In the chaotic kitchen of a recipe developer, you get a food blog called FoodMayhem.
I'm Jessica, an Asian-American, born and raised in NYC, and that's Lon, my Jewish, white husband. While professionally trained as a French culinary- and pastry chef, many of FoodMayhem recipes are my attempt to preserve and share authentic Chinese and Taiwanese recipes learned from my mom. We don't eat Chinese food every day, so you'll get a little bit of anything we find delicious enough to share: from our Eastern European side; recipes and techniques learned from my restaurant days; restaurant reviews, food travel tips; and a few other juicy bits along the way. Welcome to FoodMayhem!
Manasi, over at Kiss the Cook, wrote a post about Magic Masala potato chips, which are made by Lays but distributed in India. She just recently found it in NJ and then she sent me some. Is that the sweetest thing ever? Well, the least I could do is have her as this week’s Weekend Shout Out, but that’s really not enough to repay her. I’ll have to think of something better.
When I’m sick, I start using the microwave to cook. It’s just a lot less effort and quick. I can return to sitting on the couch in no time. Luckily, I had artichokes in the fridge. You just cut off the stem and about 1″ off the top. Place it in a microwave safe bowl with about 1/4″ of water, cover and microwave for about 3 minutes. Rest for 2 minutes, turn it over, cover, and microwave for another 2 minutes. This was for 1 medium sized artichoke. Add some time for larger artichokes or if you want to heat two or three at a time.
While you are microwaving, you can make this easy dip.
Remember the other day when we made the Coconut Mango Rice? Well, we had several mangoes left over, chilling out in our fridge (since we were away).
Lon’s mom and brother got us 10 ounce mini trifle dishes. So instead of throwing yogurt and fruit in a bowl, like I’ve been doing most mornings, I decided to make a Breakfast Trifle. Why spend the extra time and effort? Because treating yourself to something special makes you feel good. It’s like wearing sexy underwear, even if no one will see it. Secondly, it looks like a dessert. Not only is that fun, but mental satisfaction allows most people to eat less. Yet, the Breakfast Trifle can be as healthy as you want it to be.
I love Tzatziki and make it pretty often in the summer. It’s so refreshing, a perfect way to balance spicy dishes or meats coming off a barbecue grill. After making it in many different ways, I’ve decided on a recipe: I chose to use kirby cucumbers because the regular or garden cucumbers can be watery and flavorless (at least in NY). I specified Fage yogurt because it is my favorite yogurt and I would not use any other yogurt to make Tzatziki. If you want to try other yogurts, use a strained yogurt or ones as thick as Fage. American yogurts are too loose and will not work.
