We used tilapia as our fish in our corn tortilla tacos. John cooked the seasoned fish in a pan on the stove top in a little oil. They only take 3 to 4 minutes per side. I prepared a salad that included pepitas, corn chips, various lettuces, and tomatoes and dressed it with ranch style dressing. We also each had a handful of tortilla chips.
John briefly seared the tortillas over the open flame on the stove. In addition to the fish that I broke up in chunks I put spicy avocado sauce, green onions, cabbage, yogurt crema, and cilantro on my taco. I like tacos but they are always eaten too quickly. Once you pick them up they are hard to put back down without falling apart!
I have gone off the menu again! It is so cold and wintry today that I felt like a warm bowl of soup. Plus my leeks needed to be used before they got any older! The amount of heavy cream you use is up to you. On Friday we used 1/2 cup which is my upper limit for heavy cream. Actually considering that three of us ate the soup and we have some left over, it really isn’t that much cream per person. Our daughter added more cream and Tabasco because she wanted it creamier and spicy. Recipes are merely a jumping off point for you to do you!
With John opening cans and me chopping up vegetables we were ready to make this stew in no time. If you have canned chickpeas, Rotel, ditalini or other small pasta, and vegetable or chicken stock all you need fresh are an onion, carrots, celery, and some sort of greens. Usually we have those ingredients on hand.
My recipe is adapted from the New York Times recipe of a similar name. When you cannot think of what to make for dinner this is an easy go-to. It is also great for leftover lunches. It can be made vegan, vegetarian, or omnivore.
We were supposed to be having chickpea stew but at 7PM I had not done anything about dinner. We were watching an episode of America’s Test Kitchen where Lan was making a Chinese dish and it made me remember that we had potstickers in the freezer. So we scuttled the original plan for much easier potstickers and broccolini.
While John cooked the potstickers according to the package instructions I tried to give the broccolini an Asian spin. I cooked them in a little water and sesame oil along with sliced garlic and ginger. I seasoned them with a bit of salt and sugar. Sesame seeds went on as garnish.
The whole thing turned out quite well! I could have eaten twice as many potstickers but I am glad the package only contained eight. Chickpea stew will make it back on the menu sometime soon. It is mostly pantry ingredients so I can make it anytime.
I met my very good friend, Sophia, for the long President’s Day weekend in Charleston, SC. We toured around the city and nearby area and also went out to dinner a couple of times.
The first restaurant we went to was 82 Queen named after the address of the Charleston style house that has been repurposed to be a restaurant. I chose the chef’s special because I feel that frequently the special is the best choice. It was called feather, fin, and fur referring to quail, swordfish, and elk sausage. These ingredients were presented with broccolini and over a risotto, a real polyglot of a plate.
Quail, elk sausage, and swordfish swerved over risotto with broccolini
This dish just has too many components so it was hard to get them all right. The elk sausage was very good but the quail and swordfish could have used a lot more seasoning. The risotto was a clump of rice. So the dish was not entirely successful. I ate some of it.
On Sunday we ate at Cuoco Pazzo which means Crazy Chef. I ordered my go-to, spaghetti alle vongole or spaghetti with clams.
Spaghetti alle vongole
It was an enormous plate of food! I ate a little of the spaghetti and all of the clams. We took the rest of our dinners back to the hotel and ate them for dinner on Monday. The original portion was so large that we still had to throw some of it away. I am looking forward to eating spaghetti alle vongole in Italy next month!
I am back from my long weekend with my friend. We went to Charleston, SC and I will post a couple of things I ate while there later today. As much as I like having real chefs cook for me, I am very happy when John and I are our own chefs at home.
Easy dinner tonight. John grilled the burger outside to about medium but still juicy and our salad consisted of a Taylor Farms Steakhouse pre-made.
I am off on Friday to visit my dear friend in South Carolina for a long weekend. I might try some regional cuisine like she-crab soup, hush puppies, or shrimp and grits!
Chicken in gravy with smashed potatoes and broccoli
Since we are going out for a fancy Valentine‘s Day dinner on 2/15, I made an actual ❤️-day dinner that is like an uncomplicated warm hug! While John heated up some rotisserie chicken in packet chicken gravy, I boiled up a few red skinned potatoes and then smashed them with a tablespoon of butter. The broccoli was quickly steamed for a well-rounded quick and easy dinner.
Lentil stew with turkey sausage, mushrooms, celery, and carrots
We make this stew in stages. First we brown the turkey sausage that comes packaged already cooked through. Take that out of the pan and use the fat to cook the mushrooms. When the mushrooms are almost done add a mirepoix of onions, carrots, and celery diced small. Next add the garlic. When you can smell the garlic, maybe 20 seconds, add water, vegetable stock, or chicken stock. Then add the picked over and rinsed lentils. Cook that at a simmer for about 20 minutes and then add back in the turkey sausage and chunky pieces of carrot and celery. Another 10 or 15 minutes and it is done.
By adding the sausage, carrots, and celery in at the end, the stew has a more vibrant taste since all the components haven’t been cooked to death. Adjust the seasoning and maybe add a drizzle of olive oil and you have a really tasty lentil stew.
Omnivore 