I won’t be posting new recipes this week as I’ll off on vacation. In Maui. While I’m in Maui, I’ll be trying the local favorites:
Shave Ice: So much more than a snow cone.
Plate Lunch: Meat. Rice. Macaroni salad?
Poke: Raw fish right out of the ocean. Drool.
Mai Tai: Uh, not really Hawaiian, but I’ll be enjoying a few anyway.
If I end up having internet access, I’ll probably post some pictures during the week. There will be some hiking, beaching, eating, and luau-ing. Maui, here I come.
First off, let me start by saying while this syrup contain seems like a good container for dressing, it’s not. But on the bright side, once I use up this dressing, I’ll have a lovely syrup dispenser! This dressing is from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen and is her “Annie’s Goddess Dressing” wannabe. I’ve been enjoying it all week.
6 ounces lite firm silken tofu
1/4 C. water
1 1/2 T. cider vinegar
2 T. lemon juice
2 t. low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. sesame oil
1 T. tahini
2 green onions, white parts removed, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 large clove garlic
Toss all ingredients into a food processor or blender and process until nice and smooth. Enjoy on your favorite salad!
Notes: I really enjoyed this dressing and it’s a nice alternative to the high fructose laden, high fat dressing from the grocery store.
Servings: Lots
So far, I think my favorite thing about my grill pan is making the grill marks on my food. Talk about a fun time! Anyway, I grilled vegetables. And they got grill marks. And I was happy.
1 zucchini – sliced
1 sweet potato – peeled and sliced
Italian dressing
ground cumin, salt and oil
Rinse and dry zucchini and then slice. Marinade in italian dressing for a while before grilling. Tasty! Peel the sweet potato and slice. Either par boil or (*gasp*) microwave in a bowl with a little water for 2-3 minutes. This will cook the potato so you just have to get a nice crisp outside when grilling. Dry and spray with oil. Sprinkle with cumin, salt and pepper. Heat the grill and spray with oil. Grill zucchini and sweet potato until you get nice grill marks. Flip and repeat. Eat.
Notes: I’m sure the zucchini would benefit from a little grated parm, but I’m going to Hawaii in two weeks. I don’t need extra cheese.
Servings: 1 – 2 servings
I decided that I wanted to start an indoor herb garden. So this Sunday Chris and I went to Gethsemane Garden Center and bought the supplies.
Because I doubt my ability to grow actual plants from seeds, I purchased three already growing plants: Basil, Thai Basil and Mint. I purchased seeds for cilantro and parsley and am waiting to see how long it takes before I throw out two containers of dirt.
The plants are hanging out on the window ledge in our living room, enjoying the view. I’m going to give them a week or two to, I don’t know, get comfortable in their new dirt, before I use any of them. I can’t wait.
After a weekend of indulging in food with my family, including peanut M & Ms, cake, cookies, chips, more cookies, cinnamon rolls and more, I was looking forward to a much lighter and healthier meal Sunday night. I cooked these cauliflower fritters based on a recipe in the May 2008 Vegetarian Times. We enjoyed these fritters with a big and simple salad.
1/2 cup quinoa
8 oz. cauliflower
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs
Parsley (I used dried, about 1 T.)
2 T. breadcrumbs
Salt and Pepper
Tomato sauce to top
In a saucepan over high heat, add quinoa and toast for a few minutes, stirring constantly. The quinoa will start to pop as it browns. After 3 minutes, add 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes or until quinoa is done and water absorbed.
Prep cauliflower and steam until nice and soft. Chop up into small pieces and mix in a bowl with parmesan, eggs, parsley, breadcrumbs and salt/pepper. Once quinoa is finished, add and mix into the bowl.
Spray a cookie sheet with oil and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Shape mixture into 3 inch patties and place onto sheet. Bake for 20 minutes or until fritters are golden brown. Serve with sauce on top.
Notes: These were tasty, pretty easy and filling. I have leftover cauliflower too, which will be enjoyed over lunch.
Servings: 15 patties
This past week I made breakfast for dinner. I followed this Baked Egg recipe off of 101cookbooks.com. I made 3 of these, two with egg yolks and one with just egg white. I also sauteed some spinach with some left over turkey sausage and make some fries in the oven. It was a very filling and pretty meal.
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp chili flakes
1 tsp smoked paprika
salt and pepper
1 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
3 pieces of whole wheat wraps, cut into quarters
2 large eggs
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Add oil to a skillet and saute onion, tomatoes, seasonings and garlic until the onion soften.
Take 3 pieces of wrap and tuck them into silicon cups in a muffin tin. Try to make sure there aren’t any holes the egg will leak through by tucking the wrap in.
Spoon a bit of the tomato filling into each cup, dividing it amongst the 3 cups. Crack an egg or egg white into each wrap, but don’t over flow the cup. Bake for about 15 minutes. Until the whites have set and become opaque. Serve hot with a bit of chopped tomatoes and onions.
Notes: This was a pretty and tasty meal. The wraps crisped up a bit too much and I may try pita bread next time, like Heidi. With the sides and the protein of the eggs, I was full after one.
Servings: 2 servings
Chris is showing off his slightly crazy ‘camera face’ and the yummy pomegranate sparkling wine cocktails that I made for Christmas Eve. I got the idea for this drink from a tasty looking punch featured in Bon Appetite.
1/2 cup sparkling wine (I normally use a very cheap brut for mixing with juice and the juice over powers any of the nice, subtle flavors of a nicer wine)
1/4 cup pomegranate juice
8-10 pomegranate seeds from a fresh fruit
2 fresh mint leaves
Dash of sugar (optional)
Mix the wine, juice, seeds, mint and sugar and serve in your favorite wine or holiday glass. To get the seeds from the pomegranate, first cut the fruit in half. Take one half and, in a bowl of water, break the seeds away from the white pith that surrounds it using your hands. The seeds with sink to the bottom and the pith with float on top.
This was one of the sides I served for my families’ Christmas Eve meal. It’s a decadent version of scalloped potatoes that is very rich and creamy. It’s not healthy. I found this recipe on Food Network and followed it prety closely.
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups canned chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
2/3 cup minced shallots
2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon herbes de Provence
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 log soft fresh goat cheese, crumbled (8 ounces total)
4 pounds potatoes, thinly sliced
Mix first 7 ingredients in large pot. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Add half of cheese and mix with a fork until smooth. Transfer potato mixture to prepared dish, spreading evenly. Cover with foil; bake 15 minutes. Uncover and bake until potatoes are very tender and liquid bubbles thickly, about 50 minutes. Dot potatoes with remaining cheese. Bake until cheese softens, about 5 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.
Notes: If I make it again I’ll cut back on the liquid. It was a bit runny for me so maybe it needed to bake longer too. It tasted great though!
Servings: 10 + left overs
Thank you, Nate, for this recipe for the best bloody mary ever.
Ice
1 shot vodka
Pick a Pepper
Tabasco Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce
Horse Radish Sauce
Celery Salt
Pepper
Clamato Juice
Pour vodka over ice in a pint glass or jar glass. Mix together all the sauces (a few dashes or drops each, add more and play with the consistency as you go) and the celery salt and pepper. Add the clamato juice last and add in a celery stick or your favorite pickle or olive and enjoy!
Servings: 1 serving
Jen enjoyed this drink last night after the pizza. She likes limes.
Club Soda
Vodka
Sliced limes
Mix and enjoy!
