Black Beans and Quinoa
This was a VERY easy meal to make and was entirely satisfying. My goal for upcoming meals is to lean veggie forward. 1 Cup Quinoa (Thoroughly washed/soaked/strained)1 Can Black Beans (drained/rinsed)3 Tablespoon Olive Oil1 Onion – chopped1 Red Bell Pepper – chopped into small pieces2 Tablespoon Garlic – finely chopped1 can (or slightly less) of crushed tomatoes1 Teaspoon Dry Oregano1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin2 Teaspoon Paprika1/2 Tsp Ground Black Pepper1/4 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper or to taste (optional)1 1/2 cups Frozen Corn kernels (you can use fresh corn)1+1/4 Cup / 300ml Vegetable Broth (Low Sodium)Add Salt to Taste (I have added total 1 Tsp of Pink Himalayan Salt. Please note I have used low sodium broth and beans) Cook the quinoa per...
Air Fried Potato Chips (with a side of Buffalo Wings).
This is something I’ve never tried, but I always wanted to. Making my own potato chips. Using my trusty mandolin, I sliced up two potatoes, about 2mm thick, I think. I put these in a cool water bath to help reduced the starch, changing the water twice. After that, I placed the slices into semi-boiling water for 3 minutes, with a little salt. These were drained and transferred to a kitchen towel and dried. The result went into a bowl with some avocado oil (about a tablespoon) and some steak seasoning and a bit of my dry rub. This was tossed well and went into my air-fryer rotisserie drum. The tumbled at 400° for about half an hour. Maybe a bit more. These were set aside and I did the chicken. In a bowl Mix 1 tablespoon of flour with 1 tablespoon of corn...
Harissa Fish Tacos
To end our Harissa week…we give you blackened Harissa Fish Tacos. Again, thanks to my friend Chip Gorman who introduced me to this seasoning. The blackened seasoning for the fish was a mix of fresh ground black pepper, harissa seasoning, Flat Iron Grill peppers, Habanero sea salts and Kevin’s Creole seasoning. All these were dusted, then pressed into two halibut fillets, but any fish would do. For the base, we had avocado oil heated up, then diced onions added. When they were cooking we added turmeric and cumin and black pepper. Diced garlic was added when the spices came to peak, and then a can of drained low sodium black beans. These simmered while the fish cooked. On the Blackstone griddle (best birthday present ever) we cooked the first half of...
Asian Inspired Ribs
I was REALLY hoping for a Sweet & Sour Tamarind BabyBack Rib tonight. But the Food Lion didn’t have Tamarind Paste (surprise) or Baby Back ribs. So I bought a rack of St. Louis Ribs and came up with a sauce that involved anything semi-asian in my fridge. I would not be defeated! The sauce… GarlicGingerMirinAninosSesame oilSoy sauceChili oilFish SauceOyster SauceBlack Pepper I blended this together, cut the ribs into 3 chunks and put it into a mixing bowl and stirred it every 10 minutes or so for an hour. I fired up my grill and seared each side, turning often. Then I put it on the upper rack for an hour. Then I wrapped it in foil and put in about a half of cup of water to steam it and wrapped it tight and cooked it for 15 minutes more. Let it rest...
Greek Lamb Chops
Every so often Food Lions gives us a beautiful lamb chuck. When I saw this today, I bought it in a heartbeat. So tonight I give you a classic lamb chuck with a baked potato and salad. We’ll focus on the lamb. Two hours before dinner mix olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, black pepper, oregano, black pepper, kosher salt and a hint of dried basil leaves. Normally I would just squeeze in a lemon. But they are expensive now, and I use a LOT of lemon in my life. So I use Santa Cruz 100% lemon juice these days. I put this all in one of my storage containers, mix it up, add the lamb. Toss it around and let it sit for a couple hours. The baked potato, coated with olive oil and dusted with kosher salt goes into the air fryer for 45 minutes, or until it is 200°. Just...
Don goes to Ireland
In June, 2022, I flew to Ireland, a place I’ve always wanted to go. I spent two weeks exploring the island (and a little bit of Scotland). Initially I’m just going to dump a pile of photos here, and then slowly spend some time building the narrative around the trip. We start with the Delphi Valley, where I spent the first week of my adventure. After Delphi A week in Delphi Valley was wonderful. Now the journey...