Things have been SO busy and crazy that I haven't had time to update anything here! But, I have tried a bunch of new recipes, so here they go-
We made Grilled Chicken with Whiskey-Ginger Marinade on a Saturday night (we were really rushed, too, since we had to meet some people out that night). This was SO good! It was in the March 08 issue of Cooking Light, and we gave it a try! It was a different way to have chicken, and so tasty. It seemed like it was kind of time consuming, but that could be because I was in a hurry. I think we had Stir Fry Cabbage with it, which was also very good. That's sort of an unusual dish, though, and it may not be for everyone. You're supposed to use Napa cabbage, but I think I used Savoy. I tried it once before and used the traditional round cabbage, and the results are definitely not the same! I think the Savoy was closer to how it should have been - almost like wilted greens.
Another night, we had a delicious Spinach Salad. It was one of the best I've had, and it was healthy! I made it twice and followed the recipe each time. The only small deviation I made the second time was adding maple-glazed walnuts. They were SO easy and delicious! Since we ate the salad as a main dish, the nuts made it feel a little more complete. Plus, the maple in the walnuts and dressing really tied it together.
We've also made Baked Falafel Sandwiches with Yogurt-Tahini Sauce. These falafels are really good, and I love it that they're baked. They're better than making them from a box! I don't use the same sauce, though...I use equal parts low-fat plain yogurt and tahini paste with garlic and lemon juice. I think I usually use the juice from one lemon, but I might occasionally use half. And I think I add 1 clove of minced garlic. I adjust everything to taste, so it's hard to say for sure. It's better if it sits for a little while. We also add cucumbers to our sandwiches instead of tomatoes.
Another good recipe is Ellie's Garden Risotto. I had serious doubts about this, especially after making that delicious Dirty Risotto from Giada. Honestly, though, it was SO good! We were quite happy with it and will definitely make it again. I can't remember what we ate with it - maybe grilled chicken. It's more of a side dish, but you could eat it as a main dish if you were looking for a vegetarian option. It reheated well, too, but only for two days. On the third day, it was really watery - probably from all the veggies.
This week, we made Mediterranean Fish Stew. I'm trying to incorporate more seafood into our diet, and neither of us is too excited about those salmon burgers I bought a while ago. I useed cod instead, since that was available at Sam's. I got 3 lbs of frozen cod, so I'll be making more fish recipes in the near future (2 lbs of it is now in my freezer). The stew was good. It seemed bland at first, but it kind of grew on me. I even ate it for lunch and felt like I enjoyed it more than I did the first time. It's a nice way to have a warm meal that's actually healthy and light. It's not exactly bursting with flavor, but it was good! I think next time, I might add some white wine and maybe some red pepper flakes.
Last night, we made Indian Food. We always use those jars of Pataks to make the sauces...I can't remember what one I used yesterday, but it was good! I think it was the garam masala paste, but I'm not 100% sure. I use a little less oil than it says to use, but it always comes out pretty good! We also usually make basmati rice. Since the dish is spicy and quite saucy, you really need the rice with it. We also buy pappadums (or papadums, popadums, papadams, etc). The one thing I've really beed searching for, though, is a good, health vegetable! We usually buy ready-made indian veggies, like pav bhaji, but the fat and sodium content is a little higher than I would like in some of the pre-prepared items. So, last night we tried Roasted Manchurian Cauliflower, which I saw in the April issue of Cooking Light. It was really good - and easy! It has such a nice flavor and really went nicely with the indian meal. I did change a few things, though. I bought the garam masala seasoning, instead of making it. I'm sure it would have been better if I made it, but I would have had to buy ALL the spices listed in the recipe for garam masala seasoning. Plus, we only have a coffee grinder - not a spice grinder - and I didn't have time this week to get all those coffee grounds out of the grinder. The store-bought garam masala worked well, and it's unlikely I'll make my own in the future. Also, I made a mistake when I made the sauce for the cauliflower. For one thing, I decided to use minced jared garlic, which really isn't as flavorful. Also, I accidentally threw the ketchup, garlic, black pepper and cayenne pepper into a sauce pan at the same time (instead of adding them in stages), and I didn't use any oil. I have nothing to compare it to, but it really came out great! I think I'll continue to do it that way in the future. Also, we had a small head of cauliflower, so I cut the recipe in half. I roasted the cauliflower for 20 minutes before adding the sauce, and then roasted it for only 10 minutes more. It was great! .
