Kiy's Recipe Box

We didn't get to three of the meals last week. The week got away from me, I never really got to the grocery store. So we ended up having Subway one night and eating out of the pantry/freezer a couple of nights. Going to try to do better this week as I have fewer appointments, which will help. Don't forget to head on over to Laura's at Organizing Junkie for more Menu Plan Monday.

• Sunday: Vege burgers on whole wheat English muffins, homemade sweet potato fries and frozen peas (for Emi)

• Monday: Light and Yummy Fish Tacos, fruit salad

• Tuesday: Zucchini Slice, melon

• Wednesday: Omelets (cheese, whatever fresh vege’s we feel like), toast, leftover melon slices and/or fruit salad

• Thursday: Leftover Buffet
• Seems we need a specific night for leftovers as some are going to waste and I am not making planned meals because of the leftovers. Going to take a page out of Laura’s book and set up a night like this.

• Friday: Fresh fish (whatever looks good at Yokes), usually grilled with some olive oil, a bit of ginger and soy sauce, served with udon or soba noodles, sugar snap peas or other vege

• Saturday: Free Nite

Original Post: Menu Plan (Mar 31-Apr 5)

Light and Yummy Fish Tacos

Ingredients:
1 lb halibut fillets, skin removed or another white fish fillets, your choice
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ green cabbage
¼ cup chopped white onions
¼ cup chopped English cucumbers
½ bunch cilantro, chopped
1 lime, juice of
salt and pepper
Guacamole (follow above link, see Chunky Guacamole)
salsa (follow above link, see Salsa Fresca)
10 corn tortillas, warmed (see Corn Tortillas)

Directions:

Make the cabbage slaw: Chiffonaide cabbage, add onion, cucumber and cilantro; squeeze juice of 1 lime over the top and toss; add salt and pepper to taste; let sit at room for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat a non-stick oven proof pan over medium heat, add olive oil, add halibut and brown on one side, turn halibut over and put pan in the oven for about 10-15 minutes until halibut is flaky and cooked through.

Serves: 10

To serve: flake cooked halibut into a bowl and serve with warmed corn tortillas and the bowls of the cabbage slaw, guacamole and salsa.

Zucchini Slice

Amount/Measure/Ingredient — Preparation Method

480 grams zucchini — grated (Kiy Note: Jeff says this is a tiny bit more than a pound)
1 carrot — grated
1 cup low fat cheese — grated
¾ cup self-raising flour
½ cup olive oil
4 egg — lightly beaten

Oil a rectangle slice pan. (Kiy Note: I am thinking a 9x13 pan)

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well.

Spread mixture into prepared pan and bake in a moderate oven (Kiy Note: here again, guessing at around 350°) for about 35 minutes or until firm.

Super tired, posting this and heading to bed! Don't forget to hop (haha!) on over to Organizing Junkie for more MPM!

Menu Plan for Week of: Mar 23 – Mar 29

• Sunday: We ended up being ultra lazy. Had leftover fish for breakfast (yes, we really ARE just this odd) and miscellaneous whatever for lunch. We then went out to Olive Garden for dinner (yum!).

• Monday: Spaghetti and (meatless) Meatballs, wheat pasta, fresh fruit salad
• This is absolutely nothing fancy. Any jar of prepared marinara sauce, lots of mushrooms, zucchini, onions (any vege that happens to be in the fridge) and a bag of meatless meatballs. The ‘meatless’ part is an experiment, lets hope it works!

• Tuesday: Zucchini Slice, melon slices

• Wednesday: Light and Yummy Fish Tacos, leftover fruit from fruit salad
• New recipe, hope it works!
  

• Thursday: Eggplant Ricotta Bake (never got to it last week), maybe a broiled chicken breast for Emi and I to share, canned fish for Jeff

• Friday: Fresh fish (whatever looks good at Yokes), soba noodles, frozen peas & carrots

• Saturday: Leftovers/Free Nite

Original Post: Menu Plan for Week of: Mar 23 – Mar 29

Eggplant Ricotta Bake

*See update below*

2 large eggplants, sliced into ½-inch rounds
olive oil
15 oz. part-skim ricotta cheese
3 eggs
1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. garlic powder
black pepper to taste
2 cups marinara sauce

Preheat oven to 450°F. In a bowl, drizzle olive oil over eggplants slices and mix with hands until all slices are lightly coated. Roast in the oven until eggplant is soften and very lightly browned, about 20 minutes. (If slices are getting too brown, flip them mid-way.)

In the bowl you used for the eggplant, combine ricotta, eggs, half of the Parmesan, oregano, garlic powder, and pepper to taste.

Grease an 8×8 baking pan with non-stick spray. Layer eggplant, cheese mixture, and sauce (I make 2 layers of each), ending with sauce. Top with remaining Parmesan. Bake covered with foil for 20 minutes, then uncover and turn on your broiler for a few minutes to brown the cheese on top. Let set before serving.

Note: Sure wish I had made a note on where I found this!

*Kiy Update, March 20th: This was SO GOOD! Easier than I expected and I am sure the next time I make it it will be even easier. I ended up having to roast the eggplant in two batches. Pure laziness, next time I will just use two pans (there is too much eggplant, using two large ones, to fit into one pan). Also, I used a whole jar of marinara sauce. I didn't measure out how much was in the jar, but it looked good to me so I went for it. Lastly, there was so much eggplant I ended up using a 9x13 pan. I have no idea how the original recipe would fit into a 8x8 pan unless they were really tiny 'large' eggplants. Ended up serving with whole wheat pasta, which was perfect. Try this, you won't be sorry!

Asian-Style Grilled Tilapia

Found @ urbanmummy . wordpress . com

*See update below*

Ingredients:
¼ cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
3 large garlic cloves, minced (about a Tbs.)
1 lime, juice of (2 Tbs or so)
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb tilapia fillets (or other thin mild fish)

Directions:

1. Combine the soy sauce, sugar, garlic, lime juice, ginger and red pepper flakes in a wide, shallow baking pan that will hold all of the fish in a single layer.
2. Stir briefly to dissolve the sugar.
3. Add the tilapia, then turn it over so that it's coated all over with the marinade.
4. Set aside for 20 min or so.
5. Heat the broiler to high, and move the oven rack to position closest to heat.
6. Slide the pan into the oven, and broil the fish for 5 minute Keep the oven door ajar so the broiler element stays lit.
7. Turn the pan around (back to front), and broil for 5 more minute.
8. If the juices in the pan appear to burn, add a little water to the dry spot to prevent burning.
9. The fish should be opaque and flaky.
10. Spoon the sauce over the fish when serving.

*Kiy Update, March 18th: Made this tonight. Oh my goodness! YUM YUM YUM! Easy and fast, and did I mention YUM?! Our grocery store was out of tilapia, so I picked up salmon for Jeff and sole for us gals (big mistake, the sole was too thin and boring!), but Jeff said the salmon was great. I used two cake pans, made a batch of the marinade/sauce for each pan, tossed the fish in and put them under the broiler. We have an electric oven (that was interesting to learn to use!), so I put them in (side-by-side) for the first 5 minutes and then started checking. The sole was done less than a minute later, the salmon needed about 3 minutes. Watch that fish carefully! Also, this sauce as SO good, it could be used on anything; steak, pork, chicken ... whatever!

*Update: See below for notes.*

JULES’ HOMEMADE TOMATO SOUP

2 cans (28oz) whole tomatoes or home grown
1-2 cans (14oz) beef or chicken broth
1 small yellow onion, finely diced
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup half & half
½ stick butter
½ tsp sugar
House seasoning to taste*

In large soup pot sauté diced onion in olive oil over medium heat till tender. Season with house seasoning to taste.

Blend the whole tomatoes in a blender until just smooth, only a few seconds. You’ll want a slightly lumpy consistency. Pour tomatoes into soup pot. Add broth to pot to a pleasing consistency. If you prefer a thicker soup add 1 can broth. If a thinner soup add 2 cans broth. Season again with house seasoning to taste. Simmer 10 minutes to allow flavors to combine.

Add half & half, sugar and butter. Stir well as butter melts. Simmer another 20 minutes. Serve with grilled cheddar cheese on rye bread. Yum!

*House seasoning is equal parts kosher salt, black pepper and garlic powder.

*Kiy Notes, March 17, 2008: I made this meal tonight. I was in need of something fast and easy, this more than fit the bill. Things I did: used two cans of crushed tomatoes in puree with one can of low-sodium fat free beef broth. This did two things, (1) no need to put the whole tomatoes into the blender, cutting down on a step and (2), made it nice and thick. I also used fat-free half and half (shhh, don't tell Jeff!), ICBINB margarine and frozen chopped onion (about a cup, give or take). Seriously, this soup rocks. It's so easy that I will keep the ingredients on hand. No more canned tomato soup for this family!