Sushi!!!!

This recipe is copied from an old post I made on another blog, and updated somewhat.  I have made sushi MANY times since this post was written, so any questions not addressed here I can probably answer.
This is actually really fast once you get the prep done, so if you want to make extra rice and cut veggies and store them in the fridge, then you can whip up several rolls pretty quick.

How much rice you make determines how much sushi you want.  1 cup of rice will make about three rolls, which is perfect for two people.  I am going to type up the recipe according to this measurement and you can multiply according to need.




You can buy most of your supplies from an Asian market for way cheaper than you can at a regular store... we usually get the meat elsewhere, but all else is bought at the Asian Market.


Shopping List:
This cost us about $25 and we had enough for 6 people, plus a few extra sheets of paper, and lots of extra rice. (we had cucumber, green onion, carrots, and crab as filler for our rolls here)

Japanese Short-Grain Rice - this is the key, you can use white or brown rice but it need to be short grain.
Rice Vinegar -This is part of what gives the rice it's "sushi flavor" so get the rice vinegar
Sugar
Salt
Seaweed paper

Wassabi
Bamboo Roller
Chopsticks

Whatever fillings you want, here are some suggestions:
Cucumber
Green Onion
Carrots
Cream Cheese - bought at a normal store
Avacado - this you would prob have to get at a normal store too
Artificial Crab Meat - bought at a normal store
Smoked Salmon - a little more expensive but definitely delicious! Think Alaska roll - available in any regular grocery store
If you are brave you can get the raw fish, I don't trust myself working with that.

I've used artificial crab, and we cooked it in the frying pan with some asian seasonings I want to try thin chicken strips sometime


Prep:
Rice: Get this going first, and then cut your veggies while the rice is cooking (but keep an eye on the rice, don't let it burn!)
1 cup short grain brown rice. Place rice in colander, rinse thoroughly with water until the water runs clear. Most recipes tell you to drain for 30-60 min, but I just let it sit for at most 5 minutes then cook... (and if you forget to rinse it... its okay... I've done it a couple times, and nothing exploded ;o)
Place rice and 1.25 cups of water in sauce pan and bring to a boil, then turn to low and cook for about 10min.
Take rice off the heat and let sit covered for 15-20 min.
** About 5 minutes before the rice is done you will need to prepare the rice seasoning (see below) ***
Spoon rice into glass dish (I like to use a casserole dish because the rice is at an even depth) and spread evenly, don't pack, leave it loose *** use a wooden or plastic spoon, NOT metal it will damage the rice

Pour rice seasoning onto rice and mix with wooden spoon till everything is evenly coated

Fan rice till it reaches room temp and has the sticky, shiny sheen that is characteristic of sushi rice.
I like to fan it with a plate so that it cools faster, but you can set it aside to cool as well, if needed, stir the rice a bit to expose the underside to the cool air. The rice needs to be at room temp before rolling. In case you are wondering you can also roll the rice cold (ex: from the fridge... if you have extra)

Rice Seasoning:
2 TBS Rice vinegar
1 TBS Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
Mix in small bowl and dissolve in microwave, or mix in small pan and dissolve on stove.
just heat it till all the sugar is dissolved then pour over rice

Fillings:
This depends on what you want.  Don't fill the roll too full, I recommend starting small and then see how much more you can add. 
The rolls pictured below have Green onions, Carrots, Cucumber, and Crab
Whatever you use, thinly slice it.

Tezu: the one thing I remember the name of!
This one is easy, mix 4TBS Rive vinegar and 4TBS water in a bowl, be sure to wet your hands with this before touching rice in order to keep it from sticking to you (believe me, it will stick)

Rolls:
Place seaweed paper on bamboo roller, rough side up/shiney side down.
Cover with ~1/4 inch of rice, leave about 1/4-1/2 inch of seaweed uncovered at the end
Place fillings in a long pile at top of the paper
Roll
-as you roll fold the bamboo roller back on its self so you can keep rolling the sushi
At the end wet the Seaweed paper with some tezu and then it will stick to its self, sealing the roll
 I like to then take the roll and gently squeeze it in the bamboo roller just to be sure it is tight.

Cutting:
I have found it is easiest to make all the rolls, then cut them, letting them sit for a bit helps them to cool and they are easier to cut.
If you have sharp knives, then this will probably be easier, wet the knife with Tezu to keep it from getting stickyfied 
It helps to have a friend there so they can hold the roll and that way the cutting is more stable.


Eating:
well, I think you can take it from here ;o)
  

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas

This is one of my favorite new recipes. I love that it is so flexible. Also we used Whole wheat tortillas, but it could very easily be done with corn or spelt and be just as good:


Black Bean and Sweet Potato Enchiladas
2 t oil
1 small onion, diced
2 sweet potatoes, diced (about 2 1/2 c)
2 c. cooked black beans with a little cooking water (I used 2 cans of beans)
2 c. chopped greens (kale, spinach, etc)
sea salt and black pepper to taste
2 c. enchilada sauce
8 large tortillas (wheat) or 12 corn tortillas
8 oz. sour cream, yogurt cheese or creme fraiche

Preheat oven to 375.  
Heat oil in large skillet.  Add onion and saute 5-10 min or until soft.  Add sweet potatoes.  Cover and cook about 10 min.  or until tender.  Stir in beans and greens.  Cover and heat about 5 min.  until greens are wilted. Ad a little water if needed.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cover bottowm of 9x13 in baking dish with about 1/3 c of enchilada sauce.  Place tortilla on flat surface - fill with filling and roll and line them in pan-- At this point you are supposed to also add a little bit of yogurt, but I didn't realize that and it was still amazing. We just put a little dollop of yogurt on after it was cooked.  Cover enchiladas with remaining saue.  Cover pan and bake 20 min.


Variations:
black bean and squash: substitute 2 3/4 c squash for sweet potatoes
black bean and carrot: sub 2 3/4 c diced carrots for sweet potatoes
black bean and brown rice: sub 2 3/4 c. cooked brown rice for sweet potatoes but add them at the same time as the beans and greens.

Pasta with Mushroom sauce

We made this recipe last night when the guys were all out. It is EXCELLENT!

 

Prep Time: 20 min

Start to Finish: 20 min

Servings: 6 (this is subjective, it really depends on how much you eat, teenage boys will eat much more than what this suggests as a serving size)

8oz Uncooked Pappardelle Pasta (we used fettuccine noodles)

2 TBS Butter

1 medium Onion; thinly sliced and separated into rings

16oz of mushrooms (We used regular button mushrooms, however you can use whatever type you desire)

2 tsp chopped fresh Sage leaves (we used ~1/2 tsp dried sage leaves)

1 tsp chopped fresh Thyme leaves (we used ~1/4 tsp dried)

1 cup Whipping Cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package (we started the water boiling and then started step 2... placing the pasta in the water once it boiled.)

2. In 12" skillet melt butter over medium high heat.  

Cook onions in butter 8-10 min, until soft and golden.

Add Mushrooms, chopped sage, and thyme; cook until mushrooms are tender, ~5 min.

Stir in whipping cream, cheese, salt, and pepper.

3. Pour Sauce over cooked pasta and toss. 

(the timing of the food worked out pretty perfect.  The sauce got done a little before the pasta which meant that it simmered for a couple minutes, making it all the better!)

ENJOY!

Garden Fresh Tomato Soup

We had this for dinner tonight with grilled cheese sandwiches. I got it from allrecipies.com

Ingredients
4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
1 onion chopped
4 whole cloves
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons white sugar, or to taste


Directions
In a stockpot, over medium heat, combine the tomatoes, onion, cloves and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and gently boil for about 20 minutes to blend all of the flavors. Remove from heat and put in blender until smooth.
In the now empty stockpot, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour to make a roux, cooking until the roux is a medium brown. Gradually whisk in a bit of the tomato mixture, so that no lumps form, then stir in the rest. Season with sugar and salt, and adjust to taste.

I added a little bit of milk at the end, then poured it into bowels and sprinkled grated cheese and parsley on top.

A lot of people recommended straining this after you blend it. I liked it how it was, but I didn't like the cloves floating in it... I will probably either fish those out or use ground cloves next time.

Double it.

Lemon, Asparagus Fettuccine

This is a great recipe that I stole from Angela. We double it.

Ingredients:
8oz Fettuccine Noodles
2 cups asparagus
1 summer squash
2 (1 tsp) cloves garlic
1Tbs butter
1/2 cup cream
2 tsp lemon peel
Parmesan cheese

Cook Pasta. Cook asparagus, squash and garlic in butter for 2-3 minutes. Remove vegetables and add to pasta. Combine cream and Lemon peel in skillet. Boil 2-3 minutes or reduced to about 1/3 cup. Poor cream over pasta. Stir gently. Add Parmesan.

Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Salad

This is so yummy and fresh tasting. I love it! Perfect for the summertime. I have made it as a side or as the main course.

This recipe doesn't have peppers, but this was the best picture I could find.

Ingredients:
1 cup red quinoa, cooked with broth
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups frozen roasted corn kernels (or plain corn)
1 avocado, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved (or other small tomatoes)
½ red onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
¼ cup lime or lemon juice
Zest of 1 lime
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Directions
Cook quinoa with broth according to instructions on package. Cool quinoa. Combine quinoa, beans, corn, tomatoes, onion and cilantro. Make a dressing with the oil, lime or lemon juice, lime zest, salt and pepper to taste. Toss together. Garnish with the avocado and additional cilantro.