Fish Family Favorite

Growing up in New England, I like to pretend that my love of seafood and the ability to cook it just happened naturally. I was incredibly lucky to hear the waves outside my window as I drifted to sleep when I was young, and equally as lucky to have truly fresh seafood on a regular basis. My Mr. was not so lucky. Sure, he's had really fresh seafood! Just not as frequently and consistently as I. He's named of a few times that he and his father went fishing on the East coast. On those occasions, which I can count on one hand, they managed to catch some poor innocent fish and proceeded to savagely cook and eat the scaly dears. I say it this way because, let's be honest, I'm a tiny bit jealous. OK! I'm very jealous. I've been on fishing trips, but I'm just not clever enough to catch anything. I do better with cooking things than catching them. If I lived before the time of grocery stores, I'd surely be a vegan.... or dead. I think I'm glad I don't have to go out and literally hunt for my daily meals. Anyhow! Whilst musing over our fish- related pasts, Mr. went about his computer-ing and I created a new recipe without meaning to. After tasting the result, he promptly dropped his fork, scooped me up and shook me around like a life-size ragdoll, all the while yelling "THIS IS WHY I MARRIED YOU AND I DIDNT EVEN KNOW YOU COULD DO THIS!!! WHAT IS THIS?! WWHITEFISH?! HOW DID YOU MAKE IT TASTE SO GOOD?! I LOVE IT! I NEED YOU TO MAKE THIS FOREVER!" I think I reacted rather well for the circumstance. If you know us personally, you've probably fallen off your chair by now. I want to know what our poor neighbors think about us. No, actually I don't. We're probably horrible to live near. We're both loud anyway, but if we get excited about anything the volume inevitably skyrockets. I'm sorry neighbors. We don't mean to. ~Lemon Ginger Braised Whitefish~ 1'peice of fresh ginger, minced 2 large cloves garlic, minced 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil 3-4 Tablespoons Lemon juice pinch o' salt 2 large fillets whitefish (literally whitefish, or flounder, or tilapia) parsley for garnish. Heat the ginger, garlic, Olive oil, lemon juice and salt in a skillet. Once liquid starts boiling, add fillets to the pan and cook about 4 minutes, then flip. Cook another 3 minutes and VOILA! I've been making this at least once a week. It's a super light, healthy dish, and yet served with rice and heaping pile of greens? Super satisfying. It's just a happy dish in pretty much every way. Til next time :)

Curious Cupcakes

And by "cupcakes" I mean muffins. I think? I mean, they're sort of halfway between the two? its like carrot cake for breakfast... except healthy... and also, they don't look like cupcakes at all, since they come in a little round bite-size package. :D I adapted this recipe from two recipes I found (one from Bodyrock.tv, and the other from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch). I brought the results of my first attempt at these in to a friend about, oh, 3? 4? months ago? She kept at me to give her the recipe until she gave up hope in my feeble goldfish brain. She'll probably think she's hallucinating when she finally sees the recipe, written out, just for her. (It's O.K. friend! It's all real!) Now then. I need to get to the gym so I can continue to eat all the confused cupcakes that my bottomless pit of a stomach can handle! Curious & most Confused Cupcakes: 1 cup oats, ground into oat flour 2 cups almond meal 3 tsp baking powder 4 TBSP honey (or agave) 4 TBSP coconut oil 1 cup carrots, cooked & mashed chopped nuts (almonds & walnuts are my favorite) Mix all ingredients until uniform. Roll into balls, about an inch in diameter. Bake for about 25 min at 350 degrees. cool. Eat. Yummmmmmm. Note: Instead of carrots, I like to use the pulp from my juicer. I actually freeze the pulp & defrost it when I'm making a batch of these little guys. I don't bother cooking it. I just toss it on in (1-1& 1/2 cups). Bonus: The nutrients aren't cooked out or ruined by the heat from the water this way either! These are awesome for pre- & post-workout snacks by the way! (I will upload a picture the next time I make these. So... hopefully tomorrow.)

End of an Era

Growing up, I ate more meat than the average tiger. No, really. (Remember my previous post explaining how I was able to gum a pork chop to death before I had teeth?) My mother did her best to keep my insatiable appetite at bay, and for the most part she did (kudos!). I honestly to this day have no idea how I did not gain weight like a football player. I certainly ate like one.

I would always enjoy the fatty peices best. You know what I mean. Salty- crisp skin off of fried chicken. Bacon. Grilled pork chop fat. I lived for the fattiest, saltiest, meatiest (is that even a word? oh well, it is now) meats that I could get my skinny little hands on.

I remember returning home from high school and, deciding I needed a snack, consumed an entire one pound package of keilbasa. I should probably add that this was not after an intense workout, or even a stressful day. Oh, and this happened more than once.... by which I mean ALL OF THE TIME.


My mother has always been a bit anemic, so I just figured I was, too, and needed the protien and the iron. I never thought it was a problem, and happily continued to eat massive quantities of delicious, salty, fatty, amazing meat.

... which brings me to the point of this post. As of this year, I am going to find alternative sources of protien, iron, etc. I plan to become (gulp/ deep breathe) vegetarian.

*insert freak out here*

While this was never even in close to being a possibility at any point in my past, it is now reality. I've been doing entirely too much reading (and listening, and documentary watching, and so on) to ethically/morally continue to eat in the same manner as I previously have. For health reasons, I've realized my consumption of meat needs to decrease if I want to have fully functioning organs when I'm 40.

Don't worry, not all is lost. I will still post all my new recipes as well as old recipes that I have re-worked. There are a number of recipes which I still need to post as they are, meaty deliciousness and all. I mean let's face it: just because I'm not eating meat doesn't mean you won't be. Let me at least help you make that meat tasty. :)

In all honesty, I feel like I'm breaking up with someone. The best someone ever, who was faithful and loving for 20 years and suddenly left me for E.Coli, and, it turns out, is a liar, a fake and super fraudulent, and violent to boot. Sad face.

Don't get me wrong here.

I still love you, Meat. I think part of me always will. I just think it won't work out between us. It's not you... it's me... I think? I don't even know anymore. I'm just confused. I don't even know who you've become. It's just not the same as it was before, when I was young, and you together, the world seemed to be without limits. Now I feel like the world gets a little darker each time I learn something new about you.....

Anywho. Back to you. I'll make sure to let you know what sort of recipe I'm having you try. All I can promise is that I have tried and loved whatever I'll be posting.

much love,

~ new age hippie treehugger gone wild

The Weekend Trip...

This weekend I got to play with my food. Unfortunately, in my excitement to eat the results, I forgot to take pictures of the beautiful goat cheese, tomato and garlic ravioli I made from scratch. This means I'll just have to make some more!

I also had a day trip to the not-so-local Findlay Market, where farmers sell their fresh produce at absurdly low prices and immigrants living their own American dream sell their amazing goods- be it perfectly crafted sausages or delectable gyros that can satisfy anyone's "oh crap i'm in a food store and forgot to eat breakfast" hunger. Andrew & I bought 3 of these gyros, thinking we'd have the third as a back-up if once of us was still hungry. Neither of us finished our first gyros.

At the meat counter (Kroeger & Son's Meats) I settled on 6 different sausages to sample. This included creative varieties, (such as the "Reubenwurst" which is made with corned beef and saurkraut and bound with 1000 island dressing and "Chicken Shiitake Mushroom") as well as a few traditional recipes (i.e. Bratwurst & Mettwurst). These little beauties are currently snuggly nestled in my refrigerator basket, just waiting for the day when I can enjoy them with mashed potatoes (recipe to come) or pasta.

We also enjoyed a few hours in the largest international market I have ever had the pleasure of setting my feet in! Jungle Jim's is a treat for me, as again, it is not nearby. This particular trip was in celebration of reaching a few goals I've been workign toward for the past 2 months. I was able to purchase almost everything I could dream of.... which I might add, is similar to the amount of food that it takes to feed a fully grown panda for a month.

I found myself nearly skipping down the aisles of honey, prancing around the arena of fresh produce, and oogling at the displays of every cut of every farm animal imaginable. Truly, I have found a little peice of foodie Heaven on Earth. I managed to keep myself under a reasonable level of control, given the deafening rejoicing in my head. I settled with fresh smoked salmon, imported prosciutto, and the most amazing salami I have ever tasted. I found lemongrass and nectarines, and stocked up on antipasti treats like whole Roman artichokes, caperberries, teriyaki marinated mushrooms, and a whole host of olives.

In the Asian section of the store, a young man was givign a demo on japanese noodles with vegetarian oyster sauce & sesame oil. I had a sample and decided I had to make it at home, adding vegetables to up the nutritional content. As I type, I am contentedly slurping up my experiment.

Japanese Stirfry with Noodles...

Water, for boiling
4 oz uncooked "Fusheng Dried Noodle" (a small handful)
2 Carrots, sliced thin
1/4 onion, diced
1/2 baby bok choy, stalks & leaves separated & sliced
4 green onions, chopped

3 Tbsp Sesame Oil
2 Tbsp oyster sauce

Bring water to a rolling boil, drop in pasta and cook until your preferred texture. I like mine al dente, but these are one of the few noodles that I will eat when very soft. Drain & set aside.

Heat 1 to 2 Tbsp oil in a fry pan & add all vegetables except for the bok choy leaves. Cook until tender, but still crisp- about 3 minutes. Add bok choy leaves and cook until wilted.

Put a serving of noodles in a bowl & add 1 Tbsp oyster sauce & 1 Tbsp sesame oil. Top with about 1/2 of the vegetables and mix until everything is evenly coated with the sauce. :)

Summer faves!

Seeing as the heat wave seems to finally be rearing it's ugly head, I thought I'd cheer myself up with some refreshing NO HEAT NEEDED food.

I will say that the Cucumber Dill Salad and Tabouleh recipes are adapted from dishes my boyfriend's mother makes for her family. I'll note the differences in case you'd like to try it her way for comparison purposes. :)



Cucumber Dill Salad

2 large cucumbers, sliced thinly
1/2 Cup sour cream
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese*
1/4 cup mayonnaise
small handful Fresh Dill, chopped
2 T minced dried onion**
1 T garlic powder
s & p, to taste

This recipe is really complicated. Are you ready?

Mix all ingredients (except cucumbers) in a bowl until homogeneous. Add cucumber and mix. Refrigerate for at least an hour to let the flavors blend. Enjoy.

PHEW! I thought I wouldn't get through that one! ;)

* I use mascarpone because it has a more mild and more buttery flavor than mayo. It is also healthier for you- 1/2 the calories, almost no sodium, a solid amount of protein and more nutrients.

**If you don't have minced dried onion in your pantry, don't sweat...

Actually, do sweat- Sweat 1/2 an onion (diced small) in a bit of butter until translucent and beginning to brown. For once I really do prefer the dried stuff, but this does just as well in a pinch :)

Tabouleh

large couscous*
strong chicken broth*
1 large cucumber
2 medium tomatoes
1 bunch scallions
1 bunch parsley
1/4 cup Lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup wheat germ
s & p to taste

Romaine lettuce, if desired

Cook the couscous according to the packaging instructions. Substitute the water with the strong chicken broth. Set cooked couscous aside to cool.

Dice the cucumber and tomatoes, making sure to keep the sizes the same throughout. Slice the scallions (we're using the entire scallion here- green & white parts. I know some people swear by one or the other, but I love the whole thing!)

Chop the parsley, discard the stems. In a large bowl, mix the lemon juice, olive oil, wheat germ and S & P. (Note: I tend to fudge a little on the lemon juice. I like my salad a bit more on the sour side, so sometimes the amount can creep up to 1/2 cup depending on my tastes for a given day.) Add in the veggies and herbs. Toss to coat. Add in the cooled couscous. Toss to coat, and VIOLA!

I love this salad as is, or served piled high on romaine leaves. Delicious either way!

*I like the couscous in my tabouleh, because it adds flavor and texture. Plus it makes the dish capable of stand- alone deliciousness, and needs no "main entree" to go with it. It makes the dish more filling, so the "rabbit fare" will go further. The recipe given to me did not have couscous, so try it both ways and see what your preference is.

Chicken Salad

1 store bought rotisserie chicken (regular flavor or a garlic/ onion is best. My warning: Do NOT use lemon-pepper seasoned for this recipe!)
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
3 T sesame dressing
1/4 cup craisins
1/4 cup sliced almonds
5 scallions, sliced

Remove all the meat from the chicken and chop it into bite size pieces. Put the chicken, along with the remaining ingredients into a bowl and mix. Delicious.

I switch this up sometimes, using raisins or grapes instead of craisins, walnuts instead of almonds, and onions and celery (cut very small) instead of scallions.

Pics of these to come...

Also!!! After an unfortunate lunchtime craving today, I've determined my next mission: to create a FAST solution to a lemon bar need. There has got to be a better option than tasteless microwaved processed lemon cake with a texture somewhere between an old sponge and damp cardboard... I resorted to chugging a can of cola to get rid of the taste, leading to yet another taste catastrophe. STOP THE MADNESS! >:-P

Quick Question:

Have any of you ever used mayonnaise instead of butter for the outside of a grilled sandwich???

Too tired for more now, will post a few of my recently created faves tomorrow! (...today...???)

Mixed Cabbage Salad with crunchy noodles

May I present to you today's lunch: simple, healthy, happy.




Mixed Cabbage Salad is a recipe that has been floating around potlucks and office meetings for a while now, so I decided to try it for myself the other day, in leiu of my goal of "going veg." (No worries, I've come to terms with the fact that I cannot, in NO uncertain terms, do it overnight. My willpower for controlling my diet is just too weak for that sort of life overhaul.

Instead, I'm sticking to chicken and fish for the next few weeks, and avoiding pork and beef. For someone who has been a borderline canivore for nearly their entire life, let just say it's a challenge. One of the earliest pictures my family posseses of me is from before I had teeth. My grandparents were having my mother and I to dinner, for which my grandmother had prepared an old standby: pork chops, applesauce (etc...). The image was taken following my infant decision to grab hold of the pork chop placed elegantly on my mother's plate with both of my chubby little hands and gum that thing to death. While I was sitting on my mother's lap, she had turned her head to look at something other than me (how darst she!) and came to a full realization of what had happened at the exact moment the camera went flash!

SO! clearly, the going veg thing isn't an easy thing. But when the road to veg is paved with cabbage salad and chicken sausage... Well... things might be looking up!

Oriental Mixed Cabbage Salad

1/4 head thinly sliced green cabbage
1/4 head thinly sliced purple cabbage
2 carrots, cut into matchsticks or shaved
6 green onions, sliced

1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 tbsp. sesame seeds
1 pkg. Oriental Ramen (save the seasoning pkt for the "dressing")

1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup oil
Pepper to taste

Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl- its best if said bowl has a cover, for later.

Take the vinegar, oil, pepper and oriental seasoning packet and whisk away. Pour the "dressing" over the cabbage and set aside so that the flavors can blend and the acid can soften the vegetables.

Toast almonds and sesame seeds in oven at 350 for a few minutes. Do not forget them! They're ready quickly, and they become inedible (really, really gross inedible, not going to kill you or break your teeth inedible) the second they turn brown. Brown! not black! Black... let's just not talk about black. Just let them go golden and they're perfect.

Break up the ramen noodles into small peices, about the size of small croutons- and combine with the sesame seeds and almonds in a bowl. Set aside until its time to serve.