cheesy indian bread with rice and potatoes and warm spinach salad

my food tends to blend together by the end of a meal!  :)

needed to use:

leftover indian rice and paratha bread 

two slices of the epic mustard pizza

red potato and carrot mish mash 

i thought of making some sort of melted cheesy wraps with the rice, but didn’t know what to put with it, so i dumped it with the potato and carrot leftovers, reminding myself that Casa Que Pasa in Bellingham, WA has a super duper potato burrito and people dig it.

i preheated the oven to low (200 or so) and arranged on a cookie sheet the pizza and the parathas (which are kind of like super thick whole wheat tortillas) with shredded muenster on them.

while that was going on i figured dinner could stand a little color so i sauteed up a thinly sliced red pepper, on medium-ish heat so that it could blacken a bit with some butter and bragg’s (i turned down the pan before i put garlic in, ‘cause i didn’t want to blacken that.)  

i had a whole lot of baby spinach on my hands (as i like to do :) so i thought of making a warm salad.  i tossed spinach in the pan with the peppers and stirred so as not to singe parts of the leaves while leaving the rest untouched.  (it can start to look a little unappetizing then... :)  i did, however, get distracted by the oven and cook my spinach a little longer than i intended.  just as well; it was much better that way.

i served salad in bowls, and put the other three things on the plate, letting will decide if he actually wanted a weird potato burrito or not.  

cheesy indian bread with rice and potatoes and warm spinach salad

it was fun to eat, too, ‘cause i ended up combining things one by one.  after i had my burrito, with some of my salad on top, i put the rest of my potatoes in with the salad, and then ended up scooping it out and adorning bites of pizza with it.  three separate meals all coming together.  that’s some sort of shit in a pot record!  :)

approximate price: $7 

Buttermilk Pancakes and Veggie Scramble

i was quite taken with the pattern from the pan.....very galactic :)

how super fun to be an adult (tho i use the term soooooo loosely!) and be able to make breakfast for dinner!  i always wanted to do that when i was a kid (i won’t go into that tragic story ;) and now i CAN!

so we’ve actually been having a moth problem in the kitchen for a while....i’ve been unpleasantly surprised on a few occasions when opening containers or reaching my hand into a bag.  SO i’ve been trying to use up open grains and things just in case, and pancake mix was one of them.  i wasn’t sure will would be into it but i should know by now that he appreciates food (especially food made with LOVE :) and i can pretty much do what makes me happy (in the kitchen and out! :)

so i made up some buttermilk pancakes, and also some eggs scrambled with veggies.

i always start onions (with a little butter) cooking in the big frying pan and when they start softening up i start adding “the other stuff” (whatever that happens to be :)

i had half of a red pepper, so i chopped it small (it spreads out more that way ;) and when that softened up a bit too i added three eggs (i just stir them once they get in there....saves a dish) and then some garlic.  garlic really doesn’t need much cooking, though it can handle it if it gets it, as long as it’s not straight on the pan.

i added the spinach before the eggs solidified so that it would coat them and cook with them a bit.  it’s important to stir spinach frequently, as the parts touching the pan will cook really fast and the parts not touching won’t cook at all.  always best to make the dark green stuff look as appetizing as possible!  :)

SO!  buttermilk pancakes and veggie scramble 

it really was a fun dinner!  and i even had an extra pancake to take to work the next day for a random part of lunch :)

approximate price: $4

Garlic Red Potatoes and Carrots with Spinach Salad

i chopped up some apple in the salad too....good, but note to self: don't use granny smith next time! :)

needed to use:

red potatoes

the process:

the potatoes were relatively small, so i cut each into quarters and put them in a pot of boiling water.  while that was happening i chopped up two 

yellow onions 

into larger pieces than usual, with the intent of them being a more substantial part of the dish, and then searched the fridge for other ingredients.  i found some 

*carrots

and chopped them up into bite size pieces as well.  instead of using two pots i just put them in with the potatoes (after the potatoes had a few minute head start).  consistency isn’t too, too important with most veggies, but potatoes you want to make sure are done enough.

i drained the water and added the mix to the pan of onions, which i had on low with some olive oil.  i know olive oil has a low burning point....but i substituted it for butter because i wanted to make a vegan dinner when i was that close to one!  ;)  i figured on low heat it would be ok...and added some bragg’s for good measure and more liquid.  then several cloves of garlic, of course..... then i figured a little 

italian seasoning 

would make it a more official looking dish, and then for good measure i added a few good dollops of dijon......i’m recently obsessed....hooked.....done for!  :)  i’m also recently obsessed with olive oil, vinegar, and dried cranberry salad.  i put it with whatever greens i have, and preferably a few other goodies, like toasted nuts, or olives, or feta cheese, or green onions, but if it has to it will stand on its own.

and there it was: a delicious vegan dinner (i think!).  will went back for thirds!  :)  

garlic red potatoes and carrots with spinach salad

approximate price:  $5

* i definitely prefer organic veggies, though the local grocery store is seriously lacking in that department!  some non-organic veggies are far more passable than others, but for me and carrots it’s a make or break deal.  and the organic ones only cost a little more than non-organic, usually around $1 per pound.  for color and sweetness, it’s a steal!  :)

pesto dijon salmon pasta

my garden!  or really, right now, my charden :)  time soon though for asparagus!

needed to use:

leftover salmon from my sweetie playing for our supper at romeo’s two nights earlier

the ingredients:

salmon

half bag of shell noodles

onions

and that was about it for a while.....as i paced back and forth from the fridge to the pantry to the cupboard looking for something to make a sauce-like substance to dress my pasta.  i asked our housemate if he was indeed responsible for the small amount of pesto that had been in the fridge for i don’t dare even give you my estimate how long but still smelled good and then shushed his uncertain comment on that matter so my sweetie wouldn’t hear in the next room.  

a little bit of pesto 

was perfect.  (an alternative--i’m guessing....--would be to take green onions or parsley or cilantro and chop them up super fine in some butter or olive oil.  it gives the illusion of more STUFF in there ;)  

so that got my mojo back up to speed.  i still had some 

kalamata olive juice 

left, and wondered if i was being a little too bold to throw that in, so i just used a little.  (not enough to ruin it, but enough that someone might comment on that special little something....) the REAL kicker though, thanks to remembering will’s spectacular salmon meal a month or so ago, was a good sized spoonful of 

dijon mustard!  

heck yeah!  so the onion gets chopped up and cooked on low heat ‘til i get impatient to add something else (at least a good five minutes....ten might be better, depending on what you’re adding), in this case chopped up salmon.  it really wasn’t much, just my leftover serving from atop a salad.  i used our biggest frying pan, so i could add the noodles when they were done cooking.  of course i threw in some 

garlic

and 

chard 

(from the GARDEN!  even at the beginning of JANUARY!  man i’m spoiled, but they’re cheap at the store too, as well as other greens, and they make an awesome side dish :) 

that was it!

pesto dijon salmon pasta

approximate price: $3