Friday, October 09, 2009

Weekly Menu #1 - Nathan and Jill

Our family has decided to share a week's worth of recipes with each other.
Monday (We didn't make this because I brought home a pizza from Costco)
3 Cheese Pizza using "fresh pizza dough" from Winco, tomato basil marinara, and the cheeses (Ricotta, Mozzarella, and Feta)
Mixed greens salad with tomato and avocado

Tuesday
(OK we didn't make this either, but the Watermelon Soup is my recipe)
Watermelon tomato soup and cheese quesadillas (we want to make sure to make use of this delicious recipe at least once more before we the tasty watermelons are finished for the season)

Watermelon Tomato Soup
1 personal seedless watermelon, cut 1 1/2 c in 1 inch cubes (set aside), puree the rest in a blender
3 medium tomatos, seeded & peeled, cut up one into 1/2 inch cubes (set aside), puree the rest with the watermelon

Saute for about 5 minutes:
1 1/2 T olive oil
1 T finely chopped garlic
1 1/2 T finely chopped fresh ginger
1 Shallot (but next time I'm going to try scallions, think it would be better)

Add:
1 c of the watermelon puree and cook for about 5 minutes.

To watermelon puree in blender:
Hot ingredients
2-3 T fresh lime juice
Handful of cilantro
1/2 - 3/4 tsp salt

Place in glass serving bowl:
Chopped Watermelon and Tomato
1 small seeded & peeled cucumber cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 - 1 seeded finely chopped serrano chile

Pour ingredients from blender over chopped items and stir.

Serve at chilled or at room temperature.

Wednesday (This was delicious and there were plenty of leftovers. I used 6 tsp boullion plus 6 cups of water instead of broth. Next time, I'll use only 4-5 tsp bouillon to 6-7 cups of water:
Crockpot dinner (make it in the morning and then have the delicious aroma of it slow-cooking all day, plus then all you do is ladle it out at dinner time). This is a new recipe for us...not sure if we'll do the ketchup and we are going to add potatoes.


BEEF BARLEY SOUP
1 pound of stew beef, cut into 1/2" chunks
2 c. carrots, diced
1 c. celery, diced
1 lg. onion, diced
1/2 c. uncooked barley
1/4 chopped parsley
6 cups of beef or vegetable broth
2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. dried basil
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp. catsup
Brown the beef in a non-stick saute pan in minimal oil. Remove beef chuinks and place in crockpot. Add the diced vegetables to the pan and stir them around to pick up the flavor bits. Add 1/4 cup of water to the saute pan and stir. Move vegetables to the crockpot with the beef and add the remaining ingredients. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Check near the end of the cook time to see if you need to add more liquid.

Thursday (This recipe was disappointing. All the right ingredients, the sauce tasted delicious by itself, but was lacking when added to the pasta. We didn't make the stuffed tomatoes):
Pasta Verde, stuffed tomatoes (we are not using as many tomatoes as this recipe calls for), and sauteed carrots

PASTA VERDE
2 Tbs. olive oil
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
3 cups coarsely chopped raw spinach
1 cup ricotta cheese (9 oz.)
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tb. fresh basic (1 tsp. dried)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt to taste
1 to 1 1/2 lbs. pasta (fettucine, spaghetti, or egg noodles)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Saute the onions and garlic in the oil until the onions are translucent. Rinse the washed, chopped spinach in a colander and then add it, still damp, to the onions. Cover the pan. When the spinach is wilted and still very bright green, puree the sauteed vegetables with the other sauce ingredients at medium speed in a blender or food processor. Cook and drain the pasta. Toss the sauce with the hot, drained pasta in a warm bowl. Serve immediately, garnished with grated Parmesan cheese.


Oven-Roasted Plum Tomatoes

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
12 large plum tomatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds), halved lengthwise
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Assorted fillings (such as whole-milk ricotta cheese, pesto, chopped olives, small fresh mozzarella balls, soft fresh goat cheese, and anchovies)
Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Remove seeds and juices from tomato halves. Arrange tomato halves, cut side up, on prepared sheet; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper, then drizzle with oil. Roast tomatoes until slightly charred and tender, about 50 minutes. Cool completely on sheet. Spoon desired filling into each.

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