Salmon Teriyaki Stir Fry- BOOM!

You know those days when you are just glancing in your fridge… feeling totally uninspired. Grubhub.com is calling your name, Chinese…Pizza… ugh. It's cold, you're tired, but no… no not today sir. Today you will fix your posture, sit up tall and say NO! I will not order takeout when there are two delicious pieces of salmon wrapped up ready to be cooked sitting in your fridge. Don't worry lil guys, i'm gonna eatcha. Another annoying thing I faced when putting this together… pretty much half of my veggies in my fridge were bad. Great. Great? Well lets think outside of the box here. What do I need to make my teriyaki sauce? That jarred sauce is quietly calling to you… use me… use me… and although it is so easy to just plop it on and call it a day, take a look at the amount of sugar and sodium in that ish- no thank you. Heres what I need: low sodium tamari, water, honey, garlic, ginger, mirin (check and check) What veggies? Well, my onion isn't bad yet, or my red bell pepper… I've got some leftover broccoli florets from a crudite platter, and wait! and some scallions that have maybe a day left! There's NO greater satisfaction than cooking, even when you really don't want to, and creating a delicious and healthy meal knowing you were one step away from a grease-fest for dinner. This stir fry dish with some steamed brown rice (trader joe's frozen short grain brown rice is my go-to) and you are filled with sweet, savory, and scrumptious yumminess that won't make you feel bad about grabbing that scoop of ice cream for dessert ;-)

Teriyaki Salmon with Stir-Fried Veggies
2, 8 ounce wild salmon filets (one for me one for the hub)
1 tbs sesame oil
1 tbs minced garlic
1 tbs minced ginger
1/3 cup low sodium tamari
1/3 cup water
2 tbs mirin
2 tbs honey
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
1 medium sized yellow onion, sliced thin
1 cup broccoli florets

Step 1: In a sauce pan over medium heat, add your sesame oil, then HALF of the ginger and garlic, sauté until golden (less than a minute.) Add  your tamari, mirin, honey, and a dash of salt and pepper, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 4 minutes. Let cool

Step 2: Once marinade is cooled, place HALF of it in a plastic bag with your salmon, make sure its coated. and pop it in the fridge for an hour or up to 3 hours. Reserve remaining marinade for veggies

Step 3: Set your oven to broil. Place the fish on a foil lined sheet, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place in the oven- this may take as quickly as 5 minutes depending on the thickness of your fish, keep an eye on it. (Looking for spring-back)

Step 3: Get a wok nice and hot. Add a dash of sesame oil and the remaining garlic and ginger, cook for about 30 seconds, then add your broccoli, cook for 2 minutes, add red bell pepper and onions, cook for an additional 2 minutes and then add the rest of the marinade and cook until the liquid pretty much gone (about another minute)

Top with some sesame seeds, chopped scallions, your salmon and steamed brown rice- unreal meal.

ENJOY!

Flexin' Mussels, Man.

I admit, I need to amp up my seafood consumption. It's not that I don't love it, I do, but seafood often is way more temperamental as far as a last minute decision to cook something. Especially shellfish. I LOVE shellfish, I mean… who doesn't? Unless you are deathly allergic I rarely stumble across someone who doesn't love a heaping bowl of piping hot mussels. Yum. Mussels are such a blank canvas, it's all about the broth, which is what I love about them. One night I can do spicy mussels with tomato and white wine, or creamy coconut milk and curry, but tonight I do one of my favorite renditions… fennel and white wine. Not only are they easy to make, they are quite impressive if I don't say so maself. Great for mass-feeding, a crunchy piece of garlicky toasted baguette for sopping up that amazing broth and nomnonom- you're ready to feast.

Mussels w/ Fennel and White Wine

1.5-2 lbs mussels

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp red pepper flakes

2 large bulbs fennel, sliced thin (Using my trusty mandolin always does the trick, reserve the fronds)

2 leeks, sliced thin, soaked in water to remove sand!

3 cloves garlic, minced

2/3 cup Pernod

1 cup white wine (I use a Sauvignon Blanc here, but any wine you would drink with)

1/2 cup chicken stock (can use seafood stock, but chicken stock is easier to get)

1 tsp cane sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 bunch fresh thyme

1 bunch flat leaf parlsey

Step 1: In a large dutch oven (hehe) over medium heat, add the olive oil and red pepper flakes. Let sizzle for about a minute until fragrant. Add your fennel, stir to coat in the olive oil and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the leeks for another 3 minutes, and then your garlic until all are translucent.

Step 2: Add your Pernod and white wine, crank up the heat a bit and let it reduce a little (about 3 minutes) add your stock, sugar, salt, pepper, fennel fronds, thyme, and parsley. Let cook for another 3-4 minutes.

Step 3: Debeard your mussels. Here my trusty prep cook and future husband Aaron was sent to do the job. Primarily because he's just so good at it! and I don't wanna do it! Add your mussels into the pot, cover and let steam for about 7-9 minutes just until they open.

Step 4: Remove the herbs, toast up yo bread, and dig in!

ENJOY!

Deep Dish Spicy Bison Noodle-free Lasagna

Lasagna, lasagna, you mock me so. For years I made mundane lasagnas, yes I can describe them as such because they just fell flat, boring, lifeless, (sigh) lasagna. As someone who cooks for flavor but also for health one of the biggest challenges I face that non-health conscious cooks do not is how the hell do I replace the 'delicious'. In lasagna that is usually gobs of cheese, maybe a béchamel sauce, and of course the pasta. Now sometimes I do make lasagna with a layer or two of pasta, it usually is me just being lazy, especially those no-boil noodles, damn you no-boil noodles for making lasagna making so much easier. I have tried to morph myself into a no-noodle lasagna gal, but its been rough. The vegetables that one replaces noodles with in lasagna, usually zucchini or eggplant, bleed water- which makes sense because over 90% of their composition is water. Excess moisture = soupy-ass lasagna. The noodles in lasagna typically act to suck up all of that moisture, so in their absence we need to troubleshoot to get rid of it. Damn you lasagna gods! Why must you make it so hard for me to make this recipe healthier! BAH! 

Ok, compose yourself. Breathe. Ok i'm back. So back to bulking up the greatness of lasagna sans-fat, how do I solve this dilemma? FLAVOR. Surprise! You don't need all of that fat to create something delicious, we add in layers of different flavors so you don't even miss it. I mess around with a million different types of lasagna: pulled chicken, squash, and kale lasagna, roasted vegetable lasagna, but tonight I made a spicy bison lasagna. I usually make my own sauce and keep it in my freezer, I spice it up here, but you can definitely grab a good jar of tomato sauce from your local grocer. My favorite will always be Rao's, thanks mom. To slice the vegetables evenly I use a mandolin- you can buy them at any kitchen supply store, but I must warn you... I have chopped off teeny parts of my finger using this tool, it may look all pretty and nice but that blade is no joke. It works the best for even slicing but it is not a tool to use while on the cell phone, watching the bachelor, or in-between painting your nails. The eggplant and zucchini require a little more work, but the end result is totally worth it.

Deep Dish Spicy Bison Noodle-free Lasagna
1 Jar of your favorite spicy tomato sauce (I add a heaping pinch of red pepper flakes to some olive oil in a pan, add my sauce, and let simmer slightly- I also recommend Rao's Fra Diavlo Sauce, its amazing)
1 lb ground bison
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 large zucchinis, sliced to 1/4 inch in thickness
2 eggplants, sliced to 1/4 inch in thickness
1, 15 oz container part-skim ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 tbs dried basil
1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded smoked mozzarella (can find at Italian specialty stores, or grocers with solid cheese selections)

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375, preheat a skillet on medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil, add your garlic, sauté until light brown, about 45 seconds, then add in your bison. Season with salt and pepper until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes, drain any excess moisture and set aside.

Step 2: On two different sheet trays, line up eggplant and zucchini, sprinkling both with salt. Place in the oven- eggplant will take about 3-5 minutes (looking for tender), zucchini about 5-7 minutes. The zucchini will bleed water, now is your time to get down and go at that zucchini with paper towels so it is as dry as humanly possible. I even go at it piece by piece. 

Step 3: Combine ricotta cheese, egg, dried basil and parmesan cheese and whisk together with a fork.

Step 4: Spray a spring form pan with non stick and wipe with a paper towel to remove any excess. Start to layer: A little bit of sauce, eggplant (or zucchini) whatever you prefer, 1/2 ricotta cheese mixture, 1/2 bison, and 1/2 mozzarella. Repeat.

Step 5: Top the final layer with a little tomato sauce, some parmesan cheese and some mozzarella, cover with foil and place in the oven for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and cook for another 15.

Step 6: LET IT COOL. If I can, with basically every lasagna I make, I refrigerate it or let it sit at room temperature for several hours. Have you tried slicing right into a hot lasagna? It's called slop pile. Let things tighten up a bit, and then when you are ready to eat pop it back in a 415 degree oven just until warms through, about 10 minutes.

Step 7: Remove the sides of the pan....

Use a SHARP KNIFE, and give yaself a slice. ENJOY!