Asian Dumpling Soup with Shitakes and Edamame

Inspiration:
Have you ever returned from a vacation where you overindulged, and all you wanted to do was eat spinach and drink water for a week? Tim and I just had a fun-filled trip to the Caribbean, and we enjoyed all the food--perhaps a little too much. This soup was just the healthy, vegetable-packed recipe we were craving.
Recipe adapted from Real Simple


Ingredients:

• 64 ounces low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 16-ounce package frozen pot sticker dumplings or Japanese gyoza
• 2 medium carrots, halved lengthwise and sliced
• 4 ounces shiitake or white mushrooms, stems discarded and caps thinly sliced
• 2 cups frozen shelled edamame
• 1 bunch watercress, thick stems removed (or spinach, see note; about 3 cups)
  
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
• kosher salt
• 4 scallions, sliced

Instructions:

1. In a large saucepan, bring the broth and ginger to a boil. Add the pot stickers and carrots and simmer until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
2. Add the mushrooms and edamame and simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes.
3. Stir in the watercress, soy sauce, and ½ teaspoon salt. Sprinkle with the scallions before serving.

Notes: I substituted 3 cups of spinach for the watercress as my food co-op didn't have watercress. I doubled the mushrooms as Tim loves them.
This is really easy to make as long as you don't mind chopping a few carrots/mushrooms/scallions.

See recipe for nutritional information.


Liz's Rating: 9.5/10
Tim's Rating: 9/10

Thai Summer Bean Stew with Shrimp

Inspiration:
Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined, with tails removed
  
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 pound frozen shelled edamame
• 1 cup light coconut milk
• 2 teaspoons Thai green curry paste
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 10 basil leaves, plus more for garnish
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 1 pound mixed green beans and yellow wax beans, cut into 1 1/2-inch lengths
• 2 ears of corn, shucked and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick rounds
• Lime wedges, for serving
  
• Steamed jasmine rice, for serving

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Season shrimp with salt and pepper. Sauté until almost done, about 2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk half of the coconut milk with the green curry paste. Whisk in the remaining coconut milk, 1/2 cup of the chicken broth, the fish sauce and the sugar and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. Transfer the sauce to a blender. Add the 10 basil leaves and the 1/4 cup of cilantro and puree.
3. In the same large skillet from step 1, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the onion and cook over moderately high heat until lightly browned. Add the edamame, green beans and yellow wax beans and the corn and cook over high heat for 2 minutes, tossing frequently. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of broth. Cover the skillet and simmer the beans until tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in the coconut-curry sauce and the shrimp and simmer until just heated through. Season the stew with salt and pepper.
4. Ladle the stew into shallow bowls, and garnish with basil and cilantro leaves. Serve with lime wedges and jasmine rice.

Notes:
The original recipe included chicken instead of shrimp, so refer to it if you would prefer chicken. Meat/seafood is not needed, necessarily, the dish would be hearty even without a protein.

The corn looked beautiful but was difficult to eat. Tim did not care for the corn format at all. ("Am I supposed to stab this with my fork?") Next time I will probably just add frozen or fresh corn at the very last minute.

Tim's Rating: 9/10 (not including the corn; 7/10 with the corn).
Liz's Rating: 8.5/10