Family Dinners 2012 - March is Curry!

It didn't actually start as a new year's resolution. I do believe that it was around the dinner table with my sister and her family joining us on Christmas Eve for our traditional gathering.  The conversation went something like this:  "How come we live in the same City and yet we only seem to get together for meals at Christmas and birthdays?"

Good question, with no good answer.

So that's when it happened - the declaration that 2012 will be the year of the Family Dinners.  Now, the last Sunday of every month my sister and I take turns hosting dinner.  It's my turn this Sunday and we've all had a hankering for curry.  So coffee and peanut butter on toast, laptop on my lap, dog by my side begging for peanut butter toast, cookbooks and shopping list at the ready, here's my menu for tomorrow night:

• Heart healthy butter chicken (Chicken Makhani) (seems like a oxymoron doesn't it?)
• Palag Sag (Spinach puree)
• Carrot and Cashew curry
• Cabbage and Coconut
• Chapatis
• Rice Pudding
• Indian Tea

There is something very special about the family dinner table.  My sister and I have always been close.  She's always been my best friend yet we don't really see each other that often.  That's why it's been worth the effort to put that monthly date on the calendar and keep the date.  We need our families.  They need us.

I hope I've inspired you to make the time to celebrate family.  Gather them around your table; involve them in your kitchen making some good old fashioned slow food together.  You'll be so happy you did!

Now back to my pantry to see  how my spice supply is.  Curry is very budget friendly as long as you have the spices in stock.  I always have curry fixings on hand as we love curry in our house.  So I know that this meal will not break the bank either.  That accomplishes the other goal of this blog.

Off to my kitchen now!  I plan on posting some recipes and photos tomorrow, so check back, won't you?

Mavis

I`m Back!!!

I fell off the frugal wagon for a bit during the summer but I`m back.  Put it down to having our house for sale and fitting meals in between getting the house ready for showings, excessive house cleaning and very little creative time.

But I`m back on track.

Last night it was a pantry meal based on a can of salmon, some rice, a jalapeno pepper, a can of cream of celery soup and some frozen peas.  It was tasty but no pictures.  It didn`t look great.  It definitely tasted better than it looked.  I`m calling it Pinougli 2.0 (Pinougli is what the kids called a casserole I made only once about 10 years ago.  They ripped up the recipe and I`ve never made it again.  Enough said).  Yesterday`s meal looked awful but it was actually quite tasty.

Tonight`s pantry meal was something a bit more spectacular.  It was `Pasta Primavera`.  And here some pictures:

2 cobs of corn, a yellow pepper, some asparagus, green beans, an onion, some linguine

These were the fridge ingredients plus an almost used package of linguine in the pantry cupboard.  Oh yes, and some fresh basil that we picked up on the weekend from Silver Rill Farm.

Boil the pasta:

Saute the veggies:

Onions first, yellow pepper, asparagus, green beans, corn from the 2 cobs...hmmm what else did I throw in there...tomatoes!  I cut up 2 fresh tomatoes to make the sauce a little rose...

Now for the sauce.  Let`s see what do we have in the fridge and pantry...

And a little Plum Merlot helps to get the job done!  For the sauce, a can of light evaporated milk and some dijon mustard to kick it up a notch.

I found a small amount of parmesan cheese left in the fridge so I threw that in there.  Added some of the fresh basil, some salt and pepper and let it simmer just a bit longer.

Finally, the linquine was cooked so I drained it and added it to the sauce and tossed it to coat it well.

Seen in passing - husband going back for a second helping and licking the bowl when it was done.  I guess I did okay for this pantry and fridge meal.

Hoping for some more inspiration tomorrow.

Until next time,
Mavis

Favourite Pasta meal

Pasta with Feta Cheese is a simple name and by no means describes all the other tastes in this fabulous pasta dish.  It's an al fresco sauce (ie not cooked).  It is an all-time favourite of our family and I made it today.  I've already posted the recipe in previous posts but for ease of use I'm writing it out again and this time showing you some pictures!

I used to make my own homemade linguine to accompany the sauce but my Popeil Pasta Maker has bit the dust so for now we are using dried linguine from the pantry (that's good right?!  to use what's IN the pantry?)

Anyway,  here's the recipe for 4 people:

1-1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese (I use light)
2-3 chopped green onions
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
4-6 chopped tomatoes
dried or fresh chopped basil
2 cloves garlic
salt & pepper to taste.

This is so easy I almost feel guilty calling it a recipe.  You basically throw everything into a bowl.  Boil the pasta and put the sauce on top.  The only warning I would give is NOT to refrigerate the sauce as it cools the pasta off quite quickly.  I make the sauce up while the pasta is boiling and everything is at room temperate.  Cold tomatoes - blech!!!

Anyway, here are some pictures of this delicious pasta dish under construction.  This recipe has been rated 10/10 in my family for well over 10 years:

I use light feta cheese.  The taste is not affected at all.  Crumble cheese.

Chopped green onion in the bowl & ROMA tomatoes are the best

Deliciousness!

Like I said ~ so simple ~ all in a big bowl mixed together

Secret ingredient!

I also use fresh basil if I have it.

The old pantry standby!

Serve with foccacia bread and balsamic/olive oil dip, and red wine!  This is good enough for company!

Enjoy!

Until next time,

Mavis

It Ain't Easy!!!

being a vegan that is.  Then I found out my son has lost weight and that did it!  I went out to the grocery store and stocked up on meat.  It's a mother-bear thing I think.  I came home and made spaghetti and salad and I SO enjoyed it and so did he.  That was last night.

Maybe I just am not cut out to be a vegetarian or vegan.  I can still avoid meat for the most part but there are times when you just have to bend those self-imposed rules and eat meat!  Last night was one of those nights.

But let me tell you about this fabulous recipe for pasta tonight (yes pasta two nights in a row...who's counting though right?)

It was a Lemon and Shrimp linguine with asparagus. Yum!!

Here's the recipe:

Lemon Linguine

1 pound linguine
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
zest from 1 lemon
juice from 2 lemons
1 bunch of asparagus
1 small shallot
1 clove garlic
1 tsp butter
1/3 cup roughly chopped parsley
1/2 pound shrimp

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Blanch asparagus and set aside.  Add olive oil to water and boil linguine until al dente.

In the meantime whisk the olive oil, lemon zest and lemon juice together in a large serving bowl.  In small saucepan,  saute shallot and minced garlic until transparent.  Set aside.

When pasta is cooked, drain and add to lemon juice/oil mixture.  Add shallots, garlic, shrimp, asparagus, and parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste.  garnish with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

This recipe screams SUMMER!  I can't think of anything better for July 1st ~ Canada Day!  We all loved it.  In fact, my son made a point of telling me how delicious it was.  It's a keeper!

Try it yourself and let me know what you think!

Until next time,

Mavis

Kitchen Curve Ball....

My daughter was diagnosed with Celiac disease (gluten intolerance) which has totally thrown a curve ball on our 'clean out the pantry' menu planning.  We've been trying some interesting new recipes and learning lots!   And I've also learned how much I like gluten!!  Gluten-free 'bread' is just not the same...not even close. 

We've been careful not to cook with wheat and have found some pasta substitutes that work just fine and please almost all of the palates in our household.  Just got used to that and then....

One of my colleagues recommended this book and suggested that it would benefit me, my sister and my son who all share the same genetic condition (Fabry Disease).  The book is called  The China Study and it was a fascinating read and promotes a plant-based diet to avoid heart disease and cancers.

I've just finished reading it and am now convinced more than ever that eliminating meat from our diet has significant health benefits. My first cardiologist told me that but I wasn't ready to change my diet.  I reduced my red meat intake but still enjoyed the odd steak.

But seriously, anyone concerned about heart disease or cancer should read this book.  I was seeking a solution to my heart disease but also some digestive issues.  This book answered a lot of my questions and the result?  We are adopting a vegan lifestyle.  However, my 19 year old son is convinced that he needs meat and my husband will enjoy meat when he can but sees the benefit of eating less meat.

In reality we had only been eating red meat about once a month but now I'm making a choice to leave it behind. The rest of our protein has been coming from chicken or fish.  I suppose we aren't going 100% vegan because I do want to eat some fish but no more chicken and no dairy.  Definitely dairy is out!  What I read was very scary. The eggs are staying.

The same colleague who told me about The China Study lent me two cookbooks.  The first one is called The Accidental Vegan and I cracked it open today and made Enchilada Pie (page 96).

And it's meat free, gluten free (corn tortillas) and dairy free.  I used a cheese substitute that I found at Country Grocer which is dairy free and gluten free.  There was a recipe for faux cheese in the cookbook but it contains wheat so I was glad to find the dairy/gluten free one already made at the store.

A lot of ingredients could be pantry ingredients had my pantry been full but we haven't gone grocery shopping for staples for awhile.  I spent about $40  but that included some glutenous frozen cinnamon buns for tomorrow's Open House (cinnamon is my secret weapon during the Open Houses).  I also bought some gluten-free cereal for my daughter which wasn't cheap.  All in all, this meal probably cost me $26.00 which isn't cheap.  It would have been cheaper had I cooked my own beans but I found the recipe today and didn't have the opportunity to soak them overnight and cook them up.

Here's the finished product:

And the best part of all???  The taste was amazing and it was only 5 points plus per serving!  Bonus!  It's  Weight Watchers friendly too!   My son loved it and had no idea it wasn't real cheese.  I'm so glad they have other options available for food allergies.

I can hardly wait to show this masterpiece to my daughter who wasn't home for dinner. 

Until next time,

Mavis

When the fridge hath no milk...

go to the pantry!

I discovered a wonderful way of eating oatmeal this morning.  `Twas an accidental discovery to be sure but I`ll definitely be doing this on purpose next time!

Try this one:

Oatmeal with Sweetened Condensed Milk drizzled over top instead of milk.

Sweet, creamy goodness!  And we used the Lo-fat version of the tinned milk so it`s not quite as guilty pleasure as it could have been!

If you don`t know what Sweetened Condensed Milk is, here is the link to their website:

http://www.eaglebrand.com/

Have a great day!

Mavis

Pantry Wheat Free Pizza Bake 10/10!!!

Polenta Pizza with Cherry Bocconcini, Basil & Olives
(from the Times-Colonist Food section April 13/2011)

Makes 4 serves (2 wedges each)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt
1 cup medium-grind cornmeal
1/2 cup tomato/pizza sauce
8 cherry bocconcini cheese (I used the whole tub!)
fresh whole basil leaves
pitted olives (I used green because that's what I had but it calls for black or green)

Brush 12 inch pizza pan with olive oil and set aside.  Pour the water into a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed pot and set over medium-high heat.

Bring to a boil, add the salt, and then reduce heat to medium. While whisking steadily, slowly pour in the cornmeal.

Lower heat to medium-low and cook the cornmeal for 5 minutes whisking it frequently.

Cook for 15 minutes more, but, now that it has started to thicken, use a wooden spoon  or heatproof spatula to stir it frequently.  At this point, the polenta should be quite thick, but still spreadable.

Spoon the polenta on to the pizza pan and quickly spread into a circle that's about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.  Allow the polenta to cool to room temperature and set.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.  Spread the tomato sauce (I used pizza sauce that I had in the fridge and needed to be used up!)  on the polenta.

Arrange the cheese, olives and basil on top of the tomato sauce.  Sprinkle the pizza with black pepper. We also sprinkled on some Romano cheese that we had in the fridge.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the polenta is hot and a little crispy on the bottom.  Cool a few minutes and then cut into 8 wedges and serve.  This is not an 'eat with your fingers' pizza.  We treated it more like a casserole and put it into a pasta bowl.  Delicious!!

What I had on hand:
Cornmeal, water, pizza sauce, seasonings, romano cheese, olives

What I had to buy:
Bocconcini cheese, fresh basil

Here's a picture of the polenta cooking (in Italian pronounced "Poienta!" according to my friend Kathleen).

 

and the pizza bake ready to go in the oven

and now out of the oven and ready to enjoy!!

See how the cheese has smooshed and softened.?  It was chewy and excellent.  The hit of fresh basil on the tongue mixed with the tang of the green olives was remarkable!

I will definitely be making this again...even when the pantry is empty and I have to buy ingredients!! SO worth repeating!!

Buono Appetito!!

Until next time,
Mavis