Weekend Dishes

Preparing winter melon grown from my parent's garden. 


My puppy (she's 6 years old) watching me make soup.


This is from when I first got her, around 4-6mo old. Her mannerisms haven't changed at all 😊


Simple Vietnamese Winter Melon Soup :)

Winter Melon Soup with Shrimp Recipe (Canh Bi Dao Tom)(link)

Serves: 3

Shrimp Marinade

• 5 large peeled shrimps
• 1 small shallot
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce

1. Mince up the shrimp with the shallot on a cutting board.
2. Add the shrimp to a bowl and marinate with salt, black pepper, fish sauce. Set aside.

Soup

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 small shallot (slice thinly)
• 4 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon chicken, mushroom or pork seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon MSG (optional)
• 1 small winter melon (peel, de-seed and cut into bite size pieces)
• 2 green onions (cut into 1-inch segments)
• Pinch of black pepper

1. Heat up a small pot with vegetable oil.
2. Add shallot and fry until fragrant (about 30 seconds). 
3. Add the marinated shrimp along with the liquids. Saute until shrimp starts to turn pink. 
4. Add water and bring it to a boil.
5. Add salt, sugar, chicken/pork/mushroom seasoning, and MSG.
6. Add winter melon. Once the pot turns to a boil, turn off the heat. Let the winter melon cook on the residual heat for about five minutes or until fork tender. 
7. Before serving, top with green onions and a pinch of black pepper.

 

Dessert: the Peach Berry Cobbler I talked about previously. Tasted really good the next day. I can't get over the beautiful and vibrant color the berries created. 



SUNDAY:

There is a recipe on the back for Coconut Blueberry Chia Muffins. Wanted to try this out so I could pack them for snacks and breakfast bites. 

coconut blueberry muffins

Delicious gluten free muffins packed with moisture and flavor. Great for breakfast, snack or mid-day treat.

ingredients

• 1 cup Organic Coconut Flour
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp Raw Honey
• 1 cup Coconut Milk
• 6 Eggs
• 4 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 cup Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
• 1/4 cup Organic Chia Seed
• 1 cup Organic Blueberries

instructions

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees.
2. Sift the coconut flour, baking soda & salt in a bowl.
3. In a blender or bowl mix the milk, honey, eggs, coconut oil and vanilla.
4. Add the chia seeds and blend on low. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with dry ingredients and mix well.
6. Fold in the blueberries to mixture at the very end, and gently stir together.
7. Spoon the batter into greased cupcake sleeves or tins.
8. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.
9. Cool on rack and serve.

**I had leftover batter so I was able to make 8 more muffins and decided to mix in some small pieces of low-fat cream cheese. 

Wanted to try something new at Trader Joe's vegan section and decided to make it for my husband's lunch.

These crisp up very nicely!! Very impressed with the texture too.

Overall, we both agreed we would buy this again. It was a bit too sweet for us, but with the rice and green onions, the intensity was balanced.

Did not waste the sauce in the pan. Mixed it all up

So winter melon soup, orange chik'n and rice and one last item to add to his lunch. a little snack of these awesome pumpkin seeds + fresh blackberries