Saturday, April 21, 2007

Double Dinner

This week we had our Sunday dinner on Friday. My son is working all weekend and worked hard all day Friday. I knew he would come over extremely hungry so I was ready – 2 entrees, 2 veggie sides, and 2 desserts. It was nearly 8:00 by the time he came over and I figured his hunger wouldn’t allow for picture-taking, so I took pictures as I cooked.

Entrée 1 - Pureed Chickpea Pasta on soba noodles from Vive. This was delicious and so easy to put together.




Entrée 2 - baked tofu. Always great.




Side 1 - stirfried veggies: broccoli, carrots, sprouts, onions, red and green peppers, lots of ginger. (Somehow I let that d**n mandolin take a chunk off my right thumb knuckle. I also burned my right ring finger on the tray of baked tofu. Maybe I’m not supposed to work so hard on a Friday night.)


Side 2 - zucchini fries and herb dip. The fries are breaded with panko and cornmeal, and the dip is silken tofu with lemon juice and lots of spices and fresh herbs. The dip turned out really good.



How did Diann get her fries so uniform? She cheated! With this gadget…..



Put the veggie in, push down on the handle......




and out come the little slices!




I don’t use it that often because I actually love to chop. I’ve used it for sweet potato fries, but it honestly takes all my strength to get a piece of potato to go through that grate.

I did manage to get a quick shot of my plate.




I was worried that I was just throwing together a bunch of food, but it actually all went together nicely.

Dessert 1 - Peanut Butter Muffins from Peanut Butter Planet. These are not my normal healthy muffins. They have white flour (which you almost have to use for peanut butter, right?) brown sugar, pb, chocolate chips, and raisins. Oh, well. They were meant to be treats, not health food. Yum!



Want one?



I just got sad thinking about my old trainer. I worked out on Mondays with him and would always take him a sample of treats I made on Sunday :(


Dessert 2 – I finally made Fronch Toast, on spelt bread with fresh strawberries, powdered sugar, and maple syrup for some of us. Personally, I would rather eat plain strawberries, but it was very good and a nice change of pace.




Chase is working at one of our outdoor festivals all weekend. He wanted to take his own food and since we didn’t leave much in the way of leftovers from this meal, he basically cleaned out my refrigerator. (Laura, I even gave him my leftover Refried Lentils! That was quite a sacrifice!) I did pick up a few things from the farmers market this morning, so I need to get cooking and restock!

18 comments:

Mary Worrell said...

MMM! Everything looks so delicious, as usual! Did you bake the zuke fries in the oven or fry them? I have a zucchini in the fridge right now...asking me what to do with it.

aTxVegn said...

Hi, Mary! Yeh, I baked the fries in the oven. Just dip them in some milk and roll in the crumbs, then bake at 400 for about 15 to 20 minutes. I saw some giant zucchinis at the farmers market this morning!

Emmy said...

Ouch, sorry to hear of your run in (no pun intended) with the mandolin and also the hot pan. Hope your fingers heal quickly.

I'm eyeing those zucchini fries. They look fab. Those muffins sound delicious too. I'm not sure I've ever had peanut butter in a muffin before.

Carrie™ said...

Oh, so many things I love about this post!! Baked tofu is one of my favorite things. It's become a new comfort food for me. (I say new because we never ate tofu when I was growing up, but it is so comforting, isn't it?) One thing we did have growing up was one of those fry slicers. Saturday nights were special. Dad would cook and we'd have steaks with fried onions, home made fries and we'd get to eat dinner in front of the TV watching the hockey game. I don't know which part I liked better. The home made fries or getting to eat in front of the TV! Ah, the memories - just from that one photo of yours. Anyhow, your plate looks devine! Everything sounds so good! And the muffins!! And French toast - look at those strawberries. How do you like that Peanut Butter cookbook BTW?

laura k said...

You like chopping?! I wish I had that gift... I love cooking, but I *tolerate* chopping. Everything here looks so good--peanut butter muffins, fronch toast with fresh strawberries. And that chickpea pasta from Vive sounds great--I'll have to check that one out. How cool that Chase is working at an outdoor festival this weekend! Is it an Earth Day thing? So sweet of you to part with your lentils for him! :)

Amey said...

Hi Diann,
I also like chopping - I think it's sort of calming and meditative. Great post! The fry gadget is fun, but I can also see why you wouldn't actually end up using it that often.

The Peanut Butter Muffins look good! I've had my eye on a Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffin recipe for the last week or so - they're probably coming soon.

Also, it cracked me up what you said about how you'd rather just eat fresh strawberries than fronch toast. I have to say, I LOVE fronch toast, but I also never, never sully my sacred fresh strawberries. Ha ha! The other day I ate 3 baskets of strawberries from the farmers market in one day. MMMM!!

scottishvegan said...

I love the idea of a mandolin, but as I always manage to grate my knuckles when using the grater I imagine that I would cut myself to bits with a mandolin…you are reinforcing my reasons for not getting one! I hope your fingers are better soon!
I have been meaning to try the chickpea pasta from Vive! Now that I know how yummy it looks I must do it! I love your zucchini fries and your veggie chopper! I might have to try making those with the zucchini I have in the fridge, although I will have to chop by hand as I have no fancy gadget thingys to help me :(

aTxVegn said...

Hi, Carrie. I'm glad that gadget brought back nice childhood memories for you! I love the pb cookbook, and I'm glad it gives the calorie count for the recipes!

Laura, Chase is not doing an Earth Day thing, but the festival does benefit our food bank.

SV, go ahead and get a mandolin. I'm already healed!

Twisted Cinderella said...

That all looks wonderful! I am going to try the zuccini fries! Sorry about your thumb and your knuckle!

Judy said...

Can I come to dinner next Sunday? :)

I tried the chickpea pasta sauce, and I didn't care for it. I followed the recipe, but it never became smooth, it was almost like eating watery hummus on noodles.

I love when a meal is just a bunch of favourite dishes thrown together, and it doesn't have a theme. They're usually the best tasting meals.

Love the muffins. It doesn't always have to be about health, right?

Candi said...

ouch... sorry about those injuries! The food looks great though, if that's any consolation!

I love how perfect your baked tofu looks. What do you marinate it with? I'd love to try to make it and have it come out like yours!!

Mm, that tofu dip looks good. A local health-type shop sells a pre-made one with loads of garlic in it that I'd like to try to make.

I love the "fries" you made! The chopping device is cool too, but I can see how a potato might be difficult to push through there!

Do I want one of those peanut butter muffins? OOH YES!

Anonymous said...

oh eveything looks just so delicious! ... and !!! for your gadget - i saw one of those in Amsterdam, but i didn't know i can get it here. could it be useful for my biceps? i wonder...

peace,
stonielove

Kris said...

Wow, what an appetite! I have to say, that plate looks amazing. I love baked tofu, it's my favorite way to eat it. And Fronch toast for dessert!? That's my kind of dinner!

bazu said...

I wish I could have you over at my house to cook with- you would inspire me out of any unhealthy ruts I might get into, that's for sure!

erica said...

Soba noodles!! <3 <3 <3
I used to eat those boxed Annie Chun's ones all the time, but there's egg in the noodles. I'll have to find another good ginger soy saucey recipe someday to replace it. The fronch toast looks good too, I never did make that one. And zucchini fries sound good. I just want cooked food, dangit :P

Kati said...

Yes please, I would love a peanut butter muffin! All your food looks delicious, as usual. I've never seen one of those fry gadgets - that's pretty neat. That dip looks delicious, too. I haven't had a good creamy dip in a long time...

Linda said...

that machine looks fun, and that dessert?! delish!

aTxVegn said...

Judy - yes.

Candi - If I'm not doing asian, I marinate in a vinaigrette diluted with water (makes it juicy) and add appropriate seasonings, usually some garlic, oregano, s&p and a little crushed red pepper.