Thursday, July 14, 2011

seaweed soup


Call me crazy, but one of the only things I crave other than ice cream and chicken wings is seaweed soup. I love this stuff. I'll even go so far as to call it the food the kings of the sea might pray to have for dinner. It's so healthy and much more simple than it sounds. You can find the seaweed at any asian food store, or maybe even a health food store. Koreans actually use this as a detox food, which completely makes sense, seeing as this is all seaweed. I dare you to try it..... you'll love it. Serve it with rice or quinoa or something of that nature, or just have it as soup!

Ingredients:
2 lbs chuck roast
8 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
approx. 1 lb dried seaweed strands
1 T GF soy sauce
pinch of salt
1 T sesame oil
serve with black pepper

Make beef broth the night before by cooking the chuck roast in water in a crock pot overnight. The next day, pull meat out of the broth and set aside. Place the soup into the refrigerator for the rest of the day until fat rises to the surface, and remove it with a spoon with holes in it.
Soak the dried seaweed in a bowl of water for about 2 or 3 hours. Once seaweed is soft, squeeze all excess water from it then cut it with scissors or a knife into smaller pieces. In a big saucepan, saute the sesame oil and garlic, then add the seaweed and saute for about 3 minutes. Add the soy sauce, then add the beef broth. Pull the beef apart with your fingers or cut it with a knife then add it to the broth. Simmer this mixture for about 3 minutes then it is ready to eat. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

old fashioned peach ice cream.. the splurge that's worth it!


There is nothing better in the world to me than creamy, frozen deliciousness blended with super sweet, ripe peaches. I'm big on chocolate, but I'll give up chocolate for homemade peach ice cream ANY day. I was just down south where I will continue to call "home" and of course, I had to have homemade peach ice cream. It's kind of a given when I go home. I will always look for peach ice cream and boiled peanuts. Some day, I have got to end up back down in the humid, super hot, uncrowded, barefoot-loving, awesomeness of the southern comfort I love to call home. Warning: this is totally a splurge. But hey, as I always say when ice cream is in question... it's packed with protein, calcium, vitamin D and the delicious fiber and antioxidants of fruit!

Ingredients:
4 cups soft peaches, peeled and sliced
1.5 cups sugar
3 cups heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
2% milk

In a large bowl, mash peaches with sugar. Let stand for 15 minutes.
Stir in remaining ingredients, except for the milk. Chill well. Prepare ice cream freezer. Pour mixture into the freezer, then fill to the fill line with 2% milk. Turn on the ice cream freezer until the mixture hardens. Let sit for a few minutes until ready to serve. Enjoy that taste of the south! YUM!