🥬 Composed salad. 3/20/20

Posted on March 20, 2020 by Beebamom

In these harried days when no one is composed, make a composed salad out of leftovers and what you have in your fridge.  Starting with a bed of romaine, I put some egg salad, corn and diced asparagus stems, edamame, new potatoes, and tomatoes on top. It was dressed with a low-fat vinaigrette.  Some of the components were warm and others at room temperature. I had made similar salads starring tuna salad or chickpea purée for lunch and I figured a slightly hardier one could work for dinner.

Dinner salad: romaine, egg salad, small potatoes, asparagus and corn succotash, tomatoes, and edamame

Lunch salad: chickpeas with juniper berries, spinach, pickles, mushrooms, tomatoes, olives, pita

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🐚🐟 Shrimp in yellow curry with vegetables. 3/19/20

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Beebamom

We made Mark Bittman’s shrimp in yellow curry but we made it lighter by substituting the cup of coconut milk with non-fat yogurt, two teaspoons of cream, and about 1/4 teaspoon of coconut extract. I am sure using the coconut milk would have it made it more authentic but I saved a lot of calories by using yogurt. We served it over white rice and I cooked up some broccoli and carrots. There were no leftovers. You can find the recipe here.

Shrimp in yellow curry sauce with rice and mixed vegetables

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🥬 Chipotle bean burger and collard greens. 3/18/20

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Beebamom

I cannot take any credit for the chipotle bean burgers since they are made by Morningstar and cooking them is just one minute on each side on high in the microwave. I served mine with a little barbecue sauce and John had his on a hamburger bun. The vegetable is a different story, though. Usually I make collard greens by toasting some garlic in a little oil and then sautéing the ribbons of collards with some corn. I often add a little sugar if they are particular bitter and a little vinegar for some acid.  Last night I cut strings of onions, sliced the garlic, and added carrot peelings to the mix. John also asked me to dice up the stems so I had to boil them in a little water first so they wouldn’t be hard. I added the little bit of sugar and vinegar and completely forgot the corn. The collards were really good and were the star of the plate.

Chipotle bean burger, BBQ sauce, collard greens with onions, garlic, and carrot

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🐚🐟 Scallops, new potatoes, snow peas. 3/17/20

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Beebamom

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! We are celebrating by having at least a portion of our dinner be green. My contribution to this dinner are the Irish snow peas and that Irish favorite, potatoes! I also am in charge of the tartar sauce which is a French sauce named after the peoples of the Eurasian steppe. So it is not Irish.

John does a super job getting a nice sear on the scallops. The whole dinner is delicious and a balm to our continued isolation. Sometimes you just need to treat yourself!

Seared scallops with sautéed snow peas and steamed new potatoes

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🐑 Lamb chops, asparagus, rice. 3/16/20

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Beebamom

In a departure from our usual fare, we have rib lamb chops that John sears in a pan on the cooktop and finishes in the oven. They had been in the freezer for over 6 months and it was time to use them.  I made some asparagus with a little rice and tarragon.

Lamb chop with asparagus and rice

We are currently in a shelter-in-place situation in the SF Bay Area. We are still okay to go to the grocery store and we are thinking of going out some time on Thursday to get supplies. People have been shopping weirdly. All the bags of potatoes were gone from our local market but most of the vegetables were available. Bread was hit pretty hard as well. We have plenty of beans, lentils, and pasta as well as canned goods here at home. Mostly we just need to replace fresh vegetables and fruit. Maybe more people will learn to cook these next three weeks. That would be a silver lining to this catastrophe.

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🥬 BFD. 3/15/20

Posted on March 15, 2020 by Beebamom

Breakfast For Dinner, it is what we eat every Sunday night for dinner. John usually makes himself an omelet but I stick to soft scrambled eggs, a veggie breakfast patty, and toast. A special bonus today is that our daughter has made a freshly baked loaf of bread! Can’t think of what to make for dinner? Try BFD!

Soft scrambled eggs, veggie breakfast patty, and toast

 

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😀. Weekly menu March 15 – 21, 2020

Posted on March 15, 2020 by Beebamom

Only seven meals on the menu this week. I found when I put on eight that I bought food for all eight and then ended up not eating some of the food I bought. However, I do give myself permission to go off menu it something is just not appealing to me.  I have two more meals from Italy, places that we would have gone to and eaten the food of the region if not for the coronavirus. Also, surprisingly, a meat meal. We have had these lamb chops in the freezer for six months and it is really time that we ate them. Hope my menu inspires you to think of what you will prepare this week. Stay home and cook!

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🥬 Afghani dal. 3/14/20

Posted on March 14, 2020 by Beebamom

This dinner wasn’t even on the menu this week but we just did not feel like going to the fuss of scallops. Since we are stuck here at home due to social distancing (which you should take very seriously!) I did all the mise en place in the morning which made the actual cooking of dinner a breeze.

The red lentils used in this dish turn a bright yellow when cooked. The turmeric in the spice mixture helps the bright yellow along.  I topped mine with some Greek yogurt and cumin but you can leave that out if you want a vegan dish. The full recipe is here.

We had a Mediterrean type salad and pita with dinner. Along with lettuce and tomatoes I put some of my lunchtime chickpea spread in mine. John used feta, olives, and pepperoncini in his. We each had an apple for dessert.

Afghani dal with Mediterrean salad

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🐓 Grilled chicken thighs. 3/13/20

Posted on March 13, 2020 by Beebamom

Tonight we are making grilled chicken thighs, or rather John is making them. I am only responsible for vegetarian main dishes and vegetables in general. He is currently out on the patio hovering over the grill and keeping a watchful eye on the chicken so he can slather on the BBQ sauce at the right moment. Put it on too soon and your chicken will be a charred mess.

I am here in the kitchen waiting for the go-ahead to reheat the rutabagas left over from our comfort food dinner and make a new batch of broccoli. Easy-peasey for me tonight!

Grilled chicken thighs with rutabagas and broccoli

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🥬 Spaghetti alla puttanesca 3/12/20

Posted on March 12, 2020 by Beebamom

Spaghetti alla puttanesca or spaghetti in the style of the prostitute is from the Campania region of Italy. The biggest city in the region is Naples, home to pizza, and a place which we were planning to visit towards the end of our trip. The Campania region is at the front of the ankle on Italy’s boot.

Spaghetti alla puttanesca is salty and spicy  (maybe that is where the name came from?) and very quick and easy to make. The sauce is basically a can of tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, olives, capers, and red pepper flakes. You can make the sauce in the time it takes to boil the water and cook the spaghetti. We finished ours with good olive oil and grated Parmesan cheese. (Omit cheese for vegan recipe) Mangia!

Spaghetti alla puttanesca

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