Hosting My First Cooking Class: Bring on the Nerves

One of my favorite things about cooking is being able to share my passion for food with the people I love, family and friends. Recently, with the creation of this blog, I have been able to extend beyond just friends and family, although, only from behind a computer screen and some pretty pictures. Now that I am finally preparing to host my very own cooking class, this notion of ‘sharing’ has taken on a whole new meaning! (EEK!)

Why the nerves? Not because things typically go wrong or the confidence isn’t there, rather, because they always could go wrong.

Now that the time has come and the classes are only a week away lots of thoughts have come to mind… Is anyone going to come? Is the venue going to work? Are the attendees going to LOVE it? They have to LOVE it, right?

Months of preparation have gone into the creation of “Sushi Making 101”. Whether it be practicing on my family, ‘rolling’ out the details (ha-ha get it?), brushing up on sushi preparation tips, or purchasing more Asian-inspired kitchenware; all the pieces are definitely there. So again, why the nerves?

At the end of the day, I think this feeling is completely normal and I couldn’t be more excited! When you take pride in your work and the ability to succeed, that often comes with some nerves, like anything else. To be able to pull off this cooking class without a hitch would mean that this hobby of mine has really come full circle! I mean who doesn’t LOVE sushi, right?

It will be fine… I think… :-P

Stay tuned!

Here is the link: http://www.prosinthecity.com/event/cooking-classes-washington-dc-11963

Sweet and Sour Thai Noodles

I am officially obsessed with Thai food.  No matter what dish I try, the flavor and fresh taste can never be beat.  This recipe came to me from a friend the other night who recommended that I HAD to try it.  She was right.  Now it is your turn!  Also an aspect of this dish that I love is that it doesn't require making sides or some type of carb, it's all there in the one recipe! If you are a lover of all flavors Asian, this is the dish for you.

As I have noted in other Asian inspired recipes on here, once you purchase some of the staple Asian sauces, you are pretty much good to go on ingredients when it comes to these types of dishes.  Give it a shot!

Sweet and Sour Thai Noodles

1 pound Chicken

2 Leeks, thinly sliced

1/2 a box of Whole-Wheat Spaghetti

1 cup of Shitake Mushrooms

3 cloves of Garlic

2 inches of Ginger Root (or the already pureed ginger that you can keep in your fridge)

1/3 cup Soy Sauce

2 tablespoons of Honey

2 limes (or I use store bought lime juice)

Sriracha (hot sauce) to taste

1 cup shredded romaine 

1 bunch of Cilantro chopped

Bring water to a boil and cook noodles until al dente (whatever the heck that means! ;-))

While that is cooking, heat up some oil in a pan and add your cut up pieces of chicken with salt and pepper to taste.  Once these chicken pieces start to brown a bit, add your chopped leeks, shitake mushrooms, half of your cilantro, garlic and ginger root.  Stir in all the "sauce" ingredients which include sriracha, lime juice, soy sauce, and honey.



Once the noodles are cooked and drain, add the noodles into the pan and stir until they are covered with the sauce and vegetable mixture.  Once the noodles are covered, add in the remaining cilantro and romaine lettuce.  Time to scoop that dish up and serve!

I provided some soy sauce and sriracha on the side, some prefer more than what is called for in this specific recipe.  Whatever you like! :)



This recipe is also an awesome leftover lunch meal.  Unfortunately, we rarely ever have leftovers at our house.  But I love the idea! :)

Asian Chicken Salad

In drafting this recipe I realized this is probably one of my most involved dishes, not necessarily for the time or difficulty level, but the amount of effort it takes to explain! This blog has definitely taught me that I do not follow a step by step process when I cook, and has provided me with the opportunity to be held accountable for what the heck I am doing in the kitchen!

This is THE Asian Chicken Salad.  A favorite at our place.  Full of tons of dynamic ingredients, leafy greens, and flavor, flavor, flavor.  Did I mention the flavor?

This is a step by step on how to wow your friends and family with this healthy ethnic dish!

Asian Chicken Salad:

1-2 pounds of Chicken cut into easy-to-cook strips

3 stalks of Green Onion

1 bunch of Cilantro

1 bunch of Nappa Cabbage (pictured below)

1 bag of Romaine Lettuce

1/2 cup of crushed Almonds

1 package of Oriental or Chicken Ramen (Noodles broken up and packet set aside for dressing)

Dressing:

1 Ramen flavoring packet

3 tablespoons of Oil (vegetable or canola)

A couple squirts of Sriracha Hot Sauce

1 teaspoon of Sesame Oil

1 tablespoon of Soy Sauce

1 tablespoon of Rice Wine Vinegar

First, mix all of the ingredients listed under the dressing section together in a small bowl and whisk together.  Then set aside.

Heat the stove to a medium-high heat.  After seasoning the chicken with salt and pepper, cook 2-3 minutes on either side (depending on how thick the pieces are).  Normally when it is about done I cut it into pieces in the pan.  Set aside.



Next, chop all of the greens.  This includes the scallions, cilantro, and nappa cabbage into small pieces (salad like pieces).  Mix all of these in a bowl with the bag of romaine pieces.



After all of the greens are taken care of, empty the broken up pieces of dry ramen into the same bowl.  Then add the crushed up almonds (easily done with a ziploc bag and a bottle of wine :)



After you have added all of the current ingredients into the bowl, pour all of the dressing into the bowl and add the cut pieces of chicken.  Mix thoroughly with a fork until the dressing covers all of the ingredients completely.  Spoon onto a plate, and SERVE! Your taste buds won't know what hit 'em.



TIP: It may seem like the dressing has a lot of random ingredients.  Luckily, because I cook all sorts of meals with these ingredients I always have them on hand.  If you are someone who is interested in trying all different type of asian inspired meals I would definitely invest ($15) in the asian sauce staples; rice wine vinegar, sriracha, sesame oil, and soy sauce.