Omnivore

Hot night, cool gazpacho and corn. 6/30/23

Posted on July 1, 2023 by Beebamom

Too hot for cooking tonight! I made the gazpacho in the blender and the corn in the microwave. It was the first time this season for corn on the cob so it tasted especially good.

I have added my recipe for quick and easy gazpacho. I like to add a little fresh tomato but I would probably make it with just the canned if I did not have any on hand. And I whiz the entire tomatoes up seeds and skin included. I do take the seeds out of the cucumber but I leave the skin on. Salt is a personal thing. Just remember that the chilled gazpacho needs more salt than a soup served warm.

For corn on the cob in the microwave I husked three ears and then rinsed them off so there would be some steam when the cooked. I put them in a ziploc bag not entirely closed and microwaved on high for 6 minutes. I figured 2 minutes an ear.

Posted in Easy, Hot weather meals, Mediterranean, soup, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged corn, Gazpacho | 1 Comment

Switching gears for hot weather—Grilled burgers and salad. 6/29/23

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Beebamom

The incredible heat that has been gripping the country has made its way to California so we are changing our lineup. Quick outdoor grilled burgers with a bagged salad and some chips for Thursday night and gazpacho and corn on the cob is on for Friday night. I haven’t figured out Saturday when it should be around 100F but maybe hummus and tabbouleh and something else Middle Eastern. All of us need to have a go-to list of dinners for the unusually hot weather this summer.

Posted in American, Beef, Easy, Grilling, Hot weather meals, Salad, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged hamburgers | Leave a comment

Moroccan style chicken and chickpeas. 6/28/23

Posted on June 29, 2023 by Beebamom

This is a new recipe for us. We started out with a standard tagine type recipe and then adapted to use less fat, rotisserie chicken, and fewer sweet elements. We also added half a preserved lemon because we a jar in the refrigerator. We served ours without the couscous and it was plenty filling. I think this could be easily made with boneless chicken breasts that were cut into chunks and cooked in the sauce at the end.

Moroccan style chicken and chickpeas

Posted in Easy, North African, Poultry, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged chicken, chickpeas | Leave a comment

Vegan tofu bowl. 6/27/23

Posted on June 28, 2023 by Beebamom

This is a great hot weather meal. It is mostly just chop and assemble. The dressing and the marinade for the tofu are basically the same thing, a soy-ginger-rice wine vinegar vinaigrette. The other components are shredded cabbage, avocado pieces, sliced cucumber, edamame, thinly sliced green onions, cilantro, and thinly sliced jalapeño or Fresno chiles. Add the dressing/marinade at the end and drizzle on some oil. We usually serve this over rice and on a hot night I would recommend using microwave-able rice.

Posted in Asian, Easy, Hot weather meals, Legumes, Methods, rice, Salad, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged tofu | Leave a comment

Chicken enchiladas and black beans 6/26/23

Posted on June 27, 2023 by Beebamom

Chicken enchiladas with spicy black beans

We went to Costco today and of course bought a rotisserie chicken. When I got to home I disassembled it and made stock out of the bones. I am saving the legs and thighs for a tagine we are making later in the week. I shredded one of the breasts for the enchiladas and the other breast I will slice for lunch meat. What an amazing buy at $4.99 per chicken.

I used jarred salsa verde in the bottom of a baking dish and fit in 12 enchiladas constructed of a corn tortilla, shredded chicken, Mexican blend cheese, shredded cabbage, chopped onion, and a little of the salsa verde. I covered the top of the enchiladas with the rest of the salsa verde and cheese then baked it for 40 minutes at 350F. At the end we broiled the enchiladas briefly to singe the cheese.

For the three of us I heated up 2 cans of black beans, rinsed, and a can of Rotel. I seasoned the beans with cumin, salt, and chipotle powder.

This dinner is always a big hit at our house. And we have 4 enchiladas left over for lunch!

Posted in Methods, Mexican, Poultry, Southwest U.S., Uncategorized, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged chicken, enchiladas | Leave a comment

Niçoise salad sans tuna. 6/25/23

Posted on June 26, 2023 by Beebamom

On Sundays we almost always have some sort of eggs for dinner. In fact we call it Breakfast for Dinner. This Sunday I made sort of Lunch for Dinner but still incorporated eggs. My dinner salad was a lot like a Niçoise salad except without the tuna and edamame standing in for green beans.

I am pretty happy with this salad although I made it so big that I had to give John at least a third of it. The components of it are green leaf lettuce, kale, boiled new potatoes, tomatoes, hard boiled eggs, edamame, and mushrooms. I dressed it with olive oil and vinegar and seasoned it with salt and pepper.

Posted in American, Easy, Eggs, Hot weather meals, Legumes, Salad, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Leave a comment

Weekly Menu. June 26–July 2, 2023

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Beebamom

We are starting off our healthy eating regime this week with three vegan/vegetarian meals, two chicken meals, one fish meal, and a party meat meal. (Steak tacos because that is what our grandson requested!) The tagine, roasted butternut squash with lentils, and the cumin roasted salmon are all dishes we have never made before so that will be exciting!

Posted in Weekly menu | Leave a comment

Fusilli with tuna, mushrooms, and broccoli. 6/24/23

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Beebamom

We made this dinner from ingredients we always have on hand—pasta, a can of tuna, mushrooms, broccoli, onion, garlic, and parmesan cheese. John is in charge of making the pasta and I take care of everything else.

I chop all my ingredients up ahead of any cooking. First I sauté the mushrooms in olive oil spray, then I add the onions, and finally the garlic and some oregano. I leave these over a low flame while I check to see where John is at. When the pasta water is boiling I have 8 minutes to finish the vegetables.

When the pasta is down to 4 minutes I turn up the flame under the vegetables and add the broccoli florets with a half cup of the boiling pasta water and cover the pan. John drains the pasta reserving a cup of pasta water. He adds the fusilli to the vegetables and I stir it around adding some of the reserved water and a little olive oil. When everything is well incorporated I turn off the stove and gently add the tuna flakes. I try to keep the tuna in identifiable pieces.

Once the tuna is warm, serve the dish with a sprinkle of Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil.

Posted in Easy, Fish, Italian, Methods, Pasta, pescatarian, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged pasta, tuna | Leave a comment

Fish tacos and spicy black beans. 6/23/23

Posted on June 24, 2023 by Beebamom

What an easy and tasty meal for any weeknight! We used tilapia and John cooked it simply with some seasoning and spices on our cooktop in a pan with a little olive oil. You could use any fish you enjoy or even shrimp. Keep it simple like we did or maybe use some mayo or mustard and add panko breadcrumbs for some crunch.

John heated the tortillas directly over the flame on our stove but you can also microwave or heat them up in the oven.

For my part I made the spicy beans. I used a can of rinsed black beans and a can of Rotel original spicy tomatoes. I heated these together in a pot with some cumin, chipotle powder, and salt.

All that is left to do is assemble the dish. Our tacos had toppings of green onions, shredded cabbage, salsa verde, and lime. I spooned the beans into a separate container and topped them with sliced green onions as well. A handful of tortilla chips might have been a nice side but we are trying to keep our dinners healthy while we shed the extra pounds from our cruise.

Posted in American, Easy, Fish, Healthy tips, Kitchen tips, Legumes, Methods, Mexican, pescatarian, Southwest U.S., Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged black beans, Tacos, tilapia | Leave a comment

Afghani lentils with rice mix and kale. 6/22/23

Posted on June 23, 2023 by Beebamom

Afghani lentils with white rice and cauliflower rice mixed over raw kale

The red lentils cook in a vegetable broth or water with sautéed ginger, onion, and garlic, plus turmeric, cumin, cayenne, and salt for about 20 minutes. It should be kind of soupy and the lentils will break down somewhat. I use a packaged pre-washed chopped kale as a base. Then I make a layer of 1/3 pre-cooked white rice and 2/3 cauliflower rice which I have mixed together and heated in the microwave. The lentils go on top with a squeeze of lemon and a green onion garnish. I sometimes use a bit of sriracha for extra spiciness.

Posted in Afghan, Easy, Legumes, Methods, rice, stew, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged lentils | Leave a comment