Charlie

Charlie just enjoyed some turkey w/carrots, brown rice & flaxseed. He ate it all, yay! BTW he's a picky eater, and doesn't eat much...You might think I'm just some crazy dog owner, but these are facts! Anyway, I didn't puree it, just chopped it up, especially those carrots! He'll swallow huge pieces of meat, but a slightly large piece of carrot? Forget it! Well, it's leftover pork for us humans, with roasted carrots & potatoes. They're in the oven right now with some fresh sprigs of rosemary. Smells delicious!

Simple Dinner

I still haven't tried anything new, but I look forward to going to The Farmer's Market on Sunday and buying at least one or two items that I've never tried. I searched for fennel bulbs last week, but couldn't find any. Perhaps they're not in season. Anyway, I had a simple and easy dinner last night. We seasoned & sauteed some boneless pork fillets, steamed asparagus & made some mashed potatoes. I usually make mashed potatoes with butter & sour cream, but I had some plain nonfat yogurt I had to use, so I threw that in there. My fiance complimented them saying they were like his grandmother's! I didn't tell him there was yogurt in them...just wanted him to think they were full of fat so he'd enjoy them. So sneaky! Charlie also enjoyed some pork w/a little boiled potato & asparagus (not purreed) and ate the whole thing. He's got his appetite back!

Fajitas

Ole! We just had some simple fajitas w/red & green pepper, onion & meat. I season it with a little cayenne pepper. I also made some guacamole with avocado, tomato, lime juice, cilantro, and salt. Charlie hasn't been eating much because he's on antibiotics. He didn't even enjoy the salmon! He ate a little, but I don't think I'm going to mush it all together in the food processor anymore. He likes it better in whole pieces, live and learn! Also I may try a food dehydrator and see if he likes it crunchy. I'll work on something more exciting for next time!

Spinach Dip

Spinach dip was a success. It's very green, perhaps I used more spinach than most recipes, but had to use it up! I managed to not waste any of the bunch, between dinners, salads, Charlie's food, and this dip. Yay for me! So I mixed it in the food proccessor with light mayo, light sour cream, light cream cheese, one green onion & one clove of garlic (which was a little overpowering, I recommend only 1/2 a clove). I didn't find any recipes that used all those creams, or any garlic, but it sounded good to me!

Don't Feel Like Chicken Tonight

Charlie doesn't even want his delicious chicken mixture I made...time to make something new! So I'm making salmon tonight. I already chopped up some veggies (asparagus, broccoli, carrots, green onions, garlic & ginger). I'm thinkin saute w/a little sesame sauce, yum! Then cook salmon that I'll marinate in spicy teriyaki sauce, & serve on some fresh brown rice. I'll cook Charlie's salmon plain & mix with rice & veggies. He loves it! Now I'm going to attempt a fresh spinach dip because the Farmer's Market gives you enough spinach for a month & I have to use it! I've never made it before, wish me luck!

Leftover Medley!

I don't want all that farm fresh produce going to waste! So I pulled out my tupperware filled with veggies & cooked up a spaghetti sauce. From the farmer's market I had a slightly used onion...a whole big fat zucchini just dying to be cooked, some questionable tomatoes, & half eaten peppers. I also had a few left over mushrooms from my mushroom sauce. So I simmered all those things in olive oil with some fresh basil also from the farmer's market, and some super fresh rosemary from my future mother-in-law's garden (don't tell her). I served it with leftover salad, & some bread that we transformed into garlic bread. Ooh la la! Oh & I don't wanna forget Charlie! He had leftover chicken with fresh spinach & and whole wheat pasta. I blended with some flax seeds (he loves them) & some chicken broth leftover from our whole chicken. Overall it was a success! And even though Charlie ate leftover chicken, I managed to go the entire Earth Day without eating meat. I enjoyed fruit & toast with my tea this morning, a salad for lunch, and you know my dinner. That's all for now, happy cooking!

The pesto chicken was a success. I actually used the correct ratio of basil to other ingredients, which I didn't do last time...I also made a salad with mystery vinagrette! I mixed garlic, lemon zest & juice, a little rosemary, salt & pepper, olive oil, red wine vinegar & a little cooking white wine. I fully admit that I have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to dressings, & I need A LOT of practice. At least it was edible, my fiance says it was good but what does he know! Really? I definitely used to much lemon, zingy! Anyway on to yummier stuff. I also made some mashed potatoes with some yukon & red potatoes I got at the Farmer's Market this morning. I served the chicken on some spinach, which was also mixed in my salad. Charlie got spinach, chicken, and potatoes blended with a bit of water & flax seeds. He ate it up so fast! So all the fam enjoyed!

Chicken Pesto

I'm about to attempt a homemade pesto, made from the fresh basil I got this morning at the Farmer's Market. I tried to make it once, but lets just say I'm nervous right now & stalling because the outcome may be less than presto pesto! I also want to make some kind of vinagrette for the salad, I'll fill you in later what's going in that & if it even tastes good... I also got loads of fresh fruit today & made a delicious smoothie this afternoon. Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, mmm! OK, going to prep my ingredients!

Herb Garden

Charlie with my new herb garden. Growing some fresh basil & cilantro!

I started growing my own herbs, just basil & cilantro for now. I live in an apartment with no balcony so there's not much space...Anyway, they've sprouted & I'm looking forward to enjoying them. This week my fiance bought a piece of steak on sale & I didn't know what to do with it. So I slice up 1/2 of it very thin & cooked it in olive oil w/those colorful carrots I love so much! I added spring onions, ginger, garlic, water chestnuts, & a little soy sauce. Then I added some buckwheat noodles to make a chowmein. I had never tried buckwheat noodles, but I had read about them in a magazine & decided to try them. I really like them! Then last night I used the other 1/2 of the meat to make an indian style stir fry, which I cooked in grapeseed oil. I sliced it thin w/onions, a green pepper & some cumin & cayenne pepper. We ate it with hummus & pitas. Yum!

Hi everyone! Today was...well as far as dinner goes, not too exciting. We actually ate what Charlie's been enjoying all week, chicken, carrots & rice! I mean we made it fresh...there's something you need to know about me. I love chicken, and I LOVE carrots. If there's any meal that can incorporate carrots, I'll put 'em in. Steamed carrots, baked carrots, fried carrots, stir fry (extra carrots) spaghetti sauce yes carrots! I sneak them in by chopping them up real fine ;) Anyway, spring is here which means more fresh produce at the farmer's market! My berry lady is back w/succulent blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, & strawberries! Yay! Oh & at the Santa Monica farmer's market on Wed, there's a carrot stand with all different color carrots! You know I'm lovin that!

How boring I am, boca burger for breakfast, turkey sandwich for lunch. Pasta for dinner, with leftover turkey meat & onion. This blog suddenly got very boring. I'll have to spice it up tomorrow! I did buy a whole chicken, the possiblities are endless! Charlie will be thrilled I'm sure. Maybe I'll make something in the crockpot. Some words of advice, don't ball up foil & place the chicken on it in the crockpot, unless you want dry chicken! I read that on Allrecipes & it is NOT a good idea. Speakin of crockpots, my mother sent me her recipe for chilli & is very excited about this "new" thing she's discovered. Yes my parents are in their 50's & never had chilli before, now thet can't stop talking about it! Wild, I know.

The Morning After

I knew tequila wasn't my friend. I don't feel so bad, but I don't feel so good either! I have no idea what to eat. I have limited food, & very limited budget. I still have 1/2 the turkey meat & 1/2 an onion. That's for some pasta sauce later...Charlie's on his last day of chicken, so I need a new recipe for him. Any suggestions? The salmon is a hit, but Brandon (my fiance) doesn't want salmon again! Plus it's out of my price range at the moment. I really need to please the people before the dog, but once I get an idea in my head I can't be stopped! Or reasoned with....

I tried the turkey burgers, they worked out great. I served them on leftover iceburg lettuce ( wasn't splurgin' for a bun) with "fries" which consisted of 1 potato. I sliced it up in "fry" shapes & baked in the oven. It's so yum & easy to cover in olive oil & sprinkle w/salt & pepper. Charlie ate leftover chicken mix...oh yeah. So I have to go now, btw I made margaritas w/dinner. We're livin on a budget & you know I love wine....but I'm out. And beer is good...but I'm out. So guess what's on the menu...old tequilla & maragarita mix. It's gone now. Stay tuned for what's on the menu tomorrow! Livin on a budget...look forward to tomorrow. Goodnight!

First Day...What am I Doing?

I came up with this idea this morning in bed, 1/2 asleep & woken by some sort of drilling or jack hammering on the street. Why does everything seem like a better idea while coming out of dreamland? Anyway, I've been trying new recipes & trying to be resourceful while keeping the Fam (my fiance & myself) satisfied. I was recently inspired to start cooking for my dog, hence the "three." I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'll share with you what I have done so far. This week I have made salmon with vegetable fried rice. I cooked a small piece of salmon w/no seasoning or sauce first for Charlie (my dog, not fiance) Then I mixed it with the brown rice & a couple veggies & added flaxseed. Viola, gourmet dog food. Then I cooked our delicious meal. Everyone enjoyed my 1st selection for cooking for three. Yay for me! Yesterday we ate leftover fried rice w/a steak I had in the freezer. I cut it up, marinaded it in teriyaki, sauteed & added rice. Easy peazy. For Charlie however, I bought some chicken & baked it w/a couple of carrots, mixed that in a food processer w/left over brown rice & flaxseed.(my fiance didn't sign up for this, I hope he doesn't think I'm losin it) What's on the menu for today you ask? I have some ground turkey just waiting to be cooked. I'm thinking of using 1/2 the meat for turkey burgers, & the other 1/2 for a pasta sauce...but I'm open to ideas. And though I did buy that turkey w/Charlie in mind...he's got leftover chicken to eat!