Cedar Plank Salmon

Ummm...WOW!  Not sure why I never tried this before.  It was so easy and delicious.

Simply seasoned with S&P, placed on a cedar plank and then directly on the charcoal grill.  We cooked it for about 30 minutes and then put it in the oven for 10 more minutes at 400 degrees.  

I served it with white wine, sundried tomato and mushroom risotto and cooked spinach. 

This will be happening again real soon! Amazing! 

Avocado & Poached Eggs

A simple, delicious, healthy breakfast.  Toasted Ezekiel bread, mashed avocado w/ lemon juice, S&P, and poached eggs garnished with fresh basil.  

Enjoy! 

  

Sautéed Organic Golden Beet Greens

As I was starting to throw the greens from my golden beets away, I remembered seeing a dish with beet greens as a side.  I looked up a couple recipes and decided to give them a try.  They have a nice soft texture and very mild flavor.  They were a hit in my house.

Pull the green leaves off of the stalks, rinse and then boil for 2 mins in lightly salted water.  Drain and place in cold water to stop the cooking.  In a sauté pan melt some coconut oil, 1 clove of minced garlic and a dash or two of crushed red pepper.  Sauté for just a min and add the drained, chopped greens and sauté for just a minute more until hot.  Season with S&P to taste.  Serve with fresh lemon slices. 

I will definitely make these anytime I'm able to get my hands on organic beets.  Delicious!!! 

Blue Cheese, Honey & Yogurt Spread w/ Apples

I only wanted a snack, but I are so many it turned into a meal.  

Mix equal amounts of honey and Greek yogurt and twice as much crumbled blue cheese (1 TBSP each of honey and yogurt & 2 TBSP blue cheese). Heat in microwave, stir together and use as dip or spread. It was delicious paired with the fresh, sweet apples. 

Egg Salad w/ Turmeric

This presentation does not do this delicious salad justice.  It should be served on a gold platter.  I couldn't seem to find one of those in my cupboard, unfortunately.

I've read quite a bit about the health benefits of turmeric recently and decided it was time to give it a try.  I played it safe and tried a simple egg salad.  Simple it is not.  The favors are so bright and delicious.  I want to put turmeric in everything I cook. It's fantastic! 

Without any specific measurements, I threw together some typical egg salad ingredients and added turmeric:

Hard boiled eggs - about 10

Mayo - about 1 Cup

Deli Mustard - 1 tsp.

Green Onions - 3 chopped

Turmeric - about 1Tbsp.

Salt to taste 

You will never make egg salad again without turmeric. 

Ever! 

Veggie Delux Pizza Pie

Nothing special...just lots of yummy veggies with San Marzano pizza sauce and fresh baked pizza crust. 

My Friday night is complete! 

Snack Time

Assorted gourmet olives, Brie cheese, gala apples and crackers with a glass of wine, of course! 

Yum! 

Apple Cinnamon Refrigerator Oats

I am not a huge oatmeal fan but thought this would be worth a try.  My mornings are hectic and to have something like this to grab as I rush out the door would be perfect.  I bought a case of Ball mason jars.  They are 2 cup jars.  

In each jar I added:

1/2 C Old Fashion Thick Rolled Oats

2/3 C Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

2 Tbsp Plain Greek Yogurt 0%

2 1/2 Tsp Chia Seeds

1 Tbsp Pure Maple Syrup

1/2 Chopped Gala Apple

A couple dashes of Cinnamon 

Cap it, shake it and refrigerate it! 

The next day the oats have absorbed all of the liquid and softened.  They were pretty pasty so I added about 2-3 Tbsp of the Almond Milk to thin it out a little bit.  They are delicious!  I will definitely be making more and experimenting with different fruit combinations.  This is a perfect breakfast with all of the nutrients you will need to start your day off right. 

Enjoy! 

Cream of Celery and Carrot Soup - Buffalo Style

With baskets full of veggies to use up from last week, I had to make a soup.  Thanks to the disgusting January weather in Ohio, comfort foods are in high demand.  This puréed soup was great on it's own, but a whole new experience with the blue cheese and buffalo sauce addition!

2 Whole Celery Bunches 

2 Large Carrots

1/2 White Onion

3 Green Onions

1 Roma Tomato

3 Cloves of Garlic

2 Handfuls of Baby Spinach

1 Handful of Parsley

Clean and rough chop all of this and sauté in a sauce pan with a little bit of olive and flax seed oils.  Sprinkle with S&P.  

Crumble in 2 dried Sage Leaves

Add with water until just to the top of the veggies.

Cover and simmer on low for about 1 hour.

Let cool and purée in a blender. 

Pour back into sauce pan to season and taste.  

Add a dash of Cayenne Pepper and Cumin, S&P to taste. 

Serve hot or cold!  Add any topping you like.  The blue cheese and buffalo sauce was a hit!

Enjoy! 

Marsala Roasted Fennel and Mushroom Pasta

Fresh garlic and chive fettucini (courtesy of The Anderson's) with a pesto, Marsala, tomato sauce, topped with Marsala roasted fennel, onion and Baby Bellas. 

P.S.  This was a test of my new iPhone 5S camera.  Not too shabby! 

Shawarma Tacos w/ Greek Yogurt Tzatziki Sauce

In an effort to avoid ordering delivery from my favorite Lebanese restaurant, I created these delicious  Mediterranean tacos.  Stack steamed  corn tortillias, baby spinach, sliced Roma tomatoes, ground  Shawarma seasoned meat and Greek yogurt Tzatziki sauce.  On the side there is a light bulgar wheat salad. 

- Tzatziki Sauce -

Greek Yougurt 0%

Fresh chopped mint, dill, parsley

Chopped cucumber

Salt to taste 

Mix and let marinate.  

Quick, simple and delish!!

Enjoy! 

Vegetable Soup w/ Muenster Cheese Sandwich Wedges

Just doing our best to keep warm in the Arctic tundra of Findlay, Oh! 

Southwest Venison & Sweet Potato Hash w/ Poached Eggs

A cold winter morning calls for a hearty breakfast.  I love making hash.  It is a good way to use up veggies and leftover roast.  For this one I tried sweet potatoes.  They were surprisingly good with the all of the other savory components.  

Chopped and boil the sweet potato until tender.  

Chop onion, garlic, mushrooms and roast. 

Season with S&P, oregano and a little chipotle chili powder.

Sauté everything in a little EVOO until it all has a little brown crisp on the edges.

Plate a top with eggs of your choice.  I love, love, love poached eggs so I tend to use them a lot.  They also look good in the pictures! :) 

On the side I served some crispy baked corn tortillias wedges. 

Enjoy!

Curried Chicken Salad

Chop rotisserie chicken, mix with mayo, curry powder, cucumber, red pepper, S&P.  Serve on Triscuits with fresh avocado and chives!  Yum!!

It's chili time!

Tis the season for stick-to-your-bones home cookin...so I broke out the crockpot! 

This wasn't anything fancy.  Just your normal chili ingredients: 

1 1/2 C. Dry Black and Great Northern Beans (I was out of Kidney Beans)- soaked overnight

1 Sm. Onion and 4 Cloves of Garlic - sautéed in EVOO

1 Lg. can of Crushed Tomatos + 1 can of Water + 1 TBLS of Sugar

1 Red Pepper - finely chopped 

1 1/2 lbs. Cubed Venison (Beef or Pork) - browned in EVOO and a generous coat of seasonings:

Chilli Powder

Ancho Chili Powder

Chipotle Chili Powder

Cayenne Chili Powder (in moderation) 

Garlic Powder

Black Pepper

Salt

Cumin

Oregano

Add everything to the crockpot and cook on low all day. 

Remove and shred the meat, if you desire. Return to the pot and season to taste.  I usually need to add more chili powder, garlic powder and salt at this point. 

Serve with your favorite toppings: cheese, onions, sour cream, etc...

Or over macaroni noodles (these were gluten free)

Stay warm! 

More photo experiments...

Bowl-O-Pistachios with a side light (unedited)...

Adding a little pattern and a cool little square picture setting I found on my iPad (also unedited)!

I have been obsessed with food photography technique sites lately.  So much so that I have successfully procrastinated on completing my final projects, for my final courses, to finally be done with school, FINALLY!  Oops!

I'm going to have to take tomorrow off of work now to get my paper done.  Oh well!  

A 3 day weekend sounds delightful...

P.S. I may have also been completely enthralled in the live broadcast of The Sound of Music tonight, just maybe.   

Take 2

Pasta Carbonara with a few different angles...

I think I need to stick with the close-ups until I get some tabletop props. 

Light Box Testing

Take 1

I don't have a "normal" tomato picture to compare this to but I think it looks pretty good.  

More testing to follow! 

Roasted Red Pepper, Shawarma & Feta Pasta

One of my favorite Lebonese dishes, Chicken Shawarma, inspired this dish.  While it has no meat, it has all of the flavor (because I cheated).  

Simmer cooked pasta in just a bit of water flavored with Shawarma seasoning with a dash of chicken bullion.  Add roasted red peppers and feta cheese.  Top with more feta and crushed, dried mint. 

This is my favorite Shawarma seasoning...

Enjoy! 

Roasted Red Pepper Guacamole

In a desperate effort to use all of my roasted red peppers, I have been adding them to nearly everything.  They should, without a doubt, be standard fare in guacamole from now on.  

Keep it simple!  

Avocado

Roasted Red Peppers

Shallot

Cilantro

S&P

A squeeze of lime

Viola...

Enjoy!!