Omnivore

Chilean sea bass, new potatoes, broccoli 8/2/22

Posted on August 3, 2022 by Beebamom

Baked Chilean sea bass with steamed potatoes and broccoli

Chilean sea bass was not on the menu today but we were at Costco and they had nicely sized pieces for three people at a reasonable price. It was actually cheaper per pound than the frozen pieces we buy in a bag. We decided to take advantage of it.

John cooked the simply seasoned sea bass in the oven at 400F for about 18 minutes since the pieces were thick. I started steaming the new potatoes shortly before he started the fish and then covered them to keep them warm while I steamed the broccoli. (One pan!)

I added a teaspoon of butter to the cooked broccoli and everything was sprinkled with lemon juice. The lemon and butter on the broccoli was especially good.

This was a simple, yet delicious meal. When you start with good products nothing much else needs to be done.

Posted in American, Easy, Fish, Kitchen tips, Methods, pescatarian, Vegetables | Tagged Sea bass | 3 Comments

Herb-y salad with shrimp and nuoc cham 8/2/22

Posted on August 2, 2022 by Beebamom

This herb-y salad is super easy, super tasty, and just what you need on a hot summer night. The salad part is a combo of an arugula/spinach mix (but you could use any greens), cabbage, cucumber, red bell pepper, mint, and basil. We cooked our own shrimp but you could totally use pre-cooked shrimp and not have to turn on your stove at all. The nuoc cham dressing is made with 2 parts lime juice and 1 part fish sauce, a minced clove of garlic, a minced hot chile like Thai or bird’s eye, and then sweetened to your taste. I used half of a pack of Splenda but you could use sugar or whatever.

This recipe was adapted from one on the NYTimes cooking site. Theirs called for a lot of sugar in the dressing and cooked chicken. I think that tofu would also work well in this recipe if you want to keep it vegetarian but you would also need to change the dressing to soy based.

Posted in Asian, Easy, Hot weather meals, pescatarian, Salad, Shellfish, Vegetables | Tagged shrimp | Leave a comment

BFD Asian vegetable stir-fry with scrambled eggs 7/31/22

Posted on August 1, 2022 by Beebamom

For this week’s Breakfast For Dinner I return to a favorite of mine, stir-fried vegetables over kale with soft scrambled eggs on top. This is a very satisfying dish. For today’s vegetables I used carrots, mushrooms, carrots, celery, cabbage, and broccoli. I leave the kale raw and it wilts when the hot vegetables are put on top of it. For seasonings I use salt (of course!), rogan josh, ginger, garlic, sriracha, and soy sauce. We always have BFD for Sunday supper unless there is something special going on. It is nice to have an easy, filling dinner.

Posted in Asian, Breakfast For Dinner (BFD), Easy, Eggs, Vegetables, Vegetarian | Tagged Eggs | Leave a comment

Weekly Menu August 1 – 7, 2022

Posted on July 31, 2022 by Beebamom

This week I am making two new dishes in an effort to expand my plant-based recipes repertoire. The shrimp and herb salad with nuoc cham is similar to our usual shrimp bowl but with a slightly different sauce. Beans Marbella is based on the old Silver Palate Cookbook’s Chicken Marbella. I hope this weekly menu will inspire you to make more plant-based dinners! They are good for you and good for the planet!

Posted in Weekly menu | Leave a comment

Baked tilapia with collards and corn 7/30/22

Posted on July 31, 2022 by Beebamom

Easy dinner tonight. John seasoned the fish with salt, garlic, paprika, and Old Bay then baked it in a 400F oven for 12 minutes. To make the collards and corn, first I sautéed sliced garlic until it was golden and then set it aside. Then I put the collard greens which had been stemmed, cut into a chiffonade, and then rinsed into a sprayed pan. I added a cup of frozen corn, a half teaspoon of butter, salt, a half teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, and a sprinkle of sugar. The chard has plenty of water clinging to it so none additional is needed but adjust with more water if your pan is drying out. Cook for about 8-10 minutes. Garnish the greens with the sautéed garlic.

A squeeze of lemon is all that is needed to finish the plate. I tried eating slowly and mindfully so that I could better judge when I was full. I still ate everything but I think it was more satisfying.

Posted in American, Easy, Fish, Healthy tips, Methods, pescatarian, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged tilapia | Leave a comment

Vegan curried lentils with zucchini, kale, and carrots 7/29/22

Posted on July 30, 2022 by Beebamom

Curried lentils with zucchini, kale, and carrots over white rice/cauliflower rice mix

I found this recipe for curried green lentils in an email that Food and Wine sent me. (https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/green-lentil-curry) It sounded good to me but then I read the reviews and many people found the dish lacking in flavor so I decided to try to fix it. John and I discussed it and we came to the conclusion that it needed double the spices (except for cayenne), and the addition of some curry powder, and that the spices needed to be bloomed in some oil first. After that we would cook the whole thing together in vegetable stock instead of water. Green beans sounded ugh to me so we put in zucchini instead. We added the vegetables after the lentils had been cooking for 15 minutes and then the kale and cilantro 5 minutes later. We finish the dish off with a drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of lime and served it over a combination of white rice and cauliflower rice.

So how did it turn out? It still needs some work. I think we need to up the curry powder and cumin seeds and maybe add a can of Rotel. I guess I would like it to taste like chana dal made with lentils instead of chickpeas.

Posted in Indian, Legumes, Methods, Recipes, stew, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged lentils | 2 Comments

Salmon bowl 7/28/22

Posted on July 29, 2022 by Beebamom

Salmon bowl with cabbage, cucumbers, jalapeños, edamame, and avocado

Salmon or shrimp bowls are a frequent choice for dinner at our house. This is an especially good dish during hot weather since the only cooked components are the salmon which cooks on low on the stovetop and cauliflower rice that is heated up in the microwave. (Or you can use regular rice.)

I set the cold components on the counter and let everyone fix their bowls as they like. The dressing which is not on my bowl yet in the picture is a combination of 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/3 cup rice vinegar, 1/4 cup neutral oil, and finely chopped garlic clove, thumb of ginger, and 2 scallions. I use my mini food processor on the last three ingredients. You can also add a pinch of sugar or sweetner according to your taste. This is not an emulsified dressing. We also like to sprinkle on furikake as a garnish.

Next time I make this (probably next week!) I am going to try replacing the salmon or shrimp with tofu. I think tofu would be a great vehicle for the dressing and I can add another plant based meal to my weekly menu!

Posted in Asian, Easy, Fish, Methods, pescatarian, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged salmon | Leave a comment

Vegan! Fusilli and kale with mushrooms 7/27/22

Posted on July 28, 2022 by Beebamom

Absolutely the best way to eat pasta when you are dieting is to make a little pasta and a lot of vegetables. If you are like me you want to have a large bowl of pasta but cannot expend all those calories. By adding a lot of mushrooms and kale your bowl feels like you are not scrimping. Sauté the mushrooms, onions, and garlic with some red pepper flakes, oregano, and salt. Right before you are going to toss the cooked pasta in with the vegetables add the kale. Use some reserved pasta water and olive oil to make a sauce that the kale will wilt in. Pasta Wednesday is my favorite dinner every week!

Posted in American, Easy, Healthy tips, Italian, Kitchen tips, Methods, Pasta, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged mushrooms, pasta | 1 Comment

Seared scallops, new potatoes, green beans 7/26/22

Posted on July 27, 2022 by Beebamom

Seared scallops and steamed new potatoes and green beans

This is a simple but delicious dinner. The potatoes start first in a steamer basket over boiling water. They take 15 to 20 minutes. When they are done I put them in a covered bowl to keep warm and after adding more water to the steamer pot I add the green beans. In the meantime John heats our cast iron pan with a little neutral oil. In the time it takes to steam the beans the scallops are seared with a small dollop of butter at the end of cooking. I add a spritz of butter spray and some chopped chives and tarragon to the beans. A slice of lemon is all that is needed to complete our plates.

Posted in American, Easy, Methods, pescatarian, Shellfish, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged scallops | Leave a comment

Vegan chickpea stew over kale 7/27/22

Posted on July 26, 2022 by Beebamom

Chickpeas, ditalini, and assorted vegetables over kale

During our recent vacation I often felt like we were in a vegetable desert. Yes, we could usually get a salad but a dish like our dinner tonight was nowhere to be found. This chickpea stew is so easy to make and cooks in less than half of an hour.

Saute onions, carrots, and celery in a little olive oil and when they are softened add zucchini and garlic. Add 2 cups of water and 2 cups of vegetable stock (or chicken stock) and add a can of Rotel for spiciness plus tomatoes and a can of chickpeas. When it comes to a boil add 1/2 cup of ditalini or other small pasta. Be sure to season well with salt and pepper. Cook at a low boil for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is al dente.

At this point I usually add some sort of greens but I used too small of a pot so I just put the kale in bottom of the bowl and let it wilt under the heat of the stew. It worked out great.

It makes quite a bit so we have leftovers for lunches. When we heat it up we will stretch it by adding more stock and once again put our greens in the bottom of the bowl. Yum!

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment