I hope everyone had a great week. From last week, our favorite dish was the Indonesian-style ginger chicken, I loved the honey, soy, combination with the assertive taste of a lot of fresh grated ginger! In addition, I think my new favorite treats are the spicy chocolate bark, which are so much better than plain chocolate bark. In addition to chipotle pepper, it has a bit of sea salt for finish. For this week, I’m making meatza at my husband’s request, using a thin layer of spiced ground meat for the crust. In addition, a couple of Thai dishes are on the menu this week. What do you have cooking?
Breakfasts: Peanut butter baked oatmeal, boiled eggs
Lunches: Leftovers, clementines
Dinners:
Sunday: Lamb meatza, salad
Monday: Thai chicken and green bean curry, brown rice, salad
Tuesday: Healthy hamburger stew, salad
Wednesday: Healthy goulash, sliced pears
Thursday: out
Friday: Thai spicy green beans (w/ ground pork) brown rice, sliced cucumber
Saturday: Breakfast for dinner: Scrambled eggs and smoked mackerel, spicy sweet potato wedges, sliced tomatoes
shared at Menu Plan Monday
January 29th,2012
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One of the indulgences that I allow myself fairly often (perhaps too often) is good quality dark chocolate. In addition to a healthy dose of polyphenols and other things, I find that the smooth, rich quality of the chocolate makes small servings quite satisfying. I’ve tried several ways to add even more interesting flavors to dark chocolate and one of my favorites is chili and sea salt. I like making bark with the toppings sprinkled on top rather than mixed throughout. For a holiday treat, you can also add dried fruit with the almonds, a nice red dried cranberry or dried tart cherry would be great. For the holidays, I sprinkled with slivered almonds and dried cranberries (for a nice red look) and put these in small tins to give away.
Spicy Chocolate Bark
7 oz. high quality dark chocolate (I use 73%)
1/2 cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted
1/2 t chipotle pepper
dash cinnamon
1/2 t sea salt or finishing salt
Break up the chocolate pieces and melt over a double boiler until thoroughly melted (or you can carefully microwave the chocolate). Stir in the chipotle pepper and cinnamon until spices are combined throughout. Spread the melted chocolate mixture onto a silpat or parchment paper lined cookie sheet, aiming for one fairly even thin layer. Sprinkle the sliced almonds evenly over the top, then sprinkle with the sea salt. Let cool at room temperature for a couple of hours until almost set and finish cooling in the refrigerator. Before serving, break into irregular pieces. Store in the refrigerator.
shared at Works for Me Wednesday Pennywise Platter, Food Renegade, Frugal Friday, Grocery Cart Challenge, and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
January 24th,2012
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I’ve commented before that saving and dieting (losing weight or if you prefer, losing fat), have a number of things in common. For example, both tend to benefit from having a structured plan, sticking with it, and catching yourself before a major downfall. Interestingly, I have several friends who were both in debt and a bit overweight, who really seemed to get a handle on both situations simultaneously. Rather than compete for attention, it seemed the discipline and determination from the savings arena helped out with the dieting. In addition, successes, both in the budget and in better health can help to bolster each other. I thought it might be interesting to re-visit the saving and dieting connection, but in the context of tips for winter.
--Be sure your savings plan and your health plan address the change in seasons — with respect to your budget this probably means adjustments for heating bills, winter holidays, and accounting for variable income. For your dieting, note that there are different fruits and vegetables in winter. One of my favorite low cost, healthy meals is a large pot of soup made with lots of vegetables, meat, such as ground beef, and a box of tomatoes. I usually prepare one of these big pots of soup at least once per week in winter.
–Aim for rewards that are neither costly nor high in calories — when you achieve a major financial goal or fitness goal, do you reward yourself with ice cream? Instead, aim for small items like books, or tickets to a special event.
–Be aware of the difficult long winter months, usually January through March — for many people, this can be a challenging time as there aren’t the usual holidays to break up the calendar, freelance work is more challenging to come by and the days tend to be very short and cold. During this time, don’t let the winter blahs inadvertently drive you to spending more or eating mindlessly. Try to cultivate a new hobby or learn a new skill. If the weather isn’t cooperating with the attempt to exercise, aim for some indoor activities like a class or put on some music for dancing.
shared at this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance
I hope everyone is having a good week. From the previous menu, our favorite was the chipotle meatloaf. The chipotle spice makes plain ground meat extra tasty, both smoky and hot. For this week, I’m trying out a simple boiled pork ribs and cabbage dish (I’ll post the recipe later) and we have roast chicken on the menu. For seasonal produce, we have clementines, sweet potatoes, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts making an appearance.
Breakfasts: Peanut butter baked oatmeal
Lunches: Hummus deviled eggs, clementines
Dinners:
Sunday: Pork ribs and cabbage, boiled potatoes
Monday: Indonesian style chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, sauteed spinach
Tuesday: Leftover chicken, sauteed cabbage, beans and greens salad
Wednesday: Spicy cauliflower fried rice and shrimp, sauteed spinach
Thursday: out
Friday: Thai style beef and Brussels sprout curry, brown rice, sliced cucumber
Saturday: Breakfast for dinner: Chorizo and mushroom frittata, roasted sweet potato wedges, apple ginger coleslaw
shared at Menu Plan Monday
January 22nd,2012
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One of my favorite dishes to both cook and order is a Thai style red curry. Fragrant with spices, coconut milk, and chilis, it’s a great combination of flavors. Traditional Thai curries might use pork, shrimp or duck as a protein and vegetables like long beans (green beans) and eggplant. I have been experimenting with other combinations, including things not typically found in a Thai curry, like hamburger or cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower and broccoli. My favorite is ground beef and Brussels sprout. It might sound strange but is a great way to incorporate available fresh produce in winter with fun flavors. The key is to brown the hamburger before adding the curry paste, and to cook the vegetables until just tender so they don’t develop a sulfery taste. I’m sure there are a lot of other combinations that work and it comes together in about 20 minutes for me. I serve this over steamed brown rice, and if making a dinner for guests would add a couple of additional dishes like Thai spicy green beans. This is also a great way to use up leftover, straggling vegetables from the crisper.
Thai Style Hamburger Curry
1 pound ground beef
1/2 onion, sliced
1/2 cup carrots, diced
1 small can sliced bamboo shoots (optional)
1/2 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
1-2 T prepared red curry paste
1 can full fat coconut milk
about 2 t Thai fish sauce
1/2 t brown sugar
In a skillet, brown the ground beef and onion in a small amount of cooking oil. Add the curry paste and stir fry for about 60 seconds to bring out the oil in the spices. Add the coconut milk and all vegetables. Bring to a boil, then cover and lower the heat to simmer and simmer for about 12 minutes until the vegetables are just cooked through (not mushy). Stir in the fish sauce and sugar adjusting the saltiness to your taste. Serve immediately.
shared at $5 Dinners, Works for Me Wednesday, Pennywise Platter, Frugal Friday, Food Renegade, and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
January 17th,2012
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