January again....

2016.   When did that happen?  Time to start fresh, start new.  Time to be in non-holiday mode...that means cooking for our family, driving to arena's, piano, driving my oldest to his job (yes he has a job now), and on and on and on.  I thought I would try and blog more this year and try and capture our dinners a few times per week, just to get things going and to get people inspired to cook simply but deliciously! 


Yesterday was piano day, which means eating super early or a bit later, depending on what else is going on. Typically I do slow-cooker Monday's, but the weekend was so busy with hockey and ringette that I did not have time to prep the night before.   Now I am okay with the whole concept of breakfast-for-dinner, and grilled cheese and tomato soup, but there's something about Monday's...I need to have it be delicious and full of good flavour.  Salmon!  That's it!  Cooks quickly, pairs nicely with....gnocchi (already had in my pantry).  Cooks quickly, and  can lightly pan fry in...brown butter and fresh sage (yes, I had those things on hand too).  And what veggies....zucchini from the farmers market, and a fresh spinach salad! Done!    And the "piece-de-resistance".....my homemade dill garlic lemon mayonnaise....so good you could eat it with a spoon (I didn`t do that.....but I coulda)

Baked salmon, gnocchi, zucchini and spinach salad

Baked Salmon
-start with a salmon fillet (I get mine at Costco)
-season with sea salt, ground pepper and fresh minced garlic
-rub all over fish
-garnish with lemon slices to bake
-bake at 375 convection, lightly covered with foil....I think I baked it for about 20 min


Gnocchi
- boil for under 2 minutes
-drain and quickly transfer to a butter-seasoned non stick pan
-fry on medium low until you get some nice crispy parts
-cut up fresh sage and toss in with the brown butter / gnocchi


Mayonnaise
-Get out your blender!
-put in 2 medium eggs
-juice of half a lemon
-1 - 2 cloves of fresh minced garlic (okay I used 3..but LOVE garlic)
-fresh dill (or whatever herb...if no herb its good with just the lemon and garlic)
-salt and peppa

Now blend this up....and open the lid of your blender and SLOWLY pour in vegetable oil.  Olive oil is a bit heavy, and while I love olive oil, I do not like the taste of it in mayonnaise.   Eventually your ingredients will emulsify and blender will make weird gurgly sounds...its done then!  Can store in the fridge for about a week, but never lasts that long in our fridge.  We use it to dip veggies, as a creamy salad dressing, spread on sandwiches....lots of possibilities!

And presto..dinner was ready by the time the kids came home (hubby picked them up!)

Happy cooking!

Thai-Die For!

Okay so its a cheesy title!

But, inspired from Julie Van Rosendaal last week on CBC radio, this one is a keeper!

Every Tuesday on CBC radio, I look forward to hearing what Julie Van Rosendaal has created, and a few weeks ago, I heard the most delicious-sounding recipe ever for fish.  Of course due to the fact that I didn't have every ingredient, we had to add-lib a bit, but sometimes this is half the fun!  So here's what I had in the pantry: coconut milk, lime juice, peanut butter (yes, a bit of pb!) and some Epicure Satay seasoning.  Dinner done in less than 30 minutes!  And, to make it more impressive, my husband cooked since I had boot camp that evening!

I came home with only 10 minutes to get dinner going, change into my bootie-camp clothes and dash out the door.  My hubby, who is very competent in kitchen, (and is a super-awesome cleaner, so really, its a win-win!) did supper, with just a few minor instructions...

me:  Sautee the veggies in a bit of oil and then...deglaze with wine or something...okay?  Then just....
him:  De-what?? 
me:  Deglaze...once the veggies are cooking and almost sticking to the pan, pour in a bit of liquid. him:  So pour in...
me: White wine...and just wait for it to boil off, then add the coconut milk, spices,
him:  I got this! Go workout!
me:   Oh yeah..we have whole grain 10-minute rice, just whip that up for our grains!

Yes, I know this rice is slightly processed, but it's a  pantry-must-have for those quick nights where you don't want to fuss and you don't have time to cook the nice brown rice in the rice cooker that takes an hour.

So off I went to my boot camp (ugh!)...but, when I came home, a wonderfully tasty and flavourful meal was waiting for me!  He even took pictures!









Ingredients

2 - 3 Basa Fillets (that's what was in the freezer..could do any white fish!)
3 cups chopped vegetables....broccoli, carrots, celery, mushrooms, red pepper)
1 small can of coconut milk
a few tablespoons of peanut butter
lime juice
soy sauce
Epicure Satay seasoning (you can use Thai green curry paste, or whatever you have)
wine to deglaze

Saute vegetables, and "deglaze" once they are almost sticking to the bottom.   While veggies are cooking, make a mixture of the coconut milk, the pb, the lime juice and the satay seasoning.  Once veggies are successfully deglazed, pour in coconut mixture and simmer in the savoury sauce.  Once boiled down, place cut up pieces of fish in the broth, and cover.  Don't mix, especially with basa, as it will break apart.

Serve over rice and voila! Dinner made by hubby...and just so delicious!


http://www.cbc.ca/eyeopener/columnists/food/2014/09/23/julie-van-rosendaal-cooks-sockeye-salmon/

Risotto in under 35 minutes....honest!

Last Wednesday I made a fabulous dinner in under 35 minutes....lemon garlic risotto, broiled char, and sauteed kale.   Mind you, I had planned it out, and had all my essential ingredients, but planning is ninety percent of the battle.

Lemon garlic risotto, arctic char and sauteed kale

I don't really like rice unless it is nice and sticky, or creamy or both.   Risotto is definitely something I love, and while it is tedious to make (sometimes) it is not that difficult, and with planning (and an eleven year old helper to stir!) the meal was ready in less than 35 minutes from start to finish.  The only downside for me was that it was an night that I had to go running (ugh!) and I could not eat my full meal (as seen above) until after my run!


Lemon Garlic Risotto (hint...make enough for leftovers)

3 cups of arborio rice
2 - 3 TBSP olive oil
a few cloves of minced garlic
Liquid:
Fresh squeezed lemon - juice from 1 -2 lemons throughout cooking
dry white wine - about 1 - 2 cups total throughout cooking
water - 4 - 6 cups throughout cooking
Using a deep pan (I used a wok-style pan), heat up olive oil. Have your rice and minced garlic ready. Throw in the garlic and within 10 seconds, add the arborio rice.  Sautee for 1 - 2 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic.  Slowly start adding in liquid, 1/2 - 1 cup at a time, each time stirring until liquid has evaporated.  This is the tedious part, but if you have an eleven year old to help you, I highly recommend it.  Slowly add the liquid, alternating the lemon juice and water, and then the wine. I did not measure, but tasted as I went.  It took about 25 minutes of adding liquid, and in between I seasoned my char and ripped my kale. You will know your risotto is done when it appears creamy and sticky (yum!) and it has a wonderful texture that is soft, but firm.  



Blackened Char

2 pieces of char, skin side down
Use any blackened spice
Lemon slices
Place char skin side down on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Sprinkle any blackened spice you have (I had a spice mix called "Open Season" which was delicious and low sodium to boot!).  Slice lemons and place in along the top of the fish.  Bake at 375 for about 10 minutes. 

Sautteed Kale
2 bunches of ruffled kale
1  - 2 TBSP grapeseed oil
salt and pepper to taste
juice from a lemon or...yes....white wine
Preheat the pan with the grapeseed oil.  Once heated, throw in the ruffley kale, and hear it sizzle!   Toss around for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Add some salt and pepper, and then toss in a bit of vino.  The acidity of the wine (or lemon juice) helps to get rid of the slight bitterness that kale has, and then all you are left with is total delicious-ness!  

Mushroom Barley Risotto

Tonight we had no activities (!) and I was craving something delicious (as usual).   I always try and meal plan either in the car on my way home from work, or if I am really good, I will at least decide on a "maybe" plan the day before and let the idea percolate in my head..."maybe we'll have salmon..."

The menu was simple, but not boring-simple.  Got home, did a quick check to see what I

Super easy and super delicious! 

had....barley...mushrooms, salmon, green beans.....all the makings of an easy and delicious dinner!

1.  Barley...rinse and put to boil.   Takes about 30 - 40 minutes, but do this first, and then you can work on everything else
2.  Chop up the 'shrooms, and sautee them in olive oil and a bit of sea salt and pepper. Can add a bit of white wine if you have some!
3.  Prep the salmon...easy...place on parchment, drizzle syrup and slice up a lemon to put on top.  Cover with foil and bake it up!
4.  Wash the green beans and steam or microwave them up.

By now, the salmon is almost done, and the barley is cooked (just about).  Once the barley is al dente, drain and add to your sauteed mushrooms....you will be amazed at how easy it is compared to real risotto (which I also love, but it is time consuming with all that mixing!).

And.....now, its time to eat!   All done in less than an hour.

Salmon, green beans and mushroom barley risotto

Salmon with Curry Linguine

How delicious does this look????   

My kids LOVED this today!   A real hit for a Monday!

Lately, I have really been trying to make meals with what I have at home and  not run to the grocery store every day....which means I have to plan ahead and be creative.  Note:  I do most of my meal planning in the car....either after I drop the kids off at school or on my way home from work.  This weekend was great from a buying-food-for-the-week perspective, as I went to the Crossroads Farmer's Market on Friday and stocked up on a few essentials (including our favourite Saskatoon Berry Pie!) and also went to Lina's Italian Market and stocked up on fresh pasta and and sauce, which make easy freezer-to-table meals in a short amount of time.   Today I decided to cook up a whole salmon fillet from Costco, and have it with the Lina's pasta and their curry cream sauce.  Throw some veggies on the side....and it's the perfect dinner.  

Here's what I did:

• Called my son at 3:30 and instructed him to take the salmon, the pasta and the sauce out of the freezer.  He was happy to comply, and found everything where I said it would be
• Home at 5:45....daughter was in the middle of  piano lessons so I quietly prepared the salmon
• Oven on....400 convection....
• Placed the salmon on a parchment lined cookie sheet and drizzled on some maple syrup and topped with minced garlic and  fresh lemon slices.  Covered it up with foil, and baked until about 6:45 or so.  It was still partially frozen when I put it in...so if your salmon is thawed or fresh, it will take a shorter time.
• Salmon in the oven..time to walk the dog!  And it was even sunny!  
• Back at 6:25....put the water to boil for the pasta....prepared the  peas and broccoli...microwaved the peas and poured some boiling water over the broccoli to slightly soften
• Boiled the pasta, added the sauce....set the table.....and dinner was ready!  Yes, it was a bit later, but everyone loved it!  The kids took seconds (and thirds!).  My son even was shocked at how much he loved the salmon!!!!   

I'd say this meal was a success....pasta, fish and veggies....simple, delicious, and best of all, there was enough leftovers for a few lunches!   

Sole Food

I made an amazing, delicious, simple, quick dinner tonight!   I had bought sole at the grocery store, and tossed it in my freezer last week.   On the menu tonite was pasta with a garlic cream sauce...light on the cream, as I only had less than 1/4 cup of whipping cream, spinach cakes (yes, spinach cakes, which were delicious) and pesto crusted sole.  

1.  Spinach cakes were easy, and I got the recipe from a friend of mine.  All you do is chop up 12 oz of fresh spinach (i used two 6 oz bags of baby spinach).  Chop it up in batches in a food processor, and add  1/2 cup of ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, 2 eggs, a minced garlic cloves and salt and pepper.  Mix the chopped spinach together with all the other goods, and then plunk it into muffin tins (greased) and bake at 400 for 20 minutes.  I added a bit of extra cheese, and 1 extra egg, as it seemed a bit dry, but it was DELICIOUS!

Easy Sole with pesto and bread crumbs

2.  Fish....EASY!  I spread some pesto on top of each piece (pesto from Costco!) and then sprinkled Panko bread crumbs on top and put one slice of lemon on each piece just to make it look pretty.

Doesn't this look amazing?  Sole, spinach cakes and pasta!

The end result?

This is my daughter's plate!  
And she had seconds of the fish!

Panko Crusted Salmon

This may not look incredible...but it was phenomenal.  Parent and kid approved!

Truly the picture does not do this justice.   I received this recipe from Allrecipes.com and had to try it.  I modified it of course to suit the ingredients that I had and the result was incredible.

Ingredients:  

1 large fillet of salmon from Costco, no skin, no bones (but would work with any salmon)

4 - 5 TBSP of butter

4 - 5 TBSP grainy mustard

4 - 5 TBSP honey 

Panko Bread Crumbs

Combine butter, mustard and honey together in a bowl...and you know me...amounts are never exact.  It's fly by the seat of your pants, and just add what you think feels right!   I may have added more mustard and honey than butter.  But I honestly cannot remember.  Coat the top of salmon with this mixture.  Sprinkle salmon with Panko Bread Crumbs (don'be be shy with those bread crumbs!).  For an aesthetically pleasing look, you can place some  round lemon slices right on top (about 3 - 4).    

Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (easy clean up!).    Bake at 375 for about 25 - 25 minutes. Check after 20 minutes.    If baking smaller sized fillets, you will need to reduce baking time.  

Accompaniments:  Serve with steamed green beans and Rice.  

The link for the original recipe is below!  Enjoy!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Dijon-Salmon/Detail.aspx?ms=1&prop25=105427676&prop26=DailyDish&prop27=2013-02-10&prop28=Feature_1&prop29=Title&me=1