Bone marrow appetizer

So my hubby and I have been sick and unable to eat much for the past few days, but my appetite has come back with a vengeance and all I wanted was something really meaty.
So I went to my local butcher, and they had these beautiful marrow bones


So of course I had to buy them and I made a simple appetizer with them.

I baked the marrow bones as shown at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes, then I scooped out the marrow, spread it on some baguette slices, and garnished with some sea salt and thinly sliced raw garlic ramps! It was delicious and satisfied my extreme post illness hunger!



Noosh-e Jaan

So the other night after my shift, I needed to lift my spirits, so I decided I was going to make some tarragon roast chicken and pasta, but when I got to the grocery store I did not like the chicken they had. They were sold out of thighs and drumsticks and I just didn't feel like breast or whole chicken.... So I found some  delicious looking lamb merguez made by D'artagnan and born was this pasta dish!

Ingredients

- Long ziti (you could use regular or maybe a bucatini)

- shallots (2 small ones I had in the fridge)

-fresh tarragon (one package)

- 1 package of lamb merguez (6 links)

- oyster mushrooms 

- crushed red pepper 

- tomato powder (a random gourmet product I picked up in Olivier and Co, but I don't think a vital ingredient)

- finishing salt

- olive oil

I started by boiling some water with a ton of regular salt in it, and cooked the pasta until al dente (about 9 min).

While the pasta was cooking, I minced the shallots and started to sauté them and about a half tablespoon of crushed red pepper in a large 6 quart sauté pan over medium heat. After the shallots were a little cooked, about 2 min, I chopped up the the lamb sausage and added that to the sauce pan, cooking then until they were almost browned, at that point I added a bunch of sliced fresh oyster mushrooms, and I added about 1 teaspoon of the tomato powder and a little kosher salt to the whole mix and let it all cook until the mushrooms were nice and soft but not too soft! (The tomato powder could be substituted with tomato paste, but if you do this I would use a tablespoon of tomato paste and instead of waiting to add it nearly at the end, I would add the tomato paste to the shallots and crushed pepper initially when you start, so that it gets worked into the oil and makes a nice sauce.)

Once the mushrooms are cooked, add the chopped tarragon, and leave on the heat for like 5-10 seconds, you don't want it to wilt!

Now add the cooked pasta, and mix well, and add a little finishing salt before serving. I served with a persian shirazi salad, which made it extra good! Recipe for shirazi salad is coming!

Noush-e Jaan!

Broccoli with Garlic Sauce

So I worked in the pediatric ER last Friday and Sunday. Sunday night I was wiped out, and when I got home at 11:30 I felt a lymph node that was tender in my neck, and Monday morning I couldn't even wake up I was so sick. I was sick until this morning where I feel okay.
So when I am sick I only want to eat two things: Fresh squeezed orange juice, and Chinese food (specifically wonton soup, broccoli with garlic sauce and general tso's chicken). I really think the combo of OJ and wonton soup can be curative.
So now that I recovered, today I bought some broccoli and made my own version of broccoli with garlic sauce.
Ingredients
2 bunches of broccoli
2 tablespoons of corn starch (organic nonGMO variety/ rapunzel brand)
7 garlic cloves minced
1/2 teaspoon red chilli flakes
2 teaspoons of sesame oil
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup of chicken broth (that's what I had)
A sprinkling of sesame seeds
Sriracha sauce
Safflower oil

In a cup I combined the garlic, brown sugar, corn starch, soy sauce, sesame oil, and the broth. I whipped it until it was smooth.
In a wok I heated the safflower oil and the red chilli flakes, and when the oil is warmed I added the broccoli, let I cook until it was almost cooked, then I added the sauce I made and added sriracha to taste, and let it cook down. At the very end I sprinkled the sesame seeds onto it, and let it cook 10 more seconds and voila!



It was delicious and I plan to take it to work this weekend with some brown rice!
Enjoy!