Spinach and Feta Couscous Salad

This is the couscous salad I made the other day. I made it about an hour before we had dinner it was good but it was much better the next day. The asparagus poached in wine was not something I'll do again. Steamed in water with lemon slices and a little herb d' Provence sprinkled in taste much better. I could see this dish being a entree but I would add calmata olives, cucumbers and more (2-3 oz.) feta.

Spinach and Feta Couscous Salad
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

2 cups couscous
1/2 lbs spinach, chopped and dried
1 red bell pepper, diced 1/4 inch pieces
6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
6 ounces pistachios, coarsely chopped
3 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tbs olive oil
black pepper, to taste

1. Cook couscous according to package instructions.
2. Place spinach in the bottom of a large mixing bowl. Pour cooked couscous on top of the spinach and allow the couscous to wilt the spinach about 5 minutes.
3. Once spinach is wilted add feta, pistachios toss until incorporated.
4. Add the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and black pepper toss to incorporate.
5. Eat warm or chill to serve.
6. Enjoy
   

Bargin Mecca (Went to Costco today)

I've loved the store before it became Costco. My affection began with Price Club and just got stronger when it turned into Costco. I can spend an afternoon just browsing the aisles. But I don't buy perishables at Costco because it would spoil before we could eat it all. Also, I can usually get produce cheaper at the farmers market. I buy bulk dairy, meats and canned goods. My strategy is simple if it's a staple item with a long shelf live packaged in manageable portions I'll buy it at Costco. I try only to buy staples at Costco because if we have a box of snickers in the house we'll eat the box. My main food staples from the warehouse store are

Dog Food
Cat Food
5 lbs block of Chedder
Milk
Beef
Pork
Chicken Breasts
Fish Fillets
Sausages
Baked Beans
Refried Beans
Tomatoes, Diced
Chicken Stock
Onions
Baking Supplies

Most of the fresh and frozen items I buy have to be repackaged for storage but taking an extra 30 minutes and repackaging is easy. Besides, if you include the time to repackage the items; I'm still ahead of the game by not going to the store weekly and I always have food that stores well on hand. To prepare for storage I use my second favorite kitchen tool my food sucker it works well with most things I freeze. I'm not sure how I can use the bulk buying power of Costco with the 100 mile diet but right now I've found most of the meat is local to Colorado at least. We're trying to decide if the salmon is something we can do without.

Baked Dijon Salmon

Sorry for not posting regularly. Our three year old feels sleep is now optional which would not be too bad except he turns from my lovable boy to a little fiend with no sleep so we've been working hard convincing him well rested is better than the Lord of the flies. For dinner tonight I'm making salmon, poached asparagus, and whole wheat couscous with nuts and feta. I'm serving the couscous cold and using some wine to poach the asparagus not sure how it's going to turn out right now since the recipes are in my head. I'll let you know how it turns out. As for the salmon I'm not sure where we got this recipe but it is almost impossible to mess up. I hope you like it enough to put into your rotation.

Baked Dijon Salmon
Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

1/4 cup olive oil 3 tbs Dijon mustard 2 tbs honey 1/4 cup bread crumbs, panko (but plain will do) 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans 4 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley 1 lbs salmon, cut into four fillets 1 lemon, for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a small bowl stir together olive oil, mustard, and honey. Set aside.
3. In another bowl mix bread crumbs, pecan and parsley.
4. Brush each fillet lightly with the honey mustard mix sprinkle the fillet tops with the bread crumb mix.
5. Bake the fillets for 12 to 15 minutes or until the salmon flakes easily with a fork.
6. Garnish with lemon slices.
7. Enjoy.
   

Diets dont work. But changes can.

I'm a diabetic. I was diagnosed four months after my wife had our son. I firmly believe that the reason I have this disease is because of my choices. At the time I was 340lbs and not getting any exercise. Breakfast meant stopping at McDonald's on the way to work. Well, I lost close to 100 lbs and continue to fight my weight and eating habits.

My success and failures are mine but here is how I lost the weight and I try to maintain. Portion Control. It's that easy just eat what the recommended portion for a meal is and eat the recommended daily amount. I lost weight and got my diabetes under control by using portion control. It takes time to figure out what a serving really is and then being satisfied with it but it can be done. Some of the stategies that helped me are: eat a portion and if I'm still hungry wait 15 minutes if I'm still hungry after waiting I'll eat half a portion and stop, trusting I've eaten enough. Drink water and tea (hot or iced) and remove soda completely. When ordering out move food around your plate. What I mean is figure our what your going to eat and seperate it from the heard so to speak. When done have the server bring a box for leftovers or ask them to remove the plate. I know it sounds like a waste but restaurants are about giving you value for your money not healthy choices. My belief is the value I'm buying is the experience and the service the food only a part the whole.

Lazy-agna (Baked Penne)

So I've been thinking about making lasagna for a few days. But, I just did not want to deal with the noodles and all the mess. Here's what I came up with tonight for dinner. I served it with some sweet Italian sausage and crusty bread. My three year old loves to slice the mushrooms using our egg slicer. The boy loved it and went for seconds (the equivalent of a five star rating). My wife complained it was to acidic but I felt it was fine.

Lazy-agna (Baked Penne)
Serves 6
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

1/2 lbs penne pasta
8-10 mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lbs ricotta cheese, low-fat
1/2 lbs mozzarella cheese shredded
5-6 leaves basil, chopped
1 bottle of your favorite spaghetti sauce

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

2. Cook penne according to package instructions for half the required time. Drain pasta and put in a mixing bowl.

3. In a medium pan heat 1 tbs of olive oil. Add and sweat sliced mushrooms. When mushrooms are done add the ricotta and basil bringing all ingredients up to temperature.

4. Combine and mix mushrooms with the pasta in mixing bowl.

5. Put a thin layer of the mixed pasta in a small casserole dish. Cover pasta with sauce and a light sprinkling of mozzarella. Repeat until casserole dish is filled. Place any remaining mozzarella on top and bake covered for 25 minutes. For the last five minutes set oven to broil. But stay close to make sure the food does not burn.

6. Remove from oven let dish rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

7. Enjoy.

Sushi Sweet Sushi

We recently moved from the San Francisco Bay area to Fort Collins, Colorado. While Money Magazine rated Fort Collins as the best small city to live [link] in I'm afraid to say they did not consider restaurants in there ratings. It's taken us a few months to figure out the local restaurant scene and I've yet to find a decent sushi restaurant in town. Denver has a few good sushi bars so I can get a fix however it's an hour away. Which brings me to the point of this post. I have not been able to get a good recommendation for sushi since we moved here. Most peoples response when I ask is they don't like sushi. When I ask if they tried sushi most say no or that they went once but did not know how to order and did not like what was served. This madness has to end with a little instruction it's my belief most people would love the stuff since sushi can be sweet, savory, or anywhere in between. To that end check out the SushiFAQ and explore the tasty bite sized morsels of goodness.

Chicken Fajitas- Indianish Style

I love fajitas. They're simple to make you just need meat, sweet peppers, onions, tortillas and voila fajitas right? Its so simple who needs a recipe, not me. Well, I've been trying to make the ultimate fajitas for years. It's become a matter of principle for me not to look for a recipe. My problem is the spices mixture. I keep trying to get the spices right and I keep getting the alchemy wrong. On the plus side I've created a few great variations while trying to recreate the original. Here's last nights failed attempt. It was great everyone liked them.

Fajitas- Indianish

1 tbs olive oil
1/2 lbs chicken breast, sliced in strips
1 bell pepper, green sliced in strips
1 bell pepper, red sliced in strips
1 med onion, sliced in strips
1 tbs cumin, ground
1/2 tbs turmeric
pepper to taste
4 whole wheat tortillas
sour cream to garnish
Chutney, tamarind to garnish

1. Heat oil in skillet. When oil is warmed add chicken and half of the cumin and turmeric. Cook chicken until done, remove from pan.
2. Add sliced vegetables and remaining cumin and turmeric to hot pan saute once the vegetables are browned add about 1/4 cup water and de-glaze pan allowing the vegetables to steam in the pan. Just before the pan goes dry remove vegetables and serve with chicken.
3. Serve on the whole wheat tortillas with a spoonful of sour cream and the chutney.
4. Enjoy.

Serves 4

While not traditional these "fajitas" are quick and delicious. The flavor comes from cooking the spices in the hot oil with the chicken.