So this weekend was Metal Mania on VH1 Old People, I mean Classics, so last night we contemplated going out for dinner, but were waylaid by the Lemmy documentary. I guess if you rent it you can watch 4.5 hours of bonus footage! That`s a lot! Not gonna lie, I am intrigued and am pretty close to getting a hold of this bonus. Then we couldn`t go to bed because the documentary of Anvil was on at 2am. It was a bit sad and like a trainwreck that you just could not turn away from as these guys kept spending money trying to get famous again. Like 25 years later!

What does all this have to do with this shepherd`s pie, I don`t know. Just sayin`.

So luckily the husband helped me with this as it took an hour and a half to prep to begin with, though you can make ahead. I used this recipe, but made some changes, some in advance and some on the fly as it really needed some more seasoning. Ok, so we ate it, the flavors came together and it was major hearty with a ton of leftovers.

What I Used:

1.5 lbs Potatoes, I used some buttercream and some small russets as that is what I had.

1 6oz Container Plain Greek Yogurt, I used 0% Fat Chobani

A Splash of Vegetable Stock

Sea Salt

I Lb Shiitake Mushrooms

1 Super Large Carrot

2 Stalks Celery

1 Red Pepper

1 Cup Fresh Shelled Peas

2 Leeks

4 Cloves Garlic

Approx 2 Tbsp Tomato Paste

Approx 2 Tbsp Tamari (I used Gluten Free), you could use regular soy sauce

1 Tbsp of the Adobo from a can of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo

2.5 Cups Veg Stock

The Leaves from 4-5 Stalks of Thyme

Sea Salt, Pepper, Smoked Paprika

2 Tablespoons Cornstarch dissolved in 3/4 Cup of Cold Water

1 Cup Puy (French) Lentils

3 Cups Water

1 Bay Leaf

Olive Oil

Red Wine

What I Did:

Peel and dice the potatoes, add to a 3 qt saucepan of boiling water and cook for 8 minutes or so until tender.  Drain and set aside.  Use the same pan to make the lentils.  Bring the 3 cups of water to a boil with a bay leaf.  Add the lentils and simmer low uncovered for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile prep the veg.  as I said, the husband helped and peeled and diced the carrots.

Then the celery and peppers and leeks. You might want to have a glass of wine while doing this.

I did the mushrooms and garlic.

Start cooking the veg.  Heat a large pan on medium heat, add about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the mushrooms and garlic, cook until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.  Add the carrots, celery, leeks, and red pepper.  Continue cooking for about 10 minutes.  The pan will get dry after a few minutes if it was not from the mushrooms, add about an ounce of red wine and deglaze the pan.  Continue cooking for the 10 or so minutes.

Make the mashed potatoes while this is cooking.  Use a ricer to pass through potatoes into a bowl.  Add the yogurt and add a splash of veg stock so it is not too dry.  Season to taste with salt.

Lentils are done, drain if they have not soaked up all the liquid and discard the bay leaf.  Add to the veg along with the tomato paste, tamari, salt, pepper, thyme and veg stock.  Simmer for a few minutes.

Start adding the cornstarch-water mixture by the spoonful until it starts to thicken.  I added about 6-7 spoonfuls.  It is going to be a bit liquidy – this will cook off in the oven.

Now at this point, it was still a bit bland, so I added the adobo and hit it with more red wine.  It was better, so I continued.  Move the veg/lentils to a large ovenproof baking dish and add the raw peas – they will cook in the oven.  I used the 7 qt Le Crueset I always use, I would not use anything smaller than a 3 qt dish.

Add the potatoes to the top.  I found it easiest to drop it by the spoonful/hand over the top.  It will seem like not a lot of potato, but they will puff up in the oven.  Sprinkle with smoked hot paprika and stick in a 375 oven for 25 minutes.

After the timer was up, I turned on the broiler and broiled it for a few minutes until it got a crust.

The flavors came together while baking and it thickened more. It is worth a try, but personally, I`d make it in advance, or make it with someone else since there is a lot of futzing with this.

Plate It.

Eat It.

Related articles

• Lentil and Mushroom Shepherd’s Pie (myfavouriteveganrecipes.wordpress.com)
• Vegan Shepherd’s Pie (plantbasedparadise.com)
• clean shepherd’s pie with garlic-chive potatoes (backtoherroots.com)

Friday:  not cooking

Saturday: Pizza Party

Sunday: Some sort of Tofu/Rice noodle veg stir fry with a garlic-ginger cashew sauce

Monday: Shrimp Sandwiches

Tuesday: Salmon Cakes

Wednesday: This Eggplant recipe looks pretty ace, I think I will try it.

Thursday: This lentil shepards pie also looks good, I think I will make this and switch it with Saturday or Sunday.

And even though it is Thursday, it is close enough to Friday and I am only at work for a couple hours tomorrow anyhow, and I am about to go and do this when I leave my desk, but it will be at Clandestino, not in Paris, I am thinking about this:

Anyhoo, I`m deviating from my posts of full meals for this, though you could certainly add a poached egg to the top and a salad and call it dinner. This is pretty simple and fast – only 5 minutes of prep and 30 in the oven and you are done.

What I Used:

1 Lb Asparagus

6-8 oz of Wild Mushrooms – I used Hedgehog Mushrooms, though Shiitake, Chanterelle, or Criminis would work equally well.

4 Cloves Garlic, peeled

Sea Salt, Pepper, Olive oil

What I Did:

Trim the ends off and peel the lower halves of the asparagus. Just peel the asparagus, it will ensure that it is not stringy. Wipe the mushrooms clean. Put it on a sheet pan with the peeled garlic cloves. Season with salt, pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

(I`m clearly out of foil)

Stick in the oven set to 350 for 20 minutes.

Timer is up. Stir the veg and stick back in for another 10, maybe 15 minutes until it is caramelized.

That`s it. Oh, I did decide to poach an egg over it – if you do this and have some truffle salt, add a pinch, the truffle salt is aces on the egg here. I can`t help myself and just do 1 thing.

Plate It.

Eat It.

Bonus – Kitties! See how happy they are?

Mau is flying solo from the other kitties..

Related articles

• Asparagus with Shiitake Mushroom Butter (aminerecipes.com)
• Poached Egg, Mushrooms, Peppers and Navajo Bread (cookinginsens.wordpress.com)

The sandwiches are very make ahead, they were just as good today, I mean the shrimp and avocado spread held up well.  I made a fresh sandwich.

So yeah, I have no new recipe, this is the same as what I made yesterday, though I was thinking, you could swap the shrimp with tilapia and it would be aces.

So this is how I make kale salad, I guess?

Make a dressing – juice of a lemon, equal decent olive oil for raw eating, sea salt, pepper. Mix it with a fork – I do it in a seal-able container because it makes more than I will use for one salad and I use this on every salad. Coat the kale with just enough of the dressing,like 3 tablespoons for 4-5 cups. Sprinkle about of tablespoon of grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese over and mix. Let sit for at least 15-30 minutes prior to eating to allow it to wilt a bit. That`s it. I made mine like 45 minutes in advance.

Related articles

• Shrimp Sandwiches with Chipotle-Avocado Spread (frshforce.wordpress.com)
• Endive with Mexican Shrimp Salad (endiveblog.wordpress.com)

What I Used:

1 Avocado

Approx 1/2 Cup Mayonaisse

2 Tablespoons of the Adobo from a can of Chipotles

The Juice of 1 Lemon

Sea Salt

1 Lb Exra Large Shrimp, Peeled

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 Teaspoon-ish of the Adobo from the Chipotles

Approx 1 teaspoon each of Cumin, Spanish Smoked Hot Paprika.

Approx 1/2 Teaspoon Chili Powder

Sea Salt, Black Pepper, Olive Oil

Splash of Wine, doesn`t matter, red or white.

Sandwich bread – I used a Ciabatta Roll, but baguette would work, or what you like.

Some Sort of Lettuce – I used just some prewashed mesculine salad.

What I Did:

Make the Avocado Spread. I just made it in a storage container since I knew that I`d have leftovers. Put the mayo in the container, add the diced avocado, pinch of salt, adobo, and lemon juice and mash until smooth. I was going to add a clove of garlic, but didn`feel like chopping it or using a food processor to make this, so, yeah.

Cut the bread in half and toast it in the oven for 5-7 minutes at 400 degrees.

Start the shrimp.  In a dry pan add the cumin and heat it on medium.  Add about a teaspoon of olive oil and heat to shimmer.  Add the garlic and cook for about 3 minutes.  Add the shrimp and remaining spices + adobo and saute on medium low until cooked through. Deglaze the pan with some wine when it gets dry.

Assemble the samdwhich by spreading the avocado mix on both halves, add the lettuce then about 8-10 shrimps.

Plate It.

Eat It.

Related articles

• Fried Egg and Avocado Sandwich! (achievingperfectioninlife.com)
• Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Chipotle Vinaigrette (jazzinthekitchen.wordpress.com)
• Chipotle Shrimp (ourlifeinfood.com)

The husband calls broccoli “little farty trees.” Why am I telling you this? See I can’t really eat broccoli, I can eat broccoli rabe, and broccolini, no problem, but broccoli, it just doesn’t always sit well with me, yet I sometimes eat it anyway. Like today. I had a quinoa salad for lunch that had tofu in it. It is one of these things made by V-Spot that is a vegan quinoa salad and I get it at Fresh Direct. Now the last time I had it,  it had like 1 or 2 pieces of broccoli and it was heavily cooked, and I had no problem. Today, it had a measly 2 tiny tofu cubes and a bunch of broccoli, but I didn’t pay much mind to it and ate it. Now, my insides have been revolting, for hours. It feels like I am being stabbed from the interior of my stomach and colon and i have taken like 6 pepto bismols now. This really really sux.

I used to be able to eat broccoli, I loved it raw, cooked, especially raw. Then one day many moons ago when I was say, 19 or 20, I ate some raw broccoli and almost immediately became violently ill. Vomiting. I thought I was just sick. I continued to eat broccoli and think that I had constant food poisoning, because like every time I would suddenly become violently ill after eating. Then it dawned on me, I was only getting sick after eating the broccoli and sure enough with some testing this theory, I realized, it is the broccoli and stopped eating it. I also discovered years later that many raw vegetables, save for carrots and tomatoes and lettuces do the same thing to me. I won’t becoming a raw foodist anytime soon.

So, yeah, “little farty trees.”  I IM’d the husband to tell him of my pain and mentioned the broccoli and the phase came into play (USB refers to this link I had IM’d him earlier):

me: my tummy hurts
me: (sick)
the husband: why?
the husband: yeah, that usb thing is kinda cool…
me: no clue, it could have been my lunch. there was broccoli in it
the husband: doh!
the husband: little farty trees!!!
me: that is the kinda sick my tummy feels
the husband: sarah stay away!
the husband: unless they are very over-cooked….

Yeah, so broccoli, need to stay away.

So this is what is on deck for the week, the husband is away for biznass Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights, so it is just me.

Friday: I’m so copping to this, though I should have some shame, but I love Shin Ramyun brand ramen. The spicy kind.  It is addicting and the msg flavor pack is like crack.  I tend to eat it when I am sick, but get a thing for it every so often.  Well I had one of those so often moments the other week and the husband had had dinner already for some reason but wanted a taste of mine. Suddenly, he decides he needs to make his own, yeah, it is like crack like that.  So I was all, you know what would be the bomb? If we got some Steamed vegetable dumplings from North and put them in the ramen soup! And the husband was all, oh hells yeah, I like your thinking.  So yeah, this is kinda embarrassing to admit, but that’s what we are doing tonight.  Oh Hells Yeah!

Saturday: we are out of pizza dough and should really make some, so that would mean we are having a Pizza Party, unless the husband decides he still wants burritos like he said the other day.  I am betting he will want to have a Pizza Party.

Sunday: Just me – I’m gonna make these spicy shrimp with avocado aioli sandwiches that I came upon a recipe for the other day.  I’ll end up with some leftover shrimp I can use in something else later.

Monday: I really want to just eat a ginormous kale salad since I can get away with it – I’ll do some sort of poached egg and mushrooms or something with it – sounds exciting, no?

Tuesday: Mushrooms stuffed with the lentils/rice leftover from the other day

Wednesday: vegetable frittata

Thursday:  Shrimp Fajitas with the leftover shrimp.

All this typing has actually made my stomach start to feel better again, either that or it was the 5th and 6th peptos I just took prior to starting this post.  So since it is Friday, am thinking about this – yeah looks like we are messy, but I was going to post a pic of the pepto bismol:

NB – yeah, I seem to be doing a lot of vegan for no reason. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

What I Used:
2 pints of Brussel Sprouts
1 Bunch Mixed Color Carrots – mine are yellow, purple and orange
4 Garlic Cloves
Sea Salt, Pepper, Olive Oil
1/2 Cup Dry Puy Lentils
1/2 Cup Basmati Rice
4 Sundried Tomatoes, not packed in oil
2 1/2 Cup Water – or however much your rice and lentils call for using.
Sea Salt, Pepper, Cumin, Crushed Red Pepper

What I Did:

Trim the brussel sprouts and carrots. Put on a baking sheet with the garlic. Drizzle with olive oil, sea salt, pepper. Stick in the oven set to 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Chop the sundried tomatoes. Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan and add a pinch of salt, the pepper and approx a 1/2 teaspoon each of cumin and red pepper. Water is boiling, add the lentils and rice and simmer covered on low for about 20-25 minutes until cooked and water is evaporated. If there is still liquid at the end, don`t freak out, just take the lid off halfway and give it another 5-7 minutes and it will evaporate. I kinda freaked out, not really, I was just tired and all oh hells. But I popped the lid and it evaporated.

Timer is up on the brussel sprouts and carrots, stir and roast for another 20 minutes or so until caramelized and soft.

Make a simple salad.

Plate It.

Eat It.

Related articles

• PointsPlus Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Almonds (thedailymeal.com)
• Balsamic Garlic Roasted Brussel Sprouts (staceyarcher.wordpress.com)
• Oven Roasted Garlic Brussels Sprouts (kimmylois.wordpress.com)
• The Grand Brussel Sprout Experiment (fatchickfedup.com)

From this menu our table had:

Seafood Empanadas – these were aces and had a really nice aioli  - we all wanted more.

Ceviche of shrimp, scallops and fish – this was also ace and had a nice very subtle heat, it almost apeared to be in a coconut milk, but wasn’t

Cornmeal Crusted Calamare  with an herbed aioli – this was a bit too greasy for my liking and bland, I didn’t eat much

Everyone else had entrees:

Two had the Conchas, which my mom liked, the husband said they was too much going on which if you read the description you would suspect: it was scallops stuffed with crab, then wrapped in prosciutto with paprika sweet potato puree and roasted cauliflower.  Holy a lot going on Batman!! Due to the prosciutto, I obvs did not try, but just looking at the description, I would have skipped the crab, made the sweet potatoes a mash with some bits of the prosciutto instead wrapping the scallops with it and , it was a minor amount of cauliflower, so fine leave it.  But that is just my lay-parson’s thought.

The other entrée was a standard bife de chorizo steak with chimichurri and appeared to be well prepared.  Dad liked it, the husband tried and said it was good.

I had the Cabra salad and like I said, it was a no.  It was chopped salad style with waaay to much dressing, too much goat cheese and both picked onion and scallion and was an onion bomb.  I am not a food sender-backer and had to have the husband taste it to see if it was just me being a pain in the ass, I really do just prefer a bit of lemon and decent oil on my salads,  or was it off.  He deemed it slightly off, my mom was ok with it.  I bucked up and ate it to save some time as the husband and I had plans for drinks out with some friends.  Besides, it had clearly been made ahead and I feared if I sent it back, I would just get the same thing back.  Oh well.

Why I just wrote out descriptions of a meal with no pictures is beyond me, but I guess if anyone is still reading…

So back to making foodstuffs, I luckily have some food to cook with at the moment while I wait for my Fresh Direct order to arrive tomorrow.  This is my current plan:

Monday: roasted broccoli rabe, cauliflower and tomatoes with polenta – I have these veg on hand and some kale for salad.

Tuesday: lentil stuffed mushrooms

Wednesday: gratin savoyard -yes, this has been on my on deck for the past couple of weeks, no, I have not made it yet.

Thursday: roasted asparagus with tomatoes and pasta or
pasta bake with spinach, red pepper, asparagus, mushrooms or
spinach, asparagus, red pepper, mushroom fritatta with roasted asparagus – am being indecisive, though will prolly do the fritatta route since I am trying to ease back on the gluten consumption at the moment.

Friday: burritos.

And since it is not Friday, but I just got off a plane and spent some time in the club lounge, I am thinking about this:

Bonus, yeah I watched this last night! I squeeeeed!

http://static.discoverymedia.com/videos/components/apl/caff4ea0e36317177443d60156ad96b86979b4e4/snag-it-player.html?auto=no

This has totes picture fail, but whatever.

Don`t skip the simple salad!

What I Used

I bunch Lacinato Kale, chopped

4 Cloves Garlic, diced or minced

5-6 Sundried Tomatoes, dry packed not oil packed, chopped

The Stems of the Portobello Mushrooms, chopped

1 Small Handful of Pine Nuts

Approx. 1 cup Red Wine

1/8 Cup Shredded Cheese, I used Manchego – goat, feta, or parmigiano-reggiano would also work.

Sea Salt, Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper

Olive Oil

5 Cloves Garlic Whole

1 Pint Cherry or Grape Tomatoes, quartered

Sea Salt, Crushed Red Pepper, Pepper, Smoked Hot Paprika

Olive Oil

2 Portobello Mushrooms, stems removed and chopped for the stuffing

Sea Salt, Pepper

Olive Oil

A sprinkling of shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 1/2 Cups Cooked Brown Rice

What I Did:

Make the kale stuffing. Chop all the veg if you have not – my recipe above says it`s already chopped, so, yeah, not repeating it all again.

Heat a large sauté pan, add the crushed red pepper and heat the pan for a few minutes over medium heat. Add about a teaspoon of olive oil or so and add the kale, chopped garlic, sea salt, and pepper. Saute until starting to wilt, about 5 minutes.

Add the mushroom stems, pine nuts and sundried tomatoes and cook another 7 minutes or so until the pan is dry. Add half the wine and turn the pan to low. Cook the wine off. Another 10 minutes.

Start the Roasted Tomatoes. Put them in a foil lined baking pan along with the whole garlic cloves. Season with salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and smoked paprika. Drizzle with olive oil and stick in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.

The kale has soaked up the wine, add the remaining wine and cook for another 10 minutes or so until wilted and cooked through – not crunchy. Add more wine if you need to, also adjust the seasoning if needed.

Kale is done, mix in the shredded cheese.

Timer is up on the tomatoes, stir and stick back in for another 20 minutes.

Season the mushroom caps with pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Stuff the interiors of the mushrooms with the kale mixture and top with the shredded parm. Stick in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes until mushrooms are cooked through and the cheese is melted on top.

Make a Simple Salad.

Tomatoes are done, pull out of the oven.

I had some leftover stuffing for the mushrooms, so I just mixed in the roasted tomatoes with it.

Mushrooms are done. Pull Out. You cooked the rice, right? Cuz it was in there to use cooked rice! Mine was cooked and leftover from the other day, but you certainly have time to make some here. Start it at the beginning.

Serve each mushroom with some rice and top with the roasted tomatoes.

Plate It.

Eat it.

.

Related articles

• Glorious Kale (goodfoodrevolution.wordpress.com)
• Zucchini with Fresh Tomato Sauce and Olive-Portobello Relish (cookingconsal.wordpress.com)
• An Easy Weeknight Dinner: Part Two & Three (thehealthyrevival.wordpress.com)

This is pretty easy and is a good make ahead meal.

What I used:

1 lb Tomatillos, husked and halved

6 Cloves Garlic, peeled

1 Small Onion, peeled and cut into large slices

1 Jalapeno Pepper, halved

1 can Black Beans, rinsed and drained

1 15oz Can Corn, drained well. You could use frozen, but I actually prefer canned corn to frozen, it is crispier. You could also use a fresh ear, but it is not in season

1 3oz Can Green Chiles

1/2-2/3rds of a pint of Cherry Tomatoes, quartered

1/2 Onion, diced

The leaves from a few sprigs Oregano

Cumin, Sea Salt, Crushed Red Pepper, Pepper

1 9oz Bag of Corn Tortilla Chips, or the equivalent in stale corn tortillas shallow fried crisp

Fresh Oregano for garnish

1 Avocado, Sliced

A sprinkling of Pepitas/Pumpkin Seeds for garnish

What I Did:

Make the salsa verde – on a foil lined baking pan put the cut tomatillos, onion, jalapeno, and garlic down.

Place in the broiler for 15 minutes until charred. Flip and stick back in for another 7-15 minutes until charred. Some liquid will come out from the tomatillos.

Put the charred veg and pan liquid in a food processor until it is pureed and looks like a salsa. You can put it away for later at this point or keep going. I set mine aside and went to the gym.

Make the Chilaquiles.

In a dry pan on medium heat, roast the corn for about 6 or 7 minutes. Salt it and add the black beans and diced onion. I also added some crushed red pepper and pepper at this point. Heat the beans through.

In a saucepan, pour in the salsa verde and bring to a simmer. Add the chips in bunches, crushing and coating with the salsa.

At this point I tasted the corn/black bean mixture and it was pretty bland and dry, so I added some cumin, oregano, the green chiles, and cut up the tomatoes and added. This was better and texturally was not as dry.

I made a simple salad while everything heated through.

It`s ready. Use a sprinkling of pepitas on each plate and avocado slices – I failed in my slicing of the avocados..

Plate It.

Eat It.

Related articles

• Rotisserie Tuesday: Chilaquiles (ittybittybabysteps.wordpress.com)
• salsa verde (westcoastnest.wordpress.com)
• Tomatillo and Avocado Salsa (treehugger.com)