Pizza-Creme Fraiche, Pears, Brie and Basil

So I ventured outside of my comfort zone of Washington Square West earlier this week to try out a new happy hour establishment (Dock Street Brewery). For the gluten lovers-this place looked amazing. For gluten haters-like myself, the only respite was the gluten free beer they had on TAP! But this joy was quickly taken away from me as they informed me that I had gotten the last glass...So after I finished my one lonely beer, I stared at my dear friends as they ate some of the most delicious looking pizzas I had ever seen!

SO, I came home tonight from the store with gluten-free pizza dough, creme fraiche, pears, basil, and brie to recreate one of the pizzas I had tried not to be jealous of just a few days prior...

Verdict: besides the obvious (gluten free pizza crust has a long way to go to compare to the chewy, charred, crusty crusts of it's gluten competitor), it was quite the delicious pizza! Not very healthy...but it is not like I am going to a beach for Memorial Day weekend or anything...oh wait, I am...crap!

Ingredients:
Gluten free pizza crust of choice
1 pear, sliced thin
Brie
Creme Fraiche
Basil, chiffonade(d) is that a word?!
Fresh pepper and salt

Assemble as you like, I used the creme fraiche like pizza sauce, the brie like cheese, and the pears and basil like toppings. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper, cook according to crust directions, and then... EAT!

Sauteed Baby Bok Choy

I just started cooking with baby bok choy a few months ago and it is so good! I love using it with asian-inspired flavor combinations--but I bet it would be good roasted with lots of olive oil and garlic as well. Here is a fast, simple recipe for using baby bok choy as a side dish, enjoy!

Ingredients:
3 baby bok choy, rinsed and halved
olive oil
3 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce
1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
pepper

Directions:
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat, add baby bok choy, halved side down and sautee for about 7-10 minutes or until the halved side facing down starts to caramelize and brown. Flip each baby bok choy over, reduce heat to medium low and add soy sauce and lime juice. Let the baby bok choy simmer until tender. Add a light sprinkle of pepper and serve hot, with some extra pan juice dripped over them.

Broccoli Rabe Risotto with Mushrooms and Scallops

Risotto is an amazing dish-I used to think it was boring and would never order it at restaurants--now after watching my fair share of Top Chef, I can appreciate how hard risotto can be-yet so versatile (and it really is not that hard when you don't have a panel of judges trying to vote you off a show). You can really find recipes for every type of risotto--with millions of different flavor panels, some have white wine, others have meat, vegetarian, oranges, beets, whatever! I chose to make a more traditional one, with lots of cheese, some butter (yum), and some more spring vegetables! You can also use asparagus, which tastes great too! Maybe with a little lemon juice/zest?

Ingredients:
1 cup Arborio rice
2 cups (plus an extra 1/2 cup) chicken stock, heated in a saucepan to simmering
2 cup packed broccoli rabe (what I used) OR spinach, roughly chopped, or peas and asparagus!
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
1 small onion
olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
two handfuls mushrooms (whatever you want), sliced
1/2 lb scallops, rinsed

Directions:
First, get your chicken stock in a saucepan and start simmering. Dice onion and add to a large pot with 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Let the onions get translucent and soft, about 7 minutes. Next, add rice, keep heat to medium, stirring often to brown the rice a little (this keeps them firm and al dente once cooked), this will take about 5 minutes. Next add about 1/2 cup of simmering chicken stock. Keep stirring until liquid is mostly absorbed, continue this pattern of adding about 1/2 cup liquid, stirring til absorbed until you have added about 2 cups of chicken stock. At this point, add the broccoli rabe, stirring until it has wilted. Now it is time to play with the consistency: Risotto should be fluid enough that when you spoon some on a plate, it fans out a bit. You don't want it to start looking like a rice casserole. I usually have to add about 2 1/4 cups to 2 1/2 cups liquid total to get this desired consistency, play with the remaining liquid, adding a little bit slowly until you get this desired consistency. At this time add the sauteed mushrooms and grated pecorino romano cheese. After you add the cheese (I like to add this first before salting as it has a lot of salt in it already), season with salt and pepper to desired flavor. When you are happy with the consistency and flavor of your risotto, turn off the heat and add two tablespoons of butter, whip the butter into the risotto-this adds a great creaminess to the risotto and keeps it nice and silky.

For mushrooms,
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat, add mushrooms and saute til soft, add salt and pepper to flavor, set aside to add to risotto at the end.

For scallops,
Rinse the scallops and pat dry, season generously with salt and pepper. In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil until water dripped in fizzles. Quickly add the scallops and cook for 2 minutes on one side, flip and cook for an additional minute on other side. Make sure not to overcook scallops! They taste rubbery and gross...

For plating: Spoon some risotto on a plate and top with a few scallops, another light sprinkle of pepper and serve hot!

Weeknight Meal for Spring

Hello everyone,

Spring is finally here! Gone are the days I decide a frozen gluten free pizza is dinner (what, I added mushrooms to the top!?) Gone are the days I make a huge vat of gluten free lasagna and eat it for the whole week/half a week...Til next winter at least.

With spring comes fruits and vegetables that you can actually get excited to cook (winter root vegetables...BORING)! Here is a quick, yet unique, weeknight meal-featuring lots of the spring produce starting to pop up around grocery stores...and the tilapia? Well, the salmon was not on sale this week... :) Very fast, pretty healthy, very colorful!

Ingredients:
For the corn salad:
3 ears of corn, husked and cleaned
3 big handfuls of green beans or asparagus
1 bowl of iced water
1 carton cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
juice of 1-2 lemons
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

For the plantains:
2 plantains, peeled and sliced
olive oil
salt and pepper

For the Tilapia:
2 Tilapia fillets
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions:
For Corn Salad:
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. In the mean time, slice tomatoes in half. Also, trim ends off of green beans and slice them into two inch pieces. When water is at a boil, add corn and let boil for about 3 minutes, remove and set aside to cool. Next add sliced green beans, let blanch for 2 minutes and quickly add them to a bowl of ice water to cool. Trim corn off the cob and then slide back of knife over husk to squeeze all juices out of husk. Combine cherry tomatoes, corn, and green beans in a bowl. In a separate bowl, squeeze the juice of the lemons, add pepper and salt and slowly blend in olive oil. Pour this dressing into bowl of vegetables, stir to combine, taste-season as you want.

For Plantains:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place sliced plantains on parchment paper on a baking sheet, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place in oven and cook for 10 minutes, flip each plantain over and cook an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven, serve while hot.

For Tilapia:
Heat olive oil in a small saucepan on medium heat until you can splash a bit of water in the pan and it fizzles. Season tilapia with salt and pepper on both sides. When olive oil is ready, place tilapia in saucepan and let cook for about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from heat.

To serve:
Place tilapia on plate and spoon corn salad on top, serve with plantains on the side. Enjoy!

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Seeing as how I am 6 weeks away from being done with my first year of medical school, I thought I would post a cake recipe to celebrate...that is good enough reason, right?

This is quite the cake-very pretty, rich, chocolatey-I think it goes the best with fruit and fresh whipped cream (with a glass or two of champagne)--Just remember if you are cooking this for your gluten-free friends to ask which brands of powdered cocoa and chocolate they feel comfortable with you using!

Ingredients

12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips or bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
1 cup (2 sticks) plus 3 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks
1 1/4 cups sugar
6 eggs
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (Ghirardelli brand is gfree)
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a 9-inch spring-form pan with nonstick cooking spray, then line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper. Spray the paper with cooking spray, too, then set the pan aside.

2. Place two-thirds (8 ounces) of the chocolate and 1 cup (2 sticks) of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Stirring often, melt chocolate with butter until completely blended. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl. Add sugar and mix well. Add eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Sift cocoa into bowl and stir until just blended.

3. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cake has risen and top has formed a thin crust. The cake should be just firm in the center when done. Cool for 10 minutes, then invert onto a plate, removing sides of spring-form pan. Remove and discard parchment paper and set cake aside to cool completely.

4. Meanwhile, make the chocolate glaze. Melt remaining 4 ounces chocolate and 3 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, then stir in milk, honey and vanilla. Set aside to cool slightly.

5. When cake has cooled, pour glaze onto the center. Using a spatula or the back of a spoon, very gently smooth glaze along the top and sides of the cake. Chill cake, uncovered, for 30 to 60 minutes before serving to set the glaze and make the cake easier to slice.

Whole Grilled Red Snapper Provencal

Great recipe to serve for guests familiar with how to eat a whole fish-you may want to serve it with heads and tails removed :) The sauce is really delicious on its own! The first time we made this-the recipe said to use 1 and 2/3 cup olive oil for the sauce-we soon learned this was obviously a mistake in the recipe and have thus decreased it down to 1/4 cup-a much more delicious amount.

Ingredients

2 garlic bulbs, unpeeled

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 medium-size vine-ripened tomatoes

1/2 cup slivered fresh basil leaves

3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt, divided

3/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided

2 (2 1/2- to 3-pound) whole red snapper,

dressed, leaving scales on

6 sprigs fresh rosemary

Preparation

1. Cut off pointed end of garlic; place bulbs on a piece of aluminum foil, and drizzle with 1-tablespoon olive oil. Fold to seal.

2. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes; cool. Squeeze pulp from garlic cloves into a small saucepan. Set aside.

3. Cook tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds; drain. Peel, seed, and dice tomatoes; add to garlic. Stir in 1/4 cup olive oil, basil, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

4. Sprinkle snapper cavities with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; insert rosemary sprigs. Brush skins lightly with olive oil. Place fish in 2 lightly greased grill baskets.

5. Grill, covered with grill lid, over high heat (400° to 500°) 10 to 12 minutes on each side or until fish flakes with a fork.

6. Cook tomato sauce over low heat until warm. Spoon 1-cup sauce over fish. Serve immediately with remaining sauce.

Buffalo Chicken Wings with Creamy Roqeufort Dip

Decided to make this cliche snack food for the Superbowl one year-turned out delicious! I also love the Roquefort dip, feel free to use blue cheese as a substitute! And for the vegetarians out there- make the dip and prepare a vegetable platter for dipping!

Ingredients for Wings

12 whole chicken wings

3 ounces unsalted butter

1 small clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup hot sauce

Preparation

1. Place a 6-quart saucepan with a steamer basket and 1-inch of water in the bottom, over high heat, cover and bring to a boil.

2. Remove the tips of the wings and discard or save for making stock. Using kitchen shears, or a knife, separate the wings at the joint. Place the wings into the steamer basket, cover, reduce the heat to medium and steam for 10 minutes. Remove the wings from the basket and carefully pat dry. Lay the wings out on a cooling rack set in a half sheet pan lined with paper towels and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

4. Replace the paper towels with parchment paper. Roast on the middle rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Turn the wings over and cook another 20 minutes or until meat is cooked through and the skin is golden brown.

5. While the chicken is roasting, melt the butter in a small bowl along with the garlic. Pour this along with hot sauce and salt into a bowl large enough to hold all of the chicken and stir to combine.

6. Remove the wings from the oven and transfer to the bowl and toss with the sauce. Serve warm.

Ingredients for Creamy Roquefort Dip

1/2 cup Roquefort cheese, crumbled

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon wine vinegar

1/2 cup sour cream

Preparation

1. Blend all ingredients together

Spring Rolls with Chile-Garlic-Lime Dipping Sauce

A healthy, simple appetizer. I have made this dish for guests or for myself (although it is more fun to make this for other people as it takes some time to make!) The sauce is pretty spicy, so play around with your preference of flavors! You can really change any ingredient in the rice paper-you can even fill the rice paper with strawberries and bananas with a chocolate dipping sauce for dessert spring rolls!

Ingredients for spring rolls

Red, orange, yellow peppers, julienned

Fresh ginger, julienned

Shredded carrots

Mung bean sprouts

Mushrooms, shredded with a vegetable peeler

Frozen, pre-cooked, small shrimp, tail and head removed

Rice Paper

(Or use anything you want!)

Preparation

1. Wet a towel and lay out on working area

2. Have all ingredients ready for assembly

3. Dip rice paper in hot water, let soften (about 30 seconds), remove and lay out on wet towel

4. Fill with ingredients

5. Wrap very tightly

6. Keep wet by covering with more wet towels until ready to serve

Ingredients for dipping sauce

2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 Tablespoon fish sauce

1 Tablespoon water

1 Tablespoon chile paste with garlic

1 Teaspoon sugar

2 Teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger

2 Garlic cloves, minced

Preparation

1. Mix all ingredients together

2. Add more lime or sugar to balance out heat

Coq au Vin

*adapted from various Coq au Vin recipes in the UK

Comforting, delicious, great as leftovers. This dish is a winter winner for guests or a Sunday dinner. I used bacon instead of pancetta. Apparently, you are supposed to use an older, tougher bird for more depth of flavor...I did not really worry about it and it still turned out delicious!

Ingredients:

1 large chicken, jointed into 6 or 8 pieces, giblets and carcass saved
an onion, a carrot and a few peppercorns for the stock
2/3 cup pancetta or unsmoked bacon in the piece
2 tbsps butter
2 medium onions
a large carrot
2 ribs of celery
2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsps cornstarch or 2 tbsps gluten-free flour
2 tbsps cognac
a bottle of red wine
4 or 5 small sprigs of thyme
3 bay leaves
3 tbsps butter
12 small onions, peeled
1 cup small mushrooms
boiled or steamed potatoes, to serve

Directions:

1. Put the chicken carcass, its giblets and any bits of bone and flesh into a deep pan, cover with water, add an onion and a carrot, half a dozen whole peppercorns and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and let it simmer until you need it.

2. Cut the pancetta into short strips; they need to be thicker than a match but not quite as thick as your little finger. Put them, together with the butter, into a thick-bottomed casserole and let them cook over a moderate heat. Stir the pancetta from time to time (don't let it burn) then, when it is golden, lift it out into a bowl, leaving behind the fat in the pan.

3. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and place them in the hot fat in the casserole, so that they fit snugly yet have room to color. Turn them when the underside is pale gold. The skin should be honey colored rather than brown - it is this coloring of the skin, rather than what wine or herbs you might add later, that is crucial to the flavor of the dish. Lift the chicken out and into the bowl with the pancetta.

4. While the chicken is coloring in the pan, peel and roughly chop the onions and carrot, and wash and chop the celery. With the chicken out, add the onions and carrot to the pan and cook slowly, stirring from time to time, until the onion is translucent and it has gone some way to dissolving some of the pan stockings. Add the garlic, peeled and thinly sliced, as you go. Return the chicken and pancetta to the pan, stir in the cornstarch or gluten-free flour and let everything cook for a minute or two before pouring in the cognac, wine and tucking in the herbs. Spoon in ladles of the simmering chicken stock until the entire chicken is covered. Bring to the boil, then, just as it gets there, turn the heat down so that the sauce bubbles gently. Cover partially with a lid.

5. Melt the butter in a small pan, add the small peeled onions and then the mushrooms, halving or quartering them if they are too big. Let them cook until they are golden, and then add them to the chicken with a seasoning of salt and pepper.

6. Check the chicken after 40 minutes to see how tender it is. It should be soft but not falling from its bones. It will probably take about an hour, depending on the type of chicken you are using. Lift the chicken out and into a bowl.

7. Turn the heat up under the sauce and let it bubble enthusiastically until it has reduced a little. As it bubbles down it will become thicker and glossy.

8. Return the chicken to the pan and serve with the potatoes.

Sweet Potato and Sausage Soup

* Adapted from Bon Appetit 2007: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Sweet-Potato-and-Sausage-Soup-240092

This soup is perfect for a winter meal, great as leftovers, and so easy to make! Can't say anything bad about this soup! And if you know a place to get good gluten-free rolls, this is a great way to use them! If you live in Philly, I love Amaranth Gluten Free Bakery, they sell some of their stuff at Whole Foods and are at the Rittenhouse Square farmer's market every Saturday.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 of a pound of hot Italian sausage
2 medium onions, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced

1 can crushed tomatoes (I think san marzano tomatoes are the best)

2 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams; about 2 large), peeled, quartered lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 pound white-skinned potatoes, peeled, halved lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1-2 9-ounce bags fresh spinach (depending on how much spinach you want in your soup)

Making the soup:

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add sausage; cook until brown, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Transfer sausage to paper towels to drain. Add onions and garlic to pot and cook until translucent, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add all potatoes and cook until beginning to soften, stirring often, about 12 minutes. Add broth; bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until potatoes are soft, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Using potato masher, mash some of potatoes in pot. Add browned sausage and tomatoes to soup. Stir in spinach and simmer just until wilted, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Serves 8

Braised Leeks and Potatoes

*Adapted from iflipforfood.com

Braising is the best technique EVER! So easy and so much flavor! This is a delicious and comforting side dish. Great for cold weather (although I think the first time I made this it was summer!)

Ingredients:
3 medium leeks (about 1 1/2 lbs with the dark green tops cut off)
1 1/2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1 1/4 cups chicken stock
2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and put chicken stock on the stove to simmer.

Preparing the leeks and potatoes:

Trim roots and green parts, quarter them lengthwise and slice into pieces about 3/4 inch thick. Rinse in a colander to get rid of the dirt and drain.

Peel the potatoes and cut into about 1-inch chunks.

Preparing the dish:

Butter the casserole dish, put the leeks and potatoes in, sprinkled them with the thyme and nutmeg, and generously season them with salt and pepper. Toss together, pour the hot broth over the leeks and potatoes and dot the top with pieces of butter.

Cover the casserole dish tightly with foil and put it in the oven. After about 45 minutes, remove the foil and stir the leeks and potatoes, if there is a lot of liquid left, continue cooking with foil off, about 40 minutes, until leeks and potatoes are very tender. Remove the dish, raise the oven temp to 425 and, after stirring the potatoes and leeks one more time, pour cream over them. Put the uncovered dish back in the oven and bake another 30 minutes or until top is browned and most of liquid is absorbed.

Tortilla de Patatas

Adapted from Smittenkitchen.com

This recipe is great for a weeknight meal served with a salad with a light vinaigrette. Also great for leftovers or for serving Spanish tapas at dinner parties (cut into small wedges and serve on toothpicks at room temperature). I first had this as a "tortilla de patatas bocadillo" in Madrid, Spain back in high school. Unfortunately, no more of those for me! But, this is delicious without the bread anyways...

3 Yukon Gold potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled
salt and pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
6 large, fresh eggs
2 tablespoons chicken stock or broth

Preparing the potatoes:

Slice the potatoes very thinly width-wise. If you have a mandoline, use this.

Cooking the potatoes:

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet (I used two medium-sized ones because it was what I had) over medium-high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the potatoes in even layers. Cook, stirring occasionally, to prevent the potatoes from sticking and browning, until they are almost cooked, but still al dente (about 10 minutes). Add more olive oil if needed. Stir in the onion, reduce the heat to low, and cook the potatoes until all of them are soft, about 15 minutes more. Add salt and pepper to taste. When everything is soft line a colander with towels and transfer the potatoes and onions into the colander, let drain and cool a bit (make sure they are seasoned to your taste).

Preparing the omelette:

Place the eggs, chicken stock, and a couple of pinches of salt in a large mixing bowl and beat until scrambled. Gently stir in the potato/onion mixture. Mash and stir the egg mixture gently with a fork to crush the potatoes just a little and mix them up well with the eggs. Let stand for about 10 minutes.

Cooking the tortilla de patatas:

Heat about 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy large nonstick skillet. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and flatten the potatoes with a spatula until the top is fairly even. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook, moving and shaking the skillet, running a thin spatula around the edge and sliding it into the middle so that some of the egg runs under for about one minute, then let it cook undisturbed until the top is a little wet but not liquid, 6 to 8 minutes. Run the thin spatula under the tortilla to make sure that no part of the bottom is stuck to the skillet.

Top the skillet with a rimless plate slightly larger than the skillet and, using oven mitts, quickly invert the tortilla onto the plate. If the skillet looks dry, add a little more olive oil. Carefully slide the tortilla back into the skillet, uncooked side down. Shake the skillet to straighten the tortilla and push the edges in with the spatula. Reduce the heat to very low and cook the tortilla until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 3 to 4 minutes.

Invert the tortilla onto a serving plate and pat the top with a paper towel to get rid of excess oil. Let it cool a little, then cut the tortilla into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.

Working Class Momofuku's Bo Ssam

A delicious recipe to serve for just about any occasion (or to just gobble up yourself). This is a recipe adapted from the brother/sister NYC blogger duo: Working Class Foodies entitled, Working Class Momofuku (http://www.hungrynation.tv/wcfoodies/episode/WCF_20091102/working-class-momofuku)

I adapted it to fit my gluten free needs and I hope anyone reading this will quickly add it to their repertoire (make sure to make this when you have some time to hang around the house and wait for it to slowly roast and become the delicious, succulent, flavorful dish that it is!)

Affordable Bo Ssam adapted from David Chang's Momofuku restaurant in NYC
Ingredients:
8-10 lbs pork shoulder, bone in, skin removed
1 cup sugar
1 cup +1 Tablespoon coarse sea salt
7 Tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 cup finely chopped scallions
salt and pepper
gluten free soy sauce
gluten free rice wine vinegar
thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled and finely minced
neutral oil (like grapeseed)
2 jalapenos, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
2 Tablespoons sugar dissolved in 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar

Kimchi for serving
Bibb lettuce for serving


Preparing the meat:
Remove the skin if the butcher has not done so already, place in a large glass baking dish. Mix together 1 cup sugar and 1 cup salt and pour over and rub into the pork shoulder. Cover and place in refrigerator for 6-12 hours.

Cooking the meat:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Remove pork shoulder from refrigerator and rinse off the sugar/salt mixture. Pat the meat dry. Put in oven safe dish and place in oven. Roast, basting every hour for 5-6 hours or until meat is very tender and falling off the bone.

Remove meat and set oven to 500 degrees. Mix together 1 Tablespoon coarse sea salt and 7 Tablespoons brown sugar. Gently pour over the meat and press down to form a layer. Place meat back in oven until brown sugar/salt mixture has formed a crust on the meat (watch carefully, about 5-10 minutes)

Making the scallion-ginger sauce:
combine chopped scallions, salt and pepper, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, a few dashes of rice wine vinegar, 1/4 cup neutral oil and the finely minced ginger. Mix and set aside.

Making the jalapeno-garlic sauce:
In a blender add the jalapeno, garlic, a dash of soy sauce, a dash of vinegar, salt and pepper, blend to combine. Slowly drizzle in about 1/2 cup neutral oil (to desired consistency).

Making the rice:
Cook sushi rice according the directions. After the rice is cooked, pour the mixture of 2 Tablespoons sugar dissolved in 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar over rice and mix.

To serve:
Cut/shred meat and serve on a platter.
Serve with jalapeno-garlic sauce and ginger-scallion sauce, sushi rice, lettuce, and kimchi.