Shrimp Stir Fry

blend garlic (about 5 cloves), ginger (one inch, peeled) and crushed red pepper flakes (about 1 tsp) in a grinder and set aside. In another bowl, mix 1 tbsp sesame seed oil, 1.5 tbsp soy sauce, a splash of red wine (prob white would be better, but i didn’t have any on hand), splash of rice vinegar, hot sauce, 1 tsp peanut butter, apple cider vinegar…mix this and set aside

heat oil, add onion, remove onion when finished and set aside. heat oil, add shrimp and saute until almost cooked, add garlic mixture and scallions (white parts only – from 3 green onions), add mushrooms, fry an egg and let it finish cooking before adding anything else or mixing with other stuff, add snow peas, add onions back in, add bean sprouts, add water chestnuts, soy sauce mixture and remaining scallions. Continue to saute for about a minute. Add rice and mix around and serve.

Lentil Soup Spiced up

I spiced up the lentil soup that I had made a while ago b/c I thought it was a little bland. i had originally used the Barefoot Contessa recipe…here’s what I added:

red wine (merlot)

more cumin

dried parsley

crushed red pepper

garlic powder

cinnamon

salt

It was really good and had a lot more flavor. i served this over rice.

Nice Salad in CA

had a great salad while I was out in California…wanted to jot it down before I forgot…

Spinach

sliced strawberries

gorgonzola

walnuts

EVOO & white balsamic vinegar

10.25.09 – WINGS…SO GOOD!

I made 6 whole wings (12 once you cut it up)…for the sauce, I used 1/8 cup hot sauce (could have used more); a few splashes of chipotle Tabasco; 1 clove of garlic and 3 tbsp unsalted butter.

Cut up your whole wings and toss away the tips. Clean off and pat dry. Lay on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic salt, cayenne pepper and a little brown sugar. Toss around to make sure they are coated.

Broil for about 8 minutes. Turn the wings and then broil for another 4-6 minutes until cooked through and a little crispy.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat butter and garlic until butter is melted. Then add to hot sauce and a pinch of salt in a bowl that you can fit all of the wings.

Once wings are done cooking, toss them with the sauce and then put them back on the cookie sheet and broil on high for a couple of minutes to get them extra crispy.

Serve with celery and a blue cheese dipping sauce.

I created a blue cheese dipping sauce by combining crumbled blue cheese (smashed up); a little brown sugar, freshly chopped chives, a little apple cider vinegar, a couple spoonfuls of plain greek-style yogurt and a splash of buttermilk.

10.13.09 Dinner: Butternut squash soup

Tonight, i made butternut squash soup which was really easy and tasted great. I used an Alton Brown recipe and made a few adjustments.

Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/squash-soup-recipe2/index.html

Some of the things I did: Instead of starting with whole butternut squash, I bought butternut squash that was already cut in chunks. Then I tossed them with olive oil, salt and white pepper (and cinnamon, which is not in the recipe), spread them on a large cookie sheet and roasted them as Alton instructs in the recipe.

Once the squash was roasted, I added it directly to the dutch oven and followed the recipe from there. I also added a little garlic powder to the mixture as well before blending. I didn’t use quite the amount of nutmeg as Alton suggested.

I served this with a nice caprese salad and some whole wheat bread for dipping.

Menu for the Week of 10.11.09

I’ve decided to post my weekly menus so that I can remember what I’ve made. Up for this week…

Sunday: Shrimp Puttanesca over brown rice

Monday: Roasted whole chicken w/ potatoes, carrots, celery and fennel

Tuesday: Leftover mushroom lasagna & salad

Wenesday: Salmon w/ green beans & baked sweet potato

Thursday: Chicken stir fry

Friday: Butternut squash soup & Cucumber/tomato salad

Saturday:TBD

10.11.09 Dinner: Shrimp Puttanesca over Brown Rice

Last night, I have to admit that I made a GREAT dinner. I hope I’m not forgetting anything as I record how I made it…

Instead of sauteing the shrimp as I usually do; I decided to roast them in the oven and they came out PERFECT! It’s very easy…first, pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees; then peel/devein the shrimp (I actually buy them deveined b/c it’s a disgusting job), rinse them and place them on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle them with salt, pepper, chopped fresh parsley, lemon juice, minced garlic and capers (with a little caper juice).  Pop that in the oven for 8 minutes and you should be all set. Once you take them out, immediately transfer everything into the sauce (below). Let it sit for about 5 minutes and then it’s ready to serve

For the sauce, I heated a couple of tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat. I then sauteed Julienned onion, then added minced garlic for about 1 minute. Add 1 can of whole tomatoes (mush them up in a bowl with your hands before adding); 1 can of crushed tomatoes, dried oregano, dried parsley, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, 2 bay leaves, some good red wine (I used a delicious cabernet), salt, pepper, pinch of sugar, capers. I then add a bunch of basil – instead of chopping it, I tear it apart and throw it into the sauce. Bring this to a small boil and then reduce to a simmer and let it sit for a while before adding the shrimp. Oh, I also added about a teaspoon of tomato paste to thicken it up. Just a note, I used San Marzano canned tomatoes and they were AWESOME – I would definitely recommend.

Instead of using pasta, I used brown rice and it was really good and a lot less carbs. Obviously, you can use pasta and it will probably taste great!

10.8.09 Dinner: Mushroom Lasagna & Caesar Salad

Tonight, I decided to use 2 recipes. One I have used before (Mushroom Lasagna) and one is new. Both were outstanding!

Mushroom lasagna was really easy and very tasty. Instead of just using the portabella mushrooms, I used a variety of different mushrooms and it turned out really good. I would also mention that you probably don’t have to use the entire amount of nutmeg…it was a little strong for me, but J thought the whole thing was really good…

Lasagna recipe is from Barefoot Contessa (my FAVORITE): http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/portobello-mushroom-lasagna-recipe/index.html

Caesar salad recipe is from Alton Brown (2nd FAVORITE): http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/good-eats/hail-caesar-salad-recipe/index.html – this was SO good and it was really easy to make. I didn’t do the croutons like Alton did, but instead took some stale bread that I had on hand, drizzled with olive oil and put in the oven on broil (high) until it toasted. I then took a clove of garlic and cut in half and then rubbed the toasted bread pieces with the garlic. Also, for the first tbsp of olive oil that is tossed with the salad, I took 1 garlic clove and minced it and then crushed it up with the olive oil with a mortar/pestal before applying to the salad. I used reg EVOO for the rest of the recipe. I also added chopped tomatoes to the salad as well as I really like tomatoes with caesar salad.

Menu for week of 10.5.09

Sunday: Beef Stew

Monday: Grilled chicken fajitas-ish, black beans and rice

Tuesday: Grilled salmon, spaghetti squash, corn on the cob and a side salad

Thursday: Mushroom lasagna and caesar salad

Friday: Homemade veggie pizza

I don’t exactly remember what we did for the other 2 days in the week (guess that’s the prob with typing these in after the fact).

9.20.09 Dinner: Salmon, Spaghetti Squash and Salad

Salmon: pat dry, sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, dill weed…drizzle with oil and then rub everything in

Spaghetti squash: cut the squash lengthwise in half; drizzle, scoop out the seeds, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper….roast on 400 degrees for 20 – 30 minutes…remove from oven and scrape with a fork…in the meantime, caramelize some thinly sliced onions in a saute pan. Add the spaghetti squash to the onions and mix around

Salad: mixed field greens with tomato, mushrooms and cukes