Last Day of Vacation...

last night was a flop, i helped a friend plant her garden so i didn't get home until dinner time. Needless to say it was a good thing Jackson put a pork roast in the oven :)  
I accented it with whole wheat KD (GASP!) and baked beans (wow, meal of champions!)


but you know what, it was DELICIOUS!
and that, is all that matters!


Now for tonight...what the heck do i make?!

Did Someone Say Chicken!?

Ok so i wasn't feeling too overly creative on Wednesday as i spent the day reorganizing half the house. (i love a well organized house!) I then spent the evening in a love affair with the vacuum who had not been "turned on" in at least 5 days (eeeek! for me, that is shameful!) Needless to say dinner wasn't over the top in the fabulous department, rather it was amazingly simple and delicious! The menu was: Sauteed mushroom chicken breasts with green beans, a side salad and roasted red pepper mashed potatoes. 


Chicken:
i used 2 skinless boneless breasts, thawed in the radiation chamber that hangs above the stove
before adding them to the skillet i sauteed white mushrooms, onion, red pepper and garlic in olive oil (hmm sounds like last night...lol) after they were well cooked i added the chicken breasts with a dash of Renee's Roasted Red Pepper salad dressing (we do NOT like it on salad, but its great on chicken) cover and let cook on med heat until tender and not filled with salmonella.

Potatoes:
peel and boil however many taters you think you need. (we did 4 med sized ones...i had leftovers for breakfast today  nomnom)
after they are cooked strain and mash with 2-3 tbsp Philly Roasted red pepper and basil cream cheese, and sour cream. (the key to creamy potatoes..never use milk) 


Green Beans:
Pull bag from freezer (had i grown more last summer we might have been eating our own organic ones...but we ate them all before i froze any)
steam.


ta-da! Simplicity at its best. 

so as it turns out...

When irish and making pasta, it is easier to just get your english husband to operate the pasta machine..mind you it also helps if you have a pasta drying rack, which we did not, so we improvised while we awaited the boiling water.
Rather than post the recipe for the pasta, I will post the site I used. She has fabulous step by step instructions with pictures. Made the whole experience a breeze and we have decided to stop buying pasta and will only make homemade from now on. I can't wait to experiment with different kinds of flours.
pasta step by step

I used the basil pasta recipe, but I think she must have omitted a few things when explaining how to add the basil as it needed 3 eggs to mix properly and she only has you using 2 and she doesn't mention how much olive oil to use. Easiest solution? use the normal plain pasta recipe and just pulse some fresh basil into a pesto with some olive oil and then add it to the flour/egg mixture. Turned out fantastic!

As for the sauce, I chopped another bunch of basil, half an onion, 5 cloves of garlic and a handful of white mushrooms and sauteed them until browning and delicious (with olive oil of course) then I threw in 5 chopped organic plum tomatoes, a splash of balsamic vinegar and a glub of organic Italian salad dressing (yes! adds great flavour!) tossed it around until the sauce started thickening, removed from heat and added chopped feta to the mix. As soon as the noodles were cooked (about 3 mins in boiling water) we tossed the whole mixture together, dished it out, sprinkled some fresh parm on top and VOILA...delicious pasta dinner.

The best part is...it made a lot of pasta...so guess what I'm having for lunch today!


On a side note, while driving to grocery store number 2 trying to find fresh basil (I need to just get a plant and put it out back) I saw a teenager driving a mini van behind me who looked EXACTLY like Edward from the Twilight movies...only he was smoking like a chimney...some one ought to tell him, vampires are too classy for cigarettes.

I hope my Irish roots don't interfere with my ability to make pasta...

for tonight's meal i decided to make something only Jackson has made in our house...handmade, homemade pasta. Last summer when we went home to visit family and friends the ONE thing he INSISTED he had to bring home with him was his hand operated pasta maker. I laughed and said "whatever floats your boat dear" and now I am happy to say, it might just float MY boat. 

I've decided on a fresh basil pasta recipe and will toss the hopefully delicious noodles with a mixture of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, fresh herbs, feta and tomatoes. I'm undecided as to whether i will use any dead animals in this meal. Chicken might be nice, but i don't want to take away from the simplicity of the fresh pasta and the light summery flavours.

stay tuned. I imagine there will be plenty of pictures taken...chances are of me covered in flour.

Dinner...was...

Fabulous! Not only did the bread come out nicely, it is puffy and light, oh so moist and because i cheated and used organic red fife and organic spelt flour in with the whole wheat...its hearty at the same time!
Turns out we didn't have halibut...so i used sole instead. Plain fillets with fresh cracked pepper placed in oven at 450F for 10mins...then simply served with a fresh cilantro/mint  chutney. delicious! I will post both recipes below. 
Also, never under estimate the simplicity of a soothing cup of tea after dinner! Tonight's tea was "raspberry earl grey" unfortunately it was also my last 2 tea bags :( Never fear, i have a bit of a tea obsession as well!

tonight's tea selection

Amish wheat bread

Water, warm, 18 tablespoons

1 pkg active yeast (if you buy the jar like me, its 2 1/4 tsps)

 Whole Wheat Flour, 2 3/4 cups (or hey mix it up, use different whole grain flours...its fun! but i warn you if you don't sift some of the "husks" out...it may not raise properly!) 

 Salt, 1/2 tsp (i never add salt...just sayin...)

 sugar 1/3 cup 

 Canola Oil, 1/4 cup (i used Olive Oil) 

 Egg, fresh, 1 large 

I also added 4 tsps of Vital Wheat Gluten (another poster had suggested it)

Now its supposed to be a bread machine recipe, and yes i have a machine...but darn it, i just love making it by hand, so i used the Kitchen Aid to do the hard work, it was a bit "sticky" so i sprinkled more flour in (most likely almost another 1/4 cup) then i turned the oven on broil for 2 mins, then shut it off to create the perfect warm place for my bread to rise...i did 3 30min rise times with a punch down at each 30min interval. Placed in a oiled bread pan, after rising the 3rd time i pulled it out, preheated the oven to 350F and then baked for 30mins. Voila, i think this is the best whole grain loaf i have ever produced (in terms of lightness and flavour)

Amish wheat bread

And for the fish...

Mint Cilantro Chutney

1 cup loose freshly washed mint leaves 

1/2 cup loose freshly washed cilantro leaves

half a lemon in juice

whole lemon in zest

1 tsp sugar (i used splenda)

1 tbsp oil (olive etc)

wee dash of sea salt

wee dash of fresh pepper

1 green onion 

process in blender/food processor until everything is mixed up and chopped to your preferred size. Dish out over freshly baked fish fillets and enjoy the flavours as they mingle on your tongue!

The recipe i used also said to add some hot peppers before chopping, i omitted that step, as i cannot stand hot things...Jackson would have preferred it with.

dinner is served!

remember, a well fed husband is a happy husband.

Welcome

I thought since i have so many photos of food, canning goods, desserts, and disasters in the kitchen, it was time to make a space totally dedicated to my culinary ups and downs. Today's adventure was Whole Wheat Amish Bread, which looks beautiful in the pan all puffed up and roasted brown...but I have a sinking feeling it will not be leaving that lovely pan without a lot of coaxing, despite having oiled the pan ahead of time. Dinner will be Halibut with a cilantro/mint chutney (both herbs fresh from my garden oasis) along with corn on the cob, and hopefully some bread. All recipes will be listed along with pictures...if the food is deemed edible. I think i might make a nice mushroom couscous pilaf as well.


slainte!

almond mocha torte