Praram Long Song (Thai peanut curry sauce)

This is one of my favorite Thai dishes to cook. It's simple to make, and the sauce is also great for dipping or stir-fry. 

Ingredients:
1 can of coconut milk
~3+ tbsp red curry paste 
1/2 to 1 tsp fish sauce, depending on your taste
1/2 c. natural unsweetened peanut butter
4 tbsp brown sugar and/or agave nectar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp lime juice
red pepper flakes
Sriracha. Duh.
Green onion
Crushed peanuts
A bunch of baby spinach
Brown rice
A protein, if desired (I usually use pan-fried tofu or scallops. Chicken is mighty tasty too)

Now do it:
Heat coconut milk in a small pot over medium-low heat, stirring to make sure it doesn't stick. Once warm, add curry paste and stir until thoroughly blended. Add peanut butter and other things, pepper/sriracha to taste. Add your protein and let it soak up the sauce for a few. Wilt the spinach just a little bit, and place a bed of it on rice. Cover with this delicious sauce, and top with crushed peanuts and minced green onion.

Spring Slaw

Mmm, so fresh and so tasty. I've heard this kind of dish referred to as an "Asian" slaw/salad, but that's silly and racist. Personally, it makes me think of springtime. Half approximated recipe, half list. Next time I make this I will measure everything and actually write out a proper recipe.

• 1/2 to 1 jicama, grated
• 1/2 a large red cabbage, shredded/chopped into lil bits
• 1/2 large red onion, cut into thin slices
• 1 red bell pepper, diced small
• 3 celery stalks, cut into thin slices
• 2-3 carrots, grated
• 1 cucumber, sliced thin then cut into little sticks
• 1/2 can garbanzo beans (maybe more? I don't remember)
• crushed peanuts (pile em on
• toasted sesame seeds

Dressing:

• Rice wine vinegar
• soy sauce/liquid aminos
• agave nectar and/or brown sugar
• fresh ginger, minced (not too much--it can be overpowering)
• a little peanut butter
• a little Sriracha

GOLDEN BEET AND KALE RAW SALAD

I'll admit it--I spent waaay too much money buying little plastic containers full of this dank salad from Mississippi Market before I decided to just start making it myself. As the co-op staff refused my offer of my firstborn child in exchange for their recipe, I've had to approximate. This is really just a list of ingredients, not actually a recipe. Use your imagination and experiment.

Here We Go:

• Curly leaf kale (the frilly stuff, not the long-leafed stuff)
• Golden Beets (A quick word on this: whenever I make this salad myself, the golden beets turn a really unappealing grey-brown color, almost instantly. Oxidation, or a reaction to the metal cheese grater, perhaps? I would suggest grating and adding the beets right before serving if you're trying to present this dish to others, or using regular red beets instead.)
• Carrots
• Scallions
• Green bell peppers
• Broccoli sprouts

Dressing:

• Tahini
• Olive oil
• apple cider vinegar (the good stuff, with 'the mother')
• soy sauce (I use wheat-free tamari) or liquid aminos
• Garlic, minced
• Fresh oregano & basil, minced

Chop all your veggies. Cut the kale thin, shred beets and carrots (a round cheese grater with a crank works great for this), dice the peppers, and chop the scallions into little rings. Toss all the veggies together in a big bowl. In a separate container, combine the dressing ingredients w/ a wisk (start with tahini and vinegar, add other things when these are blended smoothly). I just add everything to taste and test it as I go along. I like my salad pretty saucy. I use the most tahini, then ACV, olive oil, soy sauce, garlic, herbs.

Minnesota Eats

Wild Rice & Butter Nut Squash Casserole

(this photo is not mine, I just swiped it from the internet because my cell phone camera is shit. Just imagine this, covered in cheeeeese,)

*Feel free to half this recipe, because it's seriously a fuck-ton of food.*

• 2 c. rice (~1/2 c. wild rice, 1 ¼ c. brown rice, & ¼ c. red rice)
• 3 ½ c. vegetable broth (I use water + 1 ½ tsp bouillon concentrate)
• 1 medium butternut squash (~2 1/2 cups), peeled and cut in small cubes or triangles
• ½ tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 ½ tsp. rubbed sage
• 1 c. chopped onion
• 1 ½ tsp. fresh thyme
• 1 c. chopped celery
• 1 ½ tsp. garlic powder
• 2 c. chopped crimini mushrooms
• 1 diced green pepper
• ½ – ⅔ c. raw pumpkin seeds
• ⅓ c. hemp seeds
• ½ c. slivered almonds
• ½ c. (scant) chopped pecans
• 1 large chopped apple
• 1 c. dried cranberries and currants
• ½ c. buttermilk
• 1 can (15 oz.) gluten-free cream of mushroom soup
• 1 ½ c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 9 × 13” pan and a 9 × 9” pan.
  VEGAN OPTION: Substitute buttermilk and canned cream of mushroom soup for the following: Mix 1 c. soy (or other) milk with ~ 2 tsp white vinegar or/and lemon juice. Stir together and let sit for 5 minutes to curdle and thicken. If desired, add a couple spoonfuls of a vegan sour cream substitute (like tofutti). Next, saute mushrooms (~½ c.), onions (~¼ c.), and garlic (2 small cloves)--all finely diced--in a non-stick skillet with a bit of oil. Add milk, 1 tsp. liquid aminos or soy sauce, ½ tsp. garlic powder, ½ tsp. veggie bouillon, ¼ tsp. black pepper and ¼-½ tsp. black-strap molasses. Thicken with ~ 1 tbsp. brown rice flour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine rice and vegetable broth in a large pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer w/ lid on for ~ 35 minutes, until rice is nearly cooked (still slightly crunchy). While rice is cooking, toss squash with olive oil and black pepper in a bowl, and bake in a greased 9 × 13” pan for 15 minutes. Add onion tossed with olive oil, sage and thyme, and bake for another 10 minutes.

When rice is ready, add all other ingredients (except cheese) to the large pot and stir everything together. Transfer mixture to pans, cover with foil, and bake for ~ 30 minutes, until rice and squash are tender. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and bake for another 5-10 minutes.

STRAWBS.

Fucking delicious stuffed, chocolate-dipped strawberries.

I made these last night for a friend's party, and they were so good I just had to share the recipe. However, as usual I didn't actually measure anything, so the amounts are just approximations.

Ingredients:

Strawberries (1 quart)
Cream cheese or neufch atel (~ 4 oz)
Powdered sugar (maybe a few tablespoons?)

Vanilla extract ( >1 tsp)

Bittersweet chocolate (enough to dip the berries)

Amaretto liqueur ( > a shot, to taste)

Almonds, chopped

Now do it: 
 Wash and hollow out the strawberries, so there's a decent amount of space for filling.

Combine the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and amaretto liqueur in a bowl. 

Stir until smooth (you might need to let the cream cheese warm up a little).
Grate chocolate shavings into the mixture and mix em in.

Spoon the filling into the strawberries, and set them in the fridge to chill for ~ 30 minutes.

Either dip the open tops in chopped almonds, or save them to coat the strawberries after dipping.

Melt the rest of the chocolate, add a little of the amaretto once it's melted. Dip tha berries in dat shit. Roll them in chopped almonds.

Chill for ~ 15 minutes before serving so the chocolate can harden.

Enjoy!