A little known fact about me:
My all-time favorite fruit of all-time is definitely the white nectarine. Not as tart as it's yellow cousin, it's juicy, decadently sweet flesh reminds me of summer. The freestone version are by far superior, and crunchy is preferable to sweet--even the less ripe version of these fruits tend to be plenty sweet. My favorite way to eat them? Removed from the pit and cut into 8ths (or 6ths, if you prefer).
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.
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Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
7.03.2012
6.29.2012
Menu
Every Thursday night, I plan our menu for the next seven days. First, I go through the fridge and figure out what's leftover from the previous week. Then, I go through and list seven meals, first using up what we have, then adding in new ingredients. (I get a lot of my recipes and ideas from FoodGawker! Love the iPad app!) I underline anything we don't already have and add it to my shopping list for the Friday market.
Because I go to the market weekly, I have a pretty good sense of what's in season, and what's available. Sometimes, there are new, irresistible surprises, like last week's okra. We expect the menu to be a bit flexible to account for those wonderful surprises--it's why we often have leftover veggies at the beginning of the following week!
Here is this week's plan:
Right now, we're loving fresh corn! Dan picked up 12 ears for $2 at Safeway this week. We're also enjoying salads dressed with Casa Sanchez salsa--it's incredibly easy, and incredibly delicious!
Fresh tomatoes made my lunch list. Dan's not a fan, so I eat them by the handful when he's at work. I also picked up some pre-sliced mushrooms this morning--looking forward to adding those to my tomato soup! (Dan usually takes any leftovers for lunch at work.)
Normally, we eat out once a week or less, but Dan requested that we go to Arizmendi and get pizza for dinner this week. We're also planning to celebrate my parent's wedding anniversary with dinner out.
What are you eating this week?
6.19.2012
Salad Days
Eating meat is not yes or no. Generally speaking, I don't eat meat. Am I vegetarian? No.
There has been much press recently about the negative health and environmental impact of eating meat. Many officials and public figures have advocated a transition to a 100% plant-based diet. But that's a lot easier said than done!
It's difficult to suddenly eliminate a huge calorie source, and a huge focus for so many meals. A good starting place? Simply eat less meat. Start focusing your meals on the grains and vegetables--use meat as a seasoning.
These two salads do just that. They incorporate small amounts of incredibly flavorful meat. In the first, the salad uses leftover roasted potatoes, corn and high quality bacon to mimic the flavors of corn chowder--in a lower calorie, veggie-ful salad.
The second salad uses the oil from a can of sardines to dress the salad--infusing the whole dish with the savory, salty goodness of sardines. Add croutons for extra carbs and crunch.
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Corn Chowder Salad
serves 2
1 lemon, juiced
2T olive oil
2t mustard, honey or finely minced garlic (to emulsify)
1t fresh thyme, chopped
8 cups spring mix, washed + dried
1 cup leftover crispy roasted potatoes, or other roasted potatoes
1 cob corn, kernels only (or 0.5 can of corn kernels)
4 strips good bacon, cooked and chopped
other chopped veggies as desired (carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc.)
1. Mix the first four ingredients together and whisk well to emulsify.
2. Toss the dressing with the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Serve at room temperature.
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Sardine Salad
serves 1
1 can skinless/boneless sardines in olive oil (I used Crown Prince)
0.5 lemon, juiced, or 2t balsamic vinegar
4 cups spring mix, washed + dried
4-6 ounces cucumber, diced
1 medium tomato, diced
1. Add lettuce, cucumber and tomato to a medium bowl.
2. Break up sardines gently with a fork and add to bowl. Drizzle the oil from the can over the salad.
3. Finish with the lemon juice or vinegar and toss to combine.
----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ------
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.
Like what you read? Share it on Facebook, Twitter or GoogleBuzz using the buttons below!
There has been much press recently about the negative health and environmental impact of eating meat. Many officials and public figures have advocated a transition to a 100% plant-based diet. But that's a lot easier said than done!
It's difficult to suddenly eliminate a huge calorie source, and a huge focus for so many meals. A good starting place? Simply eat less meat. Start focusing your meals on the grains and vegetables--use meat as a seasoning.
These two salads do just that. They incorporate small amounts of incredibly flavorful meat. In the first, the salad uses leftover roasted potatoes, corn and high quality bacon to mimic the flavors of corn chowder--in a lower calorie, veggie-ful salad.
The second salad uses the oil from a can of sardines to dress the salad--infusing the whole dish with the savory, salty goodness of sardines. Add croutons for extra carbs and crunch.
----- ----- ----- ----- ------ ------
Corn Chowder Salad
serves 2
1 lemon, juiced
2T olive oil
2t mustard, honey or finely minced garlic (to emulsify)
1t fresh thyme, chopped
8 cups spring mix, washed + dried
1 cup leftover crispy roasted potatoes, or other roasted potatoes
1 cob corn, kernels only (or 0.5 can of corn kernels)
4 strips good bacon, cooked and chopped
other chopped veggies as desired (carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc.)
1. Mix the first four ingredients together and whisk well to emulsify.
2. Toss the dressing with the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Serve at room temperature.
----- ------ ----- ----- ----- -----
----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Sardine Salad
serves 1
1 can skinless/boneless sardines in olive oil (I used Crown Prince)
0.5 lemon, juiced, or 2t balsamic vinegar
4 cups spring mix, washed + dried
4-6 ounces cucumber, diced
1 medium tomato, diced
1. Add lettuce, cucumber and tomato to a medium bowl.
2. Break up sardines gently with a fork and add to bowl. Drizzle the oil from the can over the salad.
3. Finish with the lemon juice or vinegar and toss to combine.
----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ------
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.
Like what you read? Share it on Facebook, Twitter or GoogleBuzz using the buttons below!
6.18.2012
Pantry Philosophy
Before we had a dining table, or even pots and pans, in our new apartment, we had an assortment of dried goods, snacks and even produce. I saw a well-stocked pantry as an absolute necessity.
Now, I'm not so sure.
In my family, most bulk goods are kept at an equilibrium supply. My parents have a decent sense of what and how much they use of any given pantry item; it is restocked before supplies reach critical levels. For example, they always have enough pasta on hand to last until their next trip to Costco.
This allows them to buy in appropriate quantities and take advantage of bulk purchase deals as appropriate. It also means ingredients are always on hand for a quick dinner or impromptu baking session.
This works for most of the ingredients they have in the house, but things change. For example, when my mom stopped eating gluten, the store of flour was suddenly useless. Or, when my dad went on a risotto kick, the equilibrium store of arborio rice increased; when the kick ended, we were left with a lot of arborio.
Dan's family is on a different end of the spectrum. Items are purchased on an as-needed basis. Most items in the pantry are fortuitous leftovers from previous cooking adventures.
Because of the damp climate on the Oregon coast, dry goods don't last as long--so this style is as much practical as necessary. It does also allow for more creative cooking: menus are planned freely, instead of around pantry items.
There are a few downsides, though. Trips to the grocery store are frequent--a difficult task with no car. There are also often leftover ingredients, in quantities challenging to use up. Impromptu cooking is also made more difficult, and I'm no good with creativity when I'm hungry.
Dan and I are working our way towards a middle ground. There are a few things that are challenging to get (white whole wheat flour, nutritional yeast, or good cheese, for example) that we like to keep stocked at all times. We try to replace these before we finish them off.
Most other things, we are trying to replace after we've used them up completely. For example, we are working our way through our supply of wheat bran--purchased for a this muffin recipe--and don't plan on replacing it until we want to make bran muffins again.
We're hoping that as we eat down our pantry a bit, we can also get a better grasp on what our food budget really is. Since we'll be replacing items as we use them, we're hoping for a bit more consistency in our spending.
How do you stock your pantry? Any new ideas?
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.
Like what you read? Share it on Facebook, Twitter or GoogleBuzz using the buttons below!
Now, I'm not so sure.
In my family, most bulk goods are kept at an equilibrium supply. My parents have a decent sense of what and how much they use of any given pantry item; it is restocked before supplies reach critical levels. For example, they always have enough pasta on hand to last until their next trip to Costco.
This allows them to buy in appropriate quantities and take advantage of bulk purchase deals as appropriate. It also means ingredients are always on hand for a quick dinner or impromptu baking session.
This works for most of the ingredients they have in the house, but things change. For example, when my mom stopped eating gluten, the store of flour was suddenly useless. Or, when my dad went on a risotto kick, the equilibrium store of arborio rice increased; when the kick ended, we were left with a lot of arborio.
Dan's family is on a different end of the spectrum. Items are purchased on an as-needed basis. Most items in the pantry are fortuitous leftovers from previous cooking adventures.
Because of the damp climate on the Oregon coast, dry goods don't last as long--so this style is as much practical as necessary. It does also allow for more creative cooking: menus are planned freely, instead of around pantry items.
There are a few downsides, though. Trips to the grocery store are frequent--a difficult task with no car. There are also often leftover ingredients, in quantities challenging to use up. Impromptu cooking is also made more difficult, and I'm no good with creativity when I'm hungry.
Dan and I are working our way towards a middle ground. There are a few things that are challenging to get (white whole wheat flour, nutritional yeast, or good cheese, for example) that we like to keep stocked at all times. We try to replace these before we finish them off.
Most other things, we are trying to replace after we've used them up completely. For example, we are working our way through our supply of wheat bran--purchased for a this muffin recipe--and don't plan on replacing it until we want to make bran muffins again.
We're hoping that as we eat down our pantry a bit, we can also get a better grasp on what our food budget really is. Since we'll be replacing items as we use them, we're hoping for a bit more consistency in our spending.
How do you stock your pantry? Any new ideas?
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment or emailing me at piquantprose [at] gmail [dot] com.
Like what you read? Share it on Facebook, Twitter or GoogleBuzz using the buttons below!
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