With Christmas cooking done and a bunch of Yuzu limes on my hands, I decided to make some Yuzugettes and

mendiants to wrap up a good first year for my little Yuzus.

 

See how she grew over the months 

 

 

 

And then she got peeled, julienned, blanched, coated with sugar syrup... poor thing :-)

 

 Some went to the mendiants...

 

 

and some were enrobed in chocolate (the lucky yuzugettes:-)

 

 

 

NB: It's always a good idea to save the pretty boxes :-)

 

 

 

 

 

This is my first 'Vin Chaud' and I am so glad I finally made it!  Even with the left over on the second day, I can 'smell' the bouquet and the orange/lemon taste super while the vin chaud over ice is just as delicious :-)

 

INGREDIENTS:

- 2 bottles of wine (150ml)

- 150 gr brown sugar

- 1 lemon (sliced)

- 1 orange (sliced)

- 2 cinnamon sticks

- 5 star anises

- 10 cloves

- 1 nutmeg nut

- 1 vanilla pod

- 2 bay leaves

(optional: some baies genievre - juniper berries - I didn't have any - nor any anis sauvage)

 

PREPARATION:

- Simmer over low heat or in a crockpot for 1 hour +, the longer the sweeter.

- Serve hot  ............  or the next day for breakfast over ice YUM ! :-)

 

 

 

This is adapted from chef Phan's recipe from  the famous Slanted Door SF.   Instead of serving the 'shaking beef' with the traditional cresson salad and salt and pepper dip, I served it on  a bed of mache also known as corn salad, rapunzel, field salad, or lamb’s lettuce. I like its mild and slightly crunchy taste, and it goes superbly with the marinated red onions and chef Phan's vinaigrette sauce.

 

What I like best about this recipe though is that there is no need for 'oyster sauce' which is often called for in other

bo luc lac recipe, yet the sugar/oil/salt marinate gives it a caramelized look and taste and the vinaigrette sauce is brilliant !

 

 

 

 

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

1 lb. beef tenderloin, trimmed    and cut into 1" cubes

1.2 medium red onion sliced

3 scallions, cut to 1" lengths (optional)

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

 

Marinade::
 - 2 tbsp. canola oil
 - 1 tbsp. sugar
 - 2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
-  a pinch Kosher salt, to taste

- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

 

Vinaigrette:

- 1⁄4 cup rice vinegar

- 1⁄4 cup soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. fish sauce
- Juice of 2 limes or 1 Meyer lemon

 

Salad:

- 1 bag of Mache from Trader Joe's

- 1/2 medium red onion very thinly sliced and marinated in some Japanese seasoned vinegar 15-20' before serving..

- 1 persian cucumber sliced and marinated in some Japanese seasoned vinegar 15-20' before serving

- 1 medium tomato sliced

 

PREPARATION:

1. Toss the beef with the marinade t. Cover bowl and set aside to let marinate at room temperature for 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight.

2.  Dress a platter with the mache,. Drain the marinated sliced red onions and sprinkle on the mache salad. Drain the marinated cucumber and place on the mache salad along with the tomatoes and set aside .

 

3. n a medium bowl, whisk together the vinaigrette.  I only used 1/3 for 1lb. of beef and refrigerate the rest for another time.

4.. Drain beef, pat dry with paper towels, and discard marinade.  Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a flat-bottomed wok or a 12" nonstick skillet over high heat. When oil begins to smoke, add the beef cubes. Cook, flipping once, until well browned and medium rare, 3–4 minutes. Add half of the scallions and red onions and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted, 30 seconds. Add the vinaigrette (1/3) and butter; toss to combine. Spoon beef and sauce over platter of salad.

Optional Lime and Salt Dipping sauce:
In a small bowl, make a dipping sauce by whisking together the remaining sugar and pepper with the lime juice; season dipping sauce with salt and serve aside the bo luc lac.

SERVES 2

 

Another recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com's Orange, Walnut, Gorgonzola and Mixed Greens Salad with Fresh Citrus Vinaigrette.  I used Cuties instead of oranges. What's cuties? Well, they are these cute hybrid fruit that's a cross between a sweet orange and a Chinese mandarin, sometimes called clementines as well I think.  They added a light citrusy taste to the salad which is definitely in my cooking repertoire now :-)

Why late summer rolls and not spring rolls? ... because I started making them in late summer for our after- golf -practice-lunch-in-the-garden with chi KA and Lisa :-)  The first time we made them with the traditional vietnamese rice noodle (bun') and this time with green tea soba noodle ... and they were ... spectacular if I may say so  :-)



INGREDIENTS:
Makes about 18 summer rolls
- Albacore Tuna (1 big fillet :0))
- 3/4 fuji apple
- 1 avocado
- 2 small cucumbers (persian)
- 2 small heads of lettuce
- 1 bundle of green tea soba noodle
-  Rice paper wrap

PREPARATION:
1. Sear the tuna and cut into strips
2. Clean and cut the stem off the lettuce
3. Cut the cucumber, fuji apple and avocado into chopstick size julienne
4. Boil the soba noodle al dente
5. Place everything on the wet paper rice (you know what I mean ... I hope :-))
6. Keep on rolling ...
7. Cover the rolls with a wet paper towel to keep them from drying out until ready to serve
8. To serve, cut the rolls in half and serve with some soy sauce (I like the one with ponzu - japanese lime and bonito flakes) and shiracha hot sauce .. YUM!