substitution central.

ummmm...may? may? hello? where did you go? somehow or another may slipped right by and we never had a chance to whip up the may recipe. but better late than never, we hunted down the ingredients (sort of) and had a feast tonight and this post is back-dated so it will be sorted into the right month.

larger than life greens.

first there was no swiss chard in our grocery store, but ms. gingkochef had forewarned me that i might not find it. at first i was going to use spinach, but then i decided to go out on a limb and buy turnip greens. not necessarily my brightest moment. the sprayer had just finished dousing all of the greens, so i had to buy a sopping wet bunch. as it turns out, if you want turnip greens you have to buy the farm. yup. the bunch would not fit in the produce bag. and then it covered my hands and the floor and the grocery cart and the checkout stand with leaves. it got smashed when i crammed it into my bike basket, but it was still ginormous. the mister and i have still not decided what to do with the leftover greens.

the other substitution was the quinoa. apparently that is not available in our grocery store. totally unsure of how to deal with this missing ingredient, i opted to make orzo. never made it before and it is a small pasta...in pickel logic that made perfect sense. once again, this was not one of my shining moments. ever try to cook pasta with "just enough" liquid to be absorbed and still be al dente? right. it does not really work. so it was a bit slimy, but once mixed with all the other goodies, it stood its ground and seemed to do the trick of providing a foundation for the dish. i still wish i could have tried quinoa.

anyhow, the meal was complete with not too much craziness. it is actually a relatively simple recipe to put together, except that i have zero confidence in my ability to cook fish. but i did. and then we got to the hard part...neither of us is a big fish person, but we both ate it. the mister liked it. i did not. we both liked the mixture of yummies piled up next to the fish, but unless it is fish sticks, i think i am going to leave the fish cooking to the restaurants.

thanks for the recipe ms. gingkochef!!!!! :)

A Picture for Inspiration

They say a picture says a thousand words. Enjoy!

May Dinner - Champagne Salmon with Swiss Chard Quinoa

Hello ladies...

Where does the time go? I can't believe that it is already May, particularly because I never made April's meal. Hopefully we will be able to catch up. But, here is a recipe I have been wanting to make. I am not usually a big chard nor quinoa eater, so here goes. Also, I really like this blog's recipes. Happy cooking and eating!

Champagne Salmon with Swiss Chard Quinoa
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2/3 cup quinoa
1 1/3 cups chicken stock
1 bottle sweet champagne
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 dried bay leaf
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 salmon filets (ours were 7 ounces each)
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 bunch Swiss chard, stem removed and coarsely chopped (2 packed cups)
1/3 cup golden raisins
Juice of half a lemon

Directions:
Place quinoa and chicken stock in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, place a lid on the pot, and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until all water is absorbed.

Place champagne, vinegar, bay leaf, and 1 teaspoon salt in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and bring liquid to a simmer. Place salmon filets in the pot and simmer for 10 minutes or until salmon is cooked through.

Meanwhile, place pine nuts in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, or until toasted. Remove pine nuts from the skillet and pour in olive oil. Sauté red onion for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Stir in Swiss chard and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes or until wilted.

Place cooked quinoa in a large bowl and stir in cooked Swiss chard, pine nuts, raisins, lemon juice, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Serve poached salmon over quinoa. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 684 calories, 30.1g fat, 7.0g fiber, 50.0g protein per serving
Cost: $5.54 per serving (not counting the champagne)