Wow! September already, huh? It's getting to that time of year, my favorite time of year actually. The colors, the cooler weather (big plus), and of course, the food! This final quarter of the year has a couple of biggies, namely Thanksgiving and Christmas, both of which have their own special menus and flavors. Getting exciting!
Ok, so this past week was another crazy one. My oldest boy is back in soccer this Fall, and he's also joined up with the local Tiger cub scout pack. That means we're now going to have to eat out on Tuesday nights until Hubby is in his off-season from work, but that just means I'm going to have to find healthier food options besides the McDonald's drive through, which we resorted to this week on account my bus was late and I missed my connecting bus home. Anyway, I made it in time to get the boys and get to the pack meeting, I just didn't make it in time to take them somewhere decent to eat.
So the first dish I prepared was a Greek spin on a simple pasta dish. I took a recipe from a newspaper clipping and changed it around a bit...actually a lot...to suit our tastes. The dish starts with browned ground beef and onions, drained, and then to that I added chopped zucchini, yellow squash, and tomatoes, all from our garden. (The garden's on it's last leg now, the only viable part of it remaining are the green beans.) Added a can of low-sodium beef broth and 1-1/2 cups of orzo, bring to a boil, then simmer for about 8 minutes until the orzo was tender. Added in some frozen cut leaf spinach and about 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, cooked for another 2-3 minutes, and done. Sprinkle about another 1/4 cup of feta on top and serve. Since I used low-sodium beef broth, I did end up having to add a little bit of salt to get it where I wanted it. At least you have that kind of control, which is what I love about low-sodium products.
My reheated version was good, just needed to revive it a little with some water because the pasta soaked all the beef broth up. Also, since I used frozen spinach instead of fresh, the vibrant green color I've come to love is lacking, not to mention the lighting wasn't very good when taking this snapshot. Oh well, at least the flavors were there. The boys cleaned their plates, and the youngest wanted seconds, so I guess we're keeping this recipe. LOL!
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| Taken from Publix.com |
Next up is a recipe I clipped from a Publix sale paper, Brazilian chicken curry. This picture is from their recipe, but honest to goodness, mine looked almost identical! I just didn't have my camera handy. Really! :) I did make changes though, since I've started using garlic ginger paste in my cooking in place of actual minced garlic and ginger. I substituted 4 tsp of the paste for the garlic and ginger called for in the recipe, and instead of making the packaged brown rice, I made my own coconut rice! I got the idea from a traditional Malaysian dish (my mother is from Malaysia after all) called nasi lemak, which you can read about here. The coconut milk I used in the curry comes in a much larger can than I needed, which was only 1/2 a cup, so I used the rest of it to make my rice. I use the 1st-knuckle method, which I will describe, since I'm of the school of thought that prefers rice cooked in a pot as opposed to a rice cooker. (We received one as a wedding gift almost a decade ago and have yet to use it! Who knows...maybe I'll get crazy one of these days and try it out.) I like the addition of sugar because if serving a spicy dish, the slight hint of sweetness helps to balance the flavors. That being said, I think my final result was more Asian than Brazilian, and if I could get my hands on some lemongrass, that would have given it that much more of an oriental flavor. I'd use that in place of the cilantro. Anyway, here's the rice recipe below:
Simple Coconut Rice (serves 4)
- 1-1/2 cups white rice (I use basmati, but jasmine rice will give a good result and is more traditional)
- approx. 1-1/4 cup coconut milk
- 1 tbsp sugar, more or less as desired
- pinch of salt
1. In a medium saucepan, wash and drain rice 6-7 times with water until it runs clear; drain.
2. Add coconut milk and enough water so that the level reaches your 1st knuckle when touching the top of the rice with the tip of your finger. Add salt and sugar, if using.
3. Cover tightly and bring rice mixture to a slow boil over medium heat, stirring every few minutes to avoid sticking and burning.
4. Once bubbling, turn heat down to LOW; set lid askew to allow steam to vent, and cook an additional 6-8 minutes until liquid has evaporated. Test rice for doneness.
5. Remove from heat and cover tightly again. Allow to sit 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.
*Optional: Dress up the rice with a little toasted unsweetened coconut sprinkled on top prior to serving.
I will say that while reheating leftover rice is ok, you'll need to add some water to recreate the steam, otherwise it will be dry. You could also try using it in a spicy stir-fry dish, which might make a nice and unexpected change! Experiment and have fun with it.
Enjoy, and see you back here next week (I hope)!
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