Pasta, sauce and sauteed vegetables

Last year, over Memorial Day weekend, I visited a dear friend and her husband in Boston. The two of them engage in all sorts of food preparing endeavors upon which I've yet to embark, grilling pizzas and brewing beer being among the more exciting of them. I did, however, manage to pick up a couple tricks from them during my visit, which have now become staples 'round the Sanchez house. One of the tasty meals that my friend prepared for me was nothing more than sauteed veggies and homemade pasta sauce over spaghetti, but it was so good and so easy that it now finds itself regularly employed in my menu rotation. Thank you, dear friend.

While spaghetti or any pasta you prefer works fine, we've recently discovered (at Trader Joe's) and grown to love the bucati noodle. It's a long, thin and hollow tube. I've read it described as "toothy", which somehow perfectly captures the texture.

Sauce:

Pour two 15-ounce cans of diced tomatoes into a small sauce pan, season as desired, and simmer for 30 or so minutes, or however long it takes to prepare the rest of your dinner. I use a Cuisinart Smart Stick hand blender to puree the sauce to a less chunky consistency, but this step depends on personal preference.

In my sauce, I like to: heat some olive oil in the pan and cook minced garlic in it for a minute before adding the tomatoes; add some oregano, basil and ground black pepper; and, if I'm feeling really ambitious, I add cooked carrots to the sauce before pureeing it. (These are the only sneaked vegetables I foist upon my children!)

Vegetables:

Heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in a large pan, and add vegetables. For this dinner, I like zucchini and broccoli and sometimes yellow pepper. Saute until tender-crisp, about 7 minutes, adding more oil if necessary. Add fresh minced garlic during the last minute of cooking, if desired. Spoon sauce on pasta; serve vegetables on the sauce. Enjoy!

Lentils & Rice

(This recipe comes from Gentry, a friend of a friend.)

This is almost vegan, almost. Perhaps one could try soy cheese with this, though I’m not sure how that cooks up. This was a good recipe, and quite easy. I would add more spice (my husband tells me that I say that about all foods), and I would probably double the recipe to fill a 9 x 13. Our 8 x 8 dish was consumed in no time flat! Even Jonah ate and said he liked it. Lentils! Who knew?

2 2/3 c. chicken broth
¾ c. dry lentils
¾ c. chopped onion
½ c. brown rice
¼ c. water (or dry white wine)
½ tsp. basil
½ tsp. thyme
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. oregano
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. pepper
4 oz. Swiss cheese: 2 oz. shredded, 2 oz. sliced thin (set slices aside)

Stir everything together including the shredded cheese. Pour into greased 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. [8 x 8 baking square]
Cover and bake at 350 1 1/2 -2 hours or until rice and lentils are done, stirring twice (every 30-45 minutes) while baking.
Remove from oven, uncover casserole and lay remaining cheese on top. Put back in the oven and bake for 2 more minutes.

Southwestern salmon

(Parents magazine, May 2006)

This is one of those recipes that I make and then think, “Where have you been my whole life?” And then I look at the date on the bottom of the magazine page on which it’s printed and I realize that it’s been sitting in my pile of “recipes to try” for the past two and one half years. Two and a half years! I’ve had this loose magazine page for longer than I’ve had my elder son! At any rate, I’m just glad that I didn’t throw the recipe away in a fit of exasperation with all my clutter. Very easy, and very good. Serve it with Mexican-style rice, nachos, or quesadillas on the side. You can also add shredded lettuce and avocado to the corn and beans after they're cooked for a little green.

Serves 4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

You need:
4 salmon filets, about 4 to 5 oz. each
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
½ tsp. cumin
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained
1 can (11 oz.) corn kernels, drained
2 Tbs. chopped cilantro [more, if you love it as much as I do]
1 Tbs. lime juice
1/3 c. mild salsa
2 Tbs. butter

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a foil-lined baking sheet with cooking spray. Place salmon filets on prepared baking sheet. Cook in oven until salmon is firm to the touch (about 10 minutes per 1-inch thickness). [I always use the flake test: The salmon should flake when pressed with a fork. And I always cook at 400 degrees; 375 doesn't work for me.]
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium saucepan. Add cumin and cook 1 minute. Stir in black beans and corn. Cook to heat through. Stir in cilantro and lime juice.
3. In a small bowl, combine salsa and butter. Microwave for 1 minute, or until butter melts.
4. Serve salmon filets atop corn and beans, then spoon sauce over salmon filets.

Nutrition per serving: 398 cal; 28g protein; 23g fat; 21g carb; 48mg calcium; 4g fiber