Psalms 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Biscotti

To say I've been preoccupied lately would be an understatement. But, I feel like a new beginning and a new food post is needed! I haven't made anything for a while, basically subsisting on leftovers. I also haven't been eating regularly... but that will change! This is a cookie recipe I have used quite a few times. It's a favorite of my parents, which is saying a lot, because they don't usually like sweets!

Biscotti

1/4 c. olive oil
3/4 c. white sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 - 1 cup dried fruit (cranberries, chopped apricots, etc.)
1 - 1 1/2 cup chopped nuts (almond, pecan, pistachio, etc.)

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F
2. In a large bowl, mix oil and sugar until well blended. Add in vanilla and almond extracts. Beat in eggs. 
3. Combine flour, salt, and baking powder, then stir into liquid mixture. Stir in dried fruit and nuts by hand. 
4. On a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper or greased aluminum foil, form two logs*. 
5. Bake for 35 minutes in preheated oven, or until logs are light brown. 
6. Remove from oven and cool logs for 10 minutes. Then slice logs into 3/4 inch wide bars. 
7. Place logs on their side, and bake at 275 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes, until cookies are dry.

* A note on the "logs"- the first time I made biscotti, I had no idea what "form into logs" meant. Basically, you want to pat the sticky dough into two rectangular prism. I usually form "logs" with the following approximate dimensions: 4 inches wide and 1 inch thick, and length can be variable, whatever fits on your cookie sheet. Another tip when forming logs is to wet your hands with cold water before handling the dough. The dough is very sticky. When the dough starts to stick to your hands, re-dip hands in water. 

I love this biscotti recipe because: 1) there is no butter involved, so it's a healthier cookie but still has great taste, 2) there are lots of different combinations of nuts and fruit and other fillings to experiment with (chocolate chips, lemon zest, Heath bar chunks, etc.), and 3) these cookies keep very well. While cookies are always best fresh out of the oven, these biscotti cookies are really amazing even a few days afterwards. I usually take a couple to school the next day after baking, and they brighten my day up! 

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower

When my mom gifted me with a head of cauliflower a few weeks ago, I wasn't too sure what to do. I never used to love cauliflower when my mom would steam it for dinner. It was always predictable and boring. However, this recipe has turned me into a true cauliflower lover. It's super simple (takes minutes to prepare), which gives it bonus points with me. And it tastes delicious!

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
2 tbsp garlic, minced
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Toss cauliflower with olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Transfer to oven-safe baking dish and cover dish with foil.
3. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Sprinkle grated cheese on top before serving. 

I served this to my friend for dinner, and she suggested adding other toppings, such as crumbled bacon bits. I think that would be a fantastic addition- who doesn't love bacon? A simple mess-free, easy clean-up way of tossing the cauliflower with olive oil, etc. is to use a large plastic zip-lock bag. Just add all the ingredients in, and shake the bag to coat the cauliflower. Best part is... you can simply toss the zip-lock bag afterwards! Experiment and enjoy!

Legit Chicken Katsu

This is a delicious, simple katsu recipe! My friend Ann shared it with me, and it tastes just like the restaurant version! 

Chicken Katsu

Chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

Egg, beaten

1/3 amount flour and 2/3 amount panko

Frying oil

Bulldog katsu sauce for dipping

1. Pound the chicken breasts with a meat mallet. Generously salt and pepper both sides of each chicken breast. 

2. Dip each breast in the egg mixture, then dredge each breast in the flour/panko mixture. Coat thoroughly. 

3. Heat frying oil in nonstick pan. Once oil is hot, place chicken breasts in oil. Flip breasts over halfway through and cook until there is no pink in the middle of the chicken. Cooking time may vary depending on thickness of chicken breast. 

4. Enjoy with katsu sauce over rice.

When I made this at home, I used peanut oil, which supposedly is healthier when frying. I used enough oil to cover the chicken breast when placed in the pan. Tongs are handy when placing and turning the chicken in the hot oil! Also, I used a paper towel to soak up any excess oil after pulling the chicken out the oil. 

The katsu sauce (shown below) is amazing; it tastes very similar to the sauce at Ichi Bento's! I was able find it at a local Asian store.