Tomato Vodka Pasta

This is an easy, delicious pasta dish that I've made several times and everyone likes it, despite the fact that it's a meatless dish. It seems to work with all kinds of pasta, but this was the first time I tried the whole wheat kind. I have to admit grudgingly that using whole wheat wasn't QUITE as good as the processed, bleached, gloriously starchy kind. :) Serve with a side of vegetables or a spinach salad, and if you so choose, crusty bread and butter!

REVIEW: As in most pasta sauces, the fresher the ingredients, the better the taste. You MUST use fresh basil and garlic in this recipe or you'll lose a lot of flavor. Given more time to prep, I'd like to try pureeing fresh tomatoes rather than using the canned kind. This is one of those dishes that impresses your friends without a lot of stove-slaving. Love it.

RECIPE:

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 shallots, minced

1 cup vodka

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1 32oz can crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup heavy cream

20 leaves fresh basil, shredded coarsely

16 oz whole-wheat pasta

salt and pepper

olive oil

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and shallots in olive oil 3-5 minutes. Add vodka to pan and simmer until vodka is reduced by half, 2-3 minutes. Add chicken stock and tomatoes. Bring sauce to bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper. While sauce simmers, cook pasta in boiling water according to directions on package. While pasta cooks, prepare side dishes. Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to bubble, remove from heat. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves and serve.

Mango Salsa

I made the previously posted seared sesame tuna again, but this time added a mango salsa as a topping and sauteed bok choy instead of mustard greens as a side dish. The mango salsa turned out so great that I had to post it! It was very fresh and citrusy, with a little kick from poblano pepper. It can be made up to 4 hours ahead of time (keep refrigerated and tightly covered) to let the flavors mingle together. I think it'd work with any kind of white fish, I especially want to try it in fish tacos!

1 ripe mango, peeled and diced

1/4 cup red bell pepper, diced

1/4 cup poblano pepper, diced fine

1/4 cup red onion, diced fine

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

dash salt

Combine the mango, poblano, red bell pepper, onion, and garlic in a bowl and stir to combine. Add the vinegar, cilantro, and salt, and stir well.

UPDATE: I made fish tacos with this mango salsa for a light lunch. Season tilapia fillets with salt, pepper, cumin, cayenne and broil them in the oven for 5 minutes on each side. Wrap shredded tilapia, 3 slices avocado, and a splash of lime juice in a whole wheat tortilla. Fresh and tasty!

Where to buy cheap Asian ingredients...

I forgot to mention....after spending a lot of cash at the local fancy market (similar to Whole Foods) for specific Asian ingredients, I discovered that you can buy this stuff online for much cheaper! I recently ordered from www.pacificmercantile.com and got all the non-produce ingredients I needed to host my soon-to-come sushi making party along with some really cool serving platters and dishes.

Shrimp & Tofu Pad Thai

Continuing my Asian theme, which I am getting into more and more lately, I was craving my favorite dish at Pei Wei today, Tofu & Shrimp Pad Thai, so I decided to attempt it myself! It turned out really really good! It was more flavorful than Pei Wei's version for sure and had the same kick. I am proud of it. :)

REVIEW: Once I had collected all the right ingredients, I think the recipe was pretty easy. By far the hardest ingredient to find was the talamarind sauce. My curiosity dictated that I had to research it on Wikipedia; apparently it's a tree and the fruit makes the sauce, in case you were wondering. Getting the proportions right was tricky, I think I had way too much noodles in proportion to the other ingredients but I'm a carb-o-phobe, and I would use more tofu next time, but overall it turned out awesome...even my (slightly inebriated) neighbor came over to taste and agreed with me! To quote him, "Youss rocked thish, arlishhhhaaa." :-D

RECIPE:
4 oz vermicelli, Japanese "rice sticks" noodles
10 oz firm tofu, cut into bite-sized slices
8 oz frozen shrimp
2 shallots (I used leftover pearl onions), chopped
1/2 cup scallions, sliced small
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup peanuts, coarsely chopped
2 cups bean sprouts
1 egg
2 tsp grated ginger

Sauce:
1 cup tamarind sauce
1 cup fish sauce
1/3 cup sugar
chili sauce to taste

Soak the noodles in a bowl of warm water. Make sauce by combining tamarind sauce, fish sauce and sugar over medium heat. Add chili sauce to taste (I used about 4 tsp but as mentioned previously, I am a wimp) and simmer until fully mixed, then turn off and let sauce rest.

Heat olive oil in skillet or wok. Sautee tofu, garlic, and onion until onions are translucent and tofu is crispy brown at the edges. Add noodles to skillet and pour enough sauce to coat skillet contents. Cook until noodles are soft, then push to side and add egg to skillet to cook until hard. Chop cooked egg and mix into rest of ingredients. Add bean sprouts, cilantro, scallions, shrimp, peanuts, and ginger to mixture. Add more sauce if necessary. Simmer for a few minutes until all are well coated by the sauce. Serve in bowl with fresh lime squeezed on top.

Homemade Protein Bars

Have you ever tried one of those store bought protein bars that costs $3 and leaves that nasty metallic taste in your mouth? Here's an alternative: homemade protein bars! Each one has 11g of protein and they taste sooo much better without all that processing.

REVIEW: These are really easy to make, and are filling and tasty. Perfect for when you're starving leaving work but don't want to eat too much before you work out. There is a distinct flavor of protein powder in these, so if you don't like the taste of your protein powder, you'll hate these. I have discovered Dymatize Elite brand which tastes delicious, even in bar form. I recommend the cafe mocha and rich chocolate flavors! Also, I could not find nonfat dry milk like the original recipe said, so I used buttermilk powder which is low in fat and worked fine.

RECIPE:
1 1/2 dry oatmeal
2 scoops chocolate whey protein powder
2 tbsp flaxseeds
1 cup cultured buttermilk powder
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup water
raisins or dried fruit

Spray 8x11 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Combine oatmeal, whey powder, flaxseeds, and powdered milk in a large bowl. Add peanut butter, vanilla, and water to create a sticky dough mixture. Knead in dried fruit. Spread mixture in pan evenly, using wet hands or spatula. Freeze for 1 hours or refrigerate overnight. Cut into squares and wrap individually to grab on the go. Makes 12 servings. (per serving: 200 cals, 5g fat, 11g protein, 25g carbs)

Onigri (Japanese Rice Balls)

Today I finally got around to making the delicious snack I had while on vacation in Tokyo! They sold these cute little rice balls in 7-11 all wrapped up in cellophane and ready to go. It took a little research but I found the official name and a recipe to make my attempt.

REVIEW: Using the right amount of rice and shaping them into triangles was tricky, but the rest of the process was easy.These are very portable, healthy snacks that are simple to make.

RECIPE: I followed the instructions on this website http://www.justhungry.com/2007/01/onigiri_omusubi_revisited_an_e.html and used canned tuna seasoned with salt, pepper, dill, and soy sauce. along with my now perfected (ha) sushi rice.

Spicy Chicken Tomato Bean Soup

A soup like this is PERFECT for a chilly night when I'm in my PJ's watching a movie! I'm nursing a bit of a cold, so I wanted to make something that would warm me up and treat my body right. This recipe is so flexible, once you have the base, you can add any veggies or spices you want to it. The chicken and beans in it made it a filling meal rather than just a first course.

REVIEW: The soup came out very flavorful, and I added just enough kick for me with cayenne pepper and a few drops of Louisiana hot sauce. I love love love cilantro so I chopped up about half the big bunch I bought at the store and threw it in there. Topping choices are endless...avocado, fat free sour cream or nonfat plain yogurt (i swear they taste the same to me), tortilla chips, shredded cheese.

RECIPE:

2 cans low-sodium chicken broth

1 cup water

1lb chicken breasts

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

14oz can diced tomatos

1 can condensed "healthy request" tomato soup

1/2 bag frozen corn

14oz can black beans

14oz can garbanzo beans
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

ground black pepper

dried parsley

chili powder

cayenne pepper

tobasco sauce

nonfat plain yogurt

avocado slices
shredded cheddar cheese

In a large soup pot over medium heat, combine chicken breasts, chicken broth, water, garlic, onion, parsley. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken and shred (use two forks to pull chicken apart), then add back to soup pot along with the diced tomatos, tomato soup, black beans, garbanzo beans, corn. Add chili powder, cayenne pepper, and hot sauce according to taste. Simmer on low for 30 mins. Top with a dollop of yogurt, shredded cheese, and sliced avocado before serving. Serves 8.