I cannot believe it's June, and an entire month went by withouth me posting. It's actually been almost two months!
I haven't been making too many new things, but I do have a couple recipes to share:
Giada's Grilled Vegetables
These were SO good! I didn't exactly follow the recipe for the vegetables...I used a regualr eggplant, couldn't find zucchini, added portobello mushrooms and some regular large-ish mushrooms, and swapped green onions for red. I did follow the recipe for the dressing, though, and it was delicious! I served it at a bbq, which was perfect. I chopped all the veggies ahead of time and put them in large ziploc bags. I poured olive oil into the bag to coat the veggies (rather than brushing it on), and they were ready to put on the grill when our guests arrived! I sprinkled them with coarse salt and pepper once on the grill, and I added the dressing when they were finished. They were delicious at room temperature, so it's a great recipe for a bbq or entertaining.
I also made Ina's Broccoli and Bow Ties (which I think I have mentioned before), German Potato Salad (bad batch of potatoes, so it only came out ok), bratwurst, and burgers. We also made some black bean burgers, but didn't eat them until the following day. We didn't cook them long enough, so I don't feel like I can really tell if they were good or not.
Cod Poached in Spicy Tomato Broth
This was also very good...nice and light! We ate it over orzo.
Honey-Jalapeno Corn Bread
This was very good! It's a great light-ish recipe for cornbread, and the jalapenos give it some zing. The only thing I did differently was use a can of chopped jalapenos (drained). We ate it with Ina's Chicken Chili. Yum!
Speaking of Chicken Chili, I think I finally have the recipe figured out. I double the dried spices (except for salt), and add two cans of white beans (drained). Last time, I used that basil in a tube, and it seemed to really work! I don't think it would work for everything, but it was good for this recipe.
Last night, I made a bean salad. It was a combination of a few recipes, and here's what I came up with:
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup frozen cut green beans
1 can (drained) red kidney beans
1 can (drained) garbanzo beans
1 can (drained) black beans
dressing:
2-3 limes
1 tablespoon chili powder
1.5 tsp ground cumin (or more, to taste)
1.5 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey (to taste)
3 tablespoons olive oil
hot sauce (to taste)
fresh ground pepper
1.5 tsp minced garlic
Mix and let sit for at least 30 minutes. I left mine on the counter (to defrost the beans and corn) for about 15 minutes and then let it sit in the fridge for another 20 or so. I bet it will be better today.
