Roasted Red Pepper and Eggplant Pasta

• 2 red peppers
• 1 eggplant
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/3 cup white wine (or half white wine vinegar with water)
• 1 pint grape tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp agave, to taste
• 1 lb. box pasta, your choice. (I chose quinoa shells)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Roast two red peppers on the top rack. On the bottom rack place a sheet pan with one eggplant cut into ¼ inch slices, brushed with olive oil and salt and pepper. Cook for twenty minutes, turn the eggplant over once in the middle. Check on the red peppers. Remove when charred.

Place red peppers in a paper sack or a glass bowl with a large plate on top.

While peppers and eggplant cook, heat olive oil in a large sautee pan. Add ½ onion, diced and 2 garlic cloves, sliced. Cook until translucent 5-7 minutes. Add 1/3 cup white wine or if you do not cook with wine, in a 1/3 measuring cup fill half with white wine vinegar and the other half with water. Pour into the sautee pan, turn up the heat and let it reduce. When the white wine has almost evaporated, add 1 pint grape tomatoes. Let them cook down for 10-12 minutes.

Dice the cooked eggplant. Set aside.

Remove the charred skin from the roasted red peppers, remove tops, seeds, and ribs. Slice.

Place roasted red peppers and tomato-onion mixture in a food processor. Process. Taste. Add 1 Tbsp. agave or honey and 1 tsp of olive oil. If it tastes too tart, add a little more agave or honey.

Return the sauce to the sautee pan and add the eggplant. Heat. Add pasta with pasta water if necessary.

Savory Sundae of Garlic Potatoes, Peas, Chicken, and Lemon-Butter Cream Sauce

Missed me?

I'll try to update more often, but I really only want to update when I developed a new recipe because there are so many recipes out there, I'd like to create some that are unique. If you want to see which recipes I'm trying, just follow me on Pinterest.

Since before my mission, I've been creating a simple dish. Garlic potatoes and peas.

I made it for Jeff a while back and realized it's missing a few elements--namely, some freshness, a bite, something to make the flavors more interesting. After a couple weeks of mulling it over, this is what I came up with.

The best compliment I've received on my cooking came after this recipe:

"It looks and tastes like it came from a nice restaurant." ---The husband

Can't ask for anything better than that!

Lemon Chicken

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 6 chicken tenders (I actually found organic at a local store, which isn't common here)
• 1/4 flour
• 2 Tbsp lemon pepper
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• salt and pepper

Mix flour, lemon pepper, and salt and pepper together on a plate. Dredge the chicken tenders in the flour.

Confession Time: I have never been comfortable cooking chicken. Not to mention, it always turns out much too dry. Perhaps this is why I was relieved when my husband turned out to be a vegetarian. Well, now he's not, and I'm "eating for two"--one of which makes me crave protein quite often, so chicken was a must.

Now that you understand my feelings about chicken, let me say my mind has changed thanks to these wonderful directions to get perfect, tender, moist chicken. It really works. Try it. You'll be so happy you did. Just add the lemon juice, olive oil, and butter to the pan to add some citrus.

Garlic Potatoes

• 2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• salt and pepper
• garlic salt, to taste

Place the diced potatoes in a pot of cold water with the cloves of garlic. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until tender. Drain. Remove the cloves, mince in a garlic press, add to the butter and milk. Melt over a stove or in a microwave. *I've learned that the best mashed potatoes come when the ingredients you add to it are not cold.

Place the cooked potatoes in a bowl. Mix with handmixers or potato masher. Sparingly add the buttery, milky garlic mixture until the consistency is right for you.

Lemon-Butter Cream Sauce

• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• zest of one lemon
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup cream (or skim milk)
• 3 tbsp parmesan or romano cheese, grated

Melt butter in a pan. Add lemon juice and zest. Bring to a boil and let it reduce. I let it reduce until it was very thin. Slowly whisk in cream and let it thicken. Add cheese at the end.

Peas

• 1/2 bag of frozen peas

Bring small pot of water to a boil. Add peas, but only for a few minutes. Overcooked peas are the worst!

Pile them beautifully on top of each other and enjoy!

browned butter spaghetti squash

Yum. This was fantastic and with low carbs, who can complain. The only semi-unhealthy thing in this dish is the butter. The rest is just veggies.

It looks long and difficult, but really the hardest thing is cutting the squash. Then besides dicing up a few vegetables and sautéing them, the oven does all the work. There's nothing better than curling up with a good book, knowing dinner will be done soon without me having to slave away. I plan to try this recipe again, but placing it in the oven so that it forms a crust--maybe even adding some parmesan cheese.

{ingredients}

• 1/2 stick butter
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 orange bell pepper (or red or green or yellow)
• 1/2 red onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• salt and pepper
• 1 5 lb. spaghetti squash

Cut the spaghetti squash in half (carefully. it may help to cut off a small section on one side so that it sits flat). Chop off the ends. Remove the seeds. Cover in olive oil. Add salt and pepper.

Place on a foil-covered cookie sheet, cut side down. Roast in 400 degree F oven for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven. Flip over over the squash, cover with foil (to stop it from burning). Cook for another 15 minutes or until very tender.

While that's cooking, dice the vegetables into small pieces. I removed the insides from the tomato because I didn't want the sauce to be to liquidy (I know that isn't a word). Mince the garlic.

When the squash has about five minutes left, place the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat and let it brown. Wait until it begins to smell nutty and little flecks of brown appear. Toss in the onions and bell pepper. Let it soften slightly. Add the garlic and let it cook until fragrant (30-45 seconds). Add the tomato and let the vegetables soften and cook into the butter over low heat while you prepare the squash.

Remove the squash and using a fork, scrape out the "spaghetti" strands into a large bowl. Once all the squash is removed, add all the strands to the large sauté pan. Stir. Let the flavors blend together. Plate and serve. It really is amazingly delightful and almost guilt free (you know, without the butter).

fried rice and orange zucchini

I am obsessed with Panda Express's orange chicken, but I rarely get to eat there because it's a half hour away. Jeff loves it, but due to his recent vegetarian ways, he hasn't been able to eat there either. We found the perfect substitute. I told you about this awesome Panda Express product sold at most grocery stores. I love it. I know it's processed and probably not the healthiest, but it's quick, easy, and so delicious I think I could drink it from the bottle.

One of our new favorite meals is fried rice and orange zucchini. Here's how you do it:

Fried Rice

(adapted from here)

{ingredients}

• 3 cups cooked rice
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 3/4 cups diced carrots--very small so they cook faster
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 eggs
• olive oil
• cayenne, to taste
• thyme, 1/2 teaspoon
• Fresh cracked pepper
• 4 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/4 cup water

{directions}

Warm up 1 Tbsp olive oil on a skillet. Add the onions and carrots. Sautee until the onions begin to soften. Add the garlic. Sautee until fragrant. Add 2 Tbsp soy sauce. Mix and let it cook for 4-5 minutes. If the carrots haven't softened up much yet, continue cooking until they do. Unless, of course, you don't mind a little crunch. My husband likes them very soft.

Next, move the vegetables to one side of the skillet. Crack two eggs and cook them on the other side of the pan. Scramble them slightly and let them cook until almost cooked through (2-3 minutes).

Mix the vegetables in with the scrambled eggs and then move to one side of the skillet.

Add the rice with 1 Tbsp soy sauce and 1 Tbsp olive oil. Flatten out the rice and let it fry. If it looks a little dry, add a little more soy sauce or olive oil, or both.

After three minutes, add the spices (pepper, cayenne, thyme). Turn the rice and vegetables occasionally to keep from burning. Add water if it becomes too dry.

Combine the rice and vegetables. Add the peas and 1/4 cup of water and a little more soy sauce if desired. Continue cooking until the water is absorbed.

It's so good!

Orange Zucchini

{ingredients}

• 2 zucchini, cut into thin strips
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 Tbsp Panda Express orange sauce

{directions}

While the fried rice is cooking, throw the above ingredients into a sautee pan. Let it cook down. It will take between ten and twelve minutes for the zucchini to become really soft and soak in the orange sauce. At first it seems like it won't. Just be patient because it takes time.

If you can't help yourself (I usually can't), add a little more orange sauce. I always have to remind myself that I can add more on top when the dish is finished cooking (I always do).

Finished

When both dishes are completed, you have a couple options.

1. Divide it on your plate and eat separately. (I don't recommend this, but to each his or her own.)
2. Pile the orange zucchini on top of the fried rice, add more orange sauce, and devour. (I highly recommend this option.)

valentine's curry

Another Valentine's Day meal which may soon become our yearly treat. We're two for two right now, so we'll see.

The best way to describe this delicious curry is "delicately sweet." Yes, I coined that phrase while cutting up the vegetables. It tastes almost like a dessert. You can put as much or as little heat as you'd like, and the best part is that it's very easy to make. Once the vegetables are cut, the hard part is over. You could even throw this in the crock pot in the morning and have it ready by dinner time.

{ingredients}

• Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk (1.5 cans--save the other 0.5 for the rice)
• Thai Kitchen Red (or green) Curry Paste
• 1 sweet potato or yam or regular potato, diced
• 1/2 butternut squash, diced
• 1/2 cup carrots, diced very fine
• 1 zucchini, quartered and halved
• 1 yellow squash, quartered and halved
• 1/2 sweet onion, diced
• 1/2 orange or red bell pepper, diced

{directions}

Like I said, this is super easy. Once your vegetables are diced finely (you can cut them larger, but it will just take longer to cook), pour 1.5 cans of coconut milk into a large pot. Add two or three teaspoons of the curry paste. You can add more or less depending on your spice tolerance. Stir it once. Add all the vegetables. Cover and bring to a boil. Let it simmer until the vegetables are nice and tender.

Really so easy, and all the ingredients, even the Thai Kitchen ingredients, are sold in the Asian section of your grocery store. They aren't very expensive either, and the curry paste lasts forever because you don't need a lot to make it super spicy.

Now all you need is some rice:

Sweet Coconut Rice

(adapted from The Food and Cooking of Thailand)

{ingredients}

• 1.5 cups water
• .5 can of coconut milk (see above)
• 1 cup Jasmine rice
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt

{directions}

Combine the above in a rice cooker, stir, and cook for twenty minutes.

Do you see what I mean by easy? I was even able to throw together this amazing chocolate souffle while the curry and rice simmered away. Enjoy!

balsamic brown butter ravioli

{image}

I adore Giada. I won't make a secret of it. Her recipes are inspired, and her style is ... awesome.

I think you could say my gourmet cooking spirit came from watching her create elegant food despite the circumstance. Whether it be a dinner party or hiking, her food doesn't lose its gourmet quality. And she's so enthusiastic about every ingredient. I love it!

In honor of Giada, here's one of my favorite recipes. It's elegant, easy, and I could eat it all day.

{image}

{ingredients}

• 18 to 20 oz. frozen ravioli
• 6 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

{directions}

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the ravioli and cook 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain ravioli onto a large serving platter.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook the butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the foam subsides, and the butter begins to turn a golden brown, about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Transfer the ravioli to the pan saucepan with the balsamic brown butter. Sprinkle walnuts and Parmesan over the top. Serve immediately.

{Romantic Additions*}

DO: Roast squash while this is cooking and eat them together. Delicious.

DON'T: Forget to keep an eye on the butter. It will burn if you're not careful.

FOR ME: I'm trying to acquire a taste for walnuts. I know they're healthy and everything, but something about the texture... (exagerated shudder)... I either don't add them or crush up some almonds instead.

{source}

*Whenever I post recipes that I don't create, I will always add my own suggestions at the bottom called "Romantic Additions."