Pad See Ew

We both looove Pad See Ew so it was no surprise when I stumbled upon a recipe I saved it hoping that Michael would be on board with me to try this challenging endeavor, making not only the dish but the noodles as well from scratch. When I told him about it he was just as excited so we gave it a shot this weekend. While  it took a lot of time and ingredients (and we may never make the noodles from scratch again) the result far exceeded our expectations. If you have several hours to spare, try out the noodle recipe as well, but otherwise buy some noodles and stir fry up some pad see ew. You will not be disappointed!

Ingredients for Rice Noodle Recipe

1 cup rice flour

1 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup tapioca flour (tapioca starch is the same thing)

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 cups lukewarm water

about 1/4 cup vegetable or peanut oil

In a large mixing bowl whisk the rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca flour and salt. Stir in the water and the canola oil and whisk well to combine all ingredients. Set aside at room temperature for about 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes are up, heat a large skillet (see picture above) and re-whisk the bowl of liquid to ensure ingredients are well combined (you should do this each time you are going to make a new crepe). Pour about 1/2 cup of the liquid mixture into the pan and make sure it spreads throughout the pan like a crepe. Let it cook at a medium to low heat with a cover on top for about 3 to 4 minutes until it hardens a bit and then let it cook an additional 2 minutes.

Using a spatula (or two) slowly remove the crepe from the pan and place it on a cookie sheet; try to avoid tearing (although if it tears a little bit it's okay). The picture above is the only one we were able to get onto the cookie sheet perfectly.

Once the crepe has cooled (we used fans to speed the process) cut noodles into desired thickness. Be careful about overlapping the crepes or not waiting for them to cool completely as they have a tendency to stick together. Put them on a plate and set aside. Repeat process until all of batter has been cooked and made into noodles.

Pad See Ew Ingredients

1 package of firm tofu (or you can use the meat of your choice)

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon peanut oil, divided

broccoli (we used about a cup)

eggplant (we used about 1/3 of the eggplant)

8 oz flat rice noodles, soaked in lukewarm water (if you didn't use the recipe above)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 egg (or 2 eggs if the egg is your favorite part, like me)

2-3 tablespoons soy sauce

2-3 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

First, combine the tofu, fish sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil in a large bowl or Tupperware container. Allow it to marinate in the fridge for about 15-30 minutes. Next, heat a wok (or large skillet) on the highest heat and throw in a tiny splash of oil. Toss in the broccoli and eggplant  and a splash of fish sauce. Cook and stir until eggplant is cooked thoroughly. Place vegetables in a bowl or Tupperware with a cover over them to keep them warm. 

Add a little bit more oil to the pan as well as the noodles, another splash of fish sauce and about a tablespoon of soy sauce mixing everything together well. Cook, stirring frequently, until the noodles are cooked through. Remove them from the pan and set aside, covering to keep warm, as well. 

Add another splash of oil to the pan and throw in the garlic and the tofu. Flip the tofu and cook until it has browned on all sides  and then move it to the side of the pan. Crack the egg in the middle (or side) of the pan. Let it sit for a few seconds and then stir everything together.

Add the veggies back into the pan and stir. Throw in the noodles and continue to stir. Add soy sauce and rice vinegar to taste as well as the brown sugar. Enjoy!

Homemade Pasta

Michael got me a pasta maker for Hanukkah and it is the best present ever! I keep telling him it's the gift that keeps on giving. We were able to try it out a couple of months ago when Michael was in town and it was a lot of fun and made some pretty good pasta. I decided to bring it with me when I visited him in New York. We found a basic pasta recipe that is a keeper. 

Ingredients

1 egg, beaten

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons water

Once the egg is beaten, combine the flour and salt and create a well in the middle of the mixture. Pour the egg into the well and mix all of the ingredients together. Once it has formed into dough, knead it for about 3 or 4 minutes on a floured surface.

Next use a pasta maker (or a rolling pin) to flatten and thin out the dough. 

Next, use a pasta maker (or a knife) to cut the pasta into desired shape/width.

You can stop here and freeze the dough for future use or cook it in boiling water for about 5 minutes or until pasta is thoroughly cooked.

Enjoy!

M-Thanks again for the pasta maker <3

Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Truffles

After making the healthy date truffles I was in the mood for some chocolate. I had found a similar healthy truffle recipe with chocolate peanut butter so I thought I'd give it a try. They're easy to make and pretty good. They are similar to how I would imagine chocolate peanut butter flavored oatmeal would taste.

Ingredients

1 cup of oats (I used oat bran)

1/2 cup of all natural peanut butter

generous 1/2 cup honey

3 little packets of sweetener (stevia, truvia, etc.)

2 tablespoons of cocoa powder

Directions

First, pour the oats into the processor and mix. Then, add the rest of the ingredients and process until it becomes a doughy consistency.

Roll dough into whatever size balls you'd like. You can stop here and eat OR if you're like me and don't think it's quite chocolaty enough you can melt some chocolate chips in the microwave and drizzle the chocolate on top.

You can eat these suckers right away or put them in the fridge to harden the chocolate and the dough a bit.

Enjoy!

Healthy Date Truffles

I recently found a recipe for molasses spice cookie dough truffles and was eager to give them a try. I ended up having some free time last night so I started getting all of the ingredients out. I was just about ready to throw everything in the food processor when I realized our molasses had long since expired, 4 years to be exact. I guess that shows just how often we use it. I was determined to use the dates that I had just finished pitting so I came up with my own version of the truffles. They're super easy to prepare and make a tasty snack or dessert.

Ingredients

1/2 cup of oat bran (or you can use oats)

1/2 cup medjool dates, pitted

1/4 cup pecans

1 generous tablespoon honey

about 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

I added a few drops of vanilla stevia but feel free to skip this step and add more honey if the truffles aren't sweet enough.

Directions

First, add the oat bran (or oats) to the food processor and mix until it's closer to a flour consistency. Next, add the dates and pecans and mix until crumbly. Finally, add honey, cinnamon and the optional stevia and pulse until everything is well mixed. Form into balls (whatever size you'd like). Feel free to eat right away or refrigerate to harden them a little bit.

Enjoy!