Easy Vietnamese Won Ton Soup

Easy Vietnamese Won Ton Soup
One of my favorite soups that my mom would make.  My sister, Lynn, and I have adapted her recipe to make it easy.  My family could eat several bowls in one sitting.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb unseasoned ground pork
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon pepper
1 bunch of green onion chopped
2-3 packages of won ton wraps
2 32 oz boxes of chicken broth
1/2-1 teaspoon of fish sauce per bowl of soup

DIRECTIONS:
Fill half of a medium sauce pan with water.  Cook at medium-high heat.  In the mean time mix pork with salt, sugar, pepper, and half of green onions.

 

Take about a teaspoon of pork filling and place into center of won ton wrap. 

Use water as a sealer and fold up to make a ghost shaped won ton.  Set aside.  

In another medium to large sauce pan heat chicken broth on medium-high heat. 


Place won tons in pan with heated water.  Water should be an a low boil.  Cook won tons (about 2 minutes) until won tons float to top then wait 30 seconds.  Drain out water.

Place cooked won tons into bowls serve hot broth over the top, stir in fish sauce, and garnish with green onions.
 

Photastic Vietnamese Turkey Brine

Photastic Vietnamese Turkey Brine

by Kim Knudsen in Nome, Alaska

6 quarts tap water

1 pound kosher salt

3 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup soy sauce

¼ cup fish sauce

10 star anise

8 inches of ginger root bruised and cut in half*

2 bunch of green onion cut into quarters

5 stalks of lemon grass bruised and cut into quarters*

2 heads of garlic broken into individual cloves, unpeeled, but bruised*

5 pounds of ice cubes

14 to 18 pound turkey, cleaned, innards removed

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 lemons, zested

Directions

In a medium pot, bring 3 quarts of the tap water to a boil over medium heat.  Put the kosher salt in a large bowl and slowly pour the boiling water over the salt.  Stir to blend.

Add brown sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce, star anise, ginger, green onion, lemon grass, and garlic.  Stir to blend.  Add the remaining 3 quarts of cool water.  Add the ice to a cooler or bucket lined with a turkey bag large enough to hold the brine and the turkey.  Pour the brine over the ice and use a large whisk to blend all the ingredients.

Submerge the turkey, breast side down, in the brine.  Make sure the cavity of the bird fills with liquid as you are submerging it.  Squeeze all air out of bag, tie off, and weight it down with a heavy plate.  Allow the bird to sit in brine overnight for about 12 hours.

Remove bird from the brine.  Discard brine.  Rinse bird thoroughly inside and out with cold water.  Dry the bird well with paper towels.  Be sure to wipe the inside of cavity as well.  Mix together butter and lemon zest.  Gently lift the skin covering 1 breast of the turkey and spread half of the butter right on the meat under the skin.  Repeat with other breast.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Arrange the turkey in a roasting pan fitted with a rack.  Put on lower rack of the oven and roast until the internal temperature of the turkey taken from the thickest part of the thigh reads 170 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 3 ½ hours.  Remove turkey from oven to a cutting board or serving platter and tent with foil.  Allow to rest for at least 30 minutes before carving and serving.

*bruising can be done with a mallet.

Shrimp Cocktail Appetizer

As far as I can remember we seem to have this appetizer at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners at our house.  I've continued the tradition in my own home and it's still an easy crowd pleaser. 

INGREDIENTS:
1 box of Ritz crackers
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 a bottle of Heinz shrimp cocktail sauce
1/4 cup of cocktail shrimp or chopped shrimp.

DIRECTIONS:
Place cream cheese on a plate.  Top with cocktail shrimp and cocktail sauce.  Serve with Ritz crackers.

For a prettier presentation see picture below.

Awesome Baklava recipe...

This recipe from http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/baklava/Detail.aspx
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit.

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
• 1 pound chopped nuts
• 1 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup honey

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C). Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
2. Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
3. Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
4. Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up.  

Mom's Kim Chi

This is my mom's recipe (Thu Lan Munn).  I guessed on the measurements as she says a little of this and some of that.  This is what I came up with...

We added zucchini from my garden.

1 head of Chinese (Napa) cabbage cut up into 11/2 to 2 inch chunks.  Salted with kosher/pickling salt (use about 1-2 cups). Let it sit for about half an hour.  Rinse cabbage well, about 3-4 times.  Taste the cabbage to make sure it's not too salty other wise rise again.

After salting and rinsing add...
3-4 Tablespoons of minced garlic
2-3 Tablespoons of red pepper powder
2 Tablespoons of sugar
1 bunch of green onion.

Mix well and place Kim Chi into clean jars.  Don't try to can/seal... Kim Chi will end up tasting nasty.  Just refrigerate will keep for about 2 weeks.  It's gone bad when it starts to taste sour.  Even then my mom says it's still good and she makes a delicious hot and sour soup out of it. You can also make Kim Chi using other greens such as bok choy, zucchini, or even tundra greens such as tukayuks, sura, and young fireweed shoots.

 

Nomemade Blueberry Pie

This pie is made with blueberries picked off the tundra.  Not too sweet tastes just right.

2 pkgs. of 8 ounces cream cheese, softened

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
2 (9 inch) shortbread pie crust
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup of water
6 cups of blueberries
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
Whipped Cream


1. In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and confection's sugar until smooth. Spread into pastry shells.
2. In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, water until smooth; stir in 4 cups of blueberries.  Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.  Take off heat. Add remaining 2 cups of blueberries and cinnamon.  Fold into mixture.  Spread over cream cheese layer.  Refrigerate until serving.
3. Top with whipped cream.


Makes two 9 inch pies.  Serves 16.

Alaskan Cod Rolls

Alaskan Cod Rolls

Makes 8 rolls

By Kim Knudsen

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Cod

1                   whole cod fillet cut into 3-4 inch sections skin and bones removed.

1 T               olive oil

1                   clove  of fresh garlic (crushed)

                    salt and pepper

Spring Rolls

16                8“ round sheets of rice paper

1                  head of romaine lettuce (leaves separated and washed)

6 oz.          cooked rice vermicelli noodles

                   Cooked cod

1 lg             carrot peeled into strips

½               of a cucumber peeled and cut into approximately 2 inch strips

1                 bunch of cilantro (stems removed)

1                 8 oz. bag of bean sprouts

5-6            sprigs of fresh mint

12               cooked shrimp, halved length wise.

Directions: Season cod fillets with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil and garlic in a large skillet at medium heat.  Cook fillets for approximately 2 minutes on each side.  Cool.  Flake.  Set aside.

Soften rice paper in luke warm water, one sheet at a time, and lay on a flat surface.  Use two 8 inch round sheets overlapping each other. Line the top third of the wet pliable rice sheet with three shrimp halves, cut side up, and bottom with lettuce, noodles, cooked cod, carrot, cucumber, cilantro, bean sprouts, and mint leaves. Make sure the ingredients are neatly placed in a straight row.  Evenly distributed from one end to the other. Using your second, third and fourth fingers, press down on the ingredients while you use the other hand to fold over both sides of the rice paper. (Pressing down on the ingredients is

important because it tightens the roll.) Continue to press down and roll over shrimp halves. Finish making all the remaining rolls. Garnish with mint, lime, and green onion.

Nuoc Cham Dipping Sauce (makes about 1 ½ cups)

1 cup boiling water

1/3 cup fish sauce (Nuoc Mam)

1/3 cup sugar

2 T lime juice (1 lime, squeezed)

1 t chili paste

2 cloves of minced garlic

Directions: Combine all ingredients.  This sauce keeps up to three weeks, if refrigerated.

 I won $100.00 at the NSEDC,  fisherman's fair. Third place.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll

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Libby's® Pumpkin Roll with 
Cream Cheese Filling

SUBMITTED BY: Libby's®

 "Delicious and easy to make."

 Original recipe yield: 10 servings

 COOK TIME 

 15 Min

 READY IN 

 15 Min

 INGREDIENTS

           1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)

           3/4 cup all-purpose flour

           1/2 teaspoon baking powder

           1/2 teaspoon baking soda

           1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

           1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

           1/4 teaspoon salt

           3 large eggs

           1 cup granulated sugar

           2/3 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin

           1 cup walnuts, chopped

           1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

           1 cup powdered sugar, sifted

           6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

           1 teaspoon vanilla extract

           1/4 cup powdered sugar

 DIRECTIONS

    1          PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle towel with powdered sugar.

    2          COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and slat in small bowl. Beat eggs and sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.

    3          BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.

    4          BEAT cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake; remove towel. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Yummy Mummy Calzones Recipe | Taste of Home Recipes

 Click on link for recipe...

Yummy Mummy Calzones Recipe | Taste of Home Recipes

Vietnamese Chicken Salad. Gio Ga.

1 large chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 lb bag of fresh cole slaw
1/2 bunch of cilantro chopped
8-10 basil or mint leaves, julienne... optional.
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced and soaked in cold water.

fresh lime juice.

Dressing:
1/2 C Vinegar
2 T Oil
1/4 C sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper

Make dressing first. Mix all ingredient in a large jar. Shake well. Drain onions. Place sliced onions in jar with vinegrette. Shake again. Let onion marinade for at least 5 minutes.

Combine first four ingredients in a large bowl. Add marinated onions. Add vinegrette. Toss well. Squeeze 1-2 lime wedges over salad. Serves 4.

Brining, Smoking, Canning Salmon

 Check out my instructional videos on how to brine, smoke, and can salmon.
 

This is a picture of my smoked silver salmon that I packaged in a food saver bag incase you don't want to can your salmon. 
I love my Bradley smoker click on the photo to find out more information on how to get one...




Click on the photo for more info on my Presto Pressure Canner...
 

Cooking Alaska King Crab

My video on how to cook Alaskan King Crab. Deelish!



My video on how to disassemble king crab.

Fireweed Jelly

My recipe is derived from a friend, Deanna Holee, who got the recipe published in the Nome Centennial Cook Book… her name is Deanna Holee.  I have altered to the original recipe to give clarification to the instructions.

Pick approximately one large grocery bag full of fireweed tops (there will be bugs). Outside or in the kitchen sink pull blossoms and buds that are about to open and put the in a colander.

1 ½ Cups Tightly packed fireweed blossoms

2 ¼ Cups Water

Boil water. Add fireweed blossoms. Boil until all color washes out. The flowers will turn gray. Strain fireweed and liquid in a strainer with cheesecloth into a large bowl or pitcher. Discard flowers and bugs. The liquid is called fireweed tea.

1 ¾ Cups      Fireweed Tea

2 T                Lemon Juice

3 ½ Cups      Sugar (do not use sugar substitutes or reduce amount)

1 pkg            Liquid Certo Pectin (3 oz.). Check expiration date.

DO NOT DOUBLE THIS BATCH

The tea will be purple/brown in color. In sauce pan add fireweed tea and lemon juice. The tea will turn fuchsia in color. Add sugar. Cook at medium high heat. When liquid boils add pectin and return to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Pour and seal in clean jars.

*Tip on sealing jars:

After cleaning jars. Pour hot liquid, put caps and bands on. Screw bands on tightly. Turn jars upside down and let it set for 3 minutes. Turn right side up. Your jars have been sealed and sterilized because of the hot liquid. Jars will seal after some cooling.

1 grocery bag full of fireweed tops makes about two batches. I get about (4) 8 oz. jars or (8) 4 oz. jars out of each batch.

Watch the video below for step by step instructions.