Black Bean and Corn Salad with Date Vinaigrette

Vinaigrette

1/2 C water
16 dates
1/2 C fresh lime juice
6 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbs fresh oregano minced
4 tsp honey
4 tsp whole cumin seeds
4 tsp whole coriander

Boil water and dates in small saucepan for 2 minutes. Let stand one hour.

Grind cumin and corrinader in spice grinder or small coffee mill. Add all ingredients of vinaigrette to blender and blend until smooth.

Salad

3 15 oz. cans black beans
1 10 oz. bag frozen corn
2 fresh yellow or red peppers chopped
2 Scallions sliced thin
1/2 C fresh cilantro chopped

Combine all ingredients. Toss with enough vinaigrette to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Peaches and Cashews

6 boneless chicken breasts
3 peaches
1/2 C finely chopped onion
1/2 C cashews
1/4 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1/4 stick of butter
1 tbs demerara or muscovado sugar
1/2 tsp ground mustard seeds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blanch peaches in boiling water until skin begins to wrinkle. Remove, rinse with cold water, and peel and finely chop. Pound chicken breasts to flatten and sprinkle with salt. Chop cashews with one whirl of a food processor. Combine peaches, onion, cashews, and ginger. Place a spoonful of mixture on top of chicken breast, roll, secure with toothpick. Dot with butter. Sprinkle with sugar and mustard powder. Bake for 20 minutes. Turn. Bake 20 minutes more.

Scallops on a Bed of Peppers and Spinach in a Pink Sauce

1 lb bay scallops note: some frozen brands do not contain tripolyphosphate (or at least they don't list it) which should be avoided. Here's why: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_tripolyphosphate
juice of one lime
1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash lemon pepper
3 red or yellow peppers, or a combination of both seeded and diced in 1" cubes
2 Tbs butter
1 clove garlic minced
1 bag baby spinach
1/2 C heavy cream
2 Tbs tomato paste
Combine lime juice and lemon pepper. Soak scallops in this mixture while preparing vegetables. Saute peppers and garlic in butter for 4 to 5 minutes until peppers are tender. Add spinach and cook until just wilted. Remove vegetables to platter. In same skillet add cream and tomato paste and bring to boil while whisking. With slotted spoon remove scallops from lime juice and add to skillet; simmer 3 minutes until scallops are opaqe. Add salt and pepper to tase. Pour over vegetables. May be served over linguine or angel hair pasta. I prefer to have it with a good baguette to dunk in the sauce.

Shrimp Curry

1 Tbs mustard seeds
4 whole cloves
3/4 tsp poppy seeds
3/4 tsp black peppercorns
5 cardamom seeds (the black seeds inside the white pod, not 5 of the whole pod)
3/4 tsp ground turmeric
2 Tbs butter
1/2 onion, minced fine
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 C coconut milk---make sure you get a brand without sodium metabisulfite, a nasty anti-oxidant preservative that many people are sensitive to. I believe Thai Kitchen is a brand without preservatives.
2 1/2 lbs. shrimp
1 small head bokchoy, with most of the green part removed and sliced on the diagonal
2 onions, cut in 1 inch cubes
1 red pepper, cut in one inch cubes
1/2 C buttermilk
1/2 C sour cream
1/2 tsp salt

Turmeric Jasmine Rice
1 C Jasmine rice
2 C water
1 Tbs peanut oil
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt


Get two pots of water boiling--one fitted with a steamer basket for the vegetables, and one for the shrimp. You will also need a double boiler or small saucepan inside a larger one to reheat the final mixture over water.

Place all ingredients for the Jasmine rice in a pot, bring to boil, cover and cook for 20 minutes.

Grind first five ingredients in a spice mill or small coffee grinder. Always buy whole spices and grind immediately before use. The flavor is worlds better. You can buy a small coffee grinder at any supermarket for under 13 bucks.

Cook onion in butter until translucent, add garlic, cook for about 1 min. more on low. Add ground spice mixture (a.k.a. the massala) and turmeric to the onions and butter and cook very slowly until thick. Add coconut milk and simmer 15 minutes more on very low heat.

Steam bokchoy, onions, and pepper until cooked, but slightly crisp.

Peel and devein shrimp. Note: An excellent fish broth can be made from shrimp shells. Use in recipes instead of bottled clam broth--an insipid concoction rife with preservatives. Place shrimp shells in saucepan with enough water to cover, boil for 10 minutes, strain, and freeze. Place shrimp in a colander or strainer and plunge (the colander not yourself) into the pot of boiling water until the shrimp become pink and opaque almost all the way through. The shrimp may take less than a minute to cook. Don't overcook. Lift colander out of water, and let drain.

Transfer coconut milk mixture, shrimp, and vegetables to the top of a double boiler. Add buttermilk, sour cream, and salt to taste. Heat for 15 minutes to blend flavors. Serve over Turmeric Jasmine rice.