Cod fillets with caper butter

Super Fast- ready in 15 minutes!!!

4 skinless cod fillets

coarse salt and ground pepper

3 Tb. unsalted butter, room temp.

1 Tb. capers, rinsed and drained, finely chopped

2 Tb. finely chopped fresh parsley

lemon wedges

Directions:

Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place cod on baking sheet; season both sides with salt and pepper. Broil until opaque throughout, 6-8 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together butter, capers and parsley; season with salt and pepper. Top cod with a dollop of caper butter, serve with lemon wedges.

Couscous with carrot, garlic and parsley

Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup couscous
1 medium carrot, coarsely grated
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions
In a small saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt, couscous, garlic and carrot; cover pan, and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes.
Fluff couscous with a fork. Gently stir in parsley and oil; season with salt and pepper.

Creamy tomato basil soup

4 lbs. tomatoes, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped*

2 Tbs. + 4 Tbs. olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 full handful freshly torn basil

1 Tbs. sugar

1 pint half & half

1 tsp. salt

garnish with freshly torn basil and mozzarella

Heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in large stock pot. Saute garlic for 1-2 minutes, do not brown. Add tomatoes, thyme, basil and sugar. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 25 minutes. Remove thyme sprigs. Puree soup in a blender, in batches. In each batch, drizzle about 1 Tb. olive oil while blender is on. When totally smooth, put each batch in a large bowl. When all the soup is pureed, pour it back into the stock pot. Add salt and stir well. Bring the soup back to a simmer and taste. Add desired amount of salt. Use a whisk to stir in the half & half. Serve with cheese and basil.

*To peel a tomato: cut an 'x' through the skin, but not the flesh at the base (or 'butt') of tomato. Drop into boiling water for about 10 seconds and then plunge tomato into a bowl filled with ice water. Gently peel the skin off the tomato. To seed a tomato, cut it in half widthwise, so that the stem is on one side and the base is on the other. Gently squeeze seeds out. You may need to poke your finger into the holes to get all the seeds out.

Herb crusted salmon

3 slices white sandwich bread

1 cup fresh flat leaf parsley (or favorite fresh herb- basil, oregano with pinch of thyme, cilantro etc)

1 tablespoon olive oil

coarse salt and pepper

4 skinless salmon fillets

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450. Line baking sheet with alumminum foil; set aside. In a foof processor, combine bread, herbs and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Pulse until coarse crumbs form. Place salmon on prepared sheet; season with salt and pepper. Spread top of fillets with dijon; top with crumb mixture, pressing gently to adhere. Roast until salmon is opaque throughout, 11 to 13 minutes.

Spinach Salad

The BEST salad you will ever eat (until my next recipe!)

Dressing:
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup grated onion and juices that come from grating
2 tsp. poppy seeds

In blender combine all ingredients but the poppy seeds. Blend until smooth. Add poppy seeds and pulse until throughout dressing. This makes enough dressing for 3-4 large bags of spinach. Once you try the salad, you'll want to eat it every meal till it's gone!

Salad:
spinach
dried cranberries
pecans or alomnds (pecans taste the best)
crumbled feta cheese

Toss desired amount of ingredients in bowl with dressing and serve immediately.

Steak Chili

I know it's hot outside, but the reason I make chili in the Summer is because of the amazing homegrown tomatoes I need to use!

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds steak (london broil, boneless short ribs, chuck steak)- cut into 1 inch cubes

flour for dredging
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalepeno pepper

1 small can beef broth
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoons liquid smoke
6-8 seeded and chopped fresh tomatoes or 2 (29 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
2 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
In a large pot over medium high heat, heat oil. Dredge steak in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Saute in batches until browned on the outside, but not cooked through. After each batch, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. (You may need to add more oil to the pot at this point) Add the onions and saute for 15 minutes, or until the onions are caramelized. Add tomatoes, garlic, jalepeno, beef broth and steak to the pot. Bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer, coveredfor about 2 hours, or until meat is tender. Each cut will take different times to become tender.
Add the chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, liquid smoke and black beans. Remove cover and simmer for another 15-30 minutes, or until you've reached your desired thickness

Chicken curry

4 Tb butter
3 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. groung cumin
2 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. coriander
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less depending on how spicy you like it)
salt & pepper to taste

4 Tb. flour
4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 lb. cooked, shredded chicken
1/4 cup honey

Toppings:
dry roasted peanuts
bananas
shredded coconut
mango chutney
raisins
shredded hard boiled eggs

Melt butter in large skillet over medium high heat. Add spices to make paste. Add flour to paste and cook for 2 mintues. Add broth slowly to create thick gravy. Whisk in each addition until smooth. Pour in honey a stir well. Add chicken and cook until heated through. Serve over rice with desired toppings.

Cowboy Wraps

2 Tb. red wine vinegar

1 Tb. dijon mustard

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup + 1 tsp. olive oil

1 lb. yukon gold potatoes

1/4 cup milk

2 Tb. butter softened

2 Tb. sour cream

2 Tb. green onions or chives

1 cup corn kernels

1 lb. london broil (or close to it)

1/3 cup bbq sauce

4 tortillas

Directions:

Combine vinegar, mustard, garlic & 1/4 cup olive oil in large bowl. Marinate london broil in this mixture for at least 30 minutes. Peel and boil potatoes in salted water. Drain potatoes and mash with milk, butter, sour cream, green onions and salt and pepper to taste. Broil meat for about 3-5 minutes per side, depending on desired doneness. Cut meat into small pieces Heat 1 tb. olive oil in skillet and saute corn for about 3 minutes. Add meat to skillet with corn. Add bbq sauce and stir. Spread potaatoes evenly on each tortilla. Top potatoes with corn/meat mixture and wrap. Serve immediately.

Menu for 8/11-8/24

Menu costs $3.35 per person, per dinner
Recipes are on the blog, posted for the day it states. Just go to the blog archive for all the past recipes!
8/11- BBQ pulled pork sandwiches with horseradish dijon aioli and crisp onions, carrot sticks & bell pepper slices
8/12- Orange chicken, stir fry veggies & egg rolls
8/13- Soft tacos & orange slices
8/14- Chicken cutlets, asparagus & green bean, cherry and almond salad
8/15- Eggplant lasagna, tossed salad & garlic bread
8/16- Coconut milk pasta & summer thai salad
8/17- Stuffed pork chops with cilantro cream sauce, spanish rice & broccoli
8/18- Chicken satay, naan bread & roasted veggies
8/19- French toast, bacon & strawberries
8/20- Stuffed portabello mushrooms & citrus salad
8/21- Black bean cakes, Chevy's corn casserole, broccoli & orange slices
8/22- Thai Magic Chicken, brown rice & peas
8/23- Southwest casserole, apple slices
8/24- Meatball subs, green beans & orange slices

Shopping List:
Shopping list is based on four people. (Based on TJ's & Safeway's prices) Remember to freeze meat until ready for use. Also, make sure to refrigerate bread and fruit to make them last for the full two weeks.
Trader Joe's
1 bottle BBQ sauce
16 oz. orange juice
1 loaf bread
2 pkgs. bell peppers
1 pkg. Mandarin Orange Chicken
1 pkg. Bejing Style Stir Fry Vegetables
1 pkg. vegetable spring rolls
6 oranges
1 pkg. fresh spinach
1 pkg. asparagus
1 lb. parmesan cheese (fresh, not grated)
1 package frozen green beans
1 pkg dried bing cherries
1 pkg. sliced almonds
1 bag avocadoes
2 pkgs shredded mozzarella cheese
2 pkgs bagged salad
3 jars/cans spaghetti sauce
1 container ricotta cheese
1 container cottage cheese
1 doz eggs
1 pkg. garlic naan bread (frozen section)
1 loaf parbaked french bread
1 can coconut milk
2 bags basmati rice
1 small container vanilla yogurt (indiviual size)
4 cans black beans
1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. tortillas
1 pkg cheddar cheese
1 container sour cream
1 pkg peanuts
1 pkg green onions
3 bags frozen corn
1 pkg broccoli
1 bag tortilla chips
5 apples
4 portabello mushrooms
Safeway:
1 2-3 lb. pork shoulder roast
good rolls for bbq sandwiches (& meatball subs)
strawberries
French's onions (green bean casserole onions)
8 carrots
5 tomatoes
1 pkg shredded lettuce for tacos
2 pkgs chicken breast
1 large eggplant
1 head napa cabbage
1 bunch cilantro
1 handful snow peas (from the bulk section)
1 1 inch piece of ginger (bulk section, just break off the size you need)
1 package of top ramen
1 small can water chestnuts
4 pork chops
2 onions
1 pkg. panko breadcrumbs
1 small package frozen meatballs
*Pantry Items:
milk
flour
honey
mayonnaise
cream of chicken soup
dijon mustard
horseradish
curry powder
cayenne pepper
lime juice
rice vinegar
red wine vinegar
balsamic vinegar
soy sauce
fresh garlic
garlic powder
olive oil
canola oil
butter
peanut butter
bread crumbs
masa
corn meal
baking powder
ground cumin
chili powder
italian seasoning
good seasons italian dressing packets
sugar

* pantry items are things that are usually already in your kitchen. If you do not have these items, just add them to your shopping list.