Summer Isles: Mango and Peach Tilapia Zoodles

Sorry doesn't make the noodles!

Mr. Ping, Kung Fu Panda

Noodles are great.  Noodles made of zucchini (and other squash)?  Even better, because you get to eat a ton of them and not feel bad!  I recently got a vegetable spiralizer and discovered zoodles, so I decided to take advantage of my new toy and make a really good, summer-inspired dinner.  If you don't have a spiralizer, you can either julienne the squash, or peel them into ribbons.

What you need:

• 3 large yellow squash spiralized
• 2 large zucchini spiralized
• 1 lb tilapia filets
• 4 tbsp peach hot sauce
• 1 cup frozen mango slices
• 1 cup frozen peach slices
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 6 tbsp vegetable broth
• 2 tbsp fresh cilantro

Be sure to let your frozen fruit thaw (at least mostly). Obviously you can just bypass this step by using fresh fruit.

Heat the spiraled vegetables in a skillet, just to get them warm.  Drain and place in a bowl.

Brush the tops of your tilapia filets with 1 tbsp of the peach hot sauce, place the filets on a greased baking sheet, and broil on high for 6 minutes on each side (12 minutes total), or until fish is cooked through and flaky.

While the fish cooks, combine broth, fruit, lime juice, and the remaining 3 tbsp of hot sauce in a blender and blend until you have a smooth and creamy sauce.

When fish is done, use a fork to flake the fish, and combine the zoodles, flaked fish, cilantro and sauce in a large bowl.  Stir well so the zoodles and fish are coated in the sauce and cilantro, and serve!

The recipe makes about 4 dinner servings or more appetizer servings. 

House Baratheon: Venison Gnocchi with Kale

In the world I see... you are stalking elk through the damp canyon forests around the ruins of Rockefeller Center. You'll wear leather clothes that will last you the rest of your life. You'll climb the wrist-thick kudzu vines that wrap the Sears Tower. And when you look down, you'll see tiny figures pounding corn, laying strips of venison on the empty car pool lane of some abandoned superhighway.

Tyler Durden, Fight Club.

Awhile back, I acquired several delicious, less common meats, one of which was the yak  I made sambussas out of.  Today's recipe was made with the second of the interesting meats: Venison.  It was incredibly simple to make, delicious, and filling.  If you don't have access to venison, ground bison or lean ground beef would work just as well.  I split the dish into four servings, but it could go farther if you served it with some sides.

What you need:

• 1 lb. ground venison
• 2 bunches Lacinato Kale, torn into pieces, stems removed
• 1 medium sized yellow onion, diced
• 1 lb. Whole Wheat Gnocchi
• 6 oz. can Tomato Paste
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• Salt and pepper, to taste

To begin, season the meat with cumin, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and let sit while you get everything else going.  If I'm being honest, I probably used more cumin and red pepper than 1 tsp each, but 1 tsp will give you a nice flavor, so you can go with that or add more, whichever is to your liking.  Next, cook the gnocchi according to the directions on the package.  Once it is cooked, drain, toss in 1 tbsp olive oil, and set aside.

Next, heat remaining oil and garlic over medium high heat in a large skillet or wok.  When the garlic is fragrant, add the onions, cooking until they are translucent.  Once your onions are translucent, add the ground meat and tomato paste to the skillet.

Once the meat has browned, add in the kale.  You will have to add the kale bit by bit because it takes up so much room at first, but once it starts to wilt, you can fit everything.

Once all of your kale is stirred in and wilted, pour the gnocchi in, stir everything up, and then enjoy!

Martell Gazpacho

It's not blood, it's tomato juice!

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!

When I was in Spain, my favorite thing to eat was gazpacho.  Even the grocery store gazpacho was delicious.  It is the perfect summer dish, in my mind.  After getting the vitamix, I vowed to make a delicious gazpacho once the weather turned nice, and I am happy to say I succeeded in my goal.  It's an incredibly simple recipe, and took all of 20 minutes to make (and that includes the time spent rough-chopping the vegetables).  And the best part?  The only clean-up required involved wiping down the cutting board and the vitamix.  Couldn't be simpler.  The recipe makes about 8 cups, so serve it as an appetizer for a summer dinner party, have it for lunch during the week, or let it be dinner for a couple of nights!

What you need:

• 2 lbs Tomatoes, stems removed and quartered
• 4 inch slice of French Baguette (and then you can eat the rest of the baguette with the soup!)
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced
• 1 small-medium yellow onion, quartered
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 poblano pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• Salt & Pepper to taste. 

Other than chopping your veggies, the only other prep you need to do is to soak the piece of bread in water, and once it is saturated, squeeze the water out as best you an and throw it in the blender with everything else.  Start by putting the tomatoes, poblano, and cucumber in the vitamix, and let it run just long enough to liquefy everything and give you some more room in the blender (assuming the veggies have filled it up!).  Then add the rest of the ingredients and blend on high until it is smooth.  Don't let the soup get hot!  Pour the soup into a large serving bowl or pitcher and refrigerate for at least an hour, to be sure it is nicely chilled upon serving.

Summer Islands: Chicken and Tomato Salad

You know, elf tastes just like chicken!

Mystery Science Theater 3000

It has finally gotten warm and wonderful here in Tennessee, and as such, I have been on a huge salad kick.  The most recent salad was a smorgasbord of delicious, summery things, including chicken, corn taken straight from the cob, tomatoes, avocado, thyme and parsley fresh from the garden, and a "ranch" dressing which was augmented to be a little lighter on the calories than a regular ranch.  The result?  A filling, refreshing dish for 4 (or in our case, 2 nights' worth of meals for 2). I think the only thing that might have improved it would have been having the ability to cook the chicken, corn, and onions on the grill.  That said, the oven did a fine job for me.

What you need:

      For the dressing:

• 1/4 cup 1% milk
• 3 tbsp nonfat plain greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste

     For the salad:

• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 yellow tomatoes, sliced
• 2 red tomatoes, sliced
• 1 small container cherry tomatoes (the container we bought had a little over 1 cup of tomatoes)
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 2 ears of corn

To start, mix together all of the ingredients for the dressing and set aside.  You can go ahead and stick it in the refrigerator to keep it cool.

Next, brush the chicken breasts with oil, place on a baking sheet, and broil on high for about 6-7 minutes a side, or until it is cooked through.  Set aside to cool.

Turn the broiler off and set the oven to 450.  After shucking the corn, brush each cob with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, wrap each cob in foil individually, and bake for 20-25 minutes.

While the corn is starting to bake, slice the onion, place the slices on an oiled baking sheet, and place in oven when there is about 11 minutes left on the corn's timer.

As the onion and corn are finishing up, slice your tomatoes and avocado, and dice up the chicken breasts.

When the corn is done, cut the kernels off of the cob.

Mix everything together in a large bowl, divide evenly between four plates, drizzle with dressing, and serve.

House Tully: Salmon Tacos

Never underestimate how much assistance, how much satisfaction, how much comfort, how much soul and transcendence there might be in a well-made taco and a cold bottle of beer.

Tom Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume.

These tacos were easy to make and absolutely delicious!  I'm a big fan of salmon and fish tacos, so I opted to use salmon as the fish.  If you are not a fan of salmon, a milder fish like Tilapia would also work.

What you need:

• 1lb Wild Alaskan Salmon fillets, skin removed
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 20 baby bell peppers
• 1 cup non-fat plain greek yogurt
• Salsa (just enough to put on 8 tacos)
• 8 small corn tortillas
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 4 tbsp lime juice

To start, oil a baking sheet and spread out your peppers on it, making sure they are lightly oiled, as well. 

Broil on high for about 3 minutes, flip the peppers over, and broil another 3 minutes.  

After the peppers have cooled, slice into strips.

Next, mix together the chili powder and paprika and rub the fish fillets with the mixture.  Broil your fillets on high for 4 minutes on each side, or until your fish is cooked and flaky.  Flake the broiled fish with a fork and put it in a bowl.

Mix together the yogurt, lime juice, and garlic.

Spray a skillet with cooking oil, heat over medium-high heat, and cook your tortillas one by one.  Just cook them long enough on each side to get them lightly charred.

In your corn tortillas, assemble the fish, peppers, yogurt, and salsa.  Any salsa will do, but I used some fantastic Cowboy Caviar from Trader Joe's.

At two tacos each, this will serve four people.  I made some spicy rice to go with it, and it made for a very satisfying dinner! 

A Feast for Crows: Black Bean Soup

A census taker once tried to test me.  I ate his liver with some lava beans and a nice chianti.

Hannibal Lector, Silence of the Lambs

Ok, so I will give you that this soup looks less than appetizing, mostly owing to it's brown, creamy texture, but don't let the looks deceive you, this soup was delicious!

What you need:

• 1 can Bush's Black Beans Seasoned Recipe
• 1/2 Onion
• 2 tbsp garlic
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 jalapeño pepper
• 1 cup corn
• 2 medium carrots
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp cilantro
• 1 sweet potato 
• 2 celery stalks
• 2 cups vegetable broth

To start, preheat the oven to 400 degrees, cut the sweet potato into about 1" chunks and slice the jalapeño, removing the seeds.  Next, grease a baking sheet and lay out the corn, onion, jalapeño, and sweet potato in a single layer.  

Roast for approximately 20 minutes or until everything looks slightly browned and delicious.

While everything is roasted, blend the vegetable broth, cilantro, carrots, celery, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic, and lime juice.  When everything is combined in the blender, add the black beans and give it a quick blend.  Once all but the roasted vegetables have been combined, spoon in your roasted veggies, leaving out about a third of the sweet potato and a fourth of the corn.  

Blend everything until smooth and creamy.  If you are using a Vitamix, blend for about 8 minutes on high so the mixture will be piping hot.  Stir in the reserved corn and sweet potato after blending and serve.  If you are using a regular blender, transfer the mixture to a sauce pan, add in the reserved corn and sweet potato, and heat.  

Green Men: Roasted Asparagus Soup

What about this: a tribe of asparagus children, but they're self conscious about the way their pee smells.

Elf.

After Christmas was over, I decided to go ahead and get myself another gift: a Vitamix!  I've been wanting one of these babies for quite some time now, and I finally pulled the trigger.  I couldn't be happier with my decision.  I think I am actually in love with an inanimate object.  This delicious roasted asparagus soup was my first vitamix recipe, and it was great.  In retrospect, I would probably leave a few spares of asparagus out of the blender, cut them up, and then stir them into the blended soup at the end, just to give it a little more texture.

What you need:

• 2 lbs. Asparagus
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp cashew butter
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• Salt, to taste

First, preheat your oven to 450 degrees.  Grease a pan and lay out all of your asparagus spears.  Once the oven heats up, throw the asparagus in for about 8 minutes.  Take the tray out, rotate your spears, and add onion and garlic to the baking tray.  Roast for another 6 minutes or until everything looks sufficiently roasted.

While everything is roasting, put the broth and cashew butter into the blender. When your veggies are done, toss those in the blender, too.  If your blender has a hot soup setting, you can use that, otherwise blend for about 8 minutes on high to make it hot.  If you don't have a vitamix or blendtec, worry not.  Just blend everything together, transfer to a sauce pan, and heat the mixture up.  

When the soup is nice and hot, place it in bowls, and pour (or squeeze) some of that lemon juice in.

Theon Greyjoy's Spinach Balls

These crescent-shaped nubs once had been gilded, and flecks of gold leaf still clung to them,

like spinach to teeth.

Tom Robbins, Skinny Legs and All

Growing up, I always loved these little balls of goodness.  My mom would make them once a year for her annual christmas party, and I always looked forward to this appetizer in particular.  Once I was out on my own, I made my mother give me the recipe, and I've made them several times since then.  They always put a smile on my face and are incredibly easy to make.  This year, I made a batch to bring to Christmas Eve, and as usual, they were a hit!

What you need:

• 2 packages of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained.
• 2 1/2 cups pepperidge farm herbed stuffing mix
• 3/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix together all of your ingredients except for the stuffing.  Once everything is blended together, add the stuffing and let stand for 20 minutes.  Grease a tray, form the mixture into balls, and then bake for 20 minutes.  

The mixture setting.