Teriyaki Shrimp Stir Fry

Approx. 260 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 1 serving.

This dish is basically a variation of the beef and broccoli - except that I ran out of broccoli and used shrimp instead of beef. This recipe works well for beef, chicken, or seafood.

Ingredients

• 5 large shrimp (approx. 1.25 oz)
• 1 cup bell pepper (mix of red, yellow, and green)
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1/4 cup green onion
• 1 Tbs spicy ginger teriyaki sauce (East West brand)
• 2 tsp olive oil
  

Directions

1. Heat oil in a frying pan.
2. Add onion and bell pepper.
3. Cook until tender.
4. Add peeled and deveined shrimp (I used already cooked) and teriyaki sauce.
5. Heat until shrimp are warmed through (or cooked if using raw).
6. Add green onions.
7. Serve

Beef broccoli stir fry

Approx. 330 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

I was in the mood for beef with broccoli today, so I made this quick dish.

Ingredients

• 4 oz. beef (top round steak)
• 3 cups broccoli
• 1 cup onion
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 3 Tbs spicy ginger teriyaki sauce (I used East West brand)

Directions

1. Marinate the beef in 1 Tbs teriyaki sauce for at least 15 minutes.
2. Chop vegetables.
3. Add oil and pressed garlic to a cold pan.
4. Warm pan to saute garlic.
5. Add onions and beef.
6. Once beef is almost cooked all the way through, add bell pepper.
7. Cook for 2-3 more minutes.
8. Add remaining teriyaki sauce, water, and broccoli.
9. Cook until broccoli is tender, but not mushy.

Zucchini in peanut sauce

Approx. 200 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 1 serving.

I was cleaning out my car and found 2 little packages of the chopped peanuts that McDonald's gives you as toppings for their sundaes. I'm not sure how long they have been in my car (my guess is about a year). I was about to toss them, and then decided to open a package to see if they were any good. They tasted ok, and I didn't keel over and die, so I decided to incorporate them into tonight's dinner. I only used one packet (and survived without illness), so eventually I will use the other one too. Maybe I'll let it sit in my cupboard for a year first.

Ingredients

• 3 cups zucchini
• 1 Tbs Thai peanut sauce (I used Bangkok Padang)
• 1 Tbs chopped peanuts
• 1/2 cup water

Directions

1. Slice zucchini.
2. Add water to frying pan and bring to boil.
3. Add zucchini and cook until tender.
4. Add peanut sauce and toss until zucchini is coated.
5. Top with chopped peanuts.
   

Curried chicken

Approx. 150 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

I have never really tried to make an Indian curry dish before. The flavor on this was good, but evaporating the water off and serving it "dry" rather than floating in a curry sauce seemed to be a mistake. The curry powder dried out and the chicken and vegetables had a grainy texture to them. If I make this again, I will keep the liquid and serve it over rice.

Ingredients

• 4 0z boneless skinless chicken breast
• 2 cups zucchini
• 1 cup red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1 1/2 cup tap water
• 1 Tbs sliced ginger
• 1 Tbs curry powder
• 1/2 tsp cardamom

Directions

1. Chop the vegetables.
2. Add water, ginger, and chicken to a frying pan.
   Heat until chicken is cooked through.
3. Add zucchini, onion, bell pepper, curry powder and cardamom.
4. Coat chicken and vegetables.
5. Cook until vegetables are tender (not mushy).
6. (I evaporated off the water, but I wouldn't recommend this, since it left everything with a grainy texture. Instead, keep the water and serve over rice.)

Chicken salad wraps

Approx. 220 Calories per recipe. Recipe makes 3 wraps.

I was in the mood for another "bowl" type of meal today. You can either serve these as an appetizer/side dish, or eat the whole recipe as a main dish.

If you want to make this right, you probably should steam the red cabbage leaves for a couple of minutes to soften them up and remove some of the sharpness of their flavor. I didn't bother with that step, and just used it raw. I thought it tasted fine and liked the crunch, but each cabbage leaf had the tendency to tear a bit as I ate it. I only added enough orange sauce to give a hint of flavor. Feel free to add more if you like.

Ingredients

• 3 leaves red cabbage
• 4 oz boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1/2 tomato
• 1/4 cup zucchini
• 1/4 cup red onion
• 2 tsp orange sauce (I used Panda Express Orange Sauce)

Directions

1. Grill chicken, then cut into cubes.
2. Chop vegetables, except for the red cabbage.
3. Mix chicken with the chopped vegetables and orange sauce.
4. Fill cabbage "cups".

Zesty Chicken Fajita Bowl

Approx. 270 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

For dinner tonight, I couldn't decide whether I wanted fajitas, a taco salad, or a tostada, so I combined all three! If you plan to make this, be warned that the tortilla bowl is not crispy like the kind you get deep fried at restaurants. You can probably make it crispier if you toast it in your oven, but since my oven will explode, that wasn't an option for me. Instead, I used my microwave, which made the tortilla "stale" so the bowl held its shape, but never really got crispy.

I started to eat this like a taco salad, but since the bowl wasn't crispy enough to break off chunks, I just ended up picking up the bowl and folding it like a big giant taco.


Ingredients

• 2 tortillas (8", whole wheat)
• 4 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast
• 3 cups lettuce
• 1 cup sliced bell pepper (mix of yellow, red and green)
• 1 cup zucchini, diced
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 tomato, diced
• 1/8 cup red onion, diced
• 1/8 cup green onion, diced
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 Tbs salsa
• 1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
• crushed red pepper, to taste
• black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Make the tortilla bowls.
2. Line a glass bowl with a tortilla.
3. Microwave for 1 minute.
4. Let cool and harden while still lining the bowl.
5. Repeat for additional tortillas.
   
6. Chop vegetables.
7. Add water, garlic, and chicken to a frying pan.
8. Heat until chicken is cooked through.
9. Add zucchini, bell pepper, and red and black pepper.
10. Cook until vegetables are tender (not mushy) and water evaporates.
11. Add Worcestershire sauce.
12. Coat chicken and vegetables.
13. Remove from stove and put into tortilla bowl.
14. Top with salsa, tomatoes, green onion, and red onion.
15. Garnish plate with lettuce, tomatoes, and red onion.

Zucchini and Red Cabbage Salad

Approx. 45 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

This recipe makes a nice light summer salad. If you don't like the taste of just vinegar, toss the veggies with your favorite salad dressing. Don't make this too far in advance of serving though, otherwise the red cabbage will "bleed" and the zucchini will turn purple.

Ingredients

• 2 cups zucchini (including skin)
• 1 cup red cabbage
• 1/2 tomato
• 1 tbs red wine vinegar (or favorite dressing)
• black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Julienne cut zucchini into strips.
2. Microwave on high for 30-60 seconds to soften. Let cool.
3. Cut red cabbage into thin strips.
4. Dice tomato.
5. Toss zucchini, cabbage, and tomatoes with vinegar or your favorite dressing.
6. Add black pepper to taste.

Hamburger - needs helper

I really craved a hamburger yesterday and made a basic, non-fancy one on my George Foreman grill. It was tasty and hit the spot. Today, I was faced with 3/4 lb of hamburger left to use. I'm not much of a beef eater and even less of a ground beef eater, and really didn't know what to do with the rest of it. I wasn't in the mood for another hamburger or for tacos, and had no clue what else to do with it.

I finally decided to make another hamburger, but top it with a tasty blend of mushrooms, butter, and Worcestershire sauce. As I was part way through cooking the mushrooms, I decided to cook the hamburger in the same pan, rather than getting the grill dirty. And then I decided onions would taste good with it too and threw them in. Then the smoke detector started screaming at me, causing the dogs to bark and whine. By the time I ripped it off the wall and got the battery out, I totally forgot what I was trying to make, and just starting adding more things - garlic, spinach, tomatoes, and a flurry of random herbs and spices.

I'm not including a recipe, because you really REALLY don't want to make it. It was edible (barely) but certainly not good. I still have 1/2 lb of hamburger left over. I guess that means I have 2 more meals to screw up.

Thai red curry chicken and vegetables

Approx. 250 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

This is basically the same exact recipe as the Thai red curry chicken and green beans that I posted in May. The only difference is that I added 1 cup of red and yellow bell pepper strips (add at the same time as the beans) and doubled the curry paste to make it spicier. The peppers add nice color and flavor to this dish.

Spicy garlic eggplant with spinach

Approx. 110 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

It's nearing the end of the week, and my fridge is getting pretty empty. I still had eggplant from the farmer's market and small amounts of several other vegetables that I needed to eat. This recipe is basically a way to use up the little odds and ends that I had.

Ingredients

• 4 cups Japanese eggplant
• 2 cups spinach
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 Tbs chili garlic sauce (I used Lee Kum Kee brand)

Directions

1. Chop vegetables.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan then add onion and eggplant.
3. Stir fry for 2 minutes, then add water to the pan.
4. Bring the water to a boil and then add the chili garlic sauce and mix well.
5. Cook until the eggplant is tender, letting water evaporate. Add more water as needed.
6. Add red bell pepper and cook 2 more minutes (water should be evaporated at this point).
7. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
8. Serve as a main dish or side dish.
   

Spicy fish noodle soup

Approx. 170 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

I love eating hot spicy soup on warm summer days. I had two small fish fillets and decided that fish soup would hit the spot. Since I was adding the curry paste to flavor the broth, I just used water instead of a stock. Because I was planning to eat the soup as my full dinner, I made enough for two servings. It was just a little bit too much food; the dogs were happy to get a few noodles.

Ingredients

• 3 cups water
• 4 oz Dover sole
• 1/2 cup rice stick noodles
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1/2 cup yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup green onion
• 1/2 cup tomato
• 2 cups cilantro
• 1 Tbs rice vinegar
• 1 tsp Thai red curry paste

Directions

1. Chop herbs and vegetables.
2. Bring water to a boil.
3. Add curry paste, vinegar, onion, bell pepper, and rice noodles.
4. Boil until rice noodles are soft.
5. Add fish fillets.
6. Boil for 2-3 minutes until fish is cooked.
7. Add green onion and tomato, then heat through.
8. Serve and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Grilled vegetables

Approx. 140 Calories per serving. Recipe makes 2 servings.

I had zucchini slices and artichokes left over from the pesto I made last night, so I decided to use them up by grilling them and adding a little balsamic vinegar. This is good hot or cold. I ate the first serving hot off the grill and ate the second serving cold at a later meal. I enjoyed it both ways and didn't really have a temperature preference.

Ingredients

• 1 tomato
• 6 oz (1/2 can) artichoke hearts
• 3 cups zucchini
• 2 large slices onion (approx. 1/2 cup)
• 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
• black pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Slice zucchini and onion.
2. Cut tomato in half.
3. Put all vegetables on a grill (I used George Foreman) until tender.
4. Add black pepper to taste and balsamic vinegar.
   

Artichoke and sun dried tomato pesto

Approx. 300 Calories per recipe

I had a nice round globe zucchini and wanted to do something that would take advantage of its shape, but I didn't really want to stuff it. I decided to slice it horizontally. Then the tricky part was deciding what to do with it. Because of the general lack of ingredients in my house, I ultimately decided to use it like a cracker and put a spread on it. As a result, the emphasis for this recipe shifted from the zucchini (my original focus) to the spread. It resulted in this pesto. I've included several ways to serve it, but I really think the best way to serve it would be spread on warm crusty french bread or over pasta (I had neither in the house).

Ingredients

• 6 oz (1/2 can) of artichoke hearts (not marinated)
• 8 sun dried tomatoes
• 1 1/2 Tbs olive oil

Directions

1. Add all ingredients to a food processor.
2. Blend until everything is chopped and well mixed.
3. Serve as a spread or over pasta.
   

Cold pesto on raw zucchini slice with grated parmesan cheese. This tasted ok and would make a nice appetizer for a party.


Cold pesto on raw zucchini with cold boiled shrimp. The shrimp didn't really add anything to this dish. Maybe if it were grilled and hot it might be better, but I doubt it.


Pesto on stove top tortilla pizza with parmesan cheese. Of the ways I tried the pesto, this was my favorite, but I think it would be better on warm french bread or tossed with pasta.