New Recipes: March

No, that's not a typo in the title. Yes, I am a whole month behind in posting new recipes. So without further ado, the new recipes I made ate and photographed in March:

Sage polenta bowls with roasted brussel sprouts
This recipe is the least memorable of the bunch.  I am pretty sure it was good, but even with the addition of some shrimp and parmesean cheese, the bowls lacked pizzazz. Lots of fiber from those sprouts, but I don't know if I would make this one again when standard shrimp and grits taste so good.

Glowing skin smoothies
This recipe, on the other hand, has been on repeat! Despite enjoying many a smoothie for breakfast, I have always been wary of adding leafy greens to my first meal of the day (except in omlette or quiche form). I am not quite sure what convinced me to take the plunge, but this recipe has shown me that spinach actually works in a smoothie. I am still skeptical about whether or not I could make spinach taste good in a smoothie without following a recipe, and I don't know that I feel the urge to level up to kale for breakfast anytime soon.

Baked tofu
Another winning recipe from March! Keizo gets all of the credit for putting it together, but he says it was pretty easy and we both enjoyed the results. This meal was all sorts of healthy and was consumed in large quantities without any regrets. I am looking forward to making this again when it's time for another round of tofu (at least once a month around here).

I am going to go get started on April's new recipe post right away. Hopefully it won't take a month for me to finish it!

New Recipes: April

Perhaps I was making up for lost time and only two new recipes in March--I tried six new recipes in April!  The recipes are split evenly with three in the sweets/baking category and three in the dinner category.

Sweets:

1) Chocolate Almond Bread from an old Family Circle.

This was a fun weekend project that turned out beautifully.  The next time I make it I will knead it for less time (the recipe said 10 minutes!) consider replacing the almond paste/chocolate middle with Nutella to save a step, and skip dusting the loaves with sugar before baking.  After sharing some with my housemate and co-worker, I ate the rest of the slices for my breakfasts with a smear of peanut butter and strawberries on top.


2) Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Poppy Seed Buttercream from Joy the Baker

I am usually pretty adamant that dessert isn't really dessert without chocolate, but when I was doing my meal planning this past week, this cake was the only recipe that caught my eye and I wanted to make.  The gorgeous spring weather may have had something to do with it and had me dreaming of tank tops, shorts and lemonades on the porch.

While my first slice didn't quite live up to my expectations, my second, third, fourth (and so on) pieces have been quite delicious.  I frequently find that with recipes that I am excited to make, the first bites somehow fall short, but the next day I am pleasantly surprised by my creation.  Does this ever happen to anyone else?


3) Peanut Butter Banana Cookies from All New Low Carb Recipes Cookbook

No photos, no rave review.  I should probably know better than to expect delicious cookies from a low-carb cookbook.  Perhaps most frustratingly, the portions were such that I could eat four no problem and while there was no sugar, each cookie clocked in at 100 calories.  Not quite as "healthy" as they tasted.

Dinners:

1) Shrimp & Grits

The impetus for this meal came from a package of grits that has been sitting in my pantry since one of my housemates moved out almost a year ago (Hi Christina!)  While technically past the expiration date, I still wanted to try and make something with them--and even when I halved the amount of butter and cheese called for in the recipe--I was a huge fan!  I added some extra veggies in the form of zucchini and tomatoes to make it a more complete meal, and was really excited for the leftovers at lunch the next day.  An easy recipe with a simple ingredient list, yet different enough from what I usually make.

2) Chicken & Sausage Gumbo from All New Low Carb Recipes Cookbook

 I wrote about this recipe earlier in the month.  And yes, those are more grits in the background.


3) Chicken & Tofu Scramble with Peas & Carrots from Homestyle Japanese Cooking

I picked up two slim paperback Japanese food cookbooks when I was teaching in Japan, and in the six or so years that I've had them have made only about two recipes from them.  With this recipe, the total climbs to around three!

As tofu is often considered a meat substitute, it may seem a bit odd to see it paired with chicken.  In Japan I found several instances where tofu was used as "meat-extender" if you will, adding some bulk but retaining the meaty flavor of the dish.  This scramble also featured the classic Japanese cooking combo of soy sauce, sugar, and sake.  I didn't have any sake, but some white wine worked in a pinch.

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Without a doubt, some good eats this month!  I would make everything again, with the exception of the peanut butter cookies.  If I had to pick just one winner from each category I would choose the Chocolate Almond Bread and the Shrimp & Grits.

Homemade pad thai

Confession: Every meal with pad thai on this blog has been made from some sort of a box/kit, the sauce likely full of ingredients I can't pronounce and squeezed out of a silvery, plastic packet.  But that changes now, with the discovery of this recipe.  

The hardest part was finding the rice noodles at the grocery store; a task I made more complicated than necessary by assuming they would be lying on the shelf in a plastic bag, rather than standing up in a box.  Hope this tip helps someone else avoid multiple trips down the import foods aisle.

Following the advice in several of the comments, I doubled the sauce recipe (but stopped at 5 Tbsp of sugar instead of the full 6 because it seemed like a lot).

I also kept it vegetarian, eschewing chicken and shrimp for some pan-seared tofu, seasoned with salt, pepper and a little paprika.

In typical fashion, I added vegetables until the whole dish threatened to overflow onto the stove...

...which it pretty much did with the addition of the tofu and garnishes.

I carefully scooped some onto a plate, squeezed some lime juice on top (don't skip this step!) and ate.

I was quite pleased with my first foray into homemade pad thai; it tasted like I expected and made great leftovers.  Two really good things, as I have a 1/2 box of rice noodles and 3/4 bottle of fish sauce lingering in the cupboard.

In with the new

In talking with my fellow classmates, I have found I am not alone when I to go to the grocery store, buy a dozen things and then come home only to realize I have nothing that actually makes a meal.  So, as the semester was starting, I decided it was time to kick this habit and try some menu planning instead!

Tofu Sloppy Joes was one of three recipes I planned out for last week.  Most of the ingredients I had on hand, but I had to purchase buns, tomato sauce and tofu.

I loved that the sauce was so easy.  And yummy.

The recipe makes a lot!  I also threw in some frozen peas and corn towards the end for extra veggies.

And as is tradition at home, served it up open faced with some cole slaw on top.

Menu planning worked well last week, but now I have a lot of leftovers.  I think this week's trip to the store will be dictated by when my coffee runs out rather than any set meals!

Balance

Even though I am just a spectator, I find Keizo's rugby games exhausting. The game itself is 80 minutes long, plus a 10-15 minute half time. Getting to the ground isn't hard, but requires a walk to the station, a train ride, transferring to the subway and then taking a bus, which takes about an hour and a half each way.

Last week, it was particularly cold with intermittent snow flurries (See giant thermometer!) Keizo's team won though, and my friend Hannah I spent an hour in Starbucks afterwards to regain feeling in our fingers and toes, making 90 minutes on the freezing cold bleachers much less painful.

When I finally made my way back to the apartment, neither Keizo nor I really felt like leaving again to pick up dinner supplies. So we called "Pizza California" and had them deliver two medium (American small) pizzas and some nice, hot and greasy tater tots on the side and plopped ourselves in front of the TV for the evening.

Teriyaki chicken pizza on the top, and Italian sausage on the bottom.

After spending Sunday night in all out couch potato mode, Monday's dinner needed to be something a bit more nutritious. We focused on vegetables and made eggplant champuru when we couldn't find goya (bitter melon) and put some sweet potatoes in the tajine cooker with a little bit of butter. The eggplant turned the rest of the champuru ingredients (tofu, pork and scrambled eggs) a bluish tint, but it still tasted good was a complete 180 from the night before.

Happy Holidays!

Look at the festive the peppers I picked up at the farm store on Sunday!

This is probably going to be my last post for a while, since the holidays are upon us and I will be busy attempting to entertain my brother Andrew after his arrival in Fukuoka tomorrow morning. We will be meeting up with extended family in Fukuoka on the 24th (my cousin Mike spent the fall semester studying abroad in Osaka) and attending Keizo's rugby game on Christmas together, followed by "Christmas Dinner" at the apartment. I am planning a big Japanese style nabe (hot pot) followed by the Christmas cake we ordered from the bakery up the street.

But before I start cleaning the apartment, finishing my grad school statements and writing some New Year's cards, here's one more meal from the past weekend. In my recipe collection it goes by the name "Orange Tofu Stir Fry," which is a tad un-inspiring, but at least I know where to find it. It goes together quickly; a perfect meal for one when Keizo is playing rugby in Okinawa.

Again, not sure why the picture wants to be sideways, but here it is. The sauce is orange juice, soy sauce, some sugar, chili paste and cornstarch. I used carrots, broccoli, mushrooms, some of the festive peppers from the photo above, and of course, more hakusai. Thankfully, by cooking it and smothering it in sauce, you can't really tell how limp it has become. Just one more serving to go!

Happy holidays! Please stop by again in a week or two for more food-y adventures.