Sunday we took our second trip to Whole Foods. I would love to shop there every week but it’s just too expensive. Although, eating healthy does have it’s costs.
I have been trying to curb my cheese intake but I just couldn’t resist! Whole Foods sells Cowgirl Creamery (when they have it in stock) which is very hard to find, in CT anyways. I love all Cowgirl cheeses but my favorite is “Mt. Tam”. Its a mild creamy spreadable cheese that is fantastic. Think of a really creamy Brie. I think it’s the consistency and texture that really makes this cheese stand out. Gourmet Library actually carries this cheese at a GREAT price. They ship too, so if you can’t find this locally definitely place an order with them.
Another item we picked up (which I have never tried) were fresh Garbanzo beans. They have a very “green” flavor that is strangely compelling. Completely different than the canned variety which I believe are cooked/boiled. They came in the pod so they were a pain to prepare but very good on my lunch salads and also just popping as a snack.
For dinner Lindsay prepared a brown rice mixed with edamame, pineapple, ginger, & vegetable stock. I prepared fresh flounder seasoned with Shallot Pepper (from Penzeys) and I made a lemon reduction with the juice of one lemon, some left over vegetable stock & a little butter. The sauce is very yellow, almost orange because of the vegetable stock.
Back to the grind, the weekend is over. Time to keep it healthy again! I tend to stray from healthy meals on the weekends but I also tend to be more active so I guess its justifiable. I’ll keep telling myself that.
Dinner tonight was soooo good. We ended up buying premade salmon burgers from Whole Foods which we grilled up and ate without buns. The salad was even better… baby spinach, roasted golden beets, ricotta salata & pecans. Ricotta salata is a dried cheese very similar but much milder than Feta. Its basically the Italian version of Feta. I love adding new elements to salads, it keeps them interesting. We probably didn’t need the roasted spicy squash but it didn’t really hurt, it’s a green veg.
This recipe is full of comfort, always pleases and I think it’s overlooked by a lot of people. This ranks as one of my favorite meals. We served it over plain long grain white rice from our rice cooker. I forget exactly what combination of ingredients we used from the “create your own” recipe but I do recall wanting to make them all. Don’t be intimidated by this recipe, its really quite easy. If you are looking for a meal to wow parents, sig others, etc. Give this a shot, they will be impressed.
Create your own Short Ribs from Fine Cooking
The wine for tonight came back with us from our Trip to Napa in February. It was from a small producer, Forth Estate, which we discovered at the Family Wineries Tasting Room. Very dark smoky fruit on the nose with a velvety mouth feel that held up great with this BIG meal. I believe it cost around $25 which isn’t bad from California.
As I like to say… J’amazing! Simplicity at its best. Regular good ‘ol prepackaged filo cups filled with homemade lemon curd. There is a catch, it may look like a simple dessert but I watched (keyword watched) Lindsay zest and juice about a thousand lemons and then slave over the stove waiting and watching for the desired temperature and reduction. I do take partial credit for the creation of this heavenly custard-like lemon mouth party… How? I am glad you asked. <start flashback sequence> Lindsay came home one day with a bushel/gross/crate of Meyer lemons for no apparent reason whatsoever… She gets excited WHENEVER she sees one, the look on her face, the excitement, you would think she just spotted Jesus reincarnated. Thankfully I am usually there to curb her Meyer lemon shopping sprees. Not this time. To make a long story short, I demanded (in a husband nice way) her to come up with a recipe and boy did she come through! In addition to the curd she also used the leftover zests to steep in vodka for homemade limoncello. Limoncello post to follow.
A quick word about curd. Why is it called curd? Say it three times, slow… curd…Curd…CURD. Sounds so unappealing. Whenever we mention that we made lemon curd to friends, no one is interested at all. It’s usually followed by looks of disgust and comments such as “Ew, whats that?” or “No thank you”. So if the creator of “curd” is reading, please change the name to something along the lines of “mouth velvet” or “mmmmm”.
For those of you who have never tried or tasted Lemon “mmmmm”, I suggest you seek it out. I strongly suggest you try making it yourself! Its not difficult, just time consuming.
Lemon Curd recipe from Fine Cooking
Our friend Heather started playing with wing recipes during football season and made a couple of batches that were outstanding. I never really thought to make wings at home. I usually just ordered them from the local pub or my favorite wing joint, Archie Moore’s. So thanks to Heather we tried this recipe we came across in Everyday Food. Yes, they tasted just as good as they looked!
Sticky Chicken Wings recipe from Everyday Food
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/sticky-chicken-wings
I thought I hated Polenta. I always associated Polenta as a mashed potato wannabe. Am I the only one? The consistency of the Polenta in this recipe was perfect. It wasnt too firm, it didnt have that congeal factor that Polenta gets when it cools, it was almost like grits. Sauteed shrimp and stewed tomatoes were the perfect topper.
Recipe from Everyday Food
Do you know whats better than the crispy brown edges of a perfectly roasted fingerling potato? Nothing. Nothing is better. I mean look at them! Having been the first time we have ever cooked a cube steak, we may have overcooked it slightly. It was still very juicy and oh so tender for such an inexpensive cut of meat. The light reduction sauce with caramelized onions topped the proverbial cake! I also came to the realization that the cube steak cut is used to make the coveted southern chicken fried steak recipe, which I have never had …I see a new cube steak post in my near future.
Recipe from Epicurious – Braised Cube Steak with Orange Meyer Lemon
Just got back from a 3 mile run. Time for a healthy dinner.
Simple & Fresh. Well Sort of. The Halibut filets were frozen from Trader Joe’s but the quality and price of TJ’s fish is simply amazing! They must flash freeze as soon as possible, but that’s just a guess. The caper salsa verde on top was from cooking light (recipe below). On the side we had fennel and squash roasted on a cookie sheet with about 1 tbsp EVOO, salt/pepper, garlic/onion powder to taste. We roasted the fennel so that it still had a bit of a crunch to it.
Quick rant on Capers and please listen carefully. Capers create layered depths of flavor. Its the silent star of the dish. Its the reason why a hypothetical meal was so good but you couldn’t figure out exactly what ‘made’ it. I could bore you with what a caper is and how it’s cultivated but that’s what wiki is for. My point is, capers are highly underrated. Cook with them, eat them, love them…
Halibut with Caper Salsa Verde from Cooking Light
3 years ago if I saw a caper in my dish I would have pushed it to the side and never tried it.
Now this is different and fun. Steamed artichoke with a dipping sauce?! How boring are plain steamed artichokes? So boring that you hardly ever see them served. Fresh artichokes were on sale so we stepped up to the plate and I think hit a home run.
Steamed Artichokes with Tarragon-Mustard Vinaigrette
Along side the artichoke were simple seasoned sauteed shrimp (say that 5x) and leftover ‘mashertatas’.
