Spicy Udon Noodle Soup Recipe

The spicy paste in this coconut udon soup provides not only  the kick, but also most of the flavor. It's made of miso paste, a lot of red Thai chiles, Thai basil, sesame and garlic. The rest of the preparation is very basic. A mix of Asian vegetables such as straw mushrooms, sweet baby corn and bok choy are boiled in vegetable broth. At the last minute, fried tofu, pre-cooked fresh udon noodles and coconut milk are added to complete the tasty soup.

The temperature is finally dropping in the Bay Area, which makes hot soup so soothing! 

Mushroom and Gorgonzola Polenta Recipe

The most common side dishes I serve at home are rice, pasta, bread and potatoes (shameless plug: don't forget to pre-order my Haute Potato cookbook on Amazon!). I think that’s probably the case in most homes. Today, I made something different for a change. I happened to reorganize my pantry early this morning and found lots of containers of corn meal, which I usually use to make corn bread, but also is the main ingredient in polenta. Polenta can serve as an excellent starch, and lends the opportunity to layer on many different flavors. In this particular version, I added morel and baby Bella mushrooms, which give an earthy flavor to the polenta, and gorgonzola for creaminess and a little zing. 

I grilled a few smoked chicken and apple sausages and Tofurky® Italian sausages to complete the meal. You could slice them and add them directly to the polenta as well. Either way, this meal was absolutely delicious!

Indian Stew with Okra

Mutton meat stew is one of our family's special occasion dishes whenever one of my husband Lulu's relatives come from dinner. I've shared several other versions in the past, but this week, I made the gravy with freshly ground poppy seeds. It gives the dish a pleasant nutty aroma that pairs perfectly with steamed jasmine rice.

The okra vegetables are added at the last minute and provided a nice contrast of color to the meat. Once cooked, they have a slimy quality that blends with the gravy. I've probably mentioned in the past but if you've never tried this unusual vegetable, okra is one of those foods you either love or hate. I personally love them!

Hawaiian Granola Bar Recipe

Our friend Sarah from Nuts About Granola has launched her first-ever box-mixed granola, called Granola Basics. The concept is brilliant and a lot of fun. Start with Granola Basics, then add a sweetener such as honey, agave or maple syrup. Finish with a few tasty mix-ins such as nuts, dried fruit or chocolate and you’re done.

Of course, I wanted to test it out! In my opinion, nothing can go wrong when you mix exquisite ingredients such as Guittard chocolate, fresh coconut shavings, Hawaiian ginger syrup, candied ginger and macadamia nuts, so that’s exactly what I did. It’s not quite a trip to the Aloha State, but very satisfying nonetheless.

If you want to give this delicious one-of-kind product a try, you can participate in this week's giveaway for one box of Granola Basics. Can’t wait? Buy it online, or if you live in the Baltimore area, you can find it on Whole Foods Harbor East shelves. 

Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini Recipe

Quinoa stuffed zucchini is not only a delicious and colorful dish, it's also very healthy. I flavored tri-color quinoa with grilled vegetables, grilled haloumi cheese and red beans. I also topped the dish with slices of sun-dried tomato chicken sausage. 

I was able to prepare this dish by using the same grill pan over our barbecue that I used to make yesterday's peach melba. I've included a review of the Technique grill as well, in case you're interested. If after reading the review you can't wait to get your own, I have some great news for you! I have another grill pan to offer exclusively to one lucky reader! Sharing is caring!

Unfortunately (and this is purely due to the popularity of the pan), the grill pan is no longer available for sale because it recently sold out. That really speaks to what a great product it is! There's a similar, less expensive Teflon® Brand pan available at IKEA; it has all the advantages of TeflonR nonstick coating, but it's not dishwasher friendly and it's made for the indoors.

To enter the giveaway, all you need to do is enter your email address. I'll pick a winner on Monday, August 13^th at 12AM. It's as easy as 1-2-3! Also make sure you're a fan of PhamFatale Facebook fan page and Teflon, or follow @phamfatalecom and @TeflonBrand and tweet about this giveaway.

To make it easy, you can just copy and paste this tweet if you’d like: "The #giveaway is live! Enter to #win a BBQ grill pan from @phamfatalecom! What's your favorite meal to #grill?: http://bit.ly/MvWiVG" Good luck everyone!