Chilean sea bass and an expanse of vegetables 5/3/22

Roasted sea bass, snow peas and zucchini, kale and corn

Perhaps it is because I prepared them but it seemed to me that the vegetables outshone the Chilean sea bass (which is not easy to do!) John roasted the sea bass for 15 minutes in a 400F oven. The fillets were seasoned with salt, tarragon, Old Bay, and a little olive oil.

Originally we were supposed to be having new potatoes with the fish but I had too many vegetables waiting to be used in the refrigerator and decided to go with a few of them. I cooked the snow peas and zucchini in a little water and a dab of butter. The zucchini broke down a bit but the overall flavor was delicious. For the kale and corn, first I separately cooked garlic slices in a bit of olive oil. Then I cooked the kale in the garlic enhanced oil adding the frozen corn partway through and putting the cooked garlic in at the end. Yummy.

Don’t let your veggies take a backseat to the protein! By taking as much care as you would cooking a protein you can have a really delicious plate. It is good sense and healthy eating to have your protein be almost like a condiment and fill your plate full of vegetables.

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Leftover lamb, asparagus, and rice bowl 5/2/22

On Sunday we had a big family dinner with sous vide and then grilled boneless leg of lamb with chimichurri, scalloped potatoes, and asparagus with sauce gribiche. I was so busy that I forgot to take pictures! We had plenty of leftovers so we decided we would shelve our planned red lentil stew and have leftovers for dinner.

Lamb, asparagus, and rice with an Asian inspired sauce and black sesame seeds

The sauce I made was a combination of soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar. As a first course we had matzoh ball soup which was also leftover from Sunday.

Matzoh ball soup

Our cross-cultural leftovers dinner was not only delicious but used up extras in our refrigerator and gave John and me a well-earned night off!

Posted in Asian, Easy, Lamb, leftovers, Leftovers For Dinner, soup, Vegetables | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Weekly Menu May 2 – 8, 2022

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Spaghetti with tomato and mushroom sauce 4/30/22

Spaghetti with tomato and mushroom sauce

I was supposed to be eating some sort of egg thing on Saturday since we were having a big family dinner on Sunday, the normal breakfast for dinner day. But I just could not make myself do it. We had been talking earlier about what kind of pasta we would like this week and I decided that the kind of pasta I wanted was right now! So I sliced up some mushrooms, onions, and garlic and sauteed them in a little olive oil and then added a can of petite diced tomatoes and oregano. I seasoned at each step. I boiled some salted water and cooked 3 ounces of whole wheat pasta which I took out at about 5 minutes and let it finish cooking a combination of spaghetti sauce and a cup of pasta water. It was all done to perfection about 2 minutes later. I really enjoyed my dinner!

John prepared and ate his usual omelet.

Posted in American, Easy, Italian, Methods, Pasta, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian | Tagged | 1 Comment

Dal bukhara, chandi pindi with rice and naan 4/29/22

Bukhara dal (lentils), chana (chickpeas) pindi, basmati rice, naan

On Friday John and I went out to lunch at the Yeti Restaurant, a Nepalese?Indian place, in Glen Ellen, CA. These days when I am going to eat out I like to go to a restaurant that makes something I do not usually make at home or that is difficult to make at home. I also like to get some new ideas for something I might try making in the future.

I ordered the bukhara dal and it was wonderfully delicious. John was equally happy with his chana pindi. According to the menu the dal, or black lentils in this case,  are ”cooked overnight in the embers of the tandoori together with onions, chili, ginger, fresh cream and butter with a garnish of cilantro tomatoes and sprout beans.” Ah, cream and butter, that must be one reason why it was so delicious. John’s chana (chickpeas) pindi is described as “garbanzo beans cooked with mango powder and Indian spices.”

Now I have two new ideas for vegetarian dinners!

Posted in Asian, Dining out, Indian, rice, stew, Vegetables, Vegetarian | Tagged , | Leave a comment

New! Tuna poke with rice 4/28/22

Tuna pole bowl with cucumbers mango, edamame, cabbage, and cilantro over rice

We went to Costco on Tuesday and decided to buy a package of tuna that looked great. I have been wanting to try making poke so this seemed like a good time. I used this recipe from Serious Eats as a starting point https://www.seriouseats.com/ahi-poke-hawaiian-raw-tuna-salad-recipe Of course I put my own spin on it by using less soy sauce and less sesame oil plus substituting the Splenda for the honey. I was amazed when I went to one of the local grocery stores and that had ripe mango and ripe avocado. It seemed like an omen that I should make this dish. I sliced the cucumber and the cabbage thinly on the mandolin and chopped the other ingredients. We had some leftover rice and some left over dressing from the salmon bowls which I sprinkled on top. Then I mixed some mayo and sriracha for a drizzle. It was delicious!! I am looking forward to making this again although not too often since tuna is very expensive!

Posted in Easy, Fish, Hawaiian, Methods, pescatarian, rice, Vegetables | Leave a comment

Fusilli with mushrooms and kale 4/27/22

Fusilli with mushrooms and kale

It’s Wednesday so it must be pasta! I cannot tell you how much I look forward to pasta night. Our pasta is a healthy, vegan bowl of vegetables and olive oil with some pasta water to make a thin sauce. As additions we also use onions, garlic, oregano, pepper flakes, and of course salt. I cook the mushrooms in a little olive oil first and then add the onions, garlic, spices, and a little more olive oil. Right before the drained pasta goes into the vegetables I add big handfuls of kale and about a cup of reserved pasta water. After stirring the whole thing around for a couple of minutes it is ready to be served. Top the pasta with a drizzle of your best olive oil and some optional parmesan cheese.

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Salmon bowls 4/26/22

Salmon bowl with edamame, avocado, cabbage, cucumber, and cilantro over rice

This is a family favorite. While John brines the salmon for half an hour in 1 quart of water and 2 tablespoons of table salt, I cut up the veggies (thinly sliced cucumbers, chopped avocado, cabbage shredded, and edamame) and make a dressing. The dressing consists of soy sauce, rice vinegar, a neutral oil, a few drops each of sesame oil and fish sauce, a dash of sugar, and minced ginger and scallions. The dressing doesn’t emulsify so you have to stir it up each time you use it. John quickly sears the fish and cuts it into pieces. All the bite-sized components go in a bowl with rice. We finish the dish with a squeeze of lime, cilantro, and a dusting of furikake.

Posted in Asian, Easy, Fish, Methods, pescatarian, rice, Vegetables | 1 Comment

Chicken Marsala with sheet pan squash and sprouts 4/25/22

Chicken Marsala with sheet pan butternut squash and Brussels sprouts

The most onerous job in this dinner was cutting the sprouts in half! The chicken is pulled rotisserie breast meat from Costco and heated through in the sauce. The sauce is a packet of McCormack’s chicken gravy made with Marsala wine instead of water with added mushrooms. The pre-cut butternut squash from Trader Joe’s and the sprouts were shaken in a plastic bag with salt and olive oil. Then I roasted them in a 425F oven on convect for 15 minutes until they were super crisp. Be sure to watch the veg, though, depending on the size of the pieces they could be done even faster.

Really easy, really fast, really good!

Posted in American, Easy, Methods, Poultry, Sheet pan, Vegetables | Leave a comment

Soy seasoned vegetables and eggs 4/24/22

Sautéed vegetables seasoned with soy sauce and ginger with soft scrambled eggs

Sunday’s breakfast for dinner consisted of several different vegetables sauteed until crisp/tender and seasoned with soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. In a separate pan i soft scrambled two eggs and laid them on top. The vegetables I used were mushrooms, onions, carrots, celery, broccoli, snow peas, and kale. sometimes I leave the kale raw but this time I cooked it. Except for the chopping, this is a very simple and quick dish which nonetheless is quite satisfying.

Posted in American, Easy, Eggs, Methods, Vegetables, Vegetarian | 1 Comment