Smoked pork ribs

Hi there friends! Happy Friday!

Just a little post about a tasty meal I had earlier this week: smoked pork ribs that I picked up from Whole Foods, a salad and guacamole.

The avocado was really big and made a lot of guac. I didn't eat it all. It was also kind of tasteless. I usually get my avocados at the farmer's market and this one was from the grocery store. It really had a blah taste. Sad.

I hope everyone had a lovely week and has an even better weekend! Adios!

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day my friends! Kiss me, I'm Irish! (well...half)

I've got my green outfit on, and even my temporary tattoos! Woo!

Going out to drink some Murphy's Stout tonight, and maybe even eat some corned beef! We'll see.

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Easy no-cook meal

You ever have those days when you don't feel like cooking? There are so many simple solutions for healthy meals that can keep you away from fast food.

Here is one of my favorites: some chicken and a yummy fresh salad. All you have to do is pick up a rotisserie chicken from anywhere. Any grocery store has them. You can then make a salad with bagged pre-washed greens, or just quickly chop up a head of lettuce.

There are so many simple salad dressings you can make. One of my favorites lately is fresh garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, black pepper, salt. I grate the garlic on my microplane but you could use a garlic press too. The raw garlic gives the dressing such a nice hot bite! (and keeps vampires away) Sometimes I add some grated cheese too, for a little saltiness and tanginess.

Throw it on some lettuce and any other veggies you like. Pile on the roasted chicken, and you have a tasty, fresh, healthy meal.

What do you make when you don't feel like cooking?

Indian spices

Happy Monday all!

Here's a meal I made with some Indian flair! I roasted some of that delicious fractal cauliflower under the broiler, after sprinkling it with garam masala, cumin and turmeric. Meanwhile in a saute pan, I cooked onions and serranos in coconut oil and the same spices, along with amchur powder and a spice mix called Panch Puran. Once the onions were translucent, I added some ground pork meatballs that I had flavored with chopped garlic and cumin.

Once everything was done, I served it up with some yogurt mixed with cucumber, lemon juice and a dash of cumin, and a little spicy mango chutney. Cilantro and a squeeze of lemon over the top, of course. Wow! The serranos were hot, making this meal tasty but spicy! I was glad I had the yogurt, and ended up serving myself more to tame the heat.

I often cook like this, adding a dash of spices and seasonings on a whim rather than measuring and planning. What about you? Do you follow a recipe? Do you measure your spices? Or are you 'free-wheelin' like me? haha!

It sure was a nice weekend! I must say I am not ready for the week to begin. However, St Patty's Day is this week and I do love the color green! :) In fact, I once dyed my hair green. Yup.

I hope you all have a lovely week!

Scallops

Don't you love it when you try a new place and have the best meal ever?

I needed a little happy hour beverage after work so we went to the bar of a local French brasserie. Since I hadn't eaten all day thought I'd have a snack as well. They had scallops with butternut squash as an appetizer on the menu, and it sounded tasty.

My friends, it was more than just tasty, it was divine. I couldn't really tell you too much about the ingredients or flavors because I inhaled it. Delicious! The butternut squash was finely julienned and cooked plainly and al dente (now that is a mix of languages!). The scallops were tender and perfectly cooked with a buttery salty sauce. A perfect light meal.

Paired well with a nice glass of champagne, although on second thought, everything goes with champagne in my opinion! hehe!

Have a lovely day!

Bison and guacamole

Another easy one pan stir fry meal!

Avocados are everywhere in CA right now, cheap and tasty! I've been enjoying guacamole a few times a week. Can't beat that!

What goes with guacamole? Everything! This time I made a ground bison, red pepper and onion stirfry with a little cumin. Threw a bunch of cilantro on top and ate it with a big blob of guac. Delish!

Want my guacamole recipe? As I've mentioned before, there is no real recipe. Just ripe avocado, lime juice, salt, serrano or jalapeno pepper. Simple and tasty! You can also add chopped cilantro, or not. In the summertime I add sliced cherry tomatoes, and that makes it super awesome! I hate onions in my guac. NO!

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Mushrooms!

MMMmushrooms!

I stopped by the Korean grocery this weekend because they have great prices on mushrooms. My mom loves their huge portabellos. They did not happen to have portobellos in stock, so I picked up some different kinds for her and for myself.

Pictured below are oyster mushrooms, maitake mushrooms and white beech mushrooms. I think this whole pile of mushrooms cost me less than $5. WOW!

According to Wikipedia, research has shown that maitake mushrooms have a hypoglycemic effect, and may be beneficial for the management of diabetes. Interesting!

I cooked up some of the oyster mushrooms and maitake mushrooms with some garlic, greens and herbs and scrambled them into eggs for a tasty breakfast!

I have been enjoying mushrooms a lot lately. In my opinion they are just a great wintery food!

Do you like mushrooms? What is your favorite way to prepare and eat them?

A couple meals from the weekend

Happy Monday and Happy March everyone!

I stuck around home this weekend, went to the farmer's market and cooked up a bunch of tasty meals. I figured I'd share with you...

Nothing beats enjoying breakfast outdoors in the sunshine, right? A cup of chai tea, some scrambled eggs with hedgehog mushrooms and greens...and some intellectual reading material!

For dinner one night I made some little bison patties and sauteed a whole mess of onions with some kale. Baked some sweet potato wedges to go along with it. So yummy!

How was everyone's weekend? Do anything exciting?