Dinners

As I mentioned before, the dinners required a fair amount of cooking, but really, getting home by 6:30 let me get dinner on the table by 7:45-8pm in almost all cases. What really wore me out was then doing prep work for the next day, which in some cases took until 9pm.

The Ultimate Winter Couscous with Green Salad (Serves 4)

2 carrot, chopped

2 parsnip, chopped

8 shallots, peeled

2 cinnamon stick

4 star anise

3 bay leaves

5 TBSP olive oil

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground turmeric

1/4 tsp hot paprika

1/4 tsp chile flakes

2 cups cubed butternut squash

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1 cup chickpeas

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup couscous or bulghur wheat

pinch of saffron

1 cup boiling vegetable stock

3 TBSP butter

Preheat the oven to 375 F. In an ovenproof dish, mix carrots, parsnips, shallots, cinnamon, anise, bay, 4 TBSP of the oil, 3/4 tsp salt, ginger, turmeric, paprika, chile flakes. Cook in oven for 15 minutes. Add the squash cubes, mix, and return to oven for 35 minutes. Add the apricots and chickpeas with the water, and return to the oven for 10 minutes or until the vegetables are well roasted.

After adding the chickpeas, put the coucous in a large heatproof bowl with 1 TBSP olive oil, saffron, the 1/2 tsp salt, the boiling stock and cover the bowl securely. After 10 minutes, add the butter and fluff up the couscous with a fork. Cover and leave someplace warm.

Serve the couscous covered with the vegetables. Add harissa, cilantro, and preserved lemons if you like.

Serve with a green salad.

Salmon with Black-Eyed Pea Curry and Roasted Squash

Salmon in a Bengali Mustard Sauce (Serves 2-3)

It's not surprising this is so good, it's a Madhur Jaffrey recipe. I did find that rather than spooning "sauce" over the fish, I was spooning an oily spice mixture, but it was really really delicious. I served this with brown rice.

FIsh spices:

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Other spices:

1 tablespoon ground mustard

1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 TBSP olive oil

1/4 teaspoon whole brown mustard seeds

1/4 teaspoon whole cumin seeds

1/4 teaspoon whole fennel seeds

2 fresh hot green and/or red chilies (bird's-eye is best), slit slightly

Cut the fish into pieces that are about 2" x 1" and rub them evenly with the salt, turmeric, and cayenne. Cover and set aside in the refrigerator for 30 minutes-10 hours.

Put the mustard powder, cayenne, turmeric, and salt in a small bowl. Add 1 tablespoon water and mix thoroughly. Add another 7 tablespoons water and mix. Set aside.

Pour the oil into a medium frying pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the mustard seeds. As soon as they start to pop, a matter of seconds, add the cumin and fennel seeds. Stir once and quickly pour in the mustard paste. Add the green chilies, stir, and bring to a gentle simmer. Place the fish pieces in the sauce in a single layer. Simmer gently for about 5 minutes, or until the fish is just cooked through, spooning the sauce over the fish all the time.

Black-Eyed Pea Curry (Serves 4)

This was so delicious that it is my new go-to recipe for bean curries. I like it even better than the standard chickpea curry, the beans are a much gentler texture.

I used dried black-eyed peas, and soaked them overnight. The first thing I did when I got home was to start them boiling hard for 10 minutes (as Deborah Madison advised me). I then had them simmering for additional time until it was time to add them to the curry, say another 15-20 minutes.

4 tbsp vegetable oil

2 bay leaves

2 tsp cumin seeds

2 green chiles, left whole or slit

1 small-medium onion, peeled and chopped

1 1/2in piece of fresh ginger, peeled

5 cloves of garlic, peeled

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1/4-1/2 tsp pure red chile powder

1 tbsp ground coriander

1 tsp garam masala

Salt, to taste

3 large tomatoes, puréed

2 cups of black-eyed peas, soaked, boiled, drained and rinsed

Handful of fresh cilantro leaves and stalks, chopped

Heat the oil in a medium-sized nonstick saucepan. Add the bay leaves and fry for 20 seconds, then add the cumin seeds and fry until they sizzle. Add the green chiles and onion and cook until well browned.

Meanwhile, using a blender, make a paste of the ginger and garlic with a splash of water. Stir into the pan and cook for about 1-2 minutes or until you can smell the cooked garlic. Add the powdered spices and salt and stir for another 30 seconds or so before pouring in the tomatoes. Cook over medium heat until the oil leaves the masala, around 12-15 minutes.

Add the drained beans and mix well in the masala. Cook for a couple of minutes before pouring in 1 cup water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Take 2 tablespoons of the beans out of the gravy, mash well and stir back in. Stir in the fresh cilantro and serve.

They recommend serving this with oven-roasted butternut squash with some spices I don't own (curry leaves). This makes a good augment to the meal, or even a substitution for brown rice.

If you want to add this, roast the squash with olive oil, thyme, pepper, and salt for 30 minutes at 400.

Bulgur Pilaf with Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower (serves 4)

This was a great hit at the gaming night potluck, with a side of more roasted butternut squash. I am unclear on how this made it past the recipe censors, since it has white sugar in it. Actually, with the three different spellings of bulgur and the shopping list for this cleanse being a complete mess, so I DO see how.

I was also really excited that this let me use up some of the pink peppercorns that have been languishing in my spice drawer. If you don't have any, do NOT substitute black peppercorns as they will overpower the dish.

4 white onions, sliced

3 red bell peppers, sliced

2 1/2 TBSP tomato paste

1 TBSP sugar

2 tsp pink peppercorns

2 TBSP coriander seeds

2/3 cup currants

1 cup bulgur wheat

1 3/4 cup water

salt and pepper

some chopped chives (1-2 TBSP)

Preheat the oven to 400 (for the broccoli / cauliflower).

Heat the olive oil in a large pot and saute the onions and peppers for 15 minutes until they are soft. Add the tomato paste, sugar, pink peppercorns, coriander, and currents and stir. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the bulgur, water, salt, pepper, and bring to a boil. When it boils, turn off the heat and add a tight-fitting lid, and let sit for 20 minutes Fluff with a fork and add the chives.

While cooking the bulgur, cut 1 head broccoli and 1 head cauliflower into florets and toss with oil and salt. Put on a cookie sheet in a preheated 400 oven and roast about 25 minutes. Squeeze some lemon over them before serving, but if you skip the lemon, life will still turn out okay.

Better yet, follow this old favorite of mine:

http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2008/11/the_best_brocco.html

The recipe recommends adding 2 poached eggs to this dinner, but I think that's because the dietitian insisted on some extra protein. Eat my improvised chicken sandwich for lunch instead, and you'll be fine.

Salmon Cakes, Chard, and Lentil Soup

Curried Lentil Soup (Dishonorable Mention)

I mention this only to keep my dear readers from trying to make this catastrophe of a lentil soup. It was awful and tasted raw and chalky.

Instead of this, make the Deborah Madison Lentil Minestrone.

http://lifedivided.blogspot.com/2010/01/deborah-madisons-lentil-minestrone.html

Fresh Salmon and Lime Cakes with Sauteed Chard

These were intended to be served with the above Lentil Soup, but perhaps because I had a large lunch, I was just fine with just the salmon cakes. I don't have kefir lime leaves or chervil, and they tasted just fine nonetheless Mmmm, wasabi paste. Yum.

1 lb skinless salmon fillet, chopped

1 egg white, beaten

3 TBSP rice flour

(omitted: 2 kaffir lime leaves, chopped)

1 TBSP minced ginger

1 tsp wasabi paste

(omitted: 3 TBSP chopped parsley)

Canola or corn oil for frying

Mix the salmon, egg white, rice flour, ginger, and wasabi in a medium bowl.

Sauce: (This makes WAY TOO MUCH sauce. Feel free to half or even quarter the proportions.)

1/4 cup fresh lime juice (2 limes)

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 TBSP brown sugar

Mix to combine.

Heat the oil over medium heat. Place 2 TBSP of the mixture in the hot oil and cook for 1 minute on each side or until lightly golden. Drain on paper towels.

Chop 1 bunch of chard and sautee in 2 TBSP olive oil over medium heat. Add 1 clove sliced garlic and a dash of red pepper flakes and cook for 5-8 minutes.

Serve the salmon cakes on top of the chard.

Roast Salmon over Avocado and Grapefruit Salad (Favorite)

This was so simple and light and flavorful that I can't praise it highly enough. The citrus was a great balanced contrast to the salmon. Perfect fast weeknight meal.

Take 1 lb salmon fillet (serves 2) and brush with oil, salt, pepper. Preheat oven to 425 and place salmon skin side down on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Roast for 11 minutes or until salmon is just opaque in the center.

Whisk together the dressing:

2 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

2 TBSP fresh lemon juice

2 TBSP minced shallot

1/4 cup walnut oil

1/4 cup olive oil

salt and pepper

1 head butter lettuce, washed and torn

2 ripe avocados, peeled and sliced

2 grapefruits, segmented (supremed, if you will) from the pith

Arrange lettuce on each dinner plate, scatter with avocado and grapefruit pieces, drizzle with the dressing, and add a big ole heaping fillet o' fish on top. salt and pepper the sucker.

Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Butternut Squash

I know, I know, I said I was done with the squash. But tonight's meal was being served to someone on the paleo diet, so I couldn't rely on the Quinoa salad to tide her over. (Which is a good thing, since it was a flop.) The only thing wrong was that the Fig Chutney was about 7 flavors too much. Figs AND olives AND grapes AND chai -- it was overwhelming savory and sweet without being good.

1 lb pork tenderloin

1 TBSP olive oil

salt and pepper

1/4 tsp fennel seed

1/4 cup prepared fruit chutney (or poach some pears)

Rub the pork with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and fennel. Roast in a 450 oven for 15-20 minutes, or until pork hits 165 internal temp. Let it rest (its so tired) for 10 minutes, then slice on the bias. Serve with some fruit chutney.

At the same time, lube up and roast about 1lb of butternut squash cubes in the oven, and don't neglect the olive oil and salt for these guys, it makes a big difference.