My Menu Blog

2 qts. cold water
1 tbs. jasmine tea
1 tbs. green tea
½ cup fresh, peeled, roughly chopped ginger
2 stalks lemon grass, peeled and roughly chopped
12 sprigs fresh mint, roughly broken apart by hand
1/3 cup granulated sugar
Lemon or lime slices, for garnish (optional)
Candied ginger, for garnish (optional)

1. In pot with lid, bring water to boil over high heat. Immediately after it begins to boil, add jasmine tea, green tea, ginger, lemon grass and mint.
2. Remove from heat and stir briefly. Add sugar and stir until granules dissolve. Allow to steep 10 to 15 min.
3. Pour solution through a fine-mes-sieve. Bring to room temp. before storing in reefer. Chill until cold.
4. Pour into glasses with ice and garnish with lemon or lime slices, and candied ginger, if desired.

1 quart brewed tea
2 limes, sliced into rings
12 sprigs of mint
4 tbs. turbinado sugar, or more to taste
Tonic water or seltzer, optional

1. Fill 4 highball or old-fashioned glasses with ice. Pour 1 cup tea into each glass. Divide lime slices and mint among the glasses, squeezing the limes to extract juice and crushing the herb roughly with your fingers.
2. Add a tbs. of sugar to each glass. Stir briskly until sugar dissolves. Top with a little tonic or seltzer, if you like, and stir again. Taste and adjust sugar, if necessary. You can also add more lime or mint to taste.

4 (10″) spinach herb tortillas
1 cup or 1 (7 oz.) container red pepper hummus
¼ cup chopped fresh mint leaves
¼ cup chopped pitted black olives
½ cup crumbled feta cheese

1. Spread tortillas evenly with hummus
2. Sprinkle with mint, olives and feta cheese.
3. Roll up.

4 x 6 oz. Ahi tuna steaks
3 garlic cloves, cut into slivers
Sea salt/ fresh cracked pepper
2 tbsp. Fresh coriander leaves
2 tbsp. Fresh mint leaves
extra virgin olive oil

Tomato herb sauce
4 tbsp. Extra virgin olive oil
sea salt/ fresh cracked pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, sliced finely
Red chilli flakes
100 ml white wine
4 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
2 tbsp. Ginger, sliced finely
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp. Flat leaf parsley, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375’f. Make little incisions in the tuna and insert, garlic, mint, and coriander. Season both sides of the steak.
2. Prepare the sauce; remove the cores of the tomatoes, and make a criss-cross incision on the bottom of the tomato. Place tomatoes in salted, boiling water for approx. 1 minute. Remove and place in ice water. Peel the skin off and cut around the tomato discarding the seeds and centre part. Dice the tomatoes.
3. Heat a skillet, add olive oil, add onions, season, and saute for 1 minute. Add the garlic and ginger, season, and saute for 1 minute. Add the wine, and reduce for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, lemon juice, chillies, and season, cook an additional minute. Put aside.
4. Heat a skillet, add olive oil. Add the tuna steaks and sear each side for 1-2 minutes.
5. Transfer into a casserole dish and top with tomato sauce. Bake in oven for approx. 10- 15 minutes depending on desired temp.
6. Top with fresh chopped parsley, and serve with seasonal veggies.

Carb count; 8 g. per serving

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound dried rice vermicelli
2 carrots, julienned
1 cucumber, halved, peeled, seeded and sliced into thin halfrounds
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup finely shredded napa cabbage
1/4 cup chopped dryroasted nuts

1. Place the garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, honey, lime juice, fish sauce and salt in the bowl of a food processor and process until almost smooth.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the noodles and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Drain, rinse well with cold water and drain again.
4. In a large bowl, combine the sauce, noodles, carrots, cucumber, mint and napa cabbage.
5. Toss well and garnish with peanuts