Fried Sage with Anchovy

Okay, this one might not appeal to everyone, but mostly those who love anchovies as much as I do, because I’m one of those people who love tons of anchovies in my Ceasar salads. I saw this quickie appetizer recipe while watching David Rocco’s La DolceVita on the Cooking Channel. It was so easy and unusual, that I decided to give it a try.

The key to this recipe is finding large sage leaves. Unfortunately, my grocery store only carried small leaves pre-packaged in those herb boxes that you find in the produce section. If you garden your own sage, you’re lucky (by the way, we are starting a mini-farm in our backyard so maybe I’ll get larger sage leaves for the next time).

Simply put,

1. place an anchovy in between two sage leaves

2. dip the leaves in an egg wash

3. coat them with flower

4. fry them in olive oil until they are golden brown.

When they turn golden, remove them and put them on a plate lined with paper towel to drain any excess oil. Add salt while they are still hot.

I thought these made a great snack or appetizer that was so easy and quick to make. My husband wasn’t too keen on the anchovy flavor, so it’s not for everybody.

My Official Complaint to Fresh and Easy

Okay, this has been weighing heavily on my mind for a few months now. I suffered through 9 months of pregnancy without being able to eat raw fish and alcohol. Granted, I have had my fair share of wine since having had SB, but my raw fish intake has not gone so well.

One of the first things I had after having SB was Ahi Poke from Fresh and Easy. I had been craving those raw little ahi cubes for 9 months…salivating at the thought of them marinated in that poke goodness. I started imagining those little cubes with arms and legs and sunglasses, relaxing in the marinade as if it were a jacuzzi. A jacuzzi of mouth watering flavor, that is.

After I had Ahi Poke that one time in early November, I’d go back to see that it was no longer on the shelves. It wasn’t uncommon for it to be sold out by the time I got there, so I figured I just had some rotten luck…No biggie, I’ll come back again and maybe I’ll be lucky enough to find it.

Every week as I’d go back to Fresh and Easy, I’d look for it and see nothing. I’d only see some measly 1.5 inch wide filets of overpriced fish staring back at me.  I looked at the tags on the fish shelf and saw nothing that said “Ahi Poke.” It was absent and without warning…it was gone.

For weeks I had been wondering, why? Had it made someone sick? That was the only issue I could think of.

Yesterday, as I was making my usual supermarket rounds (yes, I go to a few on a single day), I went to Fresh and Easy and looked again for my beloved Poke. The shelf stared back at me with that empty white LED glare. I trudged on, heartbroken.

I was at the self checkout when the girl that worked there began to bag my stuff….She asked me the usual, “Did you find everything okay today?” I gave her that automatic “Yes,” but then I realized, “Here’s my chance to find out what happened.” I said, “Wait, No….Can I ask you a question?” She said, “Sure,” and I came back at her with, “Whatever happened to the Ahi Poke? I love that stuff and it hasn’t been on the shelves for awhile now.”

She looked at me with this annoyed face, as if this were not the first time she’s heard that question. In fact, she said, “I’ve been getting that question a lot lately.”

She didn’t seem to have a straight answer, as if she wasn’t given the memo on talking points about the disappearance of the Ahi Poke. All she said was, “Well, it probably wasn’t doing too well, it wasn’t selling out.”

As she said that, the angry Cuban in me came back at her with, “No, that’s not true. It was always sold out! I’d come here to buy it for dinner and it was all gone by the time I got here after work!”

I realized my pent-up rage was not something I should force upon this poor girl. I mean, it wasn’t her fault, right? Anyways, she gave me a few suggestion cards and told me to fill them out and sent me on my way home, broken at the thought of never having Ahi Poke again.

That said, I just filled out an online comment card at Fresh and Easy, hoping they will hear my plea, but who knows. I think, if anything, “the man” has won.

I must now search out an Ahi Poke recipe.

Halibut with shitake and bok choy

 

So far, our diet has worked. Rus has gotten below his goal weight and I am one pound away from my pre-preg weight. I still have about 10 more pounds to go after I hit that mark though. This week, I made a halibut steamed with lemon, bok choy and shitake mushrooms in parchment paper. I’ve never used parchment paper, but I found it convenient for clean up.

The original recipe called for striped sea bass, which was not available at our market, so we substituted for halibut, just for the halibut. Pa duh dum!

The recipe is simple and straight forward. What you see in this picture is what you get. I halved 1 whole bok choy for each parchment package, added my fish, put in a few good squirts of lemon juice and topped with a few lemon slices, drizzled some nice olive oil, added some salt and pepper, and shitakes and there you have it. Fold the parchment and tuck it in like a little present and voila!

Put it in a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees for 15 minutes and you have a 209 calorie entree!

Roasted Cauliflower

I was on facebook today, when I saw David Rocco’s posting about having roasted cauliflower. I immediately texted my husband and told him to buy some cauliflower and rosemary.

It was a quick recipe and tasty too:

One head of cauliflower (or if you have already washed and trimmed cauliflower available at your market, buy that and save some time)

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

Garlic

Panko Crumbs

Parmesan Cheese

Lemon Juice

Rosemary (chopped)

 

I preheated the oven to 400 degrees.

While the oven was preheating, I arranged the cauliflower in an oven proof baking dish. I drizzled olive oil over the cauliflower, and then added salt and pepper.

Next, add half the juice of a lemon and 3 cloves of garlic.

Finely chop 3 sprigs of rosemary.

Mix the ingredients up so the cauliflower is coated in the olive oil and lemon juice.

Finally, liberally sprinkle parmesan cheese and panko bread crumbs to the top of the cauliflower.

Bake for 30 minutes until lightly golden.

 

And there you have it, a relatively easy and delicious side dish for any meal.

The 350 Calorie Sandwich

 

I never thought I’d be one of THOSE people who counted calories, but if I am going to lose weight, it’s very important to do so. You don’t have to sacrifice taste for less calories, and this sandwich proves it.

Today, I decided to make us a low calorie sandwich, and as I was making them…I carefully added up the cals.

I used whole wheat bread, turkey, lemon cilantro hummus (instead of mayo), fat-free feta cheese, lettuce, carrots and avocado.

It added up to 350 calories.

You can subtract the avocado, which I did for my husband since he hates the stuff, and it will certainly be less in calories (about 325). I was actually kind of scared of what this sandwich would taste like, since I usually smother my sandwiches in mayo. All in all, it was very tasty and I will definitely make this again.

Caprese Salad

Having people over? Need to fix something for them to munch on? Have to make an appetizer for a dinner? Don’t know what to make? Need something easy?

Am I asking too many questions? Probably.

Caprese Salad is the ultimate in easy appetizers. What I like about the Caprese Salad is it’s simplicity. All you need is a tomato, mozzarella, olive oil, balsamic and basil. There you have it. The fundamentals of a Caprese Salad.

The Insalata Caprese originates from the Campania region in Italy and it really only calls for olive oil. There have been many variations that call for parsley, garlic and my favorite…Balsamic Vinegar!

The first time I had a caprese salad, was in Long Island. I was dating someone that came from the quintessential Italian Long Island family. His mother would cook the most wonderful things ever (she even introduced me to homemade Matzoh ball soup). I was not a fan of tomatoes, but when I tried it…I was a changed woman forever.

For my Insalata Caprese, I use beefsteak tomatoes and thinly slice them.

I top the tomato slices with finely chopped fresh basil and a slice of fresh mozzarella.

Lastly, I drizzle olive oil and I am very generous with my balsamic vinegar. I do this so the vinegar soaks into the tomato.

I add salt and pepper to taste.

After I finish assembling my salad, I refrigerate it for an hour or two.

Vegetarian Stroganoff

When I look through the wordpress stats on this blog, I see my beef stroganoff post was/is the most searched and most read post on this blog. C’mon guys, I make other things too! It’s amazing to see how many people want to learn how to make this dish…I didn’t think it would be so popular.

With wordpress, you actually have the ability to see what people wrote in their search engine to get to this site and I often see people searching for a vegetarian alternative to beef stroganoff.

This is why I am resolving to make the best un-beef stroganoff I can possibly make. I am already thinking of the components for it and to top it off, I want to make it as healthy as possible. It’s going to be a challenge, but I’m up for it. It’s a new year after all…

Stay tuned for a vegetarian stroganoff post…

Smoked Salmon with Alfredo and Thyme

I was strolling through tastespotting.com when I came upon a photo of pasta and salmon. I clicked on it and it took me to the blog where I found an extremely easy meal to make. The blog is named Maninas: Food Matters and the recipe was for Smoked Salmon and Lemon Thyme Spaghetti.

 It seemed like a very delicious meal and so I decided to give it a go!

 Much like she did, I did a few changes to the recipe. I think this happens all the time…People like to add their own touches here and there to personalize it. I decided to add some parmesan cheese the cream to make it an Alfredo Sauce. Also, I didn’t have Lemon Thyme, but I added a couple squeeze to the sauce from a lemon towards the end.

I also added cremini mushrooms (because I love to put mushrooms in practically everything!).

I would have done fettucini or spaghetti, but I didn’t have any on hand…I had my choice of penne or rotini, so I opted for the penne although I’m a farfale girl, myself!

To prep: I cut small slices of smoked salmon. I used a whole package of smoked salmon that you usually find in the markets.

I also smashed and cut 2 cloves of garlic.

I used already cut/washed cremini mushrooms to save on time.

I began to boil the pasta according to the directions on the box.

During the last half of the portion of pasta cooking time, prepare the sauce. To do so, heat up about 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Add the garlic, thyme sprigs, cremini mushrooms and cook the mushrooms for a few minutes, making them soft. Add the salmon.

The salmon takes pretty quick to cook since it’s thinly slice. While you stir the salmon for the first minute, add the cream.

Add enough parmesan cheese to thicken the cream up. I usually eyeball it and stir while pouring the parmesan. If you add too much parmesan, just add more cream to keep it to a nice creamy consistency.

Squeeze some fresh lemon juice into the mixture and stir.

The pasta should be done by this time. Drain it and then pour the mixture over the pasta in the same pot and give it a good stir.

Garnish with thyme and lemon.

 Making alfredo sauce from scratch is easy and tastes a lot better than the store bought kind. I highly recommend!

Salmon: it’s what’s for dinner (at least 2x a week)

You cant’ get any healthier than this dish! Since we eat dinner very late, I’ve decided that we should eat more fish since it metabolizes quicker than other foods. Salmon is rich in omega 3 fatty acids as well.

Some of the pros about eating fish high in omega-3 fatty acids, especially salmon are:

•  Salmon is low in calories and saturated fat and is high in proteins.  It is a high source of selenium, niacin, vitamins B12 and B6, phosphorus and magnesium.
• Eating fish high in omega-3s is more beneficial than having a spoonful of that dreaded cod liver oil and tastes better too!!!
• There are a plethora of cardiovascular benefits.
• 2 servings of fish rich in omega-3s a week can lower triglycerides (a form of fat carried through the bloodstream) which can cause cholesterol levels to be high.
• Helps control and prevent High Blood Pressure.
• Protects against stroke and heart attacks.
• Baked/broiled fish high in omega-3s  reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation.
• Omega-3s prevent obesity and improve insulin response.
• Hey, it even fends off dry eyes!
• You want more? Well, since omega-3s help with anti-inflammation, it also helps prevent sunburn and possibly even skin cancer!
• What else? Well, it also improves mood (most people know I need this) and helps reduce depression.

There are so many more benefits that I can list and can go on and on….if you want to read more about them, you can go to this link!!! I really do recommend that link to learn about what you’re eating and what the health benefits are.

Back to this meal,  we opted to eat a pecan and hazelnut encrusted salmon from Trader Joe’s. Again, I cannot begin to tell you  how great Trader Joe’s is and if you don’t have one yet in your city, I feel your pain. They were very generous portions for about $9.

To cook them, the common sense solution would be to fry them to make the crust nice and greasy and crispy, but I decided to broil it with a drizzle of olive oil instead, under some foil to reduce clean up time. I am always one for finding ways to reduce a mess and clean up. I admit, I was worried it wouldn’t come out as good as it would if I had fried it, thinking it would come out soggy and bland…

Alas, I was wrong! It came out nice and crispy and wonderful! I also cooked a harvest grain mix from Trader Joe’s for $1.99 which included Israeli cous cous, dried garbanzo, orzo and quinoa. It’s a bit on the dry side, so I usually add some olive oil, garlic paste and salt to give it a nice flavor. I also sauteed some asparagus which also has it’s own health benefits.

All in all, it was a very healthy meal and there’s nothing better than the feeling you get when you finish your plate and you DON’T feel disgusting and guilty!!!!

Middle-of-the-week-I’m-feeling-lazy-and-tired meal alert!!!!

It’s true, most Americans come home too tired to prep and cook a homemade meal. Unfortunately, they go to the nearest drive thru and make very poor choices. I usually come home tired and the last thing I want to do is prep and cook a meal, so I just wanted to share with you some of the easy meals that I’ve found to work well for the middle of the week where you’re just too tired to cook from all the stress at work, traffic, kids and any other hectic things in your life.

The photo above is Frozen Gnocchi with Gorgonzola sauce I picked up from Trader Joe’s. It comes together in a bag and the only prep you have to do is to tear open the bag and dump it in the sauce pan. That’s it….Well, you have to occasionally stir. I’m a huge gnocchi fan, and this gnocchi is really excellent. Pair it with a salad and maybe some garlic bread and you’ve got a great meal.

On the subject of salads, I also have an easy way to conquer the dread of having to make a salad (which in my house growing up, was like a punishment–nobody wanted to do it!). What I tend to do, is to buy the components of a salad already washed and cut/chopped/shredded/etc…and I like to sometimes make a huge batch of salad for the week, storing it in a Tupperware container so that it stays fresh. When I’m making dinner, it’s easier and less time consuming for me to just take out the Tupperware and serve the salad.

Another quick culinary shout out goes to Barilla’s Frozen Skillet Meals…They have 6 different meals which are great. Again, it comes in one package: Prep time-20 seconds to tear off