The Someday Blog

Week 2 of the weekly cooking plan series.  While perusing the grocery store flyers (yes, I actually do this – but rarely shop from it:) I noticed a lot of great fish specials for the last week of Lent.  I’ll be taking advantage of that and working in another simple shrimp meal, AND a yummy salmon dish.  I’m not as set on when I’ll cook what this week, so the recipes on the line-up are:

Barbecue Spiced Shrimp Salad from Food & Wine

This Bobby Flay (the best on the grill) looks simple, yummy and perfect for the warm weather we’re expecting this week.  My husband loves any excuse to fire up his Big Green Egg, so I may even be able to convince him to grill the shrimp.  This salad is made with just heirloom tomatoes and onions, a nice break from the leafy greens we eat most of the time.

Eggplant Cannelloni from Self Magazine

I like this variation on the traditionally heavy cannelloni, and love any new way to try to work eggplant in as a meal.  I’ll be substituting either feta or ricotta and parmesan for the filling, as my husband doesn’t think he likes goat cheese.  He eats it more often than he knows when I sneak it in and call it something else…don’t tell. I’ll also be subbing a more traditional tomato sauce in place of the roasted red pepper sauce, but think that either sounds delicious.

Pan-Fried Salmon with Citrus Vinaigrette from Food & Wine

To me, citrus-y salmon + asparagus was just meant to go together!  They compliment each other so nice…the only thing that would make this even better would be a side of mashed potatoes…mmmmm.

A few notes I’ve picked up along the way:

*Know your audience.  I always substitute on the first go of a recipe if I see something that I don’t think my eaters will like (like the goat cheese, or roasted red pepper sauce.)  This way I can try something a bit more familiar and then if we like it, I can go back to the recipe version if my modification wasn’t perfect.  I didn’t learn this the easy way…I kept trying to force things on our plates that we didn’t love, and nothing is more disastrous than preparing a meal that you know from the start is doomed because you wouldn’t budge on the ingredients.  So…modify, modify, modify.  It’s also a good way to learn what does and doesn’t go well together.

*You will mess up.  I kill at least one meal a month.  In a BIG kind of a way.  For this emergency, I always have a back-up on hand…frozen pizza, some pasta and veggies or a quick, local take-out on speed dial.  The mess-ups are often the best stories, and also the meals that I learn the most from (like why you should always check meat before serving, or that you must carefully read the entire recipe before starting – I’ve gotten more than 1/4 into it and realized I was supposed to marinate something for 24 hours.)

*Try new things.  I love trying new recipes and new ingredients.  It’s how I learn what we like.  And if it isn’t love – it’s out of the rotation and C’est la vie.  I tried it and can now be more confident in my eating choices.  Some of the things I’ve tried for the first time in the past few years that I thought I hated, but in actuality I love them:  lamb, mussels, eggplant, prosciutto.

Have you tried any new recipes that you’d like to share?  I’d love to see what you’re cooking…email me at thesomedayblog@gmail.com.

xoxo, jill.