Spring Glorious Spring!

I’ve been in a funk lately - not the kind that anyone should be worried about, the kind that has been keeping me from writing and blogging. I’ve been cooking but things get in the way of writing - aborted bathroom remodel, restarted bathroom remodel, work travel, husband travel and well you get the picture. 

This week I spent time with friends - the ones I see often and the ones I’ve known for years but haven’t connected with. In both occasions I loved the food, the conversation, and the laughter - priceless and precious. 

One of my favorite things to do with the veggies in my fridge is stir fry them together with a little garlic, ginger and tamari sauce. The fact that I had a block of tofu in the fridge was a bonus. For this particular dish I tossed whatever we had in the pan and Dan did the tofu honors (because no one does tofu better than he does IMHO).

Ingredients:

1 package extra firm tofu

1 onion - diced

2 carrots - peeled and chopped

2 small crowns broccoli - broken into florets

1 red pepper - sliced 

8 ounces mushrooms - I used 1/2 portabella and 1/2 button

3 cloves garlic

grated ginger

Tamari

Cornstarch

red pepper flakes

Instructions:

Cube tofu and set on paper towels to drain. Add olive oil to a skillet and fry tofu until lightly crisped on all sides. Remove to paper towel and drain. 

In the same skillet, add onions, garlic and ginger stir fry until no longer crunchy, add carrots, mushrooms and broccoli and cook until crisp tender and add red pepper slices. 

Mix tamari and cornstarch in a small bowl and whisk until mixed. Pour mixture into veggies and cook until thickened. Add tofu and sprinkle with pepper flakes. Serve with rice or simply on its own. 

I’ve been pondering my next phase of writing and I’m thinking about taking a year’s worth of recipes from the blog and creating a cookbook so stay tuned. Thanks for stopping by!

Healthcare, Hot Sun and Food

We returned from Mexico last Sunday to a 70+ temperature difference, a pile of snow at the end of the driveway and giant icicles hanging from the roof. There is always an adjustment period when we return from vacation.

The week before vacation I spent a couple days in Urgent Care and the Emergency room with what we thought at the time might be a heart attack - thankfully it was nothing more than severe indigestion and acid. Since my mom died of a heart attack at approximately the same age as I am today, the experience was stressful. At the end of the day I won’t be dying of a heart attack any time soon or in the distant future either,  according to my doctor I have an extremely healthy heart :-). 

After all that stress we flew off to Mexico and spent a wonderful relaxing week - we took a cooking class, read books, sat on the beach, swam in the pool, and spent quality time with friends - it was an amazing week. 

Back to reality where bathrooms need to be cleaned, snow needs to be shoveled and cooking needs to be done. The first two I don’t love, they are a necessary evil - cooking however, relaxes me, the chopping, stirring, sautéing and simmering is the perfect antidote to the winter blues. 

One of our favorite vegetables is eggplant, if you were following my blog last summer you’ll recall  we had an abundance of Japanese eggplant, we grilled it, sautéed it with onions, and roasted it. We made Ratatouille, eggplant parmesan, veggie sandwiches, spicy appetizers, baba ganoush as well as other dishes.  

Eggplant is very versatile and it soaks up spices so easily, it’s an easy addition to many dishes. One cup of eggplant is contains 20 calories, .16grams of fat, 4.6 g carbs, .83g of protein, and no carbs so what have you got to lose right?

I found the base recipe for the Braised Chili and Tomato Eggplant on Pinterest - of course I added my own spin especially with the chills - I have to say it was spicy from a flavorful perspective (not hot or burning) and the zucchini and roasted peppers added a nice depth to the dish. 

Braised Chili and Tomato Eggplant

Ingredients:

1 eggplant - medium slices

2 tsp sea salt flakes 

3 bell peppers - I used 2 orange and 1 red

2 zucchini - sliced 

¼ cup olive oil

2 onions - thinly sliced 

4 cloves of garlic

1 small bunch of thyme

1 red chili de arbor (dried)

salt and pepper to taste

1 small container of cherry tomatoes - leave whole

2 Tbsp tomato paste

2 cups veggie stock

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

Instructions:

Slice the eggplant, place in colander and salt. Toss to combine and set aside for 1 hour. Preheat oven/broiler to 485°F. Place the bell peppers on a cookie sheet and cook, turning occasionally, for 12–15 minutes or until blistered and blackened on all sides. Place in a paper bag and set aside for 10 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 475°F. Peel the peppers, remove seeds and discard. Tear into large pieces and set aside. Brush any excess salt from the eggplant and pat dry with a paper towel. Place the eggplant and zucchini on a large oven tray and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the oil. Cook for 18–20 minutes, turning halfway thorough, until golden brown. Set aside.

Heat the remaining oil in a large, shallow saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, thyme, chili, salt and pepper, and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 12–15 minutes or until soft. Add the cherry tomatoes and tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Add the stock and diced tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Cook for 25–30 minutes or until reduced. Add the peppers, eggplant and zucchini. Mix to combine. Sprinkle with pepper and serve with your favorite whole grain bread.  Serves 4–6.

The snow seems to have stopped for a while and the temps are suppose to creep up to something reasonable (for MN of course) toward the end of the week - perhaps Spring is on its way. I’m heading to Texas this week for a work meeting, hoping the sun will shine and I can put my sweater and warm socks in my carry on and leave them there. 

Thanks for stopping by!