Birthday Week

Scott's birthday was on Thursday. He spent his birthday afternoon taking the Anesthesia Knowledge Test. Since we both worked that day we didn't do anything special for his birthday. We did go out to eat at a new restaurant down the street from our house called Ronin Sushi Cafe. We were quite surprised at the quality of the food. Little restaurant in the suburbs (or the city) often are pretty bad. This was delicious. We shared a penang chicken curry and the drunken noodles with tofu.

We spent Saturday working outside. Scott was sanding the deck. We're planning on staining it next week. I mowed the front lawn, which takes an hour alone. The backyard is up next. Mowing the lawn is a new chore for me, but I actually enjoy it. I just listen to my I-Pod and mow away. I had to work from 4 to midnight. I made us french toast for a late lunch before leaving for work. Luckily, work was very light...thankfully not many attorneys were working on a Saturday. I read 300 pages of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (I decided last week to re-read the first book in the series and can't stop reading them).

Here are our meals for the week:

Grilled Zucchini

I made these on the George Forman grill, my new favorite appliance.

Peanut Butter Krispy Treats
This tasty recipe was adapted from a great cookbook, Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson. I decided to add some chocolate.

3/4 cup unsalted creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt (or about 1/2-3/4 t kosher salt)
2 1/4 teaspoons agar-agar flakes (available at a health foods store)
4 cups unsweetened crisp brown crispy rice cereal
6-7 ounces chocolate chips, melted.

Combine the peanut butter, maple syrup, salt, and agar flakes in a large saucepan over low heat and stir constantly until smooth, hot, melted, and bubbling just a bit. Add the cereal and stir until well coated. Transfer to an 8 by 8 inch baking dish and press into place with a wooden spoon or a piece of waxed paper.
Pour melted chocolate over rice krispy treats.
Refrigerate until completely cool, then cut into 2 by 1.5 inch rectangles with a sharp knife.

Monday night:
I made a chicken curry using a Trade Joe's red curry simmer sauce and mixed in half a bunch of spinach. I made a fabulous okra curry as a side dish.

Quick Okra Curry from http://www.recipezaar.com/

SERVES 4
250 g frozen okra, tops taken off and the rest cut into one inch pieces
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon cayenne (I omitted)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ginger powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 cup water
Saute onions in oil until golden brown.
Add spices and half cup water.
Saute for two minutes on medium heat.
Add okra, salt, and rest of water.
Cook covered for 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes. Cover and cook until okra is cooked (15-20 min) on medium heat.

Wednesday Night:
Another cooking blog that I really enjoy is Simply Recipes: www.elise.com/recipes. She had an interesting recipe for a salmon stew that I decided to try. I've been trying to add more fish to our diet. This stew was tasty...not my favorite dish, but good enough to remake. I didn't like the pictures much, but this gives you some kind of idea.

Salmon Fish Stew, Brazilian Style

Marinade:
The cloves from 1/2 head of garlic, peeled, crushed, minced
2 Tablespoons of fresh lime juice
3/4 teaspoon of coarse salt
1 Tablespoon of sweet paprika
2 1/2 teaspoons of dry cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons of freshly ground black pepper

Other:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds of salmon, cut into 2-inch pieces (largish-bite sized pieces)
Olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
1 large bell pepper, seeded, de-stemmed, and sliced
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 14-ounce can thick coconut milk
1 large bunch fresh cilantro, chopped, 1-2 cups

1 Mix together the marinade ingredients. Let the salmon marinate in this paste for at least 2 hours. The longer, the better.
2 In a large pan (large covered skillet or Dutch oven), coat the bottom of the pan with a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Add a layer of sliced onions, and then a layer of sliced bell peppers, and a layer of sliced tomatoes. Place the fish pieces, with the marinade, on top of everything, and start layering again - onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Add about half of your fresh cilantro to the top. Pour coconut milk over the top. Drizzle generously with olive oil over the top (several tablespoons).
3 Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, until the vegetables are cooked through.

Serve with rice; garnish with remaining cilantro.

Serves 6-8, very generously.

Friday night:
I made a fabulous dish tonight. It was super-easy, pretty healthy, and will definitely become a regular dish at our house.

Italian Turkey Sausage and Peppers with Bowtie Pasta from www.recipezaar.com.

SERVES 4 -6

1/2 large onion, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional or to taste)
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper
4 fresh basil leaves, torn
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 teaspoon fresh oregano
1 lb Italian turkey sausage link (about 6 links)
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
8 ounces bow tie pasta, cooked (I used rigatoni)

Saute onion, peppers and pepper flakes in olive oil until onions start to brown.
Add garlic, salt, pepper, basil and oregano.
Set aside.
Prick sausage links with a fork.
Saute in skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat until brown.
Add wine vinegar and canned tomatoes (with liquid).
Add the sauteed vegetable mixture.
Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile cook pasta al dente.
Add cooked pasta to sausage and pepper mixture.
Stir and serve.