Thursday’s Dinner: Springtime Pesto

Like most CSA members, there are lots of greens to be consumed in our house during the Spring Share.  Often, we turn to pesto as a delicious and quick way to use those greens.  Last year, we ate lots (and lots) of arugula pesto.  Last night, for a twist, I tried a pesto with mustard greens.  It was mellower than a pesto with raw garlic but still delightful.

Mustard Green Pesto with Parmesan-Regiano Cheese, Adapted from Whole Living

Ingredients

• 8-10 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
• 4 cups mustard greens, stems discarded
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

• In small pan, heat oil and garlic on very low.  Let cook until garlic is brown all over.
• Pulse garlic, oil, almonds, cheese, mustard greens, 1⁄4 teaspoon salt, pepper to taste.  Add more oil as necessary to make a thick paste.  Taste and adjust salt, pepper & cheese to personal taste.
• Pesto can be refrigerated up to 3 days.

Served with

• Whole Wheat Spaghetti
• Carrot Coins
• Mushrooms from Biba
• Parmesan cheese

Monday’s Dinner

Gambas al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp), adapted from Penelope Casas

This is a classic Spanish tapas dish that is so fast, you can eat it whenever you have shrimp in the freezer.  We serve it with orzo pasta & feta cheese, but you could also eat it tapas-style, with crusty bread for dipping in the oil.

Ingredients

• 1 pound frozen shrimp, thawed & shelled (tails still on)
• Sea Salt
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 6-8 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped

Directions

• Sprinkle shrimp on both sides with salt.  Let them sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
• Combine oil and garlic in a pan and sauté over medium heat until garlic just begins to color.  Add the shrimp and cook, stirring, until the shrimp are done, about a minute or two (if the shrimp have turned opaque at the center, they are sufficiently cooked).
• Serve & wish you have made more!

Orzo pasta with feta cheese

Radish slices with sweet potato hummus from The Energized Body

Tossed greens

House Vinaigrette

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons citrus champagne vineager
• black pepper, to taste
• salt, to taste
• 1-2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1-2 teaspoons sweet: apple butter, strawberry jelly, honey, maple syrup, etc.

Directions

• Place all ingredients in jar.  Tighten lid.
• Shake.  A lot.
• Serve!

Saturday’s Sweet

For some reason, I have too many cans of sweetened condensed milk in the pantry.  I trolled the Internet until I found the right, coconut-free recipe (husband doesn’t like coconut; go figure).  Adapted from Eagle Brand.

Chocolate & Oat Bars

Ingredients

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
• 12 oz. pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

• HEAT oven to 350ºF (325ºF for glass dish). Combine flour, oats, brown sugar and butter in food processor; pulse until crumbly. Reserve 1/2 cup oat mixture and press remainder onto bottom of ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.*
• POUR sweetened condensed milk evenly over crust. Sprinkle with nuts and chocolate chips; top with reserved oat mixture; press down firmly.
• BAKE 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool & cut into bars.
• EAT!  Yummy under vanilla ice cream; if serving with ice cream, don’t cool completely.

*If you don’t like sticky pan edges, either line the pan or grease the pan (can’t promise the magic won’t go wonky, tho).

Monday’s Dinner

Spinach & Tofu Paneer from Deborah Madison’s “This Can’t Be Tofu!“

Ingredients:

• 1 carton firm or soft tofu
• salt
• 1 large bunch of spinach, stems discarded, leaves well washed
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded & coarsely chopped (optional)
• 1 serrano chile, coarsely chopped (optional)
• 1 inch knob of ginger, peeled & diced
• 3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup diced onion
• 2 tablespoons ghee, butter or vegetable oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon, plus a pinch, nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• ½ cup half & half (or milk)
• 1/3 cup yogurt

Directions:

1. Dice the tofu into pieces about the size of a sugar cube or a little smaller.  Bring 6 cups water to a boil, add 1 teaspoon salt and lower the heat to a simmer.  Add the tofu, turn off the heat, and leave for 4 or 5 minutes.  Pour into a colander to drain.  If you’ve used soft tofu, remove it with a slotted spoon.  Set aside.

2. Steam the spinach until wilted, then remove it to a cutting board and chop.  When cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess water.

3. Put the chiles, ginger, garlic, onion in a food processor, and process until finely chopped.  Heat the ghee or butter in a nonstick skillet, add the onion mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.

4. Add 1 teaspoon salt, the cumin, nutmeg, cayenne, and I cup water.  Simmer for 5 minutes, then return the mixture to the food processor, add  the spinach, and puree.

5. Return the mixture to the skillet, add the half & half and the tofu, and simmer for about 5 minutes.  Turn off the heat and stir in the yogurt.  Serve over basmati rice.

Curried Chickpeas inspired by The Gourmet Vegetarian Slow Cooker

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried chickpeas

• 3 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Rinse chickpeas and place them in the slow cooker insert along with the water.  Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours, until the chickpeas are tender.  Add spices and continue cooking for another 30-60 minutes.

Chicken Strips

Brown Rice

Tuesday’s Dinner

Lentils with Feta Cheese

1 cup lentils

water

salt

4-6 ounces of crumbled feta

 

1. Place lentils and water to cover lentils by 1 inch in a medium sized pot.  Add a dash of salt.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until lentils are just soft (not mushy).  This make take 20-25 minutes.
2. Drains lentils and place in serving bowl.  Add feta a scoop at a time, stirring into lentils and tasting, until you have the right mixture of tangy and earthy.

3. Eat!

Maple-Roasted Parsnips, inspired by Nigella Lawson

1 ½ pounds parsnips, peeled

2 ounces vegetable pil

1 ¾ ounces maple syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Trim parsnips and then halve them crosswise, then halve or quarter each piece lengthwise.
3. Place the parsnips into a roasting pan. Pour the oil over the parsnips and mix them well so that the oil covers all of the pieces (use your hands!).  Pour the maple syrup over the parsnips and transfer the roasting pan to the oven.
4. Roast the parsnips for 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so, until they are tender and golden brown.

Scrambled Eggs

Rice

Arborio rice, cooked in the rice cooker.  It was sticky and yummy and apparently, we ate it without stopping for a photo!

Lazy Turkey Potpie

Husband wanted chicken pot pie.  I wanted to use up leftovers from the fridge.  What did we get?  Turkey potpie, the easy way!

 

Lazy Turkey Potpie inspired by Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds cooked turkey, cubed
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, slice in half lengthwise then cut in 1/4 slices
• 6 shortish carrots, peeled & sliced in 1/4 slices
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups turkey gravy
• 1/2 pie crust recipe

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Heat skillet with oil over medium-high heat.  Sauté onion, carrot & celery for 5 minutes, until just tender.  Place in medium mixing bowl. Add cubed turkey.  Add gravy and mix until well-combined.
3. Spray 9 x 13 inch baking dish.  Add turkey mixture.  Sprinkle with fresh ground pepper.  Roll out pie crust into rectangle to cover dish.  Place pie crust on top of ingredients and place in oven.
4. Bake 30-40 minutes, until crust is gently browned and turkey mixture is bubbling.  Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.  Serve & eat; don’t burn your mouth!

Note to self: don’t take pictures of bland colored food on yellow plates with a light having a yellowish cast.  Maybe I should ask for new plates from Heath for Christmas?

Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving Dinner 2011

Brined Turkey from The Best Recipe
Gravy, see above
Sweet Potatoes from Bittman
Wild Rice inspired by Bon Appetit, minus the dried pears, served as a dish, not a stuffing
Parmesan-Crusted Sour Dough Bread Stuffing inspired by Bon Appetit, served as dressing, with dried cranberries instead of raisins & no eggs (we don’t really like raisins here, and we were too hungry to wait for the eggs to cook)
Brussell Sprouts, sautéed with garlic, inspired by Saveur but cooked by me!
Green Beans, gently boiled with vegan butter on top
Maple-Cranberry Sauce, from the basement (2 down, many more to go!)
Pumpkin Pie (from scratch), from Suzanne’s Old-Fashioned Pumpkin Pie
Apple Pie, inspired by The Best Recipe
Whipped Cream
Vanilla Ice Cream

Monday’s Dinner

Savory Goat Cheese Tart with Leeks from Local Flavors by Deborah Madison
Carrots with honey & lemon
Tomatoes & Cucumbers
Eggy rice

Friday’s Dinner

Last night’s dinner:

Leftover Kaddo Burani from here
Spinach with Dried Cranberries & Pinenuts from here
Whole Wheat Pasta Shells
Turkey Meatballs from Trader Joe’s
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds with Old Bay seasoning
Parmesan Cheese

Hello world!

Eggy Rice is a place for me, a mom of two, an avid cook with picky eaters, a vegetarian/flexitarian who cooks for omnivores, to try new recipes and meals and keep track of them, too.

Join me in my adventures!