Innie or Outie

Sometimes springtime can get humid enough to make it a little uncomfortable in the kitchen. Here’s a simple solution that requires very little heat, Papa’s Spring Salad:

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Hubby used iceberg lettuce, arugula, bacon, shrimp, red onion, avocado, and cherry tomatoes topped with a creamy cheese dressing. To accompany the salad, he made garlic toast strips.

Here is a quickie dish I came-up with that makes use of hubby’s leftover sauce, Shrimp and Mushrooms in Tuna-Lemon Sauce Pasta:

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Bow-tie pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
25 frozen shrimp (partially defrosted)
1/4 medium red onion (diced)
1 teaspoon minced garlic paste
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger paste
1 samll can sliced button mushrooms (drained)
1 cup Tuna-Lemon sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Grated parmesan cheese
Fresh parsley sprigs

Prepare pasta according to directions on package.

Meanwhile, cook shrimp in olive oil in skillet on medium heat. Once slightly pink, stir in onion, garlic, pepper, soy sauce, ginger, and mushrooms to the shrimp and liquid from remaining from defrosting. Continue to cook until most of the liquid has boiled down. Add tuna-lemon sauce to the mixture and bring to a light boil. Stir in cornstarch to thicken.

Once cooked, strain pasta and return to pot. Add shrimp mixture and chopped parsley to the pasta and toss lightly. Place in serving dishes, sprinkle with parmesan, and garnish with parsley sprigs.

Since we were having a busy day, hubby threw together a quick salad – Papa’s Okinawan Spinach Salad:

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For this salad, he used iceberg lettuce, handama (Okinawan spinach), spring onions, cherry tomatoes, and bacon bits topping it all with a bottled Japanese creamy cheese dressing.

A simple spring meal hubby came up with, Papa’s Tuna Salad with Bleu Cheese-Basil Wraps:

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Hubby used arugula, iceberg lettuce, fresh rosemary, fresh parsley, black olives, white onion, avocado, and cherry tomatoes for the salad. The dressing of choice was sesame thousand island. He added bleu cheese-basil tortilla wraps to complete the meal.

This is a quick and tasty snack that makes further use of more leftovers, Tofall Cheddar Basil Hoagie:

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Simply place two tofalls with tomato sauce on the bottom half of a sliced bun; then place a slice of cheddar cheese and fresh basil leaves on the top half of the bun; and microwave for approximately 1 minute.

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We added a whole dill pickle as a side munchie to the hoagie to complete the snack.

Here is a midday snack I came up with that makes use of leftover meatballs, Red Wine Meatball with Blue Cheese and Basil Wrap:

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So, Hubby’s back in the kitchen. This time he decided to go a different direction and looked-up some recipes on a Japanese foodie site. This is what he came up with – Papa's European-Style Dinner:

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The meal consisted of hamburger steak (ball) with red wine sauce, sautéed mushroom-bacon potatoes, and carrots with creamy cheese dressing.

Here’s a way to have a relaxing fondue meal without worrying about an open flame, Crockette Fondue:

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Approximately one hour prior to serving, begin preheating by placing 2 cups of water in the Crockette (mini slow cooker) and heating on high. When you are ready to serve the fondue, empty the water from the Crockette and transfer prepared fondue cheese into the mini slow cooker. Place the Crockette on a table and plug into an electric outlet. Serve with a prepared Fondue Platter.

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For our platter we chose bread pieces, raw broccoli, raw cauliflower, raw carrot, and bratwurst.

(NOTE: Because we could not find Gruyere cheese this time, we used a prepackaged fondue cheese product found in a local supermarket. This was a real time and energy saver because all that was required to prepare the product was to heat it in the microwave for three minutes. The flavor was not that bad at all – which surprised us because we had tried a prepackaged fondue cheese product two years ago without much satisfaction.)

Here is another versatile option for a relaxing dinner for two:

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Tabletop Teriyaki Dinner

An electric skillet makes it easy to turn any tabletop into an instant mock izakaya. For our dinner we chose beef (marinated in teriyaki sauce), mushrooms, leek, veggies and cheese rolled in pork, cabbage, and greens accompanied by miso soup and rice topped with grated sesame seeds.

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In a world where the majority of households do not have typical ovens, this is an easy and delicous way to enjoy one of my favorite dishes.

Crockpot Lasagna

1 pound hamburger
1/2 medium onion (diced)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon white pepper
One 15 ounce can tomato sauce
One 41/2 ounce can mushrooms
One 15 ounce container small curd cottage cheese
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
2 cups grated parmesan cheese
9 lasagna noodles (uncooked)

Brown hamburger in a frying pan, then drain off excess grease. Stir in tomato sauce, onion, oregano, basil, parsley, thyme, and white pepper. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

Line bottom of a lightly greased crockpot with 3 lasagna noodles (break the noodles in half if necessary). Layer with 1/2 of meat sauce and 1/2 of mushrooms. Spread 5 ounces of cottage cheese evenly on top. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup mozzarella and 3/4 cup parmesan.

Repeat the layer of 3 lasagna noodles, meat sauce, mushrooms, and cheeses.

Top with 3 lasagna noodles and remaining cheeses.

Cover crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours.

Although the varieties of cheeses available to locals on Okinawa are limited, here is a different and tasty way of cooking cornbread.

Buttery Cake-Style Cornbread

1 1/4 cups flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup milk
1 egg (beaten)
1/4 cup butter (melted)
Grated cheese of your choice

Preheat oven to 250 degrees centigrade. Grease two 8 inch cake pans.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Stir in milk, butter, and egg until all ingredients are moist. Pour one-half of the batter into each pan. Place in the oven for about 7 minutes. Remove from the oven, turn oven off, and close the oven door.

Turn one cornbread upside down on a cooling rack. Sprinkle grated cheese on top of the upside down cornbread (similar to a thin layer of frosting). Replace the “frosted” cornbread in the baking pan. Place the other cornbread (right side up) on top of the “frosted” cornbread. Place back in the oven for approximately 10 – 15 minutes or until cheese has melted.

*NOTE: I make this recipe with parmesan cheese, but then I think that particular cheese goes well with just about everything!