Weekend Meals

Tacos

Taco shells
Cuban black beans (mine were frozen from when my mom made them, but you can buy them canned)
1-2 tomatoes (diced)
1-2 avocados (made into guacamole)
3-4 leaves lettuce (sliced into "shreds")
1/4-1/2 pound shredded cheddar
1 package chick-un
1/2 onion
salsa

I cooked the onion and the chick-un in a pan together, but they weren't anything special and I would just leave them out in the future. Then you just pile each ingredient into your taco shell... so fast and easy and fresh!

Spiral Casserole

1 package whole wheat spiral noodles (cooked per directions and drained)
3/4 pound cheddar cheese
2 veggie sausages
2-3 roasted red peppers (mine were from a jar)
1 small package goat cheese

This dish was inspired my macaroni and cheese, but it has a western twist. I often make my mac and cheese as just that: macaroni and cheese. No other ingredients. This is unusual, as most recipes add a lot of cream, but I feel it is the heart and soul of the dish, and when served hot the cheese melts and you really don't miss the cream (when cold, it is much stiffer).

I decided to add a little kick to the dish. The sausages and peppers gave a little spice, while the goat cheese gave it some tang (and a little more creaminess).

It's pretty easy - just mix all the ingredients together in a very large bowl, then pour into a casserole dish. You can bake extra to get a crispy top, or you can just eat it as it is.

Noodle casserole is great - I froze 2 servings, had 2 servings for lunch this week.

Friday: Finally Fresh Food

This week was pretty bad. I either had plans or got home so late every night that I didn't end up cooking ALL WEEK! I hate it when that happens. Monday I worked late. Tuesday I went to a kickoff party and basically ate dinner, but went ahead and went out to dinner afterward as well. Wednesday I got together with my family, but we ordered sushi to go. Thursday night I had a civic event (ballot counter at a speech contest), and ate pizza there. And then it was Friday.

Fresh Salad with Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil
As usual, the best ingredients make the best salad. Mixed greens are served with fresh mini-mozzarella, cut up fresh basil leaves (from my potted garden), heirloom cherry tomatoes, and served with aged balsamic, highest quality olive oil, a dash of salt and pepper, and a hint of agave nectar. Divine!

Artichokes
Last time I made artichokes they were undercooked. I wanted to avoid that, but I was also in a hurry. I decided to use the pressure cooker. I put in about an inch of water, dropped in the two perfectly round and aptly named "Globe Artichokes," brought to a "tsk tsk tsk," and then let it cool off until the lock released. They were overdone. Next time I will do the fast release method and see how they turn out. They were edible, but mushy. I served them with melted Earth Balance - fake butter mostly made from vegetable oils, so it still melts nicely. In fact, it is saltier than butter, so I think it makes a better dipping sauce.

Couscous Pilaf
This mix comes from Trader Joe's ready to cook. It has large couscous, orzo, mini garbanzos, and dark quinoa. It's fast and tasty, with a nice texture. I cooked mine with chick-un boulliuon (For ten minutes as package directs). When it was done I added cranberries and pistachios. I served it with an Italian soy-sauge. Delish!

Weekend: Camping Scramble Eggs

When camping, Marshall really likes to make gourmet meals - he cooks more on the camping trips than any other time! But this time we were winging it. We didn't make a huge grocery shopping trip like we usually do, and we mostly packed what we had in the cupboard. This included eggs, and we thought we could make them scrambled (one dish meals always reign since we have only one propane burner).

4 eggs (we really lived it up with 2 eggs each!)
1 Chorizo-flavored soy-sauge
1 tomato
3 mini bell peppers (or 1/2-1 bell pepper would work)
Salt & Pepper

Scrambled eggs are an easy affair. We started with the veggies, cooking them up a little bit before adding the eggs. But then we just cracked the eggs right into the pan, and stirred quickly, then cooked until there was nothing shiny or clear. The chorizo soy-sauge was great, but the other veggies turned out a little bland. I don't know why; sometimes that just happens. So we poured the rest of our salsa on top and it was delicious. Bon appetite!