Peppercorn Fish

For dinner tonight I made Peppercorn Swai Fillets ... yummo!  The fillets are lightly breaded (in a flour creamy peppercorn spice mix - thank you Penzy's) and fried in olive oil.

And for dessert ... the final two (small) leftover cupcakes and frosting. 

Summer Salad

This salad is something that a friend of mine taught me while I was living in London.  She's from the Middle East, though I don't know if this is a "traditional" dish or just something she made ... at any rate, I love it ... it's simple, spring/summery and delicious!

Ingredients:
Celery, chopped
Cilantro, chopped
Parsley (large leaf), chopped
Tomato's, chopped
Fresh Lemon Juice
Fresh Ground Black Pepper & Salt to taste
Olive Oil

Combine ingredients in a bowl ... mix ... eat.

Black Bean Salsa

This is one of the best things I've made in a while ... YUM!  I used a recipe that was in a Penzy's spice catalog.

Black Beans
Corn (fresh from the cob)
Red Bell Pepper
Sweet Onion
Fresh Cilantro
Fresh Parsley
Cumin
Crushed Black Pepper
Fresh Lime Zest & Juice
Olive Oil

Chop, spice, mix ... DEVOUR!!!!

4th of July "BBQ"

This years 4th of July was SUPER low key for me...as in, I'm the lame-o who didn't do anything or go anywhere.  But I digress...it was the 4th of July, so I made some summer salads, corn on the cob, a "grilled" Portobello Mushroom and "BBQ'D" Chicken.  Tasty!

Red Potato & Rosemary Salad, Tomato Salad & Deviled Eggs

This is how one grills (and slightly burns) a piece of chicken when they don't have an outdoor grill...

Garlic SCAPE Pesto

Well, today marks two culinary firsts for me.

1.) Working with garlic scapes (sounds horrible doesn't it ... they are just the flower stalks of garlic plants) ... they look rather silly -->

2.) Making a pesto.  Something I've never done before.  The scapes, and the recipe, came with this past weeks co-op vegetables.  So, thought I'd give it a go.

What's in the pesto you ask?

Garlic Scapes

Pine Nuts

Parmesan Cheese

Olive Oil

&

Salt & Pepper

In a little while I will cook some pasta and a piece of chicken to use the pesto ... smells divine just as it is, so I'm kind of eager to for dinner.  :)

Kale Chips

Garlic Kale Chips ... something I'd never heard of ... a vegetable I've never purchased (my folks are very generously sharing their co-op veg with me) ... and let me tell you, they rock (my parents and the kale chips)!

Super easy recipe:

Preheat oven to 350

Wash fresh kale.

Break kale into 'bite size' pieces.

Toss kale in a small bowl - with a bit of olive (or avocado) oil - use your hands to ensure kale is sufficiently covered.

Place kale in baking dish (the recipe I used called for a baking sheet with baking parchment on it which I didn't have ... so ...).

Sprinkle a bit of garlic powder on the kale.

Bake for 12 minutes.

Sprinkle a bit of salt on them ... and crunch away!

Basil & Onion Hamburgers

Today I cooked fresh basil (grown on my kitchen windowsill thank you very much) and chopped onion burgers.  Very tasty!!!  I was actually, and pleasantly, surprised that with the basil in the burger, they didn't need ketchup and mustard.  :)

And as I'm trying to cut down on my carb intake, no buns!