My mom included quinoa in my last care package, and I was pretty stoked to see it.  Brown rice is fine, but I’m definitely starting to get a little tired of it, and I want to play around a little more with different whole grains.

I found some fresh edamame at the store the other day, and since then I’ve never seen it there again, so I guess I just got really lucky!  As usual when I need inspiration, I turned to my google reader. I found a great recipe for edamame salad with shiso and lemon, two things that are easy for me to find. To make a more filling and balanced meal, I added some quinoa (and cucumber for crunch) and the result was this surprisingly filling (and really healthy!) salad.

The lemon was strong but not overpowering, and the shiso added a complementary depth to the citrus flavor. Shiso (or perilla) is common in Korean and Japanese cooking, and you should be able to find it at an Asian grocery store, or possibly the farmers market. If you can’t find it, a little bit of mint might work (since they’re in the same family), but I haven’t tried it out myself.

Recipe:
(adapted from The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen via 101 Cookbooks)

1 1/2 cups quinoa
3 cups water
1 cup cooked, shelled edamame
1 cucumber, seeded and diced
1/2 cup chopped shiso, loosely packed
juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp (loosely packed) lemon zest
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp maple syrup
pinch salt
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Put the water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the quinoa, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork, then transfer to a bowl.
Add cucumber, shiso leaf, and edamame, and toss to combine.
Whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, rice vinegar, maple syrup, and salt.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad and stir.
Add 1-2 tbsp olive oil and mix well to serve.  Garnish with some thinly sliced shiso.

Try not to let the fact that this soup has two of the world’s most-hated vegetables in it deter you.

Speaking of hating vegetables, that is high on my list of Things I Just Don’t Understand. Vegetables are incredibly healthy, cheap, and can be cooked in so many different ways I just don’t see how anyone could flat-out refuse to eat them. (Also on that list: people who give their children ridiculously spelled variations of common names, the appeal of Ed Hardy T-shirts, and why Premier League football isn’t more popular in the US, just to name a few).

A few days ago I saw a reference to agvolemono soup on some website (I can’t remember which of the 23098 food blogs I read while bored at work it was) and I knew it sounded like something I would like. It’s creamy, lemony soup with rice that doesn’t require any heavy cream or unusual ingredients. The name alone was intriguing enough to send me on a lengthy google search to peruse dozens of different recipes for it.

Essentially, all you do is heat some chicken stock, whip up some eggs (or just yolks, depending who you talk to) with some lemon juice, then stir it all together with some rice. I wanted to pack mine with vegetables though, and broccoli and spinach seemed like they would go nicely with the creaminess and lemon flavor.

And there you have agvolemono with broccoli and spinach!

Recipe:
6 cups chicken broth
2 eggs
juice of 2 lemons
2 cups cooked rice
2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 small head broccoli, cut into florets
salt

Heat the chicken broth to a simmer.
Whisk the eggs with the lemon juice in a medium bowl.
Whisk 2 cups of the broth into the egg mixture very gradually (you don’t want scrambled eggs!)
Transfer the eggs into the broth and continue stirring.
Stir in the rice and vegetables, heat through, and season with salt to taste.

My husband is incredibly easy-going when it comes to my cooking. Usually when I ask what he wants for dinner, he says “whatever you want to make” and eats it without complaint (he’s a keeper). So when he offers suggestions, I listen. Last night his only request was for something “not Asian.” Since we’ve spent the last 5 months living in Asian countries, I can see why he was ready for some variety.

For the first time since we moved to Korea, I bought dairy products and used them to put together this simple pasta. The cream sauce (which tecnhically doesn’t even have cream) is very light and has a healthy dose of lemon zest for flavor. I used the vegetables that looked best at the market, but this would work with just about any you have on hand.

Recipe:
1/2 pound dried fusili pasta
1 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 cups broccoli florets
1 zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced thinly
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp salt
pepper

Boil the pasta as directed on the package.
Meanwhile heat the oil over medium-high and saute the vegetables until tender.
Drain the pasta and toss with the vegetables. Cover to keep warm.
To make the cream sauce, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium and add the flour, stirring well.
Cook the butter-flour mixture for about 2 minutes, then add the milk little by little, stirring it in completely between additions. Add the salt, pepper, and lemon zest and cook, stirring constantly. The sauce should begin to thicken – if not, turn the heat up slightly but continue to stir.
When the sauce coats the back of a spoon, taste and adjust the seasonings. Pour over the pasta and vegetables and toss well.

One of the first things we made in that class was stir fry. And for months, I stuck with the recipe I learned. It was good, but basic, and it got pretty old. That’s one of my gripes about stir-fry. Too often, it’s just the same mix of vegetables with the same flavor of sauce.

But with my extraordinarily limited batterie de cuisine, stir fry is one of the things I can actually make, so I have made it my personal mission to come up with more interesting stir fry. Like this one.

I love the broccoli and almond combination, and I dressed it up with a lemon-based sauce. It’s a great, simple stir fry, and it’s just crying out to be served over brown rice.

A little note about lemon zest… I do not have a zester. I don’t even have a grater. But I improvised a little and came up with passable zest using just my knife. Check it out!

Cut thin pieces of peel, avoiding the white part as much as possible

Cut those pieces into thin strips

Chop the strips into little pieces. It doesn’t look as pretty as lemon zest, but if you chop the pieces fine enough, you get the flavor and don’t notice that you’re eating lemon peel.

Recipe:
Sauce:
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbps broth or water
1 tsp cornstarch

Whisk together all ingredients and set aside.

Stir Fry:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 lb boneless-skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 a small yellow onion, chopped
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 large head broccoli, cut into florets
1/3 cup almonds, cut in half lengthwise

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
Add the chicken, onion, and ginger, and cook, stirring, until chicken is cooked through.
Add the broccoli florets and a few tablespoons of water. Cook until broccoli is crisp-tender.
Add the sauce and almonds, and stir until sauce has thickened and coats the chicken and broccoli.
Serve over brown rice.

The other day my neighbor made a fantastic salad that I loved so much I decided to make it my mission to improve my salad-making skills.  I turned to my cookbooks for a recipe and some inspiration, and I found this gem in an Indian cookbook.

Cucumber is always refreshing, and with peanuts and coconut added into the mix, the result is a crunchy and satisfying salad.  The dressing is outrageously simple and marries two of my favorite flavors, lemon and cumin.

(adapted from Bombay Cafe by Neela Paniz)
1 English cucumber, seeded and diced
1/3 cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
3 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut (or fresh grated coconut if you have it)
1 serrano chile, seeds and stem removed, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
about 6 leaves romaine lettuce, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces

In a small bowl, stir together the lemon juice, cumin, sugar, and salt.
In a large bowl, combine the cucumber, serrano, cilantro, and coconut.
Pour in the lemon juice mixture and toss well.  Set aside 15 minutes at room temperature.
Add the peanuts and lettuce and toss until the dressing is evenly distributed.

Doubts aside, I went ahead and made it because I didn’t want to flake out on the recipe exchange.  And……..It’s amazing!  So much more than the sum of its parts, this dessert has a bright citrus flavor and a unique but satisfying texture, almost like extra-dense cappuccino foam that melts in your mouth.  Also, the graham cracker crust… I can’t turn down any dessert with a graham cracker crust!  I would definitely make it again.

[from Company's Coming No-Bake Desserts]
About 2/3 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 3 oz box of lemon-flavored Jell-O
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water
1 12 oz can evaporated milk, chilled in the freezer for about 2 hours
1 cup granulated sugar
juice of one lemon

Sprinkle most of the graham cracker crumbs over the bottom of an un-greased 13×9 pan. 
Dissolve the Jell-O in boiling water, and stir in cold water.  Chill until syrupy.
Beat the chilled evaporated milk until soft peaks form.  Add the sugar and lemon juice, and beat again until quite stiff.  Beat in thickened gelatin.  
Pour into the pan (on top of the crumbs) and smooth the top.  Sprinkle with the remaining crumbs and chill until firm.

A simple bowl of hummus with some assorted crudites for dipping may not be the flashiest appetizer around, but it is so simple and satisfying.  Underneath the lemon zest and cilantro garnish, this hummus has just the right balance of flavors and a nice smooth texture.  Play around with the amounts of garlic, lemon, cumin, and coriander until you find a ratio that suits your tastes.