Lemon Zucchini and Artichokes

Because I wanted to cook from my garden....

Lemon Zucchini and Artichokes on Rice

• 1 cup of basmati rice
• 1 tb of butter
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup of white wine
• 1 squeezed lemon
• 2 zucchini (or one GIANT one given to you by a fellow gardener)
• 1 cup of grape tomatoes, yellow and red
• 2 cups of green/yellow beans
• 2 cups or 1 can (drained) artichokes
• 1/2 cup of chopped basil
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Romano cheese to taste.
  

1. Boil 1 cup of basmati rice in 2 and 3/4 cups of water (a dab of butter or a little olive oil)
2. Chop veggies, and salt the zucchini.
3. Saute the chopped shallot and garlic in 1 tb of butter until translucent.
4. Add white wine, lemon, and zucchini. Saute until the zucchini is medium softness.
5. Add grape tomatoes, beans, and artichokes, saute until cooked.
6. When finished, plate and sprinkle basil on top of each serving.
   
7. Add salt/pepper/ Romano cheese to taste.

Daring food of the week...

Earlier I said I would try new fruits and veggies that I was scared of preparing. Although I did not update the blog religiously, things have been a little busy this summer, I have been trying new ones.

This week, I bought a pineapple. Now, I know pineapple is not exotic. However, the past 10 years, the span of my grocery shopping existence, I ran from the sight of an entire pineapple. I mean, they are big, heavy and they can hurt you-- those spikes! So, I usually resorted to purchasing canned pineapple. So, on a whim we bought pineapple last week, because after close examination I saw they now come with directions. I can handle carving directions, Right? Well it has sat in my fridge since I took it from its fellow spikey-mohawk friends. I hear its laughter every time I open the fridge, like those oinking pig fridge alarms. And then, last night I was publicly shamed. A dear friend of mine, and food lover, completely chopped through a pineapple. At their house for a summer bbq, A. explained that I am afraid of REAL pineapple. And well, I realized then and there I needed to get over my fear of punk fruit. Not one to ever back down from a challenge, I anialated that sucker.

A little Moules Marinières for your Bastille Day...

The Francophile that I am, I make July 14th a mandatory feast. Tonight, I purchased mussels from Slavins and Sons, a good bottle of French wine, and turned up Edith Piaf.




Moules Marinière

• 2 bags of Mussels
• 1 Shallot
• 1 cup of onion
• 8 cloves of garlic chopped
• 1 pint of grape tomatoes sliced in half
• 2 tb of butter
• 2 cups of white wine, I use a white burgundy
• pepper
• 1/3 cup of flat leaf parsley chopped.

1. Rinse, soak for 5 minutes, then drain the mussels.
2. Meanwhile, saute the rest of the ingredients in a giant stockpot. Turn the heat down.
3. De-beard the mussels, which involves taking off the small hairy part of the mussel. Any open or cracked mussels should be discarded at this point.
4. Throw the mussels into the stockpot
5. Cook for 2 minutes or until the mussels open.
6. Voila! C'est fini!

Today, instead of making pommes frites, under my sister's suggestion, I went to the frozen food aisle. I am usually pretty lost in this section of the grocery store. However, next to the classic french fries I saw from childhood, sat a bag of organic fries by Alexia. No added chemicals and made with sea salt- excellent. We started cooking these before prepping the mussels, which takes only 10 minutes with two people. I drizzled olive oil infused with chilis over them before putting them in the oven, and they were crispy and ready to dip in the mussels when we were done!

Bon Appetit!!

Another Salad, and a yummy one!

This salad is super easy to assemble, and because of the flavors and ingredients, does not need dressing. In fact, by storing diverse ingredients to toss in salads, you can make this very fast. Usually, I use leftover sauted mushrooms from dinner in this salad, but if you want uncooked mushrooms are great, too.

Mo's Nicoise

• 1 cup of assorted Lettuce, the more variety in color the better!
• 1/3 cup of packaged Tuna (I prefer the kind in the packets not cans; less water)
• 1/4 cup of purple cabbage
• 1/3 cup of sauted mushrooms (Baby Portabellas are amazing this way)
• 5-6 Sugar Snap Peas
• 5 green olives (sliced is nice, but you can do this when you sit down to eat)
• 1 tb of chopped red onion
• 1 slice of goat cheese crumbled (I use the type in a roll; it is a superior texture and taste)
• Sprinkle pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds on top.

Toss ingredients together and Bon appetit!

Testing Animals, I mean really, is it necessary?

I love Vegetarian magazine. Even though I am a pescetarian, my consumption of fish is rare, and the recipes provided in the magazine are flexible and easy. As the blog shows, many of my good cooking innovations include fish, but I am learning more and more how to cook a meal that is independent of fish. More importantly, this magazine includes environmental education, which I now take to heart. They give reviews of companies who abuse and test on animals, as well as review companies who don't test or produce an organic product.They especially focus on animal testing, which is a ridiculous holdover from the dark ages of early industrialization.

The more I think about it, I would never want my cats, or any animal, to be tested on by chemists. When The Body Shop opened in the early 90s, I casually followed their slogan. But in the past ten years, during summers and awkward employment moments, I worked for the organization and I realized, testing on animals is unnecessary. It is a superfluous method of product control. We all know that certain chemicals are not healthy for the body, but companies insist on putting them on animals that we would consider pets. When A. and I married, I mentioned these ideas, and A. was more than more supportive. All I needed to do was mention our two cats, Cleo and Pokey, and he agreed. There is no reason to test on a being, when we know the results. So, for the past three years, I made a particularly serious effort at having only animal-testing-free products in our home. It is surprisingly easy once you do the research. For household products we use Method (some, but not all, of their products don't test) and Seventh Generation. For tough to clean spots, we employ a book on home cleaning that A.'s mom donated to us called Home Comforts. It is amazing. For hair and beauty, I rely on NARS, Almay, Aveda, The Body Shop, and a few smaller companies for hair products. Although I have never been a big fan of PETA--because their methods alienate people who would normally agree-- they have a fairly reliable list of which products to purchase, look here. It is no-longer about being a hippy-dippy liberal, but more about what is necessary. The question really is: If there are wonderful products that are equivalent to your mainstays, why torture an animal?