Paella

I say it is paella, but it really isn't. It is a rice/seafood/vegetable skillet meal that might make you think of paella, but I know it would never really fool anyone. But it is simple to make and doesn't require saffron which a few threads of costs more than all the other ingredients combined. I quite enjoyed it. This recipe was given to me by my friend Stephanie who I was telling I'd only ever eaten paella in Spain and had never dared attempt it.

2 c chicken broth
1 10 oz bag yellow rice mix
3 oz. chorizo, chopped (or other sausage, linguisa, or pepperoni)
1 c bell pepper, chopped (I used red, it is my fav)
1 lb cooked shrimp
3 lb scallops (I think I used half this amount)
1 c frozen peas
In a 10 inch frying pan over high heat, bring broth to a boil. Stir in rice mix, reduce heat, and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small frying pan over medium heat, stir chorizo and pepper until well browned, about 10 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for about 4 minutes, remove from heat.
Stir shrimp mixture, scallops, and peas into rice mixture and cook over medium heat, covered, until scallops are no longer translucent, about 4 minutes.

Tostadas and Ceviche

Since I'm doing very little cooking these days, this was a very easy throw together meal. I bought those pre-made tostadas (that are just tortillas fried up crisp), and then warmed up a can of refried beans, grated some cheese, and made ceviche. I should have had other toppings like lettuce/tomatoes/avocados/etc. but didn't have them on hand. When 7yo saw the tostadas he got really excited and said, "This is a Giovanni special!!!" Giovanni is his friend from school, who apparently makes his own special tostada to bring in his lunch. I think if I offered more toppings, that the kids might come up with their own specials, but this was good enough for tonight.

I have been thinking about ceviche lately for two reasons. First, I went to a birthday party that had a gargantuan bowl of ceviche that was really delicious. Second, a couple months back I bought 3 bags of shrimp because I had coupons. It isn't usually exactly a staple for me but I've had to find some recipes to use them. And now I want them to be a staple. I need more coupons.

I looked online to learn about ceviche and was a little bit horrified to find that traditionally the shrimp (or salmon or other seafood) is raw, but when soaked in lemon or lime juice its proteins are chemically changed to appear cooked. Made me a little squeamish, even though I know that raw seafood is a delicacy in many cultures. I kept looking around and finally found a website with cooked ceviche, they cited the reason for cooking was that the heat kills bacteria that the lemon juice method can't, and that a fairly recent cholera outbreak in South America motivated the change. (Thank you, cholera.) I usually buy the precooked shrimp anyway, but I did have one bag of raw and decided to use it for this. Otherwise, you can just save yourself that step.

1 lb. shrimp

cucumber, chopped

green onions, chopped (or red onion)

cilantro, chopped

lime juice, few tablespoons

hot pepper, chopped, to taste (different recipes specified different types, all I had was a dried red chile, it worked)

salt, to taste

Boil the shrimp for about 3 minutes, drain and remove whatever tails or shells they may have. Combine all the ingredients and refrigerate. This would have been even more awesome if I'd had an avocado to chop in there.

Garlic Soup

I made this soup just for me. I didn't expect anyone else to even try it. Good thing, because once I tasted it I didn't want to share it.

Everyone knows Violet Beauregard in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She turns into a blueberry. But right before she does, she is chewing gum that tastes just like real food, she could even feel it going down her throat. That is what I thought as I was eating this soup. It is so full-flavored, it feels like you are eating something you need to chew.

You will find the recipe here.

I omitted the bay leaf (just because I'm not a fan). I substituted some very sharp cheddar for the parmesan, because I had just used the last of the parmesan in the quinoa risotto (oops). My soup ended up looking a little curdled, I'm not sure if that is how it is, or if it was because of the substitution, or if I just wasn't scientific enough when I tempered the eggs. So being the sloppy cook I am, I probably wouldn't serve this to guests, but it tasted wonderful. I recommend it for anyone who is sick as it will clear those sinuses right up, and for anyone who is healthy, too.

Quilters Soup

I'm not sure why it is called quilters. I don't quilt so I couldn't tell you. My friend who gave me this recipe said she likes it because you can make the whole thing from your food storage. I changed a couple things because of what I had around, but it was easy and very very filling.

2 cans Italian Stewed crushed tomatoes

2 cans water

1 can corn, drained (I used some frozen)

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained (I don't like kidney beans much, so I just used extra black beans)

1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

2 cans chicken, drained (I used some leftover chicken I had)

1 pkg. Chicken Taco Seasoning Mix (McCormick) (I used some chili powder, thyme, and oregano)

Place all ingredients in a large saucepan, bring to a boil and then simmer for at least 45 minutes. Or cook on low in the crockpot all day. Then go make a quilt. She said serve with corn chips, but I knew the kids would eat only the chips, so I made cornbread instead.

Shrimp and Quinoa Risotto

The cupboards are getting bare. With 2yo in a cast, grocery shopping is challenging. He can't walk and he can't fit in the cart. I can push him around in the stroller, but one-handed around corners doesn't work too well, so that doesn't leave many options for where to put the groceries I want to buy. Basically, our shopping trips have been reduced to restocking milk, bread, and bananas. (My family can't live without bananas.)

But, a neighbor just told me a secret. Safeway has free delivery. I'm going to have to look into that. And really many friends have offered to help out, so I shouldn't complain. The problem I keep having is that for a friend to help out I need to plan ahead and schedule a convenient time. Although my friends are very generous, I don't think I should just show up on their doorstep every time I run out of milk.

Anyway, that didn't help me last night as I was looking through the freezer hoping to find something useful. I only had a little chicken and some shrimp. I remembered that Poor Girl frequently uses shrimp, so I took a look and found many tasty sounding options, but the one that I had the ingredients for was this one. Well, most of the ingredients. I don't usually have wine around, so when cooking I substitute broth. But since this recipe calls for wine and broth, I decided to find something that had a little sweetness in it. What could I come up with? After some scrounging, pineapple juice. Since it was a small amount, the end product didn't taste pineapple-y at all, so I guess it worked. I also only had one lonely vegetable alongside my bag of carrots in the fridge, and it wasn't asparagus as the recipe calls for. So my last zucchini made it in. The results were fantastic and filling, but unsurprisingly not too popular with the picky eaters. 7yo picked out the shrimp and left the rest, and I bet I could have sold more people on the quinoa if it didn't have other things mixed in.

Sesame Noodles

My dietician friend pointed me to this recipe which was so so easy and yummy. The kids ate plain pasta, but my husband and brother both liked it.

I also used almond butter like she said just because I had some. I used the vegetables from the original recipe, not the ones she used, but I'm sure any vegetables would be good.

Ok, I know I'm not really very cultured, but I had never had sesame noodles before. I thought that eating this cold would be weird. But it was really good, just think of it as an asian pasta salad.

Salmon Loaf

My mom used to make this when I was little. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I think it is a little gross. But it is soooooo easy to make. These days I'm not cooking as much as I used to due to 2yo breaking his leg, so it came in handy.

(*measuring is completely optional*)

15 oz can salmon
1 1/2 c grated cheese
1 egg
salt
1 c bread crumbs (I just put a couple slices of bread in the blender)

Carefully drain and remove bones from salmon (this is the gross part). Mix all ingredients together and press into an 8x8 square pan. Bake for 35 minutes at 350.

Chinese Chicken Salad

I went to a church meeting where they served us this salad for dinner. I've had salad like this before with cabbage and ramen noodles, so this one was a little different. I liked it--especially with an alternative to the ramen. The cilantro in it was my favorite part.

Dressing:
4 Tbs. Heinz Vinegar
4 Tbs. Sugar
1 tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Pepper
4 Tbs. Salad Oil

Salad:

2 Chicken breasts

3-4 Green Onions

Cilantro

1 Head of Lettuce

½ pkg. Mai Fun Noodles

½ Cup Chopped Peanuts or Sliced Almonds

Boil chicken and shred into bite size pieces.
Fry Mai Fun noodles in hot oil. Keep in plastic bag to keep from getting soggy and stale.
Finely chop the head of lettuce
Chop peanuts. . . .we like lots of peanuts / or used sliced almonds.
Chop green onions and add cilantro if you wish, or leave cilantro in large twigs so people can pull them out.

Serve it fresh. . .
Mix together lettuce, chicken, green onions and cilantro. Mix salad dressing and pour it over the first four ingredients, mix in the noodles and nuts last. Serve immediately.