Baked Asparagus Fries

I am still making my way through a huge bag of bread crumbs initially purchased for some avocado fries… so I’ll crunchy-bake-fry anything now. Here is the asparagus edition! (First saw this idea on Pinterest via My San Francisco Kitchen)

Ingredients

Fresh asparagus
2 eggs
About 1.5 cups of bread crumbs
Preferred seasoning for the bread crumbs (I did some salt, pepper, basil flakes, and all spice)
Preferred dipping sauce (I used this amazing sun dried tomato and basil cream cheese dip from Fields…)

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 210C or 410F

Whisk up that egg

Season those crumbs

Prep the asparagus (wash, cut ends if needed)

Dip in eggs

Cover in crumbs

Place on a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet (you’ll want to use tin foil on the baking sheet…those crumbs get out of control)

Pop in oven for about 15-20 minutes

Plate, dip, and enjoy. They cool down quickly, and are best when hot so don’t make until you are ready to eat!!

Scrambled Egg Stuffed Peppers

So this might be one of the fanciest things you can do with scrambled eggs…

Ingredients

4 large eggs
Avocado
Provolone
Canned artichoke
2 bell peppers (could be red, green, or yellow)
Bread crumbs
Grated parmesan
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil

Make It Happen

In a bowl, mix eggs, diced avocado, a bit of the canned artichoke and a few chunks of provolone

Throw that on the skillet and scramble

Preheat oven to 200C or 390F

Cut tops off peppers and hollow out

In another small bowl, season and oil about 1/2 cup of bread crumbs

In the bottom of each pepper, put a few small slices of the provolone

Stuff peppers with scrambled egg mix

Top with a large slice of provolone

Top that with bread crumbs

Pop in oven for about 10 minutes, or until cheese under the bread crumb crust has melted and crust is golden-brown

Plate and enjoy. This is a really healthy and very filling breakfast!

Saturday Night Round Up: Zucchini and Eggplant Cheese Bake

A few days ago, I posted a recipe for a double layer pizza with tortilla crust, with eggplant and zucchini in the middle layer. I had some of the veggies left over, and was pretty sure I’d come back to them for the Saturday Night Round Up. A little marinara, a lot of cheese, a few slices of pepperoni later and this was a pretty great (and super easy) dinner.

Ingredients

Eggplant
Zucchini
Marinara sauce
Pepperoni
Shredded mozzarella
Shredded parmesan
Salt, pepper, other preferred seasoning

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 200C or 390F

In a baking pan or casserole dish (I used a bread pan) put veggies, marinara, and lots of cheese

Mix together

More cheese on top

Pepperoni on that

Cheese on that

In the oven, 15 minutes or until cheese starts to bubble

Remove and enjoy (yup, I didn’t even plate this one….just opened a beer and and ate it right out of the pan. I’m a classy lady, what can I say?)

Bacon and Hash Brown Egg Cups

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned the convenience of muffin tin cooking/ baking for things other than muffins. Here is yet another creation, combing all that I know to be good in the world: hash browns, bacon, eggs, greek yogurt, and lots and lots of cheese. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Eggs (3 eggs made three cups)
Greek yogurt (about one tbs per egg)
Cheese (your choice, as always)
Bacon
Cooked hash browns or hash brown patties
Salt
Pepper

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 205C or 400F

Put hash browns in oven (if patties) or cook up on skillet

Line the bottoms of muffin tins with hash browns (if you have loose hash browns, you could make a realy great crust for the cups by lining the entire cup with the browns) 

Wrap bacon around the hash brown (or inside the crust if filling inside of muffin tin with hash browns) 

Whisk together egg, greek yogurt, salt and pepper

Portion evenly into each muffin cup 

Add equal parts cheese to each cup (I used chunks of fresh mozzarella) 

Pop in the oven for about 20 minutes 

Carefully remove from muffin tin

Plate and enjoy! Yet another great recipe for breakfast, breakfast for dinner, or a single-sized serving for group brunch! 

 

 

Super Easy, Super Cheesy Tortilla Pizza!

When the (mid-autmn) moon hit’s your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore.

(Sorry. Really. I’m sorry.)

Ingredients

2 flour tortillas
Marinara sauce
Shredded mozzarella
Pepperoni
1 eggplant
1 zucchini
Olive oil
Balsamic
Salt
Pepper
Basil Flakes

Make It Happen

Cut the eggplant and zucchini

Cover in olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper

Cook it up!

While that’s going, on a cooling rack on top of a baking tray, lay out one flour tortilla

Cover in marinara sauce (about 2-3tbs)

When eggplant and zucchini are done, put on tortilla (I didn’t use all of the veggies I cooked, just made a thin layer)

Cover in cheese

Toss on some pepperoni

Top with second flour tortilla

Put some marinara on that

And some cheese

And some pepperoni

And some more cheese

And some basil flakes

Pop that work of art in the oven for about 15 minutes

Plate and stuff your face!

Baked Avocado Fries (with Parmesan)

Uh-oh. Somebody better call the Avocado Lady…cuz’ she’s ’bout to get real busy. These are crazy good. Crazy. Good.

Ingredients

1 avocado, ripe
2 eggs
Bread crumbs (I got mine from Ole, but I know Avocado Lady and City Shop have them as well)
Flour (I found some great organic flour from City Shop for 21 kuai)
Salt
Pepper
Generic all-seasoner
Basil flakes
Grated parmesan (optional topper)

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 230C or 450F

Crack two eggs and whisk in a small bowl

On a plate, spread about 1/2 cup of flour

In a slightly larger bowl, put about 1/2 cup of bread crumbs (I seasoned mine with all-seasoner, salt, pepper, and basil flakes)

Slice up that avocado

Coat in flour first

Then the egg

Then the crumbs

Place on cooling rack over cooking tray

Pop those suckers in the oven for about 20 minutes

Try not to go crazy as the smell permeates your apartment

Remove from oven, plate, serve, and be addicted.

I’m sorry and you’re welcome, all at the same time.

(Original recipe)

Brie and Fig Pastry Puffs

Here is another recipe with pre-made dough from Fields. This time it’s puff pastry. I really had no idea what was going to happen when I made this one, and so made two “trial” puffs before subjecting guests to my experimentation. These really are super easy and delicious with a touch of late-20s class. Oh, and they only require three (!) ingredients!

Ingredients

Puff pastry dough
Brie cheese
Dried fig

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 175C or 350F

Roll out dough and cut into 1.5″ squares

Cut brie and dried fig into slices

Place one piece of brie and one piece of fig in center of pastry

Fold the corners of the dough together and pinch

(When you bake them, the dough will puff and spread apart at the top, but it won’t completely flatten!)

Pop in oven for about 15-20 minutes (you should be able to see all the layers of the dough when they are ready to come out of the oven)

Plate and serve! (best served fresh and warm with melty cheese, but can easily be  enjoyed later!)

I served with a side of cranberry port jam I found at Ole, and I can’t even begin to describe how good it was. Next time, I am going to make it with the brie, fig, a slice of turkey and the jam! Hello Thanksgiving!

Balsamic Bacon Wrapped Scallops

This one is pretty straightforward….

Ingredients

Fresh scallops
Bacon
Balsamic vinegar
Olive oil

Make it Happen

Wrap fresh scallops  in uncooked bacon.

Marinate in balsamic and olive oil for about 30 minutes

Cook evenly on both sides over medium heat

Plate and serve warm!

Seriously, that’s it. Perfect for that last dish prep so they are warm and fresh when guests arrive! Nothing more welcoming than the smell of freshly cooked bacon…

Mozzarella and Tomato Quiche Cups

For as simple as it is, dough is surprisingly hard to come by in Shanghai. I’ve been scouring the city for a pillsbury-like premade soft dough, but have found nothing. Fields carries four types of pre-made dough; cookie (sadly, I can’t recommend it), quiche, short crust dough (very similar to quiche dough) and puff pastry. I ordered both the quiche and the puff for a gathering I had this weekend, and they seem like solid options for those in the market for dough.

Ingredients

Quiche dough
Eggs (I used 6 eggs and made six cups)
Greek yogurt (about 1/2 cup)
Mozzarella
Cherry tomato, sliced
Salt
Pepper

Make It Happen

Preheat oven to 180C or 360F

Grease muffin tin cups

Line each cup with a thin layer of dough

Beat together eggs, greek yogurt, mozzarella, and tomato

Salt and pepper to taste

Evenly distribute among muffin tin cups

Pop in oven for about 20-25 minutes

Plate and serve! Can be served warm or cold.

A really easy way to make six individual portions at one time, it’s perfect for entertaining or group brunch.
 

Saturday Night Round Up: Balsamic Tomato Soup with Eggplant and Bacon

I usually arrange my grocery delivery for Sunday mornings, and I have a goal to finish off the rest of the previous week’s groceries before then. I’m calling this series the “Saturday Night Round Up”…essentially what I end up making with the food in my fridge before new groceries come. I think the first installation was pretty successful…

Ingredients

Marinara sauce (about a cup and a half)
Skim milk (about a cup)
Greek yogurt (plain, unsweetened)
Eggplant (I had three, small)
Cherry tomatoes (I had about ten good ones left)
Bacon (I had four slices…I was clearly not eating enough bacon this week. The shame.)
Olive oil
Balsamic
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt
Pepper

Make It Happen

Cut the eggplant and tomato

(I usually slice eggplant rounds and then quarter those. Makes for a quick cook through.)

Pour marinara sauce, greek yogurt, and skim milk into large pot

Stir until well mixed (don’t put on the heat just yet)

Saute minced garlic in pan with olive oil

Put in eggplant and tomato, top with olive oil and stir well

Cook all the way through, adding any desired spices

Add to marinara base, turn heat to medium

Cut bacon into small pieces (bite sized)

Fry in pan, and add balsamic half way through

(The balsamic mixed with the salty, fatty bacon added a dreamy sweetness to the soup)

Add to soup, mix well

Let simmer until thoroughly heated

Bowl, beer, and Daily Show

Happy Saturday Night!