Pad Thai

This is a good recipe for a fast dinner on a weeknight.

Mats
½ lb. noodles. I used fresh Chinese noodles, but dry rice noodles would be good too.
¼ cup fresh lime juice
2 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp. hot chile sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
1/4c peanut butter
3 cloves garlic,crushed
1 Tbsp. peeled fresh ginger, sliced thin
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into narrow strips
8 to 10 scallions, halved lengthwise, then cut into 2-inch lengths
1 cup mung bean sprouts
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Bring a medium pot of water to boil. Cook the noodles for 2 1/2 minutes, then drain and rinse in cold water.

In a small bowl, combine lime juice, soy sauce, chili sauce, brown sugar and peanut butter with 1/3c water. Next time I want to try mixing it with lite coconut milk instead of water, to get that creamy consistency.

In a wok, heat the oil over high heat. Add the crushed garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds or until brown.

Add the carrot, scallions and bean sprouts and stir fry for 2 minutes.

Add the cooked noodles and peanut sauce, stir and heat through, about 2 minutes.

Serve topped with chopped cilantro.

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)

Crab and avocado salad

This one came out really well and made two ginormous plates of salad. Though the volume was huge, it was about right for three servings.

Mats:
1/2 lb green beans, washed and halved
2/3 cup low-fat plain yogurt
3 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
3 anchovy fillets, chopped
1/2 pound lump or claw crabmeat
1 Hass avocado, halved, pitted and diced
2 romaine hearts, chopped
1 1/2 cups whole-wheat croutons
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook until crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking.

Puree the yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, basil and anchovies in a blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss the crabmeat, half of the avocado and about 1 tablespoon of the yogurt dressing in a small bowl.

Toss the romaine, croutons, haricots verts and the remaining avocado with the remaining dressing in a large bowl.

Divide the romaine salad among plates, top with the tomatoes and place some of the crab mixture in the center.

Green Pilaf with Cashews

Pilaf... pilau...plov... it's rice, cooked in broth. This one develops a nice crunchy layer on the bottom of the pan which is crispy and delicious. The texture of the rice comes out almost like a risotto. Almost. I am not very good at making risotto.

Mats
6oz baby spinach
2/3c roasted, unsalted cashews. I ran mine through the food processor because my husband can't eat whole nuts.
2 Tb olive oil
6 green onions, chopped
1 1/2c brown rice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 Tb lemon juice
2 1/2c vegetable stock
3 Tb fresh mint
3 Tb fresh flat-leaf parsley

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the minced garlic, fennel seeds and rice. Stir around so the rice is covered in oil and the onions are well-distributed throughout.
Increase the heat to high. Add the lemon juice, vegetable stock, and 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil
Cover and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, add the mint and parsley to a food processor and pulse until the herbs are well chopped.
When the rice is done cooking, turn off the burner and toss the baby spinach and herb mixture on top of the rice. Put the cover back on and let it sit for 5 minutes.
Stir the spinach and herbs into the rice with a fork. Spoon into bowls and top with cashews.

Salmon cakes with lime sauce

This one came out pretty well, in my opinion. It makes a lot of sauce, so if you want less, halve the sauce part of the recipe.

Mats
Cakes
2 cans salmon, drained
3/4c unseasoned bread crumbs
1/4c red bell pepper, chopped finely
1/4c green onion, sliced thinly
1 Tb fresh cilantro, snipped
2 egg whites
1/2 c mayonnaise

Sauce
1/2c mayonnaise
1/2c plain Greek yoghurt (or sour cream)
juice of 1 lime - about 1/3c

To make the cakes, combine the salmon, red bell pepper, green onion, cilantro, mayonnaise, and egg whites with 1/2c of the breadcrumbs. Mix with a fork, making sure to flake the salmon into small bits.

Heat 2 Tb olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Put the remaining 1/4c breadcrumbs onto a small plate. Form the salmon mixture into golf-ball sized balls, flatten slightly and press into the plate of breadcrumbs, coating both sides. Put in the hot pan and cook for 6 minutes on one side, then flip and cook the other side for an additional 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate.

To make the sauce, combine all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly with a fork. It should be thin and runny.

I tossed some baby arugula and romaine lettuce with a bit of the leftover sauce and another sliced green onion, then served the cakes over the salad, each cake topped with a teaspoon of sauce.