Please Vote for Me!!!

I've been nominated once again for Evening Magazine's Best of Western Washington Contest for "Best Food Blog" in Washington State!! I'm excited about this opportunity and never thought it would happen again for the second time! Now I need your help in the form of votes! It only takes a minute or two! Let's win this!! Here are the steps!

1. Click the picture above, or on the top right corner of the blog or just this link: http://best.king5.com/aj-s-cooking-secrets/biz/652307

2. Connect through Facebook, twitter, email, etc. This is to ensure no one abuses the system and votes excessively for themselves.

3. Vote for "AJ's Cooking Secrets" for "Best Food Blog" in Online & Social Media

4. Spread the word, share the link on Facebook, twitter, etc.

That's it!! I just want to thank everyone that has supported me and read my blog. Winning this would be amazing and I can't do this without you!

-Aaron John

Pasta Salad

What's new you ask? Well, I've finally started volunteering at Swedish Hospital in their pharmacy! If I've been on this path to becoming a pharmacist, I better get some experience don't ya' think? It's better late than never is what I always say!

Let me tell you, volunteering at Swedish is 10X better than working at Macy's. No more sales goals, no more managers breathing down your neck to get sales when they took away commission and no more following customers around helping them find jeans and then being forced to up-sale and say "You should buy a belt as well." Maybe I'm just crazy but I tend to like to browse and look at clothes myself without a sales associate following me around and suggesting things that they "think" I need. Am I the only one that feels that way? That's why I hated retail because I hated having to follow customers around when I personally wouldn't want that as a customer myself.

I'm just glad I'm finally working in an environment with professionals that have reached the goal that I want to reach. I still have a lot to learn but I love volunteering at Swedish so far! Not to mention, it brings me back to my high school days because my high school is just across the street.

Now, let's get back to the food. This post is all about Pasta Salad, pasta meant to be cold. Add in anything on hand with pasta and some dressing and it's a great accompaniment to a protein like chicken, for lunch.

Last post I introduced my idea for a cooking show and because of that, I will now feature a new segment at the end of each post called "AJ's Secret". Really, it's just a tip to have a fool proof dish. So, here goes!

AJ's Secret:

• Cook the pasta not to "al dente", but past it until it's fully cooked. Because the pasta is eaten room temperature or cold, the pasta will firm up in the fridge because of the starches present in the pasta. An "al dente" pasta is just too firm.
• Before mixing the dressing with the pasta, make sure the pasta is completely at room temperature or cold. With creamy dressings, I notice that if you add in the dressing while still warm, it eventually causes the dressing to separate especially when making it ahead. Vinaigrette type dressings can be added warm or cold however.
• Red Onion can be a bit strong in flavor. To take away the intense flavor, I pickled mine with vinegar and sugar. Blog post on Pickled Red Onion will be up soon!

Pasta Salad

Recipe by Me

Ingredients

1 lb Rotini Pasta

1/2 cup Caesar Dressing

1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

1/4 Red Bell Pepper, roasted and diced

1/4 to 1/2 cup Sundried Tomatoes packed in oil, drained and sliced

1/2 Red Onion, thinly sliced (I pickled mine)

1/4 lb Feta Cheese, cubed

Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley (for color)

Directions

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add salt and the dried Rotini Pasta. Cook the pasta until it is past the "al dente" stage. Drain and rinse with cold water until the pasta is no longer hot. Set aside.

The following ingredients are nothing more than cubing, grating, slicing and dicing. 

• Grate parmesan cheese
• Use jarred roasted red bell peppers or roast off a fresh one. I used a fresh one, only cutting a 1/4 piece from the pepper, rubbing with olive oil and popped it into a toaster oven on broil until the skin turns black. Remove and place on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for 5-10 min. Remove the skin and dice.
• Slice sun dried tomatoes
• Thinly slice red onion
• Cube the feta cheese to bite sized pieces

Assembly: Toss the pasta with the Caesar dressing, salt and pepper. Then add in the parmesan cheese and toss. Add in the roasted red pepper, sun dried tomatoes and red onion, toss. Finally, add in the cubed feta, being careful not to break the cheese too much. Finish off with a sprinkling of parsley.

-Aaron John

Carmelitas

I've always wanted to be a TV personality on the Food Network. It seems that having a variety of shows on the Food Network hasn't really been there. They are overrun with country-type cooking. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with that and I love me some fried chicken, but something new and not overdone would be nice.

If I were able to have my own show, it would be similar to cooking channel's "Kelsey's Essentials". The concept of her show is something I've always wanted to do because it allows the host to delve into a variety of cuisines while giving tips along the way. There are many important steps in recipes that I find current hosts somewhat glaze over as non-important. However, for people beginning in the kitchen or for people that are making a dish for the first time, sometimes those tips are what saves the whole process. Ever had a grainy cheese sauce? Flat cookie? These are some of the things I would tackle because there are important steps to prevent them.

So, if I want a Food Network show based on giving fool-proof tips on this recipe what would I say? It all has to do with making the Salted Caramel Sauce, or any caramel sauce for that matter. I find that when recipes say to boil the sugar until it reaches a deep amber, DON'T! I've made caramel sauce many times and threw it all down the drain before figuring this out.

When the sugar reaches the deep amber color, it becomes extremely bitter and burnt tasting. If you like that, well, be my guest. Instead, boil the sugar until it just reaches a light amber color. You want it to have some color but not too much. When you've reached the light golden yellow color, you're almost there. Just give it another 30 sec or so and you'll be perfect. As you add in the cream, you will see as you whisk, your caramel will darken to the perfect color and flavor.

Carmelitas

Recipe by Kelsey Nixon

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 3/4 cups quick-cooking oats
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups Salted Caramel Sauce, recipe follows
2 1/2 tablespoons flour

Salted Caramel Sauce
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon gray sea salt, crushed or kosher salt

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch pan. Combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and softened butter in the bowl of a mixer. Mix on low until crumbly. Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions.

Press half the crumb mixture in the prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and cool slightly.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips, and chopped pecans over the cooled crust. Mix the salted caramel sauce, and flour together, and drizzle over the chocolate chips, and nuts. Top with the remaining crumb mixture.

Return to the oven and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until the crust starts to brown. Allow the pan to cool, and refrigerate it until the caramel filling is set. Cut into bars and serve.

Salted Caramel Sauce:
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and bring to a boil, without stirring. If necessary, use a wet pastry brush to wash down any crystals on the side of the pan. Boil until the syrup is a deep amber color, about 5 to 6 minutes.

Remove the sugar from the heat and carefully whisk in the heavy cream. The mixture will bubble. Stir in the unsalted butter, and salt. Transfer the caramel to a dish and cool.

*Cook's Note: This recipe will last in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks. Reheat before serving.

-Aaron John

Sago Coolers

Well, I'm back. After two long months of waiting, I finally have a new post for you all. Where was I you ask? Was I traveling the world and crossing the pond to some far off land? Well, I did cross Lake Washington if that counts? So you can say I crossed a "puddle"?

But no, I wasn't on an adventure, I didn't travel to some far off land, and I didn't go over the Atlantic. Where was I? At Bellevue College taking a class that took up all of my time. Who knew one simple class would have quizzes on some 50 pages of dense Biology Textbook material, EVERY SINGLE DAY! UW isn't even like that!

Everyday we were asked the same question, "Can you guys do a quiz tomorrow?" For whatever reason, the opposite side of the room always said "Sure! Why not?". Everyone on my side of the room would turn to each other wondering what is wrong with these people! We're given the opportunity to not take a quiz but nooooo, let's just take a quiz on all of this material we just learned the day before. Sounds like so much fun! Yeah right! I've never met so many people that want to take quizzes. To each is their own I guess....

So, because I'm finally on summer break, and it's freakin' hot, what's a good way to cool down? With a Filipino Drink! A Sago Cooler, or what I like to call, sugar water with tapioca pearls. It flat out is a watered down simple syrup that Filipinos drink. Hey, don't look at me, I didn't event the stuff. I'm just here to spread the diabetes. ha.

Sago Coolers

Recipe by Me

Ingredients

Sago (Tapioca Pearls)

1 cup dry tapioca pearls

6 cups water

1/2 cup brown sugar

Arnibal (Brown Sugar Syrup)

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup brown sugar

1-2 tsp Banana extract

Assembly

Cooked Tapioca Pearls

Arnibal Syrup

Cold Water

Ice

Directions
Sago (Tapioca Pearls)
Place 6 cups of water in a pot with the brown sugar and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Slowly add in the dry tapioca pearls and mix to prevent from sticking. Cook for 5 min. The tapioca pearls are not done whatsoever.

Transfer the sugar water and the tapioca pearls to a pressure cooker. Seal the pressure cooker and cook for about an hour once the pressure cooker starts to release steam from it's little hole. Once finished, you're looking for the tapioca pearls to be almost completely clear. A tiny dot of white in the center is fine. Rinse the tapioca in a strainer with cold water and set aside.

Arnibal (Brown Sugar Syrup)
In a pot, bring 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil with the brown sugar and cook for 5 min. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Add the Banana extract.

Final Assembly
In a glass, add about 3 spoonfuls of the tapioca pearls. Pour in some cold water and drizzle in some Arnibal syrup until the drink is at your desired sweetness. Finish off with ice.

-Aaron John.

Penne Alla Vecchia Bettola (Penne w/ Vodka Sauce)

Well, another year of UW has come and gone and here I am, still stuck at this University as a Super Senior next year. I'm not going to lie, seeing the photos that my friends had posted on their big day made me jealous. I should've been up there with them, celebrating with them, entering into the real world with them but a decision made here and there, led me to this point. I can't wait until that day comes and I know it will come sooner than later.

I'm extremely proud of my friends that graduated and I congratulate the UW Class of 2013. Only bigger and better things are to come. Until then, let's cheers with some Vodka! ha.

I'm not a huge fan of alcohol, surprise surprise. For one, I get that wonderful "asian glow" and turn as red as an apple and two, people say alcohol has tons of calories so I'd rather drink a milkshake. ha. But cooking with alcohol is a different story. It definitely adds something you can't get otherwise. This Penne Alla Vecchia Betolla (Penne w/ Vodka Sauce) is no different.

Vodka is pretty flavorless overall but it definitely added something to the tomato sauce. Don't worry, you don't taste that "rubbing alcohol" flavor. It's tomatoey, creamy and has a bit of a kick in the back of the throat from the red pepper flakes. Serve it with your protein of choice, mine was chicken, and it becomes a meal.

Nick & Toni's Penne Alla Vecchia Bettola (Penne w/ Vodka Sauce)

Recipe by Joseph Realmuto

Ingredients
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 medium Spanish onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup vodka
2 (28-ounce) cans peeled plum tomatoes
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 pound penne pasta
2 tablespoons fresh oregano
3/4 to 1 cup heavy cream
Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large oven proof saute pan over medium heat, add the onions and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes until translucent. Add the red pepper flakes and dried oregano and cook for 1 minute more. Add the vodka and continue cooking until the mixture is reduced by half.

Meanwhile, drain the tomatoes through a sieve and crush them into the pan with your hands. Add 2 teaspoons salt and a pinch of black pepper. Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and place it in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes.
 Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta al dente. Drain and set aside. 

Place the tomato mixture in a blender and puree in batches until the sauce is a smooth consistency. Return to the pan.

Reheat the sauce, add 2 tablespoons fresh oregano and enough heavy cream to make the sauce a creamy consistency. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and simmer for 10 minutes. Toss the pasta into the sauce and cook for 2 minutes more. Stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan. Serve with an additional sprinkle of Parmesan and a sprinkle of fresh oregano on each plate.

-Aaron John