I was supposed to work on a quilt today. I was going to get all the fabric and go over designs with the Aunt who will own it when I'm done. My lungs decided today was an inside, mostly in bed day, and my Husband has a lot to do today as well, so I've decided to write out a menu (complete with recipes) to enjoy part of my day in full foodie style!
Munchies
I like a good appetizer. A tasty treat while the real meal is going can make your guests realize just how hungry they are, or a distraction while you try to keep your counterpart from eating your prep materials.
Slab Of Salmon
1 lbs smoked salmon
1 pkg cream cheese, softened
1 dash Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1 sleeve Ritz Crackers
1. If you go with the W. sauce, mix into softened cream cheese and reshape into brick form. If not, just work with the brick you've got. Make sure it's no more than 1/4 of an inch thick - you don't want the taste overpowering the fish.
2. Arrange your salmon on top. Depending on the type of smoked salmon you purchased, there may be more or less work here for you. If it's in strips, you get to make a mosaic! If it's a slab, I like to slice my own pieces off, to keep the thickness as least close to uniform.
3. Serve with crackers.
Salad
The darker the green, the better! For the last couple days, we've been making pretty close to the same salad. It turned out so well the first time, we couldn't resist a repeat or two! I've included what we put on ours, but c'mon! It's a salad! Get crazy if you like. My only cautionary advice here is: Some dressings have more fat than a well-seasoned entree. (I'm looking at you, Ranch Dressing)
6 tsp sweet vinaigrette and olive oil dressing
1 lbs preferred greens (we used radicchio and romaine)
optional: sunflower seeds, sun dried tomato pieces, sharp cheddar, croutons
1. Rinse and prep greens. Add dressing and any add-ins you like. Mix.
Entree
Main dishes. With some, you can actually work in vegetables, starches, protein and flavor with one fell swoop (spaghetti, chili, etc). Rather than go that route, I wanted to break this down into a typical meal for our house. Our entrees are protein-driven, and even though veggies enhance a lot of protein cooking, veggie side dishes are important too! In this particular instance, we're talking about steak fajitas for our entree.
Steak Fajitas
3/4 lbs braising steak (long, thin, less than $5)
1/3 of medium red/ yellow/ green bell pepper
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp lime juice (lemon's okay - orange & grapefruit, not so great w/ bell peppers)
1/4 tsp dry thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (adjust heat as needed)
1/4 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp cumin
a dash salt & pepper
*tortillas for serving
1. Slice steak thin. If steak is partially frozen (or even just *really* cold), the cutting gets easier. Prep all your veggies the way you like. I prefer that my veggies match my protein source. Long strips of peppers. (If you're planning on grilling, maybe cubing meat and veggies is a better way to go for you! I've seen the strips folded on themselves to accommodate last minute challenges, though!)
2. Ziploc bags or plastic containers: either way, combine your materials to marinate. 30 minutes to an hour is good. When a marinade includes an acid (citrus juice here), the acid will 'cook' the meat, given enough time. Ceviches utilize this technique a lot. We're not looking for a yummy soup right now, so we'll pull our combination of flavors before the acid-cooked point! :)
3. Skillet. I prefer nonstick for this one. You've already got the required fat (oil) on your meat to hold those flavors in during cooking, and the same slick coating makes sliding over the heating surface a lot easier. Medium to medium-high for this dish. Remember: the meat is thin, so it won't take long to cook. Bonus for cooking it all together? You can take the edge off the peppers and still maintain their crunch (and health benefits). Flavors have a chance to get together, as well!
NOTE: Don't add marinade to pan, just meat and peppers. If a little drips in, okay. There shouldn't be a *lot* of liquid anyway, but adding fluid that previously held raw meat to a dish presents a lot of potential for illness.
4. I put an asterisk beside tortillas for a reason. You don't *have* to put this yumminess into a wrapper. You could put it on rice, or a long roll. Serve in whatever way you prefer.
Sides
I love side dishes!!! They're as much fun for me to make as the main dish, and sometimes they're more amusing!!!
Green Beans
Steamed green beans. Yeah, that's all I do to these, with the exception of an occasional dash of cayenne. Since the meat will be spicy, I think I'll skip a double-dose of face incineration.
Rice
Yellow rice? Delicious with this. Plain rice, with some tomato sauce, dash of cumin and garlic? "Spanish" rice in a hurry. Plain rice as a bed instead of tortilla? Awesome!
Corn
Corn, grilled. Yum! Takes on an almost-nutty flavor! Steamed corn off the cobb with pepper? That'll work too! For this one, I like corn in my salsa with black beans, administered directly to my fajita! But that's the beauty of build-it-yourself meals: Personalization!
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