Sesame Green Beans

3/4 pound green beans - look for trimmed, raw packaged beans in your produce department
Salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 turns of the pan
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
3 tablespoons tamari aged soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Directions
Cut green beans into 2-inch pieces on an angle. Place in a skillet. Add water, salt, to taste and cook beans 5 minutes, then drain beans. Place the skillet back on stove and add vegetable oil. Heat pan over high heat until oil smokes. Add the beans and red peppers and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add the soy and sesame oil and transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with sesame seeds and serve"

Marinated Flank Steak with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

2 inches fresh ginger root, peeled and grated

1/4 cup tamari aged soy sauce
2 limes, zested and juiced
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, eyeball it
2 tablespoons grill seasoning (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning)
2 pounds flank steak
2 1/2 to 3 pounds Idaho potatoes, 4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Salt
1/4 to 1/3 cup cream
2 tablespoons wasabi paste 
4 scallions, root end trimmed
Handful cilantro leaves

Preheat a grill pan or indoor/outdoor grill to high.
Combine ginger, tamari, lime juice, oil and grill seasoning in a large seal able plastic bag. Add meat to marinade and coat evenly. Let stand 10 minutes then grill meat 6 to 7 minutes on each side.
Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, salt the potatoes and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain potatoes and add them back to the hot pot. Smash the potatoes with a masher to desired consistency with the cream and wasabi. Adjust salt, to taste.
While potatoes and meat cook, finely chop the scallions together with cilantro and lime zest.
Let meat rest 5 minutes then thinly slice on an angle against the grain. Serve meat on mash potato mounds with a garnish with a generous sprinkling of the chopped scallion-cilantro-lime zest."

Thumbprint Cookies

These are the best I have ever tasted and believe me I have tried many trying to make these cookies.

Heat oven to 375

1 cup butter at room temp

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs separated
1/2 tea. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tea salt
1 1/2 cups finely chopped nuts, ( I have used almond, pecan and walnuts. Almond or pecan is my favorite. I have a friend who was one of the bakers for Safeway who loved them so much with walnuts he asked for the recipe and started selling them in the bakery over 25 years ago in Morgan hill.

raspberry jam (or your favorite, we like them with raspberry with seeds)

In a large bowl beat butter with sugar until creamy. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. In another bowl mix flour and salt, slowly add to butter mixture.
In another bowl lightly beat egg whites with fork.
Roll dough into balls dip each in egg white and roll in nuts press thumb in middle. bake for 15 minutes, cool and fill with jam.