Tuesday Night — Kale, It Can Change Your Life… May 11, 2010

One of our ingredients this week is KALE.  Since I am not very familiar with cooking kale, I needed to do some searching for different recipes and methods to cook this tasty treat.  I also was fighting a slightly skeptical husband.  After tasting the raw kale, his skepticism grew to reluctance about this new veggie.  Kale, just the name, led to a puckered face from my typically open-minded Chris.  He was not very hopeful about any dish that contained kale.

Thank goodness, the internet is full of wonderful recipes.  I found this one: Orzo with Kale.  It sounded very simple, and the reviews sounded quite promising.  Here are the ingredients that I used (just slightly different from the other recipe):

• 1 1/2 cup uncooked orzo pasta (I really only used about 1 cup b/c a lot was “extra”)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves coarsely chopped
• 1/2 lime, juiced (recipe called for lemon but lime was what I had)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, or to taste
• 1/4 cup pine nuts (I added these … I love pine nuts, in case you haven’t noticed)

Now, here’s what you do…

Step 1: Cook the orzo.

Step 2: Meanwhile, chop the garlic and the kale.  In a med-hot pan, saute the garlic for a couple minutes, then add the kale.  I also added a little water to the bottom of the pan.  Cook covered for about 10 minutes.  Then uncover, stir and add the pine nuts.  Cook for about 10 more minutes. The kale should be tender and the pine nuts, lightly toasted.

Chris, chopping the kale... currently wearing his pucker face

Kale nearly tender, pine nuts starting to toast

Step 3: Drain the orzo.  In a bowl, mix the orzo, kale/garlic mixture, nutmeg, and parmesan cheese.  Serve hot.

When I gave Chris the dish that looked like this…

Mmmm!

… he responded, “Oh, man.  This could change your life.”  Upon my pressing, he explained that KALE could be a wonderful new addition to our veggie repertoire.  After eating this great meal, Chris and I both agreed, this vegetable is a keeper.  Hope you’ll try experimenting with something new in your kitchen.  If you haven’t tried kale, give it a go!

Monday Night’s Dinner — Simple, fresh, and oh, so summery! May 11, 2010

Last night we began our weekly challenge — what are we going to make with all this stuff?!?

Polenta with Mushrooms, Zucchini, and Pine Nuts — did I mention it’s topped with goat cheese? Yum!  It’s a SIMPLE recipe which will wow you with flavor!

Step 1: Clean mushrooms and remove stems.  Also clean the zucchini and chop it into small chunks.

Step 2: Cook the mushrooms in a little bit of water and a tad bit of Worcestershire sauce in a shallow pan (or frying pan) on the stove top. Make sure to keep it covered and stir infrequently.  This takes about 1o minutes and you can do the rest of the cooking at the same time.

Step 3: Place the chopped zucchini, lemon pepper (a few shakes worth) and a little bit of lemon juice (about 1/2 a fresh lemon’s worth) in a plastic bag.  Shake it up to coat the zucchini.

Step 4: Place the zucchini on an oiled/greased baking tray.  Broil the zucchini for about 10 minutes.  Check on it to be sure it doesn’t burn… ovens are all a bit different, but you want to cook it until it’s nearly tender.

Step 5: Meanwhile, slice the polenta into 1/2-1/4 slices.  I made things really easy on myself by buying ready-made polenta in a tube, so I just removed it from the package and sliced.  Place the polenta on a baking sheet and put it in the oven after the zucchini’s been cooking for about 10 minutes.

Step 6: When you put the polenta in the oven, turn the zucchini.  Wait about 5 more minutes, and then add about 1/4-1/3 a cup of pine nuts.  The pine nuts need to be watched because they cook quickly.  About 5 minutes later the zucchini and pine nuts should be ready.  The polenta should be ready at this time as well.  I didn’t turn the polenta, but I’m sure you could flip it if you wanted.

Step 7: Assemble everything on a plate.  Add the goat cheese on top.

Enjoy!

Chris’ Menu May 3, 2010

To change it up a bit this week, my sweetheart Chris offered to create the menu.  I took him up on his offer, and this is what we’re eating…

Monday: Portobello Sandwiches with Fontina Cheese and Pesto

Tuesday: Orzo and Black Bean Salad

Wednesday: Grilled zucchini, Pine nuts, and Goat Cheese on Polenta Slices

Friday: Mushroom Tagliatelle (gluten-free)

Our sweet friend, Erin (author of Gluten Free Buns) invited us over for dinner on Thursday — can’t wait to try her gluten-free meal.

On Saturday, we’ll have Spinach and Brocoli Fritatta.

Can’t wait to see how our meals shape-up this week!

Kalamata Olive and White Bean Pasta March 26, 2010

Looking for simple recipe with lots of flavor and not much prep time? This pasta recipe is perfect!  Of course you could make substitutions to make it your own, but I love the flavors in this dish!

Garlic and Red Pepper Mixture

Combine these in a dish, and mix:

2 tbs EVOO

1 clove garlic (minced)

a few pinches of salt

a few pinches of red pepper flakes

After mixing, set the olive oil mixture aside.  Depending on your desire for spice, you may add or decrease the amount of red pepper flakes.  I like mine with a fair amount of heat.

Then cook about 6 oz of rotini pasta.

Meanwhile, drain 1 can of navy beans and 1 can of diced tomatoes by using a colander.

Leave the beans and the tomatoes in the colander.  Once the pasta has finished cooking, pour the pasta over the beans and tomatoes.  Make sure to drain the mixture.

Transfer the beans, tomatoes, and pasta into a large bowl.  Then add olives, spinach leaves, and pine nuts.  If possible, you can add about 2 tbs chopped fresh basil.

Add 1/2 Cup Kalamata Olives (pitted)

Add 3/4 Cup Fresh Spinach

If you choose to add pine nuts, toast them in the oven beforehand.  Coat the pine nuts, and broil them for just a few minutes.  Make sure to keep an eye on them, because they burn easily.  (I burnt my first batch for this meal).  A little go a long way, so you only need to add about 1/4 – 1/3 of a cup of toasted pine nuts to the pasta.

Finally, add the garlic/red pepper mixture to coat all ingredients.  Gently toss and serve.  I also topped the dish with a small amount of feta cheese.  Enjoy!

Ready-to-serve!

Tofu Spaghetti February 3, 2010

Chris loves spaghetti, but he’s not a huge fan of tofu (imagine that).  However, he was thrilled with this recipe.  I loved this recipe because it combined lots of excellent flavors. I baked the tofu, lightly covered in pesto sauce.  The toasted pine nuts provided a rich, buttery flavor.  It was very tasty, and the left-overs were great, too!