Tofu in black bean sauce

I love tofu, consequently I cook tofu for dinner. Now guess who else in our house likes it too...Hubby. He always used to turn his nose up at the sound of the, but now really enjoys it. Probably because he learned that I didn't really care if he liked it or not, I was cooking it and he had to eat it :) Of course he will deny that he likes it completely, to all of his red-meat-eating friends and family :)

Anyway, because we do eat a fair amount of tofu I am always on the search for new recipes to use it in. I stumbled across this one here on Epicurious the other day. I made a few minor alterations but it was soooo good! I think it was the black bean sauce that got me, as oddly it is something I have been craving for awhile.

Stir-Fried Tofu in Black Bean sauce:



-15 shiitake mushrooms
-1 tablespoon cornstarch
-1 cup chicken broth
-2 tablespoons soy sauce
-1 tablespoon rice vinegar
-1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
-1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

-3 tablespoons peanut oil
-1 small leek (white and pale green parts only), cut into matchstick-size strips
-2 tablespoons black bean sauce
-2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
-4 garlic cloves, minced
-2 teaspoons hot sauce
-1/4 teaspoon black pepper
-1 package medium tofu cubed

Trim ends from mushrooms and chop finely.

Dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons broth. Stir in remaining broth, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and salt. Whisk together.

Heat oil in heavy large wok or nonstick skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms; stir-fry until browned, about 3 minutes. Add leek; stir-fry until beginning to brown. Add black beans, ginger, garlic, chili-garlic sauce, and peppercorns; stir-fry until fragrent.

Stir cornstarch mixture to blend, then stir into vegetable mixture. Add tofu; toss gently to coat with sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until sauce thickens slightly.

Serve over fresh rice, and Enjoy!

Iced Coffee

It is H-O-T! After a less that stellar spring we are being 'rewarded' with temperatures in the thirties nearly everyday. It is wonderful, except in a city that is not accustomed to it, and very few people have a/c. Therefor it can be slightly difficult to cool off. Lucky for me I stumbled across this incredibly simple iced coffee recipe, that helps a little ;)

Iced Coffee:



- 10-cup pot of coffee
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk

Brew coffee. In jug combine coffee with condensed milk. Place in refrigerator until chilled. Serve over ice.

Enjoy!

Sweet, Heat Salmon

There has been no posting because there has been no meals.

There has been no meals because there has been no menu planning.

There has been no menu planning because there has been no Hubby.

Apparently I am too lazy to put that much effort into myself, and 3 year old that won't eat anything. There has been the odd stir fry, or pasta dish, that I have made that will last a good couple of days, but really that is it. To be completely honest I have been living off of these:



and these:



There was one brief weekend where Hubby was home, and wanted a home cooked meal. I though we would have gone out for dinner so didn't really plan anything, oops! Lucky for my and my well stocked pantry I was able to pull our this delicious dry, rub salmon recipe. Definitely we be doing this one again it was so incredibly quick and easy!

Sweet, heat Salmon


- 1 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon cumin
- 1/2 tablespoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 salmon fillet

Combine rub ingredients in small bowl. Cover both sides of salmon with rub. Heat a fry pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Place salmon in hot fry pan and cook for 3-4 minutes. Flip salmon and continue to cook until done. See it is seriously that easy!

Enjoy!

Menu Planning

Work has been crazy. Hubby has been sick. Grocery shopping has not occurred in over two weeks, and my pantry and freezer is running low. Two out of three of those are good things, the other is in the process of getting better.
With everything that has been going on though I didn't have the time to sit down and flip through the pages of my cookbooks. Something I haven't had the opportunity to do in what feels like forever now! Now I am faced with the fact that it is the middle of the afternoon, I have no menu plan, and consequently no grocery list, for the grocery shopping trip that must happen at 4:30 this afternoon. Solution, I am turning to the the blogosphere for help this week. I have many recipes bookmarked in bloglines, time to start trying some! Oh, just an aside trying to keep things light and easy for Hubby's tummy this week.

Tuesday: Eating on the run, soooo bad
Wednesday: Creamy black lentils
Thursday: Portobello Toast
Friday: Chickpea, ginger and coriander soup
Saturday: Cooking with a dear friend, or more like watching, who is my kitchen inspiration
Sunday: Seared scallops with pureed cauliflower and asparagus

Banana Nut Muffins

I was wandering the asiles of HomeSense the other week month, and I came across these fun little silicone muffin cups.

There were also pink and purple triangle ones, which I completely regret not getting now. At the time however, I could not justify both sets when I had yet to try them out in my own kitchen. Of course the moment I used them for the first time I was completely in love with them. Now I can't image life without them. There is no more running out of those annoying little paper inserts, that I can never get apart, half way into a recipe. Oh, and they clean up so easily too!

I hoped by chance the others were still when I ventured back, but alas some other lucky sole snatched them up. Lucky them!

Banana Nut Muffins

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup sour cream
  
• 3/4 cup melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• zest of orange
  
• 1/2 cup walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine in bowl flour, baking soda and salt. Partially mash two fof the bananas. Then with beater whip them with sugar until light and fluffy. Add melted butter, eggs and vanilla.

Mix in dry ingredients stirring slow, and so still slightly lumpy. Fold in zest, nuts and finally banana in chunks.

Pour into muffin tins and back for 18-20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Menu Planning

Well, there is no menu plan for the week *gasp*!!!

With the medical issues we are having in our house right now I would be cooking for one. Something that just isn't worth it. So it will be a week of freezer soups, and salads for me.

Something I could probably use after eating all of that Easter chocolate ;)

Have a good week everyone.

Menu Planning

Leslie over at Definitely not Martha just wrote a fantastic post on freezing meals. I admit this is something I love to do too, but my problem is I never seem to eat it again! They sit for months and months getting more and more freezer burnt by the day. Yucky!

So last night after reading her post; it inspired me to actually clean out my freezer, and start fresh! I am actually ashamed of all the delicious meals that I threw out last night :( There were a few that I was able to salvage a couple, and we will be eating them over the next couple of weeks. Hey it is good for the grocery budget too ;)

Tuesday: Tofu and Eggplant curry (Freezer)
Wednesday: Pizza for Hubby
Thursday: Raspberry-Chipolte sauce (freezer) with pork chops and salad
Friday: Sauteed scallops with a sweetcorn salsa
Saturday: Tofu parma
Sunday: Fried chicken take II
Monday: Left overs