings and toss them in the rest of the ingredients (sauce)
sprinkle toasted sesame seeds for extra toasty flavor and garnish

* You can do the exact same thing to cauliflower or broccoli florets


Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food

May 16, 2014

Tiramisu

SUPER EASY make at home Tiramisu with all the flavor!

Tiramisu is an Italian dessert that can be a little tedious and tricky.
Especially the heating/cooking of the egg whites.
Here is a way to get the rich and delicious flavor of Tiramisu
done easy and pretty much hassle free.

Similar to a lasagna, Tiramisu is a layered dessert.
It starts with the 'lady fingers'. You can use pound cake as well,
but I highly recommend just purchasing the lady fingers.

The ingredients you will need are  --->
a package of lady fingers
a small tub of mascarpone cheese 
whipped cream
strong espresso (about a cup)  decaf is ok too!
cocoa powder
instant coffee (for garnish - optional)
chocolate bar (for shaving - garnish)

Once you have all the ingredients ready, you want to start with taking
the mascarpone cheese and adding some whipped cream.
(start with about 3 heaping tablespoons)
The whipped cream helps to soften, lighten and make the cheese fluffier.



The next step is  to dip the lady fingers individually into espresso coffee.
(Use decaf if you are concerned about the caffeine)
I like to dip only the bottom half of the lady fingers so that it's not too soggy.

You can layer the coffee dipped lady fingers first or you can put
a dollop of the mascarpone first - it really doesn't make that big of a 
difference especially since you are going  to lick the bowl/glass clean. 
I mean eat it all dainty like a fant-cee lady or gentleman!
In between the layers of the lady fingers and cheese, you can 
add the cocoa powder and or instant coffee using a wire sifter...
you know, so it can be dusted on.

It's best when you shave some chocolate on top as well.
Coffee dipped fluffy cake, chocolate and sweet cream.
How does one not like Tiramisu!?!

Ironically, the original recipe for Tiramisu did not have egg whites or any liquor.
I like to think this super easy recipe is not about taking a short cut but
bringing it back to old school.... the way it was first made back in the 
late 1960s  in Veneto, Italy.













During a recent Personal Chef Dinner -
the 4 couples decided on Tiramisu as  their dessert
and I recall them raving over the flavor!

SO goodSO easy,  Let's Cultivate Food

Chocolate chip cookie dough DIP

Who doesn't love licking the spoon of cookie dough leftover
from the mixing bowl as a child- let's face it, adults love it as well.

Were you ever told it might give you an upset stomach if you eat
the cookie dough because it isn't baked yet?  But we all did it anyway.

Here is a recipe where you can make chocolate chip cookie dough DIP!
No more worries of 'potentially' getting a stomach ache because it's
raw and uncooked.   What can you dip into this savory dip?
I'm pretty sure you can easily come up with many ideas of what to
dip into but! Here are a few ideas if you aren't sure.

You can dip animal crackers, graham crackers, strawberries,
crusty bread, bananas, vanilla wafers, pretzels.....you name it.


Recipe --->  'mix it real good'  and then, 'dip it real good' 

1/2 cup of butter
1 package of cream cheese (8 oz.)
1.5 teaspoons of vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup of mini chocolate chips


'Dip it real good'  Let's Cultivate Food

Friends having an In-Home Class

A while back, four friends decided to enjoy catching up on their lives
and having an In-Home Cooking Class cooking the Thai menu.

We have the chicken breast cut into strips being skewered here in the picture.
They were marinated in a peanut and coconut marinade.


Learning about some basic sauces and ingredients in Thai cuisine.                                     Pad Thai noodles and  Thai Dumplings were also made that evening.



It was a pleasure meeting and cooking with you guys!



Good times. Good Times.  Let's Cultivate Food

May 15, 2014

Re-GROW your scallions!

More often than not,
I try to teach and share with students that you can
very easily re-grow your herbs and veggies.

In this case...  it has become more like scallions galore.



















Two weeks ago, Let's Cultivate Food participated in a Festival
and I had to use some scallions for the Buffalo Chicken Dumpling filling.
I cut the root end off at about 2 inches and placed them in a plant pot- 
all lined up only because there were so many. The only thing in the pot
is water, no soil or anything else.  I've been so busy with Festivals
and Personal Chef Dinners lately that I simply placed the roots in the
corner of the kitchen floor and would just add water every 3-4 days
and in a way they have been completely neglected. 

Low and behold 2 weeks later... they have re-grown into a pot of scallions galore.
I love gardening and growing and re-growing in this case...
thus the name "Let's Cultivate"  There are SO many things one can do
with a simple scallion.... starting with simply re-growing them!


Let us cultivate herbs Let's Cultivate Food

May 14, 2014

SPAM

Many say that SPAM is "mystery meat"
Similar to cilantro,  people seem to either love it or hate it-

SPAM actually stands for Shoulder Pork and HAM.




















SPAM was highly consumed in many wars for the soldiers
especially the Russian soldiers during World War II.
When I say highly consumed...
I'm talking about 100 million pounds of it!   WHOA right!?!
During the war there was even a mascot named  'Slammin  Spammy'.
It was a way that Hormel supported the war effort.

Roughly 44,000 cans of SPAM (33,000 pounds) are produced every hour
for over 40 countries to be consumed.  Some McDonalds even have it on
their menu. Hawaii consumes the most SPAM per capita of any US state.

When people call it 'mystery meat' it's really not that much of a mystery.
It's pork shoulder which tends to be fatty along with added salt, water,
sugar, potato starch and nitrites.  In a way it's almost the same stuff
that is in hot dogs.

There was once Kosher SPAM back in 2000 known as Loof for Israeli military.
It was made from chicken and beef and not pork shoulder.

I think when the "mystery" is taken out of it----
you realize there isn't really that much of a mystery to it.



Zestfully Let's Cultivate Food