it's crazy that a dish that is not only vegetarian but *gasp* VEGAN can be so rich with flavors. that's the best part of thai cuisine! it can be so tasty and so healthy!! look at all the colorful vegetables in this dish. ripe tomatoes, yellow bell peppers, bright bok choy, earthy shiitake mushrooms, herbaceous cilantro....all swimming in a savory rich broth of coconut milk, curry and red chili paste. this would be great served over rice, but i usually just eat it as a stew. and it's even better the next day for lunch!
05/03 last night was thai cuisine, tonight was indian! i found a crockpot recipe for chicken tikka masala that i've been wanting to try for a while. tomatoes, onions, garlic and a handful of spices create a bed for diced pieces of chicken breast. this would probably have more depth of flavor if i had used chicken thighs, but i was trying to be on the calorie conscious side. after everything is cooked through, just add a little yogurt to give the dish a creamy texture, and top with cilantro. like last night's meal, this would've been great over rice. but i opted for roasted chickpeas instead, to add a little "crunch" to the meal.
roasted chickpeas are probably the most genius thing to have come from the "low carb" trends. drained and rinsed canned chickpeas, tossed with a little olive oil and baked for 45 minutes at 400F. (be sure to shake the baking pan halfway through). they get this wonderful golden color and a little *crunch* in texture. the flavor is rich and buttery. and they take very well to seasoning! i usually throw a little sea salt and rosemary on mine. but they are also amazing with a sprinkling of old bay!
05/04 i took advantage of the break in our rainy weather, and used the grill tonight to make some steak and veggie kabobs. there was a sale on some beautiful rib eyes, so i cubed them up and skewered them with chunks of peppers, onion, tomatoes and mushrooms. i doused everything with a simple marinade of soy sauce, garlic and ginger. just enough to add a hint of flavor, but not so much to overwhelm the natural flavors of the fresh ingredients. and since it's spring time? that means fresh asparagus for a side!!! crisp, beautiful, green and wonderful asparagus!
05/05 i looked into my repertoire of stuffed-chicken breast recipes to find one i hadn't made yet. buffalo stuffed chicken jumped out. i start out as i have so many times before, with a flattened piece of chicken breast. this time i stuffed it with a little cream cheese mixed with bleu cheese dressing, chopped celery, chopped green pepper, chopped carrot, and a healthy pour of buffalo sauce. then each piece is rolled up and placed in a baking dish. smothered with more buffalo sauce and a sprinkling of cheddar cheese, these little guys are baked at 375F for 40 minutes.
for a side i did a little twist on a wedge salad. because nothing goes better with buffalo sauce than bleu cheese! i used a base of spinach instead of the typical iceberg lettuce in a wedge salad (i gotta get the iron where and when i can!). then topped it with tomatoes, red onions and crumbled bacon. then a pour of bleu cheese dressing and a drizzle of buffalo sauce to mirror the flavors of the chicken. mmmmmm. the salad alone would've made for a satisfying meal!!
05/06 tonight was a date night with my boo! we went to our go-to spot, the breeze. we always see their pizza on the menu, but have never actually tried it. so tonight was the night to do so! we ordered their margherita style pizza, but upped the ante by adding meatballs to it. now, having just returned from my recent trip to brooklyn, my expectations were low. i know that sounds snobbish. but let's be honest. no "new york style" pizza outside of new york is really going to measure up. this one was ok. decent. not bad. but.....it wasn't "new york". still, a wonderful evening out with boo!
05/07 being from maryland (and close to the bay), i grew up with a lot of rockfish (a.k.a. striped bass.....or stripers....not to be confused with strippers as my phone likes to autocorrect) on the table (the stripers not the strippers). i never really appreciated the delicacy of this fish until i was older. it turns out? it's one of tony's favorites. so whenever i see it in the store (which is sadly very rare in virginia) i make sure to grab a piece for dinner. i like to keep the prep on this fish simple. a little olive oil, a sprinkle of old bay, and a few minutes on the grill. that's it. rockfish has a relatively delicate flavor, so it shouldn't be overwhelmed by heavy sauces or spices.
since the main course was one of tony's favorites, i decided to carry through with some of his favorite sides as well. this has become a "boo appreciation" meal. the bleu cheese cole slaw? always a hit. spinach quinoa patties? can never go wrong with those. and sweet potato fries? mmmmmm. sweet potato fries. a happy plate, a happy boo!
05/08 happy mothers day to all the mothers out there! i went up to the compound to see mamacita and give her a mothers day hug. we had a nice afternoon feast of fried chicken, grilled brats and fresh strawberries. in the maryland/virginia/delaware area there is a chain of convenient stores called royal farms. and they have the BEST fried chicken. seriously. at a gas station. it's amazing! beside the good food, it's always good to spend time chatting with the family!
hard to believe it's already over a week into may. crazy how the year is flying by!
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