Hey Young Chefs!
Mark Ferri, Food Photographer
Today, I interviewed Mark Ferri, a food photographer with quite an impressive resume’! He has taken photographs for such high-profile food celebrities as Mario Batali and B. Smith, and has worked on campaigns for such notable food companies as Bertolli, Godiva, the Food Network, Kraft, Nestle, and Wendy’s, to name a few. He lives in New York and has a Manhattan studio, complete with a professional kitchen. I had so much fun interviewing Mr. Mark. Visit his website at MarkFerriPhoto.com.
“A Tisket A Tasket What’s Inside My Basket?”
Today’s secret ingredients are… peas and Asian pears! First, let’s talk about peas.
Here is my recipe for Carribbean Rice and Peas.
Ingredients:
1 box frozen peas
1 can coconut milk
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground thyme
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 c. rice
1 whole jalepeño pepper
Directions:
Add enough water to coconut milk to make 4 cups of liquid. Place liquids in a pot with peas, onions, garlic, thyme, cumin, and oil. Bring to a boil. Add rice and stir for a minute. reduce heat to medium low. Place pepper on top of liquid and cover tightly for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. Remove pepper before serving. Serves 4-6.
Now, it’s time for a recipe for Asian pears. Here is my recipe for Asian Pear Chevre Salad with a Fig Balsamic Vinaigrette.
Ingredients:
1 c. of mixed spring greens
1/2 an Asian pear, diced
2 tbsp. chevre, crumbled
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. fig preserve
Directions:
In a small bowl, toss together the greens, diced pear, and chevre. In another small bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil and fig preserve. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad. Serves 1.
“Kitchen Tips and Tools Time”
Strawberry Lemonade
Strawberry Lemonade
Ingredients:
2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 c. granulated sugar
1 c. hot water
1 gallon cold water
1 pint fresh strawberries, tops removed and halved
Directions:
Stir hot water and sugar until sugar dissolves, creating a simple syrup. Puree the strawberries in a food processor. Mix together the lemon juice, cold water, simple syrup, and strawberry puree’ in a large pitcher. Serve with a garnish of mint, a strawberry, and a lemon slice.
“Spice Detective!”
Today we’re investigating… cilantro!
Cilantro Pesto
Ingredients:
1 c. fresh cilantro
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. rice vinegar
1/4 c. grated Asiago cheese
1/2 c. pecans
Pinch white pepper
salt to taste
1/4 c. olive oil
1 tbsp. sesame oil
Directions:
In a blender or food processor, blend cilantro, garlic, vinegar, cheese, white pepper, nuts, and salt. Slowly add olive oil and sesame oil, and blend thoroughly. Add more olive oil if mixture is too thick. Serve over rice noodles and toss with freshly julienned carrots, cucumbers, and daikon radishes.
“Snacktivity Time”
Here, I give you fun easy breezy snack ideas.
Today’s Snacktivity is… Jell-O Pudding Pops!
Ingredients:
1 pkg. 3.9 oz. JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding
2 cups cold milk
Directions:
Mix ingredients for 2 minutes. Pour the mixture into 6 paper or plastic 5 oz. Dixie cups. Put the filled cups on a tray. Cover with plastic wrap. Insert popsicle sticks in the center of each cup through the plastic wrap. Freeze until firm. Peel off the paper cups before serving.
“Creative Cuisine!”
Asian Meatballs
Here is a recipe for my Asian Meatballs
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground beef
1/4 c. bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten
1 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. sesame oil
1/4 c. lime juice
3 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 c. water chestnuts, chopped
1/2 c. fresh ginger, grated
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix pork, beef, bread crumbs, egg, 1/2 c. soy sauce, 1/4 c. sesame oil, 1/8 c. lime juice, 2 tbsp. cilantro, water chestnuts, and 1/4 tsp. ginger. Form into small balls. Place in a baking dish. Over low heat, simmer remaining soy sauce, sesame oil, lime juice, cilantro, and ginger for 10 minutes. Pour over the meatballs. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
Here is the recipe for my Miso Marinated Chicken
Miso Marinated Chicken
Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken breast, thinly sliced
1/4 c. soy sauce
2 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. miso paste
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
Directions:
Mix the chicken with the ingredients. Cook in a grill pan on the stove on high heat until both sides have a dark brown color and char marks. This grilled chicken is perfect for a salad or Asian spring rolls.
Miso Marinated Chicken Spring Roll
“Cookin’ Crafts!”
Here is a fun kitchen-related craft. Today’s cookin’ craft is how to make A Spoonful of Hugs and Kisses.
Supplies:
plastic spoon
Hershey hugs and kisses
zip bag
ribbon
index card, cut in half
hole puncher
Directions:
Step 1: Put a couple of hugs and kisses on the curved part of the spoon.
Step 2: Cover the hugs and kisses with the zip bag.
Step 3:? Hole punch the index card.
Step 4:?String the ribbon through the hole in the index card and tie it around the zip bag.
Step 5: Write a note on the index card that says something like “A spoonful of hugs and kisses because I love you.”
Cool Kids Cook and Get Creative in the Kitchen!
Bon Appetit, Kid Chef Eliana
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