Salmon with Ginger-Grapefruit sauce

This was a nice, flavorful sauce to serve with salmon steaks. I paired it with steamed broccoli and couscous to round out the meal.

Mats
2 skinless salmon fillets, 4oz each
3 ruby red grapefruits

2 tsp olive oil
1 shallot, minced
1 knob ginger (thumb-sized), peeled and finely minced
1 Tbsp and 1 tsp honey 

2 tsp lemon juice
about 10 thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray some cooking spray onto a shallow pan and place the salmon in the dish. Season the tops of the fish with about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Bake at 350 for 18 minutes.

While the fish is cooking, supreme one of the grapefruits. To supreme, cut a slice off the top and bottom of the grapefruit, stand it on end, then cut the peel and pith (the white under the skin) off in vertical slices. You'll lose a bit of the flesh, but that's ok. Next, scoop the juicy flesh out of each little section, discarding the white membranes that separate the sections. Put the flesh in a separate bowl.

 

Juice the other two grapefruits into a different small bowl. A nifty trick (if you don't have a juicer) is to roll the fruits around on the countertop, pressing hard. This helps break up the membrane and makes juicing easier.

Heat 2 tsp olive oil in a small pan. Add the shallots and cook for about 2 minutes until the shallots are soft.

 

Add the grapefruit juice, ginger and honey to the shallots and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook until reduced by half. This will take about 10 minutes.

 

After the sauce is reduced, add the reserved grapefruit flesh and the fresh basil. Remove from heat.

Serve the fish with a generous helping of sauce.

Shrimp salad with Ginger-Lime sauce

Today was absolutely beautiful. My peas are starting to sprout, my tomatoes and spinach are in the ground and my herbs are starting to establish themselves. Anyway, this salad is just the thing for a light summer lunch.

Mats:
Marinade/dressing
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
3/4 c soy sauce
1/2 c lime juice
2 inch knob of fresh ginger, peeled
1 onion, quartered
4 Tbsp sugar
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4c peanut oil
1/4 c green onions (scallions) chopped

Salad
1 head romaine or red leaf lettuce, torn into bite-sized chunks
6 oz mandarin oranges, canning liquid reserved
6 oz bean sprouts
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
Sliced toasted almonds for topping (optional)

In a blender or food processor, add the onion, garlic, peeled ginger, soy sauce, lime juice, and 2 Tbsp sugar. Blend on high for 3 minutes.
Add the green onion and peanut oil and blend again for 2 min.
Put the peeled shrimp in a shallow bowl and pour about half the marinade over the raw shrimp. Marinate the shrimp for 20 minutes at room temperature.
Meanwhile, add the mandarin oranges with their canning juices to the leftover marinade. Add the remaining 2 Tbsp sugar and stir.
In a large bowl, combine the lettuce bits, halved tomatoes, and bean sprouts. Add the mandarin oranges and about 1/3 the dressing. It's quite strong, so don't soak your salad in it.
When the shrimp are done marinating, it's time to cook them. I used my panini grill set to 350 with the lid suspended about a half inch above the shrimp for 3 or 4 minutes. You can also cook them on a regular grill outside or possibly in a skillet.
Add the cooked shrimp to the salad, stir and serve topped with slivered almonds if you like them.

Spinach Quesadillas

A take on the more traditional chicken and cheese filled ones, these quesadillas work just as well in a bowl as a dip as they do in tortilla shells.

Mats:

1 Tbs. vegetable oil
8 oz. tempeh, crumbled

2 tomatillos, husks removed and diced
1 lb. spinach, torn into bite-sized bits
1jar salsa

6 8- or 9-inch whole wheat tortillas
1 7-oz. pkg. cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350

 

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat

 

Add the crumbled tempeh and tomatillos and cook for 8 minutes.

Wash the torn spinach, toss it into the pan and cover. This will steam the spinach. Leave the cover on for about 5 minutes.

Add the jar of salsa and stir well.

On a dark cooking pan (like you would make cookies on), place one of the tortillas. Place about 1/3c of the spinach mixture on half of the tortilla

Sprinkle with cheese.

Fold the other half of the tortilla over the spinach and cheese half so you've made a little pocket.

Repeat with the remainder of the tortillas

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until tortillas begin to brown.

Cut each tortilla in half and serve (with extra salsa or sour cream, if that floats your boat)