Category Menus & Recipes

Journey To The Other Side of The World: Authentic Thai Recipe

Fun. Simple. Delicious. These are the only descriptors needed to grab my attention on the cover of a brochure for Amita Thai Cooking Class. For the most authentic Thai cooking class, why not go straight to the source? Parties That Cook founder and CEO, Bibby Gignilliat, did just that early this month when she embarked on a journey that would take her to Southern Asia.

Bibby was lucky enough to partake in an Amita cooking class, held in Bangkok, Thailand. Before the cooking begins, the instructors present a quick cooking demonstration (sound familiar?), and students get to pick fresh ingredients to be used in the day’s recipes from a nursery herb garden. After the class, students get to keep the recipes of the day, printed on the back of a colorful postcard of the finished meal! One of the favorites of the day was the sweet yet tangy Tom Kha Gai, or Chicken in Coconut Soup.

Tom Kha Gai
For more recipes with exotic flavors, check out our Ethnic Recipes Section!

Ingredients
100 grams sliced chicken breasts
¾ cup chicken stock
½ cup coconut milk
1 Tablespoon fish sauce
1 Tablespoon lime juice
5 thin sliced young galangal (blue ginger)
2 stalks lemongrass cut 1 inch length, crushed.
3 fresh kaffir lime leaves torn in half
3 red and green chilies, crushed for seasoning and garnish
Coriander leaves clipped for garnish

Methods/Steps
Soup: Boil chicken stock with galangal and lemon grass for aroma. Bring out galangal. Add chicken, slicked young galangal, coconut milk, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves. Cover and simmer on low heat until chicken is cooked.
Season: Remove from heat. Season with fish sauce and lime juice, and add a pinch of salt for taste.
Garnish: with coriander leaves and red and green chilies before serving.
Makes 1 serving.

Bibby was eager to immerse herself in the culture and traditions of Thailand, though her ultimate destination was the tiny land of Bhutan. About half the size of Indiana, this landlocked country has been said to be “The happiest country in Asia” – take that Disneyland!

It’s Prime Time for Butternut Squash and Bacon Galletes!

Now that we’ve all had a full month to recover from nightmares of Lady Gaga’s meat dress, it’s time to get back to the goods. Not to worry, we won’t jump head first into a meaty meal –though if you fancy that idea, check out these ten ways to show your love of bacon. This recipe for Butternut Squash and Bacon Galettes will ease you back into the swing of the carnivore (or omnivore) lifestyle with just the right amount of BACON… for now.

Nothing says “Holidays” better than a Butternut Squash recipe. Really! Butternut Squash is a close relative to the beloved pumpkin -like a cousin, or maybe even fraternal twin? It’s also a staple in those Thanksgiving food horns we colored every year in middle school. Sticking with the Holiday foods theme, this recipe can also be made with Sweet Potato! Check out the original Sweet Potato version of this recipe here.

Butternut Squash and Bacon Galettes
For other great Holiday appetizer ideas, visit our Appetizer Recipe Library!

Ingredients
Galettes:
6 slices bacon
1 small butternut squash yielding 1 1/4 cup of cooked pulp
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon sage leaves, chopped
1 teaspoon rosemary needles, chopped
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
Canola oil

Garnish:
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
Baby sage leaves

Methods/Steps
Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cook Bacon: Put bacon on a cooling rack over a sheet pan. Transfer to the oven and cook until crisp, about 12 minutes. Let cool on the cooling rack.  Once cool, chop  into small 1/4” bits and transfer to a small bowl .  Set aside.

Cook Butternut Squash: Cut the butternut squash in half, scoop out the seeds and roast squash on a lightly oiled sheet pan, flesh face down, until a knife inserted into the thickest part encounters no resistance, about 1 hour.  Cool squash slightly and scoop flesh from shell. Measure out 1 cup of pulp.   Set the rest aside for another use.

Make Batter: In a medium bowl, mix together flour and baking powder; set aside.  Place the cooked butternut squash in the jar of a blender.  Add the cream, milk, melted butter, sage, rosemary and salt; blend for 20 seconds.  Add eggs, and process a few seconds more until fully combined.  Pour butternut squash mixture into flour mixture; fold to mix. Add lemon juice and half of the chopped bacon, reserve the rest of the bacon for garnish. Stir just to combine.  Do not over mix or the galettes will be tough.

Cook Galettes: Pour a Tablespoon of canola oil into a non-stick pan. Spread around the pan with a paper towel.  Working in batches, drop a heaping Tablespoon of batter into the pan, being careful not to overcrowd.  Cook until the underside is golden, about 2 minutes.  Turn pancakes over and cook until the other side is golden and the pancake is cooked through, about two minutes more.  Transfer to a cooling rack over a sheet pan.  Repeat with the remaining batter, adding more canola oil as needed between batches.

Garnish: Combine the sour cream and salt.

Serve: Put the pancakes on a serving platter. Top each pancake with a tiny dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with a little bit of the reserved bacon. Add a baby sage leaf and serve immediately.

Makes 24 delicious galletes.