Yum Yum salad

24 02 2010

I bet you think I’m being cute here, with this Yum Yum salad. But, really, do you know me?  Even just a little?

I’m not cute. I’m kind of, well, “homely,” if you’d ask the Omnivore.

I’m that person you see in the grocery store with the sweatsuit three sizes too big tripping over my own toes as I try to reach to the very top shelf for that ice cream salt in the middle of winter.

I’m that girl at the bus stop being debilitated by her scarf that is flapping unrelentingly in the wind.  How can some girls can wait for the bus so cutely?  And me?  Well, I’m always in the mud puddle.

I don’t really have a problem with all this, though.  I’ve fully embraced my uncuteness.  And it certainly makes pulling off my helmet hair easy.  If you aren’t cute to begin with, who cares if your hair is perpetually in the shape of an astronaut helmet?

So I didn’t give this salad a cute name.  It came with that name, honest.  I’ve seen it on more than one Thai restaurant menu.

One Year Ago: Honey Baked Lentils in Acorn Squashes

Yum Yum Salad (adapted from local chef Deborah Haydon)
8 oz flank steak
3 cups of mixed greens
1 tomato, sliced
1/4 cup green onions
1 small cucumber, shredded or sliced
1 carrot, shredded
1/4 cup sliced red onion

Marinade
2 T vegetable oil
1 T soy sauce
1 T sherry
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T freshly minced ginger

Dressing
1/4 cup soy sauce
juice from 1 lime
1 tsp freshly minced ginger
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp grated orange rind
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Tabasco sauce
pinch sugar

Combine ingredients for marinade.  Marinate meat for at least 30 minutes (I did 6 hours).  Grill and let rest before slicing against the grain.

Combine ingredients for the dressing and toss, if you wish, with salad ingredients listed above.  Or, assemble salads and dress plates individually.

For the steak (including marinade) and salad (2 servings)
Does not include dressing info
Calories 232.3
Total Fat 5.5 g
Cholesterol 72.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate 9.2 g
Dietary Fiber 3.0 g
Sugars 0.2 g
Protein 31.7 g


Comments : 8 Comments »
Tags: , ,
Categories : Asian, Salads, vegetables

Non-authentic Pad Thai

22 02 2010

Is it a bad thing that some of my most vivid memories are food-related?

For instance, I vividly remember sitting in a somewhat-filthy pizza (mom, dad, how could you take young, innocent Branny to such an establishment?) joint in Florida as a youngster, outfitted with a plaid floor and red-vinyl covered seats.  Before me lay a lone anchovy on a generic paper napkin.

The anchovy screamed, “I DARE you to try me and I DARE you to like me.”  And I did.  And I did.

And then there’s the memory of me sitting in one side of our double-welled kitchen sink, wearing a kimono and an ornate silken headband, shelling boiled peanuts.  Yes, yes, you can dress your toddler up in Japanese apparel and take her out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of this southern girl (cough*yeah*right*cough).

And sometimes, I try to recreate foodie memories of yesteryear.  Like the first time I had Pad Thai.  The restaurant was beautiful.  Carved watermelons and ornate flowers adorned the lobby.  The walls were painted deep, hungry, red.

And Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” screamed over the sound system, making the entire situation just as mismatched as the instance of toddler-Branny eating boiled peanuts while dressed in a kimono.  That Pad Thai was so memorable.  Tangy lime juice hid in the noodles.  Peanuts galore.  Grease.

I tried to take the Omnivore back to that very same restaurant once.  It had burned down.  I’ve never been able to find a Thai restaurant that served a Pad Thai dish that even touched the deliciousness of that one.  I don’t think I ever will.

The recipe I offer you below is for Pad Thai — a version nothing like in my memories.  But I never preached authenticity, here, people.  This version is much healthier and equally delicious but in a different way.

I was excited to buy Oyster Sauce once I denounced my vegetarianism.  This is the first recipe I’ve used that ingredient in.  This version of Pad Thai is veggie heavy – and feel free to substitute your favorite vegetables for what I’ve used here.  Carrots and snow peas seem like a natural addition.

One Year Ago: A Slumdog Feast

Pad Thai – Healthy Style (3 servings)
1.5 T lime juice
1.5 T rice vinegar
3 T oyster sauce
3 T soy sauce
1 T sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T brown sugar
1/4-1/2 stock or water
1 T peanut butter (optional)

1 lb veggies
I used cauliflower, broccoli, green bell pepper
1/2 red onion
2 scallions, sliced
1 egg
1 pre-cooked chicken breast (optional)
chopped, roasted peanuts
fresh lime slices
4 oz rice noodles, soaked for 20 minutes in warm water

Combine ingredients for sauce.  Wisk.  In a wok over medium heat, add vegetables in order of cook time, starting with the one that requires the longest stirfry time first (cauliflower, here).  Once veggies have been added and stir fried push to outer edges of the wok.  Add egg and scramble in the bottom of the wok.  Once set, fold into remaining ingredients.  Add precooked chicken, if using.  Push all ingredients to the side of the wok and add the pre-soaked rice noodles.  Pour in pad thai sauce and cook with noodles for about 2 minutes, adding stock or water as needed to maintain sauciness :) .

Plate, garnishing with chopped peanuts, scallions, and a fresh squeeze of lime juice.

Serves 3
Calories 325.9
Total Fat 5.9 g
Cholesterol 125.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 36.1 g
Protein 34.5 g


Comments : 3 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : Asian, Omnivores add: Chicken, main dish, vegan(izable), vegetables

Veggie Fried “Rice”

8 02 2010

Some recipes I just never planned on blogging.  Ironically, these are the recipes that we probably eat the most frequently.  Tacos.  Generic burritos.  Pasta and spaghetti sauce.  Fried rice.  Yep, our old standbys: minimal effort with steady, delicious results.

I don’t know why I’d keep these recipes from you.  But I do.  When it comes to fried rice, my lack of blogging the recipe was probably due to the ever-changing characteristics of the dish.  It morphs based on what veggies are on hand, what spices are around, which direction the wind blows.

But I’ll share with you this most recent edition of fried rice, which was particularly delicious.

There are two features of note here.

1) There actually isn’t any rice in this recipe.  You can, of course, substitute day-old rice for the shredded cauliflower you see posing as carby, starchy, grains if you’re a purist.  We, however, loved the use of cauliflower shreds in place of grains.  You eat mostly with your eyes and the flavor is so benign that the substitution turned a normally carbohydrate-laden meal (if fried rice is eaten as the main dish) into a veggie packed course.

2) The crunchy little garlic and ginger bits you see topping the “rice.”  Yes, it takes an extra step, but boy oh boy, it takes your meal up a notch.

2.5) Seasame oil is not optional.

One Year Ago: Mashed Potato Lasagna and Red Beans and Rice

Veggie Fried Veggies (or rice, serves 2)
2 cups shredded cauliflower (1/2 a head) or 2 cups cooked rice (day old!)
2 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas
3 T soy sauce, divided
sesame oil (1-2 tsp per person)
1 egg
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp minced ginger
neutral oil (3 T? enough to cover bottom of wok)

Heat a wok over med-high heat and add oil.  When hot, add chopped garlic and ginger and fry until golden brown.

This picture is about 35 seconds shy of being perfectly crisp.  Remove delicious bits and drain on paper towel.

To the wok, add the carrots and cook 3-4 minutes.  Next add onion.  Cook 1 minute.  Add peas and corn, stirring until thawed and warms.  Fold in cauliflower shreds and stirfry until warmed through.  Add 1 T soy sauce.  Push veggies to the side, exposing the middle of the wok.  Crack and egg into the interior.  Allow egg to cook 30 seconds and then vigorously scramble and fold into vegetables.

Cook until all components are warmed through and then, just before serving, add additional soy sauce (to taste).  Distribute between two plates and drizzle with sesame oil.  Top with fried ginger and garlic.

Thanks, Cara, for the cauliflower substitution suggestion!


Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: , , , , , ,
Categories : Asian, Omnivores add: Chicken, Omnivores add: ground meat, grains, main dish

Thai Chicken Salad

31 01 2010

It is pretty much the dead of winter here in the Branny household. The snow is barely escapable:

And it wouldn’t be so bad if we lived in a part of the country that owned a snow plow:

Clearly we don’t.

And we’ve all got a bad case of winter blues. Except of course for our dog Blue herself, who quite likes roughing it in the winter:

So to overcome this nightmare I made a deliciously summer-y chicken salad.  But not your average chicken salad.  You see, I’ve got an unnatural love of peanut butter, and once I get inspired by a recipe with peanut butter in it, you can’t stop me.  And, apparently, you can’t stop the Omnivore, either.

He insisted on having this chicken salad for lunch and dinner in the same day (which kind of screwed up my dinner plans but that’s okay, I love to see him love what I make him!)

Thai Chicken Salad (serves 3)
1 chicken breast, roasted (or cooked to your preference), and chopped
1 small or 1/2 of a large cucumber, peeled and shredded
1 carrot, shredded
1/2 of a red onion, diced
1.5 – 2 T peanut butter
1.5 T soy sauce
1/2 t ground ginger
1 clove garlic, minced

In a ramekin, microwave peanut butter at low power until warmed.  Combine with soy sauce, garlic, and ground ginger.  Incorporate with diced chicken until nicely coated.  Toss with shredded veggies.  Yum!

Per serving, w/o a whole wheat wrap
Calories 171.7
Total Fat 5.9 g
Cholesterol 45.6 mg
Sodium 564.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 8.0 g
Protein 21.8 g


Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags:
Categories : Asian

Warm Sesame Noodles

15 10 2009

You know what I love?  Recipes with the word warm in them.  Like Warm Butternut Squash Salad.  You know why?  Because that means the dish it not meant to be served piping hot off the stove.  And I’ve got reasons for that preference.

You see, although the Omnivore eats a lot of the vegetarian entrees I create, he truly enjoys a meaty entree rather frequently.  I juggle cooking chicken or beef alongside my main dish many o’ night.  And I also enjoy delicious side dishes as well.  Plain brown rice?  Eh.  Pass.  Simple salted cous cous?  Save that for another day.

So why do I like this recipe?  Ahh, the word warm.  That means I can throw it together and shove it aside while I finish panicking over the stove, trying not to burn the chicken or the beans.  And the flavor here is fantastic, too.

sesame noodles

Warm Sesame Noodles (adapted from here)
6 oz thin spaghetti (I used whole wheat spinach)
2 T soy sauce
1 T sesame oil
1 T canola oil
2 T hot water
2 cloves minced garlic
1.5 tsp sugar or 1 tsp agave nectar
dash cayenne pepper
sesame seeds
1 scallion

Boil pasta and thinly slice scallions.  Whisk together remaining ingredients.  Pour sauce over warm noodles and fold in scallions.


Comments : 2 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : Asian, Omnivores add: Chicken, pasta, side dish, vegan(izable)

Sesame Vegetables

15 09 2009

Sure, you claim you love eggplant and spinach.  You preach your success over making Eggplant Parmigina and Creamed Spinach.  You gloat over your Spinach Artichoke Dip as you praise the powers of the leafy green.

But are you sure you like Eggplant?  Because I’ ve met a lot of people who claim to love Eggplant, eh, rather, Eggplant Parmigina, only to find out what they really like is the *concept* of eggplant. 

I mean, it’s breaded, fried, dunked in tomato sauce, covered with cheese…How could you not like that dish?  The eggplant could be replaced with spam and you’d still eat that concoction.

And spinach?  Oh, sure, you just love the spinach stuffed shells you make and the creamed spinach served at your local steakhouse.  But are you sure that you aren’t mistaking your love for spinach for your love of ricotta cheese and heavy cream?  I mean, they did have to create a whole cartoon show about getting kids to eat spinach, after all.

So, consider this recipe a test.  Yes, a test.  A test to see if you really actually like eggplant.  And to see if that deliciously-fatty dairy disguise that accompanies spinach isn’t swaying your opinion.

Because you’ll taste the eggplant and you’ll taste the spinach.  And if you are like me, you’ll fall in love with this simple asian side dish as a result. 

 And if you’re like the Omnivore…you’ll stick to Eggplant Parimigina and Creamed Spinach.IMGP6185

Sesame Vegetables (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens, 2 servings)
1/2 medium eggplant, cut into thin strips
2 cups fresh spinach
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 medium onion, sliced into thin strips
2 tsp sesame oil
1 T soy sauce
1 T dry sherry
1/8 tsp crushed pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp sesame seeds

Place eggplant, sprinkled with salt, in a collander to drain.  Toss a few times over a 10 minute period.  Rinse.  Heat sesame oil in your wok and sautee eggplant 3 minutes, until it starts to darken.  Remove from heat.  Add onion, garlic, and sesame seeds to the wok.  Stir fry one minute.  Add soy sauce, sherry, and crushed pepper to the wok.  Toss in spinach.  Return eggplant to the wok and fold ingredients together, wilting spinach and incorporating the sauces over the vegetables.


Comments : 4 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : Asian, side dish, vegan(izable), vegetables

Unleashing the power of the marinade

19 08 2009

I was listening to Splendid Table this afternoon while trekking along with the Omnivore in the car.  I have a love-hate relationship with this radio program.  I LOVE everything about it.  I HATE that it comes on at 4pm – just when that pre-dinner grumble of hunger starts to hit.

Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s voice is as smooth and illustrious as her name.  I swear, she can make the most bland ingredient sound mouth watering.

On the particular show we were listening to, Lynne was educating her listeners about making marinades at home.  I agree with her, marinading can be a simple, cheap, and effective tool for taking your meal up a notch.  But, I disagree with her pronunciation of marinade.

Say it with me MARE-IN-ADE. Not Mawr-en-AHD. Sheesh.

Most casual cooks are used to marinading meats.  I hear that this can turn a perfectly good steak into a diner-esque slab of meat (almost like covering your meal in A1 sauce instead of enjoying the flavor of the meat…).  But I shall not judge your flesh-eating habits.

Vegetables, too, can benefit from a tasty marinade.  For this sushi recipe, I marinaded raw zucchini and yellow squash before wrapping it in brown rice and seaweed.  No need for soy-sauce to dip your sushi in for this meal (besides, I heard that’s a strictly American habit) – the veggies provide that tang you are looking for.

IMGP5540Ok.  I’ll go ahead and address the side dish here.  YES.  That is okra.  We all know the Omnivore is uninterested in eating sushi.  Well, okra is in the same category as sushi, unfortunately, so I must enjoy the two loathed items at once.

Asian Marinade
1 T soy sauce
2 T water
1 tsp Sesame oil
1/4 tsp grated ginger or ginger paste
pinch sugar

Whisk all ingredients together and soak veggies at room temperature for 1 hr (ore refrigerate overnight).

I prepared this batch of sushi the same way as last time.

IMGP5529


Comments : 3 Comments »
Tags: , , ,
Categories : Asian, Zucchini, grains, main dish, side dish, vegan(izable), vegetables

Sushi for 1

27 07 2009

I’ve been trying to get the Omnivore to eat sushi for about 23 years now.  I have to be honest: it has been a tough sell.

We walk into Japanese restaurants and as I gradually slow down as we pass the cases of fresh fish and sushi chefs creating their art, I start my spiel:

  • Oh man, Omni, I used to love sushi so much back when I ate fish.  It was so delicious!
  • You know, hon, fish are a great source of Omega fatty acids.  And those are healthy for your brain.
  • My mom always said seaweed did wonders for her hair.  I bet if you ate sushi you’d have nice hair, too.
  • It doesn’t have to be raw fish; you can have raw crab eggs instead!  OR go for the eel – it is cooked and fatty and delicious.
  • Please, please, please, please just try it.

And his response is always the same: If this raw fish stuff is so good, then why don’t you eat it yourself?

Yeah.  I’ve got no comeback for that.  I do eat vegetarian sushi, of course.  But not every sushi bar around here offers that option.  And while on vacation, I came across a bamboo sushi mat and finally decided to make vegetarian sushi at home.

But it had to be sushi for 1. So, naturally, I made a few adaptations.

IMGP5175

The first challenge was the rice.

I prefer brown rice to white rice.  But if I want the sticky authentic sushi rice, then short grained sushi rice is a must, right?  WRONG.

So, I was standing in the rice aisle of the grocery store, having picked up the bottle of rice wine vinegar (and KNOWING that I was only using a mere tablespoon or two of the stuff – ugh, expensive investment!), and the nori (seaweed sheets – and I had a similar reaction about purchasing this ingredient as with the rice wine vinegar) passing the box of sushi rice from my left hand to my right.

$6.73 for sushi for 1.  Pass the box to the left hand.  I’m going to use like 1/2 cup of this WHITE rice…Pass box to right hand…and make sushi how often? … Pass box to the left hand.  Sneeze; use both hands to cover my face; drop the rice.

Pick up rice.  Look at the waist level shelf and see my savior: Minute Brown Rice.  Lightbulb!  Minute rice sucks.  It gets all glue-y and weird.  Wait.  Could it be perfect for me?  Glue-y is similar to sticky.  Sticky is used for sushi.  Yes, YES, YES! And it can be made in the microwave in small portions.  Voila!  Sushi for 1. So the following recipe produces enough sushi for 1 meal.

Sushi Rice
1/2 cup brown minute rice
1/2 cup water

Place rice and water in a microwave safe bowl.  Cook on high for 5 minutes.  Let sit for 5 minutes.

Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar (I used 2/3 of this mixture for 2/3 of cooked rice)
3 T rice wine vinegar
1 t sugar
1/2 t salt
Heat all ingredients for 20 seconds in the microwave; stir to dissolve.

Using a paddle or flat spoon spread out cooked rice in a non-reactive bowl.  Fan the rice and separate the grains.  Add dribbles of seasoned vinegar mixture, tasting along the way, to desired tartness.  Continue folding and displacing rice grains.

IMGP5131This picture is deceiving.  The rice is in a glass bowl, placing over the bamboo sushi rolling mat.  I seasoned the rice by dipping the paddle into the vinegar solution and then working the paddle throughout the rice.

Once you have made your batch of sushi rice, you can begin sushi assembly.  Tonight’s ingredients included garden fresh cucumber, roasted beets, and wasabi paste.IMGP5140

Place nori shiny side down on bamboo mat.  Cover with 1/3 cup rice.  I could only find temaki-roll nori, which is shorter in its width dimension than traditional maki-roll nori.  Use whatever you can find and adjust from there.

Do not go crazy with the rice here.  It is okay if it seems spotty on the nori and doesn’t reach all edges.  In fact, leave the furthest 1/4″ or so of the nori void of rice.

Add your julienned veggies and wasabi sauce and begin your roll:

IMGP5151

IMGP5155

I rolled about 1/2 of the roll.  Stopped and pressed the sushi into a cylinder beneath the mat, and continued to finish out the roll.  For detailed pictures, see this site.

After completing your roll, slice into bite-sized portions using a very sharp knife.  Wipe and wet the knife in between cuts for a clean look.

Enjoy the fruits of your labor and rejoice that the Omnivore doesn’t eat sushi afterall (no need to share).

IMGP5164


Comments : 8 Comments »
Tags: , , , , , ,
Categories : Asian, grains, main dish, vegan(izable)

Watch the comma

2 07 2009

I know I sometimes have errors on my blog.  Here’s the deal: I think way faster than I type, so I get a little carried away in my blog posts when it comes to syntax or diction.  And then, once I’ve finally completed my blog post, I am so excited to hit the PUBLISH button that I rarely proof read what I’ve written.

Sometimes my mom emails me with errors in my blog.  I appreciate that.  Sometimes I go back and amend the post to fix the error.  Sometimes I don’t.  Depends on the phase of the moon.

But one error that I highly doubt you will run into on my blog is a comma splice or the misuse of an apostrophe.

Let me just say this once and for all: Apostrophes are never used to pluralize anything.

Not Panini: panini’s.  Not tomato tomato’s.  Not DVD DVD’s.  Just add the “s” and move along Betty.  Don’t get carried away with your punctuation.

These tiny little specks can change the meaning of a sentence or word in so many ways that I continually remain in awe of their powers.  Similarly, I am continually annoyed by the ubiquitous misuse of the comma and the apostrophe throughout my daily life.

I’m not going to even start on this topic.  I’ll get myself all worked up into a tizzy.  It might make me boil over.

But what I do want to emphasize about the following recipe is the placement of the commas in the ingredient list.  So, I’ll use this meal as a teachable moment about how to read a recipe.

IMGP4413

Napa Cabbage Salad with Oranges (2 servings)

1/2 cup bulgur, cooked
-Measure out 1/2 cup of bulgur (uncooked), then cook as directed
2 cups shredded napa cabbage
-Measure 2 cups of shredded napa cabbage, NOT 2 cups of napa cabbage to-be-shredded
1 scallion, sliced
1 orange, segmented, diced
zest from aforementioned orange
1 cucumber, diced
1/2 cup sliced zucchini
-Measure the zucchini once sliced
2 chik’n apple sausages (diced), 1 bona fide chicken apple sausage (cooked and diced), OR 1 cup chickpeas
-Choose one of these three options, people
1.5 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1/4 cup chopped cashews
-NOT 1/4 cup cashews, chopped

Cook bulgur in 1 cup water as directed on pacakge (or, boiled water, add bulgur, simmer 10 minutes, let soak 10 minutes).  Fluff with fork and add sesame oil, soy sauce, and orange zest.  Combine remaining ingredients and serve at room temperature.

I love this recipe because the oranges provide a very juicy feel and there is no need for additional dressings.  It is a vegetable heavy salad, so if I were serving it to the Omnivore, I’d omit the zucchini.  The chik’n apple sausages added a wonderful fruity flavor that complemented the oranges, so if you eat meat I think that chicken apple sausage would go very well here (given that it is tasty at room temperature.  I guess I wouldn’t know…).  Chick peas would also be a great substitute.


Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: , , , ,
Categories : Asian, Meat Substitute, Salads, grains, main dish, vegan(izable), vegetables

Veggie Loaded Lettuce Wraps

25 05 2009

Just go ahead and admit.  You save up your calories.  When you’ve got a delicious feast in the near-future, you know you try to be on your best behavior so that you can binge eat without inhibition.  Don’t be ashamed.  You’re doing it the smart way.  And if you are like me, not only do you play around with your calories when you are “saving up” for a feast, but you play around with the food pyramid as well. 

So, for example, if you are going to a Peach Festival, and know you will be consuming copious amounts of fruit….you may or may not eliminate fruit from your diet the day before.

Ok.  Bad example.  No one really got fat off fruit.

So, for example, say you are going to the Ben and Jerry’s factory, and you know you will be consuming copious amounts of ice cream, you may or may not eliminate dairy from your diet the day before.

Ok.  Another bad example.  You can’t really do anything to counteract the effects of Ben and Jerry.

Ok.  So say it is Saturday night.  And you KNOW you are making delicious homemade bread on Sunday.  And so you want to minimize carbohydrate load on Saturday to account for the fact that you may or may not have any self restraint when it comes to fresh bread.  THIS meal is the perfect solution.  You get TONS of veggies, lots of food, plenty of nutrients, and very little carbs.  You feel full all evening and feel even better knowing that tomorrow’s indulgences in *gasp* all white flour bread will be guilt-free.

NB: I know.  Carbs are not evil.  They are part of a healthy diet.  Don’t get on your soap box with me here.  I’ll go toe-to-toe.  I won’t back down.  Atkins’ diet is just silly.  All I’m trying to say here is that if you KNOW you’re going to eat ALL CARBS one day, why not focus on ALL VEGGIES the day before.  That’s all.  Simmer down.

Veggie Loaded Lettuce Wraps (serves 2)
Prepare the following stir fry sauce and set aside

Stir Fry Sauce
1 T agave nectar (can sub honey, brown sugar, white sugar in the amount of 1.5 T)
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Stir Fry veggies
1/2 cup chick peas
1/2 carrot, diced
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
1/2 can chopped water chestnuts
1 scallion, sliced, for garnish
handful cashews, chopped, for garnish
sesame seeds, for garnish
1/4 tsp anise seed, crushed

7-8 full leaves of lettuce

In a pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray and warmed over medium heat, add chick peas, carrot, bell pepper, and water chestnuts with crushed anise seed.  Cook 2-4 minutes, until veggies begin to soften.  Add stir fry sauce and continue to cook until most of the sauce has evaporated or has been absorbed.  Transfer to a plate and top with garnishes.

IMGP3572

Take a bite.  Oh yeah, let’s give props to the Omnivore for this one.  The man grew that lettuce in my backyard. Serious stuff, people, serious stuff.


Comments : 6 Comments »
Tags: , , , , ,
Categories : Asian, Omnivores add: Chicken, Omnivores add: ground meat, vegan(izable), vegetables

« Previous Entries