Innie or Outie

Still another simple way to use the 25 pieces of 70 grams package of noodles and leftovers, Meat Sauce Somen:

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This was almost effortless, place desired amount of leftover meatloaf, diced onion, tomato juice, tomato paste, dried parsley flakes, dried oregano flakes, and soy sauce in a container and let defrost and marinate over night. About twenty minutes prior to serving, start somen water; place meatloaf mixture in a pot; add diced green bell pepper and sliced mushrooms; bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until somen is ready, stirring occasionally and breaking meatloaf into chunks. Cook and strain somen, add to meatsauce and toss thoroughly. Plate, top with fresh basil leaves, and sprinkle with parmesan. Serve.

To go with the somen dish, I tried something a little different, Toasted Basil-Baby Cheese Garlic Brown Bread:

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While the meat sauce somen was cooking, the slices of walnut-raisin brown bread (soemthing hubby had picked-up at a local bakery) was placed in a toaster until slightly crunchy; topped first with a thin layer of minced garlic paste, second with small chunks of baby cheese, and third with a fresh basil leaf; finally the toasted bread was microwaved for 2.5 minutes. The result of this unusual cooking method combination was a bread with a creamy, nutty, and light fruit flavor and a texture reminiscent of melba toast.

Sometimes a simple standard meal is just what the taste buds demand, Mama’s Basic Beef & Potato Dinner:

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A true standard, meatloaf made with hamburger, panko (bread crumbs), dried parsley flakes, dried oregano flakes, white pepper, Worcestshire sauce, white pepper, sage, diced onion, and egg topped with a minced garlic paste, ketchup, Worcestshire sauce, and fresh basil sauce; baked potato with melted sour cream, baby cheese, and nutmeg sauce topped with chopped chives, and chunky mixed veggies with almond slivers and white pepper sautéed in sesame oil.

So, here I am still trying to come up with dishes that will help us use up a little more of that enormous gift of twenty-five 70 gram servings of somen. This is the latest creation, Sausage-Pepper Medley on Bleu Cheese-Basil Somen:

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To make this very simple dish simply use the desired amount of hot somen tossed with chunks of room-temperature bleu cheese and chopped fresh basil, topped with julienned onion sautéed in olive oil and minced garlic paste stir-fried with julienned spicy sausage, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, chives, and kamaboko. To complete the meal, I decided to go with a cool refreshing fruit instead of greens, Spiced Pear Salad:

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Peel and grate pear, then toss with chopped fresh mint leaves. Chill in refrigerator until almost ready to serve. About five minutes prior to serving, line bowl with iceberg lettuce, top with pear mixture, and sprinkle with desired amount of powdered all spice, nutmeg, or cinnamon. (If desired, you can make mini lettuce wraps instead of a salad with this recipe.)

This was a tasty and simple meal that Hubby threw together, Papa’s Gratin Dinner:

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While at a local restaurant supply market, Hubby found this Potato and Bacon Gratin:

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The only preparation for this entr̩e was to pop it into the microwave oven. (The sauce was tasty, but I found the ingredients to be a little lacking Рmainly no onions.)

To accompany the gratin, hubby made a simple and light side dish, Papa’s Tomato-Free Salad:

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Although he forgot to pick-up tomatoes, the salad – which consisted of iceberg lettuce, arugula, julienned yellow bell pepper, chopped fresh chives, cucumber slices, herbed croutons, sprinkled with parmesan cheese and topped with a creamy cheese dressing – was still light and packed with flavor.

To complete the meal, hubby added two types of fresh bakery bread, Toasted Garlic Bread with Walnuts:

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He simply sautéed the bread slices in olive oil with minced garlic paste. (The walnut chunk bread was extremely tasty when prepared in this manner.)

This is a simple and light meal for those hot summer days, Chicken Nugget Salad:

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Sauté chicken nuggets in olive oil and flavor with Italian seasonings. Cut into bite size chunks and toss in a salad of choice. I used iceberg lettuce, arugula, julienned yellow bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, chives, and chopped fresh basil, parsley, and rosemary leaves. Then drizzled the salad with a whole grain mustard/white wine vinaigrette.

To accompany the salad, I used Bleu Cheese Toast Strips:

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Simply toasted bread with bleu cheese melted on top and then sliced into strips.

Since various produce in our yard are starting to ripen, I came up with new dishes to make good use of some of the crop, Spicy Tuna-Basil Pasta:

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For the dish, I used diced onion and minced red chili peppers (from the yard) sautéed in olive oil, minced garlic paste, canned tuna flakes, soy sauce, white pepper, chopped fresh basil (from our herb garden), dried oregano flakes, tossed with hot cooked pasta then sprinkled with grated parmesan cheese.

To balance the spiciness of the pasta, I used the the citrus (shikwasa) from our yard in creating a side dish, Tangy Miso-Carrot Lettuce Wrap:

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For the wraps, sauté thickly julienned carrot and onion slices with fresh rosemary leaves (from our herb garden) in sesame oil. Remove pan from heat and add red miso paste and citrus juice. Let the mixture cool, then wrap in iceberg lettuce leaves.

Hubby came up with this tasty meal for a hot summer’s day, Fish Sandwich:

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The sandwich consisted of red snapper sautéed in olive oil and iceberg lettuce on whole grain bread with horseradish, mayonnaise, and dill weed. Accompanying the sandwich were dill pickle sticks and a side salad of arugula, spring onions, cherry tomatoes, and bacon bits topped with a creamy cheese dressing.

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This is cool and quick summertime snack, Mixed Greens with Chicken Wrap:

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For the snack, I used a tortilla,some leftover salad with dressing, and added bleu cheese chunks.

Hubby is trying another delicious chicken dish, Papa’s Lemon Chicken with White Wine Sauce Penne Dinner:

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Hubby arrived at the idea by combining two seperate recipes. First he a sautéed the chicken in olive oil, then added garlic, butter, lemon, oregano, and white wine. After plating the penne, he topped it with the chicken and then sprinkled with some parmesan cheese. To accompany the dish, hubby made a small salad of iceberg lettuce, arugula, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and bacon bits with creamy dressing.

This is a scrumptous fish dinner hubby came up with, Papa’s Sautéed Inubaa with Bleu Cheese Sauce Dinner:

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For the meal hubby sautéed the inubaa fillet (a local fish usually reserved for sashimi) in olive oil and fresh rosemary. The asparugus was steamed and then quickly sautéed in olive oil. Both were plated with rice topped with cracked toasted sesame seeds; the fish fillet was topped with fresh basil and then covered with a milk-bleu cheese sauce. To accompany the meal, he added a simple salad of iceberg lettuce, cucumber, red bell pepper, bacon bits, and cherry tomatoes with a creamy cheese dressing.

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