Chocolate Pie

The Ronald McDonald House in Charlottesville provides low cost housing (a "home away from home") to families whose children are seeking medical treatment at the UVA Hospital.  I had the opportunity to cook for these families while they try to make it through a very difficult time, and decided to make a dessert.  

Cooking for people you've never met before is kind of difficult, because you never know what they're going to like, or not like.  I settled for chocolate because with the exception of a few really really confused people, most everyone likes it.

You could make this pie with a whipped cream topping, but I thought meringue was a lighter alternative.  It's not the prettiest thing I've ever made, but I needed the foil pie tin for easy transportation :)

Candied Nuts

A while back, my friend Laura asked me if ever roasted almonds or candied them.  As a matter of fact, this is one of my favorite recipes from back in high school.  We never had many sweets around the house, but we always had snacky foods, like almonds and walnuts.  This is potentially one of the easiest recipes ever! 

I add in some cayenne for a little kick without the smoky flavor of chili powder, or other pepper powders.  The spice blend is up to you, but cinnamon and nutmeg is always a goody!  You can also omit salt, but I am of the opinion that sweet always tastes better when it has something salty to pair with it :)

Candied Nuts

:: 1/2 cup nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts), roasted preferably
:: 2 tbsp granulated sugar
:: 1/2 tsp cinnamon
:: 1/2 tsp nutmeg
:: 1/2 tsp salt
:: dash cayenne pepper, to taste
:: 1/2 tsp water
:: 1 tsp vanilla extract

In a small skillet over medium heat, add all ingredients except for vanilla extract.  Add JUST ENOUGH water to moisten all the dry ingredients so that they stick to the almonds.  Keep stirring.  Keep stirring.  You are almost done when the almonds lose their shininess and become dull and dry looking.  When you're almost at that point, throw in the vanilla extract - this will cook off in no time flat.

Remove from heat, let the almonds cool; they will crisp up as they do.

Cold Sesame Noodles

Growing up, one of my favorite summer lunches was cold sesame noodles.  My parents were never big believers of air conditioning (or heat in the wintertime, for that matter...) so a cool noodle dish was always a nice treat to have.  The only cooking involved is for the noodles, the rest is just mixed up in a bowl, ready to eat!

Cold Sesame Noodles
(serves 6-8)

:: 1 box long pasta (soba, spaghetti, egg noodles...NOT chinese wheat noodles; these will fall apart)
:: 1 cucumber, julienned (cut into long thin strips)
:: 2 scallions, thinly sliced (I wish I had these on hand, but didn't!)
:: handful chopped cilantro (optional)
:: 2 tsp white sesame seeds (optional)

Ceviche

I chalk up my ceviche craving to too much Food Network viewing this month.  (Chopped?  The Great Food Truck Race?  The Next Food Network Star?  That could be ME!  Not.)

I'll be completely honest - I've never ordered ceviche before.  When I was younger, it used to scare me, and I guess it just hasn't come up on many menus recently.

Ceviche is a South/Central American raw fish preparation that is "cooked", or more accurately, denatured in acid such as lime or lemon juice.  It's great in the summertime because it's cold, light, and refreshing.  There are concerns about the safety of eating raw fish, but given the amount of sushi and sashimi I eat regularly anyway, I figured it wasn't too big of a deal.  Diphyllobothrium, please don't eat me!

I asked the fishmonger at the grocery store for his recommendations on which types of fish were the most appropriate for this style of cooking.  Online I had read that halibut, sea bass, red snapper, or other ocean fish were my best bet - but they were also the most expensive.  He told me that he couldn't recommend that I eat ANYTHING raw, but after I assured him that I was going to do it anyway, he suggested that I stick with frozen fish, which are presumably parasite-free from the freezing process.  I would have loved to get my hands on some halibut, but it was $15 a pound.  I went for a cheaper alternative, cod.

I trust Rick Bayless implicitly for all recipes Mexican, South and Central American.  Not only does he seem like a really cool dude, he's also a smart guy and spent a lot of his formative years studying anthropology and cooking in Mexico. 

If the idea of raw fish, or just fish in general grosses you out, this actually made a delicious salad.  Just cut the lime juice down to 1 lime and prepare everything the same but omit the fish.

Ceviche

adapted from Rick Bayliss

(serves 6-8 as an appetizer)

Downtown Thai Spiciness Challenge

Lee has been living in a covetous state for the last week since his roommate Swapneil completed Downtown Thai's eating-of-really-really-spicy-food challenge.

Downtown Thai's spiciness scale usually ranges from 1-5, but in order to get your picture on the WALL OF FLAME (doesn't that sound awesome?!), you have to eat a dish of your choosing with a spiciness level of 15. 

The P90x version of the challenge is to order a dish at a level of 50.  Not only do you get a picture on the wall, but you also get to take home a sweet orange polo that has your bragging rights embroidered on the back.  Despite the strongest efforts of the waitresses to dissuade him from doing the level 50 challenge, Lee's resolve to punish his tastebuds stayed strong.  Ed took the 15 challenge; meanwhile, I enjoyed a delicious (and pretty darn spicy!) pad thai with a spiciness level of a mere 2.

Here is Lee armed with many beverages (L->R, whole milk, beer, water) to attack his chili peppers with masaman curry.  And Ed gives it a shot with a spicy green curry!

At the halfway point, he had to pause for a 5 minute break.  Note tearing of eyes and slight sweating.  Milk supplies are critically low. 

Will he be able to do it?!