Homemade dressing. Asian style

I'm usually the only person at sushi who eats the ginger on top of their sushi and on the side. I love ginger so much. I always eat mine and then end up eating everyone else's ginger at the table. Not only do i love raw, pickled ginger but i love the ginger dressing that comes on almost every japanese house salad. I recently stumbled across a recipe in food network mag for a lighter version (15 calories) ( i don't know if i believe it) Heres the recipe and heres how mine turned out

 

Light Carrot-Ginger Dressing

Recipe courtesy Food Network Magazine

Prep Time:

10 min

Inactive Prep Time:

--

Cook Time:

--

Level:

Easy

Serves:

1 cup

Ingredients

• 1 medium carrot, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped peeled ginger
• 1 teaspoon packed light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar (not seasoned)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• Kosher salt

Directions

Put the carrot and 1 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking liquid, then drain the carrot.

Puree the carrot and reserved cooking liquid in a blender until smooth. Add the ginger, brown sugar, vinegar, lemon juice, soy sauce, sesame oil and teaspoon salt; pulse until smooth.

Per serving (2 tablespoons): Calories 17; Fat 1 g (Saturated 0 g); Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 86 mg; Carbohydrate 2 g; Fiber 0 g; Protein 0 g

Photograph by Andrew McCaul

High Point Pizza (Dough) and the Green Egg

After a long day of recovery from a long night at Raiford's, we decided pizza on the grill would be the perfect cure. Too lazy to make the dough,I opted instead to grab fresh dough from the closest pizzeria, High Point Pizza. FOR ONLY $2 we got enough dough to fill us up and put us back to bed, for the second time that day.  Once the green egg got to a smoking 500 we ran to Kroger for fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, sausage and pepperonis (for the boys). Turned out to be just way to fun for a saturday night in.

We each had to have our own pizza because obviously its not near as fun to share. And we tend to be a bit competitive and who's food is better. I infused some olive oil with 2 cloves of smashed garlic to coat the dough with, then coated the oil with sauce, tomatoes, and too much cheese. 

The pizza's cooked in less than ten minutes and they were awesome. This was the best pizza  all because of the egg. The pizza stone gave the crust a nice crisp coating but still left the dough slightly chewy and airy. Mine had those air bubbles I go for every time. The sauce was garlicy and sweet, a perfect foundation for fresh mozzarella and summer tomatoes. 

A peek at SPICE-a tiny glimpse of the 52 pg magazine I created

Jason Aldean

I don't have much to say about the concert in Olive Branch this past Thursday. The corn was the most memorable thing, that and colt ford

Redfish&Risotto

Against strict orders from my mother, I prepared a rich risotto along side blackened redfish. My mom insisted that the flavors of the fish were too robust to be paired with such a heavy side. Yes, she's the trained chef, yes she is the best cook I know, and yes she is usually right. BUT I have to say that was the best (truffle) risotto I have ever made. And the fish (cooked on the green egg) was smoky, tender and delicious. We used the left over fish for fish tacos the next night along with homemade mexican rice, sharp white cheddar, jalepenos, salsa and creme