Thyme For Cooking, the Blog

Spinach, Quinoa and Vegetable Salad with Soy Vinaigrette; Cooking to Combat Cancer

Spinach, Quinoa and Vegetable Salad

Chris, of Mele Cotte is hosting the 3rd annual "Cooking to Combat Cancer" event this month.

The purpose, as the name implies, is to remind all of us that we are what we eat.

The National Cancer Institute estimates that one third of all cancer deaths may be diet related.

In case you don't understand that statement let me put it another way:

A bad diet can kill you.

Most people would agree that drunks, driving, cause or contribute to road fatalities.

Thankfully, more and more people, knowing this, choose not to drink and drive.

Most people would agree that smoking causes/contributes significantly to lung cancer.

Thankfully, more and more people, knowing this, choose not to smoke.

The National Cancer Institute, Mayo Clinic, and other organizations, have given us, (humans) the information we need to eat a healthy, diet that will help prevent cancer. 

Now, all we have to do is choose to eat the good foods.

Visit Mele Cotte this weekend to find lots of wonderful, delicious food that will help in the fight against the Big C.

We all know that it effects all of us, in one way or another.  Time to start fighting back.

To set you on the right track, here's a colorful salad:

Avocado:  can help against liver cancer

Carrot, raw:  can help against many cancers, including breast, lung, prostate and stomach

Garlic:  can help against stomach and colon cancer as well as slow tumor growth

Tomato:  contains lycopene which helps against breast, prostate, and pancreas cancers

Soy:  helps against breast cancer 

Spinach: helps against prostate and ovarian cancers

Quinoa:  This grain is so healthy it's almost scary....

I could go on...but you get the idea.

Spinach, Quinoa and Vegetable Salad with Soy Vinaigrette

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
1 tbs Teriyaki sauce
2 tsp walnut oil
1/2 cup quinoa cooked in 1 cup chicken stock
1 avocado
1/2 yellow pepper
2 carrots
2oz (60gr) sharp white cheddar cheese
4oz (125gr) cherry tomatoes
6oz (180gr) spinach

Cut chicken into bit-size pieces.  Heat Teriyaki sauce and walnut oil in a large skillet. Add chicken and stir-fry until cooked through.
Cook quinoa in chicken stock for 15 minutes, until done.
Cut avocado into slices.  Cut pepper into matchsticks.  Shred carrots using a vegetable peeler.  Cut cherry tomatoes in half.  Crumble cheddar. 
Put the washed. dried spinach into a large bowl.  Add half the vinaigrette and toss to coat.  Spread the quinoa on top of the spinach.  Arrange the rest of the ingredients on top of quinoa.  Drizzle with a bit more vinaigrette and serve, remaining vinaigrette on the side.

Soy Balsamic Vinaigrette

1 1/2 tbs soy sauce
1 1/2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Dijon-style mustard
5 tbs olive oil

Whisk together soy sauce, vinegar and mustard.  Slowly drizzle in olive oil, whisking to combine.

Have a glass of red wine with the salad and some berries for dessert.....

See how easy it is to eat the good foods?

For more recipes check out my internet cook book:  Easy Gourmet Dinners

Stir-Fried Scallops with Ham; Finally: a house update!

Stir-Fried Scallops and Ham

It's Monday

It's been 5 weeks since any work has been done around here. 

I mean, actual renovation/restoration/construction/improve-the-damn-place kind of work.

Might I say we are just a tad behind schedule?

Things are looking up however.

Mon mari still is not supposed to be doing a lot of walking.... But he has managed to do a few things in the week he's been home.

First, though, I know you would all love to see where he spent those 24 days:

A bit austere.... But, private... And, no, we did not request or pay extra for the privilege.

This is what the garden jungle in front of our house looked like last week, before we finally had some dry sunny days.  It's been neglected for the better part of 2 years.

This is what it's supposed to look like - we got about half done, and I managed to plant a few herbs in the old cow trough by the door.  As it's cement it's not going anywhere - might as well use it!

Did I mention our wisteria 'tree'? It grew into a pine tree and there is no way to separate them anymore.

And a few other little treasures found buried:

 

As to the work....Drawers for the kitchen cabinets.... Yay!!!!!

He actually installed them after I took this - no fronts yet, but who cares!!! They work!

In honor of all this effort:

Stir-Fried Scallops with Ham

12oz (350gr) large scallops
4 slices Prosciutto, (3oz, 90gr) or other dry-cured ham, Bayonne, Serrano
1 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 tbs dry sherry
2 tsp soy sauce
3 tsp olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp cornstarch (maizena) dissolved in 2 tbs water

Cut ham slices into thick strips.  Dissolve cornstarch in water.  Stir sherry and soy sauce into cornstarch mixture.
 Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat . When hot add 2 tsp olive oil, ham and stir-fry until crisp.  Remove ham and set aside.  Add remaining 1 tsp olive oil and sesame oil to skillet.  Add scallops and stir-fry quickly until scallops turn opaque.
Some scallops will release water when cooked, causing them to steam rather than fry. Be sure to use a large skillet, giving them plenty of room. Turn the heat to high after adding the scallops if they don't start to sizzle.
Return ham to skillet, add cornstarch mixture and stir until it's hot, thick and coating the scallops, less than a minute.  Serve immediately.

He didn't get much Chinese in the hospital....

Although he said the food was very good....

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce; the Weekly Menu

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce

It's a rainy day here in the Lot et Garonne. 

I'm torn....

There's a part of me that wants to go out and work in the garden, regardless.  I made a good start over the last few nice days and I would love to get back at it until it's done - except, that would take weeks of constant labor.

The other part of me wants to sit quietly at my computer and finish all the projects I have started over the last few weeks and months; you know: tidy up the blog, index recipes, update web pages, sort through a few thousand food photos that I now have no clue as to what I actually did to prepare the food.

I could clean the house... Let me check my list... No, that's not on it!

I think I'll let the rain dictate and have another cup of coffee.

Rather than get into any details about mon mari's diabetes on this blog, I have started another (sigh...).

We don't really have to make any major changes to daily menus, but there are a few tweaks - not to the recipes themselves, as we eat only fresh, local produce and cook everything from scratch, but to the combination of foods.  That seemed to go rather well with my new website so I attached the blog to that domain (I do like to keep things tidy and interconnected).

New blog: Blog at Easy Gourmet Dinners  Remember...it's new

Don't forget to have a meander through me internet cook book, Easy Gourmet Dinners;  - and please - any hints to make it more useful? 

Looking for something yummy and impressive for dinner tonight?

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken on Pimiento Sauce
    These are easy to make: slice a pocket, fill and tie. The Prosciutto wrapping infuses the chicken with flavor and helps keep it moist. The Pimiento Sauce adds just a bit of spice to it.

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
1 - 2oz (50gr) Gruyère or other hard cheese, thinly sliced
4 slices Prosciutto (about 3oz, 90gr)
1 tbs olive oil
kitchen string
Pimiento Sauce

With a sharp knife make a long slit in the edge of the chicken breast - cutting horizontally and being careful not to cut through the other side. Make the cut on the 'straight' edge of the breast. You should have a pocket the shape of the breast with 1/2 inch of 'uncut' chicken around 3 sides.
Tuck the sliced cheese inside.
Lay 2 slices of Prosciutto side by side. Close the chicken breast and lay it on the Prosciutto at a slight angle, Roll and wrap, covering the chicken breast completely in the ham, as best you can.
Wrap the entire parcel with kitchen string to hold it together - and keep as much cheese inside as possible.
Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and brown well on all sides, about 10 minutes total. Reduce heat to low, cover and let finish cooking, another 10 - 15 minutes.
Or, you can cook on a barbecue grill for 8 - 12 minutes per side over indirect heat until Prosciutto if starting to crisp and chicken is cooked through.|
Remove chicken from heat. Snip the string in a few places and remove. Spoon some Pimiento Sauce onto the plates, place the chicken in the center and serve, any remaining sauce on the side.

Pimiento Sauce

4 - 5oz (150gr) pimiento (pimento) or roasted red peppers, drained
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbs tomato paste use the stuff in the tube
1 tbs Greek or plain yogurt
1/4 - 1/2 cup (2-4oz, 60-120ml) chicken stock

Put pimiento/pepper, garlic powder and chili powder into a blender. Add just enough of the chicken stock to enable it to purée. Pour into a small saucepan and stir in tomato paste. Gently heat until it starts to simmer. Stir in yogurt.

In addition to the above, for the week of April 24 we have Asparagus and Green Garlic Tarts, Snapper with \lemon Mustard Sauce, Spring Salad with Chicken, Asparagus and Avocado, Risotto with Fava (Broad) Beans....

Become a Thyme for Cooking Subscriber and get the menu, complete recipes with meal preparation instruction, and shopping list each Thursday. (Reverse seasons available for Australia, and others in the Southern Hemisphere)

Pasta with Ham and Asparagus; Captive of the French Medical System

Pasta with Ham and Asparagus

The French medical system is very reluctant to let go of their patients.  It appears that, as they go through a lot of effort to fix said patient, they are going to be damn certain that said patient stays fixed.

No backsliding allowed.

One is not merely discharged on one's own recognizance.

As we left the hospital on Friday, the nurse came with the stack of ordonnance (prescriptions), including one for the home nurse to make certain that mon mari followed all the rest.

We stopped at the pharmacy and left, 45 minutes later, with three shopping bags.  There would have been a fourth... Mon mari was supposed to wear a brace on his entire leg to keep him from bending his toe....

They didn't have the right size, and, after much worry trying to make another work, I convinced the pharmacist that it would be a waste because he would never use it.

The nurse duly showed up the next morning to check the toe.

Now, you should know that there were 2 tiny stitches on the very tip of his second toe.

When she was through with her treatment he had a bandage going half way up his calf.

Monday we called the local GP to have the stitches removed (as required on an ordonnance).  He said  to come in at 5.

We didn't realize that Monday's from 5:00pm are his 'office' hours.

Most doctors here have 'office' hours, when they take walk-in traffic. 

Lovely idea: one gets to sit in a room full of sick  people for hours waiting your turn.  Ever so much better than calling for an appointment for one of the other 4 days.  I mean, if you did that, there might not be anyone in the waiting room to gossip with!  That would be a shame, now, wouldn't it? 

Three hours later the stitches were removed.  The ordonnance also allowed him to download mon mari's medical history.... Which then allowed him to give mon mari the ordonnance to use the ambulance service. 

Real ambulances, the kind with para-medics and equipment, are run by the fire department or SAMU.  The other ones, that one sees everywhere, are really medical taxis.  Mon mari can now take a medical taxi to any of his doctor appointments, free of charge.

Which means that I no longer have to drive him to Bordeaux.

Well, it would mean that if he were willing to go without me.

It's not so much that he cherishes my company; more that he needs the translator.

Yesterday morning the hospital called.  One of the doctor's decided that an MRI would be helpful before his appointment on Monday. Can't believe no one thought of this before.  Whilst in hospital he spent many days doing absolutely nothing.  Anyway...  Could we come at 5:00pm?

I said no.

That was unacceptable.

We were there at 5:00.

We were home by 9:00 - he didn't have to wait.

Then the GP called.  Someone, somewhere, thought of something else mon mari desperately needed... A kit to do some other sort of blood test... Can we come in Friday to pick up, yet another, ordonnance.

And, as long as they had my attention, they gave me his appointment schedule for the next 2 weeks.... Just check-ups to make sure their work wasn't going to come all undone.

Foolishly, I thought my constant trips to Bordeaux were a thing of the past....

Fortunately, asparagus is not a thing of the past.  Mon mari would have been most cross if his hospital stay had caused him to miss asparagus season.

Since it's Thursday, and I have a free minute, I'm going to submit this to Presto Pasta Nights, founded by Ruth of Once Upon a Feast, and hosted this week by Hillary of Chew on That  Visit her blog on Friday for all the wonderful pasta dishes from around the world.

Like tomatoes and basil, lemon and mint, smoked salmon and champagne, foie gras and Sauternes... Oops, drifting off topic here.

Ham and asparagus, for me, is another perfect pairing.

Pasta with Ham and Asparagus

1 1/4 cup bite size pasta
10oz (300gr) baked or deli ham
10oz (300gr) asparagus
3 green garlic (2oz, 60gr)
1/2 cup (4oz, 125ml) chicken stock
1/2 cup (4oz, 125ml) Greek or plain yogurt
1/2 cup (4oz,(120gr) Gruyère cheese, shredded
2 tsp olive oil

Cook pasta according to package directions.
Snap off asparagus ends. Peel if using white. Cut asparagus into 1 1/2" (4cm) lengths. Bring a medium saucepan half full of water to a boil over medium high heat. Add asparagus and blanch for 2 minutes (3 for white). Remove, drain, rinse thoroughly with cold water and drain again.
Cut ham into large, bite-size pieces. Trim and thickly slice green garlic.
Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add green garlic, ham, asparagus and sauté until hot and lightly browned. Add chicken stock and heat through. Stir in yogurt.
When pasta is done drain and add to skillet; heat through. Sprinkle with cheese, stir to combine and melt cheese slightly and serve.

If mon mari behaves I might even share!

The Babes do Ethiopia! Authentic Injera

The Bread Baking Babes took pity on poor little me this month and made a bread that didn't require an oven. 

It did require Teff flour, which I didn't have and couldn't find.

It did require indoor rising temperatures of 70F (21C) which I didn't have and couldn't conjure.

But, hey...

I'm a Babe and I've got the panties to prove it!  I'm not going to let a few little things like that stop me.

Of course, it might have been better if I'd read the ENTIRE recipe before I started, but, like I said:
I'm a Babe; hear me roar!

To start I made a starter.

In order to do this, one of the Beauteous Babes, Lien, of Notitie van Lien, was an angel and sent me some Teff flour.  Teff is an annual grass, native to Ethiopia, and is an important food grain for that country.  It's used to make Injera, which is a flatbread used as a bread and/or scoop for stews.

I made the starter; pretty simple, teff flour, water and a pinch of yeast.

I read the next line that said to leave it at room temperature for five days.

I can do that!

Then I read that, apparently, in the opinion of the author, room temperature is 70F.

Not in my house!

It might get close to that (65F) at night, with the stove lit, but during the day, when I was off visiting mon mari in hospital, it was more, shall we say, outdoor temperature... Which varied for those 5 days from 45 - 65.

I told the starter it was just going to have to suck it up and adjust.  This was MY room, MY temperature and it was going to have to live with it!

It did. 

I sat it next to me to warm up in front of the stove at night; sat it on the counter to look out the window while I was gone.  I tried getting the girl dogs to keep it warm during the day but they wanted nothing to do with the bubbling mess.

Whatever, it thrived.

I stirred it and fed it.

It bubbled.

We were happy.

My s-i-l came to visit her brother (a side trip from a holiday in Spain) so I decided to make it for us for dinner.

I had read the next line of the recipe: Four hours before making Injera stir in....

So....I did.

About three hours later I read the next line:  Make dough and let rise for four hours.

Hmmm....

You can see my problem.

I had allocated 4 hours.

I needed 8 hours.

I took my difficulties to the source and had another heart to heart with the dough.

I explained the new rules:  It had an hour to get up to speed... Snap to it.

Once again it came through in style.

It bubbled and doubled.

I gave it a bit more time, but it was 'the little dough that could'.

We were ready to start.

The next instructions were a little vague.  "add water to make batter".

How much?

Like making cement: just enough,

The first one was not a success.

It was a bit too much like cement.

Sticky cement.

A bit more water; a few more tries....

Finally got it right.... I think.  Never having eaten it I couldn't be sure.

But it was supposed to get puffy and light after sitting and cooling.

Looked good to me!

More importantly, it tasted good to me - kind of a grassy, yeasty, slightly sour taste...

My s-i-l and I declared it bread!

I had planned to make some authentic Ethiopian stews to go with it... You'll find some wonderful recipes on the other Babe's blogs:

Bake My Day, I Like to Cook, Living on Bread and Water, Lucullian Delights,  My Kitchen in Half Cups, Grain Doe, Notitie van Lien, The Sour Dough, Cookie Baker Lynn,  Canela and Comino,   Living In the Kitchen With Puppies

For us, I made:

Lentil and Bean Stew, Sausages optional

Lentil and Bean Stew

1/2 cup lentils  I used Lentils du Puy
1 1/4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
8oz (250gr) white beans, drained and rinsed
8oz (250gr) red beans, drained and rinsed
1 onion
1 red pepper
3 cloves garlic
1 tbs oil
1 tbs paprika, smoky or sweet
15oz (450gr) whole tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine
3 bay (laurel) leaves
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme

Pick over lentils in case they missed the odd stone. Put lentils and stock in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until lentils are done. They should absorb most of the stock. Don't let them dry out. Drain any remaining stock when done.
Chop onion, pepper. Mince garlic. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add paprika and sauté 1 minute. Add onion and pepper, sauté briefly. Then add garlic, sauté a few minutes longer. Open and drain tomatoes, reserving juices. Roughly chop tomatoes. Add red and white beans, tomatoes, reserved juices, herbs and wine to skillet. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.

Sausages

8oz (250gr) sausages I used fat Toulouse sausages

Brown sausages well on all sides.  Slice into 1" (2.5cm) lengths and add to stew to simmer.

For the Injera recipe, go to this month's host kitchen, The Sour Dough.

Now, go check out the other Babe's to see the real thing.  I won't mind... really!

I'm just glad I got to play then this month....

It's good to be a Babe again!

(And, no, I won't show you the panties.... I can't believe you had the nerve to ask!  Harrumph!)

Burgers Stuffed with Goat Cheese; the search continues

Burgers Stuffed with Goat Cheese

You may recall my ongoing battle of the boxes; my continuous, never-ending search to find stuff.

Last weekend it was the search for my kitchen scale, which I found under a pile of collapsed clothing boxes.

That inspired me to repack the clothing boxes into something a bit sturdier.  Since we won't be moving into our new bedroom the 1st of May, as originally planned back in the beginning of time when we packed, I thought it would be fun to be able to find summer clothes.

We have to shed the long underwear eventually....

Off I went to the local DIY store for big, clear plastic bins - with covers of course, to keep the dust and critters out.

I'm about half through repacking and organizing and you wouldn't believe the stuff I've found!

Four weeks ago, before my mammogram, I tore through every possible, logical box looking for the envelope with all my prior mammograms. 

I finally came to the conclusion that my prior doctor must have lost them.  (It couldn't have been ME losing them!)

Three weeks ago I repeated and extended the search looking for mon mari's medical records from last summer.

I finally came to the conclusion that they were hiding out with my mammograms.

Turns out the last conclusion was the correct one.

I found all of the lost medical bits safely tucked in with the Christmas place mats and napkins.

I mean, where else should they have been?

Certainly not with the other x-rays, etc. that I had found 6 months earlier.

Now you may be wondering why I was unpacking the Christmas linens in April....

I wasn't.

Don't be silly.  They just happened to be under my various, neglected needlework projects.

Now you may be wondering how I have manged so much free time that I went in search of needlework to keep me busy....

I haven't and I didn't.  Really!

The needle work was under my sandals.  Pay attention!

Ah, you think... I was looking for the sandals!

No.  The weather is still too cool for sandals.... But perfect for lightweight cotton sweaters....

Which was how the box was labeled: summer cotton sweaters.

Note to self... And anyone else who may ever move house:

One never knows for sure how long it will be before any given box will be unpacked.  Label, label, label.

And don't forget to write down that unnecessary item on the bottom used to make the box more stable... or that last bit tucked into the corners just because there was room.

Now I shall mentally apologize to mon mari for all the unkind thoughts last week.  I had packed this box.

All of this has made me a bit shy about looking for stuff.

Which leads me to this day:  I set-up mon mari's computer for him.  I spent hours trying to get a wireless connection working - with an antenna and software I found in one of my searches for something else.  God only knows when or why I bought it.  I took his computer apart, plugged in the new board, and tried everything I could think of to make it work.

All of this to avoid going into the barn to look for the ethernet router.  I knew I'd spend all day looking for it.

So, I spent all day trying to get the wireless to work.

I gave up.

Rather than beating the dogs or stomping on mon mari's foot I went to the barn.

I thought ripping open some boxes would relieve the stress.

I found the router in the first box I opened... On top....

I plugged it in.  It worked.  All is normal in the internet world chez nous.

Mon mari is home and happy.

I think I'm going to go sit in the corner and quietly eat my other chocolate bunny now.

Might I say...AAARRRGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you.

These were not the burgers I buried in beans this week.

I'll put goat cheese in or on anything...

Burgers Stuffed with Chevre
Just bit of creamy goat cheese in the center keeps these burgers very most and adds a lovely flavor.

12oz (350gr) ground beef
2oz (60gr) chevre (goat cheese) (the little cartons of creamy goat cheese, Chavrie in U.S. Chevraux in France)
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tbs breadcrumbs
1 tbs oil
2 tbs ketchup
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Dijon-style mustard

In a small bowl mix basil, breadcrumbs, garlic and chevre. Make 4 patties of the beef. Spread half of the goat cheese/crumb mix on each of 2 patties, spreading to within 1/3" (1cm) of the edge. Place remaining 2 patties on top. Work edges to seal. Heat oil in nonstick skillet. Add patties and fry, 5 - 8 minutes per side, depending on thickness. In a small bowl mix ketchup, Worcestershire and mustard. Spread on top of the burgers after turning. When done, remove and serve.

For more recipes see the index in the sidebar or check out my internet cook book: Easy Gourmet Dinners.

Egg 'Linguini' with Warm Avocado Sauce; sordid secrets of solitary suppers revealed!

Egg Linguini with Warm Avocado Sauce

When mon mari first started his sojourn in hospital I had dinners of:
     Steamed  Artichokes with Balsamic Dipping Sauce followed by Asparagus and Tuna Risotto.

As time went on I had dinners of: 
     Cherry Tomato and Asparagus Salad followed by Avocado and Goat Cheese Omelets with a side of Sautéed Mangetout (Snow Peas).

Gradually it changed to:
     Salad consisting of anything left in the fridge (asparagus, tomatoes, snow peas) and a poached chicken breast.

Last night, the final night of dining 'seule', I gave a lot of thought to what I should eat.  It had to be memorable; it had to be special; it had to be easy:
     2 hamburger patties smothered with a can of Heinz 'Beans in Tomato Sauce', slathered with lots of hot mustard and ketchup. 
     Topped off with one of the '2 for 1' dark chocolate Easter Bunnies I picked up in the sale bin at Intermarché.....

For the connoisseurs in the crowd: 
     I had a lovely dry white wine while preparing my repast, and a hearty red with the beef; which also went well with the dark chocolate.

Tonight, it's back to normal; cooking for two.  I picked up mon mari's favorite 'A' vegetables at my favorite green grocer this morning: Artichokes, Avocados, and Asparagus.

Now I just have to come up with something featuring all three.  Stay tuned....

In the meantime, here's some low carb pasta....

Egg 'Linguini' with Warm Avocado Sauce

A spring update on the 'Egg Noodles with Prosciutto', these noodles are dressed with a light, warm avocado sauce. Garnish with a few cherry tomatoes to add color.

Noodles
3 eggs
2 1/4 tsp flour
4 1/2 tsp milk
1 tsp oil
Sauce
1 avocado
1/3 cup (3oz, 90ml) chicken stock
1 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs Greek or plain yogurt
Garnish, optional
2 - 4 cherry tomatoes
a few olives

Sauce: Cut avocado and remove pit (see techniques). Scoop it out of the shell and put it into your blender. Add chicken stock, lemon juice and purée until smooth. Pour it into a small saucepan and gently heat until warm. Stir in yogurt.
Noodles: Put eggs in medium bowl and whisk well. Add flour, a little at a time, sprinkling it across the eggs, and whisking well after each addition. Try to avoid lumps. Add the milk and whisk well. Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet or omelet pan, 7 - 8" (20cm) in diameter, over medium heat. Add 1/3rd of the egg mixture, tilting pan to cover well. Let cook, undisturbed for 1 - 2 minutes, until cooked through and top is dry. With a spatula, carefully turn and cook on the other side for 30 seconds. Remove to a plate. Do not keep warm.
Repeat twice more. When eggs are done, and cooled slightly, roll each up like a cigar and slice 1/4" (.6cm) strips. Egg linguini! Divide strips in half. Arrange on plates, spoon sauce over, garnish and serve.

In addition to the above, for the week of April 17 we have Salmon with Sesame Soy Glaze, Asparagus Pastries with Tarragon Cream, Asparagus Risotto, Chicken, Spinach and Feta Pasta,....

Become a Thyme for Cooking Subscriber and get the menu, complete recipes with meal preparation instruction, and shopping list each Thursday. (Reverse seasons available for Australia, and others in the Southern Hemisphere)

And don't forget to have a look at my internet cook book:  Easy Gourmet Dinners!

Asparagus, Tuna and Caper Risotto; the importance of being needed

Asparagus, Tuna and Caper Risotto

Mon mari gets out Friday.

Twenty three days of lazing around a hospital, feeling good, having his toe tended, his feet rubbed and his every wish catered to by a bevy of young, mostly female, mostly attractive, French doctors  and nurses, is far too long.

It has apparently turned his mind to mush.

Last night I mentioned that I had to put some petrol in the car before driving up this morning.

He asked me if I knew how.

Let me repeat that....

He asked me if I knew how.

Or if I knew where the gas station was that would pump it for me.  (He's seen other, ancient, decrepit, incapable, idiot,  women there, apparently).

I can only assume that, not realizing where he was, he also didn't realize that the tank had to have been filled on at least 3 earlier occasions in order to transport me to his side. 

Perhaps he thought the OPEC fairies came in the night and filled it for me.

Perhaps he wondered why I had not sought his advice earlier on how to manage this task.

He must be in awe at my ingenuity at being able to drive for more years than I care to admit to, while always, miraculously, having enough gas at my disposal.

I didn't have the heart to tell him that I even know how to tell which side the tank is on without getting out of the car to look. 

I assured him that I would manage the pesky petrol thingy, some how....

Then I mentioned that I had to haul quite a bit of trash, as well.  (We don't have trash picked up here.)

He wanted to know what I was throwing out.

Nothing.

Just trash.

He wanted to know how I could have accumulated so much trash being here by myself.

It's not like I was cooking or anything....

I asked him what he thought I was living on?  Warm thoughts of him?

Well, it's not like I would be making actual meals.  Surely I just had a piece of fruit and went to bed early...

Apparently, the only reason I cook is to please him.  The fact that I enjoy eating, too, is merely a secondary benefit.

I chose not to tell him that I wanted to dump all the empty wine bottles before he got home.

I chose not to tell him that this was my 4th trip to haul trash.

I'll have to restock the freezer tomorrow.  And the cheese drawer.  And the pantry.

And it looks like I'll be having Asparagus Risotto for the 3rd time in as many weeks....  I won't mention that either.

After I hung up I remembered me coming home after a visit to my mother a few years back.  Mon mari fixed dinner for me the night I got back.  He proudly made 'my' roasted potatoes.

Except that, as he explained, he had 'fixed' them. 

He didn't 'change the recipe slightly', or 'modify' the recipe, or 'adjust' the recipe....

He FIXED the recipe.

I hadn't realized that it was broken.

More importantly, I had only been gone for 10 days and he had taken over my territory and, at least to him, improved on it.

Somehow, that didn't generate any warm fuzzy feelings in me....  It's rather nice to be needed.

He's been in the hospital for 23 days.  During that time I have not asked for his help or advice, thinking to keep him from worrying about being gone.

Perhaps I've been a bit too self-reliant.

I think I'll go put the ashes back in the stove....

It'll need an expert cleaning by Friday....  It's rather nice to be needed.

Now, about that Asparagus Risotto....

As long as I was on my own, I could go a little crazy....

Asparagus, Tuna, and Caper Risotto

1/2 cup plus 2 tbs Arborio rice (or other rice specifically for risotto - Carnaroli or Vialone Nano)
1/2 cup dry, white wine
2 cups plus 2 tbs chicken stock
4oz (120gr) asparagus
1 onion
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
1 tbs butter
1 can tuna, 6oz (170gr)
1 tbs capers
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Heat chicken stock and keep hot over low heat.
Prepare asparagus, cutting to 1 1/2 inch length, reserving tips. Finely chop onion. Cut carrot and celery into small dice, about 1/4"(.5cm). Open and drain tuna. Loosen with a fork.
In medium sauce pan heat butter; add onion, carrot and celery. Sauté 5 minutes, until starting to get tender. Add rice and sauté, stirring, for 2 - 3 minutes until rice has white center. Add white wine and stir. When wine is almost absorbed add a 1/2 cup of stock and all of the asparagus except tips and stir. (No need to stir constantly but do stir from time to time.) When stock is almost absorbed add another 1/2 cup and continue adding 1/2 cup at a time and stirring. Before the last 2 '1/2 cups' are added put in the asparagus tips, capers and tuna. Before the last 1/4 cup is added taste a few kernels of rice. They should be just 'al dente' - slightly resistant to the tooth but fully cooked. If more stock is needed add it 1/8 cup at a time and waiting until almost completely absorbed. At this point risotto will be thick but not stiff - it will not hold it's shape on a plate. Add the Parmesan, stir, pour into a bowl and serve immediately.

Please, don't tell him I put tuna in the asparagus risotto....

He'll never trust my to be on my own again!

Remember when I said they were keeping him in the hospital because they didn't trust him not to walk on that foot?  Even though he said he would promise?  Did I mention that he's supposed to say off it another week or two?

He informed me tonight, that we would be stopping at the DIY store on the way home from the hospital.  He just needs to pick up a bit of lumber for the weekend.....

Fresh Pea Soup; boxes, boxes and more boxes

Fresh Pea Soup

Just as well that mon mari is still in hospital....

He's much safer there.

His ears would have been well-blistered had he been anywhere in my vicinity this weekend.

He had done the packing, you see... And I was looking for my kitchen scale.

Back in February, when I wanted to unpack a few things for the kitchen, so we could eat, I mentioned that he had a unique way of listing the boxes.

I had a meeting with the dietitian last week, and, while we don't really need to change anything in our diet (mon mari is banned from the M & M dispenser in the village square) we do need to be more conscious of quantities and balancing the carbohydrates in each meal.

To do that, I need my kitchen scale.

I started the search.

First, I went through every box labeled 'last minute packing'. 

There were 10 of these.

Then I went through every box labeled 'Kitchen miscellaneous'.

There were 8 of these.

Then I started looking at what might be considered logical boxes, like box 149 - small kitchen gadgets.

There were 2 of these.

Not 2 boxes of small kitchen gadgets; there were 3 boxes of small kitchen gadgets....

There were 2 boxes numbered 149.

Discovering this opened up a whole new dimension to the search.

I realized I had to physically  locate and identify every box in the 100 series (kitchen), not just cross them off the list.

I started on the upper floor and slowly worked my way down, through the barn and through every room in the house.

I opened, partially unpacked, looked, repacked every box.

Five hours later I still had not found it.

I'd found lots and lots of other odds and ends I had been wanting; but not the kitchen scale.

By this time I also realized that I hadn't found the bay leaves and sage I had dried and carefully packed, or the stoppers for my vinegar bottles, or my olive oil can, or my spice tins, or my measuring cups or my....

If I ever found this box I was going to be very happy.

But it wasn't anywhere.  I had looked and looked and looked again.

I quit.

Or I tried to quit.

Like a dog with an old bone, I just couldn't let it go. 

I went back out to the barn and started moving boxes.  If I moved them all from one side to the other I had to find it.  Right?  If it was there?

Did I mention that I have a hard time letting go of things?

I found it. 

It was buried under a collapsed stack of clothing boxes.

When the clothing boxes had been neatly stacked 6 months ago, it wasn't there.  But, with all of our searching for bits and pieces over the months, things had gotten rearranged, boxes collapsed, stacks fell down.

And...

It didn't have a number....

Having escaped my wrath, how is he doing?

Still lazing around the hospital. 

Apparently they don't trust him to stay off the foot if they release him.

Apparently they have gotten to know mon mari quite well.

It's healing nicely, however, and they haven't been able to come up with anything more to do to him, so It looks like they'll let him go before the weekend.

This is what he's been missing, chez nous:

 

We have a white lilac by the gate; the apple tree is covered in blossoms and humming with bees; and the pine tree by the house is covered in wisteria.  The arrow is pointing to the wisteria trunk; the pine trunk is to the right. 

They've been together so long it's an all or nothing deal - they both stay or they both go.  There is no way to separate them at this point.  It's ugly in winter when the wisteria is bare, but spring.....

And speaking of spring - how about some Fresh Pea Soup?

Admittedly, I used frozen peas, but you get the idea.

Fresh Pea Soup

This would be lovely with actual fresh peas, but they are not so easy to find unless you have your own garden. Frozen peas are thought (by the experts) to actually be better. Make certain you get plain peas - no butter or sauce. This is equally good hot or cold.

1 medium leek
1 rib celery
8 - 10 oz fresh peas or frozen peas
1 1/2 - 2 cups chicken stock
1 tbs fresh basil 
1 tsp butter
2 tbs Greek or plain yogurt

Clean and thinly slice leek. Thinly slice the celery. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the leek and celery and sauté until leek is tender, about 7 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups chicken stock, basil and peas. Cover and simmer until peas are tender.
Purée soup in a blender or using an immersion blender. Return soup to heat and add as much of the remaining 1/2 cup chicken stock as desired (or more) to get the consistency you like. To serve, ladle into soup bowls and garnish with a dollop of yogurt.

Just so you know I have a heart.... I moved mon mari's favorite chair into the kitchen for him to use when he gets home. 

After all, he'll need a comfortable place to sit - so he can get the taxes done....

Pasta with Lamb and White Beans; Internet cook books, Weekly Menu

Pasta with Lamb and White Beans

Do you read cook books?

Do you have a stack next to the bed for when you wake up a bit peckish in the night?

Do you collect them?  Old ones; new ones; by course; by food group; by food type....

Do you do research, then take the best bits out of a half dozen books to come up with whatever?

The internet is wonderful, isn't it?

But, it's not the same as relaxing in one's favorite chair, casually flipping the pages, drooling over the photos, is it?

I know  you all have been wondering what I do in my spare time. 

This is it:  Easy Gourmet Dinners

I took some of my favorite recipes, both from my blog and from my website, and put them in a 'cook book' format that allows one to 'flip the pages', through a category or the whole book.

(I actually did this when we were still prisoners in Vlad's House - just decided to publish it finally.)

It's still wobbly, with quirks and bugs and missing links....

But, have a look, in your spare time, and let me know what you think...

I just had a desperate need to feel like I accomplished something today....

Now, what to do with your leftover lamb....

Pasta with Lamb and White Beans, Greek Style

Made with leftover lamb and beans from Roast Lamb, Breton Style, this could as easily be made with fresh ingredients. The cherry tomatoes and green garlic add a touch of spring, and just enough 'tomato' flavor. With the Feta we go from 'Breton' style to 'Greek' style.

 2 cups leftover lamb or use raw lamb cut into pieces
4 - 5 green garlic, about 1/2 cup, sliced substitute 4 green onions, sliced, and 1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup cherry tomatoes
3oz (90gr) feta
1/3 cup dry-cured Greek black olives
1 tbs olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 cup (4oz, 125ml) chicken stock
1 cup (8oz, 250gr) white beans, leftover
1 cup pasta - penne, rigatoni, rotelle

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain.
Cut the lamb into bit-size pieces. Trim and thickly slice green garlic. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half. Cut the olives in half. Cut the feta into small cubes.
Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet and sauté the green garlic (raw lamb, carrot) until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the cooked lamb, stock, beans and herbs, heat through. (Simmer, covered, 5 minutes if using raw lamb, carrot) Add pasta, tomatoes, olives and feta, heat through. Serve

Note: If using raw lamb sauté with the green garlic. If not using leftover beans, add 1 small, chopped carrot and sauté with the green garlic.

In addition to the above, for the week of April 10 we have Emerald Soup, Asparagus and Chevre Quiche Roast Leg of Lamb, Artichokes....

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