smoky quinoa with shrimp + bacon

August 29, 2014 by rachel logan in side dish

I quit my job two months before our son was due. We had decided I would stay home with him until it made sense for me to go back to work. It was a decision we did not make lightly, especially because living on one income in the San Francisco Bay Area is just straight crazy. We live in the land of million dollar 900 square foot houses and everyone knows somebody who sold their three person start up for a whole lot of money. The weather is pretty much always perfect and within an hour we can be in San Francisco or on the beach in Santa Cruz. If that isn't enough, our dearest friends are here as well as half of our family. For many of our friends who have become parents in the last year, the weather just wasn't enough to keep them here and I can't say I blame them. It's certainly difficult to make ends meet, especially on one income.

When we were working out our one income budget, we knew we would have to adjust our lifestyle. Birthday dinners would be a pizza night at home instead of a fancy restaurant with six of our friends. Travel would be less frequent, if much at all and we would have to tighten the reigns on all of our monthly budget items, including the grocery bill. That was not an easy task for me. I love grocery shopping. Going to Whole Foods is therapeutic for me (although bringing a toddler along makes it less so). I can spend upwards of two hours walking the aisles, adding things to my cart that look interesting as well as executing a loose list of regular items. We cook a lot at home and we do our best to buy organic whenever possible, which includes the meat we buy and all of that adds up, fast. I started menu planning and making detailed shopping lists and did my best to limit waste. Overall, we have made it all work somehow and I'm so grateful I've had this time with my son. The next kid might not get that luxury. Sorry future kiddo, mommy does love you.

At the end of the week, I try to plan for meals that can use up what I have left in the fridge, so we tend to have some kind of stir fry, pasta or quinoa bowl. This week, we had a bag of frozen shrimp stuffed way back in the depths of the freezer and some bacon that needed to be used as well as a bowl of cooked quinoa and some herbs. I thought that all sounded like it would go pretty well together, and man, they really really do.

smoky quinoa with shrimp + bacon

serves four as a side dish

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa, rinsed
8 ounces medium sized shrimp, thawed if frozen, shelled
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
pinch of red pepper flakes
5 pieces of bacon
1/4 cilantro, leaves only
1/4 cup diced red onion

For vinaigrette:

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice
juice of one small lemon
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation:

Bring two cups of water to a boil in a medium sauce pan. Add quinoa and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Transfer cooked quinoa to a large bowl.
In a medium bowl toss shrimp with the smoked paprika, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, cumin and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Set aside.
Cook bacon over medium heat in a large skillet until crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. When the bacon is cool enough to handle, chop it into 1/2 inch pieces.
Wipe out the skillet, leaving a small amount of bacon grease in the pan. Bring the pan the medium high heat. Add the shrimp, and cook until starting to turn opaque, about two minutes. Flip the shrimp over and cook for 30 seconds. Turn the heat off and allow the shrimp to finish cooking in the residual heat of the pan, about one more minute.
Add shrimp, bacon, red onion, cilantro and 3 tablespoons of the vinaigrette (reserve the rest for another use) to the quinoa. Toss to combine and serve.

fruit leather

August 24, 2014 by rachel logan in snacks, toddler approved

I hope I'm not alone in this. I have very high standards for what I consider consumable produce. When I'm at the grocery store, I'm the weirdo examining every detail of each piece of fruit I place in my basket. No bruising, no discoloration, and certainly no insect holes (I've been traumatized by not adhering to that last one). On the way home I make a detailed plan to wash, dry and cut everything to make it more accessible and easier to eat, but by the time I strap a toddler to my chest and haul a diaper bag and 80 pounds of groceries up four flights of stairs, I'm lucky if everything makes it into the fridge. Tomorrow. I'll wash and chop and make it all look appetizing, tomorrow.

Well, tomorrow comes and goes and it's a week later and that sad clamshell of strawberries has been pushed into the depths of the fridge behind the container of hummus and now that we have licked that bowl clean, the strawberries gasp for air, pleading to be acceptable for consumption. Sadly, they just aren't pretty enough anymore. They're dark and starting to shrivel. Normally, they would be tossed under the sink with the rest of the garbage, but I feel bad for them. After all, our relationship had a great start.

As a kid, I remember having a systematic way of eating a fruit roll up. I never unrolled it completely. I only exposed what I was about to eat and kept the rest tightly wrapped. Nibble after nibble, I'd make my way down it's entire foot length, pressing each piece against the top of my mouth until it dissolved. It was probably the most fun snack we ever had in our lunches. Unless, for some unknown reason, we had pop rocks that day.

You may have already guessed that I might have been a fat kid. It's true. Pop rocks and celery sticks coated in seasoned salt don't exactly scream health food. We had a lot of fun, but I've had to work pretty hard to get keep my 'pop rocks fat' off. In an effort to have a little fun, my son gets to have an occasional treat here and there, but I try to give him what I hope to be a balanced diet. The original fruit roll up has quite a bit of sugar in it, but homemade fruit leather makes a great low sugar snack and gives a trash can pardon to those less than perfect strawberries.

I'm gonna be straight with you. This stuff takes a long time to make. It's basically an all day affair. Granted, much of that time is a long stint in a pot, a long stint in the oven and a long time cooling and drying so there isn't a ton of manual labor, but it's certainly not quick. If you're able to, I'd say double the batches and make a ton of it so that you'll feel like you'll get more fruit (leather) for your labor.

fruit leather

makes 2 sheet pans

Ingredients:

For strawberry+raspberry

2 cups strawberries, stemmed and halved
2 cups raspberries
1 tablespoon sugar

For aprium+blackberry

3 cups pitted and chopped apriums (a plum/apricot hybrid, but feel free to use either of those, or peaches would be excellent, too)
1 cup blackberries
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Preparation

Puree each mixture separately in a blender until very smooth. If you don't want seeds, strain both mixtures through a fine mesh sieve and place each in it's own pot over medium low heat and cook until thick, about one hour.
Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees and line two baking sheets with non-stick liners. Spread the mixtures thinly over the liners and smooth the top with an offset spatula, if one is available.
Dry the mixture in the oven until slightly tacky but not sticking to your finger, about 3 hours. Dry on the liner on a drying rack until completely dry, at least three hours and up to overnight.
Place a sheet of parchment on top of the fruit leather, covering it entirely and flip it over. Carefully remove the non-stick liner and cut into strips, roll up, and secure with a small piece of tape. Store in an airtight container for up to one month.

grilled salmon with chimichurri

August 22, 2014 by rachel logan in supper, quick and easy

Around 7:15 am we wake up to either loud playful gibberish or screaming. It all depends on what side of the bed our toddler happens to wake. No matter which way our living and breathing alarm goes off, we both roll out of bed, wipe the sleep from our eyes and hit the daily routine. Ollie gets a "milkshake" in the morning because he doesn't like to drink milk straight quite yet. He usually gets a peanut butter banana shake with whole milk and a sprinkle of cinnamon (come to think of it, that's probably why he doesn't like it plain but I can't blame him, it's pretty delicious). He takes his daily shake on the couch on dads' lap while catching up with the gang on Sesame Street. It's a pretty solid way to start the day.

Eventually, after everyone has been fed, caffeinated and dressed, my husband leaves for work and the toddler and I spend the day running, picking up sticks, trying to eat rocks, doing laundry, napping and attempting to throw a balanced dinner together. Some days everything comes together and we get to eat a satisfying, healthful meal and other days my son wants to be pushed in a cardboard box all day and it's all we can do to get something other than cheez its and blueberries in our mouths. On those days, when my attention leans a bit more than normal, a low maintenance dinner is necessary. Cue a quick cooking protein, a bright herb mixture and pre-washed greens (with a glass of wine for me, please).

grilled salmon with chimichurri

serves 6

This dish comes together quickly. If you have time the day before to whirl the chimichurri ingredients in the food processor or blender for a few seconds, it's gloriously fast. Just throw it in an airtight container and refrigerate it until you need it.

Ingredients:

For salmon

1 cup parsley leaves
zest of one lemon
juice from half of the lemon
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
large pinch of kosher salt
1 large salmon filet (about 2 pounds), skin on

For vinaigrette

(side note) This will make a half pint jar of vinaigrette, so you'll have lots of extra to use the rest of the week. Woot! Also, if you don't already make your dressings in a mason jar, get on that. It's so easy. Just cap it, shake it and pour it on. Then cap it and refrigerate.

1/4 cup olive oil
juice of one lemon
1/2 tablespoon grainy mustard
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

For salad

12 cups baby kale
2 cups peeled and grated daikon
2 cups grated cucumber (no need to peel)
3 green onion

Preparation:

To make the chimichurri, whirl the first six ingredients for the salmon together in a food processor or blender until well blended and the parsley is finely chopped. (If making ahead, place in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight)
Make the vinaigrette by combining all of the ingredients into a lidded jar. Shake well and set aside. (see side note above)
Pre-heat the grill for zone cooking with high heat on one side of the grill and medium on the other. If you are using a charcoal grill, push the hot coals to one side to keep one side a bit cooler and if you are using a gas grill, you can merely turn the heat to medium if you only have one burner.
With an oil soaked paper towel and a pair of tongs, grease the grill grate to prevent the fish from sticking.
Rub the salmon with the chimichurri, reserving about 3 tablespoons. Place the fish skin side down over direct heat until the skin is seared, about three minutes. Move the fish to the cooler part of the grill (do not flip, keep it skin side down) and let it cook until it begins to flake with a fork and is just cooked through, about 9-12 minutes more, depending on the thickness of the fish. Transfer the fish to a cutting board and cut into 6 hefty sized vertical filets.
When the fish is just off the grill, combine the salad ingredients and toss in about 3 tablespoons of vinaigrette. The greens should be lightly coated, not drowning in the dressing, just enough to make them shimmer. Divide the salad among 6 bowls and top with each with a piece of salmon and a drizzle of the chimichurri.

weeknight chili

August 18, 2014 by rachel logan in supper, quick and easy

There was a time when my husband thought he had married a hoarder. When we were first married, I was just learning to cook. I was never very interested in really cooking. Lasagnas with pre made ingredients, chocolate chip cookies and the occasional taco made the rotation but that was about the end of it. Whether it was my new domestic role or the fact that we moved to a city that seemed to find it's very life and breath in the quality of food it produced, I'm unsure, but I rapidly became obsessed with cooking and baking and eating. Along with my new hobby came the collection of supplies, gadgets and cookbooks. I was sucked into all sorts of silly things that were largely unnecessary, but my cookbook collection was really starting to form and when I say form, I mean form a problem. When I had filled all the shelves we had, my husband, very sweetly I'm sure, suggested I have a "one in, one out" rule. Now, I know some of you can sympathize with me on this. I thought that was a terrible idea. They all brought something unique to our kitchen, man. He was worried. I get that. He was afraid we would have to start making walkways through the stacks of books teetering to the ceiling and that we would start to find old pizza buried beneath them. Don't fret. I slowed down and I even got rid of a bunch for the sake of my husbands sanity. He was relieved that he didn't have to stage an intervention. I can't say the same for my mug collection. There may be an intervention any day for that one.

One hutch in our house is basically dedicated to my current collection of cookbooks. I have to say, the fact that I can fit them all in a tiny little hutch is pretty darn good, don't you think? They serve as inspiration for our weekly menu planning and for recipes on occasion. Most nights, I'm throwing some things in a pot and hoping that my understanding of how flavors work together serves me properly. This setup can be a problem when I make something I really love because recreating it is difficult when I can't remember what I put in it.

Chili is the biggest culprit of my culinary amnesia. I don't think I've ever made chili the same way twice. The base is generally the same but each time it's slightly different than the one before. That's the great thing about a big pot of meat, beans and tomatoes, it's a blank canvas.

This particular iteration is one of my favorites and the only one I've written down. The addition of the curry and coconut milk make it a bit more exotic and might make some die hard chili fans cringe (the addition of quinoa might do that, too), but I love the riff on an old standard. If I had more time, I would have served this over a baked sweet potato.

weeknight chili

serves 8

Ingredients:

1 large yellow onion, diced
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey, 93% lean
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon cumin
2 tablespoons mild curry powder
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 15 oz can black beans, drained
2 15 oz cans pinto beans, drained
2 28 oz cans diced tomatoes (I like fire roasted if you can find them)
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup cooked quinoa, cook according to package instructions
1/3 cup light coconut milk
3/4 cup diced red onion
1 avocado diced

Preparation:

Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Drizzle in a bit of olive oil and add the onion and garlic. Saute until the onion is getting soft, about 5 minutes. Add the turkey and the spices and cook until the turkey is almost cooked through, about 6 minutes.
Pour the beans and tomatoes into the pot and season with kosher salt. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cover. Let the chili simmer for about 30 minutes if you're in a hurry and up to 45 minutes if you have some more time. The flavor will concentrate a little more the longer you simmer it. When you're ready to serve, stir in the quinoa and coconut milk. Top with red onion and avocado and serve.