Basil Seed Drink (Nuoc Hot E)

This is a very impressive looking, yet extremely easy to make beverage. The first time I ever drank a basil seed drink was near the entrance of the Saigon Plaza on one of my trips to Chinatown, Los Angeles. The drink simply looked refreshing to me, and the little basil seeds made me think of tapioca pearl drinks called "Boba" that I really enjoy.

However, at the time, I had no idea that I was drinking a drink made of basil seeds up until last week, when my boyfriend, Travis, (whom is Vietnamese) talked to me about a drink that was made from basil seeds. When the basil seeds make contact with liquid, they make a gelatinous barrier around themselves. I was intrigued and Travis told me he would make it for me sometime at my house so my family could try it. He said, "They look like frog's eyes and taste like whatever you flavor the water!" Me being the foodie that I am went to go research this basil seed drink online and that's when I found out that what I had at the Saigon Plaza was a basil seed drink also popular in Thailand. So the day finally came and my boyfriend taught me how to make this delicious and easy to make basil seed drink. We decided to make a pictorial to share this with other fellow foodies :)

Ingredients:
-1 pitcher full of water (about 9 cups water)
-1/2 cup white cane sugar
-1/4 cup honey
-1 oz. or 1 Tablespoon or about 30 grams basil seeds (Sometimes misspelled "Basel seeds", you can use more or less depending on how thick you want your drink)
-1 teaspoon extract (Optional, it's your choice, we used vanilla but you can also use banana, pandan, or peppermint; it's a matter of personal taste)

Directions:
(1) Put room temperature water into a pitcher, stir in sugar, honey, extract and finally stir in the basil seeds until everything is well incorporated. Let it rest for about 15- 20 minutes. The fun part is seeing the seeds react to the water. It's a very entertaining drink to make with children when they get to see the seeds puff up. Cool in the fridge before serving.

P.S.
I'll be posting his mother's salad dressing recipe sometime soon as well. Next time he'll teach me how to make Boba so expect a post for that in the near future :D

Edited by: Travis Thi

Tortitas de Atun (Mexican Tuna Fritters)

My mother calls these "Tortitas de Atun". I believe "Tortitas" would refer to anything that's round and "patty" like, however me and my Tata (grandmother) refer to them as "Frituras de Tuna" direct translation would be "Fritters of Tuna" but it is my mother's recipe, and so I'll respect her word choice and name the recipe "Tortitas de Atun" for this post.

The Tuna fritters are delicious, fluffy, spongy, eggy, sinful (because I must admit they are somewhat greasy) easy and quick to prepare fritters that we will make in my household when we want to make a really quick meal it literally takes less that 10-15 minutes to put together and another 10-15 to fry them. You can eat them with any hot sauce you have in the fridge, and some corn tortillas. If you wish a simple salad can be served with them or simply served with rice (probably not traditionally Mexican but heck being raised pre-dominantly in a Cuban food culture rice just feels right with everything)

Ingredients:
-4 egg whites
-4 egg yolks
-1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
-1/2 teaspoon salt (more to taste if needed)
-1 teaspoon ground black pepper (more or less to taste)
-1 small roma tomato minced very finely (pulp, seeds removed, only the firm flesh no liquid)
-1/2 onion minced very finely
-3 cloves of garlic mashed to a paste or minced very finely
-1/2 a bunch of Cilantro cleaned pat dried, finely minced (I had very little left in the fridge so I used less)
-2 cans of tuna packed in water
-oil to pan-fry (I used canola)

Directions:
(1) Seperate egg whites from egg yolks. Beat the egg whites until they are stiff and white, they should form peeks when you turn off and pull the egg beater out, when stiff beat in egg yolks, add flour, season with salt and pepper (careful not to over do the salt the canned tuna is salty already).

(2) Gently fold in onion, garlic, tomato, cilantro, and canned drained tuna.

(3) Now that your batter is formed, heat oil on medium high to high heat (not to high it will burn the fritters) when oil drop batter in by large spoonfuls to form patties, and let them fry until golden brown on one side while spooning over hot oil on them, when golden brown flip with spatula and let brown on other side.

(4) Drain them, and place them in a large plate with paper towels or paper bags to drain excess oil.
PLEASE NOTE:
-Do not expect these to be firm, super crunchy fritters, these are somewhat crispy on the outside, fully cooked inside but are tender and fluffy from the eggs, like fluffy scrambled eggs.

Espinacas Guisadas (Sauteed Spinach)

In Mexican cooking certain greens are generally sauteed in a very simple fashion and served as a side to any meal, or sometimes eggs are scrambled together with the sauteed greens to make a simple breakfast with tortillas and a hot sauce and if desired refried beans.

The recipe I present is my mother's it's quick, easy, and healthy here she sautee's spinach, you may substitute the Spinach for Purslane (Verdolagas), any variety of Swiss Chard (including Beet tops), Collard Greens, and cleaned, de- spined cactus pads that are julienned very thinly. My mother sometimes likes to combine the purslane with spinach or combine cactus pads with purslane so feel free to do that to.

Ingredients:
-2 large bunches of spinach, washed well, drained, and chopped
-2 roma tomatoes diced
-1 onion chopped
-1-2 green chili peppers (Serrano or Jalapeno) minced
-2 cloves garlic finely minced
-salt to taste
-fresh ground black pepper to taste
-oil to cook aromatics (my mother uses Extra-Virgin Olive Oil)

Directions:
(1) Heat oil in a large pan on medium high heat, then add onions and sautee until aromatic and translucent together with the green chili pepper, add a little bit of salt add garlic and sautee until fragrant, and add black pepper and stir well until fragrant, then add tomato and cook down a few minutes until it looks cooked.

(2) Add spinach, and cover until it starts to wilt a bit (check on it maybe in 2 minutes) then incorporate everything well together, add more salt to taste , and cook for a little longer until everything is well together.
PLEASE NOTE:
The way my mother washed leafy greens is she trims them and looks through them for any impurities, chops them then gives them a good rinse, afterwards she puts them in the sink with lots of water, vinegar, and salt and swooshes them around several times, drains, rinses again, then puts them in a colander to drain until ready to use. I clean my leafy greens like that to.