Gnocchi Goodness

I don't necessarily like gnocchi specifically, but I think it is a super easy way to make fresh pasta.  When I say super easy, I mean in comparison to hauling out the pasta maker and feeding the dough through and rolling it.  The best time to make gnocchi is when you have leftover mashed potatoes! 

Ingredients
1 cup mashed potatoes
1 cup flour
1 egg

Directions
Mix ingredients together and knead until it forms a ball.  Grab a small portion of the dough and roll out into a worm-shaped worm (couldn't think of another word...worm-shaped....structure?).  Cut worm into several 1 inch pieces.  Press each piece with a wet fork, if you want to be fancy.  Cook in boiling, salted water until they float! 

Sauce
Top with sauce made from canned tomatoes (posted in a previous thread).  If I were a cool blog person, I would add the link in here, but I am not, so you will have to fend for yourself!

Story
When we made this, Aki was kneading the dough and I came up beside him and said, "need anything?"  And he said, "no, just the dough!"  Get it?  HAHAHAHA we are so funny!  That's definitely a knee-slapper.  Actually the funnier part is that I was going to say the exact same thing, but Aki stole my joke before I got to say it.  Rude! 

Healthy Smoothie Mix

I drink a lot of smoothies (enhanced with extra goodness - see below) in the summer for breakfast or for a snack, especially when it is very hot and I don't really feel like eating.  However, in the winter I don't have as many because I get cold easily.  Since I have been feeling very tired lately, I have decided to start drinking them again so that I can ingest more protein (via the protein powder). 

This mixture consists of: 
10 heaping tbsp rice protein powder (vanilla flavoured)
10 tbsp ground flax seeds
10 tbsp oatmeal
10 tsp of chia seeds (watch out - they really stick in your teeth!)
10 heaping tsp wheat bran
10 heaping tsp wheat germ
5 tsp cinnamon

I used to add all of these  ingredients separately, one-by-one, and it would take a long time!!!  Since then I have smartened up and just make this mix once in a while, which saves a lot of time.  I actually shake the bottle up before I use it so that everything is nicely mixed together.

To make the smoothie, I use:
1 banana
3 tbsp peanut or almond butter OR small handful of frozen fruit
3 heaping tbsp of the mixture
1/4 cup greek yogurt
half milk, half water (enough to fill up the rest of the magic bullet container)

BLEND!  DRINK!  ENJOY!

Lasagna Roll-ups (With Hidden Tofu!)

I like lasagna roll-ups because they are so small and individually portioned.  Sometimes when I think of eating a big lasagna and having to cut it up, or even eating a big hamburger, I feel overwhelmed.  This recipe is directly from allrecipes.com, but I would probably use a lot less Parmesan cheese since it is expensive!  I love how there is a whole lot of tofu hidden inside as well!

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package uncooked lasagna noodles
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 (15 ounce) container ricotta cheese
• 1 pound firm tofu
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach - thawed, drained and squeezed dry
• 2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (28 ounce) jar pasta sauce

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles for 5 to 8 minutes, or until just slightly underdone; drain and rinse.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together grated cheese, ricotta cheese, tofu, frozen spinach, and 1 cup Parmesan cheese.
3. Lay out a noodle. Spread a layer of the cheese mixture on the noodle, then add a thin layer of sauce. Roll the noodle up, and place seam side down in a 13x9 pan. Repeat for other noodles. Top with remaining sauce and Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F (175 degree C) oven for 30 min, or until hot and bubbly.

Curry Bowtie Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is a PARTY PLEASER!!!!!!!!!!  It is also aesthetically pleasing.  Hahaha, sounds like I am tooting my own horn, but it is true.  Facts are facts, what can I say?  This recipe is adapted from allrecipes.com, and when I say "adapted," I really mean it.  It is supposed to be a chicken salad, with the primary ingredient being chicken (obviously), but I changed it into a pasta salad. 

1 package of bowtie pasta, cooked
4 sprigs of green onion, chopped finely
2 apples, diced
1/2 cup raisins
1 to 2 cans of mandarin oranges or pineapple, drained
1/2 cup pecans pieces or sliced almonds, toasted
1/2 cup shredded coconut, toasted
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp curry powder
pepper to taste

Directions:  THROW EVERYTHING IN A BOWL AND STIR!!!!!!!  (Not sure why I felt the need to write that in capslock, but perhaps it was to emphasize the ease and fun of the recipe). 

Amendment:  You will probably actually want to withhold the coconut and sprinkle on top.

NINJA Rice Bowl from Fresh Restaurant

How could you not love the sound of this one!  However, please be warned - this recipe takes an extremely long time to make and may leave you feeling very fatigued.  It also takes a lot of patience and ambition.  It is adapted from the new re-Fresh cookbook by Ruth Tal and Jennifer Houston.

Ninja Rice Bowl

Ingredients

16 Marinated Tofu Cubes (see recipe below)

1 batch Crispy Tofu Coating (see recipe below)

3 tbsp. olive oil

2 cups cooked brown basmati rice

1 1/2 cups Wasabi Dill Dressing (see recipe below)

8 cups mixed lettuce greens

6 marinated sundried tomatoes (see recipe below)

1 cup sprouts

Method

1. Toss Marinated Tofu Cubes in Crispy Tofu Coating. Heat olive oil in pan over medium heat, add tofu cubes and cook until browned on all sides.

2. Put 1 cup cooked brown basmati rice in large rice bowl and drizzle with a portion of Wasabi Dill Dressing.

3. Toss lettuce with Wasabi Dill Dressing and pile on top of rice.

4. Arrange marinated sundried tomatoes on top of lettuce.

5. Make a little nest with the sprouts in the centre and put Crispy Tofu cubes in the nest.

6. Repeat for each serving.

Marinated Tofu Cubes

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups tofu

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 tbsp. oil

Method

1. Cut the tofu into medium-sized cubes.

2. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl; then pour over the tofu cubes. Marinate for 1 hour.

Crispy Tofu Coating

Ingredients

1 cup flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 tbsp. garlic powder

salt & pepper

Method

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

Wasabi Dill Dressing

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil

1 diced onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. wasabi powder

6 tbsp. water

2 cups firm tofu, chopped

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 tbsp. dried dill weed

1/4 cup rice vinegar

Method

1. Sauté onion and garlic five minutes or until softened. Let cool.

2. Put wasabi and 2 tablespoons water into the blender and blend.

3. Add remaining ingredients and 2 tablespoons of water. Blend until smooth. Add remaining water if needed to get to a pourable consistency.

Marinated Sundried Tomato Paste

Ingredients

1 cup water

1 cup sundried tomatoes

1 cup olive oil

2 tbsp. Mixed Dry Herbs

Method

1. Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat and add the sundried tomatoes. Let sit for 5 minutes or until softened. Strain.

2. In a bowl, mix the olive oil and herbs together. Stir in the sundried tomatoes.

3. Purée in a blender or food processor. 

I made the mistake of using 1/2 cup more olive oil in the wasabi dressing by accident.  Ooops.  A ridiculously big mistake I do realize, but it wasn't a big disaster.  Just consumed a bit more oil than I perhaps would have liked.  And by "a bit," I mean "a lot."  C'est la vie!

Veggie Box

This is my veggie box from Organics Delivered 2 You.  I got 4 Groupons for 4 veggie boxes and so far have only used one.  I am saving the other 3 for the summer when berries and other delicious summer produce are available!  Unfortunately the company messed up my friend's order, so I am not actually sure how good this company is.  I know that their customer service is not good though, so be warned.  Besides that, I am very pleased with the amount of food that came in this box.  This is a bit of a boring post, and coincidentally I am feeling pretty bored...not sure if there is a relationship there.  Anyways, hopefully the colourful picture will make up for that.

Here is a picture of a soup I made by throwing all of the leftover veggies into some broth.  Unfortunately, I actually literally threw things in and did not bother doing things such as taking off the stringy bits of the snowpeas which made for an interesting time when trying to eat the soup.  Oh well, what can you do.  I did throw in some curry powder which was a nice change.