Lentil and Rice Salad and Letting the Dust Settle

The dust has finally started to settle after a really busy two weeks. My family is all back in England, my Stunt Guy is back in Georgia. My apartment is starting to get back into a more habitable state after looking for a few days like all hope was lost and it should be condemned.

I'm back to eating Single Girl's Lunch Salads daily, and the best part is that I'm finally managing to get back into the kitchen.

I'm starting to think that I might have a slight cooking magazine problem. See, I'm lucky. I often find really good deals on cooking magazine subscriptions, so I tend to get a lot of them in the mail. My problem is that I don't read them at the rate that they arrive. I read maybe one for every five that come in. This wouldn't be too big a problem, except that I keep finding stacks of unread ones all over my apartment.

Here is most of my unread pile.



I've started to get pretty good at marking recipes, then clipping them for later, though I don't think that the shoebox I am storing those clippings in is necessarily the best organizational tool. It is also getting a bit full.

But, the good thing is that I now have lots and lots of inspiration when I need it. I just dip into the shoebox, leaf through some clippings, get an idea and I'm good to go.

I also mark things in recipe books. I always have a little package of sticky tabs with me when I'm reading a cookbook. You can tell how much I like a book by how many tabs are sticking out of it.

I came home from running errands today and had what I thought was a pretty clear vision of something I wanted to make, but I thought maybe I should thumb through a book just in case. I pulled a random book from the shelf and started thumbing through the pre-marked tabs. I used to be vegetarian, and the one I grabbed happened to be a vegetarian cookbook. Inspiration, as usual, came before I'd gotten to the 10th tab. I found a lentil and rice salad. I liked the idea of that, but I decided to just use those two ingredients as my base and then make the rest up from what I had in the pantry and fridge. Luckily, it turned out pretty awesome, and I'm delighted to share the fruits of my labors with you.

I really do believe sometimes that the best food is borne out of raiding what you already have in the house. Sometimes it allows you to think up combinations that you normally wouldn't consider. This is a prime example.

Vegan Lentil and Rice Salad with Lime and Tahini Dressing
Inspired by Vegetarian and Vegetable Cooking by Christine Ingram

When you're thinking about rice for this salad, I would really recommend trying to include a mix that has wild rice in it. I have a rice medley that I pick up from Fresh and Easy and it's brown, white and wild rice mixed together. That extra chewy earthiness that wild rice has goes really well here. But, if you don't have it, use whatever you feel like.

Salad
2 Small Carrots, peeled and grated
1 Cup Cabbage, finely shredded
1/2 Cup Uncooked Rice
1/2 Cup Uncooked Green Lentils

Dressing
1 Teaspoon Tahini
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, minced
1 Tablespoon White Wine Vinegar
Juice of 1 Lime
Salt and Pepper to taste.... be generous with the Pepper!


Soak your lentils for thirty minutes in unsalted water, then boil them for 15-20 minutes until they are just tender. You want them cooked, but not mushy. Cook the rice, drain and set aside.
Grate your carrots and shred your cabbage. Then, mix your dressing together. Make sure to stir the every loving heck out of the tahini before you add it in. Taste the dressing and adjust the seasoning as you like. I added a smidge more vinegar than listed here, but I crave acid in everything. If you wanted, you could also substitute rice wine vinegar. Mix everything together in a large bowl. Serve with a little extra parsley on top.

You can eat this by itself pretty easily. It would go really well also as an accompaniment to fish, probably salmon or tilapia marinated in lemon juice.

Makes 4-6 Servings.

Want something sweet? Try these Chocolate Coconut Macaroons

A Brief Summary of Very Awesome Things

The Grand Canyon



Kissing the cheek of your Stunt Guy at the Grand Canyon



The way your two year old niece drinks milk



Being off work for 9 days so you can spend time with your Stunt Guy and aforementioned Niece

Discovering The Yardhouse

Craft services on a movie set when you are really tired and hungry



Hiking

Ignoring the laundry

Having your two year old niece insist every morning that she "lost you" the night before

Reading a very funny book in its entirety in less than a week because you have the time

Watching a two year old girl react to dolphins doing flips in front of her

Feeling like life, though very busy, is also really amazing

Whilst I'm Not Cooking #4

It's getting pretty warm here in the valley... over 80 degrees on average now. I'm shunning my air conditioner still, but the ceiling fans are starting to see some action.

Tomorrow, my brother, sister-in-law, father, step-mother and baby niece are going to arrive from England, followed by my Stunt Guy on tuesday. I'm incredibly excited and trying very hard to get lots of things done in preparation. My apartment is almost clean and I'm a pound closer to my goal weight. I'm pretty sure it's all going to go haywire over the next week though, not that I care a whole bunch right now!

Healthy Pulled Chicken from Wine & Butter
*Update. I made this! It was really good. The only problem I had with it was that I had real trouble finding little bones. I will take care next time to remove some. It also made a LOT. I actually still have some in my freezer that I plan to use for some kind of burrito type thing. 

Rhubarb, Almond, Plum and Yoghurt Cake from Eat Tori

Carrot Cake Pancakes from Smitten Kitchen

Petite Vanilla Scones from The Pioneer Woman

Orange Vanilla Semolina Cake from What's For Lunch Honey


Hmm. Guess I'm in more of a cake mood than I thought that I was!

By the way, the picture above is an old one from when I used to do photography. Expect more!

Cauliflower Cheese

I'm about to have some family in town and I'm doing a bunch of prep for that as well as being a bit busy with work, but I wanted to stop by and share a quick recipe with you because I had this for dinner yesterday and I'm really trying to not devour the leftovers even though I'm not hungry yet. It's one of those simple dishes that I just want to always have the taste of.

My mother really didn't cook a lot when I was growing up, well, not from scratch anyway but something she did make once in a while that I completely adored was Cauliflower Cheese. I loved it when she made this and I could have eaten the entire batch. I'm a complete sucker for cheese.

I seem to recall that she would serve this with garlic bread. I highly suggest the combination... it's a winner for sure. I make this in individual ramekins but you could easily put it in a larger baking dish. It's harder not to eat all of it if it's in the same container though.... I speak from experience.

Cauliflower Cheese

1/2 Cauliflower, sliced up
1 1/2 Tablespoons Whole Wheat Flour
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Sharp Cheddar
1 Tablespoon Panko Breadcrumbs (optional)
Parmesan and more Cheddar for Topping
Salt and Pepper



Preheat your oven to 425F. Slice the cauliflower and spread it on a baking sheet. Grind over some salt and pepper and then pop it in the oven for 25 minutes. While the cauliflower is cooking, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the flour. Mix to form a thick paste and then add the milk a little at a time, stirring all the while until the milk is combined. Grind in some salt and pepper. It should be fairly thick. Take it off the heat and add in the cheddar. This will thicken it up nicely.
When the cauliflower is done, chop it up and put it in two ramekins, or one larger dish. Pour the sauce over, then sprinkle over some breadcrumbs, more cheddar and some parmesan cheese. Stick it back in the oven for another 10 minutes until the top has browned.

Eat with some bread, preferably garlic bread. If you are saving some for later, be sure to reheat it in the oven and not the microwave.

Makes two dinner sized servings.

Apple, Cheddar and Sage Flatbread and 31:18

Well, today was the day. I competed in my first 5K, after several months of training. Now, by training I don't mean hardcore Rocky Montage stuff.... I mean working on running a few times a week. See, when I started this I couldn't even run for a minute without having to stop. I'm really quite happy that I pulled this off.

I came in 368th out of 946 people. I was 27th in my age category, and I ran the race in 31 minutes and 18 seconds. Hurrah!

My good friend Myles kicked some serious ass though, finishing in a little over 22 minutes. Next year maybe I can get a little closer to his time!



In celebration of succeeding in this event, flatbread was definitely in order.

I've had this in my brain for a while. The combination of apple, cheddar and sage is always a winner. I've had some pizza dough stashed away for just such an occasion. I highly recommend having pizza dough in your freezer. It always comes in handy when you've got a craving, or need a speedy meal.

The key to this flatbread is the type of apple and the type of cheese. Use a good, tart apple like a granny smith. Pick out a good sharp cheddar, preferably one with a little age to it, and preferably one closer to white than to yellow. I used a three year old Australian cheddar for this. If you are looking in a standard store brand, you might try Dubliner.

Apple, Cheddar and Sage Flatbread

8oz Pizza Dough (Whole Wheat is best but either will do)
Half a Granny Smith, thinly sliced
1/2 Cup Sharp Cheddar
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Sage
Salt and Pepper
Whole Dried or Fresh Sage for sprinkling



Preheat your oven to 450F. Roll out the pizza dough very thinly. Mix the olive oil with the ground sage and a few good grinds of salt and pepper and, with a pastry brush, brush over the dough in a thin layer. Grab a fork and dent the dough all over. Sprinkle half the cheese on, then layer over the apples, then top with the rest of the cheese. Grind over a little more salt and pepper and then sprinkle over some whole sage (a little goes a long way).



Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until the dough is cooked all the way and the top is browned.

Serves one for a large lunch, two for an appetizer or lunch with a salad, and more if you cut it into little squares and serve it at a party.



Want something sweet to go with this? Try some Dark Chocolate Brownies

Single Girls Lunch Salad

I'm a creature of habit. I really like routine, and I have a few of the same little things that I do pretty much every day. I've started my morning with a cup of tea almost every single day since I was about twelve. It's not that I seek the caffeine in it anymore…. it's because I have it every morning that it helps me get up.

Sometimes, my eating habits get stuck on repeat, too. Now that my Stunt Guy is in a different city, I'm left to my own devices when it comes to lunch. I've eaten this salad every single day for the last five days. I look forward to it every time. My friend Mary thinks I'm a little weird to look forward to a salad, but this one seriously rocks.

I feel that a good salad is all about ratio and variety. You want it to be leafy and nutritious, but you also want it to be really really interesting. The best part of a salad is always the goodies... you know, the parts that aren't lettuce, and this one is chocked full of them.

Single Girls Lunch Salad

I've been chopping up a my ingredients and keeping them in tupperware in the fridge, for ease of assembly. If you're vegetarian, just leave out the turkey. It's also really hard to tell you how much Mozzarella I use, so I've estimated. Use good Mozzarella, the kind that comes in a ball in water.

1 1/2 - 2 Cups Chopped Fresh Spinach (loose, not packed)
1/2 an avocado, diced
Half a regular or Slow-Roasted tomato, diced
Two slices of deli lunchmeat (I like turkey), diced up
1/4 Red or Yellow Bell Pepper (or a mix of both)
1.5 Ounces fresh Mozzarella, diced
2 Tablespoons Walnut pieces, toasted
2 Tablespoons Salad Dressing (I use Italian, but pick your favorite)



Prep your ingredients. To toast the walnuts, take a small non-stick pan and throw the walnuts in there over medium heat. Stir around while you prep your other ingredients. Get some good color on them. It takes about five minutes.

Mix all the ingredients together in an oversized bowl. Drizzle over your favorite dressing, mix up, and eat either rushed at your desk on a work day, or while you are curled up on your couch working through your Hulu+ queue on the weekend.

Related Recipes:

Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

Check out my Recipe Index for more things to nosh on.

Bread and Butter

I confess, my Stunt Guy and I rarely eat out. We're on a really tight budget (which will hopefully get some breathing room soon, with him heading back to the East Coast for work) but every so often we have a mini food-splurge. The episode of How I Met Your Mother that we were watching last Saturday heavily featured brunch, which of course made us crave it, so we decided to have Sunday brunch like a normal couple. It's an odd thing, since with my schedule Sunday is what other people would consider a Thursday.

Anyways, I poked around Yelp for some brunch places in Henderson and was surprised to find a very well reviewed one quite near me called Bread and Butter. Again, since we don't eat out much we hadn't discovered it yet. Sometimes I wonder what else we've missed in the last 13 months.

We headed over to Bread and Butter and were greeted by display cases of yummy looking pastries.





They also had an entire fridge dedicated to root beer, which I thought was quite neat.



Their brunch menu was a bit limited, and they were out of the first thing that I wanted to order, but the girl behind the counter steered us towards the Breakfast Pizza, which she said was perfect for sharing. Sounds awful, I know, but it was potatoes, caramelized onions, roasted red peppers and scrambled eggs on a very thin crust. We added Sausage, which is Stunt Guy's go-to meat addition (he's not into bacon, which I find peculiar).



When it arrived it was, indeed, perfect for sharing. The crust was delightfully thin, so it didn't add any kind of oily weight to the pizza. The scrambled eggs on top were delightfully fluffy, and I really enjoyed the sausage addition. All in all, it was perfectly yummy and definitely big enough to share... we had two pieces left over.



We also hit the pastry case, picking out a Fruit Tart, a Jam Doughnut, and Bread Pudding.



The Fruit Tart was really nice. I was initially concerned about the hairy kiwi, but thankfully it turned out okay. I think the big thing with this tart is that it just looked so gorgeous. You really do eat with your eyes.



The Jam Doughnut was ridiculous. Exploding with Jam, if you picked it up the weight it had was insane... heavier than a baseball. You could do some serious damage if you chose to chuck that thing at someones head.



It was impossible to eat in a really delightful way. The outer layer was thin and crispy, with just the right amount of chew.



There was honestly probably way too much jam, though. We left a sad little pool of it in the bowl. It also got all over our hands in a fantastically Macbethian way.



I'm a bad judge of Bread Pudding. I have fond childhood memories of this dessert, so it's a tall order for someone to catch up. This was... okay. I wanted more cinnamon and for it to be gooier. But it was certainly quite edible and yummy.



The atmosphere of the restaurant is pretty cute and quirky. There aren't really servers, so you need to just go in and order at the counter and then find yourself a seat. Everyone was really friendly, which was a nice thing. The place was quite busy on a Sunday but not overly so. We didn't have to wait for a table and our food arrived pretty speedily.

On the way out, my Stunt Guy went and grabbed a fortune cookie out of the jar and was greeted with the most utterly random fortune either of us had ever seen.



In sum, this was a neat little brunch spot. I hear their Kale salad is really good, so I'll probably go back and try that when I get a chance. I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you find yourself South East of the Vegas Strip.

So what is your must-have brunch menu item?