Spanish Panzanella Salad

Last week, we made a fun Spanish panzanella salad from Wholesome Kitchen. The salad was SUPER easy to make, and really tasty! I really like warm or slightly warm salads in the winter -- they just add something a little seasonal. 

Instead of regular chorizo, I picked up some chicken sausage chorizo. We didn't lose any flavor, and definitely cut down on the fat content and (possible) oiliness of the salad. I also used regular paprika instead of Spanish smoked sweet paprika (not for lack of trying -- I couldn't find any at the store). That may have changed the flavor slightly, but I imagine it was not noticeable. The spinach wilts a little with the heat of the other ingredients and the warmed oil from the pan.

A great change-up from a traditional Italian panzanella salad -- we'll definitely make this again!

Bacon Wrapped Dates

I can almost smell the bacon cooking right now.

THEY. ARE. SO. GOOD. 

Seriously, they are super easy and amazing. Obviously not the healthiest snack or appetizer, but they are worth the splurge once in a while. We made these to go with a seafood paella (another post -- I cleaned and cooked squid! AGH!), and they were a delicious, hot prelude to the main meal. 

They are really simple to make. You'll need dates (I opted for those already pitted), some goat cheese and bacon. You stuff a little of the goat cheese inside the date (you'll have a hole from where you pitted the date or can make one using a paring knife), wrap a 1/3 of a piece of bacon around the date, and cook them on the stove until the bacon crisps up. I suggest cooking them at a lower heat, so that the goat cheese gets all warm and soft, rather than cook the bacon as fast as you can (although, I bet it still tastes pretty good).

We made 10 for the 2 of us, and they were gone within seconds. If you're not a bacon-lover, I imagine you could do something similar with just goat cheese and dates (maybe warming them in the oven instead of atop the stove)? 

We had enough bacon to make two batches of the dates over the course of a week, had bacon leftover for breakfast one morning, and as a topping for baked potatoes yesterday. We still have dates leftover (which I guiltily steal to eat plain a couple times a week) and half a small log of goat cheese remaining to top salads, include in a quiche, etc. So while the ingredients aren't inexpensive, you can:

A) make either several batches of the bacon wrapped dates OR
B) make a large amount for a bigger crowd OR 
C) re-purpose those ingredients for meals later in the week

ENJOY. Big time. 

Chickpea and Spinach Curry

I found this super easy recipe in Real Simple magazine -- and have made it a couple times since. It's fast and simple to make, with many of the needed ingredients typically available in your kitchen (chickpeas, onion, frozen spinach, etc). I really appreciate go-to meals that you can make fresh, but that don't need a ton of work or prep ahead of time during the week.

Cooking the onion, garlic and ginger before adding the curry powder.

This is easily ready in 30 minutes, if the spinach is thawed. To defrost it quickly, I usually pop it in the microwave, and nuke it for 1 minute to 30 second increments to get it to soften without cooking it completely.

Mixing in the chickpeas, spinach and water before simmering.

Yogurt, cilantro and cucumber mixture.

They had me at "Greek yogurt." This topping mixture came out similar to tzatziki or raita.

Tossed a little warm pita in there, and we're good to go!

I agree with the commentator on the recipe -- it wasn't particularly spicy, so you can add more curry powder or top with Sriracha sauce (which is what we usually do when it comes to adding spice at the end). You can do this to taste at the very end, especially if you have people with different tolerance for spice levels.

Bi Bim Bap with Beef Bulgogi

This is the recipe we made for New Year's Eve. It's really delicious! There are a few steps, but nothing too scary! You can find Asian pear and daikon radish at some grocery stores, and definitely at Whole Foods.

You marinate the meet for about 2 hours before cooking, so you do need to prep a little beforehand.

Sesame oil, sesame seeds and spinach

Quick cooked zucchini and carrots

Beef cooking in the marinade

Bean sprouts, sesame and soy

All the ingredients combined with a fried egg on top

The fried egg really adds something special to the dish. I love the combination of all the items together. The use of soy and sesame in several places really ties everything together. Enjoy!

Greek-style meatballs

We had a lot of leftover ground meat from our meatloaf made a few days before. I came across this recipe in my daily recipe emails, and thought it sounded delicious. Instead of goat, I substituted the ground pork and beef leftover from the meatloaf. I also used canned artichokes, and eliminated the dill (we didn't have any in the house, and frankly -- I don't like it very much anyways). 

I browned the meatballs for a little longer than what is suggested, but I am totally nervous when I cook meat. I also didn't know if goat cooked differently than pork/beef, so I just wanted to make sure it wouldn't be undercooked.

It started to smell REALLY delicious. It's smelled very Mediterranean, even without the dill. Maybe it was the fennel -- but I could not WAIT for it to be done cooking!

Half eaten...so you know it was good.

The recipe does take an hour plus, so definitely not on a night where you're itching to eat right away. We made them on a lazy Sunday, where eating in a timely fashion wasn't very important. I think this could be great on top of quinoa, brown rice or even some plain pasta, however it was delicious just by itself as well. Enjoy!

Grapefruit 1, Christine 0

I'm trying. I really am. I just don't think I like grapefruit. I've tried eating it with breakfast with a little sugar, broiling it with some cinnamon and topping it with Greek yogurt, among other things. I gave it one last try earlier this week with a rice noodle salad.

Looks tasty, right? It had all the makings of being something I would like -- noodles, peanuts, cilantro, tomato, green onions...and this guy clearly knows what he's doing when it comes to food. But it just didn't taste good to me. I think the grapefruit was sort of on it's last legs (read: it had been sitting in our fruit bowl for a few weeks since receiving it in our produce basket), so that may have contributed to the problem.

I felt extra bad because I sent Paul on a wild goose chase to find lemongrass the day before (it wasn't at the grocery store like it normally is). Oh well. Lesson learned: I should continue to avoid citrus-based dinners, huh?

Winter Vegetables and Bulgur

I love roasted vegetables. They are probably one of my favorite (and easiest) things to cook, especially during the cold winter months. I found this recipe, and was immediately excited about making it for two reasons: A) I had never used bulgur before and B) this would use up many of the tasty vegetables in my produce basket. 

We used a turnip, a squash, carrots and parsnips. I chose to roast the vegetables (in the oven), instead of sautéing them -- so our cook time was a little longer than the recipe suggests.

My angle was a little off on this one. Sorry for the peek of Valentine's Day towel.

I sautéd the onion and added some minced garlic, before combining the roasted vegetables. I also used 1/2 cup of white wine and 3 cups of vegetable stock (instead of 4 cups of stock). 

With the spinach leaves mixed in at the end.

Apparently, I am showcasing all my seasonal towels today.

It was quite tasty! I would definitely recommend making this, especially if you have vegetables to saute or roast that would work well together. It made a big amount as well, so we had leftovers for lunches later that week.

Enjoy!