Tuna on Fettuccine with Green Olives and Arugula

Let me start by saying, this meal got divided into 2 parts....fish and pasta. I couldn't find fresh tuna (nor was willing to pay the price for it even if I had) at the grocery store. I decided Cod on Fettuccine didn't have the same appeal to it, so I baked the fish in the oven with some lemon and green olives. I am going to include the original recipe, which I have made before and I think is fabulous. My version also worked just great. M loved the fish (had third helpings!) and J loved the pasta so Jack Sprat and his wife struck once again. The arugula I had was "middle-aged" or older (as Curtis put it), but still tasted great--it just wasn't as tender as the young arugula.

Tuna on Fettuccine with Green Olives and Arugula
12 oz fettuccine
1 c green olive bruschetta spread from jar
6 T olive oil
4 t grated lemon peel
4 t fresh lemon juice
5 oz arugula

2 (12-oz) tuna steaks, each about 1-inch thick
4 t fresh marjoram, chopped.

Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 c pasta cooking liquid. Return pasta to pot. Add olive bruschetta spread, 3 T oil, 2 t lemon peel, 2 t lemon juice, and enough cooking liquid to coat. Season with salt and generous amount of pepper. Mix in arugula, which will wilt slightly. Meanwhile, brush each tuna steak with 1 T oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sprinkle both sides of tuna evenly with marjoram and reamining 2 t lemon peel; press gently to adhere. Heat remaining 1 T oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add tuna; sear until crusty and brown outside but still pink, inside, about 1 1 /2 minutes per side. Transfer tuna to work surface; slice thinly. Top pasta with tuna slices.

In this week's CSA box

It was a colorful week this week! (In the picture: beets plus greens, grapefruit, radishes, cauliflower, and red cabbage)

one head of cauliflower (it was orange)
three small heads of broccoli
a large bag of arugula
two small heads of red cabbage
beet greens and baby beets (I save the beets and discard the greens--yes I know I can eat the greens too)
a small head of tatsoi
a bag of spinach
three oranges
two grapefruit (we are LOVING!! the almost sweet flavor of the grapefruit)
a bunch of radishes
a dozen eggs
a small bunch of mint
a bunch of mustard greens (or something similar to that)

Meals.....

I am making Fettuccini with Arugula tonight for supper with some fish.
The mint is becoming mint tea.
M could single handedly eat all the oranges
The mustard greens will become Cheese and Greens sandwiches (Friday and Saturday lunches maybe)
If I have enough red cabbage, I'll also make an Asian Cabbage Slaw

Revised menu for the week:

Thursday: Still Ikea
Friday: Pasta Cavalfiore (using cauliflower) and salad (either bok choy or arugula)
Saturday: Easy Meatless Manicotti (using spinach) with a side of braised radishes and beets
Sunday: Leftover lunch and Cabbage Tacos for supper (or a bok choy/egg dish)
Monday: a broccoli dish
Tuesday: Leftovers

How M prefers to eat her broccoli--"Just like Daddy"

Bang Bang Chicken

I discovered this simple stir fry way back when I was in college. It's been a standby ever since and always is a hit. M and J both loved it and had seconds. Curtis was away, so he missed the meal. The meal was made super simple because I had chicken breasts left in the freezer from when my mother-in-law was here (she bought a huge pack of chicken breasts to make her tortilla soup and I was left with 6 leftover breasts). I didn't have enough broccoli from the CSA box, so I went to the garden and trimmed a small head to supplement the farm broccoli.

3 year olds are funny creatures. They are basically living playbacks of conversations they hear the adults around them having. I realized last night at supper exactly how much Curtis and I talk about the food we eat when M told me, "This has good flavor Mommy. How do they make chicken?" I won't get into the my response about how a chicken gets from the live bird running around a field to on her plate. Her chicken last night missed out on the running around part, because it was store bought chicken.

Bang Bang Chicken
1 whole chicken breast (2 individual), cut into strips
1 clove garlic, minced
2 t ginger root, grated
1 scallion, chopped into 1-inch pieces (or 1/2- 1 c chopped onion)
1/4 c water
2 T soy sauce
2 T peanut butter
1 T red wine vinegar
2 c broccoli florets, cut into bite-sized pieces

Cooked rice

Briefly stir-fry chicken, garlic, ginger, and scallion in 1 -2 T oil until chicken is cooked through. Add water, soy sauce, peanut butter, and red wine vinegar. Simmer 5 minutes. Add broccoli
Cook until vegetables are crisp tender, about 7 minutes. Serve over rice.

Menu for the Week

Monday: Bread and Cabbage Soup
Tuesday: Stir Fry: either Sesame Beef Bok Choy or Chicken with Broccoli
Wednesday: either Arugula with Fish, Green Olives, and Fettucini or Fish Tacos (if I get arugula in the box)
Thursday: dinner at Ikea (Curtis won't be here and I've been needing to go to Ikea!)
Friday: TBD

I'll post the menu for the end of the week (and the start of next week, hopefully) once we get our CSA box on Wednesday. I am hoping to make more orange cinnamon rolls this weekend. I have leftover frosting I want to use. :)

Homespun Pot Pie

This another wonderful winter meal. Curtis says it is one of his current favorites. On our good days, everyone likes this meal. It is chock full of veggies so it's fine by itself or with just a side salad. I made this for the in-laws so I added a side of roasted brussel sprouts and cauliflower.

There is a lot of flexibility in this recipe. The original recipe has no meat. I've made this meatless, with chicken, or this past time with leftover turkey I had frozen. Whatever root vegetables you have on hand you can add---just be sure to have 6 cups total of poultry and root vegetables. I almost always use sweet potatoes and white potatoes....the other 2 cups vary between poultry, kohlrabi, turnips, or parsnips. This can also be made ahead of time. Mix up the vegetables and save the biscuits to make until right before putting it in the oven.

Homespun Pot Pie
Vegetables
1 T olive oil
2 c onions, coarsely chopped
2 -3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t salt
1 t dried thyme (1 T fresh)
1 t dried marjoram (optional)
4 - 5 c mushrooms, sliced
1 T dijon mustard
2 sweet potatoes, chopped
2 c potatoes, chopped
2 c kohlrabi, peeled and chopped or 2 c cooked chicken/turkey or other root vegetable
1/2 t black pepper
3 c chicken stock
3 T cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 c cold water
1 c frozen peas
1 c frozen corn kernels (optional)
1 T soy sauce
1/2 t salt

Biscuits
2 c flour
1/2 t salt
1 T baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
6 T melted butter
1 c plain yogurt
1 t chopped fresh dill, or more (optional)

Warm the oil in a soup pot. Add the onions and garlic. Cover and cook on medium heat for 10 - 12 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the salt, thyme, marjoram, mushrooms, and mustard. Cook until the mushrooms start to release their juices, about 5 minutes. Add the root vegetables, chicken and broth and bring to a boil. Simmer 15 - 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Stir the dissolved cornstarch into the vegetables, stirring constantly. Once liquid starts to thicken, add remaining vegetables and seasonings. Pour into greased 9 x 13" baking pan. Set aside.

In a bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In a separate bowl, mix together butter and yogurt. Combine the wet and dry ingredients with as few strokes as possible to make a wet dough. Drop biscuit batter over vegetables. Sprinkle with dill. Bake in a preheated 400 degrees oven for 20 - 30 minutes or until biscuits are cooked through. Serve immediately.

I'm back

After being busy entertaining family for about 11 days, we have a quiet house again. Hopefully I'll be able to get caught up on blogging some of the great meals we had the past week. My family is full of great cooks--my mom, brother, and sister. Our eating was only disrupted by 4 people getting a stomach flu over several days.

Rather than having lots and lots of posts dated today, I am posting the recipes for the days we ate them. I've gotten all but Dec 28 posted, so check back for that one later.

Hope everyone had wonderful holidays!

Happy New Year's

We alternate New Year's traditions between Southern and Pennsylvania Dutch. This is a southern year (since Curtis had to put up with my family for a week!). We had black-eyed pea soup, cornbread, and greens with sauce (I used kale instead of collards because we didn't get any collards this week in our box). I usually like black-eye pea soup, but didn't this year. I am going to blame that on being pregnant. J ate the soup just fine. M just wanted to eat cornbread and honey. She said she didn't like to eat "eyes." We did get her to taste one bean. Maybe next year she'll like it better.

Black-eyed Pea Soup
2 c fresh (frozen, but not canned) black-eyed peas
2 chopped jalapenos (more or less 3 T worth), optional
4 slices uncooked bacon, cut into small pieces
4 c chicken or turkey stock
1/2 c water
1 T garlic, minced
1/2 c onion, minced

Saute bacon, onion, and garlic together in a heavy skillet. In a heavy saucepan, combine cooked bacon, peas, jalapenos, and stock. Bring to a boil, turn down heat, and simmer until peas are tender, about 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Corn Bread
1/3 c sugar
3 T oil
4 eggs
1 c cornmeal
1 c flour
4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 1 /2 c milk

Cream together oil and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a separate bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. Add sugar mixture alternately with milk. Stir just until blended. Pour into lightly greased 9 x 9" pan. Bake in a preheated 375 oven for 30 - 45 minutes.