Classy Vegetable Stir-Fry

No picture, my apologies. The hard drive with all our photos on it is not yet set-up, but will be shortly. Once it is I will include some super photos of us attempting to unpack the kitchen. Which I am sure you are all dying to see.

In the mean time, here's a dish we whipped up in honor of my sister coming to dinner for the first time in the new house! She is vegetarian and so I have made it my mission to find some tasty vegetarian dishes to make for her when she visits that she, as a college student, may not have time/money/facilities/motivation to. Alas, she is not big into pasta, so that eliminated about 90% of my initial ideas, but Mr. Heart suggested a vegetable stir-fry. So we took it up a notch by including a wide variety of vegetables, and made it simple by only adding the bare minimum of seasonings. It came out delicious. We served it up with couscous and a dark rye bread. And then we ate cookie dough and played cribbage like old people.

"I'm so proud of myself," Mr. Heart said, as we drove back from dropping off Sister Heart, "Before I met you I wouldn't have even touched a dish like that." And he liked it! Excellent. So I AM having a positive culinary influence. My main challenge with him? Legumes. Some day, some day...

Classy Vegetable Stir-Fry
Serves 2-3

1 Portabello mushroom cap, diced
1 bell pepper, diced (or half of a red and half of a yellow)
3-4 green onions, chopped
1/2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch crescents
1/2 cup sugar snap peas, cut in half
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 lb spinach, roughly chopped
1/4 cup cashews
1 - 2 TBS olive oil
a good squeeze of lemon juice
salt and pepper

(for omnivores: add a link or two of your favorite chicken sausage, sliced)

1) In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat until shimmering, but not smoking.
2) Add bell peppers and green onions. Sauté until peppers start to brown, stirring often.
3) Add zucchini, mushrooms, and garlic. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper to taste. Continue to sauté, stirring often, until vegetables are just tender.
4) Add spinach, snap peas, and lemon juice. Toss together, then cover for 1 -2 minutes, or until spinach is wilted and cooked down.
5) Add cashews toss to combine. Cook for 1 -2 more minutes, until cashews are heated through. Add more salt and pepper as desired.
(For omnivores: Transfer vegetables to a separate dish and cover to keep warm. Add sausage and a splash of oil. Sauté until lightly browned, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add vegetables back to pan and toss to combine. Cook an additional minute to heat through.)

Turkey and Rice Stuffed Peppers

This is one of those recipes where I love all of the ingredients but somehow, when put together, it was still lacking a little something. I love the concept of stuffed peppers--sweet red pepper stuffed with rice, meat, and veggies. And it looked beautiful. But somehow this came out kind of blah. Maybe next time I would add more seasoning to the turkey or add cheese to the rice mixture. I still want to share it with you all because I think the recipe, for the most part, is a good one (and it comes from one of my favorite cookbooks). If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know.

Turkey and Rice Stuffed Peppers
from Preventions Ultimate Quick and Healthy Cookbook, with mods.
Serves 2

2 large red bell peppers, plus 1/2 a small bell pepper
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup long grain rice
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 lb lean ground turkey
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1/2 tsp fresh thyme
pinch of ground black pepper
1/2 lb fresh spinach, stemmed and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
2 TBS grated Parmesan

1) Preheat the oven to 350º. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
2) Cut off and discard the tops of the two large bell peppers. Remove seeds. Seed and dice the half of bell pepper. Set aside.
3) Blanch the whole peppers in the boiling water for 2 minutes until slightly softened. Remove the peppers from the water and drain over paper towels. Place, top up, in a 9x9 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray or rubbed with olive oil.
4) In a medium sauce pan, combine the water and rice and 1/4 tsp of salt. Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower the heat to med-low and cook, covered, for 15 minutes until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed (add more water if necessary).
5) In a non-stick skillet, warm the oil over medium heat until hot. Add turkey and sauté for about 3 minutes until opaque, breaking up any clumps. Add onions, garlic, thyme, pepper, and remaining salt and cook for an additional 3 minutes, until onions are softened.
6) Add diced bell pepper, spinach, and cranberries. Continue to cook until spinach is wilted. Remove pan from heat.
7) Add the rice to the spinach mixture and stir to combine.. Spoon rice mixture into whole bell peppers and top with Parmesan. Bake for 15 minutes or until peppers/filling are hot and the cheese is browned.

Pork Chili

So I selected this recipe because we had pork, but then it turned out we didn't have most of the other ingredients, so I improvised. It turned out rather tasty! I'm a fan of chili; though Maryland isn't much of a chili state, I grew up with my father taking us to The Hard Times Café, where they served five kinds of chili anyway you wanted, from chili dogs to a "five-way" with chili, cheese, spaghetti, beans, and onions. I was a fan of the red Cincinnati chili, while Dad liked the drier Texan style. Either way, I learned to like my chili "chili mac" style (as I have explained previously) over pasta and with lots of cheese. This is more the "red" style that I like, with a wet, tomato base. This comes together pretty quickly, for a chili, and is quite delicious.

Pork Chili
inspired by The Simply Healthy Lowfat Cookbook
Serves 2 8/10

1/2 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 TBS chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 TBS olive oil
1 large bell pepper, diced (or frozen bell peppers, which is what I had handy, about 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp basil
1/4 tsp salt
dash of red pepper
1 TBS flour
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tomato, skinned and pureed in a food processor (you could also use canned crushed tomato, 1/2 cup)
1 tomato, diced (canned would be fine too, 1/2- 1 cup)

3 cups wide egg noodles
1 cup grated cheese of your preference (cheddar is my favorite, but we used left over gruyere and fontina from the Italian fondue)

1) Put 1/2 TBS chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, and cubed pork into a ziplock bag and seal. Massage until coated.
2) In a Dutch oven, warm oil over high heat until hot, but not smoking. Add pork and sauté until browned, about 1 minute. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon and cover loosely with foil to keep warm.
3) Add bell peppers, onion, garlic, basl, salt, red pepper, and the rest of the chili powder and cumin. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add flour and stir, cooking about 1 minute.
4) Add chicken broth and tomato puree. Increase heat to hight and bring to boil. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes to blend flavors.
5) Return pork to the pot and simmer 2o minutes more, or until meat is tender and pulls apart easily.
6) While pork is cooking, prepare egg noodles according to pack directions.
6) Remove chili from heat and stir in diced tomatoes. Serve over noodles with grated cheese on top.

Grilled Steak Fajitas

Sorry for the delay in updating, we went away for the 4th of July. My first soloing adventure with the grill took place before the weekend and it was also my first attempt at fajitas. They came out very well if I do say so myself.

Now, likw I said, I've never made fajitas before and I've always felt that steak fajitas had the leg up on chicken fajitas. But I didn't know what cut of meat to use or how to prepare the steak so that it would come out, well, like a fajita. This recipe worked out wonderfully and was very easy! The meat seasoning/flavor was nothing spectacular, but combined with the other ingredients (especially the sour cream!) they tasted fantastic. I would suggest serving this with spanish rice (from a box!), chips, and salsa.

I'm sure that this would re-heat well for lunch the next day. Also, if you don't have a grill, a cast iron skillet or a grill pan would do. I think you could also get away with broiling, but I would check the cooking times.

Grilled Steak Fajitas
from The New Best Recipe
Serves 2
8/10

1/2 - 3/4 lb flank steak (I used the other half of what I used for the beef broccoli!)
1/4 cup lime juice
salt
pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
1/4 onion, cut into thick rounds (~ 2)
4 - 6 8" flour tortillas

salsa
sour cream*** (a must!)
shredded cheddar/pepper jack cheese

1) Sprinkle the flank steak with lime juice, salt, and pepper.
2) Over high heat, grill the steak until well seared and dark brown on one side, ~5-7 minutes. Using tongs, flip steak and grill about 2-5 minutes for rare/med-rare, 4-6 minutes for med-well/well, or until the interior of the meat is slightly less done that you want it to be when you eat it. Cooking times depend on the thickness of the steak.
3) Transfer steak to cutting board. Tent loosely with foil and let rest until you are about to serve.
4) When the heat has been lowered to medium, place onion rounds and peppers on the grill, turning them occasionally, until the onions are slightly charred (~6 minutes) and the peppers are streaked (~8 minutes). Remove vegetables to cutting board and slice into thin strips.
5) Place tortillas around the edge of the grill where the heat is low. Heat for about 20 seconds on each side or until warm. Be careful not to let them dry out. Wrap in a towel to keep warm until serving.
6) Slice the steak thinly on the bias across the grain. Serve immediately with vegetables, tortillas, with the condiments on the side!

Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Canadian Bacon

So first of all, last night we tested out the grill with some pork chops and a very basic marinade. Paired with steamed fresh snap and snow peas and some leftover pasta salad, it was delish. I now want to grill all the time, but I'm not sure if I can persuade the boy. We will have to see. I'm totally willing to do the grilling, but I'm not sure if his man-pride will allow it. We shall see.

But back to the real story. Tonight's dinner was a re-attempt at a recipe that I had marked "Good" for it's general flavor, but was rather unexciting: "Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Ham." I love pasta and peppers and, while not a big ham eater, was willing to take the plunge, esp. since the fiancé likes ham. But the original attempt was rather bland. I am now able to attribute that to, of all things, the ham that I used. I originally bought "Diced ham in water" which sounded about as close as I could get to "boiled ham, diced" without going out and buying a ham steak, boiling it, and actually dicing it up myself. Needless to say, the ham was pretty blah so it did nothing to enhance the flavor of the dish, leaving it sorely lacking. This time, a fortuitous lack of "Diced ham in water" at my ever stockless local grocery, caused me to purchase canadian bacon as a subsitute. I thought that it might spice up the flavor, while still being of the same general consistency and, at least, animal.

I think it was what really made the dish (that and me going a little crazy on the red pepper and adding a dash of garlic salt). The bacon brought a nice smokiness to the dish that made me wish for more by the end. The peppers and onions added a delicious sweetness that paired very nicely with the saltiness of the pork. The red pepper flakes gave it that extra kick. Next time I think I'll cut back a little on the pepper, but definitely go for the canadian bacon again. Though I'm sure good leftover ham steak would work as well. Just go for the good stuff.

This is really quick and easy--you can prepare the sauce in the same time that it takes for the pasta to cook so it's all done together. Huzzah!

Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Canadian Bacon
from Prevention's Ultimate Quick & Healthy Cookbook (with obvious modifications)
Serves 2
8/10

1 tsp olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
a dash of garlic salt!
3 oz canadian bacon (or other good ham), diced
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/2 lb penne pasta
1 oz parmesan cheese
2 TBS chopped fresh parsley
black pepper (to taste)

1) Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta. Cook according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking liquid, drain pasta, and place in serving bowl.
2) Meanwhile in a medium sauce pan, warm oil until very hot but not smoking. Add bell pepper, onions, garlic, oregano, garlic salt, and red pepper flakes. Sauté, stirring, for 2 -3 minutes or until the vegetables begin to soften and relase their juices. Add canadian bacon and sauté until the bacon begins to brown. Add 2 tablespoons of broth and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally for 8 - 9 minutes, or until vegetables are very tender (I found this took a little longer). If the pan gets too dry, add another tablespoon of broth.
3) Add remaining broth and reserved liquid to the mixture. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes, until liquid is reduced slightly.
4) Pour sauce over pasta. Add parmesan, parsley, and black pepper. Toss to coat well and serve!