Daring Cooks: Moo Shu

Blog-checking lines: The October Daring Cooks' Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.

This, I think was my favorite Daring Cooks challenge so far. It was absolutely delicious! Not all of the ingredients made it into my Moo Shu, because I got a little frazzled, but it was so good that next time I make it (and trust me, there will be a next time) I won't even bother to add them. The hoisin sauce was AMAZING, easy to make, and made from pantry staples plus it provided plenty of leftovers that were consumed throughout the week. The Moo Shu sent me on a cabbage eating binge like you would not believe. Making the pancakes was a lot of work, and they didn't really taste like anything, they were a good conduit for the meat and sauce, but next time I would happily eat this plain, over rice, or on a store bought tortilla, which would also make this more of an everyday meal (less work). Can you guess when I actually made this, I have been sitting on this post, dying to share it for a bit of time. (Hint: look for lots of cabbage and something else with hoisin sauce). Anyway, enjoy the deliciousness!

Moo Shu Pork:
1 pork loin, about 3/4 lb
1/2 head of green cabbage
1 bunch of scallions
1 package of gourmet mushrooms
1 tbsp of rice vinegar
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of canola oil
salt, pepper, chili powder

Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat. Finely chop the pork and add to the oil, cook until browned slightly, about 1 minute. Chop the cabbage, scallions and mushrooms and add to the pan. Add the vinegar and soy sauce and cook until cabbage softens, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and chili powder to taste.

Hoisin Sauce:
1/4 cup of low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp (or more) of Sriracha
1 1/2 tbsp of molasses
2 tbsp of almond butter
2 tsp of white vinegar
2 tsp of sesame oil
1/4 tsp of pepper
1/4 tsp of garlic powder

Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until smooth and combined.

Pancakes:
1 cup of all purpose flour
1 cup of wheat flour
1/2 tsp of canola oil
3/4 cup of boiling water

Put the flour in a food processor with the dough blade and pulse a few times. While the machine is running pour in water and oil. Remove the dough from the processor, roll into a ball and cover with a damp towel, let stand 30 minutes. Return to the food processor and run until the dough is smooth, about 2 minutes. Dive in half and roll into a long log, cut each log into 7 pieces, keep dough covered when you aren't using it. Roll each piece into a ball, and then flatten into a disk. Roll the disks out into a 6-8 inch circle. Heat a pan on high heat, then put on medium-low, cook pancakes until light brown spots appear, do not flip. Cover with a damp cloth until ready to serve.

Happy Eating.

Weekend Round-Up and Then Some

Well... I am sorry I was gone so long. Last week was just one of those weeks. I have a lot to catch you up on. So, I will start with last weekend. I took a little trip to DC to spend some very girly time with a darling friend (who requested a shout out). On Saturday night, she, her roommate and I, made leg of lamb with yogurt sauce and couscous. Well, I learned that I do not know whether or not something is done with out the assistance of my boyfriend, but dinner was none the less very good. I made the lamb with the same spices as I did here. The recipe for my delicious yogurt sauce is there as well (It's good enough to eat by itself, just ask the Rachels). I loved the couscous I made, it was extremely easy and very tasty. The weekend was extremely fun and extremely food-y. We ate at 2 different French restaurants (one for dinner, one for brunch), both were amazing. But anyway...

Couscous:

1 box of original couscous
2 cups (or however much is specified on box) of chicken stock
1 tbsp of butter
1/3 cup of pine nuts
1/3 cup of craisins or raisins

Make the couscous according to the directions on the box, but use chicken stock and butter instead of water. Toast the pine nuts in the oven, this will only take about 5 minutes on 375 degrees, you could also do it in a pan. When the couscous is done, fluff it with a spoon and stir in the toasted pine nuts and craisins. This side is delicious and takes about 6 minutes to make, so enjoy!

Well after my wonderful DC weekend, I had a very busy week. Some highlights from it, I made chicken kebabs, again, and they were just as delicious. I cooked with my mom one night, we made grilled salmon, shrimp and sautéed veggies. No recipes to share, but it was fun to be someone's sous chef, for a change. Then for the big one. This weekend featured two delectable dinners. Last night I made my version of Barefoot Contessa's "Engagement Chicken" again. It was my best chicken ever and I did not take it out of the oven too soon (another first).

The real excitement, however, was Friday night. I finally used the rest of the Bison meat that we were given. I decided I was going to make it into a stew (get out your slow cookers). This ended up being the right choice, because the meat, it turns out was in chunks. The stew was surprisingly delicious. And if you do decide to cook bison, be warned, the meat smells when it's raw, the smell goes away when cooked.

Bison Stew:

1 lb of Bison meat
1 can of beer
2 cups of beef stock
1-2 large potatoes
1 large onion
4 Cloves of garlic
Handful of baby carrots
1 head of broccoli
Salt, pepper, red pepper flakes.

Give potatoes, onions, garlic and carrots a rough chop and put them in the slow cooker. Add beer and stock to the slow cooker. Add salt, pepper and flakes to taste. Salt and pepper the meat and add to the pot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Give broccoli and rough chop and toss in as well, cook on low for about 20 minutes until broccoli is tender. Serve and Enjoy.

This is why I love the slow cooker, a few ingredients and 5 minutes of work for something that is warm and delicious, and tastes like it's been cooking all day (hey, it has!). Ok, that is all for now.

Happy Eating.