Monthly Archives: April 2010

Blue Ginger, Wellesley

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I went here with friends for a nice evening dinner this past Sunday. The atmosphere was very nice and semi-upscale. The staff is polite and friendly. I am somewhat starstruck as I got a chance to meet and talk with celebrity chef Ming Tsai! He usually doesn’t work on Sundays, but he was there because of a lower school function. He was friendly and very approachable! Pictures were taken with the camera on my Samsung Behold. It’s only 5.0MP, so sorry for the poor picture quality in advance.

As an amuse bouche we had a fruit soup garnished with sweet pepper and cilantro. It was semi-sweet and very refreshing.

For hors d’eouvres, we ordered the following items off the lounge menu: Edamame in Soy-Yuzu Glaze and Sweet Potato-Taro Fries with Chili Aioli off the lounge menu. The edamame was very tasty with the light lemony soy sauce. The crisp fries were delicious paired with the spicy light mayo. Note that these fries did not have a soft mealy potato center but were very crunchy and slightly salted.

Hawaiian Bigeye Tuna Poke with Crispy Sushi Rice Cake and Peppercross-Tosaka Salad. This was one of my favorites of the evening. The fresh tuna poke paired with the crispy rice at the bottom was fun to eat. The crispy rice reminded me of the rice that adheres to the bottom of the pot when you cooked it a bit too long, a throwback to the times when you didn’t use a commercial rice cooker.

Crispy Confit Orange Chicken Wings with Broccoli Slaw. These were personally suggested to us by Chef Ming Tsai. He explained that when these wings are prepared, they one of the most difficult items to prepare off the appetizer list. Apparently, while the wings are still hot from being confited, the chefs have to pull out the bones. The chicken wings were crisp orangy tender chicken nuggets in your mouth.

To drink I had a homemade ginger ale, which was superb. They make a homemade ginger infused syrup on site.
As first courses, Alex in the kitchen sent us smaller portions of the Sake-Miso Marinated Alaskan Butterfish with wasabi oil, soy-lime syrup, and vegetarian soba noodle sushi. This is a main on the regular menu. It was well done. The fish was tender and flaky with a wonderful umami taste.

Garlic-Black Pepper Lobster with Lemongrass Fried Rice with Pea Tendril Salad with Soy-Ginger Vinagrette was fragrant and the lobster was melt in your mouth tender. This was a nice twist on a more traditional Chinese lobster dish. 

Pan Roasted Milk-Fed Veal Chop with Dijon-Demi Soba-Bacon Spaetzle, Sake Braised Cabbage and Asian Pear Chutney

Indonesian Curry Pasta with Asian Vegetables and Chopped Peanuts  Panko Herb Crusted Chicken Breast

We were so stuffed from all the food that we skipped dessert. Alex brought out some cookies from the Petit Four plate as a complimentary finish. There was a crunchy Maitake Coffee-Chocolate cookie and a Pecan Toffee-Ginger cookie. There’s no picture because I forgot.

I highly recommend coming here to try the food. It was delicious and had many common Asian flavors that I grew up tasting but with a twist! If I return, I’d like to try Ming’s Bings, which are different versions of mini sliders, Foie Gras-Shitake Shumai in Sauternes-Shallot Broth, Tea-Smoked Poussin, Lapchang Sticky Friend Rice with Shallot-Mustard Greens, East-West Sweets, Pistachio Silken Lime Tart, Thai Coconut Martini, Gosling’s Ginger Storm and the Domaine de Canton Cosmopolitan.

Blue Ginger
583 Washington St
Wellesley, MA 02482
Tel: 781-283-5790
Blue Ginger on Urbanspoon

Vanilla Panna Cotta and Strawberry Sauce

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I’ve always loved this traditional Italian dessert. I’ve adjusted this recipe because I find that some are too creamy and prefer a lighter milkier version. You can always experiment with different seasonal fruit, chocolate or even green tea as additives.

Vanilla Panna Cotta

Makes 6

  • 2 C skim milk
  • 1 envelope Knox gelatin (0.25 oz)
  • 2 C heavy cream
  • 1/3 C sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean, making sure to scrape the innards into the cream
  • six ramekins

Mix skim milk and gelatin in a bowl. Set aside. In a saucepan, stir together heavy cream and sugar over medium heat. Bring to a full boil then add the skim milk and gelatin mixture. Stir constantly until everything is completely uniform. Stir in vanilla extract. Pour into individual ramekins. Cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. To unmold, dip ramekin into warm water and run a knife along the inside edge. Top with fresh strawberries and strawberry sauce if desired.

Some other presentation ideas:

Strawberry Sauce

  • 1 pint fresh strawberries
  • sugar to taste

Puree strawberries in blender. Strain seeds and pulp if desired. Add sugar to taste.

Garlic Herbed Spareribs and Baked Asparagus

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Garlic Herbed Spareribs
For the marinade:

  • 4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped fine
  • 2 T garlic powder
  • 1 T onion powder
  • 3/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp tumeric
  • 1/2 tsp white pepper
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
  • 1 T dried parsley
  • 3 packets Stevia or Splenda, or T sugar (your choice)
  • 3 T white vinegar
  • 3 T olive oil
  • 1/3 C water
  • 2 1/2 lbs spareribs, cleaned and cut

Mix all ingredients for the marinade together. Add in spareribs. Allow to marinate for at least an hour, overnight is best. Place spareribs and some leftover marinade into a baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees F for 45 minutes, making sure to flip spareribs every 15 minutes.

Baked Asparagus

  • 2 lbs fresh asparagus, cleaned and ends cut off
  • 1 T olive oil
  • kosher sea salt
  • pepper, freshly ground

Toss all ingredients together in a shallow baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees F for 30-40 minutes depending on how much snap you like when you bite into them when they are done.


Moules Mariniere, Shrimp Scampi, Strawberry Cheesecake and Mimosa

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At a gathering recently, we made the following recipes to celebrate spring and a few belated birthdays. It was good to see everyone after such a long time. Nothing beats sharing a meal filled with friends, laughter and love.

Moules Mariniere

  • 1 T olive oil
  • 8 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 4 shallots, chopped
  • 1 stick butter
  • 6 stems of thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 C white wine, whatever you like to drink works best
  • 6 lbs fresh mussels, debearded and cleaned, soak in water if possible
  • 1 large handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1/2 C heavy cream
  • salt and pepper

In a large stock pot on medium heat, warm olive oil. Add shallots and onions. Cook til translucent. Add garlic and saute until lightly brown or very aromatic. Add mussels, thyme, bay leaves, and wine. Cook on high heat until mussels open, about 5-10 minutes. Discard any that do not open. Transfer mussels to a serving dish. Add parsley and cream to remaining broth. Reduce broth by at least 1/3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour reduced broth back over mussels. Serve with warm crusty baguettes.

Shrimp Scampi

  • 2 lbs jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • salt and pepper
  • 4 T unsalted butter
  • 8 cloves garlic, chopped fine
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 C dry vermouth
  • 1 T lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • 2 T flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp lemon zest

Pat shrimp completely dry with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. In a heated skillet, add butter. After the butter stops foaming, add the shrimp into the pan. Do not touch for one minute. Add garlic and red pepper. Flip shrimp and cook for two more minutes. Transfer shrimp to a bowl. Add the vermouth and lemon juice to the skillet. Reduce liquid. Stir in lemon zest, parsley and reserved shrimp. Toss with angel hair pasta and serve.


Strawberry Cheesecake

  • 1 1/4 C graham cracker crumbs
  • 1/4 C sugar
  • 1/3 C butter, melted
  • 10 oz fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced, sweeten if necessary
  • 3 packages of reduced fat cream cheese, 8 oz each, softened
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 oz
  • 1/4 C lemon juice
  • 1 T vanilla extract
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 T water

Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Press into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Take 1/3 of strawberries with sugar to taste and puree in blender. Save to use as a sauce. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in condensed milk. Add eggs until combined. Pour half over crust. Dollop 1/2 of strawberries onto cream cheese layer. Pour on remaining cream cheese mixture. Drop remaining strawberries on top. Swirl the top with a knife if desired. Bake at 300 degrees F for 45-50 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run knife along edges of pan to loosen. Cool in refrigerator overnight if desired. Serve with strawberry sauce and creme fraiche.

Mimosa

  • Freshly squeezed orange juice
  • Champagne, brut

Mix equal parts orange juice and champagne. Garnish with an orange wedge if desired.