Moo's Curried Shrimp in Coconut Rolls

This one's fun. Great for picnics.

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 T curry powder
1 tsp. fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp. fresh mint, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
20 large shrimp, shelled and deveined
4 hot dog rolls
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup unsweetened, finely chopped coconut

Combine olive oil, lemon juice, curry, ginger, mint and garlic in bowl and toss with shrimp. Marinate for 8 hours, turning several times for good coverage. Drain and put on skewers. Separate the rolls into two halves. Cream butter and add coconut. Mix well and spread on the face of the bun. Grill shrimp. Do not overcook. Toast rolls and arrange cooked shrimp on top.

Moo's Steamed Asian Dumpling Filling

This is an excellent all-around filling for dumplings. You can use it to make pot stickers, Siu Mai or 4-color dumplings. Your dumplings will be real palate pleasers.

1 lb. ground pork
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 T sugar
1 T soy sauce, I prefer low sodium
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. teriyaki sauce
1/2 tsp. sherry
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped and packed tight
8 water chestnuts
4 fresh shitake mushrooms
1 scallion, minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1/4 cup cornstarch

Dumpling skins

To the pork, add broth, sugar, soy sauce, salt, teriyaki sauce, sherry and sesame oil. In food processor, fine chop all vegetables. Fold vegetables into pork mixture. Finally add cornstarch. Fill dumpling skins and either freeze until you need them or steam and serve.

By the way, here's a simple but good dipping sauce: 3 T low-sodium soy sauce, 1 tsp. rice vinegar, and 1 tsp. sesame oil

Moo's Jellied Beef a la Mode

This is a little different. These jellied meats used to be very popular in the 50s and 60s. I think they're worth revisiting. This is a palate pleaser for anyone who likes cold beef. (By the way, the witches are some of Moo's last artwork.)

2 pounds stew beef
1 T olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup water
2 cups white wine
1 T soy sauce
1 whole clove garlic, peeled
2 whole, small onions, peeled
1 carrot, washed and cut in 2" pieces
2 T parsley, chopped
2 T brandy
1 envelope gelatin
Extra parsley for garnish

Cut beef in 1" cubes, removing any fat. Heat olive oil in heavy pot until hot (on high heat). Quickly brown beef on all sides. Season beef with salt and pepper. Add water, wine and soy sauce. Bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low, add garlic, onions and carrot pieces. Cover and simmer until meat is tender, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

Strain cooking liquid, reserve and cool. Discard garlic, onions and carrots. Sprinkle meat with parsley and brandy. Refrigerate to remove any fat. Place reserved liquid in pan. Sprinkle gelatin powder over the cold liquid. This will help soften gelatin. make sure you have at least 2 cups of liquid. Heat enough to completely dissolve gelatin. Stir thoroughly. Then remove from heat, cool and then chill until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Fold chilled meat mixture into the slightly thickened gelatin. Mold. Chill. Serve.

Niki's Chili

While this is my sister's favorite chili recipe, she gave it to Moo who would make it a palate pleaser for Daddy and me by using venison. Also Niki says the quality of the chili powder makes all the difference...this is, after all, chili!

2 pounds ground sirloin (or chopped into bite-size pieces--cook's choice)
2 T olive oil
1/4 cup onion flakes
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 14 oz can chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup yellow mustard
Slightly less than 1 cup catsup
3 T Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 T chili powder
Mesquite seasoned salt, to taste
Steak seasoning, to taste

Cook meat in large skillet with olive oil. As meat begins to cook, add onion, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, catsup and chili powder. Mix thoroughly. Add can of beans and tomatoes. Add mesquite salt and steak seasoning to taste. Simmer for half an hour and until thickened a bit. Best made ahead to allow flavors to mingle and merge.