orange ginger un-fried stir fry

it is the middle of my (last) spring break as a grad student!  and while the rest of the campus is off to sunnier lands, bronzing themselves under tropical sunlight, i have been content to stay home trying to get some balance back into my life.  i haven't really kept up much with blogging since the semester started off with a bang, so now i finally get a chance to catch my breath.  but enough about school!  this is a blog about food, not about the pitiable existence of a miserable graduate student.

and speaking of balance, i feel extremely topsy turvy, as most of my time this semester has been spent in the library instead of in the kitchen.  so last night jordan and i made a pact to cook a delicious meal together, so this is what we came up with:

lovingly adapted from vegetarian times, behold: orange ginger un-fried stir fry

disclaimer: you all should know by now that i am not an exact-measurements kind of girl.  except when it comes to the delicate art and science that is baking, i say experiment all you want!  the amounts i give are just guidelines, because honestly, i really don't have any idea how much of everything i used. the same goes for the ingredients themselves.  the recipe we used as a guide just included tofu and baby bok choy, but we added some other things we had in our fridge that we didn't want to go to waste.  cooking is about being creative and adapting to your own tastes, after all!

ingredients:
4 head of baby bok choy, chopped, rinsed, and drained
baby carrots, julienned
1 small piece ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 package extra-firm tofu (i use the pre-cubed kind, as i find it to be a time and prep-space saver)
handful bean sprouts
~1 tbsp coconut oil (or your favorite mild cooking oil)
orange marmalade (we used St. Dalfour Orange Ginger marmalade...it was perfect for this dish!)
soy sauce
water
1 pkg. thin rice noodles


method:
in a small bowl, whisk together marmalade and soy sauce.  cut it with a little sprinkle of water.  adjust proportions to taste.

bring a large pot of water to a boil.

in a wok, heat the coconut oil over high heat (but watch the pan carefully, as coconut oil tends to burn quickly).  add ginger and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes.  add the tofu and saute until brown.  add the carrots and stir well.  saute until carrots begin to soften.

add the bok choy and stir well to integrate.  once the bok choy begins to wilt, add almost all of the soy sauce and marmalade mixture.  continue to stir, over low heat.  add bean sprouts (if using) last.

add the rice noodles to the boiling water.  cook for 1-2 minutes, quickly drain and rinse, then return noodles to the pot.  pour remaining sauce over the noodles and stir well.

serve immediately, plating the noodles first then the tofu and vegetables on top. garnish with sesame seeds.

enjoy!
-molly.

mark bittman, i love you.

if you think this looks as delightful as i do, read on.

Pest-ohhhh yeah!

sometimes, i forget how much i luuurve pesto...
and then i remember!
and then i forget how easy it is to make...
and then i remember!

and then i make it using arugula and parsley, since basil isn't in season yet, and serve it over penne with roasted tomatoes and chickpeas.

and then i congratulate myself on a meal well prepared.

and sometimes i make eggs for breakfast the next day, and have some leftover pesto on top of them.
and sometimes i take a spoon and just eat it out of the jar.  gross?  probably.  delicious?  yes.


in a food processor, throw in a few handfuls of arugula and a few handfuls of parsley.  add a roughly chopped clove of garlic, plenty of grated parmesan cheese, a handful of walnuts (or pine nuts, if you can afford them!) and the juice of a lemon.  turn on the food processor and add olive oil until it reaches the consistency you like.  salt and pepper, too.  serve with ANYTHING.

(ps- i get all my ingredients from the local co-op.  you should too!)

homemade spinach ravioli

for our first christmas together a few years ago, jordan gave me a beautiful, authentic fire-engine red pasta maker.  we have gotten a lot of good use out of it, but i never remember to document the hours-long event that is making a homemade pasta dinner. a pasta maker is a great investment...you can really tell the difference between pasta from a box and pasta from scratch.  if you put the time in, you will see that it is worth it.

each time we have made pasta, we have always used either the spaghetti or linguine settings.  this time, we wanted to make homemade ravioli instead.  the results were magnificent, and now i'll share the process with you all!

making the dough is not as hard as you think...you just need semolina flour, salt, a little water, some olive oil and a couple of eggs (the best recipes are the simplest ones!)  we always use semolina flour from bob's red mill because it has the best recipe for pasta dough that we've tried.

combine 1 1/2 cups of semolina and 1/2 tsp salt and place on a flat, clean, dry surface.  make a well in the center of the flour and add 2 beaten eggs, 2 tbsp of water and 2 tbsp of olive oil to the well.  using a fork, gently begin to incorporate the flour into the well, starting around the edge of the well and making your way out.  once the dry and wet ingredients are incorporated, begin to knead the dough.

continue to knead for about 10 minutes or so, until the dough is elastic.  then set the dough aside after wrapping in saran wrap.  let rest for 20 minutes.  while the dough is resting, get to work on the ravioli filling.  we used frozen chopped spinach, cooked and drained well, combined with ricotta, garlic and salt.  easy and delicious.  combine to taste, and set aside.

once the dough is ready, roll it out flat and cut in half to begin to process through the pasta maker.

now comes the fun part!  first, roll each half of the dough through the widest setting on the pasta maker 10 times.  between each turn, sprinkle the dough with a little bit of flour, fold in thirds, then pass through with the open side facing downwards.

uno...

due...

tre!

once each half has been through 10 times, roll each half through again, changing the setting each roll from the widest to the thinnest.  (usually for cut pasta, we stop at the narrowest setting before cutting into the noodles.  however, since we were making ravioli, we wanted the dough to be a little thicker to be able to withstand the filling.  if you're in doubt, consult the instructions on your pasta maker.)

 since we didn't have a ravioli cutter (they do exist, however!) we used its bigger, more hulky cousin, a pizza wheel, to cut the dough into rectangles.

we put a little dab of the ricotta mixture in the center of each rectangle, then placed another rectangle on top.  using a fork we gently pressed the edges together to seal.

bring a very large pot of salted water to a gentle boil.  drop in about 5 ravioli at a time, and cook for less than a minute (they will float to the top when they're finished).  

look how precious they are!

 i was so pleased with how this little italian dinner came out.  we served ours with sauteed halved baby portobello mushrooms with red sauce, but i think it would be great with just a little drizzle of oil and some cheese on top too!

mangia!

autumn earth dinner

when life gives you sweet potatoes, carrots, garlic, onions, apples, raisins, quinoa, goat cheese and broccoli...
make this!

preheat oven to 450.
wash all veggies.  peel potatoes and carrots.  roughly chop all veggies and apples.
in a roasting pan, put carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes and onion.  coat with a light layer of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast for 10-15 minutes.

while veggies are roasting, cook 2 cups quinoa according to the method you prefer.  during the last 3 minutes of cooking, toss in some raisins so they get plump.


after the veggies have roasted 10-15 minutes, remove the pan and add the roughly chopped garlic.  roast for another 10 minutes.

remove pan from oven, mix in the raw apples, quinoa and raisins in the same pan, and season to taste with additional salt, pepper, and cinnamon.

plate and add a little smathering of goat cheese*, if you feel so inclined.  drizzle with a little lemon juice, and enjoy autumn's bounty.


*optional.

weekend debriefing...

what a beautiful, perfectly autumn weekend we had!  the sky was blue and crisp and the leaves around here are just starting to turn firey colors.  i just love fall.

however, with the combination of being a grad student with approaching deadlines, and having a sick roommate/boyfriend with a mutant strep infection, i was left with little time to actually go outside and enjoy the weather.  but i got the chance to do the next best thing...cook!  a lot!

here is a glimpse of the adventures i had in our little purple kitchen this weekend:

get-well-soon soup.
i made this on friday.  we ate it for dinner that night, lunch on saturday, dinner on sunday, and lunch today.  needless to say, i made a lot.  and it was delicious.

the best part of this soup was that it was all organic.  most of the vegetables i used came from this week's CSA box.  perfection!

so baaaasically, i sauteed an onion, some garlic, carrots and celery with some olive oil in the bottom of a large soup pot.  i added peeled diced potatoes, a generous amount of black pepper and herbs de provence, and continued to cook until the onions were soft.

then i poured in 2 quarts of vegetable stock and a large can of diced tomatoes.  brought everything to a boil, then added some frozen corn, salt, red pepper, more black pepper and herbs de provence and let it simmer until the potatoes were soft.  also i added just about a tablespoon of butter to the soup, just 'cause.

finally, i brought another pot of water to a boil and added half a package of egg noodles.  they cooked for about 3 1/2 minutes, then i strained them and added them to the soup.  served up with some saltine crackers with a little bit of butter (a favorite comfort food of mine introduced to me by my grandmother), this was the perfect remedy to a fever and a sore throat.


amaretto chocolate chip cookies.
i made them this afternoon using semi-sweet chocolate chips this time instead of milk chocolate like i did here.  also, i omitted the hazelnuts, but i added amaretto again for two reasons: 1) we don't have vanilla in the house and i needed a substitution 2) i used amaretto before and it was DELICIOUS.  if it ain't broke...

i needed to halve the recipe, as we only had one egg left (when the recipe calls for 2).  additionally, i broke both my legs and couldn't walk to the store to get more eggs.  (the preceding statement is a lie...but in all honesty, i just didn't feel like going allllll thhhheee waayyyyyyy to the store.  plus, i didn't want to make a recipe that yielded 4 dozen cookies, because then i would have ended up eating all 4 dozen cookies mostly by myself.  not ok.)
results:  the cookies were really really good!  and math is hard because i had to not only halve the recipe, but i had to figure out how to measure out 3/8 cup of sugar when i only had a 1/3 measuring cup.


puff pancake (FAIL.  miserable fail.  sad.)
i tried to re-create a breakfast dish i had made once before.  here, actually.  unfortunately, i think it might have been too long since the last time i made it, because i ended up dumping the entire greasy, burned mess into the garbage can.
it was upsetting.  i don't want to talk about it right now.


all was not lost, however, with the invention of tonight's dinner...
pan-seared rockfish with red pepper coulis and coconut rice.

yougetinmymouthrightnow

this afternoon jordan was voluntarily ambulatory for the first time in almost a week!  to celebrate, we went to a local orchard to get pumpkins and apple cider, then the fish market to pick up something for dinner because he had an appetite!

we got about a pound of rockfish (filet, not whole).  using some really beautiful purple, green and red peppers we had in our CSA box, jordan made a coulis with them, adding plenty of garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes, balsamic vinegar and sugar.  we added some halved grape tomatoes, some corn and a little bit of water to make the sauce less chunky and more, well, saucy.

in a pot i combined 4 cups of coconut milk with 2 cups of jasmine rice.  then i cooked it how i would withe regular rice.  i was not disappointed with the results.

next, i rinsed the filet then dredged it in some flour mixed with salt, pepper and paprika.  jordan heated up some oil in the cast iron skillet and seared the filet until the outside was crispy and the inside was flaky.

i served my filet on a bed of the coconut rice with the coulis spread over the top of the fish.  it was absolutely delightful!

boy oh boy.  after all this cooking and eating, it is going to be a chore to drag myself to classes next week.  why do anything else when there is always food to be prepared and enjoyed?

farm surprise!

yesterday we picked up our first box from our local CSA farm, Calvert Farms.  last year we had volunteered there on Saturday mornings, exchanging a few hours of labor for a beautiful box filled with delicious organic fruits and vegetables (and sometimes even flowers!)

this fall our schedules are too packed to be able to make the drive into maryland to get our farm on.  but luckily we were able to join the cooperative another way.  by making a donation to the farm, we get to take home one giant box of farm-fresh goodies every thursday from now until thanksgiving!

yesterday's box was stuffed with fresh, crisp apples; a HUGE butternut squash; 2 eggplant; a bundle of swiss chard; baby red and yellow peppers; fresh salad greens; and string beans.  it was hard to decide what we should make with this bounty of autumnal treasures.

we sauteed a ton of garlic in some olive oil, threw in the swiss chard and cooked it down in the cast-iron skillet.  then i added some garbanzo beans, a little white wine, and cooked quinoa.  at the end i sliced some beets and mixed everything together.  DE.LICIOUS.

jordan, the bread-meister, had made a beautiful loaf of french bread a couple of days ago.  re-heated in the oven, it was perfectly crispy, and a great complement to the roasted garlic and green beans and salad he made to go with our quinoa.

the most memorable part of this first farm meal was when we had an unexpected dinner guest drop in!
as we were savoring the remaining morsels of our meal, jordan picked up his fork, ready to enjoy the last few leaves of fresh lettuce.  all of a sudden, he emitted a loud (yet manly) yelp and jumped back quite dramatically from the table.  it appears he wasn't the only one enjoying the delicious salad.  this little guy was noshing away at the lettuce, not even seeming to mind the lemon juice and olive oil he was almost drowning in at the bottom of the dish.

meet lonny, the inchworm.

we scooted lonny (as we dubbed the worm) onto the leaf, picked it out of the dish, and took him outside to relish his natural habitat.  obviously, we didn't continue to eat the salad, but i would much rather find a  bug in my food once in a while than eat something that i know has been drowned in pesticides!  we'll just have to be a little more vigilant in our vegetable inspection and washing.  i'm glad i didn't eat lonny, or else i would have felt i had betrayed my vegetarian sensibilities.



can't wait to pick up next week's box!!

mexicali blues

ok.  so this just happened:

mexicali red and white quinoa

then, this happened:

plated with organic blue corn chips, fresh avocado and organic salsa

aaand then, this happened.

clean plate club!!!

here's how you, too, can make this happen.

equal parts red and white quinoa, tomatoes, black beans, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, alfalfa sprouts, cumin, red pepper flakes, salt, lime juice.

and that's it.  and then you eat it and it tastes really good and you feel happy.  the end!


ps 
anyone want to get me a sweet new camera for xmaskkah?  thankssssss.

monday night meal.

i have noticed that lately the direction of my blog has strayed from its original intention: to share all things about food: recipes, tips, mishaps in the kitchen.  this is partly due to my eagerness to share other happenings in my life, and also due to the fact that while pursuing other avenues, i honestly haven't had much time to cook a whole meal, take pictures, upload pictures, blog, etc. etc.

i know, blah blah blah.  but the point is, i'm BACK.  with a RECIPE.  that you should make immediately because it is DELICIOUS.

israeli couscous with pine nuts and portobello mushrooms.

ingredients:

-1 package israeli couscous (rounder and fatter than traditional couscous...they look like tiny pearls)
-1 large shallot, diced
-2 tbsp butter, plus maybe a little more
-1 3/4 c. water, chicken or vegetable stock, plus more for mixing
-2 portobello mushroom caps, sliced
-handful raisins
-handful pine nuts
-cinnamon, salt, and pepper to taste
-pecorino romano or parmesan cheese, grated to taste for serving

method:

in a large saucepan, slowly melt about 2 tbsp butter.  once the butter is melted, add diced shallots and saute until wilted.  add the couscous, cinnamon salt and pepper (and perhaps a bit more butter if most has been absorbed into shallots) and saute one to two minutes, stirring attentively, until the couscous is golden brown.  

add water (or any kind of stock, either vegetable or chicken...just know it will increase the sodium content) to saucepan, bring heat to high, allow to come to a boil, then reduce heat and cover until the liquid is absorbed.  (it is good to do a few taste tests during this part of the process, to ensure that the couscous is not overly dry or overly mushy).

when the couscous feels like it is getting there, add the box of raisins, the pine nuts, and the sliced portobellos.  continue to mix until the raisins are plump and the mushrooms have begun to lose some of their firmness.

and that's it!!  serve with some freshly grated parmesan or pecorino romano, and a salad of field greens, figs, and goat cheese.

we ate outside, on a glorious summer night, with no humidity, no mosquitoes, and no rain!  rare for the east coast in june, but perfectly enjoyable.

buen provecho!!

what to make when the cupboard is bare

full time work and school schedules make grocery shopping next to impossible, unless you like perusing the harsh fluorescent lit aisles at 11:30 at night.

last night we began cooking dinner at 9 pm, and neither of us had the motivation to take a trip to the gro sto. were forced to be creative, since we were running low on a lot of things, except a few staples we had stocked in the pantry and two whole red peppers. the result of our iron-chef level of creativity was delicious!

stuffed red peppers with rice, raisins, and cashews

ingredients:

2 whole red peppers

1 1/2 c. rice

1 large onion

2 cloves garlic

hadful cilantro

1/4 c. raisins

1/4 c. cashews

olive oil

juice of 1 lime

salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder to taste

method

remove caps from red peppers. slice in half lengthwise and remove seeds. brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and grill on grill pan, about 5 minutes on each side. (put a lid on top of the pepper to push them down and get some nice lookin' grill lines as well). remove from heat, set aside.

cook rice. in large skillet, saute diced onion in a little bit of olive oil. add garlic when onion becomes soft and begins to brown. add rice and continue to saute, adding lime juice to pick up any rice or onion that might have become stuck to the bottom of the pan.

add spices, more lime juice, raisins and cashews. continue to saute another 5 minutes. toss in a handful of chopped cilantro (we have a ton that we needed to harvest from the aerogarden! yum... fresh herbs!!!)

fill each half of the pepper with a generous amount of the rice. serve immediately, with one more squeeze of lime juice. add crumbled feta on top, if you're feeling frisky (and you're not vegan).

quinoa... not just a new "q" scrabble word.

recently, i discovered a possible culprit in my seemingly never-ending bouts with exhaustion and sluggishness: wheat. after doing a lot of research into my condition, i found that lots of people deal with the same symptoms that i do when they lead an otherwise healthy lifestyle. despite exercising, getting proper beauty sleep (i need at LEAST 8 hours), and, of course, eating all non-processed foods, wheat allergies can still affect lots of different people in different ways. some complain of indigestion, others of weight gain or loss. still others, including me, experience an inconvenient lack of energy.

speaking of inconvenient, many of the things i love to cook, and subsequently eat, contain wheat. from the joe's o's in my cereal bowl in the morning to the homemade bread from jordan's new breadmaker with dinner in the evening, i can't get enough wheat. what's a girl to do?

start cooking with quinoa, that's what. it's my new favorite. tastes like cous cous, only nuttier. and i just love its texture, especially the little white squiggles that show up when it is finished cooking!

to prepare, simply combine water with rinsed quinoa in a 2:1 ratio, bring to boil in a cooking pot over high heat, then cover and let simmer for 15 minutes, until all the water is absorbed. this is your base: from here you can let your imagination run wild with this oh-so versatile whole grain.

last night, i made a batch, let it cool to room temperature, and mixed in some fresh feta, diced grape tomatoes, cucumbers, snipped basil, and thin strips of red onion. i whisked together some orange muscat champagne vinegar from t.j.'s with some olive oil and poured it over everything.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. i don't think i'll miss wheat too terribly after all.

breaking the rules

only on very rare occasions do i break my no-pork-products-of-any-kind rule.

one is for north carolina pulled pork sandwiches from em-ing's, my favorite hometown spot.

the other is for the following recipe.

tuscan bean soup

ingredients

1 large yellow onion, diced

2-3 large cloves garlic, minced

4-5 tbsp. olive oil

1 lb. sweet italian sausage

2 quarts chicken broth (i use the low-sodium, msg-free kind)

1 can diced tomatoes, drained

2 cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

3-4 handfuls spinach

oregano

rosemary

fennel seeds

salt and pepper

thyme

(all seasonings to taste)

method

bring a large pot of water to boil.  add sausage links, cook for 10 minutes.

as water boils, in a large soup pot, heat olive oil.  add onions and sweat for about 5-7 minutes.  

remove sausage links from water, slice into pieces, and add to the onions and oil along with the garlic cloves.

continue to saute, stirring regularly, until sausage is cooked through.  add broth and stir over a medium heat.  add drained tomatoes and seasonings.  bring to a boil.

add beans, then reduce heat to low.  let simmer about 10 minutes.  after 5 minutes of simmering, add spinach.  serve hot once spinach has wilted.

ladle into soup bowls and grate parmesan cheese over the soup.  serve with fresh bread.

roasted veggie pesto flatbread

quick.  easy.  made possible by the help of your friendly neighborhood pizza joint.

ingredients

-one pound of fresh pizza dough (to be procured from your local pie dealer)

-one red pepper

-one red onion

-one head broccoli, chopped

-one quantity fresh pesto

-crumbled feta*

-olive oil

-salt and pepper

*i buy the kind that comes in a solid block in the cheese section of the grocery store; this way i can make custom sized chunks simply by shredding it with a fork.  it is a couple bucks cheaper than already-crumbled feta, too.

method

preheat the oven to 450 with a pizza stone inside.  dice vegetables (onion, pepper, broccoli-stems removed) and place in roasting pan.  toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast for about 15 minutes.

while veggies are roasting, make pesto.  set aside.

remove veggies from oven.  toss the pizza dough a few times to thin it out, then roll it out one a well-floured surface until it is about 1/2 inch thick.  using a serrated knife, gently slice the dough into long rectangles.  

brush the surface of the dough with olive oil, sprinkle generously with roasted veggies and feta, and return to oven to bake on the pizza stone for about 15 minutes, or until the crust turns golden brown.

remove from oven, spoon dollops of pesto over the flatbreads, and serve hot.

cha-ching chicken

extra, extra.  i have a very important news announcement.  this might come as a shock to some of you, but i have learned that IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO GO TO THE SUPERMARKET EVERY SINGLE DAY.  i know what you must be thinking (seriously...is this girl dumb or what?) but i admit that, once upon a time, i had a very time-consuming, annoying, and expensive habit of going to the grocery store every day.  my indecisive brain was unable to come up with a dinner idea until i was hungry for dinner a couple of hours before i'd start cooking it.

but last night, i was converted to a meal-planning, smart-shopping, money-saving gal.  sitting around the dining room table, feeling the familiar, faint pangs of hunger that signal that it's time to start cookin', my darling boyfriend gently suggested that rather than shopping for just that night's meal, we do something insane and plan ahead.  whoaaaaa crazy spring break keg stand ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!11!!!!!

now, initially i screwed up my nose at the idea.  sure, portobello mushroom lasagna sounds good now... but i might have a craving for something else by the time wednesday night rolls around!  but ultimately, i was swayed by my better, more practical half (and my incredible shrinking bank account) that planning ahead was indeed a wise idea.

indeed: wise, swift, efficient, and amazingly cost effective.  after a 30 minute trip to the supermarket, we emerged with 4 shopping bags (which we remembered to bring along!) filled to the brim with enough food for 4 breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, all for a grand total of....$84.13 (and we always split the bill).

that's 12 meals for about 40 bucks!  amazing, i say.  simply amazing.

so, what's on the menu for this week? 

last night- dr. praeger's veggie burgers (previously existing in freezer), bean salad, corn on the cob

today- roast chicken, pesto pea salad, and roasted veggie potato skins

tomorrow- ginger chicken salad (lunch), thai peanut noodles (dinner)

day after tomorrow- bean salad and bread with hummus (lunch), portobello parmesan (dinner)

 

right now, there's a delicious chicken roasting in the oven which will provide us with 3 meals (2 dinners and a lunch).  stay tuned for more recipes involving the amazing roasted stretch-a-chicken, perfect for penny pinchers everywhere.

now, if you'll excuse me, i have better things to do instead of queueing in the god-awful self checkout at acme.

from mexico to the mediterreanean

i just got back from an incredible trip to mexico.  for a whole week, i was living like a princess.  our meals were cooked, our beds were made, we walked down old cobblestone streets that were reminiscent of the 1913 revolutionary days.  but after a week, my body was begging for me to feed it something that did not revolve around corn tortillas (my arch-nemesis).*

that being said, last night we concocted a delicious creation that filled the house with the old, familiar smell of garlic sizzling in a pan of olive oil.  after uncorking a bottle of charles shaw shiraz (c'mon, 3 buck chuck?  we are in a recession, after all) i was happy to be bustling around in my own kitchen once more cooking yet another delicious, creative, and satisfying meal.

so...away we go...

*don't get me wrong, the food that i ate in mexico was some of the best i have ever had in my life.  none of your run-of-the-mill, neighborhood mexican joint fare.  we're talking delicious fresh papaya and mango, luscious pollo con mole, churros, silky smooth mexican hot chocolate, sumptuous homemade guacamole (sorry, did i just dribble a little drool on you?)  i got some of my favorite recipes from our house cook, veronica, and when i get a little more energy back, i will be posting them.  ole!

mediterranean chicken with israeli couscous

mediterranean chicken 

ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 jar artichoke hearts

1 jar roasted red peppers

1 jar whole, pitted kalamata olives

1 can diced tomatoes

feta cheese

italian seasoning

parchment paper

method

rinse chicken and pat dry.  cut four segments of parchment paper, big enough to wrap around chicken breasts with room at the top.  pile on a couple of spoonfuls of tomatoes, peppers, olives, artichoke hearts, feta, and seasoning (don't use the entire contents of all your ingredients, just however much you think you'll want on your chicken).  

place on baking sheet.  repeat with other chicken breasts.

cover pan with a large sheet of aluminum foil.  bake chicken packets in the oven at 375 for about 20 minutes, or when the insides are white.

israeli cous cous

ingredients

1 package (or 1 1/2 c.) israeli cous cous (available at [where else?] trader joe's)

1 3/4 c. water

2-3 large cloves of garlic

4 large white mushrooms, sliced

3-4 tbsp. white wine

handful pine nuts

handful parsley

1/2 lemon

cinnamon

nutmeg

salt and pepper

method

in a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat and add garlic.  saute for a couple of minutes, then add mushrooms.  add wine, half of the lemon juice,  and a touch more oil.  add salt, pepper, and a tiny sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg.

once mushrooms are semi-soft, add cous cous and sautee, stirring constantly, until cous cous becomes slightly golden brown.  add water to pot, cover, reduce heat to low, and leave the hell alone until the cous cous has absorbed all the water.

while cous cous is absorbing said water, heat another pan and toast a handful of pine nuts.  remove from heat and set aside.

once all the liquid is absorbed, add the rest of the lemon juice, diced parsley, pine nuts, and more seasoning (if needed).

with this dish and side, we had an arugula salad with sprouts and raspberry dressing (homemade, with fresh-picked raspberries, natch.)  the chicken is totally simple, and the cous cous is so versatile that i am excited to make it again with different goodies inside.

lobstah mobstah

jordan and i cooked lobster for the first time last night.  what resulted was strikingly similar to the famous lobster scene from woody allen's "annie hall".

the screaming and leaping lasted all of about 2 minutes.  the rest of the process was relatively simple (minus guacamole-colored lobster guts leaking on the counter and floor).

when all was said and done, we grilled the tails and ate them with green bean potato salad (recipe to follow) and some simple grilled asparagus.  it was a beautiful, memorable summertime meal.

green bean potato salad

a perfectly flavorful side that is refreshingly mayonnaise-less!

boil about one pound of small red potatoes that have been sliced in half (remember when cooking potatoes to start them in a pot of cold water).  once the pot boils, continue to cook for about 15 minutes, or until a fork pierces through easily.

while potatoes are boiling, blanch the green beans in a small saucepan for about 6 minutes.  remove from heat and drain.  put in a large mixing bowl.  

the dressing is a simple vinaigrette made from olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, and a pinch of sugar.  whisk together and set aside.

drain and cool potatoes.  add to bowl with green beans.  thinly slice a couple of handfuls of red onion and add to the potatoes and beans, along with a few sprigs of fresh dill.  pour the dressing over the potatoes, add salt and pepper, and toss.

chill for a bit before serving.  this is wonderful.

stupid-easy portobello mushroom parmesan

you can make this satisfying dinner with your eyes closed and one hand tied behind your back.   but don't let its simplicity throw you off... it's as hearty as a meal that would take hours to prepare.  prep is a snap, which is perfect after a long day when you want a good meal but don't feel like chopping, sauteing, reducing, etc.

ingredients

4 large portobello mushrooms

olive oil, salt, pepper

1 large jar marinara sauce (organic, if you can swing it... trader joe's is really good)

fresh mozzarella, grated

fresh parmesan, grated

method

preheat oven to 400.  heat a grill pan (or outside grill!)  clean mushrooms and remove stems.  brush with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and grill for about 15 minutes.

butter a baking dish, then cover the bottom of the dish with a layer of marinara sauce.  place the mushrooms on top of the sauce, then cover with the rest of the sauce and sprinkle the cheeses on top.

bake for about 15 minutes, until cheese is melty-gooey-golden.  

we ate this with trader joe’s pesto tortellini (not the greatest, i’ll admit.  other brands of packaged tortellini are much better, i find.) 

 yummy greens and a warm loaf of bread finish it all off.  va bene, ragazzi.

pan seared tilapia with strawberry salsa

simple, quick, delicious dinner, that looks a lot harder than it actually is.  impress important company with this one.  the good thing about tilapia is that it is such a versatile fish.  its light texture, relative healthiness, and ability to marry to just about any flavor also make it a bonus fish to use.  along with the fish and the salsa, we served this with trader joe's wild rice (made in my brand-new rice cooker zomg!!!!), a simple green salad of arugula and white balsamic vinaigrette, and warm bread.

this recipe was originally going to include a mango salsa, but the mango i selected a few days before at the market had decided it was time to become mushy and uncooperative.  after coaxing a couple of sorry-looking cuts out of it, i had to come up with a plan B for some kind of sauce to pair with the fish, which was beginning to sizzle in the pan over the stove.  bingo: a giant quart of fresh strawberries caught my eye, and it was then that i concocted a delightful, unexpected salsa with many complex flavors but a list of only a few ingredients (and NO garlic!!!  whaaat?)

strawberry salsa

ingredients

about 16 large, ripe strawberries, capped and diced

1 medium red onion, diced

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced

3/4 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 medium mango, peeled and diced

juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and pepper to taste

method

easy peasy.  prepare all ingredients, combine in bowl, let refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.  spoon over your pan-seared tilapia filet (which has been dredged in flour, salt, and pepper, sauteed, and drizzled with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice before serving).  lick fingers, plate, bowl.