Hawaiian pork taco

5 radishes

1 red onion

1 can 4oz pineapple tidbits in juice

1 lemon

4 Tb sour cream

1 lb. ground pork

1 Tb. soutwest spice blend

6 corn tortillas

small grouping of cilantro

Wash and dry produce. Trim and thinly slice radishes. Zest and quarter lemon. Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion. Drain pineapple, reserving juice. In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine radishes, juice from half the lemon, ¼ of the onion, and a big pinch of salt; cover with plastic wrap. Microwave until veggies are slightly pink, 30-45 seconds.  In a separate small bowl, combine sour cream with lemon zest. Add water 1 tsp at a time until mixture reaches a drizzling consistency. Season with salt and pepper.  Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add pineapple and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until browned and caramelized, 3-4 minutes.  Turn off heat; remove from pan. Wipe out pan.  Heat a drizzle of oil in same pan over medium-high heat. Add remaining onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until softened, 4-6 minutes.  Add pork and Southwest Spice. Cook, breaking up into pieces, until browned and cooked through, 4-6 minutes. Stir in caramelized pineapple and reserved pineapple juice until everything is saucy and combined. While pork cooks, wrap tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave until warm and pliable, 30 seconds or gently toast them in a frying pan. Divide tortillas between plates; fill with pork mixture, lemon crema, and as many pickled veggies (draining first) as you like. Pick cilantro leaves from stems; tear leaves and sprinkle over tacos. Serve with remaining lemon wedges on the side.

Miso salmon

It wasn't bad, it just wasn't what I was in the mood for. Also, I just happened to have all these ingredients already (minus the edamame, which I bought because they are cheap) so it wasn't a "special meal project", but if it was I probably would be a bit disappointed.

• 2 Tb. low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 Tb. minced peeled fresh ginger
• 1 Tb. seasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. hoisin sauce 
• 1 tsp. packed light brown sugar 
• 1 pound salmon, skinned and cut crosswise into 4 equal pieces 
• 2 tsp. yellow or white miso 
• 4 tsp. mirin (sweet rice wine) 
• 2 Tb. fresh orange juice 
• 1 ⅓ cups frozen shelled edamame 
• ¼ teaspoon salt

 Arrange an oven rack and preheat broiler. Place a layer of aluminum foil on a baking sheet or broiler pan, and coat with cooking spray. Combine the first 5 ingredients (through brown sugar) in a bowl. Place salmon on foil, and brush with half the soy glaze. Broil 3 minutes; remove from oven, and brush with remaining glaze. Broil 3 minutes more or until salmon is flaky. (This step took me closer to 15 minutes, and gave me plenty of time to make the edamame, but I only cut the salmon into 2 pieces 1/2 lb each) Combine miso, mirin, and orange juice in a blender. Boil edamame in lightly salted water for 3–4 minutes or until tender; drain, reserving 4 tablespoons cooking liquid. Add edamame, reserved water, and salt to blender; pulse. (I used steam in a bag edamame, microwaved it, and dumped the bag's contents - with water in the blender and it worked just fine) Arrange 1/3 cup purée on each of 4 plates. Top with 1 piece of salmon, and drizzle with 1/4 teaspoon soy glaze from baking sheet. Served with a box of Uncle Ben's wild rice pilaf.

Soft Caramels

4 C. sugar
2 sticks (1/4 lb) butter
2 C. white Karo syrup (a whole bottle)
2 13 oz cans (carnation) evaporated milk

Use an 8 qt pan or larger. Melt butter, add Karo, then sugar. Cook until boils well. Add milk a little bit at a time. It will over-boil and foam up. This is a delicate and dangerous process, and it may take 15 minutes to add all the milk because you have to go slow. Do not let the mixture stop boiling or it might get weird crystal structures in your finished candy. Stir constantly. After both cans of milk are added, set up your candy thermometer. Cook to 238* for soft caramel and 240* for firm caramel. If you have a problem with sugar creep, you can wash down side of pan with a brush and a little bit of water. They should be done in about 45 minutes. Pour finished caramel into a dish lined with parchment. I used a half sheet (baking pan). If you like thick caramel, I suppose you could use a 9x13 casserole. Finished product is super sticky. To aid in cutting, dust with a little powdered sugar and use a very very sharp knife.

Vegetable Terrine

1 head of cabbage
2 zucchini
1 head of cauliflower
1/4 C. Parmesan cheese
1/2 Lb asparagus spears
1/2 C. carrots
2 baby eggplant
4 eggs
1/2 C. heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350*. Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Salt it and boil several outer leaves of the cabbage for 2 minutes. Remove the leaves and immediately rinse under cold water to set their color. Gently lay flat on tea towels, and pat dry with another towel. They should be completely dry. Butter a glass casserole square. Neatly lay in the cabbage leaves to cover the bottom and sides completely. They should dangle over the sides a bit so that they can be folded over the completed terrine later. Cook the cauliflower, carrots and asparagus one at a time in the same pot of boiling salted water, until very tender. Remove them and immediately rinse in ice-cold water to preserve their color. I grilled my eggplants.
This terrine has five layers, so work one vegetable at a time. First put the cauliflower in the blender with 1/4 cup cream and 1 egg and the Parmesan cheese. Pulse to a smooth puree. Pour into a small bowl and set aside. Rinse the blender and proceed with the remaining vegetables in the same manner, pouring their purees off into bowls and setting aside. Season each mixture with salt and pepper. Do not puree asparagus!
If you pour one mixture on top of the other into the terrine, they will run together, so spoon them in instead. Start with the zucchini, spooning it into the terrine and smoothing it out to the edges. Next, spoon over the cauliflower, followed by the asparagus, carrots, and eggplant. If one leaks through to another layer, fear not: some think it is even more beautiful that way and in any case it will taste delicious. Fold the overhanging cabbage leaves over top to cover. Bake in a water bath until set, one hour.
Remove the terrine from the bath. Let it cool completely on a wire rack, and, if possible, chill in the refrigerator overnight so it sets well. At least half an hour before serving, turn the terrine out onto a cutting board or platter for serving in slices.

Lemon Cashew Tart

Coconut milk
1 envelope gelatin
2 cups raw cashews soaked in a bowl of cold water overnight
4 dates
1 cup dates
1 cup raw almonds
1 cup raw pecans
1 lemon tested
1/2 c. Lemon juice
1 tsp. Vanilla
Can of coconut milk
Make crust. Puree cashews, milk, salt, vanilla, dates until smooth. In a saucepan heat maple syrup with gelatin. Add to blender. Firms up in about two hours. This does not have the consistency or mouth feel of cheesecake. It has a definite coconut milk after flavor. It makes an interesting nut tart, but a horrible cheesecake replacement.

Ranch Dressing and Dip Mix

3 Tb. dried minced onion
1 Tb. dried parsley flakes
2 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. white sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground black pepper
2 tsp. garlic powder

Combine dried ingredients in airtight container. (6 Tb. of mix)

Additional Ingredients For Dressing
  1. C. mayonnaise or plain yogurt
  1 C. buttermilk

To prepare dressing combine 1 Tb. mix with mayo and milk, refrigerate. Yield 2 C. dressing.

Additional Ingredients For Dip
  1 C. sour cream

To prepare dip, combine 1 Tb. of mix and sour cream, refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.  Yield 1 C. dip.

Pesto Alfredo

Pesto	Alfredo
1 C. fresh basil	2 Tb. cream cheese
2 Tb. pine nuts	1/2 C. half and half
1 large garlic clove	garlic powder
1/4 C. olive oil	pepper
1/4 C. Parmesan cheese	1 Tb. corn starch dissolved in water
lemon juice	blended shredded cheese

Begin by making Alfredo sauce. Melt cream cheese in sauce pan with half and half. Season and stir with whisk until smooth. Add corn starch as it gets warm, to help it thicken. If sauce is too thin add shredded cheese. In a blender make your pesto. Blend basil, garlic, and olive oil until a very smooth paste. Season with lemon juice. Add cheese and pine nuts; pulse until blended but still chunky. Serve your pasta two ways with complementary sauces or add pesto to the alfredo and make a green cheese sauce that tastes awesome on chicken.

No Bread Stuffing

3/4 pound turkey sausage (you may use pork breakfast sausage)
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 eggs
2 cups coarsely chopped cauliflower
1/2 cup diced mushrooms
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon chopped parsley leaves
3 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves
3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Full Recipe Here

Pecan Pie

Crust	Filling
3/4 C. blanched almond flour	1 1/2 C. pecans
1/4 C. coconut flour	3 eggs, beaten
1/2 C. coconut oil	1 C. Swerve
1/2 C. Swerve	1 tsp. stevia glycerite
1 tsp. stevia glycerite	1 C. xylitol syrup
1/4 tsp. sea salt	2 Tbs. coconut oil, melted
1 egg	1 tsp. vanilla extract

Full Recipe Here
Yield: 12 slices.
NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per serving)
Traditional Pecan Pie = 396 calories, 22g fat, 3.7g protein, 51 carbs, 1.6g fiber
Modified Pie = 229 calories, 20g fat, 7.7g protein, 3.8 carbs, 2g fiber

Pb cookie

1 C. natural peanut butter
1/2 C. Splenda
1 egg

Mix, scoop into balls, flatten , Bake 350* 12 minutes.

If 12 cookies, 1 cookies is 4g carbs, 1.3g fiber, 6g protein, 100 calories.

Roasted Herbed Mushrooms

16 even-sized open cup mushrooms, stalks cut level
3 Tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped very finely
3 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened
2 Tbs. fresh thyme, chopped
½ tsp. garlic powder
5 Tbs. almond flour
1½ Tbs. lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400*F.  In a skillet, lightly fry the mushrooms, cap-side down, in hot oil for 2-3 minutes.  Arrange the mushrooms in a a 9x13 cooking dish with the stalks facing upwards.In a small bowl, mix together the butter, garlic, thyme, lemon juice and seasoning.  Spoon a little garlic butter on to each mushroom, then lightly press the almond meal on top.  Bake mushrooms 15 minutes until  golden around the mushroom cap.

1,111 calories, 20g carbs, 6g fiber, 117g fat, 14g protein for the entire tray.

Keto Bread

3 C. blanched almond flour (10 oz)
10 Tbs. psyllium husk powder (no substitutes) (90 grams) (must be a fine powder, measure weight to be sure)
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. Celtic sea salt
5 Tbs. apple cider vinegar (2 oz)
6 egg whites (7 oz)
1 1/2 cup BOILING water (12 oz)

Yield: 10 servings. 220 calories, 14.2g fat, 8.2g protein, 20.7g carb, 16.6g fiber per serving.

NOTE:  Make sure to weigh your ingredients to ensure loaf rises properly and doesn’t get hollow and gummy.  If your loaf looks nice and big but then deflates after being removed from the oven, try reducing the baking powder to 3 teaspoons.  Full Recipe Here

Pickles

3 c. water
2 C. vinegar
fresh peeled garlic (I used 3 per jar)
fresh flowering dill (I used 2 per jar because I had it)
Jars packed with sliced pickling cucumbers

Stir water, vinegar, and salt together in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil; remove from heat and cool completely. Combine cucumber spears, garlic cloves, and fresh dill in a large glass or plastic container. Pour cooled vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture. Seal container with lid and refrigerate for at least 3 days.

Sweet Tofu Pockets

I wanted to make tofu pockets, but to do that I need bean pockets to stuff.  You can buy them or try to make them from scratch.  I am going to try to make them from scratch.

Abura-age (tofu pocket)
1 block extra firm tofu

Cut into thin even slices (I cut mine the width of a chop stick). Arrange slices on a double thick square of paper towel.  Place another double thick topping of paper towel on the tofu slices. Set a cutting board or a cookie sheet on your  tofu sandwich and add a few cans of beans or something to weigh down the cookie sheet.  Press out the water for 2 hours.  Change paper towels as they become saturated with soy bean water. Remove weighs and allow to air dry for 1 hour. You want really dry tofu.
To test, fry one slice for 5 minutes in low temperature (about 110℃). If the tofu has been drained well, it should ideally spread about 1.5 times its original size. If it doesn't, then the draining wasn't enough. If this is the case, use the tofu for some other dish. Mine shrunk, but I pressed forward anyhow.
Drain any excess oil, and fry again in medium temperature (about 160℃). The fried abura-age are quite firm immediately after they've been fried a second time. Wrap them up in plastic wrap, and microwave until the inside of the microwave turns white with steam (600 watts for 45 seconds). Cut pockets open.
When abura-age is cooked in dashi stock seasoned with sugar and soy sauce they are nick-named inari-age or sushi-age because they are used for inari sushi.

Inarizushi (tofu pouch filled with rice)
Marinade for 6 - 10 pieces:
1 C. dashi or just water
1 Tb. sugar
2 tsp. mirin
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 shot of sake if you have

In principle, the marinade is similar to the teriyaki sauce. Whether you use water, dashi, or saki, aim for a sweet , spicy marinade. The amount of marinade should be so much that it covers the abura-age bags at least half (similar to teriyaki). Somebody else's how-to.

DIY Sprinkles

Chocolate	Colored
1/2 C. powdered sugar	1 C. powdered sugar
3 Tb. cocoa powder	1/2 tsp salt
4 teaspoons vanilla infused vodka	1 egg white
2 teaspoons water	1 tsp flavor extract
(Just be sure it's 6 tsp. liquid, total)	food coloring

Instructions:
1. Mix powdered sugar with cocoa (for Chocolate) or salt (for Colored) very well. Add the liquid and mix, incorporating everything. You'll get a thick but workable frosting like mixture.
2. If you want to create multiple colors, distribute white frosting between separate bowls. Now add the food coloring. I recommend that you add between 2-3 drops of color, then whisking together, before add more. Continue until you’ve reached your desired color. Put your icing into a plastic sandwich bag, removing as much air as possible, then tying shut. With a scissors, snip a tiny, tiny hole into one corner of the bag. Or use a pastry bag with a #2 round tip.
4. Lay a piece of parchment paper down on a flat surface, then squeeze long straight lines of icing onto the parchment paper. Make sure the stripes don't touch.
5. Let dry up to 24 hours undisturbed. If you used mostly vodka as the liquid, this will dry faster, as it will if you live in a warm, non humid place. If you use water or your home is colder, this will take more time. Let it dry until you have hard sticks that flake off the parchment paper easily.
6. Pick up the side of the parchment paper, and start rolling it, so that the sprinkle sticks detach from the parchment paper and end up in the middle. Make a pile of all the sprinkle sticks, making sure they all are facing the same direction.
7. With a non serrated knife, cut the pile of sprinkle sticks into little sprinkles, each about a quarter of an inch long.
These now are your sprinkles. Use as you would any other sprinkles. Keep them in a dry place. They don't spoil.

Honey Candy

1/2 cup of honey
2 cups of sugar
1 tbs of white vinegar
1/4 cup of water

Bring to a boil in sauce pan. Once sugar has reached hard crack stage 300*, remove from heat and pour into molds. Allow to cool before moving.  I pressed shapes into powdered sugar for a candy mold, but the plastic Wilton molds would work just fine.

Tzatziki Sauce

17 oz. Fage Greek yogurt, plain

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, shredded (use cheese grater)
Pinch kosher salt
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

After shredding cucumber, squeeze as much moisture as possible out with a tea towel. Place cucumber pulp and remaining ingredients in the yogurt and give it a stir.  Chill and serve with gyros.

Kosher Fudge

1 C. milk chocolate chips
2 C. semi sweet chips (1 regular size bag)
1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk

Melt everything together very slowly in a sauce pan over the stove.  One it comes to a boil, turn it off and spread into a prepared pan. Freeze for 20 minutes to help it cool off.  This fudge is soft enough to cut with cookie cutters, and firm enough to pick up once it sits at room temperature for 2 hours and develops a crust.

I searched the internet to see if there was such thing as kosher marshmallows. The responses varied greatly. So, I found a fudge recipe that doesn't use marshmallow fluff.  Just 3 ingredients, no butter, no fluff, no sugar, just chocolate, milk, and love. And its kosher~

PBJ Cups

Chicken Parmesan

I got very hungry and forgot to follow my recipe, but I discovered a new 10 minute recipe by doing so. Super Easy Chicken Parmesan. It is probably misleading to say Parmesan since this dish does not contain any! For this recipe you will need:
2 thawed chicken breasts, Penzey's Forward seasoning, 2 slices provolone cheese, 1 jar marinara sauce, spaghetti

Over medium high heat, pan searing your chicken on both sides. Add Forward seasoning and cook until chicken has a bit of a crust. Add a tablespoon of water to help the chicken cook in the center without the top/bottom burning. (Forward contains turmeric, so the pan water will look yellow.) In 10 minutes (the amount of time it takes to make spaghetti), your chicken should be cooked. Turn off heat, add cheese to chicken pieces. Don't worry, it will melt as it sits there.  Drain and plate pasta, top with cold marinara sauce, top with chicken.